The Long Journey to Immortality

The same question came up again. This time, Chai Tianjiao responded with words rather than gestures: "Han Lu, to be honest, we don't actually have much contact, and we can't even be considered friends."

“But it’s strange,” Chai Tianjiao stared into Han Lu’s eyes, “I’m willing to tell you some truths, and I’m willing to believe you, to believe that you will do many things for me that even friends wouldn’t do for me, for my own good.”

"Is it because of your personal charm?" Chai Tianjiao asked herself and answered, "It's probably because after that battle, we formed some kind of inexplicable trust relationship, creating a bond that is different from that of ordinary friends."

Hearing this, Han Lu felt relieved and smiled, "Since that's the case, everything will be easier. Listen to me, I will definitely do my best to help you resolve your inner conflict."

“Okay, I believe you,” Chai Tianjiao sat up straight and said, “What method do you plan to use?”

"Let me ask you a few questions first, like a diagnostic method," Han Lu explained. "Is your slow progress in cultivation due to a mental block?"

After pondering for a moment, Chai Tianjiao said, "I can't explain it either, but I inexplicably feel a pang of heartache when I'm cultivating."

Chai Tianjiao patted her chest, "At the same time, many chaotic images flooded into my mind."

Is this a mental block? I don't know.

"As for the slow pace of cultivation, it's probably because the cultivation method went wrong before..." Chai Tianjiao said, "If it weren't for Wu Jiayue, I wouldn't really care about my current body."

That last half-sentence doesn't seem to be the truth at all.

Those involved are often blinded by their own circumstances; Chai Tianjiao is not entirely clear about her current situation.

Hearing this, Han Lu rested her chin on her hand and fell into thought. "So it seems that the cause of the illness is not entirely what I guessed... But never mind, let's see how it goes."

Han Lu then asked, "Then tell me about what happened when you formed your core. Did something go wrong during your cultivation that made you like this now?"

Chai Tianjiao nodded, "Back then, I was too eager to achieve quick results in my cultivation, and I used an ancient method when I was forming a false core."

"Who knew that the solid spiritual energy produced by that method would be slightly incompatible with the cultivation technique I practiced."

"It's not noticeable under normal circumstances, but it becomes completely apparent when the core is formed."

"After completing the Golden Core formation, I found myself looking like this," Chai Tianjiao rubbed her chest, which was a few sizes smaller than Han Lu's, and then sighed deeply, "Alas..."

Han Lu nodded slightly, understanding. "Okay, I understand."

"Where is your bedroom?" Han Lu suddenly asked a very strange question.

Chai Tianjiao asked, "What?"

"Change your clothes first, then we can talk."

Chai Tianjiao led Han Lu to her bedroom, which was no different from when she was still Chai Tianjiao.

Immediately afterwards, Han Lu forced her to change into a dress.

Wearing a white gauze dress, Chai Tianjiao shyly touched the hem of her skirt, her helpless appearance making her look adorable.

With a chuckle, Han Lu commented, "It's pretty good. Girls should wear clothes like this."

Chai Tianjiao felt unwell all over and shrank back slightly as she asked, "What's next? When can I change back into my clothes?"

"Then you sit on the bed, and I will cast an illusion spell on you, taking you through two different illusions," Han Lu explained her treatment method. "If nothing unexpected happens, after experiencing the two illusions I have prepared for you, you will be cured and the obstacles that are hindering your cultivation will be removed."

"You just need to trust me and relax."

Chai Tianjiao loosened her grip on the clothes slightly and said, "Okay."

With a slightly flushed face, Chai Tianjiao awkwardly adjusted her long dress so that she could sit cross-legged on the bed comfortably.

Han Lu only entered a semi-true spirit state after confirming that Chai Tianjiao was ready.

To maintain suspense and enhance the effectiveness of the treatment, Han Lu did not reveal the plot of the illusion to Chai Tianjiao.

With a phoenix cry, Han Lu once again used her "dream" magic on Chai Tianjiao after more than fifty years.

Last time, Chai Tianjiao, after leaving the dream world, reformed and turned over a new leaf.

This time, Han Lu used the same trick again, hoping to use this method to help Chai Tianjiao overcome her mental block.

Han Lu prepared two illusions for Chai Tianjiao.

One was about her own experience; she wanted Chai Tianjiao to experience the story she went through in "Xiaoyaozi's Cave," hoping that this would make him more accepting of his current identity.

The second is a beautiful idea about Chai Tianjiao and Wu Jiayue accompanying each other on the path of cultivation as best friends.

Since it's about offering guidance and comfort, the ending is naturally the so-called perfect ending.

This environment was fabricated by her after prior preparation, and it was more substantial and realistic than the environment Chai Tianjiao experienced during the battle back then.

Not to mention that Han Lu's cultivation level is far superior to what it was back then.

Han Lu was certain that if everything went as smoothly as she expected, Chai Tianjiao would be able to resolve her inner conflict after experiencing these two illusionary stories.

"However..." Han Lu, whose true spirit aura had dissipated and returned to her usual state, looked at Chai Tianjiao, who was sitting on the bed with her eyes closed. "We should still enter her sea of ​​consciousness to investigate and see if the current result is caused by external factors."

Although Han Lu, being a phoenix, had no experience in diagnosing people's sea of ​​consciousness, she possessed an innate intuition.

She had a vague feeling that Chai Tianjiao's situation was not solely due to her guilt towards Wu Jiayue.

Under such circumstances, even if Han Lu did not have the Phoenix Bloodline, she could easily invade Chai Tianjiao's sea of ​​consciousness.

For safety's sake, even at Chai Tianjiao's residence in Qingcheng Palace, she still used array flags to add an extra layer of protection to the room.

With everything in perfect order, Han Lu narrowed her eyes slightly, controlling her mind to connect with Chai Tianjiao's mind, and flew into her sea of ​​consciousness in the form of a true spirit phantom.

The scenery in the sea of ​​consciousness is different for each cultivator.

The scenery there is related to the cultivator's cultivation methods, cultivation level, and personality.

Legend has it that when a cultivator reaches the highest level of cultivation and gains abilities even greater than those of the supreme beings in the spirit world, a void life will arise in the cultivator's sea of ​​consciousness, evolving into a simple little world within the cultivator's body.

Han Lu had no way of verifying this hypothesis and did not believe it.

However, based on her intuition, she believed that as a cultivator's cultivation level increases, the environment in their sea of ​​consciousness will definitely change drastically compared to when they are still at the Foundation Establishment or Golden Core stages.

Chai Tianjiao practices a fire-attribute cultivation technique.

Therefore, when Han Lu entered Chai Tianjiao's sea of ​​consciousness, what she saw was a scorching desert.

Chapter 920 Searching for Traces in the Desert

Although it looked like a landscape no different from the deserts Han Lu had passed through before.

However, with her talent and expertise in the realm of divine sense and soul, Han Lu was still able to see some problems and flaws.

Han Lu lowered her head, and in the form of a phoenix, she reached into the desert ground and grabbed a handful. "The sand in the desert is murky in color and looks more like muddy soil particles than sand."

“The clouds in the sky,” Han Lu looked up again, “are too sparse and scattered, as if a gust of wind could blow them away.”

“As for the sunlight,” he said, his phoenix eyes narrowing slightly, “it was dazzling, but not as scorching as it appeared.”

Based on the above observations, Han Lu analyzed in her mind, "Even if the cultivation techniques of the cultivators of the Great Yu Dynasty are slightly different from those of the cultivators of the Central Plains, I can still see the difference between a completely healthy sea of ​​consciousness and a sea of ​​consciousness with hidden dangers and problems."

"Based on the information gathered in Chai Tianjiao's sea of ​​consciousness, I can basically conclude..."

Han Lu looked into the distance and around, "Perhaps she has been invaded by external evil or has been affected by some secret technique that damages her consciousness. These things, together with the mental barriers that Chai Tianjiao has developed due to her emotions and gender, have caused her to stagnate in her cultivation."

"I only need to find the external evil that invaded Chai Tianjiao's sea of ​​consciousness or break the secret technique, and I will be able to complete the task and resolve this matter completely."

I have a general plan and direction in mind.

Without hesitation, Han Lu flapped her wings and took off, flying across the desert at a relatively slow speed.

Her eyes patiently searched through the desert, which seemed to have been replicated countless times. Occasionally, she used her Illusionary Phoenix Divine Power to perceive and diagnose, striving to find and eliminate the external objects that were affecting Chai Tianjiao's "health" of consciousness.

While Han Lu was attempting to practice medicine without a license within Chai Tianjiao's consciousness, Chai Tianjiao was experiencing an illusion meticulously crafted by Han Lu.

The first illusion was experienced from her perspective as the person she once was on Fengbai Road.

Because this was a story that Han Lu had personally experienced, and because she was now at the mid-stage of the Golden Core realm, everything in the illusion was incredibly real, causing Chai Tianjiao to completely forget her identity and memories, and become completely immersed in it.

It was as if he were that child who lived in seclusion in the mountains with his mother when he was young, that cultivator who joined the Zhengyi Sect but whose talent was mediocre and stopped at the early stage of Foundation Establishment but still had lofty ambitions, and that lucky person who went to Xiaoyaozi's cave to seek opportunities and succeeded under the instigation of his friend.

This experience was not particularly exciting; without the story of the last ten days, it could even be described as a "tragic story" of an ordinary monk.

But it was precisely because of what happened in the last ten days that Han Lu was able to use her own experiences as a kind of medicine to feed Chai Tianjiao.

When Chai Tianjiao learned in Xiaoyaozi's cave that "she" possessed the bloodline of a true spirit, her self-awareness became slightly clearer.

When she completed the "Mysterious Female Reincarnation" and transformed into a female body, Chai Tianjiao was just one step away from realizing that the person in the illusion was not herself.

When the plot of this illusion reached its end, "she" devoured and killed Xiaoyaozi and finally gave herself a new name, "Han Lu." Only then did Chai Tianjiao wake up. While still having vivid memories of everything that happened in the illusion, she also remembered her identity and realized that she was in an illusion.

Facing the world gradually darkening, Chai Tianjiao couldn't contain her surprise, "So Han Lu and I are in the same boat."

"Han Lu makes a lot of sense."

Chai Tianjiao recalled some childhood scenes. "Indeed, many cultivators can transform into true spirits or magical beasts. It's just a matter of changing gender. If we don't consider my relationship with Jiayue, it's really not a big deal."

Having figured this out, Chai Tianjiao couldn't help but look forward to the upcoming second illusion.

In the darkness, Chai Tianjiao suddenly fell into a pool of colorful water.

When she floated up from the water, she forgot that she was experiencing an illusion and began to play herself in Han Lu's story, trying to accompany Wu Jiayue on her life's cultivation journey as a "best friend".

Just as Chai Tianjiao was experiencing the illusion under Han Lu's arrangement.

Han Lu, who had been wandering in Chai Tianjiao's sea of ​​consciousness desert for nearly a quarter of an hour and a half, finally made some gains.

Transformed into a phoenix and soaring through the air, she spotted a group of gray figures walking in the desert.

The figure was wearing a tattered gray robe and a hood.

As he walked slowly through the desert, the sky changed color, and the desert beneath his feet transformed from fine sand and gravel into clay.

Just by looking at this scene, Han Lu could tell that the mysterious person in the gray robe was the culprit who caused the changes in Chai Tianjiao's sea of ​​consciousness.

"Killing them will solve the problem."

Without hesitation, Han Lu swooped down from the sky in the blink of an eye and blocked the gray-robed man's path.

As a phantom phoenix, Han Lu's true spiritual aura is quite threatening to the evil creatures causing trouble in her sea of ​​consciousness.

Sensing an intruding aura blocking his path, the gray-robed man, who had been walking indifferently with his head down, couldn't help but raise his head and glance at the sky.

It was this simple act of looking up that allowed Han Lu to see the other person's face clearly and learn who they were.

"Chai Tianjiao?"

Upon realizing that the gray-robed man was actually Chai Tianjiao, Han Lu felt as if she had been struck by lightning.

Many fragmented conjectures and pieces of evidence were pieced together in one go.

In just a moment, she arrived at an astonishing answer, an answer that could explain everything that was happening before her eyes.