Chapter 18 Wumeng Manor (8) A great demon of his generation, forever accompanying humans...
"From the stars!"
Lan Jue let out a loud cry and in an instant, his sword flew out.
The full-strength blow did not neutralize the soft sword's momentum, but it caused the tip of the sword to deviate by an inch. Gu Congxing took this opportunity to suddenly turn over and avoid the fatal blow.
"You, a late Jindan kid, are quite capable." Zhili glanced at Lan Jue and grinned, "But you will all die here."
As soon as he said this, everyone in the Qingxuan Sword Sect felt their strength slowly draining away, as if being sucked away by an invisible mouth.
"You! What did you do?" Huo Chen asked Zhili in horror.
Demonic power surged around Zhili, his hair floated, and his evil eyes narrowed in satisfaction.
"Of course, it's to absorb nutrients. Do you think Ah Sang brought you in just to put on a good show?"
He laughed joyfully a few times and continued, "Of course, it's to drain your spiritual and physical energy for you, so that this illusion can continue!"
Gu Congxing's heart sank when he heard this.
It’s true!
He had been suspicious before, wondering why the malice of this illusion was only directed at himself and Tao Xueting, but not at Mei Ci, Ruan Wei and Lan Jue.
It turns out that as long as you stay in this illusion, you will eventually die!
"If you hadn't done this, you would have had a long time to live. What a pity..." Meng Yao gave Lan Jue a malicious smile.
"It's because you woke them up that everyone is going to die here~"
Lan Jue trembled slightly when he heard this, and pursed his lips tightly.
"You fart!"
Gu Congxing retorted angrily, a fierce light flashing in his eyes: "Even if I die here today, the only murderer is you, you damned monster! Don't even think about throwing dirty water on Senior Brother!"
Lan Jue's eyes moved, and the figure of Gu Congxing was reflected in his amber pupils.
"That's right! You monster, you actually want to sow discord at this time!" Ruan Wei said sternly.
The others also echoed the words, and even though their spiritual energy was constantly draining away, they did not show any sign of submission.
Seeing this, Zhili's raised mouth corners slowly fell and he snorted in disdain.
"I want to see how long you can hold out."
As soon as he finished speaking, Deng Zhao fell to his knees with a thud.
"Hey!" Huo Chen hurried to support him, only to see that he was pale and weak all over, and it was difficult for him to stand up.
Gu Congxing was extremely anxious. Was it really going to be wiped out here?
But at this moment, a sudden commotion erupted outside the palace, and a crowd of people gathered. One of the figures was none other than the returning Emperor Xiao Chujun!
"Your Majesty?!" Zhili saw the bright yellow figure and a look of panic appeared on his face.
"It seems that Your Excellency is truly deeply in love with Emperor Xiang. It's a pity that no matter how long a lie lasts, it will never become reality."
"Even an illusion that lasts for a hundred years will eventually be exposed."
Lan Jue spoke leisurely here, and his face had regained its calm smile.
When everyone saw him like this, they all put their hearts at ease and breathed a sigh of relief.
But Gu Congxing noticed that his left hand was clenched into a fist and was still trembling slightly.
"Lan Jue?! It's you again! What did you do?"
The dream demon's eyes were wide open with anger at this moment, and he had completely lost his elegance and grace, revealing his demonic nature.
"It simply gave Emperor Xiang a choice... and had someone tell him the true history."
“How dare you—!!”
Zhi Li let out an angry roar, and the demonic power in his body suddenly surged, and the chain snake sword went straight for Lan Jue's head!
"Stop! A-Li!"
At the critical moment, it was Xiao Chujun who sternly stopped Zhili's actions.
Behind him, Xiao Wangyou and Mei Ci stood on his left and right, both with clear eyes and weapons in their hands.
"His Majesty……"
Zhi Li and Xiao Chujun looked at each other, and all his aura was suddenly extinguished. He took a step back, and then suddenly reacted and covered his eyes.
But Xiao Chujun showed no sign of surprise, remaining as usual. He took a step closer and whispered to Meng Yao, "Ali, that's enough. Don't make any more mistakes."
"Your Majesty! You simply don't understand. If these people don't die, this national illusion will disappear, and you—"
Having said this, Meng Yao's voice trembled and he stopped talking.
"I am about to face the truth of my country's destruction and my family's ruin, am I right?"
As soon as these words were spoken, the whole audience fell silent.
Zhili's spell was interrupted, and everyone's spiritual power gradually returned. They were all shocked by such a change in the situation.
Gu Congxing frowned and looked at Xiao Chujun, not expecting the truth to be like this.
It turns out that the country in the fantasy world actually existed once.
His gaze turned to Lan Jue again, only to see that he still looked calm, but his clenched hands had loosened.
Senior Brother, do you already know about this country in the human world?
"Xiao Chujun! What nonsense are you talking about? You..." Zhili's hair was disheveled, and he looked a little embarrassed. "Don't be fooled by them!"
Facing his lover's roar, Xiao Chujun remained calm and peaceful.
He shook his head and said, "Ali, I remember everything now. I am the last emperor of Xiang State. I am not Xiao Chujun, but... Chu Lan."
"Five years after I ascended the throne, General Jiang Huai's life and death remained unknown, and the descendants of the Guo family murdered the son of the Duke of Zhenguo. Soon after, the Duke of Zhenguo heard the news and rushed back to the capital, but was instigated by the traitor to rebel."
"I summoned my army to fight them, and both sides suffered countless casualties. The people of Xiang State had long been living in dire straits. I wanted to rest and recuperate, but the Rong cavalry broke through Yanguan Pass, burning, killing, and looting in this devastated land..."
"The Xiang Kingdom has perished."
"My end was to commit suicide on the city wall... But A-li, why am I still alive?"
Hearing Chu Lan's question, Zhi Li slumped to the ground in dejection.
Chu Lan walked slowly up to him. Although he was shrouded in endless sorrow, his tone was still calm.
"Ali, you saved me and wove this illusion for me, but your demonic power will eventually run out. You... no, we."
He squatted down and held Zhili in his arms.
"We have committed too much bloodshed to maintain this place. Let's end it here."
Zhi Li was silent for a long time, then said in a trembling voice, "But once the illusion is broken and the demonic power dissipates, you will die."
"Yes. Ah Li, I would rather face real pain than false happiness. Otherwise, how can I face the people of Xiang State who died because of me?"
"I'm sorry to trouble you."
Zhili closed her eyes and a tear slowly fell.
"You really haven't changed at all."
Just like a hundred years ago, he is still the same incredibly righteous fool.
Back then, Zhili was injured and fell into the human world. In order to restore his demonic power, he entered the dreams of thousands of people and witnessed all kinds of greed, desire, love, hate, and fear.
Humans are so interesting. Some hold high positions but suffer from nightmares every night, while others appear to be doing well but their dreams reveal their ugly side.
Until one day, he had a very boring dream. The man was taught by his tutor and was like a blank sheet of paper, with only a few words written on it, such as the way of a gentleman and the words of a sage.
Zhili was clearly mocking him, but for some reason, his gaze gradually became limited to the figure of that person.
He actually had a pure heart, and his lifelong wish was to restore peace to the Xiang State, which had been at war for a long time, and to create a peaceful and prosperous situation again.
His talent and character are both first-class. If he were born in a well-governed era, he would have been a wise ruler.
Unfortunately, the court, which had long been plagued by problems, and the country, which was obsessed with militarism, were already on the verge of collapse.
Zhili had heard of his lofty ambitions in his youth, witnessed his efforts to turn the tide in his youth, and ultimately accompanied him to the end of his life, powerless to change the situation.
The moment she saw him draw her sword and commit suicide, Zhili could no longer bear it and weaved an ultimate illusion for him.
——Since God is determined to destroy all your hard work, I will create a peaceful and prosperous world for you!
A great demon of his generation would forever stay by the side of the human saint monarch.
A hundred years later, his demonic power had almost collapsed, and he began to absorb energy from reality through the mulberry tree. At first it was just dreams, then humans, and even monks.
But it was not until this moment that Zhili finally realized that she had never asked Chu Lan what choice he would make.
A shattered and hopeless reality, or a beautiful dream where ambitions are fulfilled?
——It’s time to wake up from this century-long dream.
Outside Fengqi Palace, the space twisted and moved abnormally, mulberry trees and palace walls collapsed one after another, and the attics and pavilions disguised by demonic power were all shattered. The controlled puppets had white eyes and fell to the ground.
Endless demonic power emerged, but dissipated as quickly as flowing water.
Everyone watched this scene in silence, their emotions surging. Meanwhile, Gu Congxing felt something burning hot in his arms. He took it out and found it was the mustard seed he had found so far away.
Could it be that it was sensed by the powerful and vast demonic power?
Gu Congxing released it, and the monster that looked like a silver wolf fell to the ground and let out a low growl.
“…Chi?!”
Zhili exclaimed as soon as he saw Chi. He walked up to it with Chu Lan, his eyes gentle and nostalgic.
"Why are you with this monk?"
Chi looked at him and made an ups and downs cry.
"So that's how it is. The Saint also..." Zhili let out a long sigh.
His eyes fell on Gu Congxing, as if he was sizing her up, as if he was thinking about her. After a moment, he sighed again.
"Never mind. I won't kill him, but your power is severely damaged now, so just bear with my demonic power."
He smiled at Chi and said, "You guys are always burdened with heavy responsibilities. I don't know when you can be free."
As he said this, he placed his hand on Chi's head, and a silver light emerged. A steady stream of demonic power was transferred into its body, but Zhili's body began to become transparent as if in an illusion.
Gu Congxing was surprised and said: "He is..."
"Zhili has maintained this giant illusion for a hundred years, and his demonic power is already on the verge of exhaustion. What he is sending out now is the remaining demonic power."
Lan Jue took over the conversation and was silent for a moment before saying, "He wants to die with Chu Lan."
Gu Congxing was shocked and fell silent. The other young men were also silent, staring at the scene before them.
From then on, only silver demonic power flowed, and Chi's body glowed brighter and brighter, while the figures of Zhili and Chu Lan became increasingly faint.
Until Chi let out a deafening roar and his figure became like a silver mountain, Zhili withdrew his hand.
At the last moment before disappearing, Zhili's silver eyes swept across Gu Congxing, and a voice transmission emerged in his mind.
His face froze and lost all color in an instant.
"From the stars?"
Lan Jue looked at him with concern. Gu Congxing shook his head slightly and said that it was nothing.
Zhili in front of them looked around, turned around expressionlessly, and went to the mulberry tree with Chu Lan.
The city walls and palaces have all disappeared, only a century-old mulberry tree still stands.
Everyone's eyes went dark, and when they opened their eyes again, they were back in Qingsang Manor.
"Finally back..." Tao Xueting breathed a sigh of relief.
"It feels so good to have spiritual power in the air! The world of cultivation is so good! It feels so good to be alive!" Ruan Wei shouted.
Deng Zhao and Huo Chen high-fived and cheered, and even Mei Ci changed her gloomy expression and smiled.
[Ding! Congratulations to the host for completing the main quest! ]
[Testing the results...]
[Ding! Meng Mo is confirmed dead, and all Qingxuan Sword Sect disciples are confirmed alive! ]
[Ding! The death of the Dream Demon Zhili has been detected, triggering additional rewards! ]
As soon as the system finished speaking, Gu Congxing felt that his spiritual power was becoming more and more abundant, and he was actually showing signs of breaking through.
[Ding! Current redemption degree: 20%]
[Host Points: 180 points]
When Gu Congxing saw the characters flashing on the light board, he couldn't help but raise his lips.
The redemption degree actually increased by 10% in one fell swoop, which really made his life and death worthwhile.
Just as he was thinking this, he felt a big hand touching his head, bringing a warm feeling.
"Cong Xing, this time it's all thanks to you."
The person in front of her still had a gentle expression, and Jianqiu's eyes only reflected the figure of Gu Congxing.
"It's obvious that you are the one who planned the whole thing and rescued us, Big Brother."
Gu Congxing chuckled and pulled down the hand that was rubbing his head.
He wanted to let go, but was pulled back, and their fingers were intertwined.
"You..." Gu Congxing looked up in surprise.
“Cough cough cough!!!”
A sudden cough sounded beside me. It turned out that Mei Ci had arrived here without me noticing.
"Hey, I say! Isn't it time to be affectionate now? That old man who deceived us is still hiding somewhere."
Unexpectedly, the person who answered him immediately was Xiao Wangyou.
"Oh? Were you also deceived by the village chief?"
The other disciples also gathered around after hearing the sound, and Gu Congxing released his hand from Lan Jue.
Tao Xueting asked, "You too? Could it be that the cultivator that guy mentioned earlier who claimed to have run away after being unable to defeat the Nightmare Tapir... is you?"
Xiao Wangyou laughed in anger: "How dare you frame me like this? You're really courting death."
After saying this, he drew his sword and walked forward. Mei Ci also wanted to follow him to seek revenge, but before leaving, she turned back to look at Lan Jue.
"Let's go. We were deceived by him and narrowly escaped death. We can't just leave like this."
After he said this, all the disciples were no longer burdened. They each took up their weapons and dispersed proudly, starting to track the village chief.
Gu Congxing also followed behind them, looking at the tall and straight figures of the young men in front of him, and the white figure in the middle looked even more like a pine tree or a crane.
His eyes followed Lan Jue's back, and Zhili's voice suddenly rang in his mind.
"Since you saved Chi, I'll give you a piece of advice."
"Your soul is already entangled with causal threads that don't belong to you, and one of them belongs to the Lan Jue next to you."
"If the entanglement deepens again, you...will inevitably die."
The author has something to say:
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The demon beast's full name was Chi, and Tiao Tiao was the nickname Si Junjian gave it in his previous life. When Gu Congxing heard him call it that, he followed suit and called it Tiao Tiao.
Chi: Goodbye, my family, I'm going on a long journey~
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