"You're saying even a Divine Transformation cultivator can have all their spiritual energy drained by an illusion?"
Ding Mingcang stood with a golden Sect Leader Token hovering behind him, the purple runestone at its center transmitting the sect leader's voice.
"Absolutely true! This happened just three days ago... Nearly a thousand cultivators in our sect had their energy siphoned at once! If not for my timely intervention, it could have been disastrous!"
Ding Mingcang exaggerated the situation.
"Even so, Elder Zhao didn’t destroy the illusion?"
"No. He didn’t even apprehend its creator for punishment."
"Outrageous!"
Above the Sect Leader Token, the furious visage of the sect leader materialized as a spectral projection.
In his view, what kind of illusion could drain a Divine Transformation cultivator’s energy?
This had to be the work of demons!
"Elder Ding, I order you to take me on an inspection of every peak in Lingxiao Sect immediately."
"If your words hold true..."
"The creator of this illusion—execute them!"
"As for Zhao Wendao, strip him of his elder rank and banish him to the Demon-Suppressing Prison to guard its gates. He shall not leave for five hundred years!"
Hearing the sect leader’s decree, Ding Mingcang was overjoyed:
"Ding obeys your command!"
......
Ding Mingcang first brought the sect leader to his own peak, Linxian Peak.
To his surprise, several inner disciples he encountered at the training hall atop the peak were diligently cultivating.
This was unexpected—he had specifically given Linxian Peak a break.
Ding Mingcang knew his disciples secretly indulged in the Illusion Tower, so he had relaxed restrictions these past few days.
All so the sect leader would see more disciples addicted to it.
"This doesn’t seem to match your description?"
The sect leader’s anger subsided slightly.
He had expected the entire sect to be neglecting cultivation, lost in illusions.
Yet the first thing he saw was a group of Golden Core disciples training fervently.
It was reassuring.
Ding Mingcang’s eyes darted, and he quickly laughed. "Disciples of Linxian Peak have always prioritized cultivation—no other peak compares!"
"What are they discussing? Let me hear."
The sect leader noticed the disciples communicating via divine sense and grew curious.
In his current spectral form, he couldn’t cast spells himself.
Ding Mingcang swiftly formed a hand seal.
Instantly, the disciples’ divine sense chatter became audible to both of them.
"Hurry! Break through to Nascent Soul and you can enable [Ray Tracing] in My World!"
"[Ray Tracing]... ah, [Ray Tracing]... this is a cultivator’s glory!"
"Remember, there are only two kinds of cultivators in this world—those who can enable [Ray Tracing], and those who can’t!"
"Fellow Daoist speaks truth... Without [Ray Tracing], what difference is there between Golden Core and Qi Refinement!?"
"Train! Train!"
"I want to play My World so badly... Must resist!"
......
Ding Mingcang and the sect leader were both stunned.
The terms My World and [Ray Tracing] had already been explained to the sect leader on the way here.
But to think...
They had become the disciples’ motivation to cultivate?
"This... doesn’t seem entirely harmful?"
The sect leader had never encountered such a situation.
Though their goals were skewed, the outcome appeared positive.
"Sect Leader, you misunderstand... These disciples only aim for Nascent Soul, but what after? Will they lose all drive?"
Seeing the sect leader waver, Ding Mingcang pressed on.
"Besides, Linxian Peak has always been the most disciplined—other peaks aren’t like this!"
The sect leader nodded. "In that case... let’s inspect the others."
......
Ding Mingcang concealed his presence and began inspecting each peak.
This was My World’s peak popularity period, and rumors spread among disciples that the illusions could purify their spiritual energy.
Everywhere they went, disciples were engrossed in illusions.
If these were truly cultivation aids, it might have been tolerable.
But seeing the disciples grinning, faces flushed with delight—even though the sect leader had never entered the illusions, he knew they were for entertainment.
Peak after peak, the inspection continued.
The sect leader’s fury grew with each one.
Before his seclusion, Lingxiao Sect’s cultivation atmosphere had been impeccable.
Disciples took joy in the Dao, revered the strong.
Now?
From Divine Transformation down to Qi Refinement—all addicted to illusions!
The few cultivators they saw were mostly late-stage Golden Core disciples desperate to reach Nascent Soul... just to enable that accursed [Ray Tracing]!
Worse, the sect leader repeatedly witnessed high-realm disciples being surpassed by lower-realm ones in the illusions—
And the former even praised the latter!
Even the elders, once devoted to Dao debates, were gathered in a room playing some game called Three Kingdoms Kill!
Was this still the Lingxiao Sect he knew?
Rage swelled within him.
As a late-stage Unity Realm cultivator, even his divine sense radiated terrifying energy fluctuations.
"Who dares corrupt my Lingxiao Sect!?"
Seeing this, Ding Mingcang rejoiced inwardly.
"Reporting to the Sect Leader! The culprit is an inner disciple of Lihuo Peak—named Lu Ze!"
"Bring him to me."
"Yes!"
......
......
Zhong Yi’s illusion world.
For once, Zhong Yi wasn’t tormenting villagers in the settlement. Instead, he rode a Darkflame Horse, exploring the wilderness.
"Strange, no sign of ‘Black Curtain’ here... Were those forum posts lies?"
After wandering the desert’s edge for hours, Zhong Yi sighed.
Recently, several forum threads described encounters with a mysterious figure called "Black Curtain."
Every account was the same: a blue-clad, buzzcut character standing motionless, back turned.
No response to calls or attacks.
But upon approach, it would suddenly spin around, revealing a face with hollow eyes and a grotesque grin—
Then the player would instantly die, their gear devoured by the void.
Zhong Yi loved such oddities.
Following the threads’ clues, he scoured every reported "Black Curtain" location.
Yet found nothing.
Just then, the floating chat messages multiplied.
[Senior Brother Zhong, stop playing! Disaster’s struck!]
[Elder Ding took the Sect Leader to confront Junior Brother Lu!!]
[The Illusion Tower might be banned after this...]
[The Sect Leader’s furious!]
[True Disciple Zhong, quit the game and cultivate!]
......
The moment Zhong Yi read the messages, dread gripped him.
He roared into the party voice channel:
"Emergency—Junior Brother Lu’s in trouble!"
......
......
Lihuo Peak, Spirit Jade Pavilion.
With [Ray Tracing]’s burden greatly reduced, the Heavenly Fragment’s main world was no longer barren.
Lu Ze had built a Demon Castle in his past life’s style.
The Heavenly Fragment adored it.
"That kid’s a born demon..."
After reading forum posts about "Black Curtain," Lu Ze reached this conclusion.
The scare tactics weren’t his idea—the Heavenly Fragment had devised them alone.
It looked exactly like the urban legend of HIM from his past life.
"So, isn't the development difficulty of that mod a bit too high?" Lu Ze asked.
"Hmph, if you can't even handle this level of difficulty, you're worse than an ant," the remnant spirit of the Heavenly Dao sneered.
When it came to the laws of the world, the remnant spirit of the Heavenly Dao was a born top-tier powerhouse.
Building upon the mod rules Lu Ze had specified, it integrated principles inherited from Minecraft.
Cultivators who wanted to develop new mods had to operate within the logic of these laws.
As a result, the more advanced the mod, the harder it was to create.
"Whatever, this isn’t so bad," Lu Ze shrugged.
So far, he hadn’t seen anyone successfully develop a mod.
But from what he knew, Zhao Wendao seemed deeply engrossed in it.
Though the difficulty had increased, it would attract higher-level cultivators—a decent outcome.
"By the way, what you mentioned last time—"
The remnant spirit of the Heavenly Dao was about to ask Lu Ze about the progress of the new mode.
Then, without any warning,
Lu Ze’s figure vanished from its main world.
s the Eldest Princess, renowned for her cold and aloof detachment, became the most docile of lambs, obeying his every command without question. But when the final move was played on the chessboard, as Gu Chenghan seized everything and ascended on the verge of apotheosis, that very Princess suddenly embraced him from behind, her tone carrying a dependence never heard before: "Wait... you haven't yet... commanded me to love you forever." Gu Chenghan froze abruptly. She... hadn't been hypnotized?! ... [The Eldest Princess's Diary] [When my soul was extracted, becoming the sole spectator outside my own shell] [At first, there was overwhelming fury, until I saw] [How he used my sword to effortlessly shatter my inescapable doom] [How he wielded my authority to eradicate fatal conspiracies I had never even detected] [Like a deity, he rescued me from the deep mire I was trapped in] [If not for those annoying vixens, he and I would be a match made in heaven] [I think I am ill, gravely ill] [My deity should belong to me alone] ... "Hypnosis? Oh, it succeeded, my dear Master." "Only this time, it's my turn to hypnotize you."
nd fell into a coma while saving his younger sister from an out-of-control car. He became a vegetable. No one knew that his consciousness had crossed into a world of cultivation. Over the course of sixty years, he began as the lowest kind of mine slave, struggling to survive amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood. By sheer chance, he eventually obtained the complete memories of a fallen Immortal King. Alchemy, medicine, formations, feng shui, physiognomy, artifact forging… Every great inheritance of the cultivation world was now his. But when he opened his eyes again, he discovered that ten full years had passed in the modern world. To pay for his treatment, his father had sold the family’s shop and house, leaving himself covered in lasting injuries and illness. His mother had cared for him day and night, and more than half of her hair had already turned white. His younger sister, who had been only fifteen back then, was now twenty-five. To help repay the family’s debts, she had been forced to lower her head and put on a smiling face in places of glittering lights and endless revelry. Only then did Chen Xuan understand that what he had lost was not merely ten years. He had lost the life his entire family was meant to have. The good news was that he had brought back the memories of an Immortal King’s entire lifetime. The bad news was that his soul had returned alone—his cultivation had not come with him. Spiritual energy was scarce, resources were depleted, and the modern world still had firearms, surveillance, capital, and laws. If he wanted to protect his family, break free from everyone’s control, and become truly invincible beneath the heavens, he would have to start all over again.
or! A blessing for those who struggle with love, a guidebook for dating novices. Quickly match with your dream goddess! Complete walkthroughs earn rewards, and perfect walkthroughs unlock limited achievements!】 Shen Yi, an ordinary office worker, accidentally downloads a mini-game called Dating Simulator. The mini-game is simple: randomly search for dating targets, simulate dates, and receive rewards upon successful confession. Rewards include but are not limited to money, attributes, and skills. The higher the evaluation, the better the rewards, with perfect ratings unlocking mysterious achievements. Shen Yi plans to use this mysterious mini-game to continuously pursue targets and improve himself, making his life better and better. ...... However, after several successful walkthroughs, Shen Yi suddenly notices something strange - the targets he previously simulated dating seem to be searching for him in real life?
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
