Chapter Twenty: The Power of Time (Part II)

“Did you say someone is going around snatching mirrors?” At this moment, Sun Meng and Li Mingzhen came out, and Li Mingzhen had heard Xiaolong’s words. “Are you certain the intruder was after the mirror?” He frowned, striding over to Xiaolan and taking the mirror from her hands.

“This is the special mirror, isn’t it?” Xiaolong asked.

Li Mingzhen let out a sigh. “That’s right. The master who once wrote the Tome of Power, before his death, used a special method to seal a fragment of his consciousness along with a powerful demon inside this mirror. Every hundred years, at sunset, if a pure-hearted person looks into the mirror, they will see the master. He will answer their first question and then vanish. However, if the person is not pure of heart, the demon will be released. The demon will not return to the mirror until sunrise the next day, awaiting the next centennial.”

“I never would have thought it was all because of this mirror. Why not destroy it, then? And how easy is it to find someone truly pure of heart?” Sun Meng remarked.

“I’m not sure if, during the last centennial, anyone managed to ask a question. But one thing is certain: if the mirror is destroyed, the demon will be set free. I’ve searched through ancient texts and found no other way to eliminate that demon.”

“There’s someone here!” A shout came from outside, followed by footsteps.

Xiaohu glanced out the window. “It’s the Black Fox Gang—they’ve found us!”

“We have to fend them off first, then bring the mirror back to Shaolin Temple,” Sun Meng said, looking at Li Mingzhen. “Master Li, will you come with us? The Black Fox Gang might target you if you stay here.”

Li Mingzhen handed the mirror to Shaotan. “No need, I have my own ways to evade them. You’d better hurry back! By my count, tomorrow is the centennial day—be cautious.”

“Take care, elder!” Sun Meng, Xiaolong, and the others bowed to Li Mingzhen and quickly rushed out the door.

“Black Fox Gang—take this!” Xiaolan charged at the front, her whip in hand transforming almost into a nimble serpent, coiling around the weapons of the leading Black Fox thugs and, with a flick, knocking them into others.

Xiaolong and Xiaohu focused on blocking attacks with their weapons, then using fists and feet to knock their foes down.

“Cover your ears!” Sun Meng shouted after gauging the enemies’ numbers.

The trio instantly understood his intent. The next moment, a lion’s roar echoed across the hill. The Black Fox Gang stumbled and fell, and Sun Meng and the others seized the opportunity to kick them all down the slope, piling them together.

“Let’s move, quickly!” Sun Meng urged, picking up the pace. Xiaolan and the others fell silent, concentrating on the journey.

Meanwhile, once the Black Fox Gang members regained consciousness, they reported the encounter to the Black Fox King.

“Hmph! Useless fools!” the Black Fox King struck one of his men dead with a casual blow, then turned to the Tome of Power on the table. “I must have the secret of the second volume! Since the Shaolin monks were encountered at that place, perhaps the mirror has already been taken to Shaolin Temple. If that’s the case…”

Sun Meng and his companions returned to Shaolin Temple, handing over the medicine and the mirror to the abbot, and relaying Li Mingzhen’s words to Master Sanzang.

“It seems the Black Fox King’s true target is this mirror,” Sanzang said, accepting the mirror. “I shall keep it in my own quarters. No one but me may enter, unless the Black Fox King breaks in himself—otherwise, he’ll never get his hands on it.”

Ever since the Tome of Power was stolen from the library, Sanzang had felt uneasy about the security of that place, but there was nowhere else to keep the mirror safer than his own room, located deep within Shaolin Temple and not far from the library.

“Abbot, another group of villagers has arrived—this time, their injuries are severe, and we’re running out of medicine!” a monk ran in to report.

“Perfect, we’ll help,” Sun Meng said, grabbing the medicine kit and leading Xiaolong and the others outside with the monk. By now, a simple shelter had been set up in the courtyard, filled with wounded villagers. Some were being carried in on stretchers, unconscious.

Sun Meng and his companions hurried over to assist, distributing medicine to those in need.

Yet Sun Meng’s mind was not entirely on the task. According to those on Earth, the Black Fox King likely knew the mirror was at Shaolin Temple and would attempt to steal it.

Even though the temple was busy, its defenses were robust, especially near the library, where monks stood guard in shifts. Even the Black Fox King couldn’t break in without alerting the sentries.

Still, a vague sense of unease gnawed at Sun Meng. The system had identified the mirror as a rare item, naming it the “Sealed Spirit Mirror,” confirming the legend: a monster was indeed trapped inside.

If, come sunset tomorrow, the mirror remained safe, all would be well. But if the Black Fox King seized it, or released the creature within, could Sanzang truly defeat him?

Would Sun Meng ultimately obtain the mirror to complete his mission? These questions circled endlessly in his mind.

Suddenly, a red message flashed across the barrage: “Contestant, there’s something wrong with that villager in the corner.”

Sun Meng glanced toward the wall, where several gravely wounded villagers lay. “What is it?”

“That woman—she opened her eyes just now and looked around, but her gaze was wrong.” Sun Meng frowned. Since those on Earth shared his perspective, he must have glanced that way by chance, but now the individuals there appeared ordinary.

To be safe, he walked over. “How are these people?” he asked the monk tending the wounded.

“Brother Shaotan, their injuries are severe—broken bones, head trauma. I’ve given them medicine, but they’ll need to be taken into the main hall for shelter tonight.” Sun Meng looked at them, focusing on the woman in particular. She was a herb-gathering village wife—hardly the image of a martial artist.

“I’ll help,” he said, approaching them. Even when he lightly brushed against the woman, she showed no reaction.

Not until the moon rose were all the injured in the temple treated. The day’s exhaustion wore on everyone, and even Xiaolong and the others collapsed into bed as soon as they returned to their rooms.

Meanwhile, in the main hall, the village woman who had caught the audience’s attention opened her eyes and leapt to the rafters.

She slipped out the window and quickly arrived outside Sanzang’s quarters.

Peering through the window, she saw the mirror on the table. She pushed the window open and jumped inside, reaching for the mirror—when suddenly her body froze.

“So there was something amiss. You’re the Black Fox King, aren’t you?” Sun Meng’s voice reached her ears. She looked down to see her own shadow pinned by another.

“I didn’t expect my disguise to be seen through. But can you really stop me?” Sun Meng felt a surge of dread. Suddenly, a force within him caused his shadow to accelerate, freeing itself just in time.

The woman’s body, now shrouded in a black whirlwind, burst through the window and landed on the roof of the library, mirror in hand.

The commotion woke Abbot Sanzang, who leapt up and struck at the Black Fox King.

But the Black Fox King had no intention of clashing head-on. Using the force of Sanzang’s blow, he was sent flying and quickly escaped.

“Are you all right?” Sanzang came over to check on Sun Meng. Just now, Sun Meng had used a secret technique from the Shadow-Stealing Divine Skill, but after the Black Fox King broke through it, he suffered backlash.

“I’m fine. I was prepared for this. Still, I didn’t expect the gap between myself and the Black Fox King to be so great. Can he really be defeated?” Sun Meng wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. His reflexes had been quick, yet he’d still suffered internal injuries.

“I don’t know. The Black Fox King is a figure from a thousand years ago. Though I can match him move for move, his methods far surpass the martial arts of this era. For now, we must trust in the abbot’s words and help Xiaolong and the others grow stronger as quickly as possible.”

Sun Meng nodded. “I wonder what the Black Fox King will think of the mirror now.”

Sanzang smiled. “I doubt he’ll be pleased with the mirror I’ve given him.”