It was terrified beyond measure, yet it dared not resist.
So this is what they meant by every debt has its debtor, every grievance its claimant? It had intimidated them, but in the end, it was the one who had been hurt.
"Shua shua!"
A Golden Seal formed in the air, and the moment it materialized, Luo Yu squeezed a drop of blood essence from his fingertip, which flew into the Golden Seal.
In an instant, the Golden Seal's color changed drastically, transforming into a golden-red hue.
"Go!"
The Golden Seal flew towards the Bagua Bronze Mirror.
The Artifact Spirit struggled mightily but couldn't muster the slightest resistance, and in an effort to prove its innocence, it even approached proactively.
"Weng——"
The Bagua Bronze Mirror vibrated, casting a yellow, amber glow.
"It's done," Zhen Fu'er's breathtakingly beautiful face broke into a shallow smile.
Bai Xiao'e too swung her fist, seemingly even happier than if she had subdued the treasure herself when she saw Luo Yu do it.
Luo Yu felt a connection to the Bagua Bronze Mirror that seemed to run through his very blood.
He raised his hand subconsciously.
And the Bagua Bronze Mirror obediently flew into his palm, like a swallow returning to its nest.
What he felt was a cool, sandblasted texture.
The mirror's frame seemed to be made of wood, but when Luo Yu pinched it hard, it remained undamaged, carved with the patterns of heaven and earth, the Bagua, and the Five Elements.
At the center lay the brass mirror face, full of cracks and obviously severely damaged. Strangely, the mirror could not reflect any scene placed before it.
"Tong Tong pays respects to Master," the Artifact Spirit knelt on its little legs, pledging fealty to Luo Yu with a look of utmost devotion in its eyes.
Compared to its previous fear and dread, it was like night and day; Luo Yu could sense that with just a thought, he could make the Artifact Spirit before him vanish into smoke and clouds.
"Tell me everything you know," he said.
The Artifact Spirit began to speak:
"Tong Tong only knows that Master entrusted me to guard this place, barring everyone who tries to enter. Anyone who enters Tong Tong's Formation, Tong Tong can calculate their basic information, but that's the limit of it," it explained.
"I know nothing else," it added.
Luo Yu pinched the bridge of his nose.
It seemed this fellow really didn't know anything else.
Still, to lay formations and make derivations—to think of it needed no guesswork; this was undoubtedly a legendary treasure, an artifact destined for legendary powers to wield.
And this acquisition was certainly not a loss; in fact, it was a huge gain.
The Artifact Spirit added, "With Master's power blessing me, Tong Tong's ability to predict will greatly enhance, no longer limited to mere basic information."
"So you're saying, you can predict the future?"
Luo Yu's eyes lit up—if that was the case, such an ability was extraordinarily formidable.
None of the divine powers he had absorbed thus far possessed the attribute to foresee the future.
"Yes," the Artifact Spirit nodded, "but the target must enter the Formation for the prediction to occur, and currently, because Tong Tong is severely damaged, the predictions are random and lack specificity."
Luo Yu frowned, pondering the Artifact Spirit's words.
"In other words, you can only extrapolate basic information, and as for more advanced information, it might be a hit-or-miss?"
"Yes," it confirmed.
Luo Yu murmured, "That's a shame."
Standing nearby, Bai Xiao'e's beautiful eyes went wide as saucers: "A shame? Even a tiny glimpse of the future is terrifying enough."
Zhen Fu'er nodded in agreement, "In our era, we've never heard of such a heaven-defying artifact."
"I'll give it a try," Luo Yu said.
He held the Bagua Bronze Mirror in his hand, closed his eyes, and his Divine Sense probed into the mirror, sensing how to use it.
The two women waited patiently, showing not the slightest hint of impatience.
"Weng!"
The Bagua patterns on the sides of the mirror flared with a brilliant shine, and the center of the mirror began spinning rapidly. The dark tomb surroundings abruptly changed, as if a curtain had been lifted to reveal a world filled with brass mirrors.
Zhen Fu'er and Bai Xiao'e watched in surprise.
Luo Yu had already opened his eyes, not knowing when he did so, and he commanded, "Change!"
"Shua."
The surrounding mirrors flickered, the scene rapidly alternating, revealing rolling verdant hills and endless grasslands. They stood among grass reaching up to their knees, could even smell the faint scent of flowers, and farther off, butterflies fluttered in a vibrant scene teeming with life.
"This... this is just too real," Bai Xiao'e was profoundly shocked.
"Indeed," Zhen Fu'er nodded, "If hadn't seen Luo Gongzi perform his magical powers, I'm afraid no one would realize this place is an illusion."
"Change again!"
The surroundings faded, red became the dominant hue of the world, and a scorching breath swept over, as if everyone was now at the mouth of a volcano about to erupt.
Looking down, they saw the fiery dark red lava churning and bubbling inside the crater.
The air was filled with the scent of saltpeter and sulfur.
Bai Xiao'e stared hard at the surroundings, trying to find a flaw: "This is too twisted, even more real than reality itself."
Luo Yu, as the master, was equally surprised; he had not expected the Bagua Mirror to be so extraordinary, already comparable to a true Divine Artifact even in its damaged state.
Bai Xiao'e spoke up, "I've heard that The Island Country has now revived three top-tier Divine Artifacts, one of which is the legendary Yata no Kagami. I wonder how this damaged Bagua Bronze Mirror would compare to that Yata no Kagami."
"The Island Country? What's that worthless trinket? Tong Tong has never heard of it," a childish voice emanated from the Bagua Mirror in Luo Yu's hand.
Bai Xiao'e, far from getting angry at being sassed by the Artifact Spirit, instead laughed and blinked her Beautiful Eyes.
"Then you must work hard, oh."
"We can't let our Great Xia's Divine Artifacts be outdone."
"No worries, I'll take action!"
"And also, don't compare myself with those little trinkets. They're not worthy," a proud voice came from within the Copper Mirror, as if the Artifact Spirit was slowly reclaiming its nature, quite self-assured, having overcome the threat to its life.
Bai Xiao'e couldn't help but laugh in surprise, "This little Artifact Spirit is quite amusing, hee hee hee."
"This is also my first time seeing an Artifact Spirit with such complete spiritual intelligence and human-like emotions, knowing both anger and fear," Zhen Fu'er expressed her astonishment.
"Artifact Spirit, how shall we begin the divination?" Luo Yu asked.
The proud Artifact Spirit's voice immediately turned obsequious upon hearing Luo Yu's voice.
"Master, just a drop of your blood essence on the surface will suffice. The more blood essence provided, the more important the divined information may be," it said.
Luo Yu had no doubts, and since it was his first operation, he was not stingy.
He dropped dozens of beads of blood essence until even with his robust constitution, his complexion turned pale. The operation was so intense that it scared the Artifact Spirit.
"Enough, enough, Master!"
"Any more would exceed Tong Tong's current capacity in this damaged state."
"Boom!"
The Bagua patterns around the mirror surface continuously transformed, emitting an incredibly profound divinatory aura that made one dizzy at just a glance.
A beam of yellow light shot from the mirror surface and struck the void.
Four rows of blood-red characters appeared.
Luo Yu and the others immediately focused: "In sixty-five days, Luo Yu's grandfather, Luo Tiance, will die, and the entire Great Xia will be destroyed."
"What?" Bai Xiao'e and Zhen Fu'er were utterly astonished upon reading the characters, their hearts in turmoil.
Luo Yu's face turned exceedingly grim, teeth clenched tight with a crunchy sound, fixated on the characters.
After the characters disappeared, he suddenly turned around, glowering at the mirror with blazing eyes.
"Is this how you prophesy for me?"
"Predicting my grandfather's sudden death and the nation's doom?"
"Damn!"
"You think I won't smash you today!" Luo Yu lifted his hand, ready to strike: "Have mercy, Master, spare me! This has nothing to do with Tong Tong."
"It's not related to you?" Luo Yu stopped, his expression turning utterly cold, "You'd better give me a reasonable explanation."
The Artifact Spirit said, "This isn't a prophecy; it's a deduction of the future!"
"What does that mean?" Luo Yu's complexion was ugly, unable to feel any joy—it was like cursing someone, utterly condemnable.
The Artifact Spirit weakly explained, "It means that if nothing unexpected happens, that deduced future will come true."
"Do you believe I'll make you face the unexpected first?" Luo Yu said.
"Master, please calm down, have faith in my abilities, this matter is absolutely true," the Artifact Spirit hastily explained.
Luo Yu's eyes flickered, and after taking a deep breath, he regained his composure.
"Huuu—"
After calming down, he pondered, the Artifact Spirit couldn't be bluffing, for if it were, and Luo Tiance did not die in sixty-five days, it would mean the death of the Artifact Spirit.
But why in sixty-five days, with such precise timing?
Wait a minute!
Luo Yu suddenly remembered that the world's powers had abruptly proposed to hold a youth competition. Could it be related to this, hiding some kind of conspiracy?