ATLAS TRANSLATES

Past the ice wall lay the lands of the Duanmu clan.

Despite being mentally prepared, Xing Shuishui still sighed at the desolate scene before her: collapsed houses, crumbling walls, with white snow covering broken bridges. Human limbs mixed with rubble, tattered cloth caught on wall bricks, splattered with blood that had long since turned black.

She lifted her face to a hazy view.

“He Liansheng, was it like this when you came here before?”

The young man replied: “Yes.”

Du Dizhu picked up a broken brick, crumbling it between his fingers: “Traces of mirror arts.”

He narrowed his eyes, voice filled with killing intent: “Though you can tell he wasn’t very familiar with mirror arts at the time.”

Xing Shuishui was almost certain now. This was Guan Wushan’s doing. She surveyed the horrific scene before her. Using Jian Wushuang’s unique mirror arts to slaughter his own family. How could anyone be so cruel?

He Liansheng said: “When I summoned their spirits back then, the Duanmu clan’s souls had restriction spells placed on them. They couldn’t remember much. But they would grant any request for curses. Guan Wushan likely relied on them before when dealing with Lingshan and expanding his influence.”

Du Dizhu’s expression showed his disbelief. He formed a hand seal, and cyan light flew from his fingertips across the snow, instantly raising a soul – a young child.

The child floated in the air with blank eyes, seeming not to know what had happened.

Xing Shuishui glanced at him, confirming the restriction spell on his soul. The separation fire could definitely burn it away, but one small mistake could scatter the soul completely. She withdrew her outstretched hand.

The child asked: “Who are you? Have you come seeking curses?”

Du Dizhu only cared about one thing: “Who came here before? What did they do? Be honest.”

The child thought for a moment, then pointed at He Liansheng.

Du Dizhu glanced at him and snorted.

The child continued: “There was also a master, but I can’t say…”

He suddenly pressed his hands against his temples, appearing to be in great pain. Xing Shuishui’s expression changed as she placed her hand on the child’s forehead – the restriction spell was activating.

Du Dizhu said to Xing Shuishui: “Xue Jiuling, don’t you have the Floating Mirror? I have my master’s blood, you can use the mirror to see the truth.”

Xing Shuishui shook her head: “The Floating Mirror can only be used three times. I don’t want to waste the last chance on him.”

She gently asked the child: “We didn’t come here for curses, but to find how to break a curse. The Life-Extending Curse – do you know how to break it?”

The child nodded.

But then he looked troubled: “Master ordered that we can only give curses, not ways to break them.” It seemed they had reached another dead end.

Du Dizhu pondered for a moment, then said to Xing Shuishui: “If you don’t want to use the mirror, at least remove his restriction spell. Otherwise you won’t achieve your goal, and neither will I.”

Xing Shuishui remained silent.

Du Dizhu said through gritted teeth: “I know because of what happened back then, you’re afraid to erase their restriction spells. But if we don’t remove the spell on his soul, I can’t use mirror arts to connect his memories with my master’s.”

Xing Shuishui was startled: “Mirror arts can extract memories?”

“Yes. At a great cost.” Du Dizhu continued, “But I want to find an answer.”

She asked: “What answer?”

Du Dizhu fell silent, then finally burst out in frustration: “Will you agree or not!”

Xing Shuishui said: “I need to ask them.”

She used soul-summoning arts to gather all the Duanmu clan’s souls and said: “I have a way to help restore your memories, but one small mistake could scatter your souls. If anyone is willing, I can try. I ask for nothing else but how to break a curse.”

Unexpectedly, the Duanmu clan people were excited. Their memories imprisoned by restriction spells, trapped here by formations and unable to reincarnate, not knowing who they were or who trapped them here – they had long grown tired of such an existence!

“I’m willing!”

“Me too!”

“Please try, young lady. We have no regrets!”

Their shouts shook the heavens, and even the snowy mountains seemed to hear their cries.

Xing Shuishui lowered her eyes: “Then I’ll try.”

Separation fire flew from her palms, lighting up the entire snowy ground. The young woman closed her eyes as fireballs flew toward their foreheads. Her spiritual power depleted rapidly, and soon sweat appeared on Xing Shuishui’s brow. Though weakening, she still gritted her teeth and wielded the separation fire.

But just then, she felt a surge of spiritual power flow into her dantian like a clear spring, filling her nearly depleted energy.

Xing Shuishui opened her eyes in surprise, meeting the young man’s gaze.

He Liansheng placed his hand on her shoulder, glancing at everyone before saying softly: “Do what you need to do. I’ll handle any problems. Whether you succeed or fail, I’ll kill anyone who dares trouble you.”

Things seemed different from back then.

She focused her energy.

Soon all the restriction spells on their souls were removed.

Without a word, Du Dizhu immediately grabbed one of the Duanmu clan members who had recovered their memories and used mirror arts. Then he flipped his palm, taking out a porcelain bottle containing Jian Wushuang’s blood.

One drop of blood, and the mirror arts activated.

What appeared before everyone was a scene at the Boundless Sea.

Jian Wushuang leaned against solid ice, his white clothes stained red with blood. Li Shixu beside him was already dead, and he too was barely clinging to life.

Xing Shuishui noticed Guan Wushan hiding behind a chunk of ice, constantly peering this way.

The young boy had clearly followed secretly and, having never seen such a scene, felt some fear toward Jian Wushuang.

Jian Wushuang coughed violently, spitting blood, and laughed toward the sky: “To think that I, a grandmaster of mirror arts, would end up dying at the hands of Lingshan people! What a joke. If there’s a next life, the first thing I’ll do after mastering mirror arts is to crush Lingshan.”

He also noticed Guan Wushan and narrowed his eyes.

“Who are you?”

Guan Wushan came out, pretending not to know Li Shixu, and said to him: “Senior, do you hate Lingshan? I hate them too.”

“Is that so? I see you have excellent potential,” Jian Wushuang smiled weakly, “If… I hadn’t met him, perhaps I would have taught you mirror arts before my death, let you avenge me… but… I promised him he would be my only disciple in this life. Mirror arts can only be passed to him. I’m sorry.”

Looking at the sunset over the Boundless Sea, he seemed to see again that prince of Chongsang who, after losing his mother, had carved out a bloody path, his nature violent and extreme. That’s why he had always been very strict with him over the years.

Du Dizhu’s fingers tightened.

Guan Wushan’s fingers also tightened as he said softly: “This junior is foolish. Even if I knew the methods of mirror arts, I couldn’t execute them half as well. If senior has any last wishes, this junior is willing to brave any danger to fulfill them.”

Xing Shuishui noticed how cunning this person was – appearing very respectful toward Jian Wushuang while his eyes remained as dead as still water.

Jian Wushuang thought for a moment, inevitably thinking of the snowy mountains in Cangchuan.

“If possible, please bring a galsang flower back to my homeland, tell my parents I’m sorry, their child was unfilial. And tell Azhu that master can’t protect you anymore, you’ll have to walk your future path alone…”

Jian Wushuang told Guan Wushan the way to the snowy mountains. Guan Wushan smiled, his smile quickly turning sinister. He swiftly formed a single-handed seal and pierced through Jian Wushuang’s heart. Blood sprayed as Jian Wushan’s eyes widened, disbelieving until death that he would die by this person’s hand.

He said eerily: “Since senior won’t teach me mirror arts, let me teach you one technique. In Yinshan arts, this is called Ghost Theft. From now on — your mirror arts will be mine.”

Seeing this, Du Dizhu nearly shattered the illusion with a palm strike, but He Liansheng coldly glanced at him and blocked him with the Peach Source Sword.

That day, rain fell on the Boundless Sea.

Two renowned grandmasters of the cultivation world died in the rain, each with their own regrets.

Even Xing Shuishui was surprised that Jian Wushuang didn’t die by Li Shixu’s hand, but by Guan Wushan’s. The scene changed to Cangchuan, where the Duanmu clan lived carefree in their village, a place of growing grass and flying orioles, isolated from the world, without any snow or storms.

But one day, someone intruded, bringing the outside world’s storms. At first he was friendly, and everyone thought he had come seeking curses, so they warmly welcomed him. They served tea, snacks, and bedding, showing complete hospitality.

Yet they often heard him mumbling strange things.

“Use puppet arts? No… too consuming. Puppet arts have the possibility of breaking free, and I still need strength to deal with Xue Jiuling. Not enough energy to control them.”

“Then… might as well kill them all, set restriction spells, make them serve me forever. Wouldn’t that be perfect? They won’t remember anyway…”

So he coldly pushed open the door and, using the stolen mirror arts, slaughtered the entire village.

Placed restriction spells on their souls.

Sealed all paths in and out.

Forever and ever, unable to reincarnate. Only able to endlessly provide him with curse insects.

After seeing all this, Du Dizhu was very quiet, his face gloomy. Using heart blood to forcibly activate mirror arts to extract memories had left his lips somewhat pale.

Xing Shuishui calculated – when news of Du Dizhu’s master’s death spread, that was exactly when her sister met her end.

From Jian Wushuang’s memories, she saw that Yinshan had an evil art called Ghost Theft that could steal others’ techniques. She suddenly understood why Guan Wushan thought she might still be alive after being struck by heavenly lightning.

He — wanted her separation fire.

His ambition wasn’t small.

Xing Shuishui really wanted to strangle this Guan Wushan. How could there be such a disgusting person in this world, stealing others’ arts, slaughtering entire families. The key was that she and Du Dizhu were both victims, completely unaware, played by him and fighting each other for over a hundred years, only now uncovering the truth.

An elderly person emerged from the crowd, wearing gray robes with gray eyes. With hands clasped, genuine emotion showed beneath wrinkled eyelids.

“Young lady, you saved our entire clan. We have no way to repay you. I hear you came for the method to break the Life-Extending Curse. Come with me, I will give you the means to break the curse.”

Xing Shuishui followed her to a tree. The tree was tall with dense foliage, hung with colorful ribbons. The trunk was covered in red cinnabar symbols and strange beast totems.

She couldn’t see the sky when she looked up, and couldn’t help but marvel.

The elder smiled: “This is the divine Fusang tree. He tried to find this tree back then but couldn’t. Because before I died, I used all my life’s learning to hide it beneath the snow mountain. After a hundred years, it finally appears in the world again.”

Her murky eyes gained some brightness.

As the formation was destroyed, the snow and wind here gradually ceased. The elder used Fusang leaves to draw water, pouring it into wolf fangs. The young woman obediently lowered her head, letting her put them on.

This was the way to break the curse.

Xing Shuishui examined the Fusang tree, seeing golden Sanskrit written all over its leaves, and couldn’t help but ask curiously: “Grandmother… are these all methods for raising curses?”

The elder glanced at them: “Curse insect tracing.”

Xing Shuishui was startled. The elder stared at her eyes and said: “Every curse the Duanmu clan gives out is recorded on the divine tree’s leaves. Come to think of it, that young immortal lord who came with you also visited a few years ago.”

Xing Shuishui already knew He Liansheng had come before, but her heart still skipped a beat.

The elder raised her hand, and two leaves fell into her hands: “Young lady, aren’t you curious what curses he sought?”

Xing Shuishui couldn’t read Sanskrit, so the elder explained.

“Dream Cicada and Love Curse. He asked for these two.”

She knew about the Love Curse, but Dream Cicada?

“Don’t you know, young lady? Dream, dream. Taking the Dream Cicada lets you see the person you want to see. Put your hand on the leaf, and you can see what happened then. This is curse insect tracing.”

The young woman gently placed her trembling hand on it.

She knew it wouldn’t be so simple.