Passerby: Secret Image of Ancient Scrolls

When the dizzying feeling of weightlessness subsided, the cold wind completely disappeared, leaving only a deathly silence of darkness, as if it could swallow up all sound.

Lin Jian instinctively hugged the Polaroid camera in his arms. The camera body was incredibly hot, like a red-hot branding iron.

"Lin Jian? Is he still there?" Ye Zhuo's voice rang out beside him.

Using the faint reflection from the camera lens, Lin Jian saw that even in the illusion, Ye Zhuo maintained his fighting stance, his back ramrod straight, protecting her and the distraught Old Gu behind him.

Old Gu huddled behind his shield, his shoulders trembling, repeatedly muttering "I'm sorry." The emptiness and guilt in his eyes hadn't faded; he clearly hadn't yet escaped the trap of gentleness he had fallen into.

Ahead of them, Shen Xun stood silently in the darkness, his robes fluttering without wind, the golden light of the Samsara Well mark shimmering, and the faint light from the snake eye on his peach wood staff barely warded off the chill surging in the surrounding darkness.

Bai Wuchang gripped his clothes tightly, her face deathly pale, her voice trembling: "Shen Xun, this is the Chaos Realm, your memories."

As soon as the words were spoken, the thick darkness receded like a tide, replaced by an endless chaotic void. Countless enormous black shadows roamed in the depths, emitting roars that tore at the soul. Each one carried an extreme desire to devour, a thousand times more brutal than the evil creatures at the bottom of the river.

Lin Jian felt his blood run cold after just one glance, as if his soul was being gripped by an invisible hand, and even breathing became difficult.

The Polaroid camera lens was uncontrollably pointed into the depths of darkness, as if it were about to be swallowed by the shadows at any moment.

"What...what are these things?" Ye Zhuo lowered his voice, his hands gripping the entrenching tool sweating profusely. Although he couldn't see the outline of the dark figures, he could clearly feel countless malicious gazes falling on him, and instinctively he made his shield even tighter.

"It's a shadowy entity from outside the boundary, the place I mistakenly entered back then." Shen Xun's voice was calm yet powerful, his gaze fixed on the depths of chaos.

Before the words were finished, the chaotic scene around them suddenly shifted, and the group was pushed forward by an invisible force. A long-forgotten memory emerged in the darkness before their eyes.

The Shen Xun in the picture is more immature, with a pale golden light that flickers. He is surrounded by more than a dozen brutal shadow figures in the chaotic gap, with nowhere to retreat.

Just as the shadow was about to tear him apart, a dark figure darted out from the depths of chaos and stood in front of him.

The dark shadow had no fixed shape, but instead of attacking Shen Xun, it unleashed terrifying power, shattering all the surrounding shadows.

Lin Jian subconsciously looked at the White Impermanence beside him. The girl shrank behind Shen Xun and whispered, "Back then, many guys wanted to eat his soul. His soul had the power of the Reincarnation Well, which was the most nourishing for us. Only I didn't want to eat him."

The scene continued to shift, and a drop of golden primordial blood seeped from Shen Xun's fingertip, dripping into the chaos.

The ancient technique engraved in the souls of the guardians of the Reincarnation Well throughout the ages was activated. Pale golden runes spread out in the chaos, one end connected to his soul, and the other end merging into the dark shadow.

The moment the blood pact was formed, the entire chaos rippled violently. Without needing to be explicitly read aloud, everyone could feel the weight of the pact: using the guardian's original golden blood as a guide, a shadow body could be summoned to the mortal realm; each time the shadow body used its original power, it would return to the chaos and be charged with the corresponding golden blood as a price; the shadow body was bound by the pact, it could only devour evil spirits, not harm good souls, and it could not lead other shadow bodies to the mortal realm.

"The other incarnations are too ferocious. Once they come to the human world, they will devour all the souls they see and disturb the minds of those with weak wills. Only I will not harm people indiscriminately." Bai Wuchang's voice carried a hint of grievance.

A venomous shriek erupted from the depths of chaos, and the dark shadow of the evil creature emerged from the riverbed.

Borrowing the chaotic aura from Shen Xun's memories and merging with the malevolent energy of the surrounding shadow bodies, its size increased several times over. Its bluish-gray arms transformed into countless tentacles capable of tearing apart the soul. Amidst the surging black mist, even the chaos was stirred into turmoil.

"Give me the mark of the Reincarnation Well!" the evil creature roared madly. "I've been at the bottom of the river for thirty years, I've had enough! I want to control this power and let everyone taste what it's like to be trapped in darkness!" It was born from obsession, and now it has entered the illusion of memories like a fish in the sea, growing wildly with the help of chaotic malice. It knows that as long as it devours Shen Xun's soul and obtains the mark of reincarnation, it can completely break free from its shackles.

The evil creature's tentacles lashed out at Shen Xun, simultaneously enraging the surrounding savage shadows. A dozen black figures were instantly provoked and charged towards the group. "Left! They're coming!" Bai Wuchang screamed, hiding behind Shen Xun.

Ye Zhuo swung his entrenching tool, but only struck empty air. These shadowy figures from his memories could not touch the mortal body, but they could directly attack the soul.

Lin Jian felt as if his head was about to be torn apart, countless malicious roars exploded in his mind, his vision went black, and the Instax camera in his arms was so hot that it almost burned through his palm.

Ye Zhuo was also in bad shape, his face was pale, sweat was beading on his forehead, and his soul felt like it was being pricked by countless needles, making it difficult for him to even stand.

At the core of the illusion, Shen Xun was trapped in a cage of memories woven by evil beings. The scene before his eyes suddenly changed, becoming the memories he had sealed in the deepest part of his soul.

Countless iridescent afterimages floated in the void, each one shrouded in different human affairs. Shen Xun, dressed in a wide-sleeved ancient robe, was enveloped in the stagnant, invisible folds.

Across a river of light that disrupts perception, in another fragment stands a young man in a dark-patterned robe, with handsome features, but his eyes conceal obsession and fanaticism.

The two are trapped in invisible barriers, unable to touch each other, yet they can clearly sense each other's loneliness and resentment.

They couldn't remember the dynasties or the years, nor how many cities they had traversed. They only remembered the rise and fall of dynasties, the people around them turning to dust, and even the path they had originally taken gradually becoming blurred.

The man's divine will pierced through the river of light, filled with fervor and madness: "Here lies divine power capable of breaking free from constraints. You possess the mark of reincarnation, allowing you to escape the shackles of birth, aging, sickness, and death, but I do not. This divine power, I must obtain it!"

Shen Xun frowned, his golden soul light trembling slightly, and warned, "This strange force will devour your soul. Retreat immediately."

"Return?" The man laughed, a surge of madness welling up within him. "I've had enough of this decaying body, enough of life and death!"

Before he finished speaking, he leaped into the depths of the colorful aura. Shen Xun could only watch helplessly as he was swallowed up by the aura, until only a wisp of broken soul and a ball of colorful energy remained, trembling in the void.

The scene shattered abruptly, and the evil creature's shriek exploded once more. Taking advantage of the regret and powerlessness of this memory, it wove a fine net, binding Shen Xun's soul, trying to trap him in the sealed past, while hiding in the gaps of memory, gnawing at his leaking reincarnation power, its form becoming increasingly solid.

Just then, a faint white light shone from the depths of the evil black mist. Old Gu shuddered and staggered forward, staring blankly at the black mist. In the white light, Xiulian's remnant soul floated quietly, still with her hair in braids, her eyes gentle, without a trace of resentment.

She looked at Old Gu, gently shook her head, and silently mouthed: Live well.

Old Gu's breathing suddenly stopped. Twenty-five years in prison, five years of waiting by the river, day and night of repentance and self-torture. He always thought Xiulian hated him, but he didn't know that what trapped him was always his own guilt.

The evil creature at the bottom of the river survives and grows stronger by taking advantage of his obsession.

"I will live well..." Old Gu broke down in tears, kneeling in the illusion, repeating over and over again, "Xiulian, I will listen to you and live well." As soon as he said these words, the obsession that had been suppressed in his heart for thirty years completely dissipated.

The evil creature, which lived solely on its obsession, was instantly stripped of its backbone, its body violently disintegrating and emitting a shrill scream.

Right now.

Lin Jian suddenly snapped out of his daze, picked up his Polaroid camera, and snapped a picture of Shen Xun, who was trapped in his memories.

With a crisp click, a dazzling white light burst forth, revealing not chaos or false memories, but only the frozen surface of the Mohe River and the swirling snow. This was the most powerful force of her camera: capturing reality and shattering illusion.

The white light, like a sharp blade, pierced through the prison of memory and slammed into Shen Xun's soul. Shen Xun snapped back to reality, his light golden pupils shining with a blinding light. The mark of the Wheel of Reincarnation on his left chest erupted with golden light that swept across the entire illusion, instantly dispelling all malice. "Reveal yourself," he commanded the White Impermanence beside him, his voice as cold as ice.

The girl's figure instantly disintegrated, turning into a swirling black mist.

This is the Realm of Chaos, its home ground. The boundless black shadows are expanding at a visible speed, becoming more solid and oppressive than when they were in the mortal realm. A roar at the level of the divine soul explodes, shattering the brutal shadows that are rushing towards it. The enormous chaotic hand fiercely grasps the evil thing that is about to collapse.

The evil creature tried to escape through the gaps in its memory, but it was firmly locked in place by the shadowy figure, unable to escape even a wisp of black mist.

Shen Xun stepped forward slowly, golden blood dripping from his fingertips onto the peach wood staff. The golden light at the tip of the staff plunged fiercely into the core of the evil creature. His tone carried the majesty of the guardian of the Well of Reincarnation: "Born of obsession, destroyed by obsession. When cause and effect are settled, return to nothingness."

The golden light had just touched the core of the evil creature when it was repelled by a strange force.

The evil creature let out an even more frenzied and shrill scream, and the black mist suddenly surged, breaking free from the restraints of the chaotic giant hand. Strange colorful energy appeared on its body. That was the strange and bizarre power it had picked up when it devoured Shen Xun's memories.

Its body twisted, its whiskers grew thicker, and a madness that wasn't its own surged in its eyes as it lunged at Shen Xun's Samsara Well mark: "I'm not reconciled! Even if my soul is scattered, I'll drag you down with me!"

The chaotic black shadow of Bai Wuchang trembled violently, its form becoming increasingly illusory, and it was no longer able to suppress the evil creature after its mutation; the Polaroid in Lin Jian's arms was so hot that it almost slipped out of his hand, the lens flashing wildly, but it was still unable to gather enough white light; Shen Xun's soul was intensified by the stinging pain, his original golden blood was consumed at an accelerated rate, and the light of the Samsara Well mark on his left chest flickered.

The golden light and black mist collided violently, causing the illusion to tremble once more. Countless cracks appeared in the ground, and the shattered, brutal shadows regrouped and pounced towards Lin Jian, Ye Zhuo, and Lao Gu.

Ye Zhuo raised his shield with all his might, but he couldn't stop the shadow body from eroding his soul, and a trace of blood seeped from the corner of his mouth; Old Gu trembled all over, and his soul was on the verge of collapse.

No one knew where this sudden change would lead them.