By the time it would take to brew a cup of tea, Feng Xiyan laid down his brush and gently blew on the paper. Once the ink had dried, he carefully folded the piece of paper filled with his sincere prayer.
Standing up, he walked over to the table that served as an altar and solemnly placed the prayer paper in front of the mirror. After Feng Xiyan took a few steps back, Zhan Qi lit three sticks of incense and handed them to him.
Feng Xiyan and the generals each held three sticks of incense, knelt down, bowed deeply three times, and inserted the incense into the incense burner.
As smoke rose from the incense, it slowly drifted upward, then vanished into the mirror without anyone noticing.
While Feng Xiyan and the generals were solemnly praying in front of the mirror, Bai Hanyun suddenly smelled a fragrant scent in the air.
"Hmm? Why does it suddenly smell so good?"
Drawn by the faint fragrance in the air, Bai Hanyun sniffed around. As she approached the antique mirror, the scent grew stronger.
Realizing the smell was coming from the antique mirror, Bai Hanyun frowned and asked warily as she narrowed her eyes, "What are you up to this time?"
She stared at the mirror for a long moment but didn't see anything strange.
Feeling curious, she picked it up, inspected it closely, and muttered in confusion, "Mmm... I don't see anything wrong. But why does it smell like incense?"
Bai Hanyun turned the mirror back and forth, then reached out to touch the surface. The moment her fingertips brushed the cold surface, smoke gushed out and hit her square in the face.
"Cough! Cough! Cough!"
Choking on the smoke, she hurriedly set the mirror down and waved her hands frantically to clear the air.
When she finally stopped coughing, Bai Hanyun picked the mirror back up, fuming. Just as she was about to curse, her eyes widened in surprise the moment her gaze landed on the mirror's surface.
On the surface of the antique mirror, an image appeared—a group of men clad in ancient bronze and silver armor, kneeling as they faced toward her.
Seeing them kneel and kowtow so seriously, Bai Hanyun felt something was off. She tilted her head slightly and asked doubtfully, "Are they praying to me?"
As her words fell, she noticed the man kneeling at the front—dressed in silver armor—looking up. When she saw his face, Bai Hanyun was stunned.
Although the image was blurry due to the bronze surface of the antique mirror, Bai Hanyun could still make out his handsome features, sharp eyebrows like swords, and tall nose bridge. Unfortunately, he was far too thin and looked sickly, which reduced his handsomeness by half.
While Bai Hanyun was observing him, Feng Xiyan clasped his fists and solemnly said, "It has been more than a year since the last rain fell on my Great Yu Empire."
"The sun is scorching hot, and the ground is cracked. Riverbanks have dried up, grass and trees have died, and not a soul survives for a thousand miles. The imperial court is corrupt, and the common people are filled with resentment."
"I, the patriarch of the Feng Clan, the Great General of the Feng Army, titled First-rank Duke of Hu Guo—Feng Xiyan—pray to Heaven to bless my Feng Army and the common people."
"Please grant us food and water to save the 20,000 soldiers of the Feng Army and the 60,000 citizens of Xiqiang City. I beg Heaven to take pity on the suffering of the common people. I am willing to serve God, build a temple, guard it, and offer incense for generations to come."
After saying this, Feng Xiyan performed the three deep bows and nine kowtow ceremonies, together with the generals kneeling behind him.
Staring into the antique mirror, Bai Hanyun listened to his words in silence, watching as Feng Xiyan and the generals knelt with their foreheads touching the ground.
A few minutes passed before Bai Hanyun snapped out of her daze.
She rubbed her eyes, then her ears, and blinked in confusion. "Did I just hallucinate?"
Still full of doubt, she picked up the antique mirror again and looked at its surface. The group of men in ancient armor was still kneeling motionlessly on the ground.
Rubbing her chin, she asked thoughtfully, "Hey, what do you want from me?"
Just as she said that, the antique mirror glowed briefly. A second later, a bronze plate with a neatly folded piece of paper appeared in front of her.
"What is this?" Bai Hanyun put down the mirror and picked up the paper.
At the same time, Fan Wanming suddenly exclaimed excitedly, "Great General, look! The prayer you wrote—it's gone! Heaven has received your prayer!"
The moment he spoke, Feng Xiyan and the others looked at the altar. Sure enough, the plate where the prayer had been placed had vanished.
Seeing this, Zhan Qi couldn't help but kowtow a few more times and said excitedly, "Heaven has heard our prayers! Heaven has heard our prayers!"
Staring at the mirror, a small fire ignited in Feng Xiyan's cold heart.
Heaven had heard his plea! The Feng Army and the people of Xiqiang City... They are saved!
While Feng Xiyan and the others waited with anticipation for Heaven's blessing, Bai Hanyun stared at the piece of paper filled with characters she had never seen before.
Looking at the antique mirror, she saw the group of men laughing joyfully, though she could no longer hear their voices.
Holding the paper, Bai Hanyun stared at the antique mirror and fell into deep thought.
After a long silence, she asked, "Do you want me to save them?"