Chapter 870: Old Zheng’s True Strength

"Soul-Draining Vine, its species is mostly distributed on the Eleventh Island, with fewer than ten individuals remaining... Him saying he's from the Twenty-Sixth Island is absolutely bullshit, it's just to lower your guard and make you think his rank isn't high enough, after all, on the Misty Islands, the lower the island number, the more eerie and terrifying it is... Although the ranking isn't absolute, basically every ten islands can be considered one tier."

"But it hasn't made a move on you yet... because to it, your claim of being from the Thirty-Seventh Island is definitely also a lie."

"Based on the abilities and strength you've shown, it's definitely going to guess you're the 'Illusion Enigma' from the Ninth Island or the 'Mirage Soul' from the Third Island."

Lin Yu listened to Old Zheng's words. While he wasn't surprised that the monster had deceived him, he found it quite odd that he'd be mistaken for a monster from the Ninth or Third Island. Even though he knew that since this "Soul-Draining Vine" had deliberately tried to mislead players into thinking a monster had directly "transformed" into someone's appearance, read someone's memories, and replaced them, the Misty Islands must indeed have monsters capable of something similar. But the fact that these monsters came from such low-numbered islands was what surprised Lin Yu.

"Illusion Enigma and Mirage Soul, huh... I'll remember those."

"Do these two types of monsters have any other distinguishing features?"

As Lin Yu spoke, Old Zheng immediately guessed what he was thinking.

"Boss, you're not thinking of pretending to be one of those monsters, are you?"

Lin Yu nodded. "Of course. If it's possible, I definitely want to try."

Old Zheng let out a breath. "Mm... that's actually a good idea."

"Between the two, I'd recommend the Mirage Soul, because the Illusion Enigma... honestly, that thing is too bizarre and too fragile, and it loves throwing obstacles and riddles at people. So if you're going to play it, Boss, your behavioral patterns would be too restricted."

"As for the Mirage Soul—that thing's true body is a very tiny shellfish, looking like a scallop the size of a fingernail, but its spiritual power and soul are extremely strong, with the ability to create illusions—and its most terrifying aspect is that the illusions it creates act directly on your perceptions in real time. It doesn't require hypnosis or entering dreams, and even if you release your spiritual power to probe, it's very hard to detect—what this means is that normal hypnosis or illusion-crafting projects a cake into your mind and thoughts through spiritual power, calling upon your memories. It's relatively energy-efficient, but if you're facing another master of spiritual power, they can easily spot the discrepancy, since there's that 'hypnosis' process involved."

"The Mirage Soul's method is different. It creates the illusion of a 'cake' at a specific location..."

Lin Yu frowned. "Sounds a lot like Hannah's ability."

"No. That octopus's ability actually involves a mass of ink transforming into something that looks like a cake. But what the Mirage Soul creates has no physical substance, just a mass of spiritual power—when you perceive it, it gives you a 'cake' feedback, including visual, auditory, olfactory, and tactile sensations."

"What's most terrifying about this thing is that it computes in real time, so it can make different people perceive different things."

"Of course, the drawbacks are also obvious—first, no matter how powerful the illusion, it's still not real, and their true bodies are very fragile. Even if someone like Fish unleashes an energy attack, even without hitting the true body, having those spiritual power clusters shattered would cause massive backlash to the Mirage Soul."

"Second, the spiritual power consumed by this thing is enormous. So even though a single Mirage Soul already has strong spiritual power, to sustain the 'illusions' they create, many Mirage Souls often need to work together—that's why many Mirage Soul colonies operate as family units."

Lin Yu was extremely shocked. "These things have families?"

"Why can't shellfish form families? Don't project your human thinking onto other worlds," Old Zheng said sternly. "The Misty Islands are far more complicated than you imagine."

"However, this is also one of the major difficulties if you want to impersonate a Mirage Soul... Boss, you'd have to pretend to be a whole family of shellfish."

Lin Yu thought it over, then nodded.

"Fine. It's just playing multiple roles at once... Though it's quite challenging, I'm willing to give it a try."

Old Zheng nodded. "I believe in your acting skills, Boss. I'll also give you my full support."

"You'd better give me your full support, since we're going to retrieve your things," Lin Yu said casually. "You didn't even bother telling me about the situation on the Sixth Island beforehand."

"Boss, don't think too highly of me. Although what's buried on the Sixth Island really is my inheritance, the Sixth Island Master was doing me a favor by keeping it safe for me," Old Zheng said with an ingratiating smile. "As for what kind of arrangements are on the Sixth Island... I really don't know."

Hearing Old Zheng's weak-sounding words, Lin Yu had already anticipated this. He spoke again, lightly and dismissively.

"Is that so? Just now, when that Soul-Draining Vine mentioned you, it said... that you were the otherworldly being who orchestrated the fall of the Misty Islands Master."

"With that kind of merit, I'd think even the Sixth Island Master... wouldn't dare act presumptuously with you, right?"

"After all, the Director of that Thirty-Seventh Island asylum was only at the Island Master level, and you disposed of him with ease."

Old Zheng hastily spoke up upon hearing this. "Boss, that kind of talk is nothing but hearsay, you absolutely can't believe it—that dead vine had ulterior motives, it must have said those things deliberately to sow discord between us."

"How would it know you're attached to me, let alone try to sow discord?" Lin Yu said coldly. "Recently I've come into contact with many powerful 'Third Tier' players... You were only one step away from unlocking your 'Heart Domain' back then, and you're a founder of the 'Psychological Society.' Even if you fell to 'Fluoxetine' due to carelessness or some other reason... you're absolutely far stronger than what you've been showing me all this time."

"What benefit is there for you in playing weak with me? And what exactly are you scheming at?"

As Lin Yu spoke, he fully revealed his displeasure, letting Old Zheng clearly sense his dissatisfaction through the spiritual link.

Sure enough, after hearing Lin Yu's words, Old Zheng fell silent for a moment before explaining again.

"Boss, believe me... I really wasn't that strong back then either."

"Although I did participate in the fall of the Misty Islands Master, I was merely 'borrowing momentum'..."

"If I have to say it plainly, I really haven't been lying to you. My frontal combat ability is indeed far weaker than the average 'Third Tier.'"

"My abilities actually mainly manifest in muddying the waters, playing both sides, sowing discord, and killing with borrowed knives!"