This situation was certainly abnormal. James Smith was momentarily stunned, balanced on his right leg, and slowly “pulled out” his left foot. The bluestone slab beneath his foot rippled like a reflection on water, then quickly returned to normal, the stone still looking cold and hard as ever.

Looking more closely at his left shoe, he saw that the sole, the upper, and even inside the shoe were filled with fine yellow sand, heated by the sun until it was scorching.

James Smith tried taking a few steps, and the sensation underfoot was unmistakable—he was walking in a desert. The young man seemed to realize something. Conveniently, there was a large tree nearby, so he reached out and pressed his hand against it. His hand felt nothing at all, as if it were weightless, and simply passed into the trunk. At this, James Smith finally understood: this great city, everything before his eyes, was nothing but fleeting light and shadow—a mere illusion.

The youth stepped out from the corner and walked toward the main street, with Six Pence following closely behind. At this moment, the monster was also full of astonishment, glancing around at the bustling city and clicking his tongue in wonder: “As far as I know, there are quite a few illusionary arts in this world, but at most they can conjure up a dilapidated temple or a small grove… For The Elder to so effortlessly conjure up a grand city mirage like this, that’s unheard of! Even the legendary mirage beast, the shen, said to be a master of illusions, probably couldn’t manage such a feat! But… where is The Elder now?”

James Smith was more confused than ever. He had thought that after dismounting the eagle, there would be a mountain ahead, a temple in the mountain, and an old Daoist in the temple who would be Black Robe. Who could have guessed he’d end up in an illusory city? How was he supposed to find anyone here?

And as for the shadow of Black Robe’s spiritual sense, ever since subduing Six Pence, it hadn’t appeared again. James Smith tried calling out a couple of times, but no one answered. Six Pence quietly offered a suggestion, but didn’t dare say it outright: “Maybe… I remember… last time Little Master summoned The Elder, he was in the middle of killing himself.”

James Smith disagreed—what if it didn’t work this time?

Just then, James Smith suddenly jolted as a man passing by accidentally bumped into him.

James Smith was instantly delighted. He knew the city was an illusion, but that man had truly bumped into him—he was definitely real. There had to be a secret here. He immediately hurried after the man, but as soon as he stepped onto the main street, he was shocked to discover… the street was packed with people brushing past and bumping into him, and every single person was real, living, and tangible.

Some people glared at him angrily for being reckless; some were magnanimous and just chuckled when bumped; some were alert and blocked him with a hand before he could touch them.

At this point, Six Pence was no longer just surprised—he looked as if he’d seen a ghost, his voice trembling: “This… the city is fake, but the people are real? How… how do they live here?”

On the bustling street, people wore all sorts of expressions—some hurried along with urgent business, some frowned in thought, some smiled and chatted with companions. Shops on both sides of the street were filled with merchants and customers haggling over goods.

James Smith and Six Pence deliberately tested things further. Every object in the city—even the grass, flowers, birds, and livestock—was an illusion, intangible and insubstantial, except for the people, who were all real…

An illusory city, real people.

The people in the city had no idea they were living in an illusion, going about their lives… as if everything was perfectly normal.

Even with James Smith’s courage and Six Pence’s worldly experience, the strangeness of the situation made goosebumps rise on both their arms.

James Smith shook his head. No matter how bizarre things looked, it had nothing to do with him—finding Black Robe was what mattered. He didn’t bother with anything else, and simply reached out to grab a passerby: “Excuse me, sir, may I ask…”

Unexpectedly, the man was in a hurry and snapped impatiently, “My wife has fallen seriously ill, I need to get medicine!” With that, he shook James Smith off and pushed him aside. James Smith didn’t mind, apologized for his rudeness, and was about to ask someone else, but Six Pence, seeing the man push James Smith, got angry. He grabbed the passerby and sneered coldly, “To have my Little Master inquire after you is a blessing earned over three or five lifetimes…”

But before the monster could finish, the man repeated, “My wife has fallen seriously ill, I need to get medicine!” He tried to shake off Six Pence again, but with Six Pence’s strength, how could an ordinary person possibly break free?

The passerby struggled continuously, repeating, “My wife has fallen seriously ill, I need to get medicine!” over and over, back and forth, saying nothing else.

After a few repetitions, Six Pence more or less understood—this man’s mind was probably not right. Otherwise, how could he only say this one sentence? Such a person obviously wouldn’t know where The Elder was, so he let him go and followed James Smith to ask others. But… every person on this street had only one sentence to say!

“The weather is nice today, perfect for a stroll.”

“Master Liu’s grandson is one month old, and there’s a banquet at Drunken Immortal Pavilion. I must go have a drink.”

“Jinse Cloth Shop has posted a notice—another batch of fine silk has arrived today, and the prices are really low.”