Chapter 74: Yizhou’s Illusion (Part 2)

Chapter 74: Chapter 74: Yizhou’s Illusion (Part 2)

WARNING: Blood and Torture

When Sui Sui opened his eyes again, he found himself in a dark underground chamber. There were no torches or lamps in sight. The only source of light came from the faint glow of the luminous pearls embedded along the walls, casting a dim light over the cold stone surroundings.

The air carried the scent of rust, mixed with the familiar stench of blood. Judging from his surroundings and what he had just witnessed in the previous round of illusion, this should be the underground prison hall of the Wenjian Sect.

Sui Sui slowly walked deeper into the chamber, looking for the next scene in the illusion. However, the more he remembered what was about to happen here, the more his courage wavered. He already knew what Yizhou had suffered in this place, and the thought of witnessing it with his own eyes made him reluctant to take another step.

But he could not turn back.

He had entered Yizhou’s consciousness for one reason—to find a way to wake him up. No matter how difficult it was to face what came next, he had to steel himself and continue forward.

As Sui Sui walked deeper into the underground chamber, he heard hushed voices coming from somewhere ahead. He slowed his steps and followed the sound until he saw two disciples standing in the corridor, speaking quietly among themselves.

"I really didn’t expect it. I didn’t expect that Senior Brother Yizhou was actually a Half-Demon."

One of them lowered his voice as he spoke, glancing around as though even saying Yizhou’s name was something dangerous.

"Shh, don’t call him Senior Brother anymore. Those demons don’t deserve to be called our seniors."

"Right, right. I forgot."

The disciple immediately nodded, looking slightly embarrassed before lowering his voice again.

"Anyway, did you hear? They’ve been investigating it, and it seems he’s done a lot of bad things. Remember Junior Sister Chu? She said she was bewitched by a demonic spell. That’s why she was so obsessed with him."

"Really? Is that true?"

The other disciple’s eyes widened, clearly interested in the gossip. He leaned closer, lowering his voice even further.

"Of course it’s true. Otherwise, why would so many people like him? If it weren’t for him bewitching them, how could so many people have fallen for him?"

"That makes a lot of sense."

The two disciples nodded to themselves, seemingly satisfied that they had found an explanation that made everything fit.

"There’s one more thing. I heard he also worked with the demons to cripple Junior Brother Jiang’s dantian."

"Junior Brother Jiang? As in Acting Sect Master Jiang’s grandson?"

"Yeah. Up to now, they still haven’t found a solution."

The disciple sighed, his expression turning somewhat solemn at the mention of Jiang Huan.

"Sigh... What has happened to the sect these days?"

Sui Sui listened to the two disciples’ conversation and waited until they had gone far enough away before continuing in the direction they had come from.

As a reader, Sui Sui naturally knew what they were talking about. He knew the truth behind Chu Ran’s situation. She simply could not bring herself to admit that she, a young lady from a prestigious family, had actually fallen in love with a demon. Her family was also one of the more extreme clans that opposed the demons, so admitting the truth would have brought shame upon her.

In the end, she chose to put all the blame on Yizhou instead, claiming that she had been bewitched by a demonic spell. Rather than admitting her own feelings, she made Yizhou the culprit responsible for them.

For Yizhou, who was already being condemned as a Half-Demon, it was nothing more than adding salt to an open wound.

The matter concerning Junior Brother Jiang, on the other hand, was far worse. Just thinking about it made Sui Sui want to grit his teeth and punch someone.

For context, this Junior Brother Jiang is called Jiang Huan, the only grandson of Acting Sect Master Jiang. He was also one of the protagonist’s many fanboy junior brothers and had been among the disciples who entered the secret realm this time.

Unfortunately, he had been caught in the middle of the battle between the demonic cultivators inside the secret realm, and his dantian was directly damaged, affecting his Golden Core. That alone would have been unfortunate enough, but the others insisted on blaming Yizhou for what happened even though there was no evidence.

Even Jiang Huan, who had once been an avid admirer of Yizhou, eventually began to blame him under the influence of everyone around him.

Jiang Huan’s mother, Lady Jiang, came crying to Acting Sect Master Jiang, demanding justice for her son and begging him to find a way to cure him. Since that was Acting Sect Master Jiang’s only grandson, they of course searched desperately for a solution and eventually found one recorded in an ancient pill book.

However, the ingredients required for the pill were extremely rare. If they waited any longer, Jiang Huan’s injuries would become permanent, leaving him crippled for life.

Just when it seemed like there was no other hope, another method was proposed—one that no one had thought of before.

The method was simple in theory. If they could find a powerful, flawless Golden Core to replace Jiang Huan’s damaged one, the damage in his body could be expelled on its own.

At first, no one seriously considered this method. After all, who would be foolish enough to dig out their own Golden Core just to save someone else?

Then, one of the elders suggested another possibility.

What if they used Yizhou’s Golden Core?

Yizhou possessed an exceptionally pure and powerful Golden Core. Although he was a Half-Demon, he was still half human, so in theory, his Golden Core could also be used for Jiang Huan.

The more they discussed it, the more reasonable it seemed to them. They didn’t even bother actually investigating if he was falsely accused. After all, Yizhou was a demon, isn’t that solid proof that he was bad? So who would care if he lost his Golden Core?

With everyone in agreement, they decided to go through with the plan.

They then turned their attention to Yizhou, repeatedly reminding him that all of this had happened because of him. They told him that this was his chance to atone for the harm he had caused, making it sound as though surrendering his Golden Core was the least he could do.

Yizhou, whose mind was still clouded and unstable at the time, could no longer clearly distinguish between truth and the accusations surrounding him. After hearing it over and over again, he began to wonder if perhaps it really was his fault.

In the end, he silently agreed.

Under the hands of these people, Yizhou’s Golden Core was dug out and given to Jiang Huan.

Jiang Huan recovered, and not only did he directly advance to the Peak of the Golden Core Stage, but his cultivation talent also improved greatly. The very thing that had once belonged to Yizhou became the foundation for Jiang Huan’s future.

As for Yizhou, from that moment onward, he was left with nothing.

The talent that had once made him Heaven’s favored son was gone and his fame and brilliance was completely dimmed.

Sui Sui finally reached the end of the corridor. What greeted him was a dark room, and the moment he stepped closer, a stronger stench of blood filled his senses.

Since this was an illusion and he was an outsider within it, Sui Sui simply passed through the wall.

The sight that greeted him almost made his entire body tremble.

Yizhou’s arms were tightly bound in chains and hanging, his upper body completely bare. His back and chest were covered in countless lash wounds, some still wet with fresh blood while others had already dried against his skin. Even his face was so badly battered that it was almost impossible to recognize him.

Sui Sui’s eyes immediately moistened as he stared at the scene before him.

This was Yizhou.

This was the protagonist of this world, someone who should have had a bright future ahead of him, someone who should have been loved and admired by everyone. Yet because of the so-called plot, his flesh and blood had been gouged out, and the people he once trusted had abandoned him.

When reading a book, whenever a character suffers, the reader can only stand outside of the story and watch. They may know that the protagonist was in pain, know that his flesh was painfully removed, know that he was hurt by one betrayal after another, but in the end, it remains nothing more than words on a page.

The reader can understand that he suffered, but they cannot truly understand how deep that pain was.

It was only now, standing in front of Yizhou and seeing his battered body with his own eyes, that Sui Sui finally understood how cruel it really was.

This was his dear protagonist.

The person who had been with him for the past thirteen years of his life.

Sui Sui’s fingers curled tightly at his sides, his eyes growing increasingly blurred with tears.

Did it really have to be this way?

As Sui Sui moved closer, he heard a faint, hoarse mumble coming from Yizhou.

"It wasn’t me... it wasn’t me..."

His voice was barely audible, as though he had repeated those words so many times that there was hardly any strength left in him.

Sui Sui’s heart tightened.

He wanted to hug Yizhou, to take him away from this place that had hurt him, to give him pills and heal every wound on his body. He reached out without thinking, wanting to comfort him even if it was only for a moment.

But his hands passed straight through Yizhou’s body.

Sui Sui froze.

The illusion seemed to be reminding him once again that none of this was real. This was a scene from the past, something that had already happened, and no matter how much he wanted to help, he could not change it.

Before Sui Sui could recover, he suddenly heard the rustling of metal outside.

The sound of chains and the heavy footsteps of several people approached from the other side of the door. A moment later, the door opened, revealing one of the guards accompanied by several others.

"Take him out to the punishment hall. Orders from Acting Sect Master Jiang," the leading guard said.

The guards stepped forward and began unfastening Yizhou from the chains.

Sui Sui could only stand there and watch helplessly as they took Yizhou away once again, the next scene should be the scene where they dig up Yizhou’s golden core.