Mind Reading

Lu Wanwan stared at her, dumbfounded, and explained, "This is Jubao Pavilion. It's a large commercial establishment that primarily deals in items related to Soul Masters and Soul Engineers."

"It's a shame there's no Treasure Appreciating Fair going on right now, or I could have taken you inside to have some fun."

The current Jubao Pavilion was like a hypermarket compared to ordinary shops, and there wasn't much fun to be had.

As it was getting late, Luo Ling and Lu Wanwan took Huo Yuxi to a restaurant for a meal. It wasn't as fancy as the fare at Shrek Academy; it was very ordinary.

Huo Yuxi had a small appetite and was quickly full. After saying goodbye to them, she went to wash her hands.

The Soul Devouring Spider in her arms emerged again. It was almost impressed by the idiot who had been following her persistently for so long.

An idea struck it. After Huo Yuxi finished washing her hands, it directed her into a seemingly abandoned alley. No one passed by during the day, making it a good place to take action.

The person behind her followed closely, gripping his hoe tightly, ready to attack at any moment.

"Uncle, why have you been following me?"

Huo Yuxi's voice echoed in the quiet space. The man was startled, but seeing Huo Yuxi's docile appearance, he relaxed.

He put away his hoe Martial Soul and coaxed, "Uncle saw you coming to such a dark place alone and was worried about your safety."

Huo Yuxi pretended to be unaware. "Oh, I was looking for my spider. Did you see it?"

The man then noticed that the spider doll in her arms had vanished at some point. Thinking it was just a regular toy, he quickly tried to gain her favor, saying, "Then let Uncle help you look for it."

She had been worried about not having an excuse, and now one was being handed to her. It was a heaven-sent opportunity!

He lowered his head and began to search earnestly. High walls lined both sides of the alley, and buildings blocked the light on the outer layers, making visibility less clear.

He simply squatted down, preparing to use his Soul Power to search.

Suddenly, he felt something moving on his neck. He casually swatted at it, intending to continue his search. To his surprise, a spider the size of his palm then floated serenely before his eyes.

"Ah!"

A piercing scream echoed through the entire alley, gradually fading until silence fell. The man's eyes in the alley became increasingly vacant, as if his body was being controlled.

So easily startled. Even though I've become so beautiful, I can still scare them.

"People with guilty consciences are like this," Huo Yuxi observed the man's state closely, noticing his eyes shift from vacant to frenzied.

He then began to move his body. Startled, she jumped back a step. "Wow! You scared me, little spider, what's going on?"

He's fallen into an illusion, immersed in his own world, and letting himself go. The Soul Devouring Spider glanced at him with disdain and crawled back onto Huo Yuxi's shoulder.

"Can I know what he's seeing in the illusion?" The man's smile was so lecherous that it was obvious it wasn't anything good.

Of course.

The Soul Devouring Spider skillfully spun a few strands of silk, and in the blink of an eye, Huo Yuxi was transported into the illusion.

The surroundings were unfamiliar. Huo Yuxi hugged the spider doll in her arms tightly and cautiously began to survey her surroundings.

"Hahahaha, this batch of goods is top-notch. You can't afford this price, but plenty of others will want it."

A sharp voice rang out. Huo Yuxi turned to see the man. Beside him stood another, even more hideous-looking man.

And the "goods" they were discussing were none other than her!

Huo Yuxi's temples throbbed with anger, wishing she could kick him twice and leave him unable to care for himself.

Calm down, calm down. We're just consciousnesses right now, we can't hurt him, and we might even break the illusion. We'll teach him a lesson when we get out.

Although the Soul Devouring Spider said this, its eyes held an even deeper killing intent.

Looking at the lively scene, Huo Yuxi felt a chill run through her body. She had always known the outside world was dangerous, but she hadn't expected it to be so dark.

The little spider said that illusions originated from reality, a beautification of reality by one's subconscious, akin to fantasy.

The man fantasized about capturing Huo Yuxi, selling her for a high price, and living a perfect life of a comeback.

However, from the illusion, Huo Yuxi learned that he had captured many other people, all for money.

Strangely, the people he captured included men, women, old, and young. It didn't matter if they were good-looking or ugly; someone would buy them.

Upon exiting the illusion, Huo Yuxi's eyes were red with anger, and she immediately delivered two kicks. Whether it was the little spider's power or the man's deep immersion, he showed no reaction at all.

"Xixi?"

Lu Wanwan's uncertain voice came from behind. Huo Yuxi turned and immediately began to complain, "Wanwan! I'm telling you, this guy is too hateful. He wanted to capture and sell me."

"He captured so many people. I don't know if they've been sold yet." Her tone grew somber at this point.

She couldn't save them, and she didn't even know where they were.

"What happened?" Luo Ling's tone was serious, and she had already planned how to deal with him discreetly.

After another wave of dramatic narration, Huo Yuxi finally said, "After he captured people, he locked them up in a place with strange patterns."

Lu Wanwan's gaze flickered to the large tree behind them. "I have a rough idea of where that is. Don't worry, someone will go rescue them."

Luo Ling's attention was drawn elsewhere. Despite Huo Yuxi's lengthy explanation, she hadn't mentioned how she discovered all this information.

She casually asked, "Huo Yuxi, how did you find out about all this?"

"My Martial Soul!" Huo Yuxi squeezed the leg of the spider doll. "It's spirit-attribute, and the toxins carried by its soul skills can cause hallucinations. I can tell if everything in an illusion is real or imagined."

No matter how she explained it, it was correct, and she felt no guilt.

Luo Ling interpreted this to mean that Huo Yuxi's Soul Skill caused hallucinations, and she learned this from the illusion. But none of that was the main point; the real shocker was that she could extract a person's thoughts and past actions from an illusion.

What's the difference between that and mind-reading?

This is too terrifying!

"Luo Ling, Luo Ling! What are you spacing out about? Let's get ready to go back!"

"Mm, okay." She pushed her thoughts aside, trying to convince herself she was overthinking. If this were true, wouldn't all her thoughts and strategies be completely exposed during a fight?

The two of them got up to leave, but Huo Yuxi ran over to the fallen man and took a small storage Soul Tool from him.

She took a look and saw there were quite a few good things inside.

"I'll take this as compensation for my emotional distress. I won't take too much; I left you half of his fortune," Huo Yuxi muttered as she picked through the items.

The Soul Devouring Spider's mouth watered just looking at the contents. It had to be said, these were all excellent items!

It was hard to choose just one; it wished it could take everything.

"Xixi, if you like them, just take them all. He won't be needing them anymore anyway."

Huo Yuxi's eyes widened, as if to confirm the truth of those words.

"Take them. Once I find the people who were captured, and I confirm your words are true, then he'll never need them again."

Huo Yuxi casually picked out an item, stuffing it into Lu Wanwan's hand. "You can find them? Then exchange this for money and give them compensation for their emotional distress too!"