At Mount Kong Hou, the grand gathering of ten thousand sects convened for the ceremonial meeting.
As fireworks burst over Mount Kong Hou, the sect competition finally began.
As the host sect, Rongyun Sect stepped forward to draw the first trial.
The Sect leader of Rongyun, his temples streaked with white, walked slowly to the center of the altar where the lots were kept. In front of everyone’s eyes, he unfurled the scroll from his palm.
After a moment’s pause, his voice, elderly yet steady, rang out, succinct and forceful: “First trial, Illusion Realm.”
Among the crowd, a figure in snowy robes suddenly lifted his head, hesitated for a moment, as if remembering something, then slowly lowered his gaze.
This time, Ah Qi wouldn’t be coming.
No one could accompany him into the illusion realm anymore.
He cast down his eyes calmly and, guided by Senior Brother Fang, followed the crowd to the newly established Illusion Trial Platform atop Mount Kong Hou.
The array formations for the sect competition were completely different from the illusion stone arrays they usually entered at Fu Feng, designed to prevent cheating by Rongyun Sect’s own disciples.
Because of this, control over the competition’s formations had been exchanged among the sect leaders rather than being managed by the elders of Fu Feng as before.
Glancing around, he saw that each sect leader present had already reached the threshold of the Golden Immortal stage. There was no way he could alter the content of the illusion realm anymore—previously, the illusions into which Shen Tanqi entered were all orchestrated by his own hands.
The Dragon Clan is a type of daemon, skilled in illusion arts from birth. The Fox Clan excels in charm, the Snake Clan in venom, and great daemons like the Dragon Clan naturally command wind and rain, able to summon storms and thunder. Their mastery of illusions is especially profound.
His illusion cannot be seen by Ah Qi.
There, it is desolate, filled only with resentment, hatred, slaughter, and suffering—a nightmare of his inner demons, stained with blood.
Standing at the center of the illusion, he slowly closed his eyes.
Come on, there’s nothing much left to lose anyway. Yu Ce murmured softly to himself.
In the next moment, green mist billowed, swallowing his figure within the formation.
Meanwhile, at Rongyun Sect’s illusion trial platform not far away.
“Shen Tanqi?”
The elder in charge of counting the participating disciples, seeing no one reporting in, looked around in confusion and repeated, “Rongyun Sect’s junior disciple from the inner sect, Shen Tanqi, is he here?”
No one responded. The elder sighed with regret, “Is he ill? How could he absent himself without reason? Let’s move on to the next one.”
Unnoticed by anyone, in the vast crowd at Yu Ce’s illusion trial platform, a figure in crimson quietly lowered the brim of their hat, quietly guarding not far from his formation.
Don’t be afraid. Yu Ce.
In the original book, he could overcome illusions, so he could surely do it this time too.
The sea of blood surged, its stench pervading the air.
Yu Ce suddenly snapped his eyes open.
He felt like he was standing in boiling blood, surrounded by emptiness, where everything was an endless red, like the gaping mouth of a ferocious beast.
Gripping the sword at his waist, he lowered his head and took slow steps.
This kind of scene, he encountered every time he entered an illusion. It’s okay, as long as he walked to the end, he could get out.
He whispered softly to reassure himself.
As if sensing his thoughts, a terrifying deep buzzing came from all around, growing sharper and more piercing, filled with malicious and mocking laughter.
Soon, layers of blood surged before him, like waves capable of smashing ships, rushing fiercely towards a single spot of white amidst the sea of red.
An illusion.
It’s all fake.
Yu Ce closed his eyes.
The roaring waves in his ears grew louder and more thunderous, as if they wanted to destroy him.
Yet in the next moment, like the abrupt end of a broken melody.
A malicious laughter rang out.
“Brother.”
Yu Ce slowly opened his eyes. Suddenly, a dagger pierced his heart, his breath caught, and he saw clearly the person standing before him—it was Xie Chi from his childhood days.
He had returned to his childhood, back in Hidden Dragon Valley.
But he had anticipated this. Since this illusion aimed to unearth his deepest fears, it was inevitable that it would delve into his past.
No need to be afraid, it’s all fake.
He lowered his eyes, silent, as he slowly withdrew the dagger from his chest inch by inch, blood gushing like a spring.
The dagger clattered to the ground with a crisp sound.
The ‘Xie Chi’ in front of him seemed somewhat surprised. “Why didn’t you go to Auntie to plead your case this time?” He circled around Yu Ce curiously. “Go on, if you don’t go complain, I’ll really kill you today.”
Yu Ce glanced at him indifferently, as if he didn’t care, and continued walking. He needed to find the end of this illusion as soon as possible.
Seeing him silent, Xie Chi’s face darkened. He was about to step forward and stab him viciously again when he noticed a hunched figure approaching from behind them.
Xie Chi greeted with some surprise, “Auntie, you’re here!”
Yu Ce steps hesitated slightly, but still didn’t intend to stop and turn around until a sharp dragon claw viciously gripped his throat.
“Yu Ce.”
Just as he had been stabbed, now being choked, he coughed up blood uncontrollably, his mind tightening, black spots flashing before his eyes.
His aunt slowly turned his face towards her. Her seemingly gentle face was the one Yu Ce least wanted to see, least wanted to remember.
She said, “Xie Chi told me you raised a rabbit.”
She smiled faintly, “You are a dragon, Yu Ce. You are the future leader of the Dragon Clan.” She sighed, her eyes suddenly cold, “How could you do something so foolish?”
Yu Ce’s vision was nearly blurred, but he could still see the scene clearly—the rabbit he had brought back from outside the Hidden Dragon Valley when he was five years old, gripped in Auntie’s dragon claws, twisted like a snowy towel. In an instant, that towel soaked with blood, limbs shattered, fell to the ground.
Throttled and struggling for breath, under the influence of the illusion, he couldn’t even think about using his spiritual power. His vision blurred for a moment.
When Yu Ce could see clearly again, the rabbit in Auntie’s hands had transformed into the person he knew best.
Shen Tanqi.
His pupils contracted sharply. Yu Ce struggled with all his might to break free from Auntie’s grasp, but in the illusion, he was only five years old now, with the body and strength of a five-year-old.
Helpless and powerless, he watched as Auntie ruthlessly snapped the slender white neck that resembled a white rabbit.
Yu Ce’s eyes lost their color abruptly, his breath quickened, like a drowning man gasping for air.
Impossible.
This… is fake.
Fake!
He suddenly broke free, drew his sword, swung it towards the terrifying face of Auntie in the illusion, but before the sword could touch Auntie’s hair, the figure before him vanished abruptly.
All returned to darkness.
Yu Ce collapsed to the ground, his heart feeling as if it had been torn apart alive, the pain making it hard to breathe. The sword in his hand trembled so violently that he could barely hold it.
It’s all fake, all an illusion.
Like a dying man praying desperately to every deity, he kept telling himself.
Suddenly, a light shone around him, the scene changed completely, and a crisp laughter echoed from above.
“Why the long face?”
Yu Ce abruptly lifted his head. Before him stood a figure bathed in gentle daylight, lips curved in a slight smile, holding adorable Goldfish and Taro Ball in his arms.
“Come here.”
As if drifting in the ocean for a hundred days and finally seeing the blooming flowers on the other shore, Yu Ce was mesmerized by the voice, his mind completely unable to focus on anything else.
All he wanted was to hold him now.
Just a gentle hug.
Struggling to his feet, Yu Ce hurried towards Shen Tanqi, not even bothering to pick up his sword. He walked faster and faster, finally embracing Shen Tanqi tightly.
“Ah Qi, Ah Qi…”
He repeated Shen Tanqi’s name over and over again, as if trying to imprint it into his bones and blood.
“Let go of me.” Yu Ce heard Shen Tanqi’s voice suddenly turn cold in front of him.
Confused, he released his grip, wanting to please, cautiously looking at Shen Tanqi.
The response he received was even colder.
“You’re still the same as before, never changing.”
‘Shen Tanqi’ looked as icy as winter, pushing Yu Ce to the ground without hesitation, looking down at him with indifference. “I hate how you cling to me. That’s what I hate most about you. I have my own world, my own life. Why should I sacrifice everything for you and the children?”
Yu Ce listened in a daze, feeling like he had been exposed to a raging blizzard, trembling slightly.
“You try to keep me tied to you, using the children to win my favor, making me unable to shake you off using the dependence period. What’s the difference between you and Xie Chi with these methods?”
‘Shen Tanqi’ sneered lightly. “Yes, indeed, you two are brothers by blood, thick as thieves, cut from the same cloth. Using such despicable methods isn’t surprising.”
“You disappoint me so much, Yu Ce.”
Yu Ce wanted to say something, but each time he opened his mouth, he found himself speechless.
At the bottom of Bloodthirst Cliff that year, Shen Tanqi had personally placed the bronze coins into his hand.
Ah Qi said, as long as the intentions were good, achieving the goal was what mattered.
Ah Qi also said, anyone who bullies you is bullying me, too. Deal with them properly and don’t show any mercy.
Yu Ce looked at him helplessly, like a drifting leaf without support, kneeling in shock on the ground. Unafraid of the blood that flowed around him, the cold blade in his heart didn’t hurt, but only these words of disappointment crashed down on him like snowflakes blown away by a cold wind.
Wasn’t it you who taught me to do whatever it takes to achieve my goals?
Senior Brother.
Ah Qi.
Was I really wrong?
On the Illusion Trial Platform of Kong Hou Mountain, several disciples had already emerged one after another, greeted by cheers and applause from the surroundings.
But the host, Rongyun Sect, had yet to show any sign of activity.
Shen Tanqi pressed down on his hat brim, his heart burning with anxiety. His intuition told him that something must have happened to Yu Ce inside the illusion.
But if he entered Yu Ce’s illusion, wouldn’t that be cheating for Yu Ce? If anyone found out, Yu Ce would truly be seen as unfair, and he might not even be allowed to participate in the remaining competition.
Can’t make matters worse.
As much as Shen Tanqi was anxious and impatient, all he could do was hold onto system and Little Black, the little chick and dog, using them as stress relievers, rubbing them back and forth.
After a moment, there was finally some movement on Yu Ce’s trial platform.
Green mist burst forth, and within the dense fog, a figure slowly materialized, sword in hand.
Shen Tanqi’s eyes lit up. He wanted to go forward excitedly to congratulate Yu Ce, but he saw Yu Ce’s expression, lost and bleak, his eyes dim and obscure.
He froze on the spot, immediately recalling the description of Yu Ce’s state when he came out from the illusion in the original book—it was exactly like now.
Shen Tanqi gritted his teeth, ignoring the eyes of the people around him, and jumped onto the platform behind Yu Ce.
As the crowd murmured in surprise, Yu Ce slowly turned around.
“What’s with that expression? Did you lose your wife in the illusion?”
Shen Tanqi gritted his teeth, intending to pinch Yu Ce hard to snap him out of it.
At such a crucial moment, this silly dragon was actually frozen by the illusion. This was only the first trial; with so many strong opponents ahead, could Yu Ce really handle any of them?
His fingers were just about to reach Yu Ce when Shen Tanqi sensed Yu Ce trembling slightly.
He froze immediately. Instead of pinching him as planned, upon seeing the fear and confusion in Yu Ce’s eyes, Shen Tanqi paused abruptly and gently pulled Yu Ce into his arms.
“Alright.”
Shen Tanqi sighed heavily, silencing the incessant warnings from the system’s internal voice, ignoring the shocked gasps from everyone around. He held Yu Ce tightly and soothingly, like comforting a child.
“Don’t be afraid. It was just an illusion, all fake,” he murmured softly, as if comforting Goldfish and Taro Ball.
Yu Ce allowed himself to be held, his lifeless face gradually warming, his lips regaining color.
He struggled to speak, whispering softly, “Ah Qi.”
“I’ll let you go.”
“Don’t hate me, okay?”
Hello, everyone ヾ(＾∇＾). I hope you enjoyed the story! If you’re feeling generous, please buy me a coffee, share/comment on my translated works! Check out the link below for early chapters. (๑>ᴗ<๑)
