The Mirror of Startling Beauty: Her courtiers are everywhere

After speaking, Si Xingxuan straightened his robes and bowed to the statue.

It wasn't a perfunctory clasping of hands, nor a casual nod.

He tucked his sleeves in, clasped his hands together, and bowed deeply.

That bow was neither too deep nor too shallow, carrying the proper sense of propriety and self-respect befitting the master of the Divine Medicine Valley.

His blue robes fluttered slightly with his movements, then gently settled back down.

Throughout his life, Si Xingxuan never knelt to heaven, earth, or anyone else.

His willingness to bow down to this female medicine goddess is the greatest respect he can show.

"This junior, Si Xingxuan, is the current Valley Master of Divine Medicine Valley. I am passing by your temple and have come to pay my respects."

He straightened up and his gaze fell on the face of the statue.

"In the long river of time where men dominate, she, as a woman, reached the position of the God of Medicine, yet she was completely forgotten by later generations."

He clicked his tongue softly, as if he felt sorry for her.

"Senior, don't you think this human world is quite boring?"

But the moment he finished bowing, a strange tremor suddenly came from beneath his feet.

He raised an eyebrow and looked down.

On the floor tiles where he stood, a faint ring of spiritual patterns had appeared at some unknown time.

The spirit patterns were fine and ancient, with lines like vines, almost blending into the moss on the ground.

If it hadn't lit up slightly at that moment, it would have been completely undetectable to the naked eye.

It shone silently in the dark for an unknown amount of time.

Like a pair of eyes.

The moment he stepped through the temple gate, they began to watch him.

"Oh?"

Si Xingxuan looked down at the circle of spirit patterns, his interest growing even stronger.

"This is... a formation mechanism?"

"Be careful, Zheyue!"

Before Bingyou could finish speaking, the floor beneath her feet vanished instantly.

Without warning, without any fluctuation of spiritual energy, not even a whisper of wind.

The mechanism was so intricate it was astonishing; it couldn't be opened by brute force, but only by one condition: sincerity.

Once you stand in the right position and perform the correct greeting, the mechanism will be activated.

Si Xingxuan felt his feet suddenly give way and he plummeted straight into darkness.

He instinctively reached out to grab it, but his fingertips only touched a wisp of cold air.

The floorboards that had disappeared above his head closed up again the instant he fell in, sealing them completely so that not even a sliver of sunlight could get through.

In the final glimpse, there was the gentle smile on the statue's lips, unchanged for a thousand years. And the image of Bingyou flying over, but too late.

Darkness swallowed everything.

The wind whistled past my ears, and the blue hem of my dress billowed like waves in the boundless darkness.

He suddenly laughed during a brief moment of his fall.

The laughter echoed in the empty darkness; it was the laughter of a worthy opponent.

"interesting."

His voice was faintly heard in the wind.

"Use sincerity as the key and the heart as the door. Do not test cultivation or innate qualities, but only whether the heart is truly respectful."

"If someone else comes to worship and is arrogant, rude, or perfunctory, this mechanism will not be triggered at all."

His lips curved into a meaningful smile in the darkness.

"So, senior, do you think my bow just now showed sincerity?"

no answer.

Only the sound of the wind.

Si Xingxuan didn't care and just laughed to herself.

"Very well. Since you asked me to come down, I will see what mysteries lie hidden beneath this abyss."

As soon as he finished speaking, the downward momentum suddenly slowed down.

A gentle breeze, seemingly coming from nowhere, lifted his body and caught him steadily.

The God of Medicine had no intention of killing the doctors who passed the test; the formation was designed from the beginning to guide them.

Once you pass the first hurdle, you're considered her guest.

She was never impolite to guests.

He landed safely on solid ground, his blue robe fluttering gently in the wind.

The surrounding area is a tunnel buried deep underground, with smooth walls on both sides as smooth as glass, containing extremely fine filaments of light.

It briefly illuminated the path three feet ahead as he passed by, then slowly dimmed after he was gone.

He walked in the darkness without the slightest fear.

He is the star-gazer, and he is never afraid of the darkness.

Moving forward step by step, with a composed pace.

At the end of the road is a wall for answering medical questions.

The dark blue jade disc soared into the dark dome, its surface shimmering with a faint, ethereal light.

It is made of the same material as the other side of the Divine Medicine Valley.

"Oh?"

Si Xingxuan stood still, hands behind his back, looking up at the jade disc with a hint of amusement in his eyes.

"You want answers to your questions? What's so difficult about that?"

He reached out his hand, his slender fingers gently touching the stone wall.

The moment his fingertips touched the jade disc, a warm light surged from the depths of the surface, enveloping him entirely.

The spiritual patterns rippled outwards like waves, spreading in concentric circles in all directions.

The first question appears.

Question: Beyond the East Sea, there is a mountain called Cangwu. On this mountain grows a magical tree whose leaves turn east in the morning and west in the evening, following the sun. Its flowers are like silver bells, ringing when the wind blows. Question: What is the name of this tree? What kind of elixir can its flowers be used in?

Si Xingxuan pondered for a moment, then pointed and answered, "This tree is called Zhu Ri. Its flowers can be used in the Resurrection Pill to calm the soul and stabilize the spirit."

The jade disc lit up.

Meanwhile, high above, Tang Xixue stood on the first white jade step.

From the second stone step upwards, there is nothingness.

The stone steps descended from the clouds and mist, each step as thin as a cicada's wing, translucent, like thin ice formed from moonlight.

She looked up and saw the stone steps layer upon layer, stretching all the way to the unseen clouds.

At the very moment Si Xingxuan finished answering the first question, a step deep within the high stone steps lit up, solidifying from nothingness.

"Huh? What's going on?"

Tang Xixue was slightly taken aback.

She hasn't done anything yet.

But the second level has already been firmly laid out.

She didn't know where this power came from, nor who was paving the way for her.

But she knew that she hadn't done it on her own.

"Who is helping me?"

Someone far away is undergoing some kind of trial at the same time as her.

She didn't have time to think and stepped onto the second level.

The moment the toes touched the ground, the stone steps trembled slightly, and a hazy light shone from inside the steps, like a lamp being lit.

Immediately afterwards, a gentle female voice came from all directions, ethereal and melodious, as if it had traveled through time.

Question: In the far north, there is a snow lotus called Ice Heart, which blooms only once every thousand years and withers after seven days. Its petals are the color of frost, and its veins are like blood. Question: When should this flower be picked to preserve its medicinal properties?

Tang Xixue continued walking, answering as she went: "The Ice Heart Snow Lotus blooms on its seventh day, just before sunrise and after sunset. At that moment, the frost on the petals turns transparent, and the blood in the veins congeals into a single line. It is at this time that its medicinal properties are most complete. If it is picked a moment earlier, the flower is not yet ripe; if it is picked a moment later, the flower has already withered."

As soon as he finished speaking, another stone step beneath his feet solidified.

She has already reached the third level.

But she knew that she had only answered one question correctly.

The extra level was paved for her by someone else.

Deep within the underground palace, on the jade disc in front of Si Xingxuan, the second question appeared.

Question: When the petals of the Ice Lotus turn from frost to translucent and the veins turn crimson, what changes occur in its medicinal properties? If this flower is added to the Nine-Turn Jade Dew Pill at this stage, what effects will it enhance?

Si Xingxuan's fingertips fell: "The frost has turned transparent, and the cold on the surface has dissipated. The veins are congealed red, indicating that the essence in the blood has gathered. At this time, the nature of the flower changes from cold to neutral. When added to the Nine-Turn Jade Dew Pill, it can enhance the effect of strengthening the soul."

The jade disc lit up.

The snow on the high Tangxi River is answering the third question.

As soon as she finished giving her answer, the fourth step beneath her feet solidified, becoming not one step, but two.

Her own level, plus the level that the person underground filled by answering another question correctly.

She has already reached level five.

He answered very quickly.

She thought to herself.

"I wonder who that person is; they seem quite formidable."

She continued walking uphill.