Chapter 27

Chapter 27: You Know What It Means to Be Addicted to Suffering?

“Host, wake up! This is fake!” Liu Liu flapped its wing and slapped Sang Nian awake. “There’s nothing to be afraid of!”

Sang Nian looked miserable, “Really?”

Suddenly, there was a similar sound from another direction.

She turned her head stiffly.

A ridiculously tall shadow emerged from the fog, with several tentacles slowly twisting behind it, its limbs were abnormally long, like four bamboo poles.

As it got closer, Sang Nian saw its face.

It was completely bare, with nothing on it.

Sang Nian: “.”

This was like a dam breaking, more and more shadows appeared.

Some wore court robes, their hands outstretched, with black nails and fangs protruding.

Some wore red dresses, stained with blood and tears.

Some were hunched over, with a cat face.

Some were wrapped in bandages, thin as skeletons, no, they were skeletons.

Some were covered in tentacles with blood-red eyes, like some indescribable being.

Sang Nian’s mental state completely collapsed when she saw a clown wielding a chainsaw and laughing maniacally.

Liu Liu: “How many horror movies have you watched?!”

Sang Nian: “You should ask me what horror movies I haven’t watched.”

“You’re scared and you still watch so many???” Liu Liu was completely baffled.

Sang Nian was heartbroken, “You know what it means to be addicted to suffering?”

Liu Liu was speechless.

Xiaoyao Sect.

Inside the grand hall, a screen floated in mid-air.

More than ten people stood below, chatting and laughing, occasionally glancing at the scene on the screen, looking relaxed.

The screen was live-streaming the progress of all the second stage candidates, a lively scene.

“I heard there were quite a few dual spiritual roots this time?” The Grand Elder, who arrived late, asked.

“There are about ten,” the Second Elder said. “They are all good seedlings, it just depends on their willpower.”

The Grand Elder stroked his beard and said: “I remember there were only two dual spiritual roots in the last new student selection, Yan Yuan and Jing Xian.”

“Yes, thirty years have passed in a blink of an eye, Yan Yuan has gone from a disciple to an elder, and he’s reached the age where he can take on students,” the Second Elder sighed. “Time really doesn’t wait for anyone.”

The Grand Elder seemed to think of something, shook his head, and sighed:

“If Jing Xian was still here… she would be taking on students too.”

The Second Elder secretly glanced at the young man sitting alone on the side and waved his hand at the Grand Elder:

“Let’s not talk about that. Yan Yuan can’t bear to hear the name Jing Xian. He’ll lock himself up in Guzhu Peak to cry at her grave again.”

The Grand Elder understood and changed the subject:

“Has the Sect Master arrived yet?”

The Second Elder said: “The Sect Master is still in seclusion. Now is a crucial time, he won’t be coming.”

The Grand Elder looked around the room, frowning: “Where’s that girl Bi Ke?”

“Probably passed out drunk in some corner again.”

The Second Elder chuckled:

“You know her personality. Even if the sky falls, drinking is more important. In my opinion, Chu Yao shouldn’t have become your disciple. She’s a natural match for her.”

The Grand Elder was dissatisfied, “She’s incorrigible. She doesn’t act like an elder at all.”

The Second Elder said:

“Alright, let’s not worry about her. We should focus on the candidates. Let’s choose the seedlings we like early, so we don’t get outbid by those shameless people. They’re used to having no shame.”

“I have two disciples, Xue Yin and Chu Yao, and I’ve decided not to take on any more students.”

The Grand Elder sat down leisurely and sipped his tea:

“Besides, it’s only the second stage now. Even if we have someone in mind, who knows if they can pass the third stage? It’s still too early to say.”

“To be honest, I’ve already taken a liking to a young girl with a Water and Wood dual spiritual root. Her aura is exceptionally pure, and she looks strangely familiar.”

“But just by looking at her face, you can tell she’s simple-minded and has no evil thoughts. Passing the second stage will be a piece of cake.”

The Second Elder looked forward with anticipation:

“Let’s watch her performance together.”

As he finished speaking, he waved his sleeve, and the image on the screen changed, finally stopping on the girl in green.

In the bamboo forest, the girl in green looked terrified and ran as fast as she could.

Behind her, a long string of strange creatures were chasing her frantically, occasionally letting out a series of silver bell-like laughs.

Second Elder: “…”

The Grand Elder followed the Second Elder’s gaze, froze for a moment, then suddenly stood up, his expression strange:

“What kind of monsters are these? I’ve never seen them before.”

The Second Elder seriously looked at the red-nosed clown holding a chainsaw:

“I haven’t seen them either. And what is that artifact in his hand? It’s so powerful, it can instantly split rocks and break trees without using spiritual energy!”

His excited voice quickly drew everyone’s attention.

Only Yan Yuan, sitting at the edge, remained unmoved.

The elders gathered under the screen, all looking up at the scene, equally surprised.

“Stiff posture, and fangs, this must be a corpse that has turned into a monster?”

They guessed about the strange creatures chasing the girl.

“Then what about this red-nosed, painted-faced man?”

“This doesn’t look like a human either. How did you tell it’s a human?”

“And this old lady, why does she have a cat face? And she’s so agile? Could it be that she’s been affected by demonic energy and is about to be assimilated?”

“…”

Everyone was chattering, when suddenly the scene changed.

“Wait, she stopped!”

“Is she going to beg for mercy and surrender?”

“Well, she is a delicate little girl after all. She doesn’t know this is an illusion. She must be scared out of her wits.”

Bamboo forest.

Sang Nian, who had been running for two hours, finally managed to stop, panting heavily as she steadied herself.

Her face was pale, whether from exhaustion or fear.

The clown took this opportunity to close in on her.

Sang Nian snatched the chainsaw from his hand, its motor roaring. Her pale face contorted into a grotesque expression:

“You like playing with chainsaws, huh?”

The next moment, she grinned and sawed off his head with the chainsaw.

The clown, as if a bubble had been popped, “bang” and dissipated, turning into a pebble that fell to the ground.

She slowly raised her face, her gaze falling on the other illusions, and let out a series of strange laughs, her expression crazed:

“Come on, let’s continue, let’s have some fun, together.”

“…”

The illusions all took two steps back, and those with faces actually showed intense fear.

They looked at each other and turned to run.

She pulled the chainsaw trigger with force, laughing wildly as she chased after them.

The elders outside the screen: “…”

The scene was too brutal, and they all turned their heads away, unable to bear to look.

After an unknown amount of time, all the illusions dissipated.

Sang Nian raised her sleeve and wiped the sweat from her forehead, constantly reminding herself that she was a heart patient. She tilted her head back and popped three heart-protecting pills.

As she turned around, her eyes met the black-clad young man’s.

He had been watching for an unknown amount of time, his expression complex.

Sang Nian’s expression froze, she scratched her messy hair, and awkwardly said:

“Why didn’t you come over sooner? I was so scared just now.”

Xie Chenzhou looked at the pebbles on the ground, twitching at the corner of his mouth:

“They were also very scared.”