I have a composite mirror

Chapter 129 Aftermath of Internal Injuries and the Man in Red

North District.

The backyard of an ordinary pharmacy with a plaque that reads "Chunfengtang".

This is a secret outpost of Tingtao Pavilion.

The room was filled with such a strong medicinal smell that it was almost impossible to dispel it.

Liu Wenyuan paced back and forth in front of the bed with his hands behind his back, his brows furrowed into a deep frown.

On the bed, Gu Shenyan's eyes were closed, his face pale with an unnatural bluish-gray tinge.

An elderly man with white hair and beard was carefully putting away the silver needles that had been inserted into Gu Shenyan's chest.

This old man was no ordinary doctor, but a renowned alchemist and physician from the Xuanzheng Division's Imperial Academy, surnamed Sun.

"Old Sun, how is it?"

Seeing the old man get up, Liu Wenyuan quickly stepped forward and asked in a low voice.

Old Sun sighed, wiping the sweat from his forehead and shaking his head.

"His life has been saved."

"That Crimson Sun Pill was of extraordinary origin; it protected his heart meridian."

"but----"

Old Sun paused, a hint of surprise flashing in his cloudy old eyes.

"What on earth did this little guy do?"

"In all my years of practicing medicine, I have never seen such a strange injury."

"His spiritual power actually contained a trace of extremely pure corpse demon essence."

"This thing is like a bone-deep infection, deeply rooted in his meridians."

"If it were from outside, that would be fine, but this thing—it seems to have been partially 'assimilated' by some means, becoming part of his own power, making it extremely difficult to reject."

Upon hearing this, Liu Wenyuan's heart sank.

Although he didn't go to the scene, he heard Qin Mo report on the battle situation at that time.

That bizarre "devouring" method —

"Can it be cured?" Liu Wenyuan asked.

"Disaster."

Old Sun told the truth.

"I can only prescribe a few doses of 'Qingxin Jingmai San' to help him slowly suppress and wear down the condition."

"It's like a slow and steady process; you can't rush it."

"For at least three months, he cannot use his full strength, and he must not try that kind of technique again—that kind of technique that invites wolves into the house."

"Otherwise, once the evil energy backfires, even a god cannot save them."

After seeing Old Master Sun off, Liu Wenyuan looked at Gu Shenyan on the bed with a complicated expression.

This junior brother always manages to bring him surprises.

It always manages to frighten him.

Just then, Gu Shenyan on the bed let out a low moan, his eyelids fluttered a few times, and he slowly opened them.

The familiar wooden beams came into view.

And there was that bitter smell of medicine in the air.

"woke up?"

Liu Wenyuan's voice rang in my ears.

Gu Shenyan tried to sit up, but found that his body felt like it was rusty; the slightest movement caused all the bones in his body to protest.

The sharp, bone-deep pain made him gasp.

"hiss----"

"Don't move."

Liu Wenyuan pressed down on his shoulder and handed him a glass of warm water.

"You've really escaped with your life this time."

Gu Shenyan took a sip of water, and his dry throat finally felt a little better.

Memories flooded back like a tide.

Ghost Claw, Desperate Situation, Devouring, and that one sword strike —

"That person in red—" Gu Shenyan asked in a hoarse voice.

He's gone.

Liu Wenyuan pulled up a chair and sat down, his expression becoming unusually serious.

Do you know who he is?

Gu Shenyan shook his head.

He called himself "Red Sun".

"He is a member of the 'Dragon Guard'."

Gu Shenyan's pupils contracted slightly.

Dragon Guard.

Those were the royal guards directly under the current emperor, and they only obeyed the emperor's orders.

Legend has it that every member of the Dragon Guard is a master among men, one in a million, usually hidden among the common people and in the imperial court, only appearing in public during major events.

"The Dragon Guard has intervened."

Liu Wenyuan's voice was somewhat low.

"This means that the matter of the imperial tombs has been brought to the forefront."

"It's not just Genji; now even that person—is keeping an eye on them."

Gu Shenyan remained silent.

He never imagined that his investigation into a smuggling case would lead him into such a vortex.

Before Chi Yang left, he left behind a sentence.

Liu Wenyuan looked at Gu Shenyan with a deep gaze.

He said you're a "genius".

But it also means you're "playing with fire".

Gu Shenyan gave a wry smile.

Playing with fire?

In that situation, not playing with fire meant certain death.

"The decision has already been made above."

Liu Wenyuan continued.

"Given that 'Shadow Banyan' has already used human sacrifice at the imperial tombs, its nature is extremely heinous."

"The imperial court has decided to establish a joint command, which will be composed of the Xuanzheng Division, the Imperial Academy, the Longxiang Guard, and our Tingtao Pavilion."

"This is no longer an ordinary case; it's a war."

At this point, Liu Wenyuan paused, his tone softening.

As for you—

"Because of your injuries, and also to protect you."

"It has been decided from above that you will be temporarily transferred away from the front lines."

"You don't need to participate in the following operations."

Gu Shenyan was taken aback and subconsciously wanted to refute.

"Senior brother, I—"

"That's an order."

Liu Wenyuan interrupted him, his tone leaving no room for argument.

"In your current state, going there would be suicide."

"Moreover, your face has already been memorized by 'Shadow Banyan'."

"Especially that evil cultivator at the Foundation Establishment Realm, his killing intent towards you is probably even stronger than his towards Chi Yang."

"Because you damaged his very essence."

Gu Shenyan remained silent.

He knew his senior was right.

Given my current physical condition, I can't even perform at 30% of my usual strength.

"But don't just sit around doing nothing."

Liu Wenyuan changed the subject, took out a stack of rubbings from his pocket, and placed them on the bedside table.

"This is a rubbing of the array platform that Qin Mo and his men risked their lives to bring back."

"Even though you can't be there in person, your brain still works."

"That teleportation array is extremely complicated. The old men in the Temple of Worship have been studying it for a long time but still can't figure it out."

"This job still needs to be done by you."

Gu Shenyan looked at the stack of blueprints, a glint of light flashing in his eyes.

As long as I can still participate, that's fine.

"I see."

After Liu Wenyuan left, the room returned to silence.

Gu Shenyan lay on the bed, looking at the dappled light and shadows coming in through the window, but his heart could not calm down for a long time.

He slowly raised his right hand.

Although he had nothing in his hands at the moment, he could still clearly recall the feeling he had at that time.

The thrill of the "Water Erosion Talisman" piercing the ghost's claw and forcibly seizing its power.

That was a power he had never experienced before.

Brutal, direct, and efficient.

This is completely contrary to his long-held beliefs in "harmony," "flow," and "continuous life."

"Harmony and circulation are in order to conform to the way of Heaven."

"But if fate is unjust, if we are faced with a desperate situation—"

"Isn't this kind of 'plundering' also a way of survival?"

Gu Shenyan closed his eyes and looked inward at himself.

At the edge of that "flawless" spirit core, there was an extremely faint, yet remarkably conspicuous, black aura, just like a...

It coiled there like a venomous snake.

That is the malevolent energy plundered from evil cultivators.

The system is frantically analyzing this energy.

High-energy alien species detected.

[Attributes: Extremely Yin, Corrosive.]

[Status: Assimilation in progress — 0.1%]

Gu Shenyan's heart skipped a beat.

assimilation?

It's neither expulsion nor purification.

Rather—assimilation?

Does this mean that as long as his "flawless" spirit core is powerful enough, and as long as his computing power is terrifying enough, he can succeed?

He could even turn this most poisonous evil energy in the world into a part of his own power.

Water benefits all things without striving.

But water can also hold all rivers, harbor filth and impurities, and eventually converge into the sea.

This moment.

Gu Shenyan vaguely felt that he had opened the door to a new world.

Behind this door may lie an endless abyss.

"If this is the demonic path—"

Gu Shenyan clenched his fist tightly, even though the action made him wince in pain.

"As long as I don't lose my true self, I can control this power."

"The demonic path is also the great path!"

He took a deep breath and stopped dwelling on it.

Now that we've survived, we must become stronger.