Chapter 52 Farewell and Revitalization of the Cultivation World (52% complete)

Su Xiaoyao walked quickly with her head down, her mind preoccupied with something.

So she didn't see it.

After she left, the scene in the classroom froze. The students, whom she had labeled "fake" in her heart, shattered into ice, and the power of the fragments condensed several times to form a golden core.

If she were to return, she would surely be able to recognize that power—her vanished spiritual energy.

From beginning to end, what bound her was only herself.

Outside the classroom, Su Xiaoyao followed her memory and wandered around to the secluded music classroom. After high school, the music classroom was practically just for show, and no one usually came here.

"Xiao Yao, are you alright?" Su Xiaogua and Gong Yu came in one after the other.

Su Xiaoyao didn't know where to begin.

She didn't say whether something was wrong or not, but her expression clearly indicated something was off.

Gong Yu: "You started acting strangely after the transfer students arrived; you knew them."

She didn't use a question, which clearly showed she understood the problem.

"I know him," Su Xiaoyao said truthfully after hesitating.

"How come I didn't know you knew anyone with looks like this?" Gong Yu frowned. "Are you hiding something from us?"

Su Xiaogua continued, "Xiao Yao, I consider you half an older brother, so you must tell me anything you need to do."

Su Xiaoyao stammered, and didn't even object to the term "brother" as usual.

After hesitating for a long time, she finally asked, "Are you... real people?"

Subjectively, she absolutely trusted her intuition and eyes; Gong Yu and Su Xiaogua couldn't fake their tone, demeanor, emotions, or small gestures.

But when her friend from another world appeared, she had to admit that she had misjudged the situation.

She couldn't distinguish between what was real and what was fake anymore.

She even suspected that Jiang Yun and the other three were fake, part of the illusion as well.

Su Xiaoyao shivered, truly experiencing the terror of illusion. She couldn't tell whether she was in reality or in a dream.

The faces of her two friends seemed to crumble because of her wavering.

Gong Yu held out her hand and waved it in front of her, pointing to herself and asking, "Is my species hard to identify?"

Su Xiaogua rolled her eyes: "Although my character model isn't as refined as the transfer student's, you can't just kick me out of the human race! I strongly condemn you, you face-obsessed jerk!"

Su Xiaoyao was amused and burst out laughing, but quickly suppressed her laughter.

Because her trial has come.

"Su Xiaoyao, it feels like three autumns have passed since I last saw you. Your background is indeed extraordinary."

While possession of another's body is uncommon in the cultivation world, it does happen. Legend has it that there are three thousand minor worlds beyond the main world, and her existence confirms this legend.

Helian Yi's smirking voice came through, as annoying as ever.

"Haven't seen you for a day? Is your friend's Chinese level the same as yours?" Gong Yu whispered in Su Xiaoyao's ear.

Su Xiaoyao spends all 24 hours a day with them except when she's sleeping, so how could she not see them for a day?

Unless, unless something unscientific happens.

Her suspicious gaze shifted between Su Xiaoyao and Helian Yi.

Su Xiaoyao could only say, "I'll explain to you later."

Her friend's illusions were so realistic that she couldn't treat them as NPCs in the illusion. Even now, she still speaks to them in the same tone she would use to treat real people, and she doesn't want to be perfunctory.

She slowly turned to Helian Yi, and after staring at him for three seconds, she suddenly attacked.

Helian Yi dodged in time, avoiding the punch she was about to deliver.

The force of the punch grazed my face, and I heard a loud bang as it cut through the air.

"I kindly came in to wake you up, and this is how you treat me?" Helian Yi wasn't annoyed; he was used to being treated like this by Su Xiaoyao. He simply raised an eyebrow to express his confusion.

Su Xiaoyao withdrew her fist and shook it.

"I want to see if you are the next layer of my illusion," she said.

Helian Yi was speechless: "Illusions only incite the deepest desires in people's hearts. Do you want me to be your punching bag?"

Su Xiaoyao actually nodded: "When I threw the punch, I was imagining the scene where you didn't dodge it."

This is used to determine whether the person in front of her is an illusion. If it is a false shadow constructed deep in her mind, it will not act against her will in her illusion.

Helian Yi was indifferent at first, then laughed angrily: "Fine, we're even."

"What do you mean, even things out?" Su Xiaoyao had a bad feeling.

"You don't need to know," Helian Yi said aloofly, raising his head.

Shen Suqi raised her hand at the opportune moment: "I'm reporting him! When I stepped out of the illusion, I saw him beating you up! You're the super villain in his illusion!"

Helian Yi's smile vanished: "You're bluffing me. You clearly came out right after me."

Shen Suqi exclaimed excitedly, "Look, look! He didn't refute it! I tricked him into confessing!"

Su Xiaoyao: "Ha, how naive."

Their eyes met, then they both rolled their eyes and looked away.

"How much time has passed outside?" Su Xiaoyao got back to the main point.

Helian Yi snorted, "Not long, only four hours."

"Four hours...that's much shorter than expected." Su Xiaoyao lowered her eyes in thought. "You guys got out so quickly?"

Her terrifying adaptability prompted her to quickly adjust her state. She immediately retrieved the scene before entering the assessment from the memory corridor. In just a moment, the temperament of the good student who was fully engaged in the college entrance examination just a moment ago suddenly changed, and she became the carefree yet not to be ignored tasker 996 again.

Her transformation was visible to the naked eye, and Helian Yi was satisfied; this was the kind of opponent he truly respected.

However, he would never show this affirmation on the surface.

He said, "Contrary to what you think, my ambition did not become an obstacle to my progress; on the contrary, it helped me break through my current level quickly."

"Congratulations!" Su Xiaoyao was a master of sarcastic remarks.

"But you," Helian Yi said disdainfully, not missing any opportunity to mock his old rival, "you'd better keep a low profile when you get back."

The provocation worked. Su Xiaoyao rolled up her sleeves and retorted, "You think you can brag about being better than me in the illusionary realm assessment for a year? Let's see what happens in the next assessment!"

Helian Yi remained unmoved, a mocking smile playing on his lips.

He knew that he didn't need to say anything now; he just needed to wait for Su Xiaoyao to break down on her own.

Su Xiaoyao wasn't exactly on the verge of a breakdown, but after going back and forth like this, she couldn't help but recall how confident she was before the assessment began.

Having been reduced to having to rely on her old rival to rescue someone from the illusion, even Su Xiaoyao, who had developed an iron will, couldn't help but feel embarrassed.

She coughed lightly and looked away from Shen Suxi: "Am I the only one who hasn't gone out yet?"

"Of course not, these few people are freaks, don't use them as a standard. Don't worry, there's still time. Right now, the number of people who have broken through the illusion realm isn't even one in four." Shen Suqi explained the situation outside in a few words.

She explained, "After we left our respective illusions, we saw you in the sky. You could say your illusion was the most difficult of all. We discussed it but couldn't figure out how you should get through it. We also saw that you had adapted to life here, and we were afraid you would sink into despair, so we quickly came in to help you."

"Shouldn't illusions be of the same level?" Su Xiaoyao asked in surprise. "Then what are the contents of your illusions?"

"More or less, each of us has seen through the desires deep in our hearts." Shen Suqi shrugged and briefly summarized before taking himself as an example, "For example, my illusion is very simple. After killing the entire Shen family, I realized that I couldn't be so short-sighted as to hold onto the mere Dongyu City. My goal should be to set my sights on the four continents and become the number one talisman cultivator. Once I realized this, I immediately woke up."

Su Xiaoyao looked at Xiao Tingyuan.

Xiao Tingyuan scratched his head sheepishly: "When I drew eight Saint-grade spiritual items in ten consecutive draws, I realized something was wrong. In the end, I accepted the fact that I was unlucky and decided to stop hoping for good luck."

Su Xiaoyao said disdainfully, "You've already entered the illusion realm and you still only dare to fantasize about getting eight holy items in ten draws?"

Xiao Tingyuan explained earnestly, "Eight is just right, no more, no less. Any more and I'd be laughing in my sleep."

"What about Xiao Jiang?" Su Xiaoyao was most concerned about Jiang Yun. "You weren't affected, were you?"

Before entering the illusion, Jiang Yun, who was burdened with a blood feud, was her main focus. She was very worried that Jiang Yun's mental state would be affected by the illusion.

Jiang Yun said calmly, "You said that only by defeating the illusion can one take revenge in reality."

Shen Suqi enthusiastically added: "Jiang Yun was the fastest to get out of the illusion, taking less than a quarter of an hour. His personal breakthrough video was directly posted on the academy's intranet. Jun Laiye said that the first place's achievement will be used as a textbook example of breakthrough and will be played repeatedly for a week for everyone to study. The first place in each subsequent round of assessment will receive the same treatment."

Su Xiaoyao was happy for Jiang Yun, but also felt sorry for herself.

Before the assessment, she was the most confident person, but the most worrying person was Jiang Yun, who kept his emotions deeply hidden.

When it came to the formal assessment, their situations were completely reversed.

It was a truly absurd and hilarious dramatic ending.

Overwhelmed with emotion, Shen Suqi stretched out his hand to her with great enthusiasm. The yellow talisman in his palm spontaneously combusted without fire and eventually turned to ashes.

As she wiped her hands, she said, "You have to treat me to dinner after the assessment is over."

Su Xiaoyao reached into her pocket, where only a patch of black ash remained.

The talisman took effect at some point.

Shen Suqi said, "When I saw you sinking into illusion, my first reaction was to wake you up. It was only after I had this thought that the talisman became hot to the touch that I discovered its specific effect."

"So we used talismans to enter your illusion. Xu Lingyou and Shui Fan also wanted to come in, but your illusion wasn't big enough to hold so many souls." Xiao Tingyuan finished speaking and looked at the other two bewildered outsiders, the light in his eyes unreadable.

"So it was a talisman to break through the illusion barrier. Thank you so much, Xiaoxi." Su Xiaoyao's gratitude was beyond words.

"Why are you being so polite with me?" Shen Suqi subtly curled the corners of her lips.

Even though he tried his best to appear calm, the smugness and pride in his eyes were still impossible to hide.

However, no one would accuse her of being arrogant. Any talisman cultivator who successfully copied a new rune upon first encountering it would inevitably feel proud.

As Su Xiaoyao gradually integrated into Jiang Yun and the others, Gong Yu and Su Xiaogua, who were behind her, witnessed her transformation firsthand.

She seemed to be peeling away their world little by little; this person was clearly standing in front of them, yet seemed so distant.

"Xiao Yao." Gong Yu couldn't help but speak, her tone carrying a hint of reluctance that she herself didn't realize.

She seemed to know what was going to happen next.

"The rest of the time is yours." Shen Suqi patted Su Xiaoyao on the shoulder and winked at the people behind her.

They voluntarily left the music classroom to make room for Su Xiaoyao.

They could tell that Su Xiaoyao's feelings for the two phantoms were unusual.

"We're in the illusion you created for the assessment," Gong Yu summarized after listening in.

Having read countless novels and watched countless movies, she roughly guessed the meaning behind their conversation.

"I...I have to go out." Su Xiaoyao pursed her lips, lowering her eyes to avoid eye contact.

This means the illusion is shattered, and they must part ways.

She couldn't bring herself to say the second half.

“Oh…” Gong Yu looked at her intently, “You didn’t travel through time for no reason, did you?”

Su Xiaoyao was taken aback, then slowly nodded: "Bad luck, the plane crashed on the way to participate in the international competition."

"I see." Gong Yu bit her lower lip. "How have you been?"

Su Xiaoyao looked into her eyes: "I'm doing very well. I have new friends and a new life. The future I described to you before is real."

"That's good, let's hug." Gong Yu accepted the fact and opened his arms to hug her.

Su Xiaoyao's nose stung with tears: "I have to leave again."

"Don't be sad, at least we said goodbye properly this time." Gong Yu sniffed, holding back her tears.

Although Su Xiaogua was heartbroken, she didn't want to exacerbate the sad atmosphere at this moment, so she deliberately raised her voice: "It's okay. When you return to the new world, I hope even your hair will be curly. You must curl them to death. This world can't be the only one suffering."

"Okay, I definitely won't let them get away with this." Su Xiaoyao smiled through her tears.

Since her haphazard rebirth, this is the first time Su Xiaoyao has faced her past squarely.

She is a lonely soul from another world, but the soul is never alone.

As they turned to leave, the illusion behind them cracked as if a mirror had shattered.

Su Xiaoyao stopped and looked back, seeing her friend still waving at her.

Knowing that darkness had completely enveloped their vision, she and her companions walked from darkness into the light.

Seeing her melancholy, Shen Suqi tried to find some topics to distract her.

“Before entering your illusion, there were two cultivators from Yongzhou Realm next to me. One of them had the compound surname Wenren. He seemed to know you and said that he wondered what kind of interesting expression the Su family from the mortal realm of Yongzhou Realm would have after seeing the sky.”

Su Xiaoyao reacted as expected: "Can mortals see the sky too?"

“Of course, it encompasses the four continents, and the mortal realm belongs to Yongzhou, so it can naturally be seen there as well,” Shen Suqi said.

Su Xiaoyao nodded.

Her eyes scanned the surroundings, and she instinctively locked onto a spot.

Her usual nonchalant expression was replaced by indifference, and her tone was slightly sarcastic: "Su Xiaoyao's ideal is freedom, and I have achieved it."

Having broken free from the illusion, and with her resolve growing stronger, spiritual energy returned to her body.

"There's something I don't know if I should tell you," Xiao Tingyuan said, frowning and hesitating.

"Go ahead and say it." Su Xiaoyao believed that nothing could cause her emotions to fluctuate so drastically anymore.

After carefully considering his words, Xiao Tingyuan said, "That's right. Xu Lingyou and Shui Fan originally wanted to come in as well, but the illusion can only accommodate a limited number of souls."

"Yes, you already said that." Su Xiaoyao said, puzzled.

"But even the God of Cookery was excluded. Then, before I came in, I heard him mutter something. He said that the spiritual power that created this illusion came from your origin, and the maximum number of souls that a Golden Core cultivator can accommodate is..."

"Seven."

Su Xiaoyao's gaze swept over the four people in front of her, and her mind was completely thrown into turmoil at that moment.

She turned around in disbelief, her heart pounding.

—This time, let's say goodbye properly.

-------------------------------------

After waking up from her dream, Gong Yu slowly sat up. She remained silent in the darkness for a long time before raising her hand to wipe her face and realizing that she was already in tears.

"Xiaoyu, did you have another nightmare? Please take care of yourself. Ah Ji and I are on our way to the cafeteria. What would you like for breakfast? We'll get it for you."

Her roommate noticed her situation and carefully went over to comfort her.

Gong Yu snapped out of her daze and smiled gently: "No, it was just a sweet dream. Please bring me two steamed buns, thank you."

Seeing that she seemed fine, her roommate's smile relaxed a bit: "Alright, don't be shy, let's go then."

After my two roommates left, the dorm became quiet again.

Gong Yu carefully recalled that dream that was too real, and desperately hoped that everything in the dream was real.

My best friend didn't die; she went to another world, where she has a new future and makes some great friends.

If only it were all true.

Although she was jealous that her best friend had found someone else, her desire for Xiao Yao to be happy prevailed over her emotions.

Since Su Xiaoyao's unexpected death, the pent-up frustration in his heart seemed to have been relieved quite a bit by this dream that seemed both real and unreal.

Gong Yu lifted the covers to get out of bed when her phone rang.

The caller was Su Xiaogua.

She paused slightly, then answered the phone as if sensing something.

A deep male voice came from the other end of the phone: "Xiaoyu, I had a really, really real dream. I dreamt that we were still in high school, that she said goodbye to us, that she made new friends and is doing well now. I wish it were real... Hello? Xiaoyu, are you listening? Xiaoyu?"

On the other end of the phone, Gong Yu was already in tears.

-----------------------

Author's Note: Xiao Yao's personality means she'll have close friends wherever she goes. I've always felt that time travelers should properly say goodbye to their past, and this final part is a way of giving Xiao Yao and her past a relatively satisfactory ending.

I'm a master of happy endings (pats my chest and gives myself a thumbs up).

P.S.: I'm taking tomorrow off. I'll come back to update after I get through that awful company year-end party.