Chapter 3-The Twin Robberies in the Bronze Mirror

The light of the blood moon pierced through the seventy-two human-skin lanterns, pinning Arya's shadow to the bronze mirror. Ramon's fangs are still embedded in her carotid artery, and the sound of swallowing mingles with the currents of the underground river in an eerie requiem. As the silver pinned sapphire melted completely, she took in the horrifying sight in the mirror - her own face was alternating with Ramon's, as if invisible hands were tearing at the skin.

"Ka-ching."

The Blood Jade Jue suddenly embedded itself into the groove of the mirror frame, and the bronze mirror rippled. Arya's silver hairpin fell into the water, and the Snow Wolf Flag exposed at the head of the hairpin stretched when it met the water, and an incantation written in the blood of a virgin's menstruation appeared on its surface: those who change their lives in two lifetimes shall have their hearts executed in the Ruins of Return.

Lei Meng suddenly let go of her and staggered to his knees at the edge of the altar. The goldfinch tattoo on his back was oozing blood, and bronze worms as thin as hair crawled out of each stripe." Father was right ..." He tore open the lapel of his coat, the snow wolf totem at his heart was actually devouring flesh and blood, "You and I were originally born as one and two sins."

Arya pressed down on the neck wound, the beads of blood oozing from her fingers drew the outline of the Vermilion Bird on the mirror. When the seventh drop of blood fell on the Vermilion Bird's eyes, the mirror suddenly reflected the snowy night scene: the man wearing the mask of the Red Flame City Lord was putting two swaddling clothes into the bronze box!

"Watch!" She yanked Ramon by the hair and slammed it into the mirror. As the ice cracked, they saw the truth at the same time - under the rumbling belly of the Red Flame City Lord's wife, there was actually the spirit of the Queen of Silver Snow City hidden! The moment the twins were born, the midwife used a bronze dagger to slit the throat of the City Lord's wife and fed the blood to the two crying babies.

Raymond suddenly vomits up black beetles with tiny birthmarks carved into their backs. Arya grabs one and recognizes it under the lantern as the exact hour of her own birth! The altar began to rotate, the candle tears from the seventy-two lanterns pooled into a river of blood, and countless bronze arms reached out from the bottom of the river and grabbed at the two men's ankles.

"Close your eyes!" Lei Meng suddenly tackled Arya down and the bronze sword chopped off the silver bells in her hair. The shards of the bell formed a star map in the air, guiding it towards the bronze pillar in the center of the altar. The relief that emerged from the pillar made Arya shudder - the temple of Silver Snow City, which was burned down twelve years ago, was actually reproduced here in its entirety!

Ramon's palm suddenly pressed against the back of her neck, and the goldfinch and snow wolf marks on both of their foreheads burned at the same time. When the water of the underground river reached her waistline, Arya heard her own voice coming from the bronze box, "Kill the man in the mirror, and you'll be able to ..."

"Wow!"

The moment the water exploded, twelve black-robed witches and wizards broke through the water. Their masks shattered to reveal the gruesome truth - each of them was an old friend of Arya's who had "died" on the way to escape! The nanny who once defended her from arrows, the captain of the guards who taught her swordplay, and even the Persian dancer who had her tongue cut out last month, all had green pupils and bronze barbs growing from their fingertips.

"Miss has finally grown up." The milkmaid's voice rubbed like rusty gears as she ripped open her bodice to reveal her heart - where the same bird-printed jade jade jewel as the bronze box was embedded, "It's time to pay back what you owe the city lord."

Arya's silver pin suddenly flew back into her hand of its own accord, the melted sapphire re-solidifying into a blood-colored pupil. When the first Witchwitch lunged, she instinctively swung the hairpin at the opponent's throat, but she heard Raymond's muffled grunt - the Witchwitch's wounds actually appeared synchronized on Raymond's body!

"This is the price of the life-changing spell." Ramon coughed up blood foam, the moment the bronze sword pierced the head guard, his own left shoulder erupted in blood, "Our lives ... were sewn together long ago."

The witches let out a resonant, shrill laugh as bronze chimes rose from the corners of the altar. As the seventh bell chimed, Arya saw herself in the mirror raise the bloodstained silver pin, while in reality her arm stabbed uncontrollably at Ramon's heart!

In the nick of time, the underground river suddenly freezes. The bronze casket flies out of Ramon's arms, and when the lid opens, a baby's cry is transformed into a sound that shatters the bells. Arya's silver hairpin was nailed into the mirror, and a pale hand stretched out from the cracks - it was actually the pimp of the Drunken Immortal Pavilion who had died three days ago!

"Does Miss recognize this?" The pimp's ghost spread out his palm, and in the center of his palm lay half a snow wolf jade pendant. The peacock stone around Arya's neck suddenly burned, and the other half of the jade pendant actually slowly precipitated out of her wound.

The moment the two pendants merged, the altar dome collapsed. Moonlight poured down like a silver waterfall, illuminating the truth that made everyone tremble - the relief of Silver Snow City on the bronze pillar began to peel off, revealing the underlying carvings: twelve years ago in the fire, standing on the side of the Lord of the Red Flame City was Arya's mother who should have died!

Raymond suddenly clutched his head and hissed as his memories were reorganizing. In the broken image, the Queen of Silver Snow City personally stabbed the bronze dagger into the Red Flame City Lord's heart, and what the City Lord cried out before he breathed his last was, "A sister ..."

"So we're the sacrifices." Arya looked at the jade pendant that had merged into one, with tiny birthstones engraved on the inside - not only were she and Lei Meng twins, but they were mirror-image destinies born at the same time on the same day in the same month!

The witches were transformed into bronze statues in the moonlight, and the milkmaid's last look was full of pity. As the altar sank completely under the water, Arya grabbed Ramon by the lapels of his coat, "Tell me the truth about the three-year life-changing spell of Yonghe!"

The only thing that answered her was the beeping of the bronze casket. Mist rose from the casket and coalesced into the silhouettes of two entangled babies - they were umbilically linked, with each other's silver pins stuck in their hearts.

The blood moon is suddenly swallowed by the Tengu, and a cold hand brushes Arya's cheek in the darkness. She hears herself overlapping with Ramon's voice: "Kill me/you, before the end of the hour ..."