CHAPTER 57: CHAPTER 57: ETERNAL REFLECTION

"Dishonor to my lord... must be executed..." A killing sound rippled from the shadow above, as the dark figure raised a hand and a sword shadow swiftly vanished across the heavens.

Ming Fei’s body was split open by the shadow in an instant, unable to even let out a scream.

Chen Guan was both shocked and delighted as he watched. He hadn’t expected the shadow to follow him out of the underground crevice, and it was so terrifying, slaying an existence like Ming Fei with just one strike.

Ming Fei’s body, split in half, suddenly dispersed and transformed into countless particles of white light, flying towards Chen Guan.

Chen Guan instinctively retreated, but just as he moved half a step back, countless particles of white light surged into his body.

The shadow stood there without any intention of stopping it.

Chen Guan realized it was petification, without a threat.

When all the particles of white light flowed into Chen Guan’s body, a new entry appeared in the pet information.

Ming Fei (Unparalleled): Level 1 Spirit Pet.

Primordial Energy: 1.

Growth Rate: 2.0.

Lifebound Talent: Sacred Body (Unparalleled).

Secret Technique: Joyful Technique (Unparalleled).

Secret Skill: Prajna Technique (Unparalleled).

Secret Treasure: Void Marvelous Gauze (Unparalleled).

Special: Residual Spirit Reincarnation Body, Incomplete State.

Chen Guan didn’t have time to study Ming Fei, the pet. His gaze was fixed on the shadow before him.

The shadow stood there motionless, as if gazing at the stars on the horizon.

"Who are you?" Chen Guan hadn’t spoken until the shadow turned to look at him, and he finally asked.

"Great... Qin... a... mere... soldier..." The shadow rippled with ancient syllables, and the body fell to the ground, becoming the shadow at Chen Guan’s feet once more.

Chen Guan looked down for a long time but couldn’t discern what was different about his shadow. If not for the events that had just transpired, he wouldn’t have thought that another’s shadow was parasitic within his own.

"It seems that to uncover the origin of this shadow, I must ask Ming Fei." Chen Guan first left the forest and, after making a wide loop to confirm he wasn’t being followed, returned home.

Returning to his room, Chen Guan closed the door and summoned Ming Fei.

The dark room was suddenly illuminated by fluorescent light, and Ming Fei, draped in miraculous gauze, appeared before Chen Guan. But at this moment, she could no longer float in the air and fell to the ground like an ordinary Secret Spirit; her presence was far less imposing than before.

"Ming Fei." Chen Guan saw Ming Fei standing like a puppet, with a vacant gaze, and couldn’t help but frown slightly, softly calling her name.

"Master." Ming Fei responded, her gaze still dazed, entirely devoid of her former spirituality.

"Are you pretending to have amnesia?" Chen Guan smirked coldly, staring at Ming Fei as he continued, "Answer my questions well, and I won’t make things difficult for you. Otherwise, I don’t mind performing Joyful Technique on you again."

Ming Fei’s initially empty eyes suddenly cleared up, and she sighed, looking at Chen Guan as she spoke, "I’ve already become your pet, why do you still press so hard?"

"You know you are my pet now, and as a pet, you must have the ethics of one." Chen Guan snorted coldly, "What’s the deal with that shadow?"

"How would I know what’s going on; isn’t he following you?" Ming Fei replied.

"It seems you really don’t want to live well." Chen Guan’s eyes turned cold as he stared at Ming Fei.

Ming Fei said helplessly, "I only know that it’s an Eternal Reflection, and I’m truly ignorant of its origins."

"What is an Eternal Reflection?" Chen Guan asked.

"Humans die and shadows vanish; no shadow can exist independently unless under special circumstances. Only after a person’s death might an eternal shadow remain, which is what an Eternal Reflection is."

Ming Fei paused before continuing, "There are many scenarios for forming an Eternal Reflection. The most likely scenario is the sudden eruption of extremely terrifying energy, in which a person is reduced to nothingness while the shadow is captured for some reason, forming an Eternal Reflection. It’s like some ancient buildings where shadows of people from ancient times appear during thunderstorms – that’s a form of Eternal Reflection. But such Eternal Reflections have shadows but no substance, can’t be touched, let alone have consciousness, let alone release such terrifying energy."

After finishing, Ming Fei looked at Chen Guan and inquired, "Was this shadow originally in the Imperial Palace?"

"What Imperial Palace? I only saw a ground fissure," Chen Guan said.

"Then it must be, that place is the Imperial Palace, left behind by the Emperor Ancestor, but it was destroyed in a great battle. The inscriptions of the Emperor’s Scripture on the stone wall were also erased by me."

Ming Fei was indeed extremely intelligent. Just knowing where the shadow came from, she had deduced the cause and effect: "If my guess is correct, you must have seen the Emperor’s Scripture, but those inscriptions were not actually carved on the stone wall."

"You mean those inscriptions are also an Eternal Reflection?" Chen Guan understood what she meant.

"Correct. At that time, I was too hasty; I only had time to destroy the inscriptions on the stone wall, not expecting an Eternal Reflection to remain. It seems like the scriptures and the shadow were left from that great battle." Ming Fei sighed.

It truly is as unpredictable as fate. Despite destroying the Emperor’s Scripture, she never imagined it would survive in this form, it was something she couldn’t even dream of.

If the Emperor’s Scripture hadn’t survived, she wouldn’t be in such a state now, having already turned Chen Guan into a Furnace.

"What kind of battle was that?" Chen Guan asked.

"I don’t know. When I was taken to the island by the Emperor Ancestor and imprisoned inside the Great Black Celestial Demon God Statue, the island was already in that state. Based on some traces, it’s speculated there was an earth-shattering battle there, but as for what kind of battle it was, it’s beyond my knowledge."

"But one thing is certain, the shadow was left from that battle. For a shadow to possess such terrifying energy, it shows how terrifying the battle must have been then. Unfortunately, a shadow is still a shadow, even if it retains a will, it no longer has consciousness and can’t be considered a real living person." Ming Fei reasoned everything out, feeling deep regret.

If she hadn’t insulted the Emperor Ancestor, the shadow’s will likely wouldn’t have been provoked, and she wouldn’t have been killed by it, forced to choose petification to survive.

Chen Guan also realized this, thinking silently, "Could it be that the shadow is following me because I praised the Emperor Ancestor there a bit?"

"How about we make a deal? I’ll teach you the secret techniques created by the Emperor Ancestor, and you help me escape the life of a pet," Ming Fei said, looking at Chen Guan.

"I already have the Emperor’s Scripture; why would I need you to teach me?" Chen Guan stared at Ming Fei, with a hint of suspicion in his heart.

"You’re right, the Emperor’s Scripture may have been left by the Emperor Ancestor, but it wasn’t created by him. It was left only to restrain me. The real secret technique created by the Emperor Ancestor has another inheritance, and I was specifically imprisoned within the Great Black Celestial Demon God Statue by him for the purpose of passing on this secret technique." Ming Fei spoke each word with emphasis, "The true secret technique created by the Emperor Ancestor is called ’One’."