" Vic! I really thought you were dead. Thank goodness it was just an illusion!"
The first to push open the door was Rebecca. After waking up from the illusion, she found herself back in the room before her fate took a turn. She thought she had been tortured and beaten unconscious and was now recalling the past!
Vic's illusion was just too real, and it was woven from the life trajectory of the day they were pulled into the illusion. There was no flaw in it. Until she saw her unharmed body, she quickly realized that what she had experienced before might have been an illusion created by Vic!
Because her body was already riddled with wounds, riddled with holes, and not a single patch of healthy flesh remained, and now it was completely healed in the blink of an eye, but even Vic was dead, so who else could heal her instantly?
That's why she guessed that she had been under an illusion. Her eyes instantly misted over. She wasn't sad or upset, but extremely relieved. She was relieved that all that desolation and despair was just an illusion, and that her Vic and her companions were still alive!
Rebecca wiped away her tears, quickly opened the door and ran out. When she saw that familiar figure sitting cross-legged, her eyes welled up again. This time, she didn't bother wiping them away and rushed into his arms as fast as she could, hugging him tightly!
"Time waits for no one! If we don't intensify your training soon, what happens in the illusion will happen in reality!"
Vic also felt a pang of pity. He had made up the story in the illusion, so he knew how cruel and heartless it would be for Rebecca and the others. But he had already embarked on the path of fighting the Celestial Dragons and there was no turning back. If he lost in the end, what happened in the illusion would probably be the final outcome!
Pure Gold is something even the Law God of Magic covets. The Celestial Dragons are numerous, and the Pure Gold on Vic and his companions isn't enough for those beasts to share. Those who are captured will be tortured into handing over more Pure Gold or the method of making Pure Gold. They've enjoyed everything; immortality is the Celestial Dragons' ultimate pursuit!
"It's all our fault for not practicing diligently enough. I never expected you to feel so much pressure. From today onwards, I will absolutely not slack off, or you can drag me back into the illusion to experience despair again!"
Rebecca sensed the bleakness and hardship of the future from Vic. Vic had never told them what the future held, only that they should focus on their cultivation!
He shouldered all the pressure alone, and they didn't even realize it. He hadn't put in any hard work in his cultivation. After experiencing the illusion, she realized what kind of behemoth she would face in the future. She was truly heartbroken for Vic!
"It's not too late to put your heart into it now..."
Bang!!!
" Yamato! What are you doing? Stop hitting me..."
Before Vic could finish speaking, he was suddenly knocked to the ground by Yamato, who also threw Rebecca aside. Not content with just knocking Vic down Yamato one punch, Yamato straddled Vic's Vic, placed one hand on his shoulder, and punched Vic repeatedly in the face with her other fist. It was clear that Yamato was truly angry this time!
Rebecca wanted to stop Yamato, but seeing the teardrops on Vic's face, she couldn't say anything to comfort her. Even an optimist like Yamato was crying, which showed how desperate and heartbroken she was in the illusion!
Everyone else could understand why Vic did it, but Yamato, being so simple-minded, probably couldn't; he's used to being carefree!
Let her hit! Let her vent!
Vic lay sprawled on the ground, and only he could see that Yamato's pretty face, hidden by her hair, was covered in tears. Although Yamato didn't make a sound, the sorrow in her eyes was easily felt. Vic knew that although he wanted to improve their strength, he had indeed taken advantage of their sincere feelings. This was something Vic had done unfairly, but he didn't regret it!
Just as Yamato was punching Vic in the face, the others also came out of the room one after another. Seeing this scene, they all had complicated feelings. They had always believed that the experiences in the illusion were real. They had been persisting, fighting, enduring, and waiting!
In the end, all the effort and perseverance had no outlet, and it felt like being completely played for. It was truly hurtful!
But it was Vic who did this, and they knew the reason behind it. Reason told them that Vic was doing it for their own good, and they couldn't act impulsively like Yamato. In the end, everyone was still alive, which was wonderful!
" Yamato! Stop fighting!"
"Yes, Yamato, that's enough!"
Yamato punched for a long time, each punch neither fast nor slow. In the end, it was Ain and Olvia who came over and helped her up. They felt sorry for Vic. Vic hadn't done any defense, and Yamato's punches were particularly hard. Vic's handsome face was already deformed, with one side of his face swollen up high and big. When had Vic ever been so disheveled? Naturally, they couldn't bear it!
"I know you're all angry, and I'll let you vent your anger. I won't use my Devil Fruit powers; you can attack me however you like, as long as you can hurt me!"
Vic stood up and addressed the group, saying that he knew that after what happened in the illusion, if not handled properly, it could easily weaken the emotional bonds between companions!
No matter what it is, once it's used up, it's gone. The same goes for emotions. The illusion created by Vic greatly depleted everyone's emotions. The key was that they had endured humiliation for so long, and their emotions had been pushed to the limit. They were just one step away from a final, explosive revenge, but it all came to an abrupt end!
Without further revenge and release, everyone will definitely feel uneasy, and it might even give the impression that no matter how much emotion they put in, there will be no result. In the end, they might end up like the Rocks Pirates, with a superficial unity but no real harmony, which is not what Vic wants to see.
He wants to see a team that helps, cooperates, loves, and cares for each other! So Vic wants to use the battle to release their pent-up emotions and restore them to their state before the illusion. For this, Vic can temporarily take on the role of the enemy in the illusion!
"I'll go first! Sword, come on!"
Seeing that everyone was eager to try but no one was willing to step forward first, Rebecca volunteered. She and Vic were the closest, so it was perfect for her to be the first to step forward!
She knew everyone probably felt the same way she did: they felt they had become stronger in the illusion, and since Vic wasn't using his Devil Fruit powers yet, why not go up and test the difference Vic? If possible, they all wanted to get revenge on Vic for wasting their feelings.
With Rebecca's shout, everyone consciously stepped back and cleared the battlefield. With a continuous whistling sound of sharp blades cutting through the air, a rain of swords flew down from the sky, aimed directly at Vic. The rain of swords was like a silver dragon, tearing at Vic and arriving in an instant!
Vic made no move, as if he couldn't react, but no one present thought so. Who was Vic? None of them could figure out Vic's strength. If Vic wanted to, they wouldn't even last a single move. Only then did they realize that Vic had always been very restrained in his actions, even when facing the Four Emperors Kaido and the Marine Admiral!
As expected, Rebecca's rain of swords was ineffective. All the flying swords hovered three feet away from Vic, trembling incessantly, but could not advance an inch, as if there was an invisible wall blocking all external intrusion!