Morning mist curled around the mountain peaks, faintly red under the dawn light.
By the time Lin Qing left his quarters, half the Sect had already gathered outside.
Outer disciples lined the courtyard in disciplined rows, whispering the moment he appeared. "The Heir's out!" "He's going to demonstrate again!" "I heard he awakened three Heaven-tier techniques overnight!"
Lin Qing stopped, blinking at the sea of faces. "…Don't you people have training?"
Li Chun hurried up beside him, nearly tripping over his robe. "Elder Hei ordered the disciples to observe, Heir Lin Qing! The Sect must learn from your divine rhythm!"
"Right," Lin Qing muttered. "My divine rhythm. Wonderful."
Elder Hei himself stood at the center platform, hands clasped behind his back. His masked face turned toward Lin Qing. "The Sect gathers to witness the Heir's cultivation progress. A brief display will inspire the younger generation."
Lin Qing sighed quietly. "Inspiration, destruction—same difference."
He stepped onto the training dais.
The wind stilled. Qi pooled around him automatically, pulled by instinct.
He raised a hand lazily, silver light flickering in his eyes.
Heavenly Insight Divine Body – Activated.
Internal energy flow: perfect.
Spirit Sea capacity: full.
The first technique he called upon was Crimson Shadow Step.
The world slowed.
His body blurred, dissolving into streaks of red. He moved once—and appeared on the opposite edge of the arena. To the disciples, it looked like teleportation. To Lin Qing, it was a single step through reflected space.
The courtyard erupted in gasps.
"He vanished!"
"No, he split into shadows!"
"His movement art breaks time itself!"
Lin Qing frowned. "Pretty sure it's just fast walking."
He exhaled. The ground beneath him cracked, faint crimson runes lingering where his feet had touched.
Elder Hei bowed slightly. "The Crimson Shadow Step—perfected on the first try. The Mirror Emperor himself required a decade."
Lin Qing rubbed the back of his neck. "Guess I had a good night's sleep."
Next, he tested Blood Mirror Guard.
Qi condensed around him in a thin scarlet layer, rippling like a sheet of liquid glass. Elder Hei, curious, raised a finger and sent a controlled pulse of energy forward—a simple test strike.
The energy hit the barrier and snapped back instantly, slamming into the stone beside him and carving a hole half a meter deep.
Disciples shouted in shock.
Even Elder Hei froze for a moment.
Li Chun looked from the crater to Lin Qing. "Heir Lin Qing… that was your reflection technique, right?"
"Apparently," Lin Qing said. "It's a little enthusiastic."
He flexed his hand again. The barrier faded.
Time to test the third one.
Moon-Sundering Palm.
Qi gathered in his palm, dense enough to blur the air. The energy felt like a small storm barely contained. Lin Qing aimed for the cliff wall behind the courtyard, hoping to keep it subtle.
He thrust his palm forward.
The explosion shook the entire mountain.
A crescent of blood-colored light tore across the training ground, smashing into the cliffside. The impact sent dust and rock tumbling down the slopes.
The echo rolled for miles.
When the air cleared, the cliff face bore a clean, mirror-smooth scar stretching dozens of meters tall.
Silence.
Then the disciples cheered like madmen.
"ONE STRIKE TO SPLIT A MOUNTAIN!"
"THE HEIR'S PALM CLEAVED THE EARTH!"
"HE'S THE REBIRTH OF THE MIRROR EMPEROR!"
Lin Qing stared at the cratered wall. "That was… bigger than I meant."
Elder Hei was already on one knee. "A single strike equal to the Sect Master's peak attack. The Heir's talent truly defies heaven."
"Yeah," Lin Qing said, voice dry. "Heaven's definitely sighing somewhere."
He jumped down from the platform. The cheering didn't stop. Disciples knelt as he passed, shouting vows of loyalty.
Li Chun followed, eyes wide and sparkling with something between fear and worship.
"Heir Lin Qing," he whispered, "they'll be talking about this for centuries."
"Fantastic," Lin Qing said. "Maybe they'll let me sleep next century."
As he walked away, faint traces of qi lingered in the air—residual reflections of his attacks that refused to dissipate. They shimmered like ghostly afterimages, repeating the moves he'd made, endlessly looping his strikes.
Elder Hei stared, realization dawning. "He left… mirror imprints?"
The images bowed toward the spot Lin Qing had stood, then faded completely.
Far above the mountain, the sky rippled once. A thread of crimson light shot toward the heavens, piercing the clouds before fading out of sight.
On a distant peak, Saintess Yao looked up from meditation, her veil rustling in the wind. For the first time, a small smile touched her lips.
"He's starting to move like the Mirror Emperor once did," she murmured. "But without the weight of his shadow."
That night, the Sect celebrated again.And in his quarters, Lin Qing sat cross-legged, staring at the faint silver glow under his skin. The Mirror Blood Scripture pulsed quietly, absorbing echoes of the day's techniques.
He whispered to himself, "If this keeps up, I'll blow up the mountain before enlightenment."
The flame in the brazier flickered once—like it agreed.