Tian Po Sword let out a cheeky laugh. "Long time no see, little Broken Mirror."
The small child gave Tian Po Sword a glare before huffing, "Hmph! I told Master last time that your usual calm demeanor is all an act. Master didn't believe me. She should really see how you bully me."
Tian Po Sword snorted. "If you could get Master to see us again, I'd be more than happy."
As those words fell, silence settled between Tian Po Sword and the Heart-Testing Mirror.
Both knew that their master would never return.
After a long pause, Tian Po Sword composed himself and spoke, "This is Yun Jin, Master's chosen successor. From now on, she's our Young Master. Go ahead and pay your respects."
In truth, with the Wan Dao Saint gone, Yun Jin was now Tian Po Sword's master in the truest sense.
But deep inside, Tian Po Sword still held onto a sliver of hope. He kept calling Yun Jin "Young Master" as if, someday, his true master might appear before him again—safe, sound, and smiling.
Even if it was only a fantasy, it gave him some measure of comfort.
Only then did the Heart-Testing Mirror turn a curious gaze toward Yun Jin.
Her three Heart-Testing trials had all been quite unexpected.
Ruthless when needed, yet never killing indiscriminately. Most importantly, when facing the demons, she had been utterly merciless in purging them. That, the Heart-Testing Mirror deeply approved of.
After all, the Wushuang Sect had suffered greatly at the hands of the outer-realm demons.
If this successor had shown even a shred of hesitation when dealing with demons, the mirror spirit would have refused to acknowledge her, no matter who had chosen her.
"Master once gave me a name—An Tong," the Heart-Testing Mirror said earnestly, bowing in respect. "Young Master may call me that."
Yun Jin followed suit naturally. "An Tong, you're the spirit of the Heart-Testing Mirror?"
An Tong nodded, then plucked a few strands of hair from his head. In the next instant, the hairs transformed into a crimson cord that flew over to Yun Jin, coiling gently around her wrist.
An Tong turned into a ray of light and disappeared into the cord.
Soon, his childish voice echoed again, "Young Master, you now have full authority over the Heart-Testing Mirror and the Heart-Testing Steps. I've adjusted the length of the steps—since you're the first to clear all three trials, the others are still stuck on the first. Through the mirror, you can observe their progress at will."
"Alright," Yun Jin replied with a smile.
An Tong poked his head out from the red cord and spoke shyly, "Little Mistress, I still prefer staying inside the mirror. But my soul is in this cord, so you can use it to control the mirror and the Heart-Testing Steps. You can also speak to me whenever you'd like."
Despite being an ancient artifact spirit who had clearly existed for countless years, An Tong's childish demeanor made it hard for Yun Jin not to treat him like an actual kid.
"Stay wherever you're comfortable," Yun Jin said with a smile. "Do as you please."
An Tong lit up with delight, proudly announcing, "If you want to see anyone's progress in the trial, just think of them, and the mirror will show you."
Yun Jin nodded and pictured Yue Zhao in her mind. Instantly, the Heart-Testing Mirror displayed an image of Yue Zhao undergoing his trial.
He was still stuck in the first stage. It seemed somewhat similar to the one Yun Jin had gone through, yet clearly not identical.
"Hehe," An Tong chuckled proudly. "Young Master, I personally wrote the scripts for these trials. Yue Zhao's script is even more intense than yours. His story begins with his whole family being slaughtered—he barely escapes and is taken in by a kind benefactor. But eventually, he'll discover that this benefactor is actually the very person who wiped out his clan. Tsk, tsk... balancing gratitude and vengeance, now that's a tough one!"
An Tong swayed as he spoke, clearly amused by his own handiwork. Yun Jin couldn't help the twitch at the corner of her lips.
So all these over-the-top plot twists... were scripted?
Poor senior brother, he's in for a ride.
Yun Jin then thought of Si Wanning. Another scene appeared in the mirror.
An Tong beamed with excitement. "Oh, this one's even juicier. There's tragic romance in the middle. Her beloved gets stolen by someone else, and then—"
Yun Jin was starting to understand.
This An Tong was clearly addicted to crafting melodramatic storylines.
Her own first stage had been relatively tame. Probably because An Tong knew she was the Young Master and had reined in his impulses—just a little.
When Yun Jin checked on Yu Songnian and the others, each trial was more absurd than the last.
She couldn't help quietly sympathizing with the poor souls.
Eventually, she gave up watching one by one and asked, "This first stage is almost over. What do you think of this group's mental character?"
An Tong chuckled. "Young Master, your friends speak for themselves. No doubt about them. You wouldn't have chosen the wrong people. In my eyes, they're all fit to be disciples of Wushuang Sect."
Yun Jin nodded. "What about the senior brothers and sisters from the Four Holy Lands?"
She was confident in her assessment of her own sectmates, including even Feng Linglong. But she couldn't say the same for the others from the Holy Lands.
An Tong grinned and brought up a scene of Jin Yu.
Jin Yu was drenched in blood, clearly caught in a trap and suffering greatly.
An Tong winced. "This sword cultivator has great talent, but he's quite rigid in his thinking. I gave him so many clues, and he still trusted the wrong person. Now look at him. If he were a disciple of Wushuang Sect, I'd advise the sect master never to let him go out alone."
Yun Jin: "..."
There was no saving that reputation—muscle-headed sword cultivator, through and through.
"Next is Cheng Su from the Beastmaster Sect." The scene shifted again.
Cheng Su was maneuvering between several factions. In the end, without lifting a finger, she had all of them annihilate each other.
An Tong commented, "This disciple from the Beastmaster Sect is quite clever. But she clearly doesn't care much for collateral damage. Just to get revenge, she incited conflict among several factions. The result went just as she planned, but many innocents were caught in the crossfire. Still, disciples of the Holy Lands have always looked down on common people. This kind of move? Normal for them."
Yun Jin nodded, her feelings a bit mixed.
She knew that over at the Beastmaster Sect, her Master Liu Li must have interceded on her behalf—otherwise Cheng Su wouldn't have shown her such respect.
Without Liu Li, these arrogant Holy Land disciples wouldn't even spare her a glance.
"Then we have Ye Liuqin from Xuandan Gate." The scene changed again.
This first trial took place in a mortal world, but Ye Liuqin, as a pill cultivator, developed a new method for refining pills even there. She created medicinal pills from local herbs that could extend the lifespans of ordinary people. Then, using these pills, she attracted powerful followers to help her wipe out her enemies.
However, those same pills were now circulating among the mortal world, triggering chaos and bloodshed.
To Yun Jin, it seemed Ye Liuqin shared a similar mindset with Cheng Su—manipulating the world to achieve her goals.
"And finally, there's that kid from Qingxiao Pavilion." The mirror shifted once again...