My best friend asked me if I was still doing system tasks.

Ruan Chayan: [“Instead of saying that, why don’t you tell us what we’ll encounter in the illusion and how we should guard against it?”]

1127 provides the following known information: "To put it simply, there are two types of illusions on the path of seeking the Dao: one is what you want, and the other is what you fear."

The two hosts may lose their memories in the illusion, or they may not; it varies from person to person.

Luo Hanying asked, puzzled, "Then how do I know if I'm leaving the illusion? If I have amnesia, how would I know I'm in an illusion? Does that mean I can't find a way to leave?"

1127 said: "Since it is an interrogation of your heart, an inquiry into your Dao, then naturally you must leave through the power of your heart or through the path of cultivation."

Ruan Chayan clicked her tongue, speechless and disgusted: "Isn't this the same as not saying anything at all?"

Their doctrines are all about ruthlessness, universal love, and all living beings—where are we even located in those areas?

Luo Hanying pondered for a moment: "Shouldn't our path be to complete the mission and survive?"

1127 then played Xian Ge's laughter in their minds in a rather bizarre way, and said: "Either find the flaw in the illusion, or wake up from the dream. That's the way to clear the level."

Luo Hanying shuddered, wiping the cold sweat from her back: [“Why did you laugh like that when you were talking? You scared me half to death! Are you crazy?”]

Ruan Chayan's scalp tingled; 1127 was just too sudden.

1127 felt wronged: "I can't laugh, so I used Lord String Song's laughter. I thought you would like it."

"Lord Xian Ge has been gone for so long, don't you miss it?"

Ruan Chayan pretended not to hear what 1127 was saying about missing someone. Instead, she remembered something else: "To be honest, didn't Xiange say that she would be back in half a month at most?"

How much time has passed? What happened to its host?

1127 said he didn't know either, and that String Song hadn't told him.

Ruan Chayan and Luo Hanying shook their heads, thinking to themselves that this 1127 was really useless, just like the unreliable Xiange.

*

The spirit boat of the Shiren Sect hovered outside Yicheng City. The cultivators who had received the rescue bid farewell to the disciples of the Shiren Sect and embarked on a new journey.

Ruan Chayan and Luo Hanying spent a long time inquiring about cheap accommodations in Yicheng, but in the end, they were still ripped off by the locals without their knowledge.

If it weren't for the subsequent data analysis by 1127 informing them of the results, the two would have been grateful for their good fortune in having a nice place to stay.

Luo Hanying couldn't swallow this insult, and Ruan Chayan also felt that having money to squander and having money to be treated like a fool were two different things.

They spent a lot of money to buy high-level stealth talismans from a shop, sneaked into the owner's room in the backyard in the middle of the night, left behind a few attack array plates and a few attack talismans, and then used the stealth talismans to escape.

The array plate and talisman have average attack power, but they can also cause trouble for that person by destroying the house along the way.

The two of them, like mischievous and homeless children, wandered aimlessly after leaving the North District.

Luo Hanying sat on a tree, looking up at the starry sky and the crescent moon, and said to Ruan Chayan on the other side, "We're really reckless. That was a cultivator in the late Nascent Soul stage, how dare we ambush him..."

Ruan Chayan raised her eyebrows: "What, are you scared now?"

So what if we're at the late Nascent Soul stage? We're well-prepared, and we've concealed our appearances and names, so no one will know.

"Aren't we doing fine now? That heartless bastard didn't chase after us."

Luo Hanying wiped her face: "Although saying this now might sound like I'm being a hypocrite, I do feel like I'm doing something a little wrong."

I am a Confucian scholar, meant to cultivate righteousness and integrity. Is such darkness truly inappropriate?

Ruan Chayan smiled and said, "What's the big deal? Aren't you happy?"

Luo Hanying laughed too: "Of course it's great."

Ruan Chayan swung her legs: "Then that settles it, doesn't it? Your happiness is more important than anything else."

I used to be very proud, and I would just let it go even if I was wronged. If you hadn't stood up for me, I don't know how badly I would have been bullied. This is the first time I've taken the initiative to retaliate.

I'm very happy too.

The two looked at each other and smiled foolishly.

Ruan Chayan knew that Luo Hanying might still be thinking about that matter, so she comforted her with a few more words: "You always say that I tend to overthink and hesitate before doing things, but look at you, aren't you the same?"

You can think of it this way:

If that little beggar hadn't tricked us into leading the way, we wouldn't have been scammed by that shop owner.

But the essence of us being deceived is that the boss first hired someone to deceive us.

We are simply giving them a taste of their own medicine.

You're only unable to openly point out his mistakes because of your own lack of ability; you can only seek inner justice through this method.

Luo Hanying clapped her hands: "Chacha, I think you are more suitable to be a Confucian cultivator than I am. I don't have your insights, and I don't know if I can go far on this path..."

As she spoke, her tone became increasingly dejected.

Ruan Chayan said helplessly, "What nonsense are you talking about? What kind of opinion do you have? You can't just add filters to me because I'm your best friend."

Don't you think half of what I said is fallacious?

Luo Hanying smiled and said, "I like your twisted logic; it makes me feel at ease."

Everyone has their own unique path. If the song of the string requires me to have justice and morality, then why can't I define justice and morality for myself?

When positions differ, right and wrong are diametrically opposed. How could I possibly be the embodiment of justice and virtue in the world?

I must take responsibility for the integrity and uprightness within myself.

Ruan Chayan's eyes reflected Luo Hanying's resolute expression, and she suddenly said out of the blue, "Thank you."

Luo Hanying blinked in confusion, then shook her head and chuckled, "What are you thanking me for? What did I do that deserves your thanks?"

Before Ruan Chayan could even utter a word, the cultivator holding a lantern broke the silence of the early morning.

"Are you coming this way?" one of them asked.

Another said, "I think so? Didn't the senior say he saw them coming this way?"

The man scoffed, "Who knows if it's true or false?"

If you ask me, Yu Laosan deserved it. He's always swindled spirit stones from strangers, and this time he's been caught out in a trap. I wonder how many people are secretly delighted.

Another person said, "Shh—keep your mouth shut. Too many people talking at once. If it gets to Yu Laosan's ears, you'll get your front teeth knocked out."

"When will we be able to find it? Yicheng is so big, isn't that like looking for a needle in a haystack?"

Ruan Chayan and Luo Hanying looked at the four cultivators who walked up to them, and they were so nervous that they didn't dare to breathe.

Yu Laosan was the boss who swindled them out of spirit stones. He rented two old, shady rooms without any spirit-gathering eyes for them, and even pretended to be heartbroken to make them grateful.