Chapter 8

Fu Ming's hand froze around the teacup, the porcelain slipping from his grip and shattering on the floor.

Without registering the emotion in his own voice, he asked, "What did you say?"

"I said, I plan to go to Jincheng and marry the new emperor."

"What marriage? Aren't the two of you husband and wife?" Zhang Dian nearly jumped out of his seat, then quickly realized his mistake. "You're that Jiang Kingdom princess!"

Lin Yu shot him a glance but said nothing.

Fu Ming stood and walked over to Lin Yu, stopping before her. He seemed lost in thought, but in the end, he said nothing at all.

Their false marriage had always been about mutual benefit. Fu Ming needed to find the Imperial Preceptor's trail at the Mountain God's temple, and Lin Yu needed to recover her lost soul there. Now that their goals were met, they would part ways—it was the inevitable direction all along.

Zhang Dian also jumped up, eyeing Zhou Yuan with a hostile look. "I've seen the Jiang Kingdom princess. She's definitely not you. Could my princess consort have told you something, giving you the delusion of taking her place in the marriage?"

Zhang Dian was flustered, and could only question Lin Yu with feigned confidence. He'd never actually seen the real Jiang Kingdom princess, but he had seen the painting of the immortal woman in Zhang Ni's chambers.

That painting had hung in Zhang Ni's bedroom for a full ten years. Zhang Ni treasured it dearly, so Zhang Dian remembered the face in the painting clearly.

Half a month ago, just after arriving in Liangcheng, he'd encountered a woman on the street who looked exactly like the immortal in that painting.

When Zhang Dian saw her, he thought his vengeance-fueled mind was playing tricks on him. Lost in thought, he nearly bumped into her.

It was also around that time that news of the Jiang Kingdom princess going missing spread. Zhang Dian felt it was heaven lending him a hand.

Through multiple inquiries, he learned the woman was named Zhang Han, from a poor family with only a bedridden mother. To pay for her mother's treatment, she spent nearly every night weaving and embroidering, saving up the money to buy medicine.

By day, the neighbors would call on her for any work—whether it was fine tasks like weaving and tailoring, or heavy labor like hauling firewood and stoking fires, she accepted it all.

What Zhang Han cared about most was her bedridden mother.

So Zhang Dian had someone kill Zhang Han's mother, and sent word to her that it was because the new emperor was incompetent and had lost the people's hearts—that roving bandits had risen and outlaws ran rampant, and it was through such chaos that her mother had been caught in the crossfire and killed.

Sure enough, the tactic worked wonders. Zhang Han came to deeply resent the Zhang Ni she'd never met, wishing he would die to atone for her mother's life.

A few days ago, he'd found the woman again and asked if she wanted revenge, and if she was willing to pose as the princess and go to Jincheng to marry, killing the one responsible for all of this.

Zhang Dian had expected her to agree readily, but she'd shaken her head. So he coaxed her step by step until she finally said she'd think about it and give him an answer within three days.

Tomorrow would mark the end of that three-day period. But now the real Jiang Kingdom princess had surfaced, throwing all his plans into chaos.

The most important thing was that this princess had already seen Zhang Dian. If she married into Jincheng and mentioned him to Zhang Ni, could Zhang Dian possibly survive?

Soon enough, the fact that Zhang Dian had met with the Liangcheng Commander today, and his failed attempt to extort military authority, would surely reach Zhang Ni's ears once Lin Yu married into Jincheng.

Zhang Dian absolutely could not let Lin Yu actually go to Jincheng!

"Commander's wife, have you gone mad? Lost your memory?" Zhang Dian emphasized the words "Commander's wife," his tone laced with discomfort and veiled threat toward Lin Yu.

Zhang Dian narrowed his eyes and reached out, trying to place a hand on Lin Yu's shoulder. "Does the Commander's wife intend to marry twice? That hardly seems to accord with our kingdom's laws... By the rules, you'd be drowned in a pig cage. The law applies to all—even the Son of Heaven is not above it."

He raised his voice: "This is a crime of deceiving the emperor. Madam, you'd best think carefully, wouldn't you?"

Despite his loud voice, Zhang Dian couldn't hide his guilt. When it came to deceiving the emperor, Lin Yu's offense was nothing at all—what he had committed was regicide and rebellion. If Zhang Ni ever took it seriously, he'd die without a shred of dignity.

Fu Ming irritably slapped away Zhang Dian's hand before it reached Lin Yu's shoulder. "We were never married. Your Highness shouldn't speak carelessly and defile the princess's reputation."

"Also, Your Highness, you should consider your own situation right now." Fu Ming left it at that, saying no more.

Zhang Dian glared at Fu Ming furiously. "You!"

Fu Ming was helping his own wife marry another man, cuckolding himself, and now he dared to threaten him? Zhang Dian fumed, pointing back and forth between Lin Yu and Fu Ming, stammering "You..." for a long while before finally withdrawing his finger and clenching it into a tight fist.

Fu Ming said, "If Your Highness has no other business, I won't keep you. As for the military tally, you'd best find someone else. Goodbye."

Lin Yu could hear a barely perceptible anger in Fu Ming's voice. She didn't understand what he was angry about, and simply assumed the conversation with Zhang Dian had riled him up.

Lin Yu played along with Fu Ming, smiling and waving at Zhang Dian, her tone light but with a hint of provocation: "Run along now, Your Highness. Slow goodbye, won't you?"

Zhang Dian's lips twitched with rage, but no words came out. He stormed off without another word. Seeing Zhang Dian leave, Zhou Yuan shot Lin Yu a look and trotted after him.

For a moment, only Lin Yu and Fu Ming remained in the courtyard. Fu Ming looked into Lin Yu's eyes with an unreadable expression, and the two fell into a silent staring match.

Outside the corridor, gusts of cold wind shook the bare branches of withered trees, sending dry yellow leaves scattering across the courtyard. The two stood facing each other in the corridor for a long time.

Lin Yu had no idea what Fu Ming was thinking, but she felt a bit awkward and was about to slip away.

That was when Fu Ming finally spoke. He sighed first, then said, "I'll add some dowry for you. Marrying an emperor requires following all sorts of protocols, not like what we had before."

True enough—Lin Yu's entire peace mission had been swallowed into a crack in the earth, vanishing without a trace. The dozens of chests of dowry accompanying her had also disappeared. With nothing left, going to marry alone with just herself would indeed be rather pitiful.

Lin Yu didn't catch the deeper meaning in Fu Ming's words. She thought for a moment and didn't stand on ceremony: "Then I want the Danxin Bone as my dowry."

"Alright." Fu Ming agreed without hesitation, not even pausing to question what the Danxin Bone was.

Lin Yu laughed. "Fine, you won't ask what I plan to do with the Danxin Bone. But you won't even ask what it is?"

Fu Ming fell silent again.

Lin Yu explained on her own: "Ever since the fight with that old Mountain God, the Xuanyang Mirror picked up a few more cracks. It's fallen completely dormant now and won't wake up. I'm going to melt the Danxin Bone to repair the Xuanyang Mirror."

Using one artifact to repair another was the most common method. Before entering the illusion, Fu Ming had intended to use the Feixian Ling to repair the Rain Goddess's Seal.

"Alright." Fu Ming gestured to a guard outside the courtyard, and the guard trotted over respectfully.

Fu Ming said succinctly: "Arrange a carriage. We're going to the Shaman God Pavilion."

Lin Yu gave Fu Ming another look, thinking to herself that the people in the illusion were truly kind—they had memories and knew everything, unlike her and Zhou Yuan, two outsiders living day to day with no security.

Lin Yu had no idea what the Shaman God Pavilion was. After getting off the carriage, she followed behind Fu Ming, studying his frame as they walked. The people in the illusion were indeed startlingly real.

Thinking that if the illusion were to dissipate one day, Fu Ming would vanish along with it, she couldn't help but feel a pang of regret.

Lin Yu was led forward by Fu Ming's hand. After passing through what felt like countless pitch-black alleys, Fu Ming brought her down a staircase into the underground.

Once below, everything opened up before them.

Everywhere hung bright red lanterns, lighting up the pitch-dark underground city in brilliant glow. A prosperous underground capital unfolded before the two of them.

Ahead, a man and a woman seemed to be arguing, and Lin Yu spared them an extra glance.

The woman said, "I can't go to Jincheng with you. I... something came up. My mother is dead. I need to stay in Liangcheng to observe mourning for her."

The man seemed unconcerned about the mother, replying, "The Jiang Kingdom may have lost the war, but they still eye Liangcheng greedily. There may be more trouble ahead. Come back to Jincheng with me, Zhang Han."

The woman called Zhang Han turned to leave, but the man rushed forward and grabbed her sleeve tightly, his tone urgent.

"Father finally agreed to let me marry you. Zhang Han, come back with me—let's get married, alright?" His voice suddenly took on a pleading note.

Zhang Han said nothing more, leaving only a "I'm going to marry someone else" behind as she walked off.

The man's eyes filled with disbelief. "You're lying to me. You're lying to me, aren't you? You don't want to be a concubine. I know."

With that, he tugged Zhang Han to a stop and dropped to his knees. A thud echoed as he knelt directly before her, clutching at the hem of her skirt, blocking her way.

"I know—I can go beg my father. I'll make you my lawful wife. Come back with me, please..."

Lin Yu wanted to keep watching, but Fu Ming dragged her away without mercy. The figures of the man and woman disappeared from her view. Not seeing how it ended, Lin Yu felt a deep sense of loss, but she couldn't pull free of Fu Ming, so she could only leave with regret.

Lin Yu stepped inside an archaic pavilion building. The moment she crossed the threshold, all manner of immortal artifacts flashed in a riot of multicolored brilliance, dazzling her eyes. She could only silently marvel at how lavish it was.

A woman dressed flamboyantly was scolding someone by the counter with a dark face. When she saw Lin Yu, a look of delight suddenly crossed her features, and she smiled as she came forward to greet her.

Lin Yu didn't dodge, and the woman wrapped her arms around her, looking her over left and right as if examining some novel trinket.

"A Si! I knew you couldn't have met with any trouble! When I heard you'd gone missing a few days ago, I was terrified to death." After confirming Lin Yu was all right, Zhang Yulin patted her chest and leaned familiarly into Lin Yu's embrace. Her feathered headdress brushed against Lin Yu's chin, tickling it.

Fu Ming tilted his head slightly, shooting Lin Yu a questioning look.

Lin Yu had no idea how she could be acquainted with the head of the Shaman God Pavilion, so she shrugged at Fu Ming and put on a bewildered expression.

Zhang Yulin waved to the guests in the hall, telling someone to keep an eye on the valuable artifacts, then pulled Lin Yu upstairs to a private room.

At a square table, Fu Ming sat down next to Lin Yu quite naturally. Zhang Yulin's expression faltered—there was clearly no room for anyone else on Lin Yu's other side.

Zhang Yulin put her hands on her hips, her puzzled gaze seeming to silently ask Lin Yu who this man beside her was.

Lin Yu's smile grew more strained, forcing a stiff grin onto her face.

Fu Ming didn't notice Zhang Yulin's displeasure at not sitting next to Lin Yu. He got straight to the point with no pleasantries: "I heard you possess an ancient artifact that can track the whereabouts of any divine item in the world."

Zhang Yulin sat across from them, her expression sour. At these words, she looked at Fu Ming appraisingly. "What are you looking for?"

"The Danxin Bone."

Zhang Yulin laughed. Lowering her gaze, she brought a plate of pastries from the table to Lin Yu, picking out a nicely shaped chestnut cake and placing it in her hand.

"The Danxin Bone—" She dragged the syllable out. "Don't you know it's part of A Si's dowry? A gift from the ruler of the Jiang Kingdom to the new emperor?"

Lin Yu suddenly choked, staring at Zhang Yulin in shock.

Zhang Yulin looked even more shocked. "You didn't even know the Danxin Bone was in your own dowry?!"

Lin Yu: "Cough... maybe I knew... did I? No."

The pavilion head toyed with her hair, her gaze dropping to the floor at their feet. "But... after A Si was ambushed outside the city, her dowry also went missing. I divined the location of the Danxin Bone a few days ago..."

"It's still at the foot of the mountain where A Si was attacked. The position hasn't changed, but it seems to have been buried."

Lin Yu asked, "Underground?"

"Yes. From what I can tell, it's been covered with earth, its traces concealed. That's why no one's discovered it."

News of the princess being found had already been relayed back to Jincheng. The escort to deliver Lin Yu to Jincheng would set out tomorrow morning. Time seemed to be running out.

Lin Yu had already decided to go to Jincheng to find that Xianzun of the Heaven's Mandate Tower. She figured that since she couldn't leave this place for now, she could only fight to survive.

The Xianzun would surely be able to extend her life. Only by living could she find a way to break the situation. Otherwise, four days from now would be the day her soul scattered to the winds.

Before the escort departed tomorrow, they had to get the Danxin Bone to repair the Xuanyang Mirror!

...

On a deserted mountain road, Fu Ming rode his horse at full gallop with Lin Yu, finally reaching the foot of Gujin Mountain before dark—the very place where she had first woken up.

The bridal sedan she'd been sitting in when she woke still sat on the main road, surrounded by nothing but empty space. The accompanying envoy, the dowry maids, and the dozen-odd carts of dowry had long since vanished.

All that remained on the road was a single sedan chair, a rather eerie sight.

Lin Yu studied the sedan for a long while before suddenly bringing it up: "Do you remember the Mountain God's conversation when we first met at the temple?"

"The sacrifice of two hundred thousand people?" Fu Ming stopped in his tracks. "The Mountain God was severely wounded and wanted to swallow a city's worth of people. He shouldn't have that kind of power anymore. No need to worry."

Lin Yu crouched beside the sedan, picked up a clump of dry earth, and squeezed it in her hand. With a bit of force, the clod crumbled into yellow sand that scattered to the ground, drifting into the air and vanishing without a trace. "What if he has an accomplice?"

Fu Ming was startled. He crouched down with her, and Lin Yu crushed another clod of earth to show him.

The clod turned to dust in her hand in an instant, then scattered and disappeared from view.

Lin Yu said: "Everything here is fake. It's all been staged."

"Someone already wrote the ending for this place. No matter what happens, it won't affect the outcome."

A chill ran down Fu Ming's spine. Before seeing the yellow earth scatter from Lin Yu's fingertips, he, the Imperial Preceptor, and all the cultivators in the world had believed everything in the illusion was built from a real foundation.

According to common understanding, when a mortal entered an illusion and was injured or died within it, they would truly be injured or die in the real world as well. But could it be—

That they had failed to see through the fact that everything in the illusion was false, and believed they had died in the illusion, and that was why they died in reality?

Only by doubting everything here, by refusing to believe in any of the illusions, could there be a chance at survival!

Fu Ming pondered for a moment. "You mean..."

Lin Yu glanced at Fu Ming and couldn't help but lament what a fine face he had. The thought that it was all fake pained her. "Forget it. You're just a person they fabricated in the illusion anyway. There's no point explaining it to you."

Fu Ming: "? What did you say?"

Lin Yu didn't repeat herself. She simply smiled and shook her head. "I said you're quite handsome."

Unfortunately, Fu Ming had clearly heard her first words. He didn't think there was anything wrong with Lin Yu knowing this was an illusion—he was merely puzzled as to why she thought he was one of the false people in the illusion.

After a moment's consideration, Fu Ming felt he ought to clarify: "...I'm real. Not a fake person they pulled out of thin air."

Lin Yu brushed the sand from her hands and stood up in disbelief. "Then how are you so familiar with this place? I—neither of us remembers anything."

Fu Ming pressed his lips together. How could he explain? Because he was a cultivator, and the illusion's restrictions on him weren't that great?

"Divine Maiden! I've finally found you!" Someone suddenly called out to her.

Lin Yu turned around and saw the Divine Attendant who had been waiting by her sedan when she first woke up, appearing before her in a flurry.

"The Yu Kingdom's Xianzun has tragically perished. The opportunity he sought for you no longer counts. I'm afraid you've completely lost your chance at Ascension—soon you'll die and your soul will disperse."