Chapter Thirty-Nine: Shadows in the Secret Realm

Setting aside the sensational nature of the conclusion that "Yang Yinglong risked the annihilation of his entire clan and paid an immeasurable price just to create an illusion where he could indulge in the fantasy of being an emperor," one question remains: Does this imply that they will encounter a Yang Yinglong who has actually attained the throne within this illusion?

Then there are those eyes, suspected to be watching everything from the darkness. The Chieftain of Wusa felt increasingly horrified the more he thought about it. The Chieftain of Yongshun was equally restless. The mastermind who had calculated every move to lure them into this secret realm was already enough to make one gasp at the unfathomable depths of this conspiracy; now, the illusion itself appeared to be a bewildering, lethal trap.

"At this moment, I can only rely on Assistant Regional Commander Yun," the Chieftain of Yongshun thought to himself. He suddenly understood why his two companions held Yun Zheng in such high regard. Faced with a predicament he deemed unsolvable, he, too, found his thoughts turning first to this young commander.

As the backbone of the group, Yun Zheng decisively made the next move: "The priority is to get out of this forest and reach a place inhabited by people. Then—find Yang Yinglong. Whatever mystery he left in this illusion, the answer must lie with the Yang Yinglong of this world."

With the towering Mount Fanjing as their guide, the group followed Yun Zheng toward the edge of the dense forest. Along the way, the path was shaded by lush greenery, featuring tree species common to Guizhou such as Chinese cedar, fir, nanmu, camphor, and white poplar, alongside dove trees, maples, tulip trees, fragrant fruit trees, Chinese happiness trees, kapok, bead trees, wingnuts, Japanese yews, podocarpus, and various types of acacia and honey locusts. Occasionally, macaques could be seen darting through the trees.

The Chieftain of Wusa asked, "Why have we walked for so long without seeing any mutated creatures?"

The Chieftain of Wumeng replied, "I suppose that before Yang Yinglong died, the world had not yet undergone its great mutation. The claims that such strange creatures only appeared in large numbers during the late Wanli era must be true."

In truth, however, before the world changed, some vampires and werewolves had already been brought into the Great Ming by Western adventurers and smugglers.

At this point, Yun Zheng spoke up: "There is another crucial point. Previously, Chieftain Meng Zhi of Wumeng said that physical strength does not lie, but in this illusion, I fear that physical strength is exactly what might deceive us."

"We have walked for a long time and expended a great deal of energy, and it seems fine on the surface."

"However, the sense of satiety is not right. Normally, after such a long time, there should be a noticeable change in hunger."

Yun Zheng was a veteran of many battles and had often charged at the front lines in his youth, frequently engaging in life-or-death struggles while short on food. Consequently, he was highly sensitive to how much energy food could provide.

"Why is that?"

"If this illusion allows our consciousness to enter a virtual world driven by a magical array, then the physical energy we expend in this world is effectively a product of our own imagination," Yun Zheng explained. "But the sense of satiety comes from our physical bodies."

The Chieftain of Wumeng understood. "So, although we have expended considerable energy walking for so long, our bodies have not sent back feedback of hunger. This suggests..."

An Miaotong, standing nearby, interjected, "It suggests that the passage of time in the illusion is not consistent with reality. As an assassin, I have precise control over my own body, so I can estimate the ratio to be roughly ten to one."

The Chieftain of Wusa said optimistically, "You mean to say that ten days pass in the illusion, but only one day passes in reality? Isn't that a good thing? It won't delay things in the real world."

The Chieftain of Wumeng felt something was wrong, and the expression on An Miaotong's face seemed rather intriguing. Suddenly, he thought of something, and his expression shifted instantly. "If we eat in this world, does it not provide feedback to our real bodies?"

"Try it and you'll see," An Miaotong said, tossing him a wild fruit she had gathered while walking. The Chieftain of Wumeng took a bite; the taste was incredibly realistic—fresh and delicious. Yet, his face turned deathly pale. Because, indeed, he felt no sense of satiety.

The Chieftain of Yongshun stroked his chin. "But if this illusion can forge all sorts of tactile sensations, why not simply forge the feeling of being full?"

Ye Xi replied, "Because the purpose of this illusion is not to trap us. If our minds believed we were actually eating, our real bodies would continue to secrete gastric acid without consuming any food, until it burned through our stomachs."

An Miaotong added, "Therefore, our physical bodies in the real world must be in a state of suspended animation."

Yun Zheng concluded, "As trained martial artists, we can survive without food or water for ten days while in a meditative state." It was undoubtedly the correct decision not to let the lower-cultivation servants and soldiers enter this formation; most of them would not have lasted ten days.

"This means we must deal with the Yang Yinglong of this world and unmask the mastermind who calculated every step to lure us into this secret realm within one hundred days. Otherwise, our real bodies will rot in some unknown corner underground."

(Solve Yang Yinglong within one hundred days.)

Faced with this impossible task, the expressions of the three chieftains were grim. The Bozhou Chieftains were no mere roving bandits; they were a prestigious family that had held power since the end of the Tang Dynasty, with a legacy spanning nearly a thousand years. While one could argue that these great chieftains of the Southwest were less of a threat than roving rebels, the difficulty of suppressing them was far greater.

Furthermore, among the Southwestern chieftains, the Bozhou clan boasted the greatest strength: "Bozhou is the largest, spanning two thousand li, with a fierce populace and immense wealth," and it was said, "Yinglong is strong; it is not easy to act lightly."

In those days, the Wanli Emperor "spent over eight million in provisions," "nearly exhausting the entire strength of the empire," and borrowed troops from numerous Guizhou chieftains to coordinate the campaign. It took an army of two hundred and forty thousand to finally suppress Yang Yinglong's rebellion. It is worth noting that the She clan of Yongning and the An clan of Shuixi grew stronger while assisting the Ming in suppressing the Bozhou rebellion. The An clan of Shuixi, in particular, not only expanded their territory but also gained such prestige that they became the de facto leaders of the Southwestern chieftains, planting the seeds for the later She-An Rebellion.

Moreover, they did not even know to what extent this illusion had empowered Yang Yinglong. With only a handful of people, how could they challenge such a hegemon of the Southwest? More importantly, a mastermind as cunning as a fox was lurking in the shadows.

Jin Kaijia and Shui Rouqin felt little pressure. They saw no anxiety or tension on the faces of Yun Zheng and Ye Xi. As Ye Xi’s followers, they were justified in believing that Yun Zheng could resolve the current predicament, even if their opponent was a top-tier figure like the "Heavenly King" Yang Yinglong.

Watching Yun Zheng’s calm and composed expression, Shui Rouqin thought to herself, "The level at which the master operates is truly beyond our imagination. It seems that in his eyes, only a formidable figure like Yang Yinglong is worthy of being his opponent. People like Chen Yuchong, whom we once viewed as the local emperor of Chishui City, are merely clowns in his eyes."

In reality, the legend of Yang Yinglong's hidden treasure had circulated in the Ming Empire for many years. As an Assistant Regional Commander of Guizhou, it was impossible for Yun Zheng not to have paid attention to it. However, among the seven keys rumored to lead directly to the secret realm, Yun Zheng had only managed to find one after extensive searching, which could only bring one person inside. Coupled with his many duties, Yun Zheng had never personally visited the site. There were rumors that five of the seven keys had fallen into the hands of the Mu Prince’s Mansion.

The mastermind using a fake map to expose a shortcut to the secret realm before him was undoubtedly a blatant trap. If he missed this opportunity to bring a large force inside, it would mean abandoning the exploration of Yang Yinglong’s secret realm forever. Both Yun Zheng and the mastermind were well aware of this.

(If you want to trick an opponent to the gambling table, you must give him a hand that looks impossible to refuse. The script you’ve laid out for me, kid, is indeed tempting. But how many more surprises can you bring me after this?)