TSIAGBICATMWI Chapter 140

Chapter 140: The Illusionary Realm

Everyone here wears a faint smile, their complexions healthy and vibrant, their clothes ordinary, their bodies well-proportioned and full, their skin rosy – even surpassing their appearance before the apocalypse.

Aside from the square high walls erected for defense, the interior resembles a peaceful and prosperous era.

This scene is so harmonious that it’s downright bizarre; a shared, strange feeling in the hearts of Xie YunChuan and the others.

Xu Yuzhe approached a couple with a smile, stopping them in their path. He asked gently, “Excuse me, what are you two off to do?” As he spoke, his eyes glanced at the man’s carrying basket and the woman’s hoe.

The man replied with a smile, “You must be new here; you wouldn’t know yet. We’re going to till the fields in the west suburbs. Before you know it, winter will be over, and we’ll need to sow after the spring thaw. We have to get the tilling done before the Spring Festival so we can relax and have a good year.”

Xu Yuzhe’s expression turned somewhat strange. “Do you… know what the situation is like outside right now?” He couldn’t shake the feeling of having stumbled into a real-life Shangri-La.

The woman said loudly, “Of course, we know, it’s zombies, right? Young man, you’re in for a good life now that you’re here. Settle down and don’t worry; Li Meng will protect us. She even allocates fields and seeds to each household to grow food. The harvests are great, so we don’t have to worry about food or clothing, and we don’t have to fear zombies breaking in.”

“Li Meng?”

“That’s right, she’s our base leader. She’s a really good person.”

After a pause, Xu Yuzhe continued ambiguously, “How long have you been in the base?”

This question seemed to confuse them both. The woman murmured, looking at the man, “How long?”

The man scratched his head, as if faced with an unfamiliar problem, unsure how to answer. “How long? Let me think… a long time… a long time, yes! A long time ago.”

Xu Yuzhe asked a few more simple questions in succession, and their answers became increasingly muddled.

Xu Yuzhe smiled and let them pass. Xie YunChuan and the others stepped forward, meeting their solemn expressions. Xu Yuzhe said, “You’ve realized something’s wrong too, haven’t you?”

How could they have such vague memories, unable to recall when they arrived, after struggling so hard to escape suffering and enter this blessed land? The apocalypse has only been going on for a little over half a year. And even without counting the initial struggle to escape during the zombie outbreak, the seasons don’t align. How could they know that the crops in the fields have good harvests?

Every household they passed with their unevenly built homes was filled with happy smiles. There seemed to be no suffering here, only happiness. That in itself was impossible.

Gu Tangxi said, “But the guards look quite serious and normal!”

Xie YunChuan pondered for a moment, guessing, “Could it be that there are different performance angles for different roles needed?”

Gu Tangxi said, “Then is all of this fake? But why does it seem so real?” It was too fake to be real, and too real to be fake.

Seeing, hearing, smelling, touching, sniffing… all senses told them of the reality of this place. But reason told them it was impossible, that all of this was so dreamlike.

Xie YunChuan said, “Let’s go back to our quarters to rest and then go out and take a look around to assess the situation.”

Li Meng? If everything presented in this base is a facade, what role is Li Meng playing in it?

Since entering this place, Luo Wushang had been watching everything with a smile, while Li Shi was completely bewildered, unable to understand what Xie YunChuan and the others were talking about.

…

In the evening, after looking around everywhere, they arrived at the cafeteria, which was already bustling with people, and the aroma of food filled the air. They heard that anyone could come to the cafeteria to eat and take whatever they wanted.

Xie YunChuan and the others went to the serving window. Strangely, almost all the dishes were meat, with very few vegetables or congee. The people sitting in the hall were all eating large chunks of meat with greasy hands.

The oily, large pot of meat was a rare delicacy in the apocalypse, but Xie YunChuan and the others frowned at the sight. The tempting aroma of meat, which they hadn’t eaten in a long time, repulsed them from the bottom of their hearts. The cooks enthusiastically urged them to take some meat, but they backed away, as if frightened.

Only one person was different. Li Shi’s eyes gleamed with excitement as he eagerly stepped forward, taking a deep, appreciative sniff of the delicious aroma.

His suffering had finally ended, and he had actually come to such a good place. This wasn’t just a shelter for humans; it was practically a paradise for zombies.

Li Shi immediately took a large bowl of meat broth, added a few pieces of fatty meat, and devoured it with gusto. “Mmm, although it’s not as good as the first bite of fresh meat, it’s definitely freshly killed and still warm.”

As he gulped down the food, he took a spare moment to wave a large bone at Luo Wushang, indicating for him to come closer. “Boss, you don’t want any?” This was a rare free lunch, and there was no point in refusing a free meal.

Luo Wushang took two steps back in disdain and said, “Eat your own, come back yourself after you’re done.” With that, he turned and walked back.

Gu Tangxi looked at Li Shi eating meat with discomfort. She felt nauseous just watching him. “You, don’t you find it unacceptable? How can you eat with such relish?”

Li Shi replied cheerfully, “What’s unacceptable about it? It’s delicious meat.” It was *they* who couldn’t accept it, what did it have to do with him? He wasn’t them.

They were repulsed now, but tomorrow they’d be eating more heartily than anyone else, just like the people around them.

Li Shi knew what was happening to them now: they were enchanted, or rather, trapped in the illusion woven by that Li Meng.

Tsk, tsk, tsk, this Li Meng was much stronger than him, directly creating an illusionary realm and pulling everyone in.

He didn’t know if it was because he was a zombie or because his innate skill had the effect of seeing through people’s hearts, but he hadn’t fallen into it. As for Luo Wushang, perhaps that Li Meng wasn’t skilled enough to fool him.

Li Shi asked Luo Wushang if he should awaken Xie YunChuan and the others. His Bewilderment skill could easily pull them out of the illusion.

However, Luo Wushang shook his head. It was great that he shook his head; shaking his head meant he didn’t need to waste extra effort. No work and good food? Bliss!

If they wanted Xie YunChuan and the others to be completely immersed in the illusion like the people here, there was one crucial process missing: dream weaving.

Right now, they were just blinded, but the dream-weaving process could smooth everything out, resolving their doubts and making them completely believe that everything they saw was real, thereby immersing them deeply in it.

To put it bluntly, it was tampering with memories, adding seemingly reasonable processes that led to the current outcome. Because it was a beautiful dream, few people could break free, even if it was absurd. Perhaps many people didn’t even want to break free!

Barring any unforeseen events, that Li Meng would come to Xie YunChuan’s room tonight to weave dreams for them.

Luo Wushang might be planning to take this opportunity to catch the zombie.