Chapter 285: A Myriad of Illusions, a Heart Unyielding as Stone

Consort Dan?

Jiang Chen gently shook his head, his mind as calm as still water.

Although Consort Dan's appearance had caught him slightly off guard, she had clearly failed to stir the blood within him. Not that Jiang Chen was indifferent to women — it was simply that there was no romantic tension between him and Consort Dan whatsoever. No matter how realistic the illusion might be, it was still false.

If the illusion had taken the form of Gouyu, it might have at least given Jiang Chen pause — Gouyu's personality was bold and fiery, the type to love and hate without reservation. But Consort Dan — setting aside that there was no thread of affection connecting them, even if there had been, this sort of display was simply not something she was capable of.

Whoosh!

Jiang Chen exhaled a long breath, his eyes sharp as lightning, piercing straight ahead. His foot stepped forward with unwavering resolve.

The surrounding illusions dissipated like mist.

The scenery shifted once more — a faint fragrance lingered all around, and Jiang Chen's body was still adrift upon a sea.

"This fragrance has some trick to it. It produces a stimulating scent that induces hallucinations, causing both body and mind to fall under its control involuntarily."

Jiang Chen lingered no longer, striding forward with great steps. The Road of Reincarnation offered no retreat — only advance. Then advance he would, without hesitation.

He walked on for roughly two or three hours, and the night deepened further.

Suddenly, a soft call reached Jiang Chen's ears.

"Chen'er."

What was that? Jiang Chen's ear twitched — he had actually heard a voice. It was faint, yet perfectly clear.

"Chen'er."

This time, he heard it even more clearly.

Father's voice? A jolt ran through Jiang Chen's heart, but he immediately told himself it was an illusion — definitely an illusion. This Road of Reincarnation produced not only visions but auditory hallucinations as well. Everything — every last thing — was an illusion.

Jiang Chen kept telling himself as much, over and over. Yet the more he tried to convince himself, the more vivid the voice became.

"Chen'er, save me, save me!" The voice was Jiang Feng's, filled with anguish, as though he were suffering the torments of the eighteen levels of hell. "Chen'er, I found news of your mother in the Upper Eight Regions, but I was captured. They've used every means to torture me, trying to force me to reveal your location… Chen'er, you are my son. Even in death, I would never betray my own child. Never… aaargh!"

The voice wound into Jiang Chen's eardrums like an incantation, relentless and inescapable. Although Jiang Chen kept reminding himself it was all an illusion, no matter how he tried, the voice lingered like a restless ghost, refusing to fade.

Suddenly, a towering tree loomed ahead of Jiang Chen. Suspended from the trunk was a figure, covered head to toe in wounds, hands and feet pinned to the bark with long iron spikes.

"Chen'er, don't come closer! Run, run! They're using me as bait to lure you in. You're not strong enough to face them — you don't stand a chance. Run!"

The figure hanging from the tree suddenly raised his head, hair wild and disheveled, screaming at Jiang Chen. It was unmistakably Jiang Feng's face. Three scars crisscrossed his features, carving his entire face into a grotesque mask of agony. There was not a single uninjured spot on his body — he was covered in wounds.

Most horrifying of all, the tree trunk was crawling with black beetles and long, soft-bodied creatures waving massive suckers, ceaselessly draining Jiang Feng's festering blood and gnawing at his open wounds. Before long, the flesh on his calf had been eaten away, revealing the stark white bone beneath.

Suddenly, from both sides of the tree, a swarm of black-clad warriors surged forth, each one leading a savage, snarling beast. Every single one of these creatures possessed cultivation equal to a human Origin Realm expert.

Roaaar!

The beasts' roar unleashed a tide of overwhelming pressure, as if the very fabric of heaven and earth might shatter from the sound alone.

Roaaar!

One after another, beasts on par with human Origin Realm cultivators roared and charged toward Jiang Chen.

Jiang Feng screamed with every last ounce of his strength: "Chen'er, run! Run!"

Run?

It had to be said — the illusion was terrifyingly vivid. Even though Jiang Chen had been telling himself all along that it was false, seeing his own father in such a wretched state made his Dao Heart tremble ever so slightly in that instant. It was not a weakness in his resolve, but the blood bond between father and son that had sent an almost uncontrollable tremor through him. It was instinct — an unbreakable resonance of shared blood.

But—