The Era of the Great Illusion Arrives

What the remnant spirit of the Heavenly Dao needed and what Lu Ze sought were the same thing—

to make players die continuously and rapidly.

The remnant spirit of the Heavenly Dao didn’t believe Lu Ze could achieve this.

It had already deciphered every illusion realm Lu Ze had created.

The earliest ones, like "Escape from the Demon Sect" or "Plants vs. Zombies"?

Even now, disciples still played them with unending enthusiasm.

But as everyone’s skills improved, the time it took to die once…

Became far too long!

"Be a Cultivator and Descend 100 Floors," "Four Players, One Journey," "Climb for Survival"?

These three torment-style illusion realms were all about dying relentlessly at first, but once players either cleared them or quit, they rarely returned.

Not sustainable!

"Immortal Realm Domination" had lasting appeal, sure.

But a single match took nearly half an hour, and only one death occurred per round…

Too slow!

……

The remnant spirit of the Heavenly Dao reached a conclusion:

As cultivators kept dying in these illusion realms, either their enjoyment would wane, making them unwilling to continue,

or their skills would sharpen, drastically slowing their death rate.

No matter how you looked at it, there was no way to create an illusion realm where cultivators would keep dying endlessly while still having fun.

This was why the remnant spirit had always been skeptical of Lu Ze.

As for this problem, Lu Ze had long devised a solution—

Competitive online games!

Dying too slowly?

A single match on "Transport Ship" could rack up two hundred kills in ten minutes.

Getting bored after one playthrough?

Every match was a unique experience.

Too skilled to die easily?

There would always be players stronger than you.

Not to mention mechanisms like ELO or "Chicken Claw Flow" designed to screw you over…

……

In this world, only just beginning to be corrupted by games, Lu Ze couldn’t even imagine how devastating competitive modes would be.

The remnant spirit had given him a month.

Instead of rushing to create a new illusion realm, Lu Ze decided to work with what he already had.

Right now, "My World" was at its peak.

It was foreseeable that in the coming days, countless cultivators would flock to it, drawn by the legend of Zhao Wendao comprehending the Eighth Divine Thunder here, hoping to find their own path to enlightenment.

Capitalizing on this surge, releasing a simple, easy-to-learn competitive mode would be much faster than crafting an entirely new competitive illusion realm.

The mode Lu Ze chose was one from his past life called "Bed Wars."

Its blend of fun and competitiveness made it perfect for the current player base.

Considering that this world’s "My World" was built within an illusion realm, the basic combat mechanics of characters were more intricate than in his past life.

So, Lu Ze began tweaking "Bed Wars" to accommodate these differences.

In short, he expanded the combat options.

Otherwise, if the agile combat system of the characters followed the traditional "MC" combat style, the pacing would become unbearably slow.

……

……

Just as Lu Ze had anticipated.

The death of Ding Mingcang, backed by the sect leader’s decree, caused barely a ripple.

In contrast, Zhao Wendao’s breakthrough to the Eighth Divine Thunder in "My World" and Li Moran’s ascension sent shockwaves through the cultivation world.

Lu Ze’s illusion realms had already been widely popular among disciples of various sects, but they were still seen as trivial diversions.

Now, however, everything had changed.

Everyone regarded them as a new path to immortality!

Some sects even modified their artifact halls to require cultivators to channel spiritual energy while operating the illusion towers, effectively allowing them to cultivate under the nourishment of Heavenly Dao energy—doubling their progress with half the effort!

Overnight, "My World" became a sensation.

Countless cultivators poured into the illusion realms, seeking their own immortal destinies.

And thus,

the Great Illusion Era began.

……

……

A week after Ding Mingcang’s death.

Inside Zhong Yi’s illusion realm.

"Damn it!!! The Black Screen… again with the Black Screen!!!"

Zhou Yue’s agonized wails echoed through the voice channel.

"An entire backpack’s worth of spirit stones I just mined… gone!!!"

"Old Zhou, I envy how often you run into the Black Screen…"

Zhong Yi mused.

By his calculations, only one in ten thousand cultivators ever encountered the Black Screen.

Yet Zhou Yue had faced it three times in a single week.

It was hard to say whether he was lucky or cursed.

Personally, Zhong Yi was dying to see if the Black Screen was as terrifying as the rumors claimed…

"Senior Brother Zhou, didn’t you load your Blazing Lotus mod?"

Mu Yawen asked curiously.

Lately, mod research had become a focal point for countless cultivators.

A flood of mod-making guides had appeared on the forums.

The most popular mod at the moment was the "Spirit Plant Summoning" mod created by the elder of Danqing Peak in the Lingxiao Sect.

Wood-attribute cultivators could use it to summon spirit plants, pioneering a new summoning-based playstyle.

"I did… but I still got wrecked!"

Zhou Yue sighed.

He had put some effort into modding, successfully translating his Blazing Lotus technique into the game.

Though he hadn’t experienced a sudden enlightenment like Li Moran or Zhao Wendao,

he could feel subtle improvements in his cultivation.

However,

his Blazing Lotus Spirit Body was no match for the "Black Screen."

The opponent’s Obsidian Skill mod obliterated him without breaking a sweat.

"Old Zhou, how’d you research your mod? Share some tips!"

Zhong Yi asked eagerly.

He had also tried modding, hoping to bring his Great Dao Mantra into his world.

Alas, he failed.

Of course, the main reason was that he hadn’t put in enough effort.

All his focus had gone into redstone and villagers.

"Pfft. Your ‘Crow’s Mouth’ doesn’t need modding—it’s already in the game."

Zhou Yue snorted, ruthlessly mocking him.

"Nonsense! What Crow’s Mouth? Stop blaming me for things with no causal connection!"

Zhong Yi fumed.

He didn’t know why, but ever since playing Lu Ze’s illusion realms,

his spiritual root had grown stronger,

yet its direction seemed…

a little off.

"I feel like the mods we create are fun, but they never really come together…"

Zhou Yue suddenly lamented.

While mods undeniably enriched the "My World" experience,

once they slaughtered every monster and maxed out their cultivation realms, things inevitably grew dull.

"Junior Brother Lu once said this illusion realm had infinite creativity… I wonder when he’ll show us what he meant."

Just then.

An announcement appeared before every cultivator’s eyes:

["My World" Update Notice:]

[1. New mode "Bed Wars" is now available. Participate to earn exclusive "Three Kingdoms Kill" skins.]

[2. Mod Marketplace is now live. Cultivators can share/sell their mods here.]

[3. This update removes the "Black Screen."]