Chapter 2018: Reunion

Zhang Zitong was utterly confused. Seeing his smile, she couldn't help but ask, "What's going on?"

"There's a space hidden behind this mirror," Zu An said, his fingers quickly tapping and moving the patterned beast carvings and other decorations in the corners of the screen wall. "Someone performed some concealing magic here. It's likely that Chi Fuzi is behind this."

Immediately, a faint blue light appeared on the entire wall. As the surrounding arrangement changed, the light quickly began to fade.

The screen wall no longer looked like a solid wall; instead, it rippled like water.

Zhang Zitong reached out a finger and lightly touched it. Rings of water-like ripples quickly spread out, and she exclaimed in surprise, "My lord, there really is a space behind it!"

Zu An found it amusing to see her so fascinated, like a child. He wondered how this girl had managed to become a Silver-rank Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Just then, Zhang Zitong suddenly cried out as if pulled inward by a hand from beyond the space, and she tumbled into it.

Zu An's expression changed. He instantly grabbed her other hand, feeling a powerful suction.

A thought struck him: this seemed to be the power of space, not someone attacking them from behind.

In the blink of an eye, both of them were pulled inside the screen wall.

A sensation of weightlessness came over them, and they landed on the ground.

Zhang Zitong stumbled and couldn't stand firm, but fortunately, Zu An was holding her hand, which allowed her to regain her balance.

"Thank you, my lord." Feeling the warmth from his palm, Zhang Zitong's heart pounded. She thought, "Though my lord usually seems aloof, he truly cares about me. Otherwise, he wouldn't have instantly grabbed my hand to save me."

"Are you scared?" Zu An asked, sensing her abnormally fast heartbeat, feeling a little puzzled.

Zhang Zitong initially wanted to say no, but after a second thought, she shyly nodded. "I haven't encountered anything like this before. I am a little scared."

*This way, I can legitimately keep holding my lord's hand, right?*

Unfortunately, Zu An didn't give her the chance. He naturally released her hand. "There's nothing to be afraid of. Just follow behind me."

"Oh." Zhang Zitong couldn't help but feel a little disappointed, but seeing him subtly shield her by standing slightly in front, her mood brightened a bit.

Only then did she have the presence of mind to look around. Seeing the familiar architecture nearby, she was startled. "Huh, are we still in the same place?"

"Of course not. This is the world behind that screen wall now," Zu An said, walking forward.

Zhang Zitong quickly followed. "Hmm, it does seem a bit different. Many places are mirror images of where we were, and the sky is hazy and looks rather eerie and sinister."

Zu An used his Spirit-Sensing Jade Cong to scan the area; there were no living animals around.

His divine sense couldn't extend very far either. Evidently, the mist was obstructing spiritual perception.

Accustomed to using his divine sense, he felt like he had become blind in this situation, which was truly disorienting.

The two walked up a bluestone path, which led to another courtyard. All four sides of the courtyard had open doors, each leading to a bluestone path descending downwards.

"Why do all these doors look exactly the same?" Zhang Zitong looked back, a shiver running down her spine. "And the path we came from looks the same too!"

Her voice echoed repeatedly in the courtyard, adding to the eerie atmosphere.

Zu An, however, remained calm. He continued walking forward along the long bluestone path. The two discovered they had returned to the exact point where they had entered. The screen wall stood before them, but now it was solid stone without any water-like ripples.

"We can't go back!" Zhang Zitong's voice trembled. She couldn't understand what was happening to her. Usually, when encountering danger, she was decisive and quickly found solutions, but now, beside Lord Eleven, she felt like a weak woman and was surprisingly afraid.

"It turned into a solid wall right after we entered. Didn't you notice?" Zu An replied casually, simultaneously surveying the surrounding terrain.

Zhang Zitong felt a bit ashamed; she had indeed been careless. "We were clearly walking forward just now, so why did we end up back here?"

"Many formations have similar effects. The space here is somewhat distorted, which can mislead a person's sense of direction," Zu An explained as he continued to walk forward.

"Is this like the legendary 'ghost wall'?" Zhang Zitong asked, seeing him continue forward, puzzled. "Didn't we already go this way? Shouldn't we try another path?"

"It does resemble a 'ghost wall,' but this is clearly more sophisticated," Zu An replied. "Most people, after experiencing what just happened, would instinctively look for another path, not realizing that doing so would play right into the other side's hands. We need to keep going forward. I need to figure out exactly how the spatial dislocation here works."

He paused, then added, "This time, you walk in front?"

"Huh?" Zhang Zitong's face fell instantly.

*Is my lord going to make me go first to trigger traps?* She had heard that some Embroidered Uniform Guards were ruthless and would use subordinates as cannon fodder for reconnaissance.

*But Lord Eleven shouldn't be that kind of person.*

She took a deep breath. "Alright!"

She immediately strode forward with her long legs, but instead of her usual valiant demeanor, she took small, hesitant steps, like a young lady from a sheltered household.

Seeing her trembling a little, Zu An chuckled. "Don't be afraid, I'll protect you."

Zhang Zitong finally relaxed and, emboldened, asked, "My lord, why do you need me to walk in front?"

"Two reasons. Firstly, I need to observe from outside the situation." Zu An didn't hide anything.

"Outside the situation?" Zhang Zitong was puzzled.

Zu An explained, "Those involved often can't see clearly, while observers can. I need to use your long strides as a reference to gauge the conditions of this space."

"Ah?" Zhang Zitong had never expected that to be the reason. While she had always been most satisfied with her legs, this was the first time she learned they had such a purpose.

Seeing his serious expression, Zhang Zitong didn't let her mind wander, fearing she might disturb his thoughts. "What's the other reason?"

"Oh, it's just that in a tense environment like this, admiring a pair of long legs makes me feel happier, and perhaps it'll make it easier to figure out a solution," Zu An said with a smile.

"My lord..." Zhang Zitong pouted playfully, thinking, *Is he flirting with me?*

"Don't you feel less nervous now?" Zu An looked at her.

"It does feel a lot lighter." Zhang Zitong thought, *So my lord was trying to reassure me. I knew it; someone as serious as him wouldn't flirt with me.*

However, a strange sense of disappointment welled up in her heart.

The two continued chatting and laughing as they walked up a long bluestone path, arriving at a courtyard with doors on all four sides. They chose the door directly ahead and walked down another bluestone path, only to, predictably, return to their starting point.

The surroundings had been growing increasingly eerie, but Zhang Zitong, thinking her lord was watching her legs from behind, didn't feel cold at all. Instead, she felt a warmth radiating from her legs.

"So that's how it is." Zu An's voice suddenly broke the silence.

Zhang Zitong was startled. "My lord, have you figured something out?"

"It seems like we've returned to the starting point, but this isn't the true origin," Zu An said. "The formation's creator deliberately created many identical buildings to mislead those who enter, making them subconsciously believe they'll always return to the same spot no matter how they walk. This causes increasing panic and leads to various wrong decisions." As he spoke, Zu An had already produced a formation plate, his fingers quickly tapping, sending small flags flying in all directions into the void.

Immediately after, he suddenly grabbed a handful of talismans and threw them out. The talismans quickly scattered, automatically transforming into small paper cranes.

Flapping their wings, they flew in the directions where the formation flags had gone.

Zhang Zitong's eyes widened, for she saw many small light dots moving on Lord Eleven's formation plate, clearly representing the departing paper cranes.

As the small light dots spread outwards, a three-dimensional map gradually appeared on the formation plate. The architectural styles on the map were miniature versions of their surroundings.

"What is this?"

"A holographic projection formation plate." This was a formation Zu An had improved with the help of Yan Xiangu, combining concepts from the *Baopuzi Scripture* and some technological ideas from his previous life, specifically designed for exploring unknown areas.

Its only drawback was that the operator needed a rough understanding of the terrain to be explored before it could be activated.

"When did my lord become so proficient in runic formations?" Zhang Zitong asked, feeling bewildered.

"Just learned recently."

Zhang Zitong thought, *Runic formations are vast and profound; who could achieve this level after just learning them?*

As they spoke, a complete map had already appeared on the formation plate. Zu An glanced at it and smiled, "So that's where it is."

He immediately took Zhang Zitong and sped forward. Having a map really made a difference.

"Slower, slower, I can't take much more!" Zhang Zitong exclaimed repeatedly. At first, she tried to remember the route, but he led her through the courtyards with countless left and right turns, sometimes even retracing their steps for a bit, only for the scenery to instantly change from what it had been when they arrived.

After a few turns, she became completely dizzy and simply closed her eyes, letting him guide her.

She didn't know how long passed, but when the rushing wind in her ears finally stopped, she cautiously opened her eyes.

Before them appeared a different courtyard. In the very center, a woman with long hair reaching her hips sat cross-legged, her eyes closed in meditation.

Beside her, a Changxin Palace Lantern emitted a soft glow, illuminating an area several yards in radius.

"Yun Jianyue!" Zhang Zitong was a mix of excitement and apprehension. She hadn't expected them to arrive directly at the Demon Sect Leader's secluded cultivation spot!

This person was the court's number one fugitive. If she could capture her, perhaps she could atone for her past mistakes and be readmitted to the Embroidered Uniform Guards.

Just as she was about to draw her weapon, Zu An had already moved. However, seemingly sensing the intruder, the Changxin Palace Lantern suddenly flared with intense light, enveloping his entire body.

"My lord, be careful!" Zhang Zitong naturally knew how powerful Yun Jianyue's Changxin Palace Lantern was. Once enveloped by its light, one would be rendered immobile and defenseless.

But she quickly froze in astonishment because black whirlpools emerged around Lord Eleven's body. The light couldn't even touch him; it was simply absorbed by those black whirlpools.

*My lord is even more powerful than I imagined...*

Zu An walked several yards forward, almost reaching Yun Jianyue, when suddenly a beautiful, ethereal moonlight slashed at them from an unexpected angle.

Zhang Zitong's heart leaped into her throat. That was Yun Jianyue's famed weapon—the Crescent Moon Wheel. Countless masters had met their demise beneath its blade.

However, the next scene made her rub her eyes. The Crescent Moon Wheel didn't attack her lord; instead, it circled him, seemingly with a sense of joyous excitement.

"What in the world is going on?" Zhang Zitong looked utterly bewildered. But she didn't have time to ponder it; after all, this was a good thing. Her lord had successfully reached the Demoness, who seemed to be in secluded cultivation and hadn't woken up. Now was the perfect chance to subdue... her?

Her jaw nearly dropped to the ground, because she saw that Lord Eleven didn't attack. Instead, he pulled the Demoness into his embrace!