Illusion Report

Chapter 156: Chapter 124: Jin Xueli’s Surprise Attack on the Vulture

The person behind her was—

Jin Xueli drew in a quiet breath, telling herself to stay calm.

’Calm down and think. There are two key points to this situation.’

First, the ground had collapsed into a massive pit. It didn’t just swallow the bottom half of the excavator, it caused the entire machine to topple sideways into the hole.

The real Han Liuyue was trapped underneath the excavator, which had fallen in at an angle—this was a crucial detail.

Because of this, with Jin Xueli standing in the middle, the person on the level ground behind her would be unable to see inside the excavator.

Second, she was certain that right now, the only ones in this cemetery were herself, Han Liuyue, and Vulture. frёewebnoѵēl.com

’I don’t know how Vulture tricked me, or when it got out of the coffin... but it chose to become Han Liuyue.’

’Which means...’

Without moving from her spot, Jin Xueli made a hushing gesture to the Han Liuyue inside the excavator.

She could only pray that the other woman saw it. ’If you’re the real Han Liuyue, I hope you’re sharp enough to realize that now is not the time to talk.’

"Han Liuyue?"

Jin Xueli glanced back, doing her best to mimic her earlier tone as she complained nonchalantly, "I was looking all over for you! Didn’t I tell you to sit tight and rest, not run around? What are you doing sneaking up behind me like a ghost? You scared the hell out of me."

After a second or two, Han Liuyue’s voice came from the darkness behind her. freёweɓnovel.com

"...What are you looking at?" she asked in a low voice. "Is there something in the excavator?"

Even though Jin Xueli rationally knew what she should do, her body remained tense and stiff.

’Good thing it’s so dark. Any awkwardness in my expression or posture should be hidden... As long as my tone sounds normal, I might be able to get away with this.’

"There’s nothing. It’s empty," Jin Xueli answered naturally.

The dimness behind her went quiet for a moment, then a single, sharp word emerged.

"...Empty?"

"Yeah. Where on earth did my phone go? I can’t find it anywhere. Are you still on the call?"

’The Han Liuyue I helped out had a phone, but that doesn’t prove it’s really her.’

’During the accident, Han Liuyue’s phone could have easily fallen out and been picked up by Vulture. After all, my own phone is missing, isn’t it?’

"Didn’t I tell you not to go near this pit?" Han Liuyue didn’t answer, asking a question instead.

"...Ah, I know, but this is the most likely place for my phone to have fallen." As Jin Xueli spoke, she reached out and stealthily groped around inside the excavator.

’Where did Han Liuyue put the axe she used to smash the coffin?’

’It should be on the floor of the cab, right?’

’Did it fall somewhere during the crash?’

’If the Han Liuyue I helped out is Vulture, then Vulture knows perfectly well that the real Han Liuyue is still in the excavator.’

’So, when it hears me say "the excavator is empty," it will inevitably have one of two reactions. First, it might think the real Han Liuyue has already climbed out.’

In that case, it would definitely come over to check for itself.

’Second, it might think I’ve already found the real Han Liuyue and am now lying.’

’Either way, I have to delay its reaction for as long as possible—at least until I’ve found the axe.’

"By the way," Jin Xueli said, continuing her search while trying to distract the Han Liuyue behind her with a question, "I wanted to ask you something."

"What is it?"

"On your way over, you checked the coffin, right?"

The coffin had rolled out of the excavator’s bucket and fallen in front of the pit.

She had been afraid of the ground collapsing further, so she had helped Han Liuyue walk a dozen or so meters away to sit on a tomb. To get there and back, one would have to pass the coffin.

Tonight was the first time Jin Xueli had met Han Liuyue, so she didn’t know her well. On the surface, she seemed quite carefree and reckless.

But she was, after all, someone even Chaisi considered "reliable."

A task as sensitive as digging up a grave, Chaisi had entrusted to only one person: Han Liuyue...

If someone told her that such a person, after an accident, would walk past the coffin without even a single glance, that would be truly suspicious.

"Oh, yeah," the Han Liuyue behind her said, as expected. "I went and checked."

’Of course... a Vulture transformed into Han Liuyue wouldn’t stumble on a detail like that.’

Inside the excavator, the real Han Liuyue was tightly covering her mouth, silent and unmoving.

As Jin Xueli’s hand brushed against her foot, she felt it move slightly, gently pushing her hand aside.

In that corner, Jin Xueli’s fingers touched a cold, heavy metal object.

"So?" she asked deliberately. "Is Vulture still inside the coffin?"

While waiting for the answer, she unconsciously held her breath.

"...Yeah, it’s still there," said the Han Liuyue behind her. "When I went to check, that thing was still begging me for mercy."

"Is that so," Jin Xueli exhaled. "That’s a relief."

The words were barely out of her mouth before she twisted her body, her arm swinging in a half-circle as the heavy axe in her hand smashed toward the figure behind her.

Her strength was no match for Han Liuyue’s, so her best chance of winning was to catch her opponent by surprise—

However, this axe swing, which she had been building up for a while, missed completely despite its shocking speed and force. It only managed to slice through a spray of raindrops in the air.

She hadn’t realized it when they were allies, but now, in a direct confrontation, she saw just how good Han Liuyue’s Body Techniques were. Vulture, transformed into Han Liuyue, was a perfect copy. In the instant before the axe struck, it had already dropped into a crouch, bracing its hands on the ground as it dodged.

It braced against the ground in order to—

Before Jin Xueli could even process what was happening, a leg swept out of the darkness and slammed deep into her calf.

’...Is that even the strength of a human leg?’

For an instant, the pain was so intense that Jin Xueli’s mind went blank.

She wasn’t skilled at close combat, and with the rain-slicked ground, the shot-put-like blow to her leg made her lose her balance completely. By the time she came to her senses, her shoulder had slammed hard into the dirt, and even her bones seemed to be buzzing from the impact.

’Right, the axe! I can’t let it get the axe.’

A jolt went through Jin Xueli as she realized that the axe had flown from her hand when she fell, landing several paces away.

She fought through the pain, about to roll over and grab the axe, but Han Liuyue took a step forward and swung a backhand at her. Just as Jin Xueli thought she was about to take a hit to the head, a blinding flashlight beam suddenly lit up in her face.

"What are you doing?"

Unable to open her eyes, she threw up an arm to block the light. Panicked and furious, she screamed without looking back, "Han Liuyue, what are you waiting for? Get out here and help!"

"Move your hand," the Han Liuyue in front of her suddenly ordered.

’...It doesn’t seem like it’s going to attack?’

Jin Xueli froze for a second, then lowered her arm.

’There’s no choice. I can’t beat her, and I’m still on the ground. I’ll just have to play it by ear.’

In the phone’s glow, Jin Xueli squinted and could vaguely see Han Liuyue standing before her, holding up a phone, its bright light covering Jin Xueli’s face.

She bent down, gripped Jin Xueli’s chin, and tilted it up.

’What is she doing?’

’What’s happening?’

"It’s not there..." the Han Liuyue in front of her said in a low voice. "I see. You saw the other Han Liuyue."