The fragment didn't charge immediately.
It simply stood there, the pale silver fire in its eyes drifting upward like smoke, watching Lin Qing as if memorizing every detail.
Lin Qing didn't move either.
Their Mirror Domains pressed into the space between them, overlapping just enough to test boundaries. Lin Qing's Domain felt sharp and fresh—like a blade forged yesterday. The fragment's was older, tempered by pressure that felt like it came from an entire lifetime.
The space rumbled under the tension.
Finally, the fragment broke the silence.
"You survived the Lotus. That means you can look inside yourself without breaking. Good." His eyes narrowed slightly. "But that only proves you can stand. Now I need to see if you can grow."
Lin Qing lifted his chin. "You talk like you're evaluating a weapon."
"You are one," the fragment said simply. "And the Emperor didn't have time to forge a second failure."
He stepped forward.
Reality flexed.
Lin Qing reacted on instinct, sliding a half-step back as the fragment's presence surged.
No warning.
No buildup.
Just pressure.
Like a mountain dropped on his shoulders.
Lin Qing's Mirror Domain shook, then stabilized with a pulse of silver clarity.
He drew a slow breath.
"So we're doing this now."
"Yes," the fragment said. "Keep your head clear."
He vanished.
Not physically—his presence blurred, dissolving into reflections scattered across the space. His voice echoed from every direction.
"Let's see how well you use that Domain."
Lin Qing closed his eyes.
He didn't need sight for this.
The Mirror Domain stretched to its full radius, reading shifts in intent, catching warped fragments of the fragment's thoughts as they tried to slip past him. The space wasn't empty anymore—reflections flickered, warped silhouettes pacing around him in broken patterns.
Some attacked immediately.
A mirrored fist shot toward his ribs from the left. Lin Qing twisted slightly, letting the Domain redirect the blow. It struck harmlessly against the void wall behind him.
Another appeared at his back, a blade of silver light aimed straight for his spine.
Lin Qing stepped forward, letting the blade swish through empty air.
The silver edge split into dust as it passed through his Domain's peripheral field.
A third reflection lunged at his throat.
This one felt stronger.
Lin Qing snapped his eyes open and tilted his head. The strike missed by a hair's width.
"Good," the fragment's voice murmured. "Your instincts are waking up."
Lin Qing tracked the shifting echoes.
"Come out," he said. "You're not hiding from me."
The reflections rippled.
The real fragment stepped out of one of them, completely calm.
"Not bad. You sensed me faster than I expected. But dodging isn't enough."
He vanished again—this time reappearing directly above Lin Qing, hand already cutting downward like a blade.
Lin Qing braced, condensing his Domain above him. The attack hit the barrier, cracking it with a sound like metal splintering.
Pain prickled in Lin Qing's temple—the mental equivalent of pressure behind the eyes.
He pushed back.
The Domain pulsed upward, catching the fragment's arm and flinging him away in a burst of reflected force.
The fragment slid across the mirrored floor, leaving a trail of warped reflections behind him. He landed lightly, brushing nonexistent dust from his sleeve.
"Stronger than you look," he said. "You improve too quickly."
"Thanks," Lin Qing replied dryly. "You try lying your way through a demon sect. Builds character."
The fragment's mouth twitched in the closest thing he'd shown to amusement.
"Then let's see how far that character goes."
The air vibrated.
A wave of mental pressure slammed into Lin Qing, sharp and direct—no illusions this time. He raised his Domain, letting the pressure wash around him. It still hit like a hammer. His mind buzzed with white noise, but he held his ground.
The fragment blurred forward again.
This time their Domains collided head-on.
The impact sent a ring of silver light across the floor, distorting every reflection it touched.
Lin Qing caught a glimpse of the fragment's eyes—dark metal sharpened by centuries of intent.
The fragment spoke through clenched teeth. "The Emperor's Domain could split a mind apart in a heartbeat. Show me you can handle a fraction of that."
He pressed harder.
Lin Qing's Domain cracked.
A thin shimmer of mental pain shot across his skull.
He forced his breathing steady.
Held his ground.
The Domain stabilized—barely.
The fragment's expression changed.
Slightly.
Subtly.
Approval.
"You're more stubborn than I expected."
Lin Qing pushed back, sending his own wave of pressure toward the fragment.
His Domain wasn't as practiced—but it had raw power, and the Mirror Heart Lotus humming under his ribs fed it clean, controlled strength.
The fragment staggered half a step.
Lin Qing moved instantly.
He sent a compressed bolt of mental force straight at the fragment's center.
Not a blast.
Not a strike.
A precise needle of intent aimed straight for the fragment's core.
The fragment grinned.
"Better."
He slapped his palm against the incoming force, diffusing it like someone dispersing smoke.
Lin Qing didn't slow down. He followed immediately with a mental push, sending a ripple of distortion across the ground.
This time he saw it:
The fragment's Domain faltered—barely a flicker, but real.
Lin Qing pressed the advantage, drawing the Domain closer, sharpening it into a narrow point like a spear aimed at the fragment's chest.
The fragment stepped aside at the last moment, letting the spear slash past him, slicing a long wound into the floor.
He exhaled through his nose. "You're reckless."
"I'm learning," Lin Qing shot back.
"And too fast."
The fragment appeared in front of him again.
"Let me test something."
He brought his fingers together and struck toward Lin Qing's forehead.
Lin Qing reacted instantly, Domain rising to block—
—but the fragment didn't attack normally.
He released a ring of pure mental force, a ripple so sharp and concentrated that it sliced through Lin Qing's Domain like it was cutting paper.
Lin Qing's eyes widened.
The fragment's fingers stopped just short of his forehead.
"If you hadn't reacted," the fragment said quietly, "that would've knocked you unconscious for a week."
Lin Qing swallowed.
"That felt like cheating."
"It was," the fragment said. "Life cheats too. Don't lose to it."
He withdrew his hand.
Lin Qing stood firmly, his Domain reforming, thicker and steadier than before.
The fragment nodded once.
"You passed."
The pressure in the air vanished.
The space steadied.
The fragment's posture shifted—less combative now, more contemplative. For the first time, his expression held something like weighted respect.
"You're not the same as the Emperor," the fragment said. "That's good. He was too rigid. Too proud. Too unwilling to change."
He looked Lin Qing directly in the eye.
"You learn. You adapt. And you reflect, not copy."
Lin Qing's heartbeat slowed as the last of the tension eased from his shoulders.
"…So that's it?"
"No."
The fragment reached toward the empty air behind him.
A doorway materialized—the final gate in the inheritance.
"This was only the test to see if you deserve the last piece."
Lin Qing tightened his fist.
"And the last piece is?"
"The core memory he sealed away from everyone else," the fragment said. "Even from himself."
He stepped aside.
"When you walk through that door, you won't be fighting me. You'll be facing the truth of what the Emperor saw in his final moments."
Lin Qing drew a slow breath.
"And you?"
The fragment's form flickered.
"My role ends here."
Lin Qing looked at him for a moment—really looked.
"You're still part of him," Lin Qing said quietly. "Part of me too, aren't you?"
The fragment gave a faint smile.
"Only the part willing to do anything to survive."
He faded into silver dust.
Lin Qing stood before the final door of the Mirror Emperor's legacy—alone again, but steadier than before.
He placed his hand on the gate.
The world trembled.
The door opened.