VAP - Chapter 155
Chapter 155: The Intersection of Illusion and Reality (20)
Yue Du had long had her own speculations about Ji You’s childhood, but actually hearing her past still made her heart tighten, as if it were being bound by countless fine threads.
Her heart ached.
What was the deal with her hosts’ childhoods? Each one was more tragic than the last. Qi Jiu, who seemed to have been summoned via sacrifice, had it better. She arrived with her power off the charts and immediately pinned her scum dad to the ground, completely dominating him without suffering much herself.
But Ji You had clearly been the host since the womb—the original, right from her mother’s belly. Yue Du thought sadly, I obviously came to this small world during Ji You’s childhood. How did I still let my host suffer so many years of injustice?
Ji You had been comfortably hugging her sister, putting on a pitiful, coquettish act, but she quickly realized Yue Du was upset.
Jealousy loved to play the victim to make her sister pity her, but if Yue Du was genuinely upset, she would be thrown into a panic. She’d then try her hardest to paint herself as not pitiful at all, wanting only to cheer her sister up.
She did the same now. Whenever she wished, she could instantly transform from a delicate, pitiful little beast into a stunning, cheerful beauty. A poor little thing? Not a chance!
Immediately, Ji You put on the face of a beloved beauty who had never known a day of sorrow and explained to her sister that she really hadn’t been that miserable. In fact, she was quite free later on since the Ji family didn’t manage her. The vast sea was hers to leap, the high sky hers to fly…
Ji You spoke beautifully, her words as graceful as blooming lotuses.
But Yue Du didn’t believe a word of it.
Outwardly, Yue Du hummed in agreement, “Yes, yes, I know Ah Jiu is fine,” but inwardly, her heart ached even more. Her own mother just reopened her old wounds, yet she has to swallow her pain and comfort me. How considerate can my host be? At that moment, she conveniently forgot that Jealousy was a seasoned veteran with memories from beyond this world.
It was all Ji Ruying’s fault. Did she have nothing better to do than get all sentimental and make Ah Jiu unhappy by dredging up the past?
Yue Du shot a subtle, chilling glare at the eldest Miss Ji.
When Ji You saw Yue Du’s dismissive expression, she knew her sister hadn’t bought it at all and was likely imagining something even more tragic.
But Ji You truly hadn’t been lying. She had sworn never to deceive her sister; how could she break her promise so soon?
It was true. She hadn’t felt miserable.
During the three years she spent with the Ji family, Jealousy’s consciousness and powers had fully awakened. The Ji family head’s schemes to use her and Ji Ruying’s loathing and misplaced anger had no effect on her. She decided when and on whom to use her illusions, and the Ji family was powerless against her anyway.
Life was even more carefree after she left the Ji family and lived outside the stronghold. If she wanted good food, she’d use her illusions to make her monitors buy it for her. If she wanted to slip away for a stroll, her watchers would never notice. To Jealousy, the illusion detectors in their hands were mere decorations.
As for Little Gluttony… she wasn’t demanding about the necessities of life. She was perfectly content as long as she had enough food, and the forest outside the Northern Stronghold, which teemed with Scarlet Beasts, was the perfect place for that.
So! She really wasn’t some pitiful, unfortunate child. Sister, you absolutely mustn’t feel sorry for me!
It was all Ji Ruying’s fault. Did she have nothing better to do than make herself sound so tragic and upset my sister?
Ji You also shot a subtle, sinister glare at the eldest Miss Ji.
Ji Ruying, targeted by two dangerous glares at once: “…”
Wait, what did I do???
A moment later, seeing that Yue Du had composed herself, Ji You finally breathed a sigh of relief.
She’d had enough of playing the devastating beauty. She straightened up gracefully and said to Ji Ruying with cool indifference, “Since you have nothing more to say, we’ll take our leave.” With a slight lift of her lips, she added, “I do hope you’re still doing well the next time we meet.”
It was a blatant threat.
Every last member of the Ji family was a culprit responsible for her sister’s unhappiness. There was no way she would let any of them off.
Ji You had it all figured out. She reasoned that since the Ji family head and Ji Ruying had genuinely hurt her, dealing with them wouldn’t be a violation of her promise.
As for the “no deception” clause, if Yue Du asked, she would answer truthfully. Of course, if she wasn’t asked, she wouldn’t bring it up. That wasn’t deliberately hiding it; that was just… forgetting to mention it.
As Ji You plotted with relish, her dark eyes seemed to condense all the world’s malice. She cast a light glance at Ji Ruying, and that one look was enough to make the other woman feel as if she’d been plunged into an icy abyss.
The feeling from all those years ago resurfaced—that utter despair, that fear so intense it felt like suffocating.
Ji Ruying thought, Is she going to—? No, that’s impossible. This little monster only ever killed a dozen or so Scarlet Beasts, only one of which was high-level. The full strength of the Ji family could easily handle that number of beasts of the same rank.
She can’t do it!
But Ji Ruying quickly recalled that Ji You had killed those Scarlet Beasts before she was even born. Nearly nineteen years had passed. They had no idea just how powerful this little monster had become.
A bone-deep chill washed over Ji Ruying. She watched the pair walk hand-in-hand to the door, about to leave openly. They might even walk right past the main staircase and out of the Ji residence in plain sight of everyone.
No one would see them, and no one could stop them. Ji Ruying knew this better than anyone.
She clenched her fists and suddenly said, “…Ji Zhouzhang. Zhouzhang doesn’t know. He knows nothing—not about you, not about our family’s other affairs. My eldest brother probably never told him anything.”
Ji You’s hand was already on the doorknob. She raised an eyebrow at those words and asked, her back still to the eldest Miss Ji, “What’s your point?”
Ji Ruying replied, “What point could I have? If you want to see him as the same kind of person as my father and brother, I can’t stop you.”
She didn’t sound so neurotic when she said that.
Ji You found this genuinely funny. She shook her head and scoffed, “I suppose Ji Zhouzhang is the kind of child you always wanted. What does it matter what I think of him?”
With that, she pushed the door open without another moment’s hesitation, gently took her sister’s hand, and they left together.
She secretly curled a corner of her lip as she walked.
Ji Ruying was truly annoying, such a meddler. Now her hit list would have to be short one Ji for the time being.
She sincerely hoped Young Master Ji would manage to meet the “has harmed her” criteria, just like his father and grandfather, so they could all be on the list together. Otherwise, how could she eradicate the problem, root and stem?
Ji You’s thoughts wandered as she casually closed the door behind her.
The next moment, the maid in the room, whose eyes had been vacant, suddenly snapped back to her senses.
“Miss, you… huh?”
The eldest Miss was just playing her scribbling game. When did she move over to the window to look at the flowers?
Leaning against the window, her face a shade paler than before, Ji Ruying said without turning, “Leave.”
“But Mr. Ji asked me to—”
“Leave. I won’t be scribbling anymore. Just tell Zhouzhang that.”
The maid hesitated, then bowed deeply and left the room.
Ji Ruying pressed her forehead to the glass, gazing down at the main path that ran from the gate to the central hall. The monster she had birthed, along with another monster, was walking affectionately down that path toward the gate.
Passersby took no notice of them.
Ji Ruying wondered, Should I tell Father and my brother about seeing the little monster today? There’s probably no need. In the end, what difference would it make whether I tell them or not?
Father. Eldest Brother. You’ve said it before, haven’t you? That Ruying would always be your beloved daughter and sister.
In that case, let’s face our end together, shall we?
After leaving the Ji residence, the two of them wandered around the Northern Stronghold.
The Ji family was full of schemes, but they did a decent job of their primary duty: managing the stronghold.
The Northern Stronghold was well-supplied and its security was good. It was hard to say if the residents felt settled—after all, in an era like this, “stability” was a luxury and not a fair standard of judgment.
Beyond that, people were certainly happy with their work. Though it was late, in less than half an hour of strolling down the street, they were stopped six or seven times by enthusiastic sales guides and touters, politely turning down each one.
For aesthetic reasons, the street food did little to whet Yue Du’s appetite. She had Ji You open the System Store and redeem two cups of milk tea in opaque cups, and they chatted as they walked and drank.
“We’ve asked the eldest Miss Ji everything we could, but the Main System hasn’t prompted that the mission is complete. If I’m not mistaken, we’ll probably have to go back to that Scarlet Beast nest to find out more,” Yue Du mused, taking a large sip of her milk tea. It was definitely better with ice.
Ji You said, “Ji Ruying left some things out. For instance, were they the first group of hunters used to breed Scarlet Beast hybrids? And why would high-level Scarlet Beasts resort to creating hybrids when they’ve always held an advantage over humans… I doubt she knows the answers, and she’s probably never even considered these questions.”
After she finished, Ji You swirled her milk tea, the ice cubes clinking softly in the cup.
She took Yue Du’s cup, slowly put her lips around the straw, and passed her own drink over.
All said and done, regardless of what other secrets lay behind Ji You’s birth, exploring that old Scarlet Beast nest was now set in stone.
The nest was easy to find. They had passed it on their way to the Northern Stronghold and had even remarked, while looking at its tall tower, that Ji Ruying couldn’t possibly have gone there. She wasn’t an idiot, after all.
As it turned out, Ji Ruying wasn’t an idiot, she just had terrible judgment. That twisted tower was precisely where Ji You had her first meal.
Ji You suggested, “We’ve had a long journey. Let’s get some rest before we head out.”
Yue Du thought about the “boats” and “carriages” they had taken to get here. Those free, illusion-controlled mounts were not only exhausted but also terrified. Compared to them, the two passengers weren’t tired in the least.
That night, Ji You’s “Lust” attribute began to stir. She refrained from her usual tactic—playing weak to demand compensation—afraid that Yue Du would again be reminded of her “pitiful” state and indulge her out of a genuine desire to make it up to her.
So she found another way in.
“Sister, you’ve been rushing about all day, and you even danced with me before getting any rest. You must be tired, right?”
Yue Du shot down her attempt with a grin. “Not at all. Your sister has great stamina. I could go for another five-kilometer run.”
Ji You stubbornly stuck to her script. “I knew you weren’t feeling well, Sister. I recommend an Ah Jiu massage, complete with my exclusive secret formula. It’s guaranteed to relieve fatigue, and you’ll wake up tomorrow feeling radiant and refreshed.” With that, she produced her secret formula—a bottle of mead.
Yue Du snorted. “Pfft. Isn’t that secret formula a little half-assed?”
Ji You said with an air of great importance, “Just try it once, Sister, and you’ll see how wonderful it is. If you’re not satisfied, I’ll pay you back tenfold, even a hundredfold. Ah Jiu wouldn’t mind.”
And so, clothes were shed, the bottle was opened, and a tryst with mead ensued.
Partway through, Yue Du felt the “massage” had been effective enough and tried to call for a halftime break, suggesting they could pick it up again next time.
Ji You retorted in a singsong voice, throwing Yue Du’s own words back at her. “Your sister has great stamina. Another five-kilometer run would be nothing, so what’s a little massage? Now, lift your hips and hold still…”
Yue Du cried, “This has nothing to do with stamina!”
On the verge of collapse, she reached out, trying to push away the host who had arbitrarily extended the massage session, but her wrist was gently caught, and the dripping mead was licked away, drop by drop.
“Sister… Sister,” Ji You whispered. “I love you so much, Sister.”
Yue Du decided that for the foreseeable future, she never wanted to hear that deliberately soft, low voice that tickled her ear like the tip of a feather. Especially not when it was calling her “Sister.” She wanted none of it!
It was a perfect night, Jealousy concluded. Of course, that was excluding the internal dialogue between her own souls in her mental space.
Little Gluttony was lying on the grass in her half of the mental forest, sighing blissfully. “Ah, the mead was sweet, but Sister is sweeter.”
Jealousy found it incomprehensible. “How can you be so cheerful?”
Little Gluttony ignored her, deadpanning, “Jealousy makes people ugly.”
Jealousy took a deep breath, telling herself to stay calm. This other self was a lost cause. She should just toss her out.
…She only lamented that their consciousnesses were bound, making it impossible to throw her away.
The next day, the two slept in late. By the time they finally left the stronghold, it was already afternoon.
Ji You activated her mount-summoning skill. After waiting for a sturdy, fast Scarlet Beast to conveniently run into them, they began their journey to destroy the nest.
Even knowing of her blood ties to the Scarlet Beasts, Ji You felt no kinship with them. If anything had changed, it was that she now felt even more justified in ordering them about. It was simply a matter of hierarchy, after all.
Ji You was a bit disappointed. “Don’t Scarlet Beast hybrids inherit any racial intimidation or a superior’s aura? Is the only point of my Scarlet Beast bloodline to let me know that half of me is some kind of beast I don’t even recognize?”
As she spoke, she had to resort to controlling the disobedient, lower-ranking Scarlet Beast with an illusion to make it run obediently toward their destination.
Yue Du couldn’t help but recall their last mount, a Scarlet Beast so terrified of its host that it had scrambled to escape her demonic clutches on legs that were about to give out.
She couldn’t help but say with sincerity, “I don’t think you need to inherit a special aura. You’re already terrifying enough to any beast that sees you.”
Ji You: “…”
This particular Scarlet Beast seemed to have better mental and physical fortitude than its predecessors.
When they reached their destination, Ji You released the illusion. The beast didn’t bolt immediately upon regaining its senses. Instead, it slowly and casually distanced itself from Ji You, only breaking into a wild sprint once it deemed itself safe.
Ji You looked at it with disappointment. “So spineless. I hate to admit that’s one of my people.”
The moment she finished speaking, another voice chimed in from the side in agreement. “Indeed. I hate to admit that’s one of my people.”
Yue Du: “…”
Ji You: “…”
Their gazes shifted to the left in unison, sharing a silent, mutual understanding: Of course.
Standing there was a high-level Scarlet Beast—though using a classifier for animals felt disrespectful, so perhaps it’s better to say he was a high-level Scarlet Beast.
This high-level Scarlet Beast was humanoid. He wore human clothing, had a single horn growing from the top of his head, and his skin was paper-white, with a faint blue hue visible beneath it. Two symmetrical blood-red markings adorned his cheeks, and a third eye on his forehead was currently closed tight.
The two eyes in their usual place were a pure, deep scarlet, signifying his status and power within the species.
He had picked up where Ji You left off—speaking in human tongue, no less—and was now turning to look at them. A flicker of human-like confusion crossed his face, as if he found it strange that the two before him weren’t the least bit startled.
Of course they weren’t startled.
As their mount had brought them here, they had already seen this high-level Scarlet Beast emerge leisurely from the entrance at the tower’s base. Seeing them approach, he had simply stood by the tower, watching them motionlessly.
Yue Du guessed he was using an illusion to make himself seem invisible, assuming they wouldn’t see through it, which allowed him to watch them at his leisure.
Too bad for him, one of the arrivals was far more adept with illusions, and the other carried the cutting-edge Silent Watcher, rendering his camouflage completely useless.
And he himself was none the wiser.
Yue Du and Ji You exchanged a glance. Ji You’s last remark had been directed at the high-level Scarlet Beast. She had only intended to subtly hint at her hybrid status, not expecting that a single sentence would be enough to lure him out.
This high-level Scarlet Beast didn’t seem very cautious.
Then again, it made sense. When one was at the apex of their species’ food chain, it was hard to be wary of others of your kind, let alone creatures from a lower rung on the ladder.
Ji You feigned confusion. “Who are you?”
The high-level Scarlet Beast asked back in an airy tone, “And who are you?”
Ji You proceeded to artistically embellish her identity, launching into an exaggerated tale. She claimed to be a human-Scarlet Beast hybrid, born in this very tower nest. Something had happened here, she said, and her human mother had taken her away amidst the chaos. Ever since, she had been ostracized by her peers.
Finally, she learned the truth of her birth from her mother and decided to return to her true kin—
The high-level Scarlet Beast listened as if to a storyteller. “And then?”
Ji You said, “And then I came here.”
The high-level Scarlet Beast glanced at Yue Du. “And this one with you? Is she one of our people too?”
Ji You lied without batting an eye. “Yes.”
The high-level Scarlet Beast sized them up. “Hmm, not bad. Follow me, then.”
With that, he turned and led them into the Scarlet Beast nest.
This wasn’t a matter of being gullible, but of being confident. He was confident that even if these two self-delivered kin—or meals—were lying, he could still control the situation.
But he failed to realize that things had never been under his control from the very start.
For example, right now, he thought Ji You and Yue Du were walking to his left. In reality, the two well-prepared hunters were walking behind him, at a distance of at least five or six meters.
The high-level Scarlet Beast was already trapped in Ji You’s illusion.
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