Chapter 232 - 231: Trapped in the Illusion Array
"Hoo... alright."
Lin Batian was helpless. After all, since Chen Tianlong had said so, he couldn’t shamelessly insist on not letting him go.
Sima Dong didn’t care much about Lin Batian’s feelings and directly led Chen Tianlong towards the manor’s backyard, leaving Lin Batian alone in the hall, feeling quite bored.
Besides a wry smile, Lin Batian could only sit in the hall and wait.
The backyard of Tianshu Manor is a woodland, seemingly rarely attended to. But it’s not that no one wants to, it’s because an important figure resides here, almost like a reclusive expert for many years.
Back then, after Sima Dong and this expert created the Black Panther Assassin Group, due to being unable to manage the economic aspect, they handed the group over to that person, and he seldom intervened since.
Only when the Black Panther Assassin Group needed something, he would provide it immediately, uninterrupted for eighteen years.
As a result, the Black Panther Assassin Group sees Sima Dong as the second-in-command, as besides the reclusive leader, Sima Dong is the only other person who can command the group at will.
The two threaded through the woods and climbed a not-so-high hill. At the top, amidst the woods, they saw a row of wooden houses, looking out from afar, very spectacular.
These wooden houses appeared slightly old but still gave a sense of robustness.
This row of wooden houses comprised a hall and three rooms, with a smaller room at the bottom right, evident from the chimney on the roof—it was a kitchen.
Surrounded by mountains, with flowing rivers, thriving grass, and blooming flowers, coupled with blue skies, white clouds, and a gentle breeze, it felt like a Peach Blossom Spring.
As soon as Chen Tianlong stepped onto this land, his first feeling was silence! Extremely quiet.
Outside the wooden house, separated by a small pond, a yellow mud path a meter wide extended directly to the front of the house. All of this was enclosed by a long fence, reminiscent of Tao Yuanming’s pastoral poetry.
Excited, Chen Tianlong pushed the gates open.
"Chen Tianlong, don’t..."
"Swish, swish, swish..."
Before Sima Dong could finish, Chen Tianlong’s hand had already touched the fence. As soon as he pushed, the sound of darts firing was heard. If not for Chen Tianlong’s quick reflexes, he would have almost been hit by hidden weapons.
A dozen hidden weapons flew chaotically towards them, but the two quickly dodged.
"Wow, that was close!"
Chen Tianlong, still in shock, realized that there were traps everywhere here, rendering him speechless, but suddenly realized that Sima Dong was also a master, who really didn’t show it.
"Hehe, Chen Tianlong, I was just about to tell you."
Although Sima Dong said this, he was actually fooling Chen Tianlong. The hidden weapons here were designed by him and Chen Tianlong; how could he not know?
If he really wanted to inform Chen Tianlong, he would have done so beforehand; there was no need to feign warning after he touched the fence.
However, this was Sima Dong’s deliberate test of Chen Tianlong’s skills. Earlier, his attentive manner wasn’t wrong, but strength was also a criterion for Fang Yan to accept disciples.
Evidently, Sima Dong was satisfied with Chen Tianlong’s performance just now. This young man reacted so quickly, which was promising for the future.
He truly believed in his sworn brother Fang Yan’s capabilities. Under his meticulous tutoring, how could he not produce an excellent disciple? Otherwise, it would just mean Chen Tianlong was too foolish.
After the hidden weapons calmed down, the two pushed open the gate and started walking forward.
But as they walked, Chen Tianlong suddenly turned and noticed Sima Dong was gone. Looking around, there was nothing but the pond on both sides, with no ripples in the water.
This meant Sima Dong definitely didn’t jump into the water, but how did he disappear in such a short time?
While Chen Tianlong was pondering, he suddenly turned around and found that the house in front had vanished. He was shocked and hurriedly wiped his eyes, thinking he had seen a ghost.
"Damn it, what’s going on, could I have been dreaming?"
Startled, Chen Tianlong swallowed hard and pinched his arm forcefully, the sharp pain reminding him that this was no dream.
But what about the house just now, and then...
"Oh my god..."
Chen Tianlong’s eyes widened as the ponds on both sides disappeared from his sight, replacing them with a peach blossom forest.
Chen Tianlong was now sure it was not a dream, so the only explanation was that he entered an illusion array, but when did he enter it?
"Could it be that cup of tea?"
Suddenly, Chen Tianlong remembered; before coming here, Sima Dong had suddenly offered him a cup of tea. At that time, he was somewhat cautious, but thought it was a gesture of respect from his senior, so he didn’t pay much attention, not expecting the tea was tampered with.
So now, under the effect of the drug in the tea, he had entered the illusion array. To break through this array, not only must he control his emotions and remain vigilant, but also find the breakthrough point of the array.
This undoubtedly posed a challenge for Chen Tianlong.
Still, he wouldn’t believe Sima Dong would harm him, as he had just helped solve his problem; it seemed unlikely to betray him suddenly.
The only plausible explanation was that someone was testing him.
Thinking of this, Chen Tianlong wasn’t that worried and began observing everything around him. Clearly, all these were illusions, so the most real thing should be what he first saw.
That is, a small yellow mud path, ponds on both sides, and a wooden house ahead. That’s all.
Chen Tianlong, unhurried, began exercising his Heart Method, but suddenly found it didn’t work.
He was surprised; what was happening?
But upon reflection, he relaxed again. Presumably, Sima Dong was a high-ranking person, and his tea was indeed formidable; it not only led him swiftly into the illusion array but also banned his Heart Method.
Without the Heart Method, Chen Tianlong felt like a bird without wings, wanting to fly but unable. He tried closing his eyes but found the world still pitch black in front of him.
Indeed, he had reverted to an ordinary person; nothing remained, no Heart Method, no strong Sensing Power, everything before him was false, yet he couldn’t treat it as such.
The peach blossom trees totaled seven, each one luxuriantly floriferous, even in summer, with peach blossoms abundantly hanging upon them.
Chen Tianlong was speechless; even fabrications should respect the seasons. It’s midsummer, yet blossoms filled the trees; it defied science.
However, what Chen Tianlong didn’t know was that in the array, seasons didn’t change, nor did time cycle.
Setting forward with determination, Chen Tianlong relied on his memory, continuing forward, yet the surrounding peach blossom forest seemed to roam with him. Regardless of how far he walked, the scenery remained unchanged, much to his frustration.
"All changes adhere to their principles; no matter how intricate the array, there is always a way to break it. Once you find the flaw, you can break through in one go." This was something his master Ye Feng had taught him, and Chen Tianlong recalled it in his mind again.
Suddenly, he opened his eyes wide.
He began to stare intently at the seven trees.
In an instant, the seven peach blossom trees seemed to be moving rapidly, constantly disrupting their positions, as if disguising something.
Then, Chen Tianlong slowly approached, focusing intensely on one of the trees. He believed that if the trees were moving, instead of walking around seeking, he should stand still and counteract dynamic change with stillness.
Suddenly, Chen Tianlong moved, kicking at the peach blossom tree in front of him with great speed and force.
"Ow..."