The Infernal Hall breathed around them an impossible structure of magma, broken thrones, and whispering stone.
Then came the red mist.
It was alive. Threads poured from the walls like veins unraveling. They weren't vapor they were soul silk, soaked in demonic essence, glimmering like rubies soaked in blood.
Each thread found its target.
Around their limbs.Across their chests.Into their mouths, their ears, their very spiritual cores.
Before any of them could react, the gates slammed shut, and a vibration rippled through the floor.
They collapsed one by one onto the cold stone.
All of them.
Even Su Feilí.
The mist had drugged them its effect more than chemical. It was spiritual, pulling their minds away from their bodies.
The red threads spread like roots, coiling over their arms, legs, spines draining their Qi slowly, lovingly, feeding on memory and fear.
Darkness.
Silence.
Then, within it dreams began.
✧ The Illusion Realm: Su Feilí's Fear
She was ten years old again, laughter echoing through her village, Ash Willow (灰柳村). The air smelled of peach blossoms. Her parents were alive Su Fan and Lady Ruo Yu, leaders of the village, kind, strong, respected by all.
They smiled at her.
"Feilí, be careful!" her mother called as she skipped along the courtyard tiles.
The sky above was blue. The wind was soft.
Then, the silence cracked.
A deep rumble. Like thunder with no clouds.
The blue turned to red.
The wind turned foul.
A thick, green mist rolled down from the mountains, eating trees as it moved. Birds dropped mid-flight. Chickens turned to mush. The water in the wells bubbled like oil.
Demons poured from the forest monsters with centipede legs, bat wings, stitched skin. At the center, a colossal serpent demon slithered forward, ivory-scaled, fangs dripping black ichor.
Feilí stood frozen.
Her father turned. "Ruo Yu, the talisman now!"
Her mother pulled a pouch from her robes.
A jade talisman glowing faintly bearing the crest of the Qingling Sect.
She handed it to Su Fan, who activated it with a blood seal.
Far away in the dream high above the clouds, a man in star-embroidered robes stirred.
Sect Master Ling Tianxu (凌天墟) opened his eyes.
The talisman on his altar glowed fiercely.
"Ash Willow…" he murmured. "I hear you."
But he was too far. Too late.
The serpent lunged.
Feilí's parents shoved her into a root cellar beneath the home, covering it with the lid, sealing her in with a palm strike.
From the crack, she watched them die.
Her father cut in half.Her mother swallowed alive.The talisman pouch fell from her robes, glowing softly.
Feilí sobbed in silence as the screams turned to gurgles.
The serpent turned toward the root cellar.
She held her breath.
But the illusion didn't end.
She crawled out hours later tears caked on her cheeks and found the pouch. Her hand shook as she reached inside.
The talisman pulsed like a heartbeat.
It glowed brighter… brighter… until it lit the entire village in divine light.
And far above, in the illusion, Sect Master Ling Tianxu rose from his meditation throne and said:
"You are not forgotten, child."
Then
The serpent returned.
"You shouldn't have survived."
It loomed above her jaw wide tail rising
Feilí screamed!
✧ Reality: The Hall of Flesh
Their bodies lay unmoving, bound in red silk threads.
Their eyes fluttered beneath closed lids.
The threads pulsed slowly, glowing like blood-filled veins, drawing Qi and spiritual energy from all six of them.
In the far corner, a glyph began to glow faintly on the stone.Something… was watching.
And it was not the mist.
To be continued...