From a loser to an immortal sage

Chapter 105 Trapped in an Illusion and Encountering Extraordinary Danger

"Guess who I am?" the voice rang out again, with a hint of mockery.

The hairs on my body stood on end. The voice was both familiar and strange, sounding exactly like Wen Chen, yet carrying a chilling, sinister edge. Was it an illusion? I tried to remain calm and didn't answer.

In the darkness, a pair of cold hands touched my cheek, the fingertips chilling me to the bone. "Why aren't you saying anything? Don't you recognize me?" The voice grew closer, tinged with a hint of flirtation.

I abruptly shoved the hand away and shouted, "Playing tricks! Get out here!"

A low laugh echoed from the darkness, followed by a faint green light that illuminated a small area nearby. Only then did I realize that the person standing before me was indeed Wen Chen!

He was dressed in white, with a cold and aloof expression, but his eyes held a hint of sinister charm that I had never seen before.

"Wen Chen? Is it really you?" I asked incredulously, my guard up even more. Something felt off; Wen Chen would never look at me like that.

"Of course it's me." He smiled slightly, but the smile didn't reach his eyes. "Did you miss me?"

I suppressed my unease and asked coldly, "How did you get here?"

"Of course I came to find you." He walked towards me step by step, and I subconsciously stepped back. "Yao'er, come with me, leave this place, and we'll be together forever."

He reached out, trying to grab my hand. I jerked away, looking at him warily: "Who are you? You're not Wen Chen!"

"Heh," he laughed, his laughter filled with sarcasm, "whether I am Wen Chen or not, why don't you try and see?"

He lunged at me again, and I quickly dodged, while simultaneously channeling the remaining spiritual energy within my body to strike him with a palm.

"boom!"

My palm struck his chest, but he didn't budge. Instead, he grabbed my wrist.

"Overestimating yourself!" A cold glint flashed in his eyes, and he tightened his grip, causing me to feel a sharp pain in my wrist.

Just then, the ground shook violently, and the surrounding stone walls began to collapse. I seized the opportunity to break free from his grasp and turned to run.

"Trying to run? Not so easy!" He chased after him relentlessly.

I ran forward as fast as I could, only to find myself in a huge maze with forks in the road everywhere, making it impossible to tell which way to go.

Suddenly, I saw a bright light ahead, and I rushed towards it without hesitation.

As the light drew closer, I realized it was an archway, and inside the archway seemed to be a new space.

Just as I was about to pass through the archway, I heard a whooshing sound behind me. I quickly dodged to the side, and a dark shadow flew past me and crashed hard into the archway.

"boom!"

With a loud crash, the archway collapsed, separating me from the pursuers behind me.

I looked back, but I couldn't see anything except the constantly collapsing stone walls and the billowing dust.

I collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath. What was happening? Was this really an illusion?

Suddenly, I heard a rustling sound behind me. I turned around abruptly and saw a dark figure slowly emerging from the dust...

“It’s you…” I stared wide-eyed, recognizing the person who had come.

"It's you... Blood Demon!" I scrambled to my feet, staring warily at the person before me. He reeked of blood, his crimson eyes scanning the surroundings greedily, as if searching for something.

He grinned, revealing a set of sharp teeth, and said in a sinister tone, "Little girl, I didn't expect to see you here. Looks like there are quite a few treasures in this illusion!"

He paid no attention to me, his gaze greedily fixed on the depths of the illusion, where countless phantoms of golden treasures floated in the air, radiating an alluring glow. The Blood Demon's eyes widened; as if possessed, he frantically lunged towards those phantoms.

"Treasure! It's all mine!" he laughed wildly, reaching out to grab the glittering treasures, but each time he grasped at empty air. The illusions were like the moon's reflection in water or flowers in a mirror, visible but untouchable; the more he chased, the deeper he sank into their illusions.

I watched his madness with cold eyes, a sneer running through my mind. This illusion was indeed bizarre, capable of bewitching people and causing them to lose themselves. The Blood Demon's greed was his greatest weakness.

Just then, the ground suddenly cracked open, and the Blood Demon, caught off guard, fell into a deep pit. A scream came from the bottom of the pit, followed by countless sharp stone spikes that pierced the Blood Demon's body, leaving it covered in wounds.

He scrambled out of the pit, covered in blood, but his eyes still gleamed with greed. He seemed oblivious to the danger, continuing his pursuit of the illusory treasure.

I didn't want to deal with this madman and was about to leave when I saw a figure flash by in the distance. It was Youyue!

Dressed in black, she moved silently through the illusion, her steps light and her eyes sharp. She seemed to know the illusion inside and out, taking each step carefully and avoiding all traps.

I noticed that she would stop every now and then to carefully observe her surroundings, as if searching for something. Unlike the Blood Demon, she wasn't blinded by the treasure; instead, she maintained a clear head.

I couldn't help but feel a little curious about her. Just who was this woman? She seemed very familiar with this illusion; did she know something about it?

I followed her quietly, wanting to see what she was up to.

Youyue walked to a stone wall and gently tapped it a few times. The stone wall made a dull sound, and then a hidden door slowly opened.

Youyue slipped into the hidden door, and after a moment's hesitation, I followed her in.

Behind the hidden door was a narrow passage, and Youyue's figure appeared and disappeared at the end of the passage. I quickened my pace, wanting to catch up with her.

Suddenly, countless runes lit up on the walls on both sides of the passage, and a powerful pressure surged from all directions, firmly imprisoning me in place.

I was startled and quickly circulated my spiritual power to resist, but I found that the pressure was terrifyingly strong and my spiritual power was simply unable to withstand it.

Youyue glanced back at me, a meaningful smile playing on her lips. She said nothing, turned and continued walking forward, her figure quickly disappearing at the end of the passage.

I struggled desperately, but I still couldn't move. Just when I was about to despair, a commotion came from the end of the passage, a mixture of shouts, curses, and fighting, growing closer and closer... Someone was coming.

The noise grew louder, and I saw a group of figures appear at the end of the passage. Leading them was a burly man with a face full of scars—it was Chief Huang! Behind him followed a group of henchmen, each one looking fierce and menacing, carrying all sorts of weapons.

"Damn it, what the hell is going on in this godforsaken place!" Chief Huang roared, kicking the stone wall beside him, causing the passage to tremble slightly.

"Chief, there seem to be a lot of treasures here!" a henchman exclaimed excitedly, pointing to the runes on both sides of the passage.

"Treasure? I didn't see it!" Chief Huang grabbed the henchman by the collar and glared at him fiercely.

The henchman trembled with fear, pointing at the runes and stammering, "Chief, look, these runes are all sparkling, they must be some kind of treasure!"

Chief Huang followed his finger and saw that the runes were indeed shimmering with a faint light. His eyes lit up, and he shoved the henchman aside, reaching out to grab the runes.

"Don't touch it!" I shouted in alarm. These runes contained immense power; touching them would have unimaginable consequences.

However, my warning came too late. The moment Chief Huang's hand touched the runes, the pressure inside the passage suddenly increased, and a powerful force sent him flying, crashing heavily to the ground.

"What happened!" Chief Huang scrambled to his feet in a disheveled state and roared.

His henchmen behind him also gasped in surprise, looking around in bewilderment.

"Chief, there seems to be a trap here!" a henchman shouted in terror.

"A mechanism? I don't care what kind of mechanism it is!" Chief Huang roared, drawing his long sword and wildly slashing at the surroundings.

His actions thoroughly enraged the power of the illusion, causing the pressure inside the passage to increase, the ground to begin to shake violently, and the runes on the walls to flash faster and faster.

"Ah!" A henchman screamed as a stone spike suddenly appeared and pierced his body.

"Help!" Another henchman was swallowed by the crack in the ground and disappeared without a trace.

Chief Huang and his men were thrown into complete chaos. They fled in all directions, only to find that no matter where they ran, they could not escape the punishment of the illusion.

I was trapped in place, watching helplessly as it all unfolded, my heart filled with fear and despair. Just then, I saw a familiar face. Wen Chen. He stood before me, smiling gently, and reached out his hand to me. "Yao'er, don't be afraid, I've come to save you." His voice was like heavenly music, filling me with immense peace. Instinctively, I reached out, wanting to grab him. Wait! Something's wrong! I jolted awake. How could Wen Chen be here? This must be an illusion! I bit my tongue hard, the pain keeping me alert. I looked at the "Wen Chen" before me, my eyes gradually turning cold.

I closed my eyes, trying to recall the symbols I'd seen in the maze. Those symbols seemed somewhat similar to the runes here; could these be clues to breaking the illusion?

I opened my eyes again, carefully observing the runes around me and comparing them to the symbols in my memory. Gradually, I discovered some patterns. These runes weren't random; they were arranged in a certain order. If I could find the correct order, perhaps I could break the illusion.

I started trying to touch the runes in the order I had predicted. At first, nothing happened. But I didn't give up and continued to try different combinations.

Suddenly, the pressure in the passage disappeared, and I was free again. I was overjoyed; it seemed my guess was correct!

I was about to continue deciphering the remaining runes when I suddenly felt a chill behind me.

I turned around abruptly and saw Youyue standing behind me with a cold smile on her face.

"It seems you've found a way to break the illusion," her voice was icy, like a demon from hell. "Then hand it over to me." Her hand slowly rose...

Youyue's hand struck like a ghost, carrying a chilling aura. I instinctively dodged to the side, barely avoiding her sharp fingertips. "Youyue, what do you mean by this?" I demanded sharply, my anger surging. I had finally found a clue to break the illusion, and she wanted to interfere—this was utterly outrageous!

"What do you mean?" Youyue sneered, her eyes filled with disdain. "Of course, it's to stop you from getting the treasure. This treasure can only be mine!"

She attacked again, her moves ruthless and deadly. While dodging her attacks, I tried desperately to recall the order of the runes. "Don't panic," I told myself. Staying calm was the most important thing. Breaking the illusion was paramount.

Youyue's attacks grew increasingly fierce, and I gradually began to feel the strain. Her movements were unpredictable and elusive, making it difficult for me to anticipate her next move. Moreover, I had to divert some of my attention to breaking the illusion, which made me even more passive.

“Give up, Xiao Yao,” Youyue’s voice hissed like a venomous snake, “You can’t possibly break this illusion.”

I gritted my teeth and ignored her. My fingers moved rapidly across the runes, trying to find the right combination. Sweat streamed down my forehead, blurring my vision.

Suddenly, I felt a powerful force surging from the runes. I was overjoyed, knowing that I was about to succeed.

"Want to succeed? Dream on!" Youyue seemed to have noticed my change as well. Her attacks became even more frenzied, completely disregarding her own defense, only wanting to stop me.

I was caught off guard and struck by her palm strike, my body crashing heavily to the ground, a metallic taste filling my mouth.

"You overestimate yourself!" Youyue sneered, walking towards me step by step. "Now, tell me everything you know, and perhaps I can give you a quick death."

I struggled to stand up, but found myself powerless. Youyue looked down at me, her eyes filled with mockery.

"It seems you're going to have to suffer the consequences." She slowly raised her hand, a powerful energy gathering in her palm.

I closed my eyes in despair, awaiting death. Just then, a sudden flash of inspiration struck me. I jerked my eyes open and looked at the runes on the wall. That's it! That's it!

I endured the pain, reached out my finger, and tremblingly touched the last rune.

A blinding white light flashed, and the surrounding scenery began to distort and warp. Youyue cried out in alarm as she was swallowed by the white light.

I felt like I was spinning in a giant vortex, dizzy and disoriented.

After what seemed like an eternity, the spinning finally stopped. I slowly opened my eyes and found myself standing in a vast, empty hall.

In the center of the hall, a huge crystal ball floated, emitting a soft light. I knew that was the core of the treasure.

The path to the crystal ball was right before my eyes… “It seems you are more resilient than I thought.” A cold voice came from behind me.