Chopper Ridge.

Tang Fan was slapped awake and quickly realized he had fallen into an illusion realm.

He felt no joy from escaping the illusion realm, for in that realm he not only saw his parents but also the beautiful life with Meng'Er and Xing'Er, and even saw himself walking hand in hand with children across famous mountains and great rivers...

Everything there was what he desired the most in his heart.

Life is but a fleeting hundred years, and after the Crimson Palace only two hundred more, how is living different from experiencing? If it's all an experience, why not choose the better one?

True or false, how much does it matter?

Living is but a grand dream, and still a nightmare at that. If one can swap it for a sweeter dream, why not?

Yet, the sweet dream has ended, and the path ahead turns into a falling sandstorm, raining from the sky.

Song Yan squinted at the road ahead, quickly communicating with Feng Chengzi inside the Faceless Mask.

When he fell into the illusion realm, Feng Chengzi was also directly cut off from external perception.

However, Feng Chengzi could remember the precise time.

Thus when Song Yan asked, he found out that he and Tang Fan had spent a full two days in the illusion realm in real-world time!

If you exchange the proportion, roughly speaking, spending a hundred years in the illusion realm would equate to one day outside.

"But how is that possible?"

"Two days..."

Song Yan could hardly imagine it. He thought it was just a moment.

Feng Chengzi asked for more details, then said: "You encountered a Sea of Suffering Apparition, which can also be called a Sea of Suffering Pseudo-Monk.

Luckily, it was only a Sea of Suffering Pseudo-Monk. If you had fallen into the Sea of Suffering, even with great divine power, you would have been killed by the monsters in the Sea of Suffering.

Those monsters kill not in the usual way you understand, but by stripping you of everything at the level of thought, helping you sever cause and effect, and aiding your divine soul to ascend."

After saying this, he was silent for a moment and continued, "They are monsters, but they never think so.

Throughout endless ages, there are many and varied types of obsessions submerged in the Sea of Suffering, and from them, they have selected the kind of obsession most suitable for their behavior.

That obsession is Buddha.

They... call themselves the Buddhist Sect."

Song Yan said: "There are intelligent beings in the Sea of Suffering?"

Feng Chengzi said: "They are not intelligent beings, not even life. You can think of them as obsessions within obsessions, monsters created by time and years."

Song Yanqi said: "Monsters?"

Feng Chengzi said: "You've seen demons, seen devils, seen ghosts, but this is the first time you've seen monsters, right? That's what these are."

He seemed to recall some memories and smiled bitterly, "These Buddhist Sect monsters never pick up knives to kill. They only enlighten.

They help you achieve great enlightenment, devoid of cause and effect, reincarnation... which means making your cultivation in this life go to waste.

So, even if you stayed in their illusion realm for two days or even two years, you wouldn't suffer any other harm.

Because they value those they are enlightening very much, if someone interferes, they immediately turn their attention to enlightening the interferer."

Song Yan swore, in both past and present lives, he had never heard of such a bizarre 'Buddhist Sect.' It was truly "The sea of suffering knows no bounds, lay down the butcher's knife, the Lord helps you transcend to rebirth..."

...

...

Though Chopper Ridge spans over a hundred miles, the road afterward was smooth and without further encounters with the strange monster called 'Pseudo-Monk.'

In the pale moonlight, a green meadow emerged in the distance, one that Song Yan had seen in the illusion realm.

That meadow seemed like an oasis amidst a desert, an emerald amidst the scorching yellow sands.

On the meadow stood four figures.

The Infant-crying Elder, the Wolf Demon, the Deer Demon, and a middle-aged man with a bitter smile.

These scenes were almost identical to what Song Yan had seen in the illusion realm, with the difference being: whether it was the Infant-crying Elder, the Wolf Demon, or the Deer Demon, they were cheerfully eating human flesh. Before them was a large pot in which oil bubbles were bubbling, and from time to time, human hands and legs floated up...

Clearly, the illusion brought by the Pseudo-Monk only made the realism extreme but stripped away the violent scenes as much as possible, embodying the principle "Monks do not speak lies, nor commit killing."

A six-tailed red fox sat cross-legged on a high rock, stirring the pot with a long knife. When it noticed movement in the direction of Chopper Ridge, it glanced sidelong and said, "Zhang Han is here."

Song Yan clasped his fists and said respectfully from afar, "Elder."

The Infant-crying Elder waved, "Taste a flavor from your hometown?"

Song Yan replied, "Thank you for the kind offer, Elder, but that's not necessary."

He stepped forward and glanced at Tang Fan, who had stopped in fright, his face pale, sweat the size of soybeans beading on his forehead.

The Infant-crying Elder said flatly, "Ancient Tooth, what are you doing? Don't give the youngster too much pressure, making it seem like you're going to kill him."

After saying that, it raised its head, a smile appearing on its fox face, and beckoned Tang Fan with a claw dripping with soup, "Cultivating Profound isn't easy, cultivation techniques and treasure are hard to find. But in this King Apparition Soul Threshold, there are many treasures.

The finest Blood Cleansing Pill can significantly reduce the toxicity of the Crimson Palace Poison; there must be extraordinary essence blood stored in various unknown secret realm blood pools. Besides these, there are countless Profound Treasure Techniques, even soul artifacts are not lacking..."

As it was speaking, it suddenly received a message from the Wolf Demon named Ancient Tooth.

"This kid has the scent of the Ancient Race on him."

The Infant-crying Elder's fox eyes narrowed, scanning Tang Fan, then suddenly glanced at Song Yan.

Song Yan almost reacted instantly upon seeing the Infant-crying Elder's expression change, saying directly, "Elder, during my investigation, I discovered this kid also harbors some secrets. He is a lost member of the Formless Race, his parents long gone, making him the sole survivor."

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