Illusion

With each additional prey, the mountain mist dissipated a little. As time passed, Gu Youan hunted more and more animals, and suddenly a winding path appeared before him.

Gu Youan stared ahead. The mist dissipated to both sides, leaving only this narrow path in the middle. It looked just like the road to the underworld. She hesitated, taking a step. "System, if I encounter danger, can you guarantee my safety?"

"Host, you can go forward with confidence. I will definitely protect your life."

Gu Youan swallowed hard and took a deep breath. "Monster, quickly reveal your true form!"

She drew her bow and shot an arrow toward the end of the path. With a "whoosh," the arrow vanished without a trace. She stared blankly into the distance, her breath fading into the darkness.

A pair of black boots appeared before her. Gu Youan looked up and saw a person dressed in a black robe walking slowly towards her. The mountains and fields were silent, and she could hear her own heartbeat. She raised her bow and arrow. "Who goes there?"

"Miss Xuanji."

With slender fingers lifting the hat, a handsome young man appeared beneath the black robe, his narrow eyes adorned with a mole. She paused, momentarily stunned. If she could build a harem, she would take this man with her as well.

"Host, what are you thinking about?" The mechanical voice awakened her memories, and Gu Youan belatedly turned her head to look at the person.

"May I ask who you are and why you are here?"

"I am Wangshu Envoy." His voice was as clear as a gentle breeze and the bright moon, melodious and pleasing to the ear.

Gu Youan tilted her head and smiled at her, "Envoy Wangshu, what brings you here so late at night?"

Was their purpose in this trip to hunt, or to be "chosen"?

Gu Youan silently gazed ahead, "What was the reason that the Wangshu Envoy chose me?"

Wang Shu extended her hand to her, "Come with me, Xuanji, become my disciple, and I will tell you everything you want to know?"

Gu Youan took two steps back. "If Wang Shu Envoy is here to stop me, then please leave. I will not become Wang Shu Envoy's disciple. If I am going to be one, I will be one of the Twelve Envoys."

Wang Shu smiled lightly, her eyes slightly upturned, a hint of mockery in them, but not a trace of sarcasm. "Gu You'an, daughter of the Gu family, you've come here to find out the cause of death of your three brothers. Follow me and I'll tell you what happened back then. Being one of the Twelve Envoys is not an easy task."

Gu Youan drew his bow and shot an arrow at Wang Shu Envoy. "I will not yield to anyone, Wang Shu Envoy. If you insist on stopping me today, I will not hesitate to kill you."

Wang Shu chuckled and gently pressed down on Gu Youan's bow and arrow. "Miss Xuanji, please don't be angry. Do you know what place this road leads to? Haoyue's skill is above everyone else, so why is he willing to be the senior brother of the academy?"

Wang Shu gently turned her body to the side. "I'm letting you in today, but do you really dare to enter? Gu You'an, neither Lord Ru Mei nor Lord Yuan'an could stop you. Why did you come here? Why do you want to become an assassin?"

A gust of wind swept by, and Gu Youan suddenly closed her eyes. Wang Shushi grabbed her hand and asked, "Why did you become an assassin? The Gu family is a distinguished family with a hundred-year history and countless assets. Why did you have to come here?"

“Since the Emperor’s Organization is a killer organization, anyone can become an assassin. If you can come, so can I. Envoy Wangshu, you are the third person to stop me. I really want to know why. Why is everyone stopping me from entering here?”

Gu Youan looked at him sharply, "Envoy Wangshu, you can't stop me."

Gu Youan slapped him, saying, "Whether it's for myself, for my three brothers, or for the Gu family, I will not back down."

Having unexpectedly transmigrated into a novel and taken on the fate of a cannon fodder female supporting character, she must forge her own path outside the story. She is not a helpless innocent girl to be manipulated, and no one can dictate her path. She can rise to the top and become the number one assassin of the Emperor's Ship.

Gu Youan's resolute eyes glistened with tears. "As a daughter of the Gu family, I have the Gu family behind me, but I am not myself. Yet I am willing to be myself, to be Xuanji, not Gu Youan. Without the Gu family, Gu Youan's identity cannot protect her." Only by becoming Xuanji Gu Youan can she protect herself.

Wang Shu looked at her as if she were seeing an old friend. "I was wondering why Ru Mei and Yuan An chose you. Now I understand. Xuan Ji, there is no turning back once you enter this place. Are you willing to become a true envoy?"

Wang Shu took a step back. “The Twelve Messengers are different from other assassins. We want to survive in the cracks between the forces of the martial arts world and the imperial court. If you become one of the Twelve Messengers, you will have to take on the responsibility of becoming the number one martial artist in the martial arts world and protecting the Emperor’s ship.”

Wang Shu sighed and handed Gu Youan a sword. "Bows and arrows are only used for hunting. Since you've decided to go down an unknown path, a good sword is the only thing that can truly help you. Knowledge gained from books is never enough; you will only cherish what you fight for with all your might."

He paused, then turned to look at the endless darkness. "When you embark on this path, the Gu worms within you will activate. If you betray the Emperor's Name, you will die silently."

He glanced at the road behind him. "Countless people have died here. Even Haoyue, who was once hailed as a child prodigy, dares not tread this road again."

He stepped aside. "Since you've decided to become a real assassin, then go ahead."

As soon as she finished speaking, a gust of wind blew by, and countless shrill sounds tore at her eardrums. Gu Youan covered her ears and closed her eyes. Willow branches hit her arms, and she squatted on the ground, curling up into a ball to resist it all.

Suddenly the wind died down, and she slowly opened her eyes. A solemn and imposing black gate appeared before her.

Gu Youan stood up. There was a skull at her feet. She squatted down and picked it up, examining it carefully. The skull in front of her was just a young girl of about sixteen or eighteen. Fortunately, she had been a medical student, so this little thing couldn't scare her.

"Host, I'm scared..." the system's trembling voice rang out.

Gu Youan frowned. "What are you afraid of, you're just a robot?"

“Look up…”

Gu Youan hesitated before raising her head. What she saw shocked her: corpses hung from the trees, their eyes wide open, dark circles under their eyes, staring blankly at her, drops of blood flowing down their faces.

Her heart was pounding, and she hesitated before asking, "Have I entered a horror instance? Why is it so terrifying here?"

Their toes were pointing inwards; they were hung there after they died.

"Help!" Gu Youan scrambled away for his life, crying out, "Help!"

The entire forest echoed with her desperate screams, "Help!"

She slipped and fell to the ground. A dark figure blocked her way. Gu Youan held the dagger to her chest and moved her body slowly. Her hair was disheveled. She looked like a madwoman.

Suddenly, a pair of hands helped her up, and the face in front of her became clearer. The dagger in her hand fell to the ground. "Qingyang, what are you doing here?"

Qingyang tidied her hair, "What did you see that made you so panicked?"

Gu Youan's eyes widened, and she turned around, trembling, "Behind...behind."

In a panic, she suddenly pushed Qingyang away, saying, "You are not Qingyang. Qingyang could not have entered here."

When she gets close to Qingyang, the Gu worm in her heart will stir, but when Qingyang just pulled her arm, the Gu worm in her body did not stir at all.

She raised the dagger and plunged it fiercely into Qingyang's chest. In an instant, the person in front of her disappeared. Gu Youan turned around in horror, and a giant appeared in front of her. In her panic, she couldn't catch her breath and fainted.

The branches on the ground creaked. The two men, arms crossed, looked at Gu You'an lying on the ground. They removed their masks, and one of them gently kicked her with his foot. "A woman this timid, are you sure she could get in here?"

The other person chuckled softly, "Jiannan, we went through the same thing back then."

His eyes were practically brimming with laughter. "How many years has it been since a young lady came in?"

"Boyan, so what if she's a little girl? We won't go easy on her here just because she's a little girl."

Boyan poked him with his hand, "Wake her up. This selection has to continue. If she faints here, how will we explain it to the outside world?"

Jiannan crouched down and gently shook Gu Youan, "Miss Xuanji, Miss Xuanji!"

Two handsome faces came into view. Gu Youan stared blankly at them, "Who are you?"

"If Miss Xuanji is afraid, she should leave quickly!" Jiannan said with a light laugh.

Gu Youan pushed herself up from the ground with both hands, saying, "I won't leave."

Looking around, all was quiet, the leaves were lush, and the moon and stars were few. "Was what I just saw an illusion?"

"The first step to becoming a top assassin is to calm down in the illusion."

Boyan removed the leaves from Gu Youan's head. "You will face more dangers in the future. Only by facing everything calmly can you avoid making mistakes in judgment. Most things in the world stem from inner fear. If you had looked carefully at the time, you would have been able to distinguish that it was an illusion, rather than being frightened by it."

There is a lot of miasma in the mountains and forests, and living in miasma for a long time can lead to mental disorders.

Gu Youan looked up at the two of them and asked, "How come you two aren't affected?"

Jiannan chuckled and said, "Our internal strength is superior to yours, and besides, we have been here for many years."

Boyan continued, "If you can't get out, you'll die here like those people in the illusion. Miss Xuanji, let's go!"

Gu Youan was taken aback. "You've been here for many years, and I've survived."

Jiannan chuckled, "Such arrogance!"

Boyan gently shook his head. "Let's go!"

Upon reaching the gate, Boyan cleaved the stone door open with a single palm strike. The solemn gate roared open, and Gu Youan looked at the person before her in shock. The usually gentle Boyan was so decisive.

She calmed herself down and realized that appearances can be deceiving; the seemingly unconventional Jiannan was actually the follower.

Jiannan patted Gu Youan on the shoulder, "Let's go!"