“Chapter 107”

"Chapter 107"

"Realizing she couldn’t seduce Shen Wang, Azi dropped her coquettish act, her eyes shifting eerily as she sized him up, ‘Are you the type of man who likes other men?’"

"Shen Wang: ‘...’ These girls from the last century sure know a lot."

"Seeing Shen Wang’s displeased expression, Azi quickly changed her tone, ‘Alright, alright, you're looking for your friends, right? Indeed, some guests did come in just now…’"

"Saying this, she gestured for Shen Wang to follow her."

"Shen Wang followed Azi, noticing that as they left the hall, the vivacious scene blurred like a water-soaked oil painting."

"The dancing girls' smiles stiffened, revealing the ashen skin of restless spirits. They continued to twirl in the dance floor, their nearly all-white eyes unblinkingly fixed on Shen Wang."

"The faces of the guests gradually became indistinct, leaving only vague outlines."

"In this eerie atmosphere, Shen Wang followed Azi without hesitation, only to see the grand ballroom suddenly transform into a backyard."

"The haunting female singing faded, replaced by a faint murmur of conversation."

"Turning around, Shen Wang saw that Azi had vanished without a trace. He wasn’t too surprised, simply raising an eyebrow and searching for any signs of the others in this new illusion."

"After a few steps, the murmur of conversation became clearer. Shen Wang paused, following the sound."

"It was Bai Fuchun and Ugly Yin."

"But something was off about the two of them."

"Ugly Yin’s disfigured face was expressionless, but his calm, undisturbed eyes betrayed a hint of despair as he quietly watched Bai Fuchun, who was much shorter than him."

"Bai Fuchun, with an arrogant expression, lifted his chin and said, ‘Though you’re just a common servant girl from the Tulip Li, I’ve noticed your diligent work. My family happens to need a few maids…’"

"Shen Wang paused and observed for a while, realizing they were caught in a cliché ‘arrogant young master falls for me’ plot."

"Ugly Yin noticed Shen Wang’s arrival, his eyes flickered for a moment, his ears reddening. He was about to speak when Bai Fuchun interrupted him."

"‘You ungrateful servant girl,’ Bai Fuchun said with dissatisfaction, ‘I drove away those women… ladies, to thank you and even considered buying your freedom. Are you not willing?’"

"‘Look at you. While you’re decent-looking, you’re rather robust. Do you plan to work menial jobs in the dance hall for life?’"

"Shen Wang’s gaze fell on Ugly Yin’s face, and he couldn’t help but doubt himself: Decent-looking?"

"The aesthetic of this young master Bai is quite peculiar… Or is it the case of beauty in the lover’s eyes?"

"Ugly Yin was completely helpless, being a purely combat-oriented cultivator. His usual approach to illusions was to break them with brute force. If someone else were trapped in an illusion, he would have physically awakened them by now."

"But now, the one caught in the illusion was Bai Fuchun."

"Ugly Yin took Bai Fuchun’s hand, ‘Xiaochun.’"

"Bai Fuchun’s incessant chatter suddenly stopped, his face reddening, lips curling up, but he still retorted stubbornly, ‘How dare a mere servant girl call me by my pet name…’"

"His demeanor was coy and seemingly shy."

"Unexpectedly, Ugly Yin pulled him over to another man. Bai Fuchun’s eyes widened in shock, his face full of heartbroken betrayal, ‘Who is he? Your betrothed from the countryside? Look at his shifty eyes, he’s obviously not a good person!’"

"‘You work menial and exhausting jobs at the Tulip just to send money for him to study? He must have squandered your money on frivolous activities…’"

"Shen Wang, described as shifty-eyed and cunning: ‘…’"

"He was now certain that this young master Bai didn’t see beauty in the eyes of the lover, but rather had an aesthetic sense quite different from ordinary people."

"Ugly Yin quickly covered Bai Fuchun’s mouth, offering an embarrassed smile, ‘Daoist Shen, sorry for this embarrassment.’"

"Bai Fuchun, his mouth covered, had a look of heartbreak and despair in his eyes, almost on the verge of tears."

"‘It’s fine, it’s fine.’ Shen Wang touched his nose, hiding a smile, ‘Do you need help?’"

"Ugly Yin immediately responded, ‘Then we’d be very grateful, Daoist Shen.’"

"He had been waiting for Shen Wang to offer help!"

"As soon as Ugly Yin let go, Bai Fuchun began cursing, ‘How dare you cover my mouth for some other man? Do you have feelings for him? Even though I’m clearly…’"

"The next second, a slender finger pressed on his forehead, and Bai Fuchun’s rant came to an abrupt halt."

"His eyes momentarily fogged with confusion, then gradually cleared, finally breaking free from the illusion."

"Shen Wang watched Bai Fuchun’s face change through a spectrum of colors, asking with a smile, ‘Daoist Bai, may I ask what you saw?’"

"Bai Fuchun’s face turned through a palette of colors, finally settling on a deep red, almost steaming in embarrassment."

"He whimpered and buried his head in Ugly Yin’s embrace, stubbornly refusing to come out."

"Shen Wang couldn’t hold back and burst into laughter, ‘Daoist Bai, with your talk of being a servant girl and betrothed to some wild man, one wouldn’t have guessed…’"

"It seemed the quiet, obedient young boy harbored melodramatic fantasies in his heart."

"A hint of amusement appeared in Ugly Yin’s eyes as he wrapped Bai Fuchun in his arms, his gaze softening like melting ice."

"Shen Wang’s laughter stopped abruptly, clicking his tongue lightly: He shouldn’t have teased the couple."

"It was like asking to be fed dog food."

"Once Bai Fuchun recovered, he stood up from Ugly Yin’s embrace, his face taut as he explained, ‘The moment I stepped into the haunted house, I was ensnared by the illusion.’"

"He spoke earnestly, trying to appear nonchalant, but his face still flushed, resembling a red apple. Ugly Yin’s throat bobbed, barely catching what he said."

"Bai Fuchun, a pill master, lacked Ugly Yin’s strength and was immediately captivated by the illusion upon entering the haunted house."

"In the illusion, he was the young master of the scholarly Bai family, visiting the Tulip with classmates to gain experience. As soon as he stepped in, his ‘classmates’ vanished like fish in water."

"Left alone and naive, Bai Fuchun found himself overwhelmed by a throng of women."

"Panic-stricken, fearing he would be stripped bare by these women, a strong hand suddenly pulled him out of the crowd and into the quieter backyard."

"When Bai Fuchun caught his breath, he saw… Ugly Yin, before his disfigurement."

"In his eyes, Ugly Yin’s face was still unmarred, strikingly handsome, striking right at his heart and making it race."

"However, Ugly Yin was dressed in an incongruous red robe and skirt, with a female hairstyle and a garish large red rose in his hair."

"Caught in the illusion, Bai Fuchun found nothing odd about this attire, only puzzled that this woman seemed unusually tall, but soon his mind glossed over this inconsistency."

Chou Yin was like a robust country girl, her exceptional height and strength stemming from her inability to marry, forcing her to move to the city to earn a living as a maid doing menial tasks in the Tulip House...

Then, moved by pity, he decided to redeem the maid and bring her home, a scene that Shen Wang happened to witness.

After finishing his story, the blush on Bai Fuchun's face, which had subsided, started to creep back up. He glanced at Chou Yin beside him and unconsciously added, "You still have two spots of rouge on your cheeks."

The hilarity of Chou Yin in the illusion was matched only by Bai Fuchun's embarrassment upon awakening.

It would have been bearable if only he and Chou Yin knew, but unfortunately, Shen Wang had seen everything... Bai Fuchun felt like burying himself in Chou Yin's embrace again.

Chou Yin's eyes sparkled with amusement as she grabbed Bai Fuchun's hand.

Bai Fuchun pouted, attempting to shake off the hand, but after failing twice, he let Chou Yin hold it...

Shen Wang, not noticing their subtle gestures, summarized based on Bai Fuchun's words: "This illusion satisfies one's deepest desires and even fixes its own bugs... It's a highly autonomous and complete illusion."

Chou Yin pondered and then asked, "How do we break out of this illusion? Do we kill those minor ghosts?"

He could only discern that the illusion was sustained by the yin energy of numerous minor ghosts; once the yin energy was insufficient, the illusion would naturally collapse.

Shen Wang rolled his eyes dramatically: "Why resort to violence? It's so boring."

Chou Yin was momentarily at a loss for words.

"Let's find the others first and then decide," Shen Wang suggested, calculating quickly before striding off in a chosen direction.

Chou Yin and Bai Fuchun exchanged glances, following Shen Wang closely.

When the trio found Wushu, they saw him walking in circles at a spot, seemingly obstructed by an invisible barrier, continuously circling the same area.

Shen Wang observed for a while, noticing Wushu holding a compass, apparently trying to break a formation.

He waited for a while, and then a while longer... As time passed, he grew impatient with the illusion not being broken, and finally, he directly shattered the illusion himself.

Wushu, holding the compass, was startled, his eyes widening as if awakening from a dream.

Shen Wang curiously looked at him and asked, "So, what did you see?"

Clutching the compass tightly in his hand, Wushu’s face was rigid: "I saw... I broke through an illusion and was battling a female ghost."

Like Bai Fuchun, he entered the illusion as soon as he stepped into the Yin residence, but he was stronger than Bai Fuchun, seeing through the dancing girls as mere ghosts and directly using a magical instrument to break the illusion.

But soon, a more powerful female ghost emerged to battle him.

When Shen Wang broke the illusion, Wushu was almost on the verge of defeating the female ghost and winning the competition.

Shen Wang understood: Wushu's desire was to win the competition.

The desires of these cultivators nowadays are so pure; none indulged in beauty, money, or power. Not bad at all.

Shen Wang looked at Wushu: "We're going to look for the others. Do you want to come along?"

Wushu: "...Let's go together."

Anyway, he couldn't surpass Shen Wang, so Wushu gave up struggling.

It's better to follow Shen Wang and see how he deals with these ghosts... Maybe he could learn something.

Wushu, without any shame of following his arch-enemy from a special department, calmly met Shen Wang's gaze, resigned to his fate.

Shen Wang didn't think much of it and motioned for him to follow, choosing another direction.

However, as they walked, they found that the surroundings gradually changed again, and it seemed they were back in the ballroom.

The ballroom was just as lively as before, buzzing with men and women flirting with each other... as if Shen Wang had never revealed the truth, nor had Wushu broken the illusion.

Bai Fuchun worriedly said, "There are so many people here, how can we find Daoist Panghe and our client?"

Everyone was clueless. In such a ghostly environment, finding the faint vitality of living beings was like finding a needle in a haystack. They looked at each other and unanimously turned their eyes to Shen Wang.

Others might be helpless, but Shen Wang could definitely do it!