Why

The moment she stepped into the sea of flowers, an overwhelmingly sweet and cloying floral scent seeped in from every direction.

Bai Qianshuang had taken an elixir beforehand; as its medicinal power dispersed in her dantian, her mind became significantly clearer.

However, the floral scent continued to spread. Her heart instantly tightened, and she tried to guard her mind, but the scene before her eyes still began to spin dizzily.

The sea of flowers beneath her feet, the cultivators beside her, and the sound of the wind in her ears vanished without a trace in an instant.

Replacing them was a warm and cozy private dining room. On the table lay a full spread of exquisite delicacies. Steaming white mist curled upward, and an enticing aroma flooded her nose all at once.

Food!

It was all delicious food!

Damn it!

"Qianshuang, come and have a taste, these are all your favorites," a gentle voice came from the side, sounding exactly like Ye Chuan speaking by her ear.

Bai Qianshuang's feet took an uncontrollable step forward.

She was a true foodie at heart. After following Ye Chuan around these days, her palate had long been spoiled. Every single dish on the table before her hit her preferences with pinpoint accuracy.

Her hand had already touched the chopsticks at the edge of the table. The seductive scent lingered at the tip of her nose, and her stomach even let out a disappointing growl.

But just as the chopsticks were about to touch that piece of M-brand macaron, Bai Qianshuang suddenly snapped back to her senses.

No.

Ye Chuan was currently separated from her in the Divine Tomb; it was impossible for him to be here cooking these dishes for her.

What's more, she was now in the trial illusion of the mighty Xuan Qiong. Everything before her was an inner demon illusion spawned by the sea of flowers.

She bit down hard on the tip of her tongue. The sharp pain instantly woke her up completely, and a faint taste of blood spread in her mouth.

Bai Qianshuang abruptly let go of her hand.

She squeezed her eyes shut, channeled her Luo spiritual energy with all her might to guard her mind, and shouted sternly, "Break!"

The moment her voice fell, the table full of delicacies and the warm private room shattered like a mirror.

...

The scene before her spun dizzily once again. By the time Bai Qianshuang steadied herself, heaven-shaking battle cries and mournful wails were already ringing in her ears.

In her sight was the blazing mountain gate of the Yuxu Sect. The once flawless white jade steps were now stained a piercing red with blood.

Disciples of the Qingyun Sect raised their spiritual swords, shouting slogans of exterminating the remnants of the demonic sect, as they wantonly slaughtered the disciples of the Yuxu Sect.

She saw her eldest senior sister, who doted on her the most, pierced by several spiritual swords while desperately shielding the little junior sister behind her, finally collapsing in a pool of blood with her eyes wide open.

She saw the elder who taught her cultivation besieged by the elders of the Qingyun Sect, exhausting his last ounce of strength to detonate his golden core and perish together with the enemy!

She saw those fellow disciples who used to cultivate and laugh with her, falling one by one in the flames, still shouting to protect the sect right before they died.

"No... don't!"

Bai Qianshuang's body instantly began to tremble uncontrollably, and her eyes turned red.

This was an unforgettable nightmare of her life, the deepest pain in her heart, and the past she desperately wanted to go back and change.

She subconsciously drew her spiritual sword, about to rush forward and fight the people of the Qingyun Sect to the death, her entire being plunged into extreme grief and indignation.

But just as she was about to charge into the fray, her footsteps suddenly halted.

No.

The Qingyun Sect... had been destroyed long ago.

Those enemies who slaughtered the Yuxu Sect, those wicked people who destroyed her sect, had long been wiped out by Ye Chuan's own hands. The great vengeance of the Yuxu Sect had already been avenged.

She stood there, looking at the tragic scene of soaring flames before her. The trembling of her body gradually subsided, and the grief and indignation in her eyes slowly dissipated, replaced by absolute clarity.

"It's all in the past," Bai Qianshuang gently closed her eyes, her voice calm yet incomparably firm.

"I have long let go of my obsession."

As her voice faded, the burning mountain gate, the tragically dead fellow disciples, and the shouting enemies receded instantly like a tide, turning into nothingness once again.

...

Having broken through two layers of illusions consecutively, Bai Qianshuang only felt a slight stinging in her soul. Just as she was about to take a breath, a piercing agony suddenly exploded from her chest!

"Pfft—"

A cold spiritual sword instantly pierced through her chest. The sharp blade carried a bone-chilling coldness, shredding her meridians.

Warm blood gushed out along the blade, dyeing her plain white dress red and splashing onto the cold ground.

Bai Qianshuang's whole body stiffened. She lowered her head in disbelief, looking at the spiritual sword piercing her chest, and then slowly raised her head.

Standing before her was a woman in a black dress, with a cold face and exquisite features. Holding the bloodstained spiritual sword, her eyes held not a trace of warmth as she looked at her indifferently, as if looking at an insignificant stranger.

It was Luo Xi.

Bai Qianshuang's pupils suddenly contracted. Her mind went completely blank, filled with astonishment and confusion.

Luo Xi?

How could it be Luo Xi?

Why would she appear in her illusion? And even pierce her heart with a sword?

"Wh... why?" Bai Qianshuang clutched her chest and staggered a step back. Blood continuously poured out from between her fingers, and her voice was full of bewilderment.

Luo Xi looked at her and coldly said a sentence.

But that sentence was so faint that it couldn't be heard clearly at all.

She only saw Luo Xi gripping the spiritual sword and raising it once more. The cold tip of the sword aimed at the center of her brow, with no mercy in her eyes.

Why...

Did I do something wrong?

I...

I...

Why do you hate me so much?

Luo Xi...

And right at this moment, from outside the illusion, Elder Hongluan's anxious shout suddenly rang out: "Fairy Bai! Guard your mind! Don't let the illusion swallow you!"

This shout exploded like a clap of thunder by Bai Qianshuang's ear.

The confusion in Bai Qianshuang's eyes gradually faded, and she instantly snapped back to reality!

No! This is still an illusion!

It was impossible for Luo Xi to be here, let alone attack her!

This was an illusion of the sea of flowers, seizing a trace of unease in the bottom of her heart that even she hadn't noticed, to create a phantom!

Bai Qianshuang abruptly closed her eyes, letting that spiritual sword thrust toward the center of her brow, no longer looking at the scene before her. "A mere illusion dares to mess with my Dao heart! Break!"

Silver-white spiritual light exploded with a boom like the sun!

The Luo Xi before her, the bloodstained spiritual sword, and the agonizing pain in her chest vanished into thin air in an instant.

Bai Qianshuang suddenly opened her eyes and gasped heavily. Her forehead was covered in cold sweat, and the back of her dress was soaked with it as well.

She looked down at her chest. It was perfectly intact, with no wound and no blood. Everything just now was nothing but an illusion.

But the feeling of near-death was incredibly real.

If she had accepted all of that just now, she truly would have died.

At this moment, the scene around her had already descended into chaos.

Of the twenty or so cultivators traveling with her, more than half had fallen into illusions. Some were squatting on the ground holding their heads and crying madly, some were raising their magical treasures and slashing wildly at the air, and there were even two disciples attacking each other. They were already severely injured, and it looked like their lives would soon be forfeit.

Elder Hongluan and the other two Tribulation Realm elders were also deathly pale, the veins on their foreheads prominently bulging. They were clearly struggling desperately within the illusion as well, barely able to rely on their cultivation to protect their last shred of consciousness. They were in no position to look after the other disciples.