“But no matter, since you need the mirror, I’ll retrieve it for you in a few days, regardless of this Niu Qi character,” Nie Kuang said generously.
“Brother Nie, let me thank you in advance!” Shang Bieye raised his wine cup towards Nie Kuang.
“Brother Shang, your wife saved my life; my life belongs to you both. This little mirror is nothing. If you need me in the future, just say the word, and I, Nie Kuang, will not hesitate even if it means going through fire and water,” Nie Kuang said, patting his chest boldly.
“Brother Nie, you’re too generous,” Shang Bieye said with a smile.
“Haha, don’t say that. Come, come, everyone, eat more!” Nie Kuang pointed to the lavish dishes on the table. Everyone picked up their chopsticks, chatting and laughing, enjoying the meal to the fullest, both host and guests delighted.
A few days later, Nie Kuang led the group to where the Time Mirror was hidden, a dilapidated old house with broken walls.
“Brother Nie, you hid the mirror here?” Shang Bieye looked around.
“Yes, it’s an abandoned house where no one lives anymore. Usually, no one comes here,” Nie Kuang said as he stepped over broken tiles.
“Be careful, because no one comes here, there are many snakes and spiders,” Nie Kuang warned. As they walked, they came to a pile of discarded items. Nie Kuang bent down and started rummaging through a pile of broken glass.
“Brother Nie, what are you doing?” Xinmeng asked curiously.
“Looking for the mirror!” Nie Kuang laughed, “I bet you didn’t expect I’d hide the mirror here, did you?”
“Brother Nie, that’s quite a clever move!” Bu Yuchen praised, clapping his hands.
“It’s nothing,” Nie Kuang modestly replied. He carefully searched through the broken glass until he found the Time Mirror.
“Found it!” Nie Kuang picked up the Time Mirror and handed it to Shang Bieye, “Brother Shang, here’s the mirror.”
Everyone gathered around Shang Bieye, peering at it.
“This is the Time Mirror?” Bu Yuchen stared intently.
“Why does it look like something is moving when I look at it?” Wu Yangfeng pointed at the “Chou” (Ugly) section on the mirror.
“Really? I see movement in this ‘Chen’ (Dragon) area,” Bu Yuchen pointed.
“Impossible! When I first picked it up, there was nothing unusual,” Nie Kuang, skeptical, also looked down, “Huh? It really is moving at ‘Zi’ (Rat). How can this be? Shiyun, come and have a look.”
Duan Shiyun also couldn’t believe it because he had seen the mirror before without noticing any anomalies, let alone any movement, and each person seemed to see something different.
“What’s going on? It wasn’t like this before!” Duan Shiyun looked at the mirror in astonishment, seeing movement in the “You” (Rooster) area.
“But I don’t see anything moving?”
Yan Xinmeng stared at them in bewilderment because she saw nothing wrong, just a mirror. “Brother, did you see anything?” she asked. “I didn’t see anything either,” Shang Bieye replied after gazing at the mirror for a long time. “Hey? It looks like someone’s there!” Duan Shiyun suddenly exclaimed. “Yeah, I think I see a figure too,” Bu Yuchen said, squinting closely. Subsequently, Nie Kuang and Wu Yangfeng also noticed a vague shadow, but no matter how hard Shang Bieye and Yan Xinmeng looked, they couldn’t see any anomaly. Everyone looked at each other, completely clueless about what was happening. “No matter if it moves or not, whatever the phenomenon, Brother Shang, I’ll leave this Hourglass Mirror to you,” Nie Kuang said, handing the Hourglass Mirror to Shang Bieye. “Thank you, Brother Nie,” Shang Bieye thanked him with a clasped fist. Taking the Hourglass Mirror from Nie Kuang, Shang Bieye felt a gentle tug on his sleeve from Yan Xinmeng, who gestured for him to step aside. “Brother, can you give the Hourglass Mirror to me so I can take it to Brother Niu Qi?” Yan Xinmeng whispered. Shang Bieye thought for a moment before saying, “Xinmeng, let’s discuss this when we get back!” “But…” “Xinmeng, I think we should return to Black Gate first,” Shang Bieye didn’t want to discuss the Hourglass Mirror and “Brother Niu Qi” in this place.
Originally, Shang Bieye, following his master’s instructions, was supposed to destroy the Hourglass Mirror, but Yan Xinmeng disagreed with his approach, leading to a long dispute. Yan Xinmeng believed the mirror belonged to Niu Qi, and since she was out to find it for him, how could she just destroy it? Eventually, to resolve his doubts and to meet the so-called “Brother Niu Qi,” Shang Bieye agreed to hold off on destroying the mirror, but he insisted on returning it to Niu Qi with Yan Xinmeng. After all, if such a mirror fell into the wrong hands, the consequences could be dire.
“Are you sure you want to meet Brother Niu Qi?” Yan Xinmeng asked cautiously. “Of course! Why not?” Shang Bieye smiled at Yan Xinmeng’s cautious expression. “But I’m afraid you’ll be startled.” Are you looking down on me? Shang Bieye raised an eyebrow at Yan Xinmeng. “Brother, don’t look at me like that, I’m not looking down on you, but you really will be startled.” Shang Bieye didn’t want to explain further, as there was another reason for his skepticism. Yan Xinmeng kept saying that the Hourglass Mirror belonged to someone named Niu Qi, but throughout their search, they never saw him. Although Nie Kuang mentioned that the person in the dream was called Niu Qi, there was no sign of him, making it hard for Shang Bieye to believe. He just looked at her, saying nothing, with an expression that brooked no argument.
