Chapter 192 - 180: Shattering the Illusion

Chapter 192: Chapter 180: Shattering the Illusion

"This... I knew it was all fake! I’ll only ever love my girlfriend, my senior! I had a feeling this wasn’t real. It was all fake!"

Jiang Hongtao watched the mist before them slowly thin. His expression was complicated, but as if struck by an idea, he immediately diverted the group’s attention by asking a few other questions. For example:

What did everyone run into?

Were we all separated?

Was anyone actually hurt?

Seeing Jiang Hongtao’s state, the other three could more or less understand. Besides, it was a personal matter at most, so they didn’t press him on it.

The four of them then began to share information.

From their first contact with the dense fog, although the Ice Simurgh Bird had blown some of it away, all four of them had subsequently fallen into an illusion.

Although Li Heng and Bai Shasha had been "teamed up" and fell into the illusion of Xiaoshi Village together, they ended up getting separated when they made a run for it.

Thus, after wandering around, each of them had a period of time where they "spent time" alone with the illusions. And in the end, they all seemed to have unspokenly converged on the Stone Boundary Stele.

The four teammates chatted for a bit, and everyone mentioned they had seen this stone stele at some point.

Jiang Hongtao went so far as to guess that the stele was the cause of everything and suggested they try destroying it.

Li Heng, however, knew the true source of the illusions and a few other things. But for various reasons, he decided to play dumb, agreeing that he also suspected the stele was to blame.

"So, what now...? Should we try to destroy this stele?" Jiang Hongtao suggested.

The two young women didn’t speak, their attention fixed on Li Heng.

"I agree the stele seems suspicious, but forget about destroying it for a moment. Look at the mist!"

Li Heng’s attention hadn’t left the surrounding mist. He noticed that ever since Jiang Hongtao arrived at the stele, the mist had started thinning out faster than before and was now showing signs of dissipating completely.

Li Heng had considered having the Ice Simurgh Bird flap its wings again to blow the mist away. However, remembering that its last attempt was what plunged them into the illusion in the first place, he decided to play it safe and held the bird back.

The mist showing signs of dissipating was good news for the four of them. After all, just thinking back on their recent struggle against the mist made them blush with shame.

This was especially true for Jiang Hongtao, who wished the mist would disappear forever, lest it dredge up some unpleasant memories.

About five minutes passed. The entire time, the four of them stood around the Smoke Illusion Mountain Stone Boundary Stele, remaining on high alert. Only when the mist had completely vanished did they slowly lower their guard.

"Look over there!"

Once the mist had completely dissipated, Bao Yaoyao was the first to speak, pointing with her right index finger.

About sixty meters away, there was a massive pit! It was the same one they had filled with the corpses of Stone Thorn Flowers and blocks of ice. Some of the ice even spilled over the edge.

All four of them remembered the pit. After all, Li Heng and his Ice Simurgh Bird had filled it themselves!

Compared to how it was before, however, the pit now contained some leafy branches in addition to the Stone Thorn Flower corpses and ice.

"Where... are we?" Bao Yaoyao looked completely bewildered. Even though the mist was gone, it seemed to have left some "side effects." She was momentarily confused by the sight of the nearby pit.

"Everything we just went through must have been fake. The village and soldiers Li Heng and Bai Shasha saw, the two vicious tigers Bao Yaoyao saw—it must have all been some kind of illusion. And it has to be connected to the mist, or this stele! Hey? Where’d the stele go?"

Jiang Hongtao had also seen the large pit nearby. He lowered his head in thought for a moment before sharing his ideas, conveniently omitting his own experience in the illusion.

But as he was speaking, when he mentioned the stele, Jiang Hongtao realized it had vanished.

Li Heng was also a little surprised by the sudden disappearance of the Smoke Illusion Mountain Stone Boundary Stele, but he didn’t dwell on it.

’After all, this "illusion experience" has given me so much information. It’ll be enough to keep me thinking for quite some time once I get back.’

Seeing the pit and considering the current situation, Li Heng figured they must have broken through the illusion and returned to reality.

At this point, Li Heng’s thoughts were a bit of a mess. He took a moment to compose himself, preparing to discuss their next steps with his teammates.

’After all, we’re still in the middle of the "spring outing." Other matters can wait. We need to finish this boot camp in disguise first.’

"You three, considering all the trouble we’ve been through, I think... that mist and the stele might have just been another roadblock set up by the university! Plus, this place is too creepy. Why don’t we just pick up the pace and get these three hundred li over with?"

Jiang Hongtao laid out his theory and suggested they leave this place as quickly as possible.

A brief silence fell over the group after Jiang Hongtao spoke. A moment later, Li Heng was the first to break it, agreeing with his suggestion.

"In any case, let’s start moving forward, shall we? We should still have a ways to go to finish the three hundred li!" Bao Yaoyao chimed in.

Bai Shasha simply nodded, clearly in agreement as well.

And so, having reached a consensus, the four of them gripped their weapons and started moving forward.

They had been through a lot since leaving the forest—first the Stone Thorn Flowers, then the deep pit, and just now, the illusions.

The four of them were mentally prepared for the rest of the journey, remaining vigilant at all times.

But the path ahead was surprisingly easy...

Not only was the terrain flat, but there was also a clearly visible "road" paved with gravel. There were no signs of soul beast activity, nor were there any obvious "roadblocks."

Even so, the group of four didn’t let their guard down. They maintained their formation as they moved forward, with Li Heng’s Ice Simurgh Bird circling above them.

’Hm?’

As the four of them were walking cautiously along the gravel road, Li Heng suddenly received feedback from his Simurgh Bird and looked up at the sky.

A dark shadow was flying rapidly toward them, growing clearer as it approached.

Along with the shadow came a voice thick with confusion.

"I’m the patrol teacher for the South City Gate route! You all... you passed the Stone Thorn Flower cluster and the Illusion Stele this quickly?"