209: cooperate

“Cooperation?”

The Nightmare asked suspiciously.

However, he did not relax his vigilance; his spirit remained tense. If Shen Xi made any unusual move, he would choose to self-destruct immediately.

“Yes, by cooperating, I can enhance my illusion techniques.”

Shen Xi spoke again.

Hearing this, the Nightmare instantly became furious.

“Isn’t this still about using my flesh and blood for illusion Cultivation? You call it cooperation, but in reality, you’re treating me like livestock!”

It was just a different way of saying it; the nature of it remained the same.

The Nightmare naturally refused!

“No, you’ve misunderstood again.”

“What I mean by enhancing my illusion techniques isn’t through using your flesh and blood for Cultivation.”

“To be honest, your illusion level is actually inferior to mine. The reason I couldn’t see through your illusion ultimately boils down to two words – reality!”

“Because you can steal the target’s memories and construct the most realistic illusions, thereby maximizing your illusion abilities. This is the innate talent of the Nightmare Clan.”

“And if I could combine your memory-stealing ability with my illusion ability, wouldn’t my illusion techniques be like a tiger with wings?”

Hearing Shen Xi’s explanation, the Nightmare’s eyes lit up.

This was a path he had never considered.

Or rather, no illusion Martial Artist, from ancient times to the present, had ever thought of such a method.

For illusion Martial Artists, the Nightmare was a Heaven And Earth Treasure.

Their flesh and blood could accelerate the speed of their illusion Cultivation, nothing more.

Therefore, the Nightmare was a commodity, a medicine, a Heaven And Earth Treasure, but not a living being.

But Shen Xi was different.

His starting point was not to drain the pond to catch all the fish.

Instead, he wanted to treat the Nightmare as his companion, a comrade-in-arms to fight alongside him.

Under a strong alliance, they could naturally achieve an effect where one plus one is greater than two.

“Why should I trust you?”

The Nightmare was somewhat moved, speaking with a mix of doubt and belief.

“It’s simple. In fact, I believe I’m not the only one who has thought about cooperating with the Nightmare Clan, so why did the Nightmare Clan become almost extinct in ancient times?”

“That’s because the Martial Artist world is a world where the strong prey on the weak. Influenced by this environment, Martial Artists believe that strong personal power is the ultimate truth.”

“Obtaining your flesh and blood for Cultivation strengthens oneself and is efficient. However, if they only cooperate with you to enhance their illusion level, they would revert to their original state once they leave you. Martial Artists would naturally choose the second method of draining the pond to catch all the fish.”

Shen Xi paused, looking into the Nightmare’s eyes.

A glimmer of light flashed deep within the Nightmare’s eyes. What Shen Xi said was indeed the truth.

It wasn’t that no illusion Martial Artist had thought of cooperating with the Nightmare, but why did they all ultimately choose the second method?

Simply because Martial Artists only trust themselves.

For profit, even dearest friends and family could turn against each other, let alone a Yao Beast.

Without trust, cooperation was impossible.

Seeing that the Nightmare was listening, Shen Xi continued, “But I don’t see it that way.”

“Although using your flesh and blood can accelerate the speed of one’s illusion Cultivation, you’ve seen the result: the Nightmare Clan is on the verge of extinction. Once you completely disappear, how can one accelerate their Cultivation? As I said, this is a method of draining the pond to catch all the fish.”

“On the other hand, who says there are no other ways to improve illusion Cultivation besides consuming your flesh and blood? Interacting with you also brings new insights, and the level of one’s illusion Dao will definitely improve. It’s just that the speed is slow, and the improvement is relatively small, but this is a steady, self-realized improvement.”

Shen Xi wasn’t spouting nonsense.

While breaking through the Nightmare’s illusion, he vaguely felt that his understanding of illusions had improved to some extent. The magnitude of this improvement was not large, but it was a tangible realization.

This alone was enough for Shen Xi to win over the Nightmare.

Simply put, the Cultivation of illusions for the Nightmare and for illusion Martial Artists were actually two divergent paths.

One was to use profound illusion techniques to forcibly make the target forget everything and fall into an illusion.

The other was also to use reality to make people lose themselves and ultimately sink into an illusion.

The two paths were different, but both belonged to the Dao of illusions, and they had commonalities.

If they could be compared and steadily improved, their future achievements would be immeasurable.

“Your argument is very convincing. I agree!”

The Nightmare was finally moved and agreed.

To preserve his life and not be reduced to livestock was already the best outcome.

“Don’t feel like you’re at a disadvantage. The benefits are mutual; this is a win-win situation.”

“Firstly, you and I will be companions from now on, so I have the obligation to protect you, which can compensate for the Nightmare Clan’s lack of combat power.”

“Secondly, you can also gain different insights by observing me cast illusions, which will absolutely improve your illusion level.”

Shen Xi spoke again.

He didn’t want the Nightmare to feel like he was at a disadvantage by joining him.

This was a win-win cooperation; why should the Nightmare feel like he was losing out?

That would be unfair to Shen Xi.

And it could easily lead to other thoughts.

“I understand.”

The Nightmare said, somewhat moved.

He had stolen Shen Xi’s memories, so he naturally knew what kind of person Shen Xi was to his friends.

Loyal and righteous, willing to go to great lengths for his friends.

Cooperating with such a person might be a good thing.

Thinking of this, the last bit of resentment in the Nightmare’s heart vanished.

“Happy cooperation!”

“Happy cooperation!”

After speaking, the Nightmare transformed into a mark, appearing on the back of Shen Xi’s left hand.

This was also a special characteristic of the Nightmare Clan.

They could transform into a physical entity or an illusory one, switching between the two states.

“Oh, by the way, my companions…”

“They’re not far away.”

The Nightmare replied.

Earlier, when Liu Linsheng, Fatty, and the others entered this Opportunity, they all let out shrill cries, which was naturally the Nightmare’s doing.

Everyone who entered would immediately fall into a custom-made illusion by the Nightmare.

And these illusions, without exception, were the deepest fears in everyone’s hearts.

For example, Shen Xi feared that his close friends and family would encounter danger, which is why his illusion was like that.

Similarly, Liu Linsheng, Fatty, and the others experienced illusions of their greatest fears, which made them unable to help but scream.

However, since Shen Xi and the Nightmare had already formed a partnership, and were now collaborators, the Nightmare naturally lifted the illusions.

Before long, Fatty and the others had woken up from the illusions, their faces still showing a hint of lingering unease and fear.