Transforming into a stunningly beautiful fox spirit, leaving a scar on the heart of a prodigy.

The vibrations from the airship landing spread upwards from the soles of the feet, followed by the deep, muffled sound of the array meshing together.

Su Chang'an opened his eyes amidst the shaking.

A sliver of grayish-white light shone through the gap in the hatch.

The light was devoid of any warmth, more like the pale white residue left after the sunlight refracted through the snow.

After the flying boat came to a stop, the array patterns on the cabin walls gradually faded.

The barrier used to isolate external laws is slowly closing and receding.

A heavy, oppressive aura descended upon them.

This oppressive aura has nothing to do with the bitter cold of the wind and snow, nor is it due to the erosion of the laws of spiritual destruction.

It poured down from above the camp with a very clear direction, attempting to capture every inch of spiritual energy fluctuations within a radius of several miles.

Su Chang'an's soul core instinctively shrank inward, clinging tightly to the white light barrier emanating from the soul-stabilizing talisman on his chest.

The hatch was pushed open from the outside.

Luo Qingxue stood outside the door, the high collar of her cloak obscuring most of her face.

She was holding a gray coarse cloth cloak in her hand. Without exchanging pleasantries, she threw the object directly onto Su Chang'an's lap.

"Put them on."

"The whole body was wrapped up tightly, especially the head and hands."

"We must not reveal even the slightest fluctuation of our divine soul."

Su Chang'an looked down and examined the cloak.

The rough, stiff fabric lining is stitched with an extremely thin layer of silver pattern.

Her fingers slid across the surface of the array, recognizing it as a low-level concealment restriction, sufficient to deal with the most basic spiritual probes.

This is definitely not an ordinary item that you picked up casually.

Su Chang'an didn't ask about the origin of the cloak, nor did he inquire about the source of the oppressive aura outside the camp.

She leaned against the bulkhead to stand up. Her translucent body swayed for a moment as it was freed from the protective barrier, before she managed to steady herself.

The large gray cloak with its hood shrouded her in shadow.

The silver array patterns moved along the surface of her soul, and a grayish-white light membrane covered it, suppressing her broken aura to an extremely difficult level to detect.

Luo Qingxue looked her up and down, but didn't say anything. She turned around and walked away.

Su Chang'an followed.

The moment I stepped out of the airship cabin, the outside world came into view.

The camp was much larger than she had imagined.

Dozens of white tents are lined up along the mountainside, with array patterns that guide spiritual energy embedded in the gaps between the gravel paths between the tents, through which several clearly visible branches of spiritual veins converge towards the center of the camp.

Every three zhang (approximately 10 meters) on either side of the passage stood a white-robed disciple carrying a long sword. Everyone looked straight ahead, their posture and breathing perfectly synchronized.

Su Chang'an did not linger his attention on these people for long.

The object hanging overhead caught her eye.

A huge bronze mirror floated above the camp.

The mirror, with a diameter of over three zhang, faces downwards, and the edges of the frame are engraved with intricate ancient seal script characters.

The bronze mirror continued to rotate slowly, projecting a blinding white light with each rotation, shining indiscriminately down below.

The people and tents swept by the white light, along with the array patterns on the ground, all cast clear reflections as the light penetrated.

These reflections are quite different from ordinary shadows.

Su Chang'an noticed that when his disciple walked through the white light, the pale blue reflection on the ground perfectly matched his own spiritual power attribute.

But when the white light swept across the black spirit beast in the iron cage, the reflection on the ground instantly turned into a blinding crimson, and the restriction array patterns at the four corners of the cage activated, firmly holding the spirit beast inside in place.

Su Chang'an paused for a moment.

Luo Qingxue, who was walking ahead, also stopped.

She stared at the bronze mirror, her eyes growing even colder.

"The Celestial Mirror".

Luo Qingxue lowered her voice, just enough for Su Chang'an behind her to hear.

"A magical treasure just bestowed upon me by the Ancestor."

"A soul body specifically designed to distinguish between high-level demon souls and those with special attributes."

"Where the mirror light sweeps, all kinds of spiritual energy attributes will project corresponding colors onto the ground."

"The bloodline of the demon race is crimson, while that of the Celestial Fox lineage is..."

She didn't say the rest.

Su Chang'an didn't need to hear the second half of the sentence.

She had no idea what color the Celestial Fox's essence would appear under the Celestial Mirror, but it could definitely not be light blue.

She knew all too well that the white light barrier of the Soul-Stabilizing Talisman on her chest could only deal with ordinary spiritual senses and could not block the direct rays of this kind of demon-detecting magic weapon.

That old bastard Li Changgeng even brought out his most treasured secret weapon.

Su Chang'an grabbed the hood of the cloak and pulled it down to ensure that every inch of light and shadow was completely blocked out.

The concealment array patterns inside the gray cloak were the worst kind of concealment, which might be okay for dealing with ordinary patrols, but were completely useless in front of the Sky-Patrolling Mirror.

"Keep your head down and stay close to me."

Luo Qingxue strode forward and turned to a secluded, narrow path on the left, intentionally avoiding the wide main road that led directly to the camp gate.

The narrow path was piled with wooden crates for transporting supplies and a large quantity of unopened spirit ore. Few disciples passed by. When the white light of the Sky-Patrolling Mirror swept over this place, the angle was skewed, and the range of illumination was greatly reduced.

Su Chang'an hovered half a step behind Luo Qingxue, adjusting his steps to be completely synchronized with hers.

The hem of the gray cloak dragged on the gravel road, making a soft, scraping sound.

She kept her head down, her vision limited to the steady strides of the pair of white boots in front of her.

Whenever the white light of the Celestial Mirror swept past her head, she could feel a tangible probing force pressing down on the outer layer of her cloak.

The silver array pattern appeared extremely weak in the face of absolute power, barely suppressing her presence to the level of a weak remnant soul, thereby avoiding the high-priority marking of the mirror light identification mechanism.

This stroke of luck is destined to be short-lived.

Su Chang'an mentally calculated the operating cycle of the Celestial Mirror.

Each rotation takes about seven breaths. The white light has three fixed blind spots: the northwest corner of the camp, behind the supply storage area, and the side gate.

Luo Qingxue led her towards the side door.

At the end of the narrow path was a gap in a stone wall that was three zhang high.

A simple wooden shed was erected above the gap, and a stone pillar carved with spiritual patterns stood on each side.

This is the side gate, which is usually used only for disciples to go out on patrol and for small batches of supplies to enter and exit. Its defense specifications are far inferior to those of the main gate.

Luo Qingxue slowed her pace.

Su Chang'an felt something.

The flow of spiritual energy at the gap in the stone wall ahead was strange.

The passage area through the side gate has been artificially reduced.

A long, dark wooden table lay across the center of the opening, with registers and several jade talismans for testing spread out on its surface.

A male cultivator sat behind the long table.

This person was dressed in a dark gray robe of an elder of law enforcement, with a golden flying sword emblem embroidered on his chest.

He had the face of someone in his forties, with high cheekbones, deep-set eyes, and thick, dark eyebrows that pressed down, giving him the natural look of someone interrogating a criminal.

A dark blue longsword rested steadily on his lap.

The cultivation fluctuations of the Nascent Soul stage continuously emanated from this person. Although it wasn't particularly domineering, it was enough to bring the entire side gate under his surveillance.

Four sword-wielding disciples stood on either side of him, each with a pale gold talisman affixed to their sword sheaths—detonating talismans specifically used to activate attack formations.

Luo Qingxue stopped three steps away from the long table.

Elder Zhao.

She greeted him, her words showing no surprise.

Elder Zhao did not look up.

He moved the fine brush across the register, the steady strokes dragging out an extremely slow rhythm, intentionally wearing down the patience of those around him.

Su Chang'an stood behind Luo Qingxue with his head down, completely hidden inside the gray cloak.

She peeked through the gap in her hood at the books spread out on the long table.

The pages were filled with the names of people who passed through the side gate that day, and the last line of the date was two hours ago.

For two whole hours, not a single soldier was allowed to pass through this side gate.

Zhao Wuji placed the fine brush on the brush holder and looked up.

His gaze passed over Luo Qingxue's shoulder and landed directly on the gray cloak.

His scrutinizing gaze lingered on the outer edge of the cloak for a moment before turning his attention to Luo Qingxue.

"Nephew Luo."

His dry, hoarse voice was extremely raspy.

"Who is the person following behind you?"

Luo Qingxue maintained her original standing posture.

Her right hand, hanging naturally, was only a fist's width away from the sword hilt.

I found it by the roadside.

"A low-level rogue cultivator's remnant soul on the far northern snowfield, his physical body destroyed, only a wisp of his soul remains."

"According to the sect's old practice, such people can be dismissed from the camp after being registered at the side gate. There's no need to alarm the main force."

Zhao Wuji's right eyelid twitched for a moment.

He didn't refute her, but instead reached into his sleeve and pulled out a scroll of silk that shone with golden light. He pinched the corner with two fingers and unfolded it, showing the front to Luo Qingxue.

The writing on the silk scroll is a direct imprint of the Quasi-Emperor's Law, with each stroke carrying a heavy pressure on the soul.

Through the hood, Su Chang'an could only make out the seal at the bottom of the silk scroll, which was Li Changgeng's private seal.

"Nephew Luo is probably unaware of the situation."

Zhao Wuji rotated the silk scroll, exposing the characters completely to the sunlight.

"The ancestral decree was delivered at midnight last night."

"From today onwards, martial law will be imposed on the main operations in the Northern Region."

"No one is allowed to enter or leave, regardless of their social status, whether they are disciples of a sect or stray cats, dogs, or wandering spirits picked up from the roadside."

He tucked the silk book back into his sleeve and pressed one hand against the scabbard of the dark blue longsword on his knee.

"Everyone must have their details revealed under the Heavenly Mirror, and only after the Enforcement Hall verifies that everything is correct will they be allowed to pass."

Zhao Wuji's gaze locked onto the gray cloak once again.

Even the soul of a flying insect.

"Don't even think about smuggling half a piece out."

Su Chang'an brought his fingers, hidden under his cloak, together in his palm.

The hood tightly protected her face, while the silver array patterns continued to relentlessly compress her aura.

She heard the weight of Zhao Wuji's last words perfectly.

This is by no means an act of law enforcement elders following the rules.

This means Li Changgeng has completely tightened his net.

The celestial mirror above the camp began a new rotation, and a beam of white light slowly moved along the top of the side gate.

The light first struck Luo Qingxue, and a clear, pale blue reflection was immediately imprinted on the ground.

The beam of light continued to extend backward, heading straight for Su Chang'an's feet.

The patterns on the surface of the gray cloak flickered for a moment.

A white light swept across the outer edge of the cloak, leaving a blurry gray shadow on the ground before veering away into the distance.

Su Chang'an neither looked up nor retreated.

She stood half a step behind Luo Qingxue, her semi-transparent body, concealed by her cloak, remaining absolutely still, even her breathing rhythm blending seamlessly with the flow of the surrounding air.

Zhao Wuji narrowed his eyes.

"Nephew Luo."

He stood up from his seat, and the scabbard that had been resting on his lap slid into his palm, which he held horizontally in front of him.

"Take your people and go through the main entrance."

Luo Qingxue straightened her back.

Her gaze met Zhao Wuji's, and the impenetrable chill emanating from her became the best cover for her at that moment.

"Elder Zhao, she is just a remnant soul."

"Then there is even less room for exceptions."

Zhao Wuji used his thumb to pry open the copper clasp on the scabbard, revealing a section of dark blue-green sword blade.

"The ancestral decree is written very clearly."

There are absolutely no exceptions.

Su Chang'an stood with his head down, the hem of his gray cloak spreading out on the gravel road.

Facing the relentless probing force from the direction of the Celestial Mirror, enduring the oppressive aura emanating from Zhao Wuji's Nascent Soul stage cultivation, she also sensed the increasingly taut string on Luo Qingxue's back.

Our escape route has been completely blocked.

This side door is destined not to be opened to anyone today.