Chapter Fifteen: Xiya's Transformation

The death of a living being in reality would cause the corresponding mirror image in the Mirror World to perish as well, an irreversible process. During this event, all sorts of experience and skill orbs—apart from tangible equipment—would also be dropped. Many glowing orbs lingered on the battlefield within the Mirror World, their dissipation slow enough that Chu Yun had plenty of time to gather the spoils.

Calling them spoils of war was not entirely accurate, as Chu Yun had not participated in the battle at all; he was merely taking advantage of Shivana’s handiwork. Whether she would encounter danger after leaving was unknown, but that was none of Chu Yun’s concern.

[Experience gained: 11 points]
[Experience gained: 10 points]
...

Ten orbs were dropped by the first-rank soldiers, netting Chu Yun a total of 115 experience points.

[Experience gained: 32 points]
[Experience gained: 40 points]

The second-rank captains dropped only two orbs, but both contained substantial experience. As for Cain, the reward was even more generous—no less than 235 experience points. Adding it all together, the haul amounted to 422 points.

Chu Yun immediately funneled all his experience into the Journeyman Mage profession, bringing himself right to the cusp of leveling up.

Class: Journeyman Mage Lv1 (474/500)

Aside from experience, the knights also dropped two skill orbs. Thanks to the Journeyman Mage’s Scholar of Freedom trait, he could learn magic and martial arts from any class.

Of course, should a skill require specific attributes or conditions, even if he mastered it, he might not be able to use it effectively, or its power might be diminished. This mastery was a complete understanding of its principles and usage.

For instance, even if he grasped the power of flight from a bird, without wings he could not take to the sky. But if he ever learned Avian Transformation, he could fly without adapting his body.

Chu Yun’s own attributes were decent enough that learning and using low-level warrior skills posed little trouble. As for higher-level skills, it wouldn’t hurt to master them now—perhaps he would pursue dual cultivation in the future.

One skill orb was a basic ability: Horsemanship Lv1.

The other was more unique, dropped from the squad captain—a knight’s class trait: Polearm Mastery.

This trait allowed Chu Yun to wield polearms—spears, lances, staves, and even sufficiently long magic rods—as naturally as his own limbs.

Of course, this presupposed that Chu Yun intended to be a battle mage, engaging in close combat with a magic staff.

Though the rewards were many, his greatest gain was the new understanding of the Mirror World. If he reached a large city, spending his days in the arena or the infirmary would be quite delightful indeed.

And if he ever found himself on a battlefield, the prospects would be even richer...

Brimming with spoils, Chu Yun glanced at his remaining mental energy and resolved to reach Lv2 before the day’s end.

With Shivana gone, the crowd began to gather once more. The equipment dropped by the cavalry, especially Cain’s lance, was quite valuable.

Just then, the soldiers of Rockstead Town finally arrived, slowly making their way to clear the battlefield. Many in the crowd couldn’t help but suspect they’d simply been watching from nearby, waiting until now to show themselves.

Most of Rockstead Town’s soldiers had been dispatched to guard the lord’s mining sites; those left behind were generally the old, weak, sick, or infirm. What did the Blackstone City fugitives have to do with them? Their loyalty was to the lord alone, and without his orders, they wouldn’t act on their own initiative.

Shivana’s affair had erupted so suddenly that the official wanted notice from Blackstone City hadn’t even reached the lord yet.

“I’ll use you to farm some experience, then,” Chu Yun mused, setting his sights on the Rockstead soldiers.

These men were clustered together, and as soldiers, they should yield more experience than mere townsfolk.

“Burning Hand!”

Flames engulfed the squad of soldiers. In the Mirror World, fighting those above one’s level was difficult, but slaughtering weaker foes was both easy and safe.

[Experience gained: 4 points]
[Experience gained: 5 points]
...

These soldiers were old, weak, or infirm—actually less capable than the adventurer mirror images Chu Yun had felled earlier. He could scarcely imagine who would protect the town if a monster attacked.

The answer was simple: money.

The lord of Rockstead was wealthy, having posted a long-term commission with the Adventurer’s Guild. Should monsters attack the town, many adventurers would volunteer to join the fight.

Even if the monsters couldn’t be repelled, they had no interest in the ores, and the stone houses were hard to destroy. The dead townsfolk were quickly replaced by others who couldn’t survive elsewhere—a testament to Rockstead’s respectable standard of living.

After collecting enough experience, Chu Yun didn’t rush to level up, but returned to the inn first.

After all, he was still just a Lv1 mage. Casting spells continuously, coupled with the Mirror World’s drain, had left his mental energy nearly depleted.

Chu Yun returned from the Mirror World to his room, preparing to meditate in reality. At that moment, weary as he was, he suddenly heard the sound of pain coming from the adjacent room.

“Hm? What’s wrong with Siya?” Chu Yun frowned, reconsidering his return to the real world.

He approached Siya’s door, pressing himself against it. The sounds of torment were even clearer.

With the rusty dagger he’d picked up earlier, Chu Yun forced open the simple door, only to witness a shocking scene.

Siya, who had previously retained most human features, had now transformed completely into a charming fox. Her fur was shedding, shifting from pure snowy white to a silvery sheen.

“So the demi-humans of this world shed their skins like snakes?” Chu Yun thought. “Best not disturb her.” He was relieved not to have recklessly burst in from the real world.

It was his first time witnessing such a transformation, and curiosity held him in the room to observe.

Siya’s eyes betrayed pain, but Chu Yun could see a greater emotion there—anticipation, the hope of completing her metamorphosis.

The shedding had reached the final, most critical part: her tail.

Sweat as large as beans beaded her brow, and the acute agony finally brought tears to her eyes, yet she refused to give in.

She wanted to survive—no, she wanted to grow strong. Without strength, she could not persist in human society.

With a ripping sound, her sharp claws tore the bedsheets to shreds, but she dared not cry out, fearing someone—especially her neighbor Chu Yun—might notice the commotion.

Siya’s transformation was no normal molting. It was the result of a secret pact made in a dream with some mysterious entity.

At last, her tail completed its transformation, and all her fur turned silver-white.

Siya breathed a sigh of relief, her body utterly spent. Had she not eaten Chu Yun’s miraculous raspberries earlier, she might not have had the stamina to complete the process.

Utterly exhausted, Siya reverted to her demi-human form, now unclothed. Chu Yun hurriedly looked away and slipped back into his own room.