Chapter 187 Which of the two truths is real?

Abi said that it was midday, the sun was blazing, and the sea was sparkling and peaceful.

However, right after that scream, the sunlight suddenly dimmed.

Darkness descended like the shadow of death, and the lush green grass withered, leaving only ashes.

Those disciples shrouded in shadows suddenly lost their senses and began attacking each other.

Abi was so terrified that she forgot to run away for a moment.

Just then, her arm was suddenly grabbed.

"Abi! Let's go!"

It was Cao Yong'an. He noticed the unusual activity and, worried about her, came to check on her.

Cao Yong'an was at the Foundation Establishment stage, and his cultivation was above that of all the disciples. He pulled Abi along as they ran.

Just as they were about to escape the treasure trove, Cao Yong'an was suddenly struck by a powerful force, staggering a few steps and spitting out a mouthful of blood.

"Yong'an!"

Before Abi could turn around, she was pushed away with great force.

"Walk!"

"..."

At this point, Abi burst into tears, "I got out, but Yong'an... he..."

Ye Li handed her the handkerchief, and after she had patted it for a moment, she continued to ask, "And then? Senior Brother Cao and those disciples didn't manage to come out?"

Abi nodded and then shook her head.

Ye Li found it unbelievable, "Such a big thing happened, why didn't I hear about it in the sect?"

The mysterious treasure trove, where disciples died tragically, should be common knowledge, if not causing widespread chaos. The sect should have sent people to investigate. How come there's no news at all, and only Elder Ge went to rescue them?

Abi's voice was hoarse, "That's where the problem lies..."

"I fainted at the time, and when I opened my eyes again, I was already sitting on the boat back."

When Abi opened her eyes that day, she found herself on a boat and frantically called out Cao Yong'an's name.

"Yong'an! Yong'an!"

"Yong'an hasn't come out yet, we can't leave!"

“Abi, we understand how you feel, but Senior Brother Yong’an has already died after encountering a monster… You must pull yourself together.”

Abi couldn't believe it. "What did you say? Encountering a magical beast? He was left behind in that treasure land, along with several disciples..."

She stopped abruptly before she could finish her sentence.

As her gaze met that of the disciple who had spoken to her, she was terrified. "Weren't you also in the treasure trove? Wasn't half your head cut off? How come you're alright?"

The disciple paused for a few seconds, then looked at him with sympathy, "Abi, are you hallucinating because you're too sad? What treasure land? We've never heard of it."

"How is that possible!"

Abi grabbed his collar, "You were the one who said there was a treasure trove over there, and you were the one who led those disciples there. I went to help Yong'an find the Spirit Rhinoceros Horn, and then... then things changed there. Yong'an stayed there to protect me. How could you not have heard about it!"

She tried to verify with the disciples, but each of them looked at her as if she were a madwoman.

A female disciple who knew her well comforted her, "Alright, alright, Abi, we understand. We'll go back and inform our sect to find Senior Brother Cao. You're tired, go and rest."

Although she said that, her gaze was full of sympathy.

Abi broke down, shouting, "How could you not remember? Yong'an disappeared right there in that treasure trove! How could you not remember!"

...

Hearing this, Ye Li also found it unbelievable, "After the treasure was discovered, didn't all the disciples know about it? Doesn't anyone remember?"

Abi nodded tearfully, "I asked everyone, and they all said they'd never seen that treasure trove. But I know it really existed, and it took Yong'an away... cough cough cough..."

Overcome with emotion, Abi coughed incessantly.

Ye Li could only help her lie down first.

Exhausted, she collapsed onto the bed and fell into a deep sleep, murmuring incessantly, "Treasure Land... Yong'an... Save him..."

Ye Li channeled some spiritual energy into her, then left and closed the door.

She frowned as she stared at the closed door.

What exactly happened on Twilight Cloud Island...?

Just then, a disciple happened to pass by; it was the same disciple Ye Li had asked for directions from earlier.

Seeing her standing at the door, the disciple stepped forward. "Have you seen Abi? Is she still delirious?"

Ye Li countered, "Disoriented?"

The disciple nodded, then sighed, "Poor Abi suffered a shock on Twilight Cloud Island and has been talking nonsense in a daze ever since. But I can understand. If I had killed my own fiancé, I would have been devastated too."

"What did you say?"

From the disciple named Chen Dajing, Ye Li heard another version of the trial story.

At first, it was the same for everyone. After arriving on the island, they split into teams for trials, killed some low-level magical beasts, and picked some low-grade herbs.

Until someone discovered the trail of the Spirit Rhinoceros.

The Spirit Rhinoceros Beast is a mid-level spirit beast, far beyond what inner disciples like them can contend with.

So they chose to give way.

But in order to find the rhinoceros horn, Abi secretly ran into the rhinoceros beast's cave.

Cao Yong'an was fatally wounded by the Spirit Rhinoceros Beast while protecting her.

Ye Li: "So, none of you have ever seen the treasure trove that Abi mentioned?"

Chen Dajing said helplessly, "So many disciples from Twilight Cloud Island have gone to the trials. If there really was a treasure trove, wouldn't it have been discovered long ago? I think Abi can't accept this fact, so she's just imagining these things. Elder Ge and Senior Sister Hongye saw that Abi was in a daze, and if she continued like this, she probably wouldn't have much time left, so they went to Twilight Cloud Island to bring back Senior Brother Cao's body so that she could resolve her inner conflict."

No wonder only the two of them went.

Afterwards, Ye Li asked several disciples, and everyone's answer was almost identical to Chen Dajing's.

They all said they had never seen the treasure's location, and they all expressed their regret for Abi.

This made Ye Li, who had previously firmly believed in Abi's words, begin to waver.

According to Abi's account, everyone knew about the existence of the treasure, and that several disciples had not escaped.

But the truth is quite the opposite.

Could it be that Abi was traumatized and imagined such a place?

Actually, she didn't go to any treasure trove, but rather a monster cave.

Who is telling the truth...?

-

Ye Li left Shuiyun Sect with slow steps.

Perhaps, only by going to Twilight Cloud Island can she learn the secret hidden within.

Just as I was thinking this, my path was blocked.

Ye Li looked up and saw Wen Yao standing in front of her.

She assumed Wen Yao was just passing by, so she nodded symbolically and tried to leave.

Wen Yao stopped her, "You know what's in that jar, right?"

Ye Li's eyes flickered slightly. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Mo Hannian took out the corpse of the common worm that he had hidden, "This is a Gu worm."

He paused for a moment, then said, "If I'm not mistaken, the Gu worm that poisoned Han Nian that day was this kind of Gu worm."