After being reborn, the villain comes with a spoiler tag.

"Woo!"

The dog gave a pitiful reply, but its tail wagged rapidly in an instant.

Huo Yu remained silent.

The moment he left the Vermilion Bird Illusion, he realized that he had not returned to the real world, but had entered another illusion.

But why is Long Yucheng a dog in this illusion?

Just as Huo Yu and the dog—Long Yucheng—were staring at each other, a silver streak of light suddenly appeared, breaking the eerie silence around them.

"Fellow Daoist Huo, Fellow Daoist Long, what a coincidence! I was patrolling with my fellow disciples when we came to say hello."

Su Yixuan's voice was clear and crisp, with a touch of carefree spirit.

Since their parting yesterday, Su Yixuan seemed to have undergone a complete transformation. When facing Huo Yu, her every move was devoid of the affectation of the past, replaced by a graceful and generous demeanor.

However, at this moment, Huo Yu only noticed one thing:

"You can see him?"

Upon hearing this, Su Yixuan's gaze shifted back and forth between Huo Yu and the air above the dog, a look of confusion on her face:

"You mean Fellow Daoist Long? Shouldn't I be able to see him?"

Before the words were finished, the dog suddenly started barking wildly, its bark filled with urgency:

"Woof woof woof woof, woof woof woof!"

"What do you mean? Where's the dog? How could there be a dog here?"

From Huo Yu's perspective, Su Yixuan was talking to the air above the dog's head with a puzzled expression, as if a person were standing there:

"What do you mean you're a dog? Did the Holy Lord damage your brain during the Vermilion Bird Trial?"

"Woof woof woof woof!"

The dog barked wildly again, even spinning around in anger a few times.

"Okay, okay, I understand. I'll pass on the message, alright?"

Su Yixuan looked helpless, as if she had just received some puzzling information, and turned to look at Huo Yu:

"Although I don't know why, Fellow Daoist Long asked me to repeat his words to you."

Huo Yu nodded slightly, signaling her to continue.

"Wow wow wow wow!"

He said, "I think I just entered the Vermilion Bird Trial, but I can't remember what happened inside. When I came to my senses, I was like this."

"Wang Wang Wang!"

"He said, 'I feel like something's not right here, like this isn't the real world.'...Wait, what do you mean this isn't the real world?'"

Su Yixuan frowned, but still dutifully acted as the dog language translator.

"Woof woof woof woof!"

He said, "Please finish conveying my message. I can see the sky over the Vermilion Bird Gate is blood red, but I can't see beyond the railing in my current state. Senior brother, can you see what's happening over there?"

Su Yixuan's words were full of doubt, but she still couldn't help but glance in the direction of the Vermilion Bird Gate, asking curiously:

"Why don't I see anything unusual?"

Upon hearing this, Huo Yu turned his gaze towards the Vermilion Bird Gate and nodded slightly.

"I see."

Huo Yu did not witness the blood-red sky described by Long Yucheng, but his divine sense could penetrate the illusion and see the massive red-glowing magic array beneath the Vermilion Bird Gate.

On this strange night, the three people present seemed to each have a different perspective:

What Long Yucheng saw was the strange phenomenon of the real world's array glowing red across the sky, while Su Yixuan witnessed a peaceful and normal illusion.

Huo Yu is somewhere in between the two of them, possessing the ability to see through some illusions.

Su Yixuan repeated it like a parrot:

Your senior brother said, 'I understand.'

"Wang Wang Wang!"

Long Yucheng called out a few more times.

He said, "I can understand what my senior is saying; you don't need to repeat what he said."

Su Yixuan took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. After taking three deep breaths, she continued:

He even asked, "Senior brother, did you also see the red light over there?"...But I couldn't see any red light at all!

Su Yixuan turned her gaze back towards the Temple of Heaven, but could only see the ongoing ceremony and people holding candles watching devoutly, without any signs of anything unusual.

At the same time, Su Yixuan was mentally ranting about the system:

What kind of game are they playing now? Am I part of it too?

Huo Yu, however, said:

"That's a sign that the formation is being activated."

"Formation? What formation?"

Su Yixuan's curiosity was completely piqued, and she couldn't help but peek out. However, at that moment, her expression suddenly changed.

Because the system issued a life warning to her:

[Warning: Host, in thirty seconds, you will lose your life due to a restriction triggered by the messenger talisman. You may choose to spend 100 points to gain one minute of Vajra Protection; or spend 500 points for a chance to be reborn. Otherwise, your journey will end here.]

She doesn't have that many points at all!

Su Yixuan was extremely anxious and immediately reached for the spot where she had previously stored the messenger talisman, only to find it empty.

There is nothing there.

However, the system's countdown continues:

[Twenty-five, twenty-four, twenty-three...]

Long Yucheng probably noticed that she was rubbing herself all over as if she suddenly had lice, and curiously barked.

Su Yixuan, as if grasping at the last straw, quickly turned her gaze to Huo Yu and Long Yucheng, her voice trembling with urgency:

"Can you see the command token on my body?"

Huo Yu shook his head.

Long Yucheng barked again.

Su Yixuan's face turned deathly pale instantly, and she cried out urgently:

"Quick! Help me get it down and throw it far away! We need to be fast, or we'll all be in danger!"

The system's countdown was like a chilling death knell:

【Ten, nine, eight...】

Long Yucheng hesitated for a moment, but finally stood up and clung to Su Yixuan's legs, as if he had taken something from her waist, but there was nothing in Huo Yu's view.

[Five, four...]

"Quick! Throw it out!"

Su Yixuan's urging was almost tinged with despair.

Long Yucheng was clearly in a dilemma. He seemed unable to "throw it out" right now, and the messenger token was too light to be flung out by inertia.

"Give in."

Huo Yu's voice was calm and firm.

Two, one...

Long Yucheng obediently relented. Even though he still couldn't see anything, Huo Yu didn't hesitate to summon a gust of wind from below, enveloping everyone and the dog present.

Almost at the same instant, the system's pleasant notification sound echoed in Su Yixuan's mind:

[Congratulations, host. You have successfully averted a deadly crisis.]

"ah!"

Su Yixuan exclaimed in surprise and quickly reached out to hold down her skirt, which was fluttering in the wind. Huo Yu's robes, however, remained as still as a rock in the gale.

Only Long Yucheng's hair was ruffled by the wind, but he just stared blankly at the sky, his erect ears turned back.

"What do you see."

Huo Yu's voice sounded exceptionally calm amidst the raging wind.

Upon hearing this, Long Yucheng turned to look at Huo Yu, twitched his ears, and barked several times.

Although he was not in human form at this moment, Huo Yu could still see a trace of lingering fear in Long Yucheng's eyes.

"He said, 'Just now, at the location of the messenger talisman, a spatial rift about half a person's height suddenly appeared. Senior Brother, can you use your spiritual power now?'... Fellow Daoist Huo, could you please stop this wind first!"

Su Yixuan struggled to deliver her message in the strong wind, while awkwardly holding down her skirt.

Huo Yu stopped the Wind Control Spell, and the surrounding wind instantly subsided.

The next second, a fire dragon appeared in front of Huo Yu. The fire dragon was majestic, with each scale clearly visible. Its huge head and Huo Yu coldly stared at Su Yixuan.

"explain."