Chapter 2962 - The Mirror of Bygone Days

Su Yi thought back to the God Domain, when Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming gave him the Eternal Key and the Sword of the Nine Hells stirred.

But it was strange. The Sword of the Nine Hells hadn’t reacted to the key even once since he acquired it. Su Yi had even tried using the Sword of the Nine Hells’ power to probe the key, but in the end, he learned nothing at all.

He pondered briefly, then asked, “Did any sort of cataclysm follow the key’s second strange movement?”

Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming shook his head. He was a bit confused. “No, and I find the situation rather strange, too.”

Something suddenly occurred to Su Yi. “Did you perchance give me the key, not simply as compensation, but to divert the impending cataclysm onto me?”

The atmosphere was instantly stifled.

After a moment’s silence, Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming told him the truth. “When the key reacted to you, I was convinced that you were the person fated to possess it.”

Su Yi smiled and didn’t pursue the matter any further. Instead, he brought up something else entirely. “I’m quite interested in the process of igniting the Flame of Sacrifice and reflecting the Totems of the Twelve Progenitors. Might you answer some additional questions?”

Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming blinked, then gazed intently at him. “Fellow Daoist, you do realize that these secrets are the very foundation of my people?”

Before Su Yi could respond, Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming laughed at himself and sighed. “Given our current foundations, we’ll never be able to ignite the Flames of Sacrifice again. That means we’ll never truly lay eyes on the Totems of the Twelve Progenitors again. In that case, there’s actually no reason not to teach you the secret technique, Fellow Daoist.”

Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming’s gaze was solemn. “But first, this old man has a request I hope you’re willing to grant.”

“Go ahead and ask,” said Su Yi.

“Should the day come that you can re-ignite the Flames of Sacrifice and gaze upon the Totems of the Twelve Progenitors, please visit us first,” said Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming. “Please allow my people to bear witness to it all.”

Su Yi mulled it over briefly, then agreed.

Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming felt a massive weight lift from his shoulders. He smiled. “I have a strong premonition that you’ll one day make all of this a reality!”

He then slipped an ancient beast skin scroll out of his sleeves and passed it to Su Yi. “The secret method for igniting the Flames of Sacrifice is connected to the Laws of Time and Space. We call it the Mirror of Bygone Days. It’s recorded on this Brilliant Chongming Bird skin.”‘

The Mirror of Bygone Days!

Su Yi accepted the beast skin scroll. He could clearly sense the inscrutable spacetime seal covering it.

Those who lacked the secret method could forget about opening it and gleaning insight into the Mirror of Bygone Days.

Ancient Aberran Xuan Ming didn’t hold Su Yi in suspense. He used the secret language of the Aberrants to transmit the technique to open the seal. Su Yi grasped it quickly, too.

However, he didn’t rush to open it. Instead, he put it away. He planned to examine it further upon returning to the Heart-Tempering Sword House’s territory.

That aside, he had other plans. For one thing, he had to take another trip to the Sword-Testing Tower and talk to the mysterious Primordial Sword Devil about the Twelve Aberrant Progenitors.

For another, he now possessed a Secret Heart Treasure, the Contented Heart Scepter, which had the Writing Brush of Genesis’s ability to trace time and all things back to their source. He wanted to see if he could use it to learn more about the Eternal Key.

Su Yi and Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming chatted a while longer, drinking and conversing. The atmosphere was quite harmonious.

Su Yi was especially intrigued when Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming spoke of his conflict with several Heavenly Sovereigns. Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming didn’t hide anything, either. He told Su Yi directly that although he had indeed clashed with Heavenly Sovereigns on multiple occasions, he’d been defeated each and every time. He hadn’t won against them even once.

All of this was because the Eternal Thrones were just too terrifying. There was no shaking them!

Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming also said that he was capable of fighting back because he controlled legacies connected to the Totems of the Twelve Progenitors!

“Forgive my rudeness, but if not for the existence of Eternal Thrones, the power of our legacies would transcend all others. We, Aberrants, would be supreme in this world!” said Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming, a hint of contemptuous pride on his brow. “Few Heavenly Monarch legacies are even remotely comparable to the Totems of the Twelve Progenitors!”

But then, his gaze dimmed. “It’s a pity, but the passage of time touches all things. Years of wind and rain have long since washed away our past glories.”

Su Yi seized the opportunity to ask about the Totems of the Twelve Progenitors in more detail. He was surprised to learn that they were quite similar to the Grand Dao he now pursued in this lifetime!

They focused on tempering the self. They sought to embody the Dao within the self, and to reflect the universe within their heart.

All of their efforts were focused on awakening and excavating the latent potential of their myriad blood vessels and acupoints. Aberrant legacies taught that although the acupoints of the human body were small, they could contain all facets of creation!

Those who fully unleashed their potential could support ten thousand worlds with the power of their flesh and contain all Daos. They could manifest the mysteries of the alternations of the ages. They had no need to seek the Dao externally.

This was indeed quite similar to the path Su Yi now walked.

At least, it was on the surface. When Su Yi examined it more deeply, he found numerous differences.

The Aberrant legacies were much like many Buddhist legacies and other methods of seeking the Dao by honing the flesh; the differences were subtle. All of them started externally, then moved inward. They sought the myriad Daos of heaven and earth to excavate their own potential.

Conversely, Su Yi started internally, then expanded outward. He used his own Dao to refine all others.

They were superficially similar, but their fundamental nature was starkly different.

Still, Su Yi learned a lot from this conversation, and he couldn’t deny that the Aberrants’ techniques to excavate their latent potential were novel and full of endless wonders.

He’d learned all this simply by chatting with Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming. How much deeper were the complete legacies within the Totems of the Twelve Progenitors?

“Fellow Daoist Su, forgive my boldness, but might I ask what kind of relationship you have with Old Man Ku Xuan?” Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming asked suddenly.

Su Yi paused, then said, “It’s a bit complicated.”

Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming considerately refrained from asking any further questions. Instead, he warned, “Ol’ Ku Xuan is a dazzling figure among Demonists. He proved his Dao and became a Heavenly Sovereign during the Devastation, and throughout his life, he’s maintained a firm hold on the Blackwater Celestial Capital. When you interact with him, you cannot lower your guard.”

Su Yi smiled. “I understand.”

By the time the banquet came to a close, the Heart-Tempering Sword House and the Aberrants had reached an agreement regarding compensation. Wu Qing personally came to report the results to Su Yi, only for Su Yi to wave dismissively. “We don’t need any of that. I just hope that there can be true peace between us and the Aberrants going forward.”

This decision left Wu Qing stunned. It surprised the Aberrants, too.

Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming understood. Fellow Daoist Su is letting this go out of consideration for me. He could have made a much bigger deal out of this.

He promptly decided to return Su Yi’s favor with a favor of his own. He commanded that going forward, there would be an alliance between the Heart-Tempering Sword House and the Aberrants. They’d retreat and advance side by side!

He also insisted that the Heart-Tempering Sword House take the compensation they’d been offered, even if they’d rather refuse. It was a token of their good intentions.

When Sect Leader Lu Ye and the others heard this, they instantly felt much better.

Everyone was pleased with this result. Ultimately, they’d resolved this enmity thanks to Su Yi and Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming.

And Su Yi’s decision had unquestionably played the most crucial role in all this.

That very day, Su Yi and the experts of the Heart-Tempering Sword House set off. Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming personally escorted them back to Candlelight Peak.

......

“Ancient, are we really just going to let this go?”

Chief Meng Che and the other Aberrant higher-ups had all gathered in a meeting hall on Heavenly Aberrant Mountain. Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming sat in the highest seat.

“Don’t tell me you still want to get revenge?” Xuan Ming said coldly.

The crowd exchanged glances. None of them responded.

Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming said gravely, “You’re to act in accordance with my orders and form an alliance with the Heart-Tempering Sword House. Moreover... you’re to follow their leadership. We’ll play a supporting role!”

The crowd was stunned. This is no alliance! You’re basically just telling us to submit to their leadership!

Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming disregarded their confusion and murmured, “At the banquet, I entrusted Fellow Daoist Su with the Mirror of Bygone Days.”

Boom!

It was as if all of them had been struck by lightning. Their eyes widened with disbelief. The Mirror of Bygone Days is the very foundation of our people! How could the Ancient have given it to an outsider?

Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming scanned the room, then explained his reasoning. “With our strength, our race will never return to its former glory! But... with Fellow Daoist Su’s help, we might well succeed! It’s a gamble, and I’ve decided to go all in. I’m betting all my chips on Fellow Daoist Su for the simple reason that he’s worthy of that kind of trust!”

Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming snorted coldly. “This is an opportunity to board Fellow Daoist Su’s boat. Just wait; I’m sure you’ll be delighted when it pays off!”

Everyone fell silent. Why does the Ancient think so highly of Su Yi, to the point that he’d gamble the future of our entire race?

But Xuan Ming didn’t explain any further.

......

The Heart-Tempering Sword House.

“Founder, are the Aberrants really willing to enter an alliance with us?” someone asked. They’d convened a meeting to discuss what had happened today, just like the Aberrants had.

Su Yi nodded. “Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming entrusted me with their most secret legacy. That’s a token of his allegiance.”

The crowd stirred. None of them had realized that Ancient Aberrant Xuan Ming would go to such lengths!

“You needn’t worry about the Aberrants going back on their word,” said Su Yi. “On the contrary, they’re sure to be proactively cooperative. They won’t dare to cause trouble.”

The others exchanged glances, then relaxed. They were inwardly rueful.

To them, the Aberrants posed an enormous threat, and dealing with them would be enormously troublesome. Who could have imagined that the founder would resolve the problem in just one short day? All he’d done was take a trip to their territories, but the situation had turned completely on its head!

All of it happened so quickly and unexpectedly that it didn’t seem quite real!