Illusion Report

Chapter 164: Chapter 132: The Kai Family’s Video Record (3)

2026.11.20

12:09 PM

REC.

"Next up is Jin Xueli’s personal history."

The handheld camera that had been on the ground was picked up again by Han Liuyue. She held it steady, focusing on a smooth, glowing white candle.

Her voice spoke from off-camera, "...Vulture was cooperative enough to take on Jin Xueli’s appearance. I suppose it’s because of the Illusion on my face that it couldn’t identify me, so it couldn’t transform into me."

As she spoke, she turned the camera lens toward her own face.

Onscreen, Han Liuyue had a paper grocery bag over her head. Three holes had been cut out of the bag for her eyes and mouth.

Even she couldn’t help but chuckle, the eyes visible through the holes in the bag crinkling with laughter. "This look is a little strange."

The camera then returned to Vulture. It now had Jin Xueli’s appearance, but its expression, movements, and even its mannerisms didn’t look like Jin Xueli at all.

"For convenience, I had it retain one of its original body parts. So, while its exterior is Jin Xueli, its consciousness is still Vulture’s."

Han Liuyue said from off-camera, "However, Vulture told me that it’s only responsible for the transformation. It can’t guarantee that the candle will be able to show Jin Xueli’s entire history.

"The last time it had close contact with Jin Xueli was at the museum entrance. That means there was a gap of seven or eight hours between when it touched her and when it transformed into her.

"Vulture said that if too much time passes, it can’t transform. Even though it can transform now, the more distant the memories and history, the blurrier they become. This Vulture thing is more trouble than it’s worth."

"The least you could do is turn your back when you say that. Show me some respect. Or are you planning on not cooperating with me in the future?"

Han Liuyue ignored Vulture and continued speaking off-camera. "Because of that, unless it’s necessary, I don’t plan on watching from the day Jin Xueli was born.

"I believe the parts we need to pay attention to, the parts that are valuable to us, are mainly from after she became a Hunter. So I plan to watch backward from the present and record all the major events of her career as a Hunter."

"Are you filming a documentary?" Vulture asked impatiently. "Let’s get this over with and go our separate ways. You think I enjoy being led around by you like this?"

As it spoke, it walked toward the candle on its own. The rope tied around its neck, one end still in Han Liuyue’s hand, went taut in midair.

Following Han Liuyue’s command, Vulture placed its hand on the candle and then opened the fire trough.

Once again, the Candle Tears flowed slowly through the air, revealing another person’s life.

On the 20th and 19th, Jin Xueli had spent most of her time with Chaisi and Han Liuyue. Her moments alone were spent on trivial things like resting or eating.

On the 18th, Morando appeared in the scene.

That day, Jin Xueli contacted a man named Anthony.

When the two met at a bar, he seemed to have a faint premonition and refused to drink the soda first. But his instincts still couldn’t change his fate of turning into a puddle of grape-flavored soda.

Jin Xueli went home to get money, then summoned Morando. In "Between the Backlight," she learned that Chaisi was asking about Vulture.

"So this is where she found out the time and place of Jin Xueli’s meeting with Brother Chaisi," Han Liuyue said off-camera. "From the looks of it, Jin Xueli really isn’t one of them."

Whether Jin Xueli was truly unaware of the attack on the Kai Family, or if she was an inside mole planted in advance by Morando, was one of the questions Chaisi needed to answer.

"Next up seems to be the full account of how she met Vulture," Han Liuyue narrated, advancing the Candle Tears. "I’ll speed up the flow a bit. I just need to confirm she wasn’t lying during this part."

In the Candle Tears, the scenes of Jin Xueli playing hopscotch, hailing a taxi, and her life-and-death struggle with Vulture in the underground exhibition hall all matched what she had said.

"That one’s personality isn’t really suited for being a Hunter,"

As she watched, Han Liuyue couldn’t help but sigh. "Once you get past her initial defenses, it’s like she doesn’t know how to lie anymore."

She reached out again and advanced the Candle Tears. "This part is her experience entering the Nest on the night of the 16th... Ah, so her Path is to jump down from a tall building."

When Jin Xueli climbed over the railing and plummeted from the sky, the only sound in the recording was the wind from that night; even Han Liuyue’s breathing was inaudible. It wasn’t until she landed in the Nest and pushed herself up from a patch of darkness that Han Liuyue let out a breath.

"This must be her landing spot," she said curtly. "For some reason, Jin Xueli didn’t turn on the lights."

"That’s because you can’t," Vulture said unexpectedly. "I don’t remember the specifics clearly; you’d have to ask her. Anyway, I remember that if you turn on the light in that room, something bad happens. It’s actually safer in the dark. Counterintuitive, right? It’s precisely because people feel safe in the light that the thing in the room can harm them."

From within the dim, dark Candle Tears, only the rustling sounds of Jin Xueli’s movements could be heard. After a moment, a man’s voice sounded in the darkness.

"Welcome to Nest 173 Radio," the man’s voice said softly. "This is ’A Virtual Guide to the Infinite Illusion Realm.’ I’m your host."

"What’s this?" Han Liuyue immediately asked Vulture.

"We Nest dwellers can’t just spend all our time hunting you Hunters for fun, you know. We’ve got to do other things," Vulture said, jutting its chin toward the Candle Tears. "This is the show we listen to most often."

In the Candle Tears, Jin Xueli took out her phone but didn’t even dare to turn on the flashlight.

She held the phone in her mouth, using the faint light from the screen to spread a map of Blackmoor City on the floor. She then drew marks and wrote notes on it.

Because the room was so dark and her screen’s light was aimed only at the map, even with the Candle Tears, the image was too unclear to see what device Jin Xueli was using to listen to the program.

Despite the total darkness, Han Liuyue recorded the entire process.

"The next period is all about her life in Blackmoor City," Han Liuyue explained, scrolling through the Candle Tears. "It seems that radio broadcast brought her more than one Illusion. Even her apartment was the price a major client paid to buy an Illusion..."

Overall, for a few years before 2026, Jin Xueli was just an ordinary Illusion Hunter.

To an ordinary person, her experiences might have seemed like a fantasy novel. But to other Hunters, there was hardly anything worth recording.

The flow of the Candle Tears was adjusted, speeding up and slowing down depending on the content. Within the span of two hours, four years of Jin Xueli’s life had passed.

"I still haven’t seen what she did in her past," Han Liuyue said with a sigh. "The handheld camera is running out of battery."

In July 2020, under the pressure of daily life, Jin Xueli entered the Nest five times in a row.

The effects of "Nest Dissociation Syndrome" weren’t just about creating a distance from real life; the mental instability wouldn’t simply stabilize upon entering the Nest.

Jin Xueli’s mental state was already shaky. But in her search for an Illusion she could sell for money, she gritted her teeth and forced herself into the Nest one more time. It was because of this that she failed completely in that particular "local script."

"Those who lose have to accept their punishment, you know,"

A Nest dweller, whose upper face was a thick, single lens, smiled at Jin Xueli and said, "But you, little girl, you’re pretty lucky. You don’t have to die or go crazy. You just need to be cursed by me."

"...A curse?" Jin Xueli’s face went pale. She was afraid, yet couldn’t help but feel a sliver of hope. "What kind of curse? As long as I’m cursed by you, I can go home?"

"That’s right. Take a look." freeweɓnovel.cѳm

*Character Curse*

Miss Jin Xueli, congratulations!

Starting today, you are no longer just an ordinary human. On top of your previous identity, you have gained another. You’re a real mille-feuille now, hahahaha.

Your new identity is: A Novel Character

What does that mean?

Your daily life will remain unaffected. You can continue living just as before.

However, under this curse, while you are a person, you have also become a character in a novel.

Let’s assume this world is a novel, and you are a character living within it. Whether you know it or not, an unknown number of "audience" eyes are observing this world—and that includes you.

As a novel character, you naturally have a predetermined, unchangeable fate.

After being cursed by me, your fate is:

Regardless of the perspective from which the story unfolds, when the "audience" learns of the event you experienced in February 2017, you will die.

Incredible, isn’t it? Hard to understand, right? What on earth does it mean? freewebnσvel.cøm

As the person involved, you know best what you experienced and what you did in February 2017.

This is the biggest secret of your life, and you’d better make sure it stays a secret forever.

When the "audience" finally sees your secret, you will most certainly meet a deadly end.

So, how will the "audience" see your secret?

Think about it from the premise that "you live in a novel"!

For example, if you tell someone about your past—the "audience" will definitely know.

If someone digs into your past—the "audience" might find out too.

If someone tells you that he/she already knows your secret—the "audience" will naturally realize it at once.

In other words, as long as your secret appears as an "on-stage plot point," the audience will see it, and you will die, you know.

The safest method is to never let anyone else know, and to never speak of it yourself.

As long as you keep the audience in the dark, you can continue to live, Miss Jin Xueli.

PS: If your comprehension is a little poor, you might just die under the audience’s gaze before you even figure out what the curse means.

"Brother Chaisi,"

After a moment of silence, Han Liuyue’s voice suddenly called out from off-camera.

She fell silent for a few more seconds before finally saying, "...From the looks of it, the thing Jin Xueli can’t let the police find out about seems to have happened in February 2017."