Chapter 49: Hehuan Sect Master Bai Yueguang 10 Illusion
The Taoist temple where the few people were located was located in the mountains and was rarely visited. There was a town at the foot of the mountain, but the people in the town rarely went up the mountain.
This Taoist temple was considered a place with lost feng shui a hundred years ago, and the incense offerings stopped, and the mountain gate was closed for a long time.
A man who looked like an old Taoist priest came quietly. He was wearing a cloth robe, had an ordinary appearance, and his beard and eyebrows were gray. He walked to the front of the door and stood with his hands behind his back.
"There's someone in the Taoist temple with an extraordinary aura, yet it's also chaotic and turbulent...interesting." He didn't rush forward, a look of contemplation already emerging between his brows.
There is someone inside...and not only someone, I'm afraid the person inside is not simple.
The old Taoist priest seemed to have sensed something, a hint of surprise flickering across his face. "Chalcedony...? It's barely noticeable, but it's definitely there."
"The spiritual jade that disappeared a hundred years ago has now appeared on several of them. Could it be that one of them has obtained the chalcedony?"
The old Taoist sighed in his heart. Such a spiritual creature could only be transformed by a powerful person, but these people... didn't seem to have any karma or murderous intent.
Who were they, why were they in his Taoist temple, and what had happened? As the temple's former owner, the old Taoist priest was puzzled, but he was also worried that they might have bad intentions, so he couldn't show up and interfere rashly.
Therefore, he decided to test the waters first, then closed his eyes and entered into meditation, pinching his fingertips to form a seal. An invisible mental force emanated, as thin as a gossamer, and quietly merged into the Taoist temple.
The method used is not an ordinary illusion, but a method of reading one's mind.
Once the mirror of the heart is opened, the illusion will naturally emerge, and it will be taken from the truest desires of the people in the illusion.
In other words, the person who is cast the spell will enter the illusion constructed by his obsession, through which he can get a glimpse of whether the person is good or evil and what his motives are.
The old Taoist priest opened his eyes and waved his sleeves. Suddenly, there was no wind and silence around the Taoist temple. The sky and the earth seemed to be frozen.
…
Wen Qianning was originally sitting on the small couch in front of the hall, taking a nap. Suddenly, for some reason, he became dazed and his eyes blurred. When he raised his eyes again, the surrounding scenery had quietly changed.
She stood in a pitch-black space. With a loud bang, a golden light descended from the sky, followed by several large, flashing characters that appeared neatly in front of her - "Welcome to the Quick Travel Bureau."
Wen Qianning: “…”
Before she could figure out what was going on, the system's extremely evil voice appeared:
[Host, congratulations. We have detected that your mission in the third world is about to fail again. You must now enter the review phase. Please begin your self-criticism immediately.]
The corners of her mouth twitched, and she stared at the suffocating page with a complicated expression.
Although she always made some mistakes when performing tasks, which led to her unsuccessful breakups, she was familiar with the quick-travel regulations and employee handbook after all... It was impossible for their quick-travel bureau to have any review phase and self-criticism during the task execution process!
So almost the moment the system voice came out, she realized that the place she was in was not reality, but an illusion.
Wen Qianning gritted his teeth, clenched his fists, and took a deep breath.
It has to be said that this is indeed her deepest obsession. The illusion can only construct such a scene based on her greatest desire to complete the task and then be successfully converted to a regular employee.
But what can she do? She has done it seriously, but who knew that the male lead would not follow the original plot every time.
Wen Qianning was a little depressed. No one understood how tired she was.
Meanwhile, Ji Hanlin was in another dreamland. The pool was shrouded in mist, and the water vapor was thick.
Ji Hanlin slowly opened his eyes. He noticed the warm pool water under his feet and frowned slightly.
He stood beside a hot spring pool. The water was covered with mist and ripples appeared on the surface. A beautiful figure slowly emerged.
Wen Qianning was wearing a thin shirt, the wet fabric was tightly attached to her body, revealing her figure.
The face he had kissed so many times was now close at hand, with a gentle expression.
The woman just looked at him with a smile in her eyes, and moved closer to him without any hesitation. There was a soft sound of water, and her arms were wet and soft as she quietly wrapped them around his waist.
"Xiao Lin..."
She moved closer, every inch of her skin trying to arouse his deepest desires. Those thoughts that he had avoided time and time again now grew wildly like vines.
She leaned against his chest and murmured softly, "I'm waiting for you. What took you so long? Now that you're here, don't leave... okay?"
Ji Hanlin's hand trembled slightly.
The next moment, his expression returned to normal. He looked at the woman who was sticking to him expressionlessly without reaching out his hand.
...This is not her.
He spends time with Wen Qianning every day and pays attention to her almost all the time. How could Ji Hanlin not know what the real Wen Qianning is like?
Almost the moment she stuck to him, Ji Hanlin realized that although this person looked exactly like the woman he was obsessed with, he was like a dummy, imitating her poorly.
But if this illusion was the real Wen Qianning, even if they were just close to each other just once, he would probably... go crazy.
The woman in the water noticed his indifference and froze for a moment. Suddenly, she seemed to move even closer, her voice becoming gentle and affectionate: "You've always wanted to possess me, haven't you?"
The voice slowly and gently seeped into his heart, evoking his deeply buried obsession.
Ji Hanlin was not moved at all, he just felt very unhappy.
He and Ningning didn't want others to pry into their affairs, no matter what form it took. It was a secret between the two of them.
What's more, the dummy in this illusion is trying to imitate her.
As if realizing that this had no effect, the "Wen Qianning" in the illusion trembled slightly, and the gentle smile on her face froze. The next moment, a mouthful of blood suddenly spurted out, splashing into the pool water and dyeing it red.
A hint of surprise flashed across Ji Hanlin's eyes. She slowly covered her chest with her hands, her face pale, and blood trickled down from her lips.
"Wen Qianning" looked down, a flash of fragility and panic in her eyes, then she looked up at him again, looking confused and helpless.
"Xiao Lin...save me..." she murmured.
His pupils constricted for a moment, and his thoughts, which were about to be distracted, were pulled back coldly by reason.
He knew that this was still just an illusion, but his stillness did not mean that he was not disturbed.
Especially... he thought, if there really came a day like this, if Wen Qianning was hurt like this, and he was unable to recover his previous cultivation, how would he protect her.
Is it possible that he can only watch her fall into his arms like this?
Ji Hanlin suddenly realized that he was eager to recover his cultivation.
Yes, he wanted to recover his cultivation, but it was no longer for himself.
He was afraid that he was not strong enough and could not protect her.
Even though this illusion was ridiculously clumsy, that face, that tone, and every move were so similar to hers that he could not accept Wen Qianning being hurt like this.
The boy clenched his teeth and his breathing became heavy.
This was given to him by the illusion, an echo of his most primitive desires.
Ji Hanlin's spiritual consciousness tensed up, and his spiritual power exploded into an invisible wave of energy.
The water waves surged violently, and the woman in the illusion cracked with a thin crack. The expression on her face froze, and finally, like a statue, she shattered into countless light dust particles, floating on the surface of the pool.
Ji Hanlin let out a long breath, his face pale. He closed his eyes, his throat moved slightly, and he murmured a name in a low voice.
“…Ningning.”
At this moment, the old Taoist priest outside the illusion raised his eyebrows slightly, with a calm expression that contained a hint of ambiguous appreciation: "Oh? Interesting."
The old Taoist priest slowly put his hand back into his sleeve, his eyes gradually darkening. The consciousness of several people returned to reality, but they were not fully awake for a while.
"I already know what you are thinking." An old voice sounded with a hint of emotion and a subtle smile. "Excuse me for rashly probing into your minds right out of the gate. I am guilty of this."
Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw an old Taoist priest with white hair and beard outside the temple gate, his Taoist robe fluttering.
Even Kui Xing and Kui Congling, who had settled here long ago, did not recognize the newcomer and could only ask, "Senior... may I ask who you are?"
"I'm sorry to bother you all with your quiet cultivation. I created this illusion simply to see who you are. I mean no harm." He said with a gentle smile, "I'm an old Taoist priest in this temple. After a thousand years of wandering, I finally returned. I didn't expect to see you, my distinguished guests."
Kui Congling blinked and said, "You said... this Taoist temple was originally yours?"
"Back then, I cultivated here for a hundred years, but it's long been ownerless." The old Taoist sighed, "Your temporary residence here is also a matter of fate."
Wen Qianning seemed to recall something and hesitated, "The thousand years you mentioned, senior... could it be..."
"My Taoist name is 'Miao Guan.'" He smiled calmly. "I've mastered some celestial arts. I can see the past and the future through illusions, just like observing a reflection in water."
Miaoguan Zhenren? Isn't this the immortal mentioned in the original novel, who was rumored to have ascended to heaven hundreds of years ago?
Wen Qianning understood and bowed again, "So it's Master Miaoguan. I didn't mean to offend you. I apologize for disturbing you."
"Miss, there's no need to be so polite." The old Taoist looked at Wen Qianning with a smile and nodded slightly.
He had just learned through Kui Congling's illusion that Wen Qianning and Ji Hanlin were willing to save a life and even gave them the precious chalcedony, which impressed him deeply.
"You two are kind-hearted and grateful. You once saved someone's life with chalcedony. Heaven will have its own response for this kind of retribution."
"I already know what you've been through..." The old Taoist priest's words hit the nail on the head. "Your fate has long since deviated from your predetermined destiny, but because of this... it has opened up another path to miracles."
"Young man, do you want to recover your cultivation?" He raised his eyes, looked at Ji Hanlin with a smile, and asked this question.
Wen Qianning was startled and subconsciously looked at Ji Hanlin. Before Ji Hanlin could answer, she answered for him, "Of course I do."
The old Taoist paused, noticing the subtle emotional flow between the two men, and added, "However... if this young man wants to restore his cultivation and regain his true essence, relying solely on rare treasures will probably not quench his thirst."
Hearing this, Ji Hanlin was slightly stunned, and Wen Qianning also looked puzzled.
"What you are seeking for is actually due to the destiny. Although the path is hidden, it is actually right in front of you." The old Taoist priest walked slowly in front of them, his tone suddenly profound.
Wen Qianning really couldn't understand the twists and turns of these classical Chinese words, and for a moment he couldn't comprehend them. He bowed and said respectfully, "Please explain it to me, old sir."
The old Taoist priest looked at her calmly and explained carefully, "The girl was born with pure spiritual veins, a holy body that is one in a million. This physique is the Hehuan Sect's unique vein. It has the power to heal itself and others with its own spiritual energy. And that young man..." He glanced at Ji Hanlin with a strange look in his eyes, "He has extraordinary bones. Although his dantian is broken, his obsession has generated soul fire. If he can use the spiritual veins of others to assist him, he can reverse the situation and rebuild his spiritual power."
Now she understood. In simple terms, the way to restore her cultivation was... dual cultivation.
Wen Qianning showed a slight surprise on her face. She didn't expect that this so-called repair method would be used in this way. She didn't know how to start for a moment. Ji Hanlin on the side pursed his lips and said nothing, with a deep and complex emotion flashing in his eyes.
The old Taoist saw through their expressions and smiled leisurely: "Heaven and earth have their own principles, and all living beings are full of love...Dual cultivation is not just a worldly desire, but also a kind of spiritual harmony. If you are not interested, forget it, destiny will find another way."
"Everything is determined by fate, and nothing can be forced. Fate arises and ends at its own time."
As soon as he finished speaking, he waved his sleeves, and his whole body turned into a shadow like a breeze and gradually dissipated.
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