After the path was cut off

"Master Mirror, how can I, a humble cultivator, do for you?"

Even Xuan Li himself was taken aback when he said those words.

The faint light on the mirror flickered slightly, as if it hadn't expected Li Wangxiang to ask such a question after learning all this.

This is like a fugitive hiding in someone's house, not only dragging that family down with them, causing them to lose everything and ruining their own future. Yet, instead of being angry, the homeowner humbly asks:

"What can I do for you?"

Is this person crazy?

It believed that its fall into the Purple Star, the chaos in Beichen, and the complete destruction of Li Wangxiang's foundation were all inextricably linked to it. If it were anyone else, even if they didn't turn against it on the spot, they would at least ask, "Why did you do this to me?"

Even though Xuan Li always believed that everything was preordained by fate, he couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed at this moment.

It paused for a long time before speaking, its voice still holding that air of not being easily humbled.

"What can you do for me?"

"Your foundation is shattered like this; it's already a miracle you're not a burden to me. Do you think I can expect you to help me recover?"

As soon as the words left his mouth, Xuan Li realized that it was inappropriate.

Li Wangxiang's most serious injury now lies precisely in this one sentence.

The mirror light then gently shifted to Li Wangxiang's face, revealing that the man's expression remained relatively calm, showing little sign of being offended.

Xuan Li then softened his tone.

"My problem is indeed tricky."

"The key is not elsewhere, but that I can no longer mobilize the spiritual energy of this world."

"If I cannot find a form that fits this world, I will not be able to regain my original status."

It paused, then added:

"Before that, most of what I could do was related to the soul."

"For example, lend me a pair of sharper eyes to enhance my perception; or, for example, slightly distort or deceive the perception of others."

Upon hearing this, Li Wangxiang had a sudden realization.

No wonder he's been concealing his aura so perfectly these days, almost illogically. It turns out he hasn't truly hidden himself flawlessly; rather, Xuan Li has veiled him to make him appear more ethereal to others.

Thinking of this, he immediately followed up with another question:

"Is it possible that the mirror's owner left their body?"

"Or rather—what would you do if I died?"

Xuan Li answered quickly.

"My true form cannot leave your body."

"At most, I can only spare a little consciousness and condense a phantom image; I can't really go far."

"As for your death..."

The clear light reflected on the mirror paused slightly.

"If you really die, I will most likely fall back into a deep sleep."

Li Wangxiang frowned slightly.

"What is so special about my soul?"

"I can't explain it," Xuan Li answered frankly. "I only know that your soul can sustain my consciousness. On Ziwei Star, only you can attract me."

Upon hearing this, Li Wangxiang felt a slight emptiness in his heart.

In the end, it was all just a dream.

If the events in the dream were truly not a figment of imagination, if he was indeed "Golden Light".

So how do we explain all his current emotions and obsessions—wanting to live, wanting to return home, wanting to protect his brother and relatives?

Did these thoughts originate in this life, or had they already clung to him for centuries?

This thought is too heavy, too painful.

He didn't want to think about it any further, so he forcibly pulled his mind away from the words "golden light".

Just then, another problem that was originally far removed from him suddenly surfaced.

The Mirror Master had mentioned the outer realms several times, and also mentioned that the Nascent Soul True Monarch had followed the trail. This reminded Li Wangxiang of the long-standing rumor within the sect that Nascent Soul cultivators would one day travel to the outer realms.

This matter used to be too far removed from him, and he never really took it to heart.

But now, it suddenly doesn't seem so far away anymore.

What is the scene outside the Purple Star?

The question came rather abruptly, and even Xuan Li paused for a moment before slowly answering:

"Outside the Purple Star..."

"It is a vast starry sky, boundless and limitless. Deep within the starry sky, there may be stars like the Purple Star."

It thought for a moment, then its tone became somewhat nonchalant.

"But that's not surprising. No matter where you go, you still have to land, right?"

Upon hearing this, Li Wangxiang's curiosity about the outer world was suppressed.

Yes.

No matter where you go, you still have to land.

He himself can't even stand firmly on the ground right now, so how could he have the leisure to think about what's happening outside the sky?

Since Xuan Li appeared, he has answered many of his questions. But after these answers, there is still a lingering sense of disappointment that he can't quite explain.

It's not that I'm disappointed by its origin, nor that I'm disappointed that it's not miraculous enough.

Instead, they were disappointed—

It can't save itself either.

Whether you enhance or obscure your senses, no matter how mysterious it may seem, it can never mend the broken path.

Finally, Li Wangxiang asked the most important question.

"May I ask, Master Mirror, is there any way to remedy the shattering of my Dao foundation?"

Xuan Li barely thought about it.

"no."

The words were uttered with a crispness bordering on cruelty.

Li Wangxiang's throat moved slightly, still unwilling to give up, he asked again:

"What if I lose my cultivation and have to start over?"

"That won't work either," Xuan Li said. "The Great Sun Fire Essence didn't burn through your Dao Foundation, but your Crimson Palace."

"If the Sun-Chasing Shuttle were to enter your body even one day later, that thing would continue to sink. If that happened, forget about Foundation Establishment, you wouldn't even be able to preserve your basic Qi Refining foundation."

"You're already very fortunate to have stopped here."

Xuan Li's voice was not loud, but every word was extremely clear.

"Your Crimson Palace is already leaking; it can neither contain your life nor solidify your Dao foundation. In that case, what's the use of dispersing your cultivation and starting over?"

"Unless it's reincarnation or possession."

"Otherwise, there is no other way."

Reincarnation.

That is to die once.

Even if the person in the next life is still called Li Wangxiang, will he still be the same Li Wangxiang as he is now?

He didn't even want to think about this path, so he abandoned it.

As for possession—

Such methods are not uncommon among heretical cultivators; in fact, they have long been a business. However, the body seized is ultimately not one's own, and the body and soul cannot be reunited, thus preventing the attainment of the Golden Elixir.

If one cannot obtain the elixir of immortality, what is the point of seizing another's body?

It's just a matter of prolonging its existence for a few decades.

He was devoted to the Tao and had reached the peak of enlightenment, so he disdained possession.

Li Wangxiang remained silent for a long time.

The last bit of resentment in my heart finally cooled down with those cruel words.

Xuan Li watched him quiet down, and the mirror light also dimmed slightly.

It actually felt it was a pity too.

Based on its investigation of the cultivation methods of Ziwei Star these past few days, it has learned that cultivators in this realm all cultivate through spiritual apertures. There are nine spiritual apertures in total: the upper, middle, and lower dantian, the three gates of coccyx, spine, and jade pillow, plus the three additional acupoints of yinqiao, xuanguan, and zuqiao.

Once one of the nine orifices is opened, one can embark on the path of cultivation.

Most cultivators on Ziwei Star, however, only manage to open one aperture in their lower dantian throughout their entire lives. Li Wangxiang, on the other hand, has all nine apertures open, and his physical constitution, comprehension, and spiritual essence are all flawless.

In its mind, such talent belonged to the top tier.

Unfortunately, the road ends here.

Xuan Li, unusually, toned down his usual harshness and said:

"You don't need to be discouraged."

"My memory is currently incomplete, so I may not truly know everything about this matter. Once I'm in better condition and recall more of the past, I might be able to find another way."

"after all--"

The mirror-like surface rippled slightly, and a hint of self-satisfaction crept into the voice.

"I am, after all, a celestial artifact."

After hearing this, Li Wangxiang lost interest in asking any further questions.

Regarding the matter of Daoji, he had almost resigned himself to his fate during the three days he was unconscious. Now, he was only asking this question out of a sense of hope, just to give it one more try.

That's enough questions.

He quickly suppressed his emotions and turned to ask about something more immediate.

"Master Mirror, what exactly are those survivors of Beichen... these so-called souls from another world?"

This time, Xuan Li remained silent for even longer than before.

"This matter..."

"It's not that complicated."

It paused, as if trying to recall those old memories that had long since faded into fragments.

"Before entering this world, I seemed to have always been in a place called 'the museum'."

Li Wangxiang was taken aback.

"museum?"

"You can think of it as a place that stores relics from an old era," Xuan Li said. "I stayed there for a very, very long time. Long enough that I saw countless people and remembered the aura of countless souls."

"Anything I remember, I can touch upon even through my soul."

"After falling into the Ziwei Star, I only had the means of using my soul left, so I simply extracted some of those souls and kneaded them with the essence of the five elements that had fallen from the immortals to make that batch of soul weapons."

Li Wangxiang frowned slightly.

"Immortal aura?"

"My origin is what I call immortal energy," Xuan Li said.

"As I understand it, the celestial energy gives birth to the five elements and contains yin and yang, and naturally has its own rise and fall. As for the spiritual energy of the Ziwei Star... it is like what remains after the celestial energy has fallen layer by layer, evolving into the five elements and transforming into all things."

"My rank is too low to unleash my full potential."

It paused, as if afraid Li Wangxiang still didn't understand, and added:

"As for the 'essence of the five elements' I just mentioned, it is not the essence of the five elements commonly found in Ziwei Star. I just couldn't find a more suitable name for it."

"It fell from the celestial energy, but it has not yet fully settled into the spiritual energy level of your world. This world can still accommodate it."

"So I can still barely use some methods related to the soul."

Li Wangxiang's heart skipped a beat, and he immediately pressed for an answer:

"If we can find the immortal energy again, is there any possibility that the Mirror Master will recover?"

"Theoretically, yes," Xuan Li replied, "but the problem is that this realm rejects immortal energy."

"When I fell into the Purple Star, the little bit of immortal energy that was originally in the mirror had already been banished under the suppression of heaven and earth."

"Whether there will be more in the future, and where they will be, I don't know."

Li Wangxiang pondered for a moment, still unwilling to let go of this sliver of possibility.

"Since there was once divine energy, it couldn't have come out of thin air."

"Perhaps... its source still exists beyond heaven and earth."

"Who knows... there might even be a celestial realm."

Xuan Li simply replied:

"My memory is terrible; if you ask me about something like this, I wouldn't be able to answer."

After hearing this, Li Wangxiang had no choice but to give up.

Compared to those things that are too far away, there is a more pressing issue right now.

"Master of the Mirror."

"Can those who possess Horcruxes be used by you? If you retrieve the Horcruxes, will they help you recover?"

Xuan Li paused noticeably this time.

After a long pause, he slowly said:

"It can't be taken back."

"Once the immortal energy was exhausted, I lost the medium through which I could invoke it. Once those things were dispersed, they were no longer entirely under my control."

"Speaking of which—"

Its voice surprisingly carried a strange quality that even it itself wasn't entirely sure about.

"The things I made on a whim back then, in retrospect, were more complicated than I had imagined."

Li Wangxiang's eyelids twitched.

"What do you mean?"

"What I mean is..." Xuan Li paused slightly, "that those soul weapons can devour each other."

"Of course, it has to be a soul weapon that has inherited the same kind of supernatural power."

Li Wangxiang's heart sank suddenly.

"What would happen if we kept piecing it together?"

Xuan Li remained silent for two breaths.

"I don't know if I'll be able to piece together another version of myself."

"But if someone manages to piece together enough of the same type of Horcruxes, at least... he will get closer and closer to me."

"Approaching my prime, when I possessed the rank of a Celestial Artifact."

These words finally brought a genuine sense of speechlessness to Li Wangxiang's eyes.

He sometimes felt that he was naive and unreliable enough.

Unexpectedly, this mirror was even more extraordinary.

"Master of the Mirror."

"In that case, if they encountered other Soul Weapon wielders of the same cultivation level, how would their strength compare to that of the local cultivators of this realm?"

Xuan Li thought for a moment and answered quite honestly.

"That's hard to say."

"You'll only know when you experience it."

It paused, as if afraid that Li Wangxiang's faint hope hadn't died quickly enough, and added:

"But don't worry, I can sense them first."

"If we really run into them, we can run first."

Li Wangxiang frowned.

"Why run?"

Xuan Li's voice revealed a rare hint of seriousness.

"Because you better not let me fall into their hands."

"With me, they have obtained the general outline, and naturally they will know how to piece together those scattered Horcruxes little by little."

Upon hearing this, Li Wangxiang finally experienced a new kind of despair.

His foundation was shattered, his path forward was cut off, and he still bore the mark of the Great Sun Fire Essence. Right now, he not only had to hide himself from others, but also had to be wary of those Soul Weapon wielders who were scattered somewhere and could grow stronger at any time.

It's like having several invisible knives hanging over your head at any moment.

Seeing his expression darken, Xuan Li surprisingly refrained from being sarcastic and simply said slowly:

"You don't need to be so discouraged."

"Although your own path is blocked, there is more than one way."

"Weren't you planning to establish a sect to protect your family?"

"Just because you can't get gold doesn't mean you can't teach someone who can."

"If any of your descendants, relatives, or future disciples are truly talented, and you nurture them gradually, wouldn't they also be able to protect you and shield you from calamities?"

"not to mention--"

The mirror-like surface rippled gently, and her voice regained some of its previous composure.

"Although I only have spiritual means left, if I use them skillfully, they can be quite effective."

"Furthermore, I still have some traditions left behind here."

"These things may not be of much use to you. But to others—maybe not."