After leaving the Great Soul Arena, Tang San hurriedly made his way toward Shrek Academy. At this moment, his mind was occupied with finding a place to absorb the soul bone and break through to level forty, hoping to achieve even greater success in this tournament.
It was still morning, the sun shining brightly, its warm rays giving a cozy feeling. Tang San usually enjoyed basking in the sunlight, thinking about cultivation as he walked. But today, he was particularly anxious. After all, he now had a precious treasure in his Twenty-Four Bridge Moonlit Night.
For some reason, Tang San felt today's journey seemed a bit long. He had been walking for quite a while and felt he should have already reached the academy by now.
But when he looked up, he saw that there was still quite a distance to the academy.
Was he walking slower today? Tang San frowned and quickened his pace.
As he walked, Tang San's steps suddenly slowed. Vaguely, he sensed that something was wrong.
The sunlight was shining on him, yet the warmth was gone. Instead, a faint chill seemed to creep in from all directions, quietly enveloping him.
He came to a halt, his eyes suddenly wary. Everything around him seemed unchanged, with passersby streaming by as usual. The academy was no longer far away.
Am I being paranoid? Tang San looked back at the path he had taken, his sharp gaze scanning the passersby, but he found nothing unusual. Everything seemed perfectly normal.
Steadying himself, Tang San started walking again but unconsciously gathered his Mysterious Heaven Skill.
He always trusted his instincts. Tang Sect members were adept in poisons and often feared being poisoned themselves, so their sense of crisis was strong. Tang San's sharp intuition made his unease grow stronger.
But his calm mindset kept him from quickening his pace. Instead, he moved forward slowly, trying to extend his senses as much as possible, searching for any sign of a clue.
After a while, Tang San abruptly stopped, his expression turning grave. Something was wrong.
Even though his senses detected nothing, Tang San was meticulous. Judging by the distance he'd walked, he should have reached the academy gates by now, yet no matter how far he walked, the academy was always a long way off, as if he were trapped in some kind of ghostly maze.
"No wonder you could defeat three members of the Emperor Battle Team. Impressive. Your vigilance is strong. Unfortunately, you realized it too late." At this moment, a cold voice echoed in Tang San's ear.
A white-clothed figure approached. Tang San recognized him—it was Shi Nian, the teacher from Blue Sunshine Academy.
Seeing this man, Tang San's heart sank. He quietly watched Shi Nian and said, "So it's the teacher from Blue Sunshine Academy. May I ask why you're stopping me here?"
Shi Nian smiled indifferently. "Not much to say. I just need you to disappear."
Tang San replied coldly, "Is it for the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Elite Tournament?"
Shi Nian's lips curled into a cold smile. "That's not all. There's also your soul bone. The saying 'an innocent man gets into trouble because of his wealth'—don't you understand?"
"What?" Tang San was shocked. Shi Nian knew about the soul bone? It seemed he had eavesdropped on the conversation with Tian Lin. Since Shi Nian was a Soul Sage, how could Tang San and Tian Lin have noticed?
"You want to kill me?" Tang San asked in a deep voice.
Shi Nian snorted. "You're simply too outstanding, and you even have a soul skill that restrains illusions. For the academy's victory, and the soul bone, you must die."
Tang San sneered, "You'd make your move right here? Don't forget, this is a public street. If you kill me, you'll never be able to stay in the soul master world."
Shi Nian laughed, his wrinkled face gathering together, a cold glint flashing in his sinister eyes. "Since I've decided to act, I'm fully prepared. Look carefully—do you think this is still the streets of Heaven Dou City?"
The blurry surroundings suddenly became clear. To Tang San's shock, he found himself standing in a wild field. Looking back, he could vaguely see the city walls of Heaven Dou City. He quickly realized this must be a small grove outside the city.
He had been unknowingly led here by Shi Nian.
"You're finished. You have no power, no influence. From your recent conversation with Sword Prince, your relationship with the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan isn't good either. Killing you poses no burden for me."
With that, Shi Nian's figure turned into mist, and the surroundings changed again. His voice echoed from all directions, "Tang San, do you know what my greatest pleasure in life is? It's watching my opponents go mad and die in my illusions."
Tang San activated his Purple Demon Eye to the fullest, but unfortunately, without the Autumn Water Dew, his Purple Demon Eye was only at the second stage and couldn't see through the illusions of a Soul Sage.
At that moment, Tang San relived his nightmare—being forced off a cliff by the elders of the Tang Sect. But ever since learning from Tian Lin that he hadn't been expelled from the sect, the psychological trauma of this memory had greatly lessened, and he could barely endure.
But the next scene made Tang San's eyes nearly burst with anger. The beautiful Xiao Wu was being harassed by the lecherous Bu Le, desperately calling Tang San for help. But Tang San was unable to move, forced to watch helplessly.
"No!!" Tang San's anguished scream echoed through the woods.
High up in a tree, Tian Lin heard the scream and felt a little sorry. "What is Tang San seeing to make him scream like that? The Purple Demon Eye is useless, and he doesn't have Yama's Invitation from the original story to turn the tables. Looks like he won't last much longer. I guess it's time for me to act."
Thud!
In the forest, after a while, Tang San finally suffered a mental breakdown and fainted.
Having lived two lives, his mental strength was strong. For an ordinary person, it would have caused brain death long ago.
"Oh, not bad. He only fainted. Though it's a pity I can't see him die in utter despair, to save time, I'll finish this myself." With that, Shi Nian grabbed Tang San's neck, ready to end it.
At that moment, a flying stone struck the back of his hand, surging with soul power and causing him to instinctively withdraw.
"Sorry, Shi Nian. He's still useful to me. I can't let you kill him." Tian Lin, holding his magic sword, walked over step by step.
"Sword Prince!" Shi Nian's pupils shrank. He hadn't expected Tian Lin to witness him trying to kill Tang San.
What now? Should he try to kill Sword Prince too? If so, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan would hunt him to death.