Heyang held Xuehua tightly and constantly called her name, afraid that she would never wake up after she closed her eyes. Heyang was desperate- she had shed so much blood. His hand covered the area the dagger had pierced her chest. A warm light emitted from his hands, attempting to heal her wound. But no matter how much cultivation Heyang used, her body was not healing, and she began to grow paler and paler. Her gentle eyes gaze into his as if she wanted to speak to him.

“Xuehua, what do you want to say?” Heyang whispered, his voice shaking as he leaned closer to the girl. He hid his face in the crook of her neck, his face pale with urgency and panic.

He couldn't save her again. How could he bear to let her die again?

Xuehua’s soft, painfilled cries only made Heyang’s heart burned with rage. He pressed his lips on her forehead, and with a flick of his hand, he sent his sword flying directly for the evil spirit. Heyang didn’t care for anything else anymore. He sorrow made him lose all reason, as he blindly attacked Guya. The evil spirit could not defend herself against Heyang’s swordsmanship. So she did the only thing she would do to survive: bargaining.

Using the last of her cultivation, Guya created a protective barrier that could only last three strikes from the king’s blade. Heyang didn't hesitate to deliver the first slash, forming deep cracks in the barrier.

“She can’t heal because her body isn’t real,” Guya quickly said, after of seeing the High Immortal’s rage. “Her body is just an imitation!” Guya was terrified, she heard about the strength of High Immortal Heyang, even from inside the mirror world, but she never thought that he was actually a formidable deity. She had planned to use Feihong’s soul, that’s trapped in the mirror world, to lure Heyang into giving up his heart. But who knew that Feihong had created an imitation of herself with a piece of her soul! Guya was in a laughable state. She had taken too many risks, and now she was going to be vanquished.

Heyang was about to deliver the second strike until he heard what the evil spirit had said.

“Imitation? What do you mean?” Heyang asked his dark eyes focused on Guya, his entire body emitting a dangerous aura.

After seeing Heyang’s reaction, Guya continued with her explanation. “20,000 years ago, Feihong’s soul was separated into three pieces. One that has already returned to her body, and another that is sealed within the mirror world. Normally, a soul that is separated cannot be reincarnated, but Feihong created another body and sealed her soul inside.” Guya quickly said, not wanting to suffer Heyang’s rage. “That body is just an imitation. She is not Feihong!” Guya was sweating afterward; she wavered under the dark glare that seems to pierce through her body.

“Imitation or not. Do you have a way to save her? If not…” Heyang said with a cold expression, raising his sword at his final words.

Guya knew the intentions of the High Immortal and knew that she had no choice but to save the dying girl. “I can save her,” she began, and once again summoned her mirror. “If the girl enters the mirror world, then time will be frozen, and she can use the cultivation of Feihong’s soul to heal. But I must warn you. There are millions of different versions of this world inside the mirror. Feihong’s soul is but one of thousand that reside in the Guya Mirror. If the girl is going to survive, then she had to enter Feihong’s memories and live in that world.”

“She will become Feihong?” Heyang questioned, knitting his brow.

“No, the third piece of Feihong’s soul, the one that retains her memories and lives inside the mirror, is the one that has created the mirror world. Feihong’s imitation will just be another added character inside the dream. There will be two Feihongs,” Guya said.

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Xuehua didn’t know where she was at or how long she had been dreaming. Occasionally, she would open her eyes, but everything around her appeared hazy- like clouds covering the moon. Every time she would wake, something in the back of her head will pull her back into the darkness. Xuehua thought that this might be a blessing- at least in sleep, she would not be in pain. But why again was she in pain? What had happened? She could not find the answers to her questions no matter how much she tried to remember.

But today was different. Today when she opened her eyes, she was on a bed looking at a plain wooden ceiling. Xuehua’s eyes widen in surprise. She jolted up from the bed, her arms and legs getting tangled the plain sheets, breathing heavily. Had everything just been a dream? Where was she at? Millions of thoughts ran through her head. Calm down, she thought while peeking out the sides of her bed to observe her surroundings. By the time Xuehau had finished looking around the room, she had determined that she must have indeed been dreaming. After all, the pain that was in her chest had completely vanished, and not a trace or a scar on her chest. Xuehua released a sigh of relief and patted her chest. She had dreamed of a terrible nightmare. She should have listened to grandmother and not eaten all those candies before sleeping---, Xuehua stopped suddenly in the middle of her thoughts. She didn’t remember seeing grandmother… or eating candies. What was she doing then? Xuehua propped her head on her hand and started to mentally trace the event that led her to today.

Before Xuehua could arrange her thoughts, a maid burst into the room. Xuehua was so shocked that she completely forgot how to blink.

“Xuehua, hurry up and get out of bed. We are going to be late!” the maid said hurriedly while tossing Xuehua a plain, light blue dress. “Hurry up and get dressed, if not there would be no breakfast for you!” the maid said loudly, throwing her last regards before leaving the room.

Xuehua was even more confused than normal. Did she know the maid? From her memories, she didn’t remember becoming a maid. After all, in the Green-Bell Valley, all deities are equals, and there is no need for servants when everyone does their own work. Plus, Xuehua knows everyone in the Valley, so why did she not recognize the small maid? Xuehua’s mind was still processing everything when something next her began to move. Xuehua’s heart almost stopped beating after being startled for the third time in the last five minutes. Another girl emerged from what she thought was a bundle of blankets. The thin girl rubbed her eyes and yawned, before rising off the bed and stretching. Xuehua looked at the maid, her eyes wide open, and her mind full of questions. The maid began to get dressed, but Xuehua was unmoving. The maid turned around and noticed Xuehua for the first time.

“Xuehua, hurry and get dressed before you get punished for being late,” the girl gently said, still drowsy from her sleep. The girl helped picked up the maid’s dress that was carelessly tossed on the bed and pulled Xuehua’s arm to get her to stand. “Xuehua, here’s your dress. Go get changed,” the maid said, placing the blue dress in Xuehua’s hands, and pushing her towards the changing screens at the right corner of the room.

Xuehua had no choice but to follow the maid’s instructions. She removed her thin sleeping garment and slipped on the maid’s uniform, while the other girl waited at the other side of the screen. When she was done, she emerged from behind the screen and stood still, not knowing what to do next. The girl must have gotten restless while waiting for Xuehua to finish getting dressed. “Xuehua, let's go!” the maid said while dragging her outside the room. Both girls ran down the stairs in front of their residence and passed the entrance of their courtyard. Xuehua was surprised that the thin girl could run so fast, kicking up dust everywhere she went. She couldn't keep up with the girl, and when she stopped for a split second to catch her breath, she ended up being lost.

“This is just my luck,” Xuehua said out loud. How did she end up here, and why doesn’t she remember where she was at?