King of Tomb Raiders

Chapter 270

"I mean, we delayed Qiu Ran Ke's important matter. Our personal life, death, honor, and disgrace are minor matters. Even if we die together, can we compensate him for his loss?" The long-bearded man's beard stood on end, and his face began to turn red.

"Alright, alright, this is serious, I'll kill this brat first, then I'll talk to you—" His sword-drawing motion was swift and graceful. He shifted his body, and a flash of sword light flew towards my throat. If I hadn't had a premonition, I would have been injured by his sword. As soon as the sword light appeared, I staggered back five steps. When he moved to pursue me again, I lunged forward, suddenly rushing to his chest and striking him in the ribs with a palm strike.

In a battle between masters, every moment is crucial. He was far too careless, which is why I caught him off guard with my attack.

I only used seven-tenths of my strength, and he let out a strange howl, flipped to the side, and with a swift movement of his left hand, more than a dozen gleaming longswords thrust forward with incredible ferocity. Each sword used a different technique, and they were cleverly arranged into a semi-circular, three-dimensional sword formation. When a master swordsman draws his sword, his inner force is infused into the blade, inevitably producing a hissing sound, but his sword made no sound at all, only a chilling sensation that seeped into the skin.

Without using the "Extreme Distance Blade," I couldn't break his swordsmanship at all. In a flash, I hastily leaned back and retreated, rolling several times close to the ground in an extremely awkward posture. Before figuring out the strange backgrounds of these two, I didn't want the battle to escalate any further.

"Stop! Ao Bai, stop!" the long-bearded man shouted.

The sword flashed, and the arrogant man shouted impatiently, "Hey, kid, what are you hiding for? Don't you dare come at me?"

"Hmph, Ao Bai, this young man is still holding back a very powerful killing move. I'm afraid that once he launches a counterattack, you won't be able to withstand it at all and will be injured on the spot. How many times have I told you? If you want to achieve great things, you must be humble and composed, just like Qiu Ran Ke. In order to secure a foolproof opportunity, he willingly spent forty years cultivating in seclusion on an overseas immortal island. Only after his martial arts, strategies, wealth, and connections were all in place did he return to the Central Plains. If it weren't for our unexpected turn of events—"

He repeatedly mentioned the name "Qiu Ran Ke," which surprised me greatly.

There is only one "Bear-Bearded Guest" in Chinese history. He is known as one of the "Three Heroes of the Wind and Dust" along with Li Jing, a chivalrous knight of the Tang Dynasty, and Hong Fu Nu, a heroine. He is already famous in Chinese history as "the most extraordinary man in the world". He is a model of chivalry and an idol of tiger worship.

The aloof man suddenly dropped his sword, and after a dozen or so clanging sounds, all the longswords were shattered by his internal force and fell to the ground in disarray.

“Senior brother, this isn’t our fault. Qiu Ran Ke isn’t petty, and Hong Fu Nu is a chivalrous and heroic woman. They’ll surely understand us. Besides, since we’ve been trapped here, I’ve been reflecting almost every day on why I ended up in this mirror, locked up with these strange-looking fellows. Senior brother, you’re meditating in front of the mirror every day, when will you ever get any results? Why don’t you listen to me and smash the mirror? Maybe we’ll be back in Lingyan Pavilion in the blink of an eye, won’t we?”

He rubbed his hands together and laughed heartily, as if he were smugly pleased with his brilliant idea.

I cautiously probed, "Is the Mirror Grinding Old Man Situ Qiu Shi? Or the 'Sword Grinding Master' Lei Ao Bai?"

The aloof man suddenly turned around, grabbed me in mid-air, and a huge suction force rushed towards me. I staggered forward involuntarily, and he grabbed my shoulder.

"Haha...you...you know us...finally found someone who knows us, senior brother, look, I told you I'd seen this kid before, but you didn't believe me. Look, he knows us too...hahahaha, finally found him, finally found him..." His five fingers tightened suddenly, and in my extreme astonishment, I even forgot to break free. I just stared blankly at the long-bearded man's face, my mind buzzing—"Are they from the Tang Dynasty? Two people from the Tang Dynasty?"

Sahan had long ago said that the "alienation" process of the Saturnians had been going on for many years. Among those masters who willingly embarked on the path of "alienation" were people from different eras and backgrounds, almost every name could fill a biography. I have seen Saturnians and Alpha, so I am not surprised to see ancient people. What excites me now is that the names Situ Qiushi and Lei Aobai have appeared in the Scalpel's database.

The information on these two individuals is included in the "People in the Mirror" category of the database, which contains thousands of cases of varying lengths, all related to "mirrors and disappearances".

Situ Qiu was famous for "mirror polishing" and was the most famous imperial mirror polisher during the Sui and Tang Dynasties. It is said that the beauties of the harem were proud to have a mirror polished by him. Anyone who wanted to fully reflect their beauty could only get a mirror polished by Situ Qiu.

Lei Aobai was the number one assassin at the end of the Sui Dynasty. He served as the personal assassin of Emperor Yang of Sui. At that time, eighteen rebel kings, seventy-two feudal lords, and one hundred and eight beacon fires rose up in rebellion. At least half of the important figures died by his sword.

In that era of melee combat with cold weapons, it was the perfect time for masters like these two brothers to roam freely and enjoy their lives. Unfortunately, they vanished without a trace, without a single word. Legend has it that someone saw them for the last time in the Lingyan Pavilion in Chang'an, the capital of the Tang Dynasty. Rumor has it that they disappeared after entering the "Mirror Washing Pavilion" on the side of the Lingyan Pavilion. That small silver building houses bronze mirrors once carried by emperors, princes, civil officials, and military generals throughout history; it is a place often haunted and haunted by foxes.

"You know us?" Situ Qiu was not overly excited.

I could only nod: "Yes, I have read about your remarkable achievements, but I never expected to meet you here."

"Did you also come here through the mirror? Or are you someone who lives in the mirror?" he continued to ask calmly. Only someone with profound self-cultivation would spend years polishing a mirror, imprisoning themselves in the lonely prime of life.

I shook my head: "No, this isn't a world in a mirror, it's real. This isn't the so-called 'Great Tang Dynasty,' but a dynasty that was created many years after the Tang Dynasty, called—" Because I couldn't explain to the two ancient people what kind of era 2007 was, I was speechless for a moment.

The theme of "ancient people entering the modern era" has been explored by countless screenwriters and novelists. I briefly organized my thoughts and prepared to continue explaining to them, but Situ Qiu raised his hand to stop me: "Young man, there's no need to explain. We know this is in 2007, a rapidly developing and ever-changing world, and we are familiar with all the rules of this era. So, please don't bother explaining."

I was even more astonished: "That's good, that's good."

Since they understand the current society, it really saved me a lot of trouble.

"The only thing we don't understand is, if we can get in here, why can't we go back and re-enter the other side of the mirror? Young brother, since you are so knowledgeable, could you please try to answer this question for us?" While Situ Qiu was speaking, Lei Aobai had been listening quietly with his mouth closed, but now he also turned his gaze to my face.

I looked in the mirror, and the shadows of three people were clearly displayed on it, except that one was a modern person and the other two were people from the Tang Dynasty, which looked extremely strange.

"If these two people really did walk out of the mirror, then could I also enter the world inside?" I stretched out my index finger and gently touched the mirror surface. The "me" in the mirror also stretched out my hand, and our index fingers pressed tightly together.

“Mirrors are truly the most magical things in the world. I remember when my master taught me how to polish mirrors, after I finished polishing the first bronze mirror, I looked at the person in the mirror and couldn’t sleep for three days and three nights. It was as if that person was also a living person, but was imprisoned inside and could not be seen.” Situ Qiu sighed softly, and once again raised the cloth in his hand, slowly wiping the already spotless mirror surface.

In that instant, I felt the warmth of the "person in the mirror's" hand, and my mind went blank: "Does he also have warmth? Does he really exist? When I look at him, is he also quietly looking at me?" When I moved the corners of my mouth, the "me" in the mirror also smiled slightly.

Ever since Su Lun disappeared, I felt like I had suddenly aged ten years. My thoughts matured rapidly, but my mindset aged just as quickly. Only after Gu Qingcheng arrived at the camp did I occasionally relax and realize my own youth and vitality.

At this moment, the reflection of myself in the mirror is extremely calm and composed, almost to the point of being "cold and indifferent." Even when I smile, it is reserved and melancholic, carrying an indescribable sense of sorrow.

"Is this me?" I suddenly felt a sense of unfamiliarity with the person in the mirror.

My last clear memory of my reflection in the mirror was in the luxury hotel in Cairo where I stayed before entering the desert. At that time, I felt as if I was filled with youthful unease and irrepressible youthful energy, facing a vast and promising future.

Now things are different. Starting with uncovering the secrets of the Turkic pyramids, the burden on my shoulders is one of greater gains and losses, and more pain. The "me" in the mirror smiled, a melancholy smile, a smile that was far from easy.

"Hey, wake up, wake up—" Lei Aobai slapped me hard, my shoulder throbbing slightly.

I snapped out of my reverie. The few minutes I had been immersed in sorrow were like a fleeting dream during a midday nap, gone in an instant.

"What are you thinking? Don't keep anything to yourself after you've figured out a secret! Hmph, my sword is broken, but a broken sword can still kill three thousand enemies, do you believe it or not?" Lei Aobai couldn't hold back any longer.

"What did you see? What did you realize?" Situ Qiu asked in a low voice, wiping away the faint mark my index finger had left on the mirror with a cloth.

"It's nothing." I apologized for my lapse in composure. Modern people see themselves in the mirror countless times a day. If each glance back involves several minutes or even ten minutes of contemplation, there's no time to do anything else. Besides, I'm not the kind of girl who's constantly mindful of her appearance, like Guan Baoling, who looks in the mirror hundreds of times a day—

With a cry of "Ah!", something flashed through my mind, and I couldn't help but shout. But I immediately raised my hand to cover my mouth, trying my best to hide my unease. That thing used to seem very, very strange, and couldn't be explained by common sense. But today, standing in front of the old man in sunglasses' bronze mirror, I suddenly found the crux of the matter.

"What?" Situ Qiu's eyes flashed with cold light.

"Haha, you little rascal, you're clearly hiding something—" Lei Aobai's large hand suddenly gripped my throat, and he spat out two words through gritted teeth, "Quickly—speak!"

Part Three: Mirror Illusion, Chapter Two

The mirror on the Lingyan Pavilion of the Tang Dynasty suddenly changed

According to records from the surgical instrument, Lei Aobai practiced with knives, hammers, spears, and halberds in his early years. It wasn't until after the age of thirty that he devoted himself to swordsmanship, gaining a thorough understanding of all martial arts techniques and incorporating the essence of all martial arts he had comprehended into his swordsmanship. His move clearly originated from the eagle claw technique of "eagle hunting rabbit," but the Huai River Eagle Claw School had not yet emerged in his era, demonstrating that he was a martial arts prodigy rarely seen in the world.

I didn't want to cause trouble, so I immediately retreated in an attempt to defuse his attack without making a sound. The strange thing I was thinking about was related to Guan Baoling and had nothing to do with the mirror in front of me. I didn't want to tell anyone.

In my heart, there are still many past events that belong to Guan Baoling and me "privately shared," secrets that I want to keep buried in my heart forever.

"Young brother, don't go!" Situ Qiu stepped in sideways, his gray robe flashed, his left hand was like a dragon claw, and his right hand was like a wind tail, coming from both sides, forming a huge net behind me that I could not escape.

I never intended to escape; I merely wanted to temporarily avoid Lei Aobai's coercion. If I were to suddenly strike, I fear both of them would be injured.

"You can't escape, kid—ouch!" Lei Aobai let out a short, muffled groan as I threw him down with a "big back" throw from my Chinese wrestling technique, slamming him against the mirror with a thud, the buzzing echoes unstoppable.

Situ Qiushi's Dragon and Phoenix Hands is a secret technique in Southern martial arts. It was lost to the world after the Northern Song Dynasty. However, the surgeon still persevered and found these extremely obscure materials. He also listed in detail the fatal flaws of the Dragon and Phoenix Hands in the right hip and left knee, which are like the phoenix neck and dragon waist, the weakest points.

I kicked out with my right foot, using the "arrow force" from Jeet Kune Do to strike Situ Qiu Shi's knee, but only to the point of contact, without exerting any force, hoping to make him back down. His recovery was better than Lei Ao Bai's, and he indeed appreciated my gesture, retreating rapidly.

"Young man, impressive martial arts." He smiled and held out his hands, palms facing upward, to show that he didn't have much ill intentions.

I smiled faintly: "Seniors, what I'm thinking about has nothing to do with you, and I don't want to tell anyone about it right now. However, I'm very interested in hearing about your experiences. It seems we have more in common regarding this mirror, don't we?"

Cold weapons are outdated, and martial arts will also become outdated. Modern fighting techniques can train people to be like incredibly sophisticated machines. As soon as they see an enemy's weakness, they can immediately defeat him with one move without hesitation. This is something that his fellow disciples could never do.

Lei Aobai got up, and under Situ Qiushi's piercing gaze, he stopped shouting arrogantly and obediently returned to stand behind his senior brother. After several exchanges, he must have realized that he was no match for me.

“That matter is rather strange—young brother, I haven’t yet asked your name?” Situ Qiu stroked his long beard, scrutinizing me carefully.

"Please call me Feng." I nodded and briefly introduced myself.

“Then, I’ll call you ‘Brother Feng.’ Actually, that matter really does involve you. Please let me explain.” He frowned, tugged at his beard, and pondered for a few minutes before slowly beginning his story—

The old man in sunglasses and the sword sharpener lived in the early Tang Dynasty, and the strange event that led them into the bronze mirror occurred a few months before the "Xuanwu Gate Incident".

As is well known, among Li Yuan's sons, only Prince Qin, Li Shimin, had the most far-sighted vision and enjoyed considerable prestige in the martial arts world, making him more qualified to succeed to the throne than Jiancheng, Yuanji, and others. At this time, Qiu Ran Ke, who had fled overseas, intended to seize control of the Central Plains and secretly entered Chang'an with thirty million taels of gold and seven hundred warriors.

Li Shimin was already the target of all factions, so Qiu Ran Ke, in order to seize the Tang Dynasty, first had to kill Li Shimin. Therefore, he sought out Situ Qiu Shi and Lei Ao Bai. "Twenty million taels of gold and control of seven overseas islands" was the reward he offered to Situ Qiu Shi. He also promised that after successfully seizing the country, Hedong, Shandong and other places would be handed over to these two meritorious officials, and the territory would be divided equally among them.

This is the background of the whole incident. In fact, such assassination attempts have occurred repeatedly in every dynasty. The farce of the victor taking all and the loser being condemned is played out almost every year, which is not surprising.

The two men chose Lingyan Pavilion as their ambush location, a route Li Shimin took daily to and from the military training ground. The seven hundred warriors brought by Qiu Ran Ke disguised themselves as laborers, merchants, students, and farmers, and from noon onwards, they controlled Weiyang Street in front of Lingyan Pavilion, laying a trap to kill the dozens of armored warriors that Li Shimin carried with him.

For Lei Aobai, "assassination" was as simple as going to the kitchen to eat a steamed bun after getting up in the morning. So when he sneaked into Lingyan Pavilion at noon, he didn't feel nervous at all. Instead, he looked around and slipped into Xijing Tower. He wasn't a beauty and didn't care much for mirrors, but a particularly large mirror embedded in the wall in front of him caught his eye.

It was the first time he and Situ Qiu had ever seen such a large mirror, so they stopped and looked at it from all angles.

The midday sun streamed through the skylight, shining directly onto the mirror's surface and creating countless dazzling halos, blinding both of them. Naturally, Situ Qiu took out a handkerchief inlaid with gold and silver threads and began wiping away the dust. For a craftsman who dedicated his life to polishing mirrors, this was the most natural action, repeated tens of thousands of times throughout his life. His junior apprentice, Lei Aobai, drew his longsword and, using another bronze mirror as a whetstone, slowly began to sharpen it.

It was a very quiet noon. In the Mirror Washing Pavilion, all that accompanied them were countless bronze mirrors, some new, some old, some rough and ugly, and some gorgeous and noble.

A strange thing happened in that instant. Situ Qiu felt his hand enter the water, which was icy cold, and he immediately pulled it back. In front of him was a hard, silent mirror. How could there be water? Moreover, it was only early autumn. Even if there was water, it wouldn't be this cold.

He turned around with a smile: "Ao Bai, that's strange. I feel like this mirror is 'empty,' yet I can reach my hand through it."

Given the wisdom of the Tang Dynasty people, the "empty mirror" was perhaps the most genuine feeling at the time. However, he could see himself in the mirror, see the room full of bronze mirrors, and also see his junior brother Lei Aobai.

"Perhaps it was just a momentary illusion?" Seeing that Lei Aobai didn't even look up, he couldn't help but chuckle, thinking that he was just too tired and absent-minded. He hadn't slept well for several days in order to finalize the assassination details with the bearded man. That was the downside of being the senior brother; he could never be as carefree as Lei Aobai, just waiting to leap off the high building and stab Li Shimin in the chest with a sword.

After making a self-deprecating remark, he held up his handkerchief, only to find that the entire handkerchief was soaked, with one corner still dripping water.

In an instant, the sunlight turned cold and biting, because he realized with a clear mind that there was indeed water behind the mirror, and it was an extremely cold pool of ice water.

That wall inlaid with mirrors was the north outer wall of the Mirror-Washing Pavilion. Without a doubt, there was nothing outside the wall, only the slightly dry air of autumn. He had repeatedly observed the terrain of the Lingyan Pavilion and knew this perfectly well.

"Ao Bai, can you take a look and see what's in the mirror?" He turned around and called to his junior brother for the second time.

Lei Aobai looked up, his expression suddenly changing, startling him: "Aobai, what are you doing?"

Next, Lei Aobai suddenly turned his head to look behind him, then quickly turned back, stood up and strode forward, letting his long sword fall to the ground with a clang.

Situ Qiu reacted quickly and turned around immediately to look in the mirror.

The first paragraph ends here. The two of them are standing in front of a mirror, turning their heads to look at it together, as if the scene from a thousand years ago could be reenacted here at any moment. I felt the immense fear emanating from their hearts. Anyone in their shoes, knowing clearly that they are about to be trapped in the world in the mirror, would feel inexplicably terrified and struggle desperately.

"What's in the mirror?" I couldn't help but repeat his words.

“Yes, what would be in the mirror? I’ve been polishing mirrors for nearly sixty years, and there’s only one me in the mirror—” Situ Qiu said with a wry smile.

"I've been sharpening my swords for thirty years, each one a narrow, elongated mirror. For thirty years, I've never seen anything strange there. Everyone says that a killing sword can hide demons and ghosts, but I never believed it. What demons and ghosts? They all turn to death under my sword. But now, I believe it. Mirrors can indeed hide things, but we can't distinguish between good and evil, right and wrong, which is why we're imprisoned here. Senior brother—" Even a cold-blooded assassin like Lei Aobai suddenly grabbed Situ Qiushi's shoulder and burst into tears like a girl.

I couldn't help but feel a moment of anxiety. This narration, which had already captivated my memory, had abruptly stopped halfway through. I hadn't expected Situ Qiu to possess such captivating storytelling skills. However, seeing Lei Aobai's pitiful weeping, I could only suppress my unease and whispered, "Gentlemen, there's no mountain too high to climb. Please continue."

At this moment, the battle to break through the "ley line" exit continues, Suren is separated on the other side of the crystal wall, and the six-armed monster behind the sealed gate is about to go mad at any moment—while I can only continue to delay, enduring the wait to hear the details of that strange event.

"In the mirror, there was a girl, a girl who was extremely beautiful, extremely alluring, and extremely delicate. I had never seen such a beautiful woman before, with such a slender waist, such small lips, and eyes that seemed to speak volumes. As she walked towards the mirror, her black fox fur coat fluttered lightly in the wind—"

Hearing Lei Aobai's tearful description, my heart sank: "What else? What else? Where is she? In the mirror or in the Mirror Washing Pavilion?"

He completely ignored my questions and stared blankly at the mirror: "She walked towards me, like a night-blooming cereus blooming in the dead of night. I have always longed for a girl to appear in my life. In fact, I have dreamed of her. She would appear in my world the moment I sharpened my sword to kill someone and the blade drank the blood of my enemy. I don't know her name, but I know that she is a fairy from the distant heavens."

My impatience kept rising. Like Situ Qiu, he couldn't get to the point at the most crucial moment.

“She was standing in front of the mirror, with a pool of water in front of her. I saw her roll up her sleeves and start washing her hands. Her long, black hair was hanging down, half of it reaching her chest. She was in the mirror, but not in the Mirror Washing Pavilion. At that time, I didn’t understand what had happened. I just wanted to step into the mirror and stand with her forever.” Lei Aobai left Situ Qiushi and staggered to the mirror, raising his hands high and pressing them against the mirror surface.

I took a deep breath, trying my best to suppress my anxiety, and asked Situ Qiushi, "Senior, what does that girl look like? Is there anyone else behind her? Or is she standing in a stone chamber?"

Intuitively, they saw Kwan Po-ling, but I can't explain how all of this happened.

"Two people from the Tang Dynasty were in an ancient building full of mirrors. Through one of the mirrors, they saw a person from another world and another time and space. And this person just happened to be Guan Baoling. At that time, if Guan Baoling was standing in the restroom of Xunfu Garden, wouldn't she also be facing an ancient bronze mirror? People from two different eras looked at each other through the mirror. Did Guan Baoling also see them?"

These absurd, bizarre, and unbelievable reasonings baffled me. My head felt like it was swelling rapidly, and a constant stream of strange and wonderful ideas kept popping up, occupying every space in my mind.

Of all the strange thoughts, the most abrupt one was: "What if the two sides of this giant mirror lead to the ley lines of the Tang Dynasty and 2007 respectively? Could we accidentally travel through the mirror and enter the distant and glorious Tang Dynasty?" I subconsciously took a few steps back, genuinely afraid that the hypothetical scenario would suddenly occur, causing me to leave this world.

Admittedly, the probability of such a thing happening is so small as to be negligible, but I still don't want to try it. After all, this is the world I truly care about, and the operation to rescue Suren is expected to make a breakthrough.