Chapter 1804

After only two breaths, they became dull in expression and vacant in their gaze, every move like a marionette.

A perfectly fine person suddenly lost all their spirit.

The adults who were previously holding their children's hands to look at the grass crickets now let go of their children's hands and walked toward the outside of the town without looking back.

As soon as they left the town, they walked faster and faster.

A few curious ones under He Lingchuan discovered that they all entered the tree hole, so they trotted over to take a look: Whoa! The Tree Heart townspeople who were in coarse cloth shirts a second ago walked out from the other end of the tree hole, having actually turned into soldiers in armor and carrying weapons, with hideous masks on their faces!

One or two were like this, and a hundred or eighty were also like this. Even the women walked in, and when they came out, they were like standardized soldiers.

As soon as they rushed out of the tree hole, they began to run wildly, faster than a galloping horse, and disappeared into the woods in a short while.

With armor and weapons weighing at least dozens of jin, how could they be ordinary humans to run so fast while carrying such a load? The peddler, who had been smiling very kindly, also stood up and walked past Wanqiliang. With a "pfft," the rattle-drum fell to the ground, almost being stepped on by himself. The children who had originally loved these little toys now stood blankly in place, unable to bend down to pick them up at all, just staring blankly in the direction of the town entrance.

Perhaps they were too weak to be conscripted.

Wanqiliang tried to grab the peddler's arm: "Hey! Where are you going?"

The peddler struggled violently, and his strength was actually terrifyingly great; Wanqiliang thought he had grabbed a startled horse and almost fell. Fortunately, he lowered his center of gravity and exerted force with both feet, so he didn't lose face in front of his companions.

Was this the strength an ordinary person should have?

The peddler didn't break free at once and suddenly turned to look at him.

The pupils were completely dilated, the eyeballs were all black, and they were completely out of focus. But the person he saw knew he was glaring at him fiercely.

Even though Wanqiliang himself was a seasoned killer, he was still spooked by his gaze; just as He Lingchuan patted his shoulder and said "Let go," he released the peddler.

This thin man didn't even look at him and turned to run toward the town entrance.

When he rushed out of the tree hole, he was already plated with a layer of armor; not only was his frame stronger, but he was also a head taller than before, and he wore a bronze-colored pig-faced fanged mask. Who could still tell he was originally a small businessman who had to walk the streets to make a living? A perfectly fine little businessman, after hearing the Soul-Summoning horn, suddenly turned into a marionette, a soldier carrying a gun! An Illusion Sect disciple muttered: "They went to Waist Lake."

Everyone seemed to know what was going on; these townspeople turned into armored soldiers to intercept the pursuers behind them for them.

No wonder Elder Liu had everyone wear ghost masks earlier. When the Tiangong's team came, seeing that the living people here were all wearing masks, who could distinguish the Illusion Sect's team from them? This was called hiding a tree in a forest.

Elder Liu looked twice and ordered everyone: "Stop looking, hurry up! We're almost there too!"

A cultivator on the side couldn't help it: "Uncle-Master Liu, what exactly are these people... who blew that horn?"

Others touched their own faces, terrified: "We wouldn't also..."

Wouldn't they also turn into this? They were also residents of the Upside-Down Sea; the Soul-Summoning horn couldn't call them, but maybe something else could take their souls, making them lose their reason like these townspeople, becoming puppets that only knew how to obey orders.

Elder Liu pointed at him and scolded gloomily: "If you talk nonsense again, the next one to enter the tree hole will be you, Ye Zhao!"

Ye Zhao hurriedly shut his mouth.

Only then did Elder Liu say: "Don't make a fuss; you are Illusion Sect disciples, how can you not see that these are not real people?"

Everyone's shock and uncertainty were written on their faces: "Then what exactly are these?"

The bewildered children before them did indeed look a bit like wind-up puppets.

"The souls of the deceased residents of Silver Pearl Island will have a brief projection here before they completely dissipate," Elder Liu said sternly. "The Immortal Venerable uses supreme Immortal power to settle them here, allowing them to continue their lives before death, so that they will not carry resentment when they dissipate; this is the gentlest way to send them off!"

The Soul-Absorbing Mirror in He Lingchuan's arms giggled: "Good eloquence. No wonder when you first arrived at Stone Dragon Peak, the Illusion Sect let him receive you."

But He Lingchuan didn't laugh.

Everyone looked at each other, and a cultivator blurted out: "This is a ghost town?!"

The projection of dead souls... isn't that a ghost?!

"These look like living people; they aren't ghostly at all! Uh, at least before the horn sounded."

There was a lot of discussion.

A cultivator in the back looked at the dull child in the town and suddenly threw a dart, grazing his forehead.

The child didn't even blink, but his forehead began to bleed, bright red.

Others said: "What are you doing?"

"The Uncle-Master said this isn't a living person, so I'm testing it." He looked again and again, "Hiss, it's done so realistically, you can't tell at all! The Immortal Venerable is truly possessed of great supernatural powers."

Everyone quickened their pace while digesting this news.

Elder Liu's disciple approached him and whispered: "Master, is this, is this really the present world?"

In the real world, under the bright sky, how can ghosts be allowed to travel in broad daylight?

Seeing these ghost people farming, trading, eating, and sleeping as if nothing had happened, just like before they died, everyone was surprised and amused at first, but upon reflection, they felt two parts of sorrow.

What about themselves, what about their own relatives and old friends, and how much better were they than these ghost people? If it weren't for the invasion of the Tiangong, they would never have stepped into Waist Lake in their entire lives, let alone known that the world they had lived in for decades had this other side.

Elder Liu said sternly: "Where the Immortal Venerable is, that is the present world! He has such great supernatural powers that this realm is entirely under his control. What he says is true is true, and what he says is illusory is illusory."

He Lingchuan even slowed his pace by half; these words were truly worth his repeated deliberation.

The disciple was also savoring it, and suddenly exclaimed: "The, the Immortal Venerable has come out of seclusion?!"

"Correct." Walking to this point, Elder Liu finally gave everyone a definite answer, his voice exceptionally loud, "The Immortal Venerable has come out of seclusion; the Tiangong can no longer run wild!"

The Illusion Sect's team in the back had originally been touched by the scene and felt gloomy, but hearing this sentence, they were stunned for a few breaths before suddenly erupting into a commotion.

The Immortal Venerable has come out of seclusion! The master of the Upside-Down Sea, the Immortal Venerable with great supernatural powers and boundless magic, has finally awakened!

Is there any better news than this?

They had a backbone; they no longer had to endure the Tiangong's bullying, and they no longer had to be chased around by the Tiangong! The bit of sorrow and absurdity in their hearts was instantly driven away by this inspiring good news.

(End of chapter)