Ye Pingjun poked his head out cautiously and looked around. After confirming that there was no danger outside the door, he stepped out carefully.

He went to the room where Mo Bai was and glanced inside. The sight made him break out in a cold sweat.

"Mo Bai, get out of that room right now! In the mirror, there's—" Ye Pingjun cried in alarm.

"In the mirror, there's what?" Mo Bai reached out and touched the surface. It was still as smooth as glass.

Only then did Ye Pingjun notice that Mo Bai's eyes were unfocused. The eyes that normally shone with determination and intelligence were now completely dull.

"Your eyes…" Ye Pingjun said in shock.

"Temporary blindness due to the influence of Disease Town and Biological Research Institute No. 7. It's nothing serious. They'll recover when I need them to." Mo Bai was unusually calm, and her composure soothed Ye Pingjun's nerves.

"It's a good thing you can't see. In the mirror closest to you, there's a creature that looks exactly like you. It's wearing a long black dress, but beneath the skirt are writhing tentacles," Ye Pingjun said.

Although she couldn't see, Mo Bai still turned toward the mirror. "Is it still like that now?"

"Yes," Ye Pingjun replied. "Her gaze is cruel. Not human. It gives off a cold feeling, like she could take someone's life without hesitation.

Her hair is longer than yours. Yours just reaches past your shoulders, but hers drags along the ground and stretches deep into the mirror. There's no telling how long it is.

Your hair is dark brown, almost black, while her's is pure black. The ends keep writhing, like the hair is about to turn into tentacles.

In the mirror, she mirrors your movements. When you reach out to touch the glass, she presses her hand against yours from inside."

"There are many mirrors in this room. I must have countless reflections. Are they all like this?" Mo Bai asked.

"No. Only the one closest to you. It looks like she could step out of the mirror at any moment and replace you," Ye Pingjun said.

Mo Bai recalled the carved words: The me in the mirror turned into a monster. It opened its bloody maw at me, and all I could do was shut my eyes in fear. It seemed that turning into a monster was also part of this room's danger.

"It should be an illusion," Mo Bai said.

As soon as she finished speaking, the magician's voice echoed down the corridor.

"It's not an illusion. The one in the mirror is another you. The dark side of your heart.

Mo Bai, you should know what's sealed inside your body."

His voice seemed to come from very far away, reverberating through the hallway. The echoes layered upon the original sound, creating an almost ethereal quality.

"Who is that?" Ye Pingjun immediately became alert.

"The magician from the Smiling Circus who sent us the invitations. He just delivered some information," Mo Bai said calmly.

"Huh? What information?" Ye Pingjun asked.

Mo Bai was just about to answer when she heard rapid footsteps. Someone was sprinting down the Corridor of Time toward them.

"It's Ding Xun!" Ye Pingjun said with delight. "She's amazing. She escaped that room surrounded by mirrors all on her own!"

Before he could finish, Mo Bai heard Ding Xun's bright, hearty voice: "Xiao Bai! Old Ye! I finally found you! This circus is like a maze. I ran around forever and didn't see anyone, so I figured I'd come back here and try my luck, and I actually ran into you!"

Mo Bai felt her way out of the doorway and stood beside Ye Pingjun. Seeing him rush forward to greet Ding Xun, she grabbed him and asked, "When you see us, what's the first thing you most want to say?"

"I was worried about you!" Ding Xun replied.

At those words, Ye Pingjun stepped back half a pace, his expression turning grave.

Seeing his reaction, Ding Xun knocked her head lightly. "Oh, right, I'm such an idiot. That's the password, isn't it? The thing I most want to say is, that moron Sheng Yan can't beat me, hahaha!"

It was her usual bold, carefree tone, and the code phrase she had agreed on beforehand.

Back when she decided to use that line as their recognition signal, Sheng Yan had been so angry he nearly fought her again.

Ye Pingjun finally let out a breath and stepped forward. "You actually forgot the code? Why don't you forget your brain while you're at it?"

But he was stopped again by Mo Bai.

"Ding Xun, where have you been during this time? What did you do?" Mo Bai asked.

Carefree as ever, Ding Xun didn't notice Mo Bai's eyes. After thinking for a moment, she said, "First, I was trapped in a room with mirrors on all four sides. The mirrors reflected my attacks, so I couldn't get out. I ended up covered in injuries."

"Same as me. How did you escape?" Ye Pingjun asked.

"I have the Prying Lenses. When I put them on, they can see through only one wall. On that wall, there was a door, and outside it stood a man with an octopus head guarding it. Just one wall between us. He had a door on his side, but on mine, there was only a mirror.

I figured the one wall that the Prying Lenses could see through must be the exit. The door could only be opened from the outside, not from within.

Luckily, I have Synesthesia. I controlled the octopus-head's bodily sensations and made him open the door for me."

"She's right." Ye Pingjun looked at Mo Bai. Mo Bai had stopped him twice already, clearly suspecting something about this Ding Xun. This time, he refrained from reminiscing and waited for her judgment.

Ding Xun was indeed fond of the Prying Lenses. She had even bought a pair specifically to bring into this instance. Everything this Ding Xun said was perfectly in line with what the real Ding Xun would do.

"And where is that octopus-headed man now?" Mo Bai asked.

"As soon as I got out, I grabbed him and made him take me to you. He led me around in circles. When I realized he was messing with me, I killed him and came to find you myself."

"There are four rooms and four doors along this row. You didn't see any other monsters?" Ye Pingjun asked.

"No. When I came out, there was only that octopus-head guard. And there weren't any other doors here. Just mine in the entire corridor," Ding Xun said firmly.

"Could it be some kind of illusion?" Ye Pingjun looked her over, but all he saw was the Ding Xun he knew. He didn't understand what Mo Bai was doubting.

Mo Bai turned to Ye Pingjun. "How long were you in the mirror room? How did you get through it? Did you see any monsters?"

"I kept looking for a way out, like Ding Xun. I tried smashing the mirrors. After a few punches, I realized I was taking the same damage myself.

After that, I didn't dare attack them anymore. And I gradually noticed the version of me in the mirror becoming uglier and uglier.

I became afraid to look at it. My mental state worsened, so I used my Expectation Value ability to apply a positive adjustment to myself.

That positive adjustment lowered my expectations of myself. I stopped demanding that I be tall and handsome. Stopped insisting on becoming overly powerful or omnipotent.

Gradually, I accepted that I'm just an ordinary person. I stopped demanding perfection and stopped setting impossibly high standards for myself. At that point, I no longer found my reflection ugly. I could look straight at it.

I stared at myself in the mirror for a while and started feeling sleepy.

Logically, I shouldn't have fallen asleep in such a dangerous instance. But I knew I was under the positive influence of my ability. My luck had improved, so I probably wouldn't be attacked while sleeping.

I figured my subconscious was protecting me by making me sleep.

I don't know how long I slept. It felt like a month or two, or maybe just a few hours.

Then I was woken up by an explosion. That was when you saved me."

Ye Pingjun's abilities weren't strong, but he was exceptionally good at surviving.

His luck attribute and self-regulation were both outstanding, so Mo Bai believed what he said.

But she did not believe this Ding Xun.

Despite Ding Xun's explanation seeming flawless, Mo Bai still felt she was lying.

All because of the magician's earlier reminder.

The magician said that the monster in the mirror was another her, which Mo Bai believed completely.

Where there is light, there is shadow. A person with strengths must also have flaws; with goodness comes evil.

The black-clad Mo Bai described by Ye Pingjun was the dark side of her heart, a darkness that had even fused with the genes of the Ultra-Star Rank monster inside her.

It was the side she had always tried to suppress.

Just as she once confessed to Mo Xiangyou, she always wanted to be perfect. Knowing she had the power to help others, she hoped to see the bigger picture and save everyone.

Such relentless pursuit of perfection would inevitably create a dark side. And the higher her standards for herself, the more terrifying that darkness would become.

The black-clad Mo Bai in the mirror was indifferent to life. For her own benefit, she could send anyone to their death. To survive, she would even fully embrace the contamination of the Ultra-Star Rank monster.

Through Ye Pingjun's description and a hint gleaned from the magician's offhand remark, Mo Bai concluded that the mirrors in this room were not literal mirrors. They were heart-mirrors, trapping the monster within each person's heart.

Ye Pingjun reconciled with his darkness. He accepted that he was ordinary, encouraged himself, and faced that fact head-on. That was how he made peace with the heart-mirror.

Once she understood this, Ding Xun's explanation, while seemingly airtight, revealed countless flaws.

If this were a heart-mirror, then the Prying Lenses couldn't possibly see through it because it had no power to peer into the human heart.

The Ding Xun before them was fake. Perhaps it was the monster that had stepped out of the mirror to replace her.

Mo Bai had already confirmed that this Ding Xun was false, but she didn't expose her. Instead, she nodded and said, "According to Ye Pingjun's account, you are indeed the real Ding Xun. I was overly cautious. My apologies."

Ding Xun remained as brash as ever. "No need to apologize. I was just careless. I didn't even realize you were here."

Mo Bai took two items out of her Storage Pouch, holding one in each palm. She raised one hand and said to Ding Xun, "I found this in the circus. Take a look for me."

With that, she tossed the item toward Ding Xun. Ye Pingjun's sharp eyes recognized what she had thrown: a test tube containing Sheng Yan's blood.

Ding Xun reached out to catch the test tube, only to see Mo Bai hurl the other object in her hand straight at the glass vial.

It was a chunk of brick she had pried from the wall.

During the past three months of daily instance runs, Mo Bai had trained her physical skills relentlessly.

With her excellent constitution and agility, her combat ability had improved significantly.

She had practiced this kind of drill, using a stone to strike a falling object in midair, countless times that it became muscle memory. Even without sight, she could hit with precision.

The broken brick struck the fragile glass tube, and Sheng Yan's blood splashed over Ding Xun.

If Ding Xun were a living organism with bodily fluids, she would have detonated.

Ye Pingjun didn't expect Mo Bai to attack Ding Xun without a word. He didn't know how she determined the person before them was fake, nor did he understand why she didn't take any precautions. If Ding Xun exploded from contact with the blood, Mo Bai would be caught in the blast since she was standing so close!

Without hesitation, Ye Pingjun lunged forward, tackling Mo Bai to the ground and shielding her with his body.

His luck was good. He wouldn't suffer severe injuries.

But the anticipated explosion never came. The blood merely splashed lightly across Ding Xun, as if poured over an inanimate object. Without bodily fluids, there was nothing to ignite.

Only then did Ye Pingjun understand why Mo Bai dared to throw the blood bomb so directly. She already concluded that Ding Xun was not a living being and would not explode.

This Ding Xun walked out of the mirror. So the real Ding Xun must still be trapped inside.

In a flash, Ye Pingjun knew how to deal with the impostor.

He casually pulled out a card and flung it at Ding Xun.

Midair, the card materialized into a pitch-black tent that dropped down and covered her entirely.

B-rank defensive card: Black Tent (黑帳篷 - Hēi Zhàngpéng). It was something Ye Pingjun had specifically prepared for this mission.

The card could protect anyone hiding inside it, and up to five people could take shelter within. During the last castle collapse, the two other surviving players hid inside the Black Tent, which shielded them from falling debris.

That near-burial experience left a deep mark on Ye Pingjun. He figured that clearing instances with Mo Bai required being mentally prepared for heaven and earth to collapse at any moment.

The Black Tent's ability was stuck in his mind. When choosing cards to bring into this instance, he noticed Sheng Yan's card album contained it and immediately bought it.

He didn't throw the Black Tent to protect the fake Ding Xun, but to block out the light.

The tent was also fireproof and capable of isolating both light and heat.

If the fake Ding Xun truly were a creature that had stepped out of the mirror, it would not be able to function without light.

It was only a reflection. Without light, it could not move.

Since it was unclear whether the original Ding Xun and the impostor were linked, Ye Pingjun feared that killing the monster might also kill the real Ding Xun.

So he chose to restrain and capture the fake instead, using a defensive card to confine her.

The Black Tent sealed the impostor tightly within. A normal person could easily crawl out, but the fake Ding Xun remained utterly motionless, unable to escape.

Ye Pingjun helped the blind Mo Bai to her feet and explained what he had done.

"That was a great solution," Mo Bai said in admiration. "I didn't consider that destroying the fake might affect the original. Good thing you were careful."

Ye Pingjun wasn't unintelligent, and his emotions were steadier than most. It was just that Mo Bai was so brilliant that others rarely needed to think.

He was also somewhat lazy by nature. Since Mo Bai was willing to use her brain, he was happy to take it easy and be a hands-off manager.

But now that Mo Bai was blind, covered in dirt, with two scars on her arm. She looked battered and worn.

Ye Pingjun felt she needed help. So he stopped slacking and forced his rarely used brain cells into action.

"I don't think you failed to realize the connection between the mirror image and the original," Ye Pingjun said. "I think you saw this as a chance to eliminate the monster inside your heart."

He had struck the truth.

The moment she realized that the black-clad Mo Bai in the mirror might be her dark side, she wondered whether she could eliminate it entirely, perhaps even seal away the contamination of the Ultra-Star Rank monster for good, so that it would never awaken again.

Ye Pingjun stepped forward to check the Black Tent. By touch, he sensed that what lay inside wasn't a person, but a tall, slender mirror about Ding Xun's height.

He wrapped the mirror tightly in the tent and hoisted it onto his shoulder. "Ding Xun should still be in her room. Let's find a way to rescue her."

Seeing Mo Bai's silence, he added gently, "Mo Bai, you're an outstanding strategist, not a saint. A strategist doesn't need to be softhearted. Being decisive, even ruthless, is what lets you exert your full strength.

"Don't fear your decisive side. That's not a flaw. It's your weapon."

"Even if there's truly a monster hiding inside me?" Mo Bai asked.

Ye Pingjun paused mid-step. "So that's why you've seemed so burdened since the last instance. Did something go wrong at Biological Research Institute No. 7?"

Mo Bai never told anyone this secret. But after hearing about Ye Pingjun's process of reconciling with himself in the Heart-Mirror Room, she felt she needed his help right now.

Fortunately, time flowed slower here. Ye Pingjun's positive-influence ability, which normally required nine days to activate, had taken effect within this room's distorted time flow.

Under the lowered Expectation Value, he was tolerant of others and of himself. He was in a state of exceptional luck and clarity, capable of offering her the most appropriate advice.

"Having a monster inside you is definitely troublesome," Ye Pingjun said, scratching his head helplessly. "But if you can accept it, embrace it, maybe you can turn its power to your own use? I think strengths and flaws are two sides of the same coin. My flaw is laziness and slowness, but from another angle, you could say I don't worry unnecessarily, and I only act after careful planning. Isn't that right?"

Acceptance. Embrace. Not rejection, but inclusion.

Mo Bai returned to her Heart-Mirror Room. She pressed her palm to the glass and asked, "Is she still there?"

"She is. She's watching you," Ye Pingjun replied.

Though blind, Mo Bai had already mapped the room thoroughly by touch. Her understanding of it exceeded fifty percent.

Within this room, she could activate both Environmental Optimization and Environmental Rejection.

She extended her mental power. In her consciousness appeared the black-clad Mo Bai. Within the sensing range of Environmental Rejection, the figure was pure black: absolute evil and something that was meant to be expelled.

Her Environmental Rejection already reached Intermediate-9. If she wished, she could completely expel the black-clad Mo Bai.

That might even eradicate the contamination inside her body.

But in doing so, she would lose a part of her soul. The not-so-noble emotions, the ugliness, sorrow, hatred, and anger. They would all disappear along with the contamination.

That would not be her complete self.

Though she resisted the black-clad Mo Bai, she forced herself to embrace her as part of her being, merging her into her soul.

The process was agonizing. Emotions she had long forgotten surged back like a flood.

So it turned out that right after the car accident, when she learned she didn't have long to live, she had more than once wanted to pull out her ventilator and give up on life.

So it turned out that when she broke up with her ex-boyfriend, she had acted strong on the surface, but inside she had kept crying, 'don't leave me,' those fragile, shameful words, and wept bitterly after ending it.

So it turned out that after moving out to live alone, she realized her departure had allowed her parents and sister to smile again. That they were finally free of her burden and could live normal lives. Mo Bai hated them for it. She hated that her loved ones could return to normal while she alone endured the pain. She hated that, though she was still alive, the whole world had already begun preparing to forget her.

She harbored so much darkness.

But Mo Bai was strong, proud, and unyielding. She refused to accept the cowardice or ugliness within herself.

So she brainwashed herself daily, smiling into the mirror, telling herself: Everything was the right choice.

Gradually, she forgot that ugly, resentful version of herself.

The weak Mo Bai, who hated the world, was buried deep in her heart, completely forgotten.

It wasn't until the Heart-Mirror Room appeared that the weak, malicious Mo Bai was finally released.

Mo Bai didn't know this consciously, but instinct kept her away from the room.

After her agreement with the magician began, the logical move was to return to the starting room. That was where she had first appeared; it was a single room, and her teammates might be there too.

But she spent two hours wandering the empty circus instead, unable to bring herself to go back. Subconsciously, she had been avoiding the ugly truth about herself.

If she simply ignored the black-clad Mo Bai in the mirror, if she rescued Ding Xun and Gu Tiandong and the four of them escaped the circus, a part of Mo Bai would remain trapped here forever.

The Smiling Circus gave smiles to its audience and kept the darkness of humanity behind, leaving people with nothing but joy.

But is a person who can only smile still truly human?

The black-clad Mo Bai was pulled from the mirror, slowly merging with her other self.

Ye Pingjun had been watching from the side, but the moment the dark figure left the mirror, he felt a sharp sense of danger. He had the instinct that if he witnessed this directly, his mind wouldn't endure the sight.

He shut his eyes.

When he opened them again, Mo Bai stood quietly in the room. Every mirror inside had shattered.

"You… smashed another building?" Ye Pingjun asked, puzzled.

Mo Bai's lips curved upward. "Not quite. I'd have to smash everything here to truly destroy it."

"You… can see again?" Something about her had changed, though he couldn't say what.

Mo Bai nodded. "My blindness was a curse from Disease Town, a form of mental contamination. But my title, Indestructible Diamond, can resist mental contamination, because I, myself, am the strongest contamination.

In theory, I shouldn't have gone blind in this instance. But I did.

Because in this Heart-Mirror Room, I lost a part of myself... The pillar that resisted contamination."

People aren't born strong. They learn to be strong after experiencing pain.

After regaining her sight, Mo Bai said, "We have to move faster. When I merged with my reflection, I sensed that we would completely separate and never reunite.

The magician told me 10 p.m. earlier to confuse my sense of time so that I'd overlook its significance.

We entered the Heart-Mirror Room at 9 a.m, and at that moment, we were divided into two parts. By 10 p.m., thirteen hours would have passed.

In some myths, thirteen is an unlucky number that symbolizes betrayal.

When those thirteen hours pass, the self in the mirror will completely betray the original, and they will never merge again."