The next instant, Yun Mu felt his consciousness being pulled away by a force and attached to the hateful “Immortal Yun Mu” within the illusion, who was currently tormenting the youthful Sui Yue.
He could clearly feel the youthful Sui Yue’s bone-deep hatred, as well as the cruelty of his own “phantom projection.”
Controlling ‘Yun Mu 1.0’, Yun Mu used the most venomous language to provoke Sui Yue, step by step pushing him toward the brink of collapse:
“Just a few words, and you can’t even handle this much?
Still think you’re quite impressive, do you?
If you have the ability, kill me!
Sui Yue! Kill me, and only then can you achieve complete release!”
Sui Yue’s hatred climbed to its absolute peak. Roaring aloud, he forcefully thrust the sword in his hand straight into the chest of ‘Yun Mu 1.0’.
The ‘Yun Mu 1.0’ in the illusion wore a look of relieved release as his body slowly collapsed.
Almost simultaneously, Yun Mu within the hidden spirit fox felt a corner of his sea of consciousness collapse. His vision went pitch black, and he completely lost consciousness.
The entire fox went limp, curling up softly beside Sui Yue’s feet like an inanimate, lifeless toy.
The illusion shattered, and Sui Yue regained clarity in his gaze, though he was still panting heavily with lingering fear.
Lowering his head, he looked at the weak white fox. The harrowing sight of Yun Mu dying by his sword in the illusion still seemed to linger before his eyes. Clearly, that could be considered getting his revenge, so why did he feel not a shred of happiness, and instead harbored a faint worry over whether that strike had caused him any harm?
Yet why… why had he done that?
Sui Yue’s gaze was filled with perplexity and a trace of hesitation that even he himself had not noticed. The hatred that had pierced into his very bones had actually developed a fissure at this moment.
The lingering, tearing pain in his sea of consciousness had not yet faded as Yun Mu laboriously pried open his heavy eyelids.
What came into view was no longer the gloomy and eerie illusion, nor the bone-chilling lake water, but a dome supported by carved beams and painted pillars, glowing with flowing light.
He found himself lying in the center of a palace that was grandiose to the point of extravagance. The surrounding walls were painted with complex and ancient murals, and countless profound runes flowed faintly between the murals, exuding a distant, ancient aura that made one’s heart palpitate.
“Awake?”
A slightly hoarse voice sounded beside him.
With a start, Yun Mu jerked his head around to meet a pair of deep, complex phoenix eyes.
Sui Yue sat right beside him. His dark robes made his complexion appear somewhat pale, but his gaze was exceptionally bright as he stared unblinkingly at him.
Within that gaze lay inquiry, puzzlement, and a trace of… something Yun Mu didn’t quite dare to ascertain—a hard-to-detect concern.
【 My goodness! This little brat didn’t butcher me while I was unconscious? The sun must be rising from the west today! 】
Alarm bells rang wildly in Yun Mu’s heart, but outwardly he dared not show the slightest hint of it. He merely propped himself up weakly, secretly rejoicing that he had won his gamble. Although the damage to his divine consciousness left him with a splitting headache now and would likely require a long recovery, he had managed to pull Sui Yue back from the brink of blackening after all.
“You… are you alright?” Sui Yue’s thin lips parted slightly, his voice lower than usual by a fraction.
【 Yo, why care so much about a fox like me? Could it be he found out about me sacrificing myself to help him break the illusion, and was moved by it? 】 Yun Mu muttered inwardly, while outwardly maintaining that cold, aloof persona of “Yun Mu 1.0.” He merely shook his fox head weakly.
Sui Yue lowered his eyelids, casting long shadows beneath his eyes that concealed the emotions in his gaze.
He indeed had many questions. The final words of his master in the illusion—“Kill me, and only then can you achieve complete release”—swirled around in his mind like a spell.
The resolve and madness that had burst forth from those eyes were worlds apart from the master in his memories who only knew how to torment him.
Just as the two of them harbored their own thoughts and the atmosphere grew somewhat subtle, a circular stone platform in the center of the grand hall suddenly burst into brilliant light.
Golden light soared into the sky, condensing in midair into a somewhat transparent phantom projection.
That phantom projection wore an archaic Daoist robe, possessing the lean and refined appearance of a mountain hermit, radiating an air untainted by mortal smoke and fire.
“Both young friends are awake.” Qiu Jibo looked at Yun Mu and Sui Yue with a smile, his gaze gentle. “Not hesitating to damage your own sea of consciousness at any cost to plunge into an illusion and break the other’s inner demons—you certainly value emotional bonds.”
【 How did he know my divine consciousness was damaged? 】 Yun Mu was secretly startled inside. 【 Two young friends? System, this immortal seems to have counted me in as well. Could it be he knows I’m not an ordinary fox? 】
The System replied: 『 Mu-mu, these little tricks of yours are naturally transparent before such a mighty being. Besides, this is also your opportunity! 』
【 I just hope my disciple didn’t hear that, otherwise when I return to the Luoxuan Sect, I wouldn’t know how to face him. 】
The System replied: 『 Rest easy, Mu-mu. With your disciple’s current cultivation level, it’s impossible for him to know. 』
Secretly listening to Yun Mu’s inner voice while keeping his gaze fixed on the suddenly appeared Qiu Jibo, Sui Yue asked, “Who are you?”
Eyes smiling, Qiu Jibo spoke slowly: “This seat is the Water God Jibo. This place is my heritage palace. Only those with a firm will, extraordinary potential, and who have passed my initial test may behold it.” He paused before continuing, “The two of you possess top-tier character and aptitude. Before I completely perish, I am willing to pass down my mantle. I wonder if the two young friends are willing to accept the final test?”
Inheritance?
Yun Mu’s eyes lit up. Isn’t this the legendary fortuitous encounter! Could it be my disciple’s Zefeng Blade originates from right here?
Sui Yue appeared much calmer, as if he had anticipated this. Raising his eyes to look at Qiu Jibo, his gaze was resolute: “This junior is willing to hear the details.”
“Good.” Qiu Jibo stroked his beard in satisfaction. “My test is divided into two parts. The first part: inquiring of the heart.”
His gaze swept across Yun Mu and Sui Yue. “In seeking the Dao of immortality, placing the utmost importance on cultivating the heart. If the heart has entanglements, the path of the Dao will be fraught with obstacles. I require each of you to state your deepest fear, and right here before me, attempt to face it and conquer it.”
Yun Mu’s heart skipped a beat. Deepest fear? There are way too many! Afraid of dying, afraid of pain, afraid of being poor, afraid of the system electrocuting me, afraid of Sui Yue harvesting my kidneys…
As if seeing through his thoughts, Qiu Jibo added, “You only need to state one—the most fundamental one, the one that leaves you tossing and turning in sleepless nights.”
Silence descended upon the grand hall once more.
After a moment of silence, Sui Yue spoke first. His voice was calm without a ripple, yet carried a trace of bone-chilling coldness: “I fear the most… I fear not being able to personally execute that wicked person who cast me aside like worn shoes and played with me in the palm of their hand.”
As he spoke these words, his peripheral vision swept intentionally or unintentionally past Yun Mu.
It had been the same in his past life: by the time he returned to the Luoxuan Sect after enduring untold hardships to seek revenge on Yun Mu, the person had already breathed their last, their divine soul dissipated in the wind.
Consequently, in a rage, he had slaughtered every single member of the Luoxuan Sect.
Yun Mu felt his scalp go numb from that look. Damn it, this kid is still holding a grudge against the original body!