nightmare

Nangong Suiqing's initial anger at Liu Wanshi's provocation subsided as she stepped into the Thousand Tower.

For her, the Tower of a Thousand had become a nightmare. Whenever she dreamed of related matters, she would wake up in a cold sweat, sticky and clinging to her back like a bone-deep infection.

Her previous attitude was to avoid it if possible, but this time it's different.

All matters concerning the Thousand Pagodas were handed over to Venerable Yichen.

He had been away from the sect for a long time, and Yongyun had taken over the management of related matters, but that was a matter from the past.

Not wanting to show weakness, especially in front of that person's master, Nangong Suiqing clenched her hands, trying to calm herself down.

After Lin Yun returned to the inner sect, the image of the girl sitting at the adjacent desk seemed to loom over him like an even greater nightmare.

On ordinary days, I would often hear comparisons whispered among my fellow students. In many people's eyes, she was much better than them, in terms of personality, talent, and attitude.

Nangong Suiqing dug her nails deep into her flesh, only in this way could she calm the turmoil in her heart.

Get stronger.

He was the first to leave the tower, receiving praise and leaving Lin Yun far behind.

Is reality really as she wished? The facts are enough to shatter everything.

When Nangong Suiqing opened her eyes again and saw the figure in front of her, her first reaction was to burst into tears.

This is her older sister, someone who has long since passed away, someone who appears in her dreams time and time again. As a child, she was secretly delighted to enjoy this blessing that connects the living and the dead, until her parents placed the unfinished burdens of her older sister on her shoulders.

"We must take responsibility."

The child's innocent heart gently retorted upon hearing this: "My older sister is so much better; she wouldn't say something like that."

The teachings of my parents and teachers passed by like a breeze, leaving no trace. I only felt a little helpless, thinking, "If only my older sister were still here, she would gently embrace me and tell me, 'My little sister is the best little sister in the whole world.'"

Nangong Suiqing ran towards the person she loved most, who also loved her most.

"Sister—" she rushed into a warm embrace.

The figure gently stroked her trembling back while uttering cold words: "Ah Qing, you must take responsibility."

She stood there, stunned.

On the other side, Liu Wanshi was caught in a fierce battle. His sword had already been chipped, and his spiritual platform in his sea of ​​consciousness was dying out. Blood and foam filled his mouth. He spat out the metallic taste in his mouth and gripped his sword tightly again.

Faced with an endless stream of enemies, he could only manage a helpless, bitter smile.

"Come on!" Although his voice was hoarse, his momentum was still unstoppable.

Among the direct disciples, Liu Wanshi was only at the bottom, even weaker than Sang Zhao—after all, he also studied talismans as a secondary skill.

Although both the Liu family and the Jingyin Sect had high hopes for him when he first entered the sect, the results were often disappointing. Liu Wanshi's performance was merely that of mediocre talent and insufficient diligence. Over time, people lost faith in him.

After all, it's just a stubborn rock.

After annihilating all the "demons," he collapsed to the ground, blood flowing from his nose, adding to his wretched appearance. In his daze, he recalled the recent actions of the Liu family and couldn't help but smirk.

His consciousness was blurred, but a figure was reflected in his closed eyes.

He was powerless to resist, but still tried to swing his arms.

"A pointless act."

The pain of the sword piercing his body was probably too intense; with his last ounce of strength, he managed to open his eyes and, through the crack, recognized the person who had entered. "...It really is you, sister..."

He lost all strength to struggle and let the sword pierce his heart.

"She would never do such a thing! Nor would she say such a thing!"

Nangong Suiqing was so angry that she pointed at the illusion and cursed it. If the illusion had conjured up someone else's figure, she probably would have already drawn her sword and slashed at it.

The Thousand Towers, whose owner, for reasons unknown, chose to leave, seem to deliberately target the most painful or rotten places that people still refuse to part with.

What's even more sinister is that the more powerful a person is, the more people they encounter and the more experiences they have within the tower. It's likely a causal artifact that grows stronger with each encounter, and one must be incredibly powerful to create such a divine artifact.

Thinking of this, Lin Yunwang couldn't help but shudder.

The operating logic of the Tower of a Thousand Counts lies not only in human memory, but also in the subconscious mind; everything that is hidden or deliberately forgotten is laid bare before it.

Here, you can only confront your own heart.

This is the most difficult part.

Lin Yunwang was momentarily distracted and his hands naturally didn't exert any force, causing the snow in his arms to slide down repeatedly. Just as Zhou Hengyan was about to kiss the snow, he came to his senses and caught him in time.

"That was close!"

She couldn't explain why Zhou Hengyan had fainted. To be precise, she could recount what happened before he fainted, but she couldn't understand how it could have caused him to do this.

"System, I only called his name once, how did he faint?" Lin Yun tried hard to recall what had just happened, but after thinking for a long time, he couldn't find anything wrong.

After their illusions merged, she quickly realized what had happened and was the first to call out the name of the person she was confronting. Just as she was about to break free from the sword held to her neck, she saw the other person suddenly go limp and fall straight into her arms.

Lin Yun thought to himself: Heaven and earth bear witness, his fainting has absolutely nothing to do with me.

However, the suffering experienced in the illusion is also real. Considering this, we cannot simply leave people stranded in this icy wasteland.

Supporting his senior brother, Lin Yun and the system thoroughly explored the area.

This place was no different from the real Jingyin Sect, except that it was deserted. Lin Yunwang suddenly realized why the illusion he was in had suddenly become "cheap"—it turned out that most of the power was concentrated here.

Unaware of how much time had passed outside, half a month had gone by in the illusion.

Previously, she had dragged Zhou Hengyan through the snow, and to prevent him from suffering from hypothermia, she had to divert some of her spiritual energy to protect him from the cold. After a while, she became exhausted. She didn't care whether there was any conspiracy, and hurriedly sent him back to his "original" courtyard to settle down.

Lin Yun stood by the bedside, pondering a way to break the deadlock.

My gaze fell on the cobweb-covered window, the cold, damp bedding, and the dusty furniture.

Something's not right.

Yun Wang's brow furrowed deeper. The only truly realistic element in the illusion was the snow-capped Zhongyu Peak; everything else resembled a poor imitation.

Although they look similar, upon closer inspection, they are quite different. The furnishings in the room and the dust floating in the air all indicate that this is not Zhou Hengyan's residence, "Bojianyuan," or at least not the Bojianyuan of their time.

In other words, the most stable and least likely to collapse place, and the one where the illusion changes most easily, is Zhongyu Peak.

The key to breaking the deadlock lies in the snow-capped mountains.

But there's another problem. Putting aside the physical exertion required to climb Zhongyu Peak, during the long ascent, she also needs to dedicate her energy to continuously channeling spiritual power into Senior Brother Zhou. The previous exploration had already depleted most of her spiritual power, and although she was slowly recovering, it couldn't keep up with the rate of depletion. Given this, she could probably only last about a day.

In her struggle, she bit her lip until it bled.

Her gaze then fell back on the pale-faced person lying on the bed.

"I concede," Lin Yun said, his voice barely audible as he looked into the void. "As long as we get him out of the tower first."

If she were alone in this illusion, she could simply wait for the eight days outside to pass before the tower gates opened automatically. As for extending the time inside the tower, she could afford to wait ten or even a hundred years. But the situation was different now. Senior Brother Zhou's condition was quite strange, and she herself knew nothing about healing or saving lives, so she had to rely on the system's scan to determine the exact nature of the situation.

We can't afford to delay.

In the stifling space, the steady heartbeat and the faint breathing mingled, creating a somewhat jarring sound.

Lin Yun spoke again: "Name your terms. If you find it boring to be alone, I can stay here with you."

The current situation is less a test and more a mockery. Judging from the figure she saw, it was a few years younger than her, perhaps a newly born spirit?

Busy with a second scan and silent for a long time, the system offered its host other options:

"You can leave him here and go up the mountain to find the door yourself."

"Do you think I'll have the strength to bring him back up the mountain after I find the door?" Lin Yun's voice was very calm, but her words revealed her anxious mood. "No one can say for sure what will happen after we find the door."

The system fell silent again. It had become somewhat taciturn ever since entering the Tower of a Thousand.

Lin Yun had no time to deal with the system's abnormality; his mind was focused on how to break the deadlock.

The Tower of a Thousand does not play by the rules, so it cannot be reasoned with based on previous records.

The girl found a chair, sat down, closed her eyes to rest, and tried to recover as much spiritual energy as possible. Her right hand rested on her lap, tapping it repeatedly; this was the first time she had felt so anxious.

In fact, she felt uneasy before she even entered the tower.

However, several senior sisters and Xie Tingshui took turns to comfort her, as it was her first time entering the Thousand Tower Trial. She felt embarrassed to show her unease in front of people who seemed even more anxious than herself.

Lin Yunwang disliked the Thousand Towers.

At least I don't like that it can peer into the heart and even the subconscious. People who have passed away or gone far away reappear in front of me in a false way, which always leaves me with mixed feelings.

Seeing its disregard for life now makes me dislike it even more, to the point of disgust.

"I didn't disregard life! He just fainted, it won't be fatal." The figure hidden in the shadows couldn't hold back any longer and rushed out. The small figure floated in mid-air, occupying a high position and looking down at Lin Yunwang.

However, it was too small and looked like a child, with no intimidating power whatsoever. In addition, the blush on its fair face due to indignation made it look even more like a delicate doll.

Hearing the sound, Lin Yunwang suddenly opened his eyes, gathering his spiritual power in his palm. His eyes, which looked at the artifact spirit, were sharp and cunning. "Now we can talk, right?"

She had been waiting for this moment for a long time.