Chương 104: The Retreat of the Mirror Lord

Faced with Ji Ying's disdainful question, Jing Jue's brows furrowed almost imperceptibly beneath his mask; he disliked being questioned in return.

But circumstances forced him to act against his will. Before he could ascertain the other party's true intentions, he could only patiently reply, "It's simple. This is my 'hunting ground,' and I am 'hunting.'"

He extended his white-gloved fingers, pointing towards Liuli in the distance, who was casting wary glances in their direction: "Therefore, Lord Jiying, I hope you—will not lay a hand on my 'prey.'"

He deliberately emphasized the word "prey" and added meaningfully, "Of course, that also includes that one over there—Stardust, who is still struggling to survive."

Ji Ying turned his head slightly, the two points of scarlet light glancing warily at Liuli in the distance, before turning back, his voice filled with obvious disdain: "Just a Stardust, such a weak enemy has no interest in me."

"If a magical girl of this caliber is enough to qualify as your 'prey'," he paused slightly, his voice laced with obvious sarcasm, "then I must truly be very disappointed in you, my 'kind.'"

"She's not the only one you really want to hunt, is she?"

"So, he's another one of those 'martial arts fanatic' apostles who only knows how to fight the strong? How utterly boring." Jingjue sneered inwardly, feeling extremely contemptuous of Jiying's personality.

He gathered his thoughts and continued, "To be honest, Lord Silent Shadow may not know this, but what I actually want to hunt is a powerful 'New Moon'."

"The purpose of initiating this infiltration of the illusory realm was to lure her into making a move. Just a few days ago, she defeated one of my powerful clones and even—stolen a precious piece of my 'illusory source'."

"It's a pity." Jingjue's tone was full of undisguised dissatisfaction, and he shook his head with feigned regret.

"The moment you appeared, my little goal was destined to fail."

"Oh? I'm really sorry then." Ji Ying's voice remained calm, without the slightest hint of apology. He tilted his head slightly, seemingly enjoying Jing Jue's slightly exasperated expression.

Jingjue suppressed his anger and decided to try to win over this seemingly dim-witted "martial arts fanatic" apostle from the Void Realm.

"Since Lord Silent Shadow is interested in strong individuals, how about we cooperate and hunt down that Crescent Moon together? I'm sure such a battle will satisfy your 'pleasure'."

"Cooperation?" Ji Ying chuckled.

"If I really run into that interesting Crescent Moon you mentioned, I might actually make a move."

"But—I have no interest in bullying the weak, so there's no need for cooperation."

"Damn martial arts fanatic! Is his brain all muscles?!" Jingjue cursed inwardly again, feeling incredibly annoyed by this stubborn guy, but he also knew that now was not the time to lash out.

He took a deep breath and tentatively asked, "Lord Jiying, I'm actually quite curious, which great being in the Void Realm do you serve? And what is your purpose in coming to this small city of Jiangchuan?"

The black-clad knight fell silent for a moment, the two crimson lights inside his helmet seeming to flicker, as if he were thinking or hesitating.

Finally, he spoke slowly, his voice cold and forceful: "To whom do you pledge allegiance—that seems to have nothing to do with you, does it?"

"I have no obligation to explain to you who I am loyal to, or—the purpose of my being here."

This answer almost caused Jingjue's pent-up anger to erupt uncontrollably, but at the same time, a deeper sense of apprehension also welled up in his heart.

He was almost certain that the other party's background was definitely not simple, and they might even be a "big shot" who truly stood at the top in the virtual world, coming to carry out some kind of secret and important mission.

Otherwise, an ordinary Void Realm Apostle, weaker than himself, would never dare to speak to him with such contempt!

It would be unwise to rashly clash with someone like him standing behind him, but perhaps he could try to take advantage of the other party's "martial arts fanaticism" to achieve his own goals.

Jingjue composed himself for a moment, then complained, "Lord Jiying, isn't this a bit unfair? I've already frankly told you all my 'little secrets' about this place, yet you won't even reveal a single word about your own purpose."

"Of course, I understand that you may have some unspeakable difficulties, and I don't necessarily want to pry into your secrets. However, in order to show my sincerity and to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings..."

"I only ask that you swear an oath to the great being you serve, guaranteeing that you will not harm my 'prey,' which, of course, includes that Stardust over there."

"I've already said," Ji Ying snorted coldly, her voice tinged with obvious impatience, "I'm not interested in such weak enemies, so naturally I won't lay a hand on her."

Upon hearing this promise, Jingjue's brows furrowed even more beneath his smiling mask. He shook his head, his tone carrying an undeniable firmness:

"Lord Jiying, this is probably not enough. You and I both know very well that for us Void Realm Apostles, verbal promises are the least valuable thing. Only oaths made to the beings we serve have real binding force."

"I think that in order for us to have a relatively 'pleasant' relationship, you wouldn't refuse this small request, would you?"

The black-clad knight fell silent for a moment, his crimson eyes seemingly fixed on Mirror Lord, as if weighing his options.

After a long silence, he slowly nodded: "... Okay."

Hearing this answer, Jingjue secretly breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed that his judgment was correct. Although this guy was tough, he did not seem to be completely unreasonable.

However, just when he thought things were about to be resolved smoothly, the dark-skinned knight changed the subject: "But, it doesn't seem fair that only I make the oath, does it?"

Jingjue paused slightly.

"Since I need to swear an oath to the entity I serve, shouldn't you, in return, also swear an oath to the one you serve, guaranteeing that you won't hinder my actions while I'm here?"

Jingjue's expression instantly turned ugly; he never expected that "Silent Shadow" would turn the tables on him.

He gritted his teeth and roared, "I don't even know what you're doing here, so why should I swear an oath about it?!"

"Heh heh—" The dark-skinned rider let out a low, mocking laugh.

"Don't you have anything to hide from me?"

"Don't forget, you were just enthusiastically inviting me to hunt the new moon that stole your precious 'Virtual Source', while repeatedly emphasizing that I shouldn't touch that seemingly insignificant stardust over there."

"You seem to be a little too focused on that stardust, don't you?"

The cold words, like sharp blades, instantly tore through Jing Jue's feigned composure. His body stiffened abruptly, and his eyes beneath the mask suddenly turned incredibly gloomy.

A strong sense of crisis welled up in his heart, and he immediately realized that he seemed to have underestimated the insight and danger of this mysterious fellow from the very beginning.

Suppressing his anger and suspicion, Jingjue knew that any denial or explanation at this moment would only make him seem more suspicious.

He had to end this damn negotiation as soon as possible and get rid of this troublesome guy!

"Alright, in that case, let's swear an oath to each other not to interfere with each other!"

"I, Mirror Lord, swear to the great being I serve!" His voice suddenly became solemn and dignified, "I will never actively hinder Lord Silent Shadow's actions in this city, provided it does not affect my own plans!"

The two crimson lights within the black knight's helmet flickered slightly, mimicking Mirror Lord's lines as they began their performance.

"I, Jiying, also swear to the being I 'serve,' that as long as you don't provoke me, I will naturally not do anything to your 'little prey.'"

Jiying's vow sounded equally solemn, but only he himself knew the perfunctory attitude and disdain it contained.

After they finished swearing their oaths, Jingjue's vigilance finally eased considerably, and the smile on his face seemed to regain some of his usual composure.

In his view, since the other party has made a "promise", then at least for the short term, the two sides can keep to themselves and not interfere with each other.

His priority now is to get rid of this troublesome guy as soon as possible, then reassess the situation and devise a new plan for the new moon.

Just as Jingjue was about to turn around and disappear into the shadows behind him, Jiying called out to him.

"etc."

Jing Jue abruptly stopped, his tone revealing barely suppressed impatience: "Lord Ji Ying, is there anything else?"

"It's nothing serious." The dark-skinned knight slowly raised his arm, pointing to the depths of the illusory bubble.

"Since this illusory infiltration was your 'masterpiece,' Lord Mirror, then—"

"Could I have that energy core that eroded the Void Beast?"

Although it sounded like a discussion, Ji Ying's tone was full of self-righteousness.

Upon hearing this, Jingjue was taken aback for a moment, then let out a cold snort full of disdain and contempt.

"Hmph, just a mere erosion-level energy core. Since Lord Silent Shadow is happy to clean up this mess, then—"

"Do as you please!"

Before he finished speaking, his figure vanished silently from the spot, leaving no trace.

Inside the illusory bubble, besides the illusory beasts, there were only the pitch-black knights and the distant glass figure.

Ji Ying slowly lowered his arm, and a soft, ambiguous laugh came from inside the helmet.