Chapter 838: Chapter 838: Inner Demon
Qin Sisi was nearly at her breaking point. She truly wanted to run into Ye You’s arms and tell him about her longing, her hardship, her grievances.
But she couldn’t.
Because the person before her wasn’t Ye You.
The gentle yet sorrowful voice continued to reach her, and Qin Sisi simply covered her ears.
Yet it was pointless; she could still hear Ye You’s voice crystal clear.
That made no sense.
These four words inexplicably appeared in Qin Sisi’s mind. She had covered her ears, so the sound should have been affected.
Then she reminded herself once more, thus proving even more that this was an illusion, for illusions interfere with one’s inner heart. Those voices entered directly through her spirit, not her ears, which is why covering them had no effect.
That was correct; the clearer the sound, the more proof it was false. The sound was false, Ye You was false, the hillside was false, everything here was false.
Determination suddenly surged within Qin Sisi’s heart; she absolutely shouldn’t go over there. That wasn’t Ye You but a test from Teacher Yu Sha.
Taking several deep breaths, she continually told herself to hold on. She didn’t know how much time had passed when the scenery before her eyes suddenly changed. The hill and Ye You had vanished, and she was back in Teacher Yu Sha’s magic classroom.
Qin Sisi looked around in astonishment, not sure if the illusion had ended or if it had shifted to another one.
Just then, Teacher Yu Sha spoke, "This time Qing Pu and Qin Sisi lasted until the illusion ended. Xiao Meng, Yun Cheng, Wen Xuan, and Chu Ming have failed again. Keep it up, let’s go again."
Only then did Qin Sisi dare to believe that she truly had persisted. She earnestly asked, "Teacher Yu Sha, can illusions end on their own?"
Teacher Yu Sha replied, "Your Illusory Colored Dream Pigeons are only First Order; their spiritual power is weak, so the illusions they create can only hold for around ten minutes."
Only ten minutes? Qin Sisi was astounded; she felt like she had endured a very long time in the illusion before it ended.
"Let’s begin!" encouraged Teacher Yu Sha.
Qin Sisi immediately focused her mind, lifted the Illusory Colored Dream Pigeon in front of her, and looked into its eyes.
Her surroundings began to change once again, and Qin Sisi was shocked to find herself back in the school she attended as a child. The classroom walls had darkened, and the desks and chairs were neatly arranged in some places, while in others they were skewed.
Qin Sisi sat at the very back of the classroom, and confronting her was a pitch-black blackboard with several words written in chalk: Für Alice.
As soon as those words met Qin Sisi’s eyes, the beautiful sound of a piano rang out. Only then did she notice an old piano placed at one side of the podium, and a familiar figure was sitting at it, absorbed in playing.
Qin Sisi’s heart immediately filled with an indescribable bitterness; she knew the figure all too well, and the piece, too.
The ethereal, graceful notes of the piano echoed in her ears. Qin Sisi couldn’t help but take a step forward, but then a shiver ran through her, and she quickly stepped back.
No, she reminded herself, she had grown up, her father had passed away, this scene was false, a creation of the Illusory Colored Dream Pigeon.
At that moment, "Für Elise" had just finished playing as the refined middle-aged man turned around, his eyes filled with benevolence as he tenderly said to Qin Sisi, "Sisi, come here, let daddy take a good look at you."
Qin Sisi shook her head vigorously, telling herself she couldn’t go over, yet her feet involuntarily stepped forward.
Realizing she was not in control, Qin Sisi remembered the times she had fought ghosts, almost getting lured by their singing; it seemed that even a bit of pain might help her regain a shred of clarity.
So she bit down hard on her tongue tip, the salty metallic taste of blood spreading in her mouth. Qin Sisi regained some of her sanity, stopped in her tracks, and hurriedly retreated to her original position.
She stared at her father, who stood at the front of the classroom, feeling waves of excitement and anxiety. Her breathing became rapid.
"Sisi, come on, daddy misses you so much." Father Qin opened his arms toward Qin Sisi, his face exuding genuine affection.
Qin Sisi pursed her lips tightly and turned her head away, but she couldn’t stop the tears from flowing down her cheeks.
After a while, the illusion place finally ended, and the loving father figure disappeared, with Teacher Yusha and all her classmates reappearing before her eyes.
Qin Sisi let out a long sigh of relief and quickly wiped her tears away amidst the noise that followed the end of the illusion place.
Teacher Yusha quickly spoke up, "Qin Sisi, Qing Pu, Wen Xuan succeeded, Xiao Meng, Yun Cheng, Chu Ming failed. Rest for one minute."
Qin Sisi felt Teacher Yusha’s gaze deep upon her as she spoke.
Xiao Meng ran up to Qin Sisi, her face a picture of distress as she asked, "Sister Sisi, do you have any tips? Why can’t I hold out?"
Curiously, Qin Sisi asked, "What did you see?"
With a sigh, Xiao Meng said, "The first time, I saw a lot of delicious food. The second time, I was back home, and my mother had prepared a ton of delightful dishes and was waiting for me at the door. The third time, I saw my two sisters coming to visit me, bringing me a whole load of tasty treats."
Qin Sisi didn’t know whether to laugh or cry; three times she’d been tempted by food!
Before Qin Sisi could reply, Yun Cheng had already jumped over, patting Xiao Meng on the head and laughing, "Are you the reincarnation of a hungry ghost? Why do you always see delicious food?"
Xiao Meng snorted and said poutily, "What are you laughing at? You also failed three times in a row. Come on, tell us, what did you see?"
Yun Cheng’s expression immediately darkened, and after pausing, he said, "I saw my father. I saw people sent by Tian Xiaozi killing my father and slaughtering the Panhu family’s most loyal guards. I couldn’t just watch them die; I couldn’t control the urge to help them."
The displeasure on Xiao Meng’s face vanished as she looked at Yun Cheng with deep affection and compassion.
Yun Cheng took a deep breath and asked Qin Sisi, "Sister Sisi, how does the Illusory Colored Dream Pigeon know so much? How can it so precisely target everyone’s weaknesses?"
After thinking it over, Qin Sisi replied, "I think it’s not that the Illusory Colored Dream Pigeon knows those things, but rather that those deep memories already exist within our hearts. The Illusory Colored Dream Pigeon merely uses Illusion Technique to evoke those scenes."
Wen Xuan added from the side, "I agree, to a great extent, the Illusion Technique reflects our own inner demons."
"Inner demons?" Xiao Meng and Yun Cheng repeated, trying to make sense of the idea.
Chu Ming, who had consistently failed, was also listening intently at the side.
Qin Sisi nodded and said, "That’s right. Xiao Meng’s inner demons are food and family, Yun Cheng’s are family hatred, so the Illusory Colored Dream Pigeon keeps using these to tempt you. To overcome Illusion Technique, you must first conquer your own heart."
