The second stage concluded, and a total of six teams advanced.
The excitement surrounding the matches grew day by day. By the day of the finals, even before the competition began, the number of viewers in the Heavenly Dao livestream had already surpassed 300,000.
Unlike the previous two stages, all six teams competed in the same arena. As a result, all spectators gathered in a single viewing area.
The arena at this point was immense, packed with crowds bustling with energy, a magnificent and lively sight.
In a corner of the casual cultivators' viewing section.
"The match is about to start, friend, aren't you going to place a bet?"
"What bet?"
"Ah, you haven't heard! A few days ago, a new illusion realm opened up specifically for gambling! I bet on Spirit Soaring Sect to come first a few days back, and I made a tidy profit in spirit stones!"
"Bet on Spirit Soaring Sect to come first? Who would bet on other teams... Is there even any profit in that?"
"Well, there are always fools in this world... A little profit is still profit, friend, don't scoff at it!"
"True enough... What's this illusion realm called? I'll go place a bet too!"
...
The masked Blood Crow and Rakshasa exchanged bewildered glances.
"Was that a plant you arranged?"
"No, not at all..."
They stared at each other in confusion.
Their original plan had been to arrive early and spread word about this gambling illusion realm to others.
Unexpectedly, someone else had already done the job...
And more than one person at that?
"How strange... Has the cultivation world suddenly become so generous?"
Rakshasa rubbed his chin, muttering to himself.
Normally, people would quietly rake in the profits. Why would they recruit others to bet alongside them?
Rakshasa and Blood Crow had a reason for wanting to do this.
But what were these people, seemingly acting out of goodwill, trying to achieve?
Were they asking others to siphon away their own wealth?
"No idea."
Blood Crow shook his head, his eyes still filled with resentment.
"You say... this time we'll definitely turn things around. You're not fooling me, are you?"
"Wouldn't dare, wouldn't dare!"
Rakshasa quickly waved his hands.
The last time the two were defeated by Lu Ze, Blood Crow had squandered his entire fortune left him destitute.
If not for the Heart Demon's intervention, Rakshasa would have already been slain by Blood Crow.
Now, Blood Crow hounded Rakshasa for repayment every single day.
Rakshasa's own meager savings couldn't compare to Blood Crow's, and even if he threw in everything he had, it still wouldn't be enough.
But he quickly found an opportunity:
The newly opened gambling illusion realm.
Everyone knew that whichever team Li Moran was on had a high chance of winning. Add to that another top expert, Zhou Yue, as a teammate. With two elite fighters backing them, victory was practically assured.
Finishing first in the second stage was the best proof.
Aside from gamblers who had lost everything and were desperate, almost no one would bet on any other team to take the top spot.
However, Rakshasa and Blood Crow had insider information known only to the Illusion Alliance's elders:
The Alliance Leader's improved Ten Directions Spirit-Lowering Formation was complete. They had already found three casual cultivators capable of lighting the spirit lamps. The strongest among them could already light up to the ninth lamp!
This meant that even the formidable duo Li Moran and Zhou Yue would be no match!
The first-place winner would undoubtedly be Twilight's End!
Rakshasa came up with a plan for Blood Crow:
With the odds at their peak, if they bet everything they had on Twilight's End, they could make a massive comeback in one go and recoup all their previous losses!
"Can... can it really work?"
Having already endured one devastating bankruptcy, Blood Crow hesitated.
"Why wouldn't it? Do you not trust the Alliance Leader's methods? Li Moran and Zhou Yue are absolutely no match!"
Rakshasa swore with confidence.
"But there's still Lu Ze..."
Before Blood Crow could finish, Rakshasa interrupted.
"Lu Ze? Elder Blood Crow must not have been paying any attention to the matches at all! Lu Ze has no real strength—he only uses cheap tricks. There's no need to fear him!"
Then he added.
"The Alliance Leader said that once the sixth spirit lamp is lit, whether someone tries to strike from behind or attack from the back, they'll be detected in advance... That Lu Ze kid is nothing to worry about!"
Blood Crow thought it over, recalling the Alliance Leader's various methods, and finally gritted his teeth:
"Fine. Let's go right now and bet everything we have on Twilight's End!"
...
...
At the Spirit Soaring Sect.
Zhou Yue and Li Moran were preparing for battle in Lu Ze's Spirit Jade Pavilion, currently training with their spears in the illusion realm.
"How strange..."
Lu Ze, who was idling, suddenly furrowed his brows and muttered to himself.
"What's wrong, Junior Brother Lu?"
Zhou Yue asked curiously.
"Nothing."
Lu Ze shook his head, then added.
"Senior Brother Zhou, do you know anything about the origins of those people in Twilight's End?"
"Not really. I heard they're three casual cultivators taking on protection jobs. Why the sudden interest?"
Zhou Yue answered while replenishing his supplies.
Lu Ze said, "No particular reason. They seem quite capable. Be careful during the match later."
Zhou Yue chuckled heartily. "Haha, don't worry, Junior Brother Lu. With Li Moran and me here, we won't miss a beat."
Li Moran frowned slightly.
She glanced at Lu Ze, sensing that he had picked up on something.
Lu Ze offered a smile in return, saying nothing more. Li Moran didn't press the matter.
At that moment, Lu Ze's divine sense was focused on another illusion realm called the Las Vegas Gambling House.
This was an illusion he had created under an anonymous identity.
As the stakes in the Heavenly Dao matches grew higher and higher, it was only a matter of time before someone set up a gambling den in the illusion realm. Lu Ze decided to strike first and claim the gambling house for himself. After all, no one would complain about earning more spirit stones.
He had arranged several plants today to promote the gambling illusion realm across different locations, aiming to increase the user base and rake in more commissions.
But then...
Just before the match was about to start, a large influx of spirit stones was suddenly wagered on the team Twilight's End!
This set off alarm bells for Lu Ze.
No one would be foolish enough to throw so much money away.
Desperate gamblers who had lost everything wouldn't have that many spirit stones...
There could only be one explanation.
The bettor was utterly convinced that Twilight's End would win!
The prizes offered by the Heavenly Dao remnant spirit were indeed generous, enough to make everyone's eyes red with greed.
It wouldn't be surprising if all kinds of tactics were used.
Lu Ze had a nagging feeling.
The team Twilight's End might not be as easy to deal with as it seemed.
...
...
Before their training match had finished, the competition was already entering the preparation phase.
The three quickly exited the match and entered the Heavenly Dao tournament mode.
The finals featured six teams.
Each team started with an initial fund of five million, with the first and second place teams receiving an additional two million and one million respectively.
"We start with seven million—enough for all three of us to gear up fully."
Zhou Yue felt a sense of relief seeing such a healthy budget.
"For the first round, let's test the waters with tier-four equipment."
Lu Ze smiled and offered his suggestion.
"Since the map is Buckle, with not many long-range scenarios, a single gun should suffice... what do you think?"
Li Moran looked at Lu Ze in surprise.
This was the first time since joining the team that Lu Ze had given strategic advice before a fight.
Without overthinking, she nodded.
"Tier-four armor with a single gun? That cautious?"
Zhou Yue was shocked, tossing a set of tier-five armor he had just bought into storage, and agreed.
"Alright, we'll do as Junior Brother Lu says. Huh? Junior Brother Lu, you're going with tier-five gear?"
"Those five sets are for the two of you."
Lu Ze yawned.
"For this round, I'll blast myself the moment I land to test you all... Don't let me down."
"Damn! What kind of talk is that? Us both dying counts as our explosion dealing damage, alright!"
Zhou Yue thumped his chest, speaking with confidence.
Lu Ze blinked, vaguely feeling as if the other guy had been possessed by Zhong Yi's spirit...
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."
ive and Ruthless] Before his transmigration, Ye Xuan was playing a game called "Severing Emotions to Attain the Dao." The game's core wasn't about leveling up by fighting monsters, but about conquering various "bad women" with wicked personalities and cold, fickle natures. There was only one method to conquer them: stay unwaveringly by their side, then die at a critical moment, driving them to madness after losing the protagonist. The higher their level of regret, the higher the player's score. To dominate the server, Ye Xuan conquered all the bad women. In the early stages, he showered them with boundless tenderness, only to choose to sacrifice himself for them later, making them weep bitterly and drown in regret. Among them were: Xia Lengyue, the unfaithful immortal wife who chased after powerful men and discarded her husband like trash. Ye Qingcheng, the Demonic Venerable of the Joyous Union Sect, who appeared pure and innocent but was, in reality, promiscuous. Wu Lingxiao, the Empress of the Great Xia Dynasty, who lusted after men and loved maintaining a harem. Bai Qiangu of the Endless Demonic Sect: a bloodthirsty mass murderer. However, when the protagonist transmigrated into the game world, he made a horrifying discovery. Eight hundred years had already passed. The bad women he had conquered had now each become deities and revered ancestors. Faced with the endless stream of toxic women coming for him, Ye Xuan could only rely on his god-tier acting skills to carve a path of survival through this world of treacherous women.
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.
rowess are unmatched, commanding a million-strong army! Yet, the Emperor wants to depose him for the sake of a false prince? Hold on, are you throwing me into some female-oriented romance plot? How can I tolerate this? With a grand wave of his hand—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! Slander the Emperor? Very well, all of you shall die! ... The False Prince: "Although I am not the biological son, Father and Mother love me more. The throne should be mine!" The Female Lead: "Qin Xiao, you are the Emperor, and I am a commoner. If you wish to marry me, you must abdicate. Otherwise, you will never have me!" The Empress: "After we divorce, you must give me half the empire!" The Transmigrator Consort: "You worthless Emperor, why should I kneel to you? All men are equal—I advise you to be kind!" The Great General: "The enemy general is my childhood sweetheart. For her sake, I willingly abandon the frontier defenses!" The Retired Emperor: "Although Yu'er was adopted, I prefer him. Qin Xiao, you should abdicate and let him become Emperor!" ... Very well! So this is how you want to play? Facing this twisted world of female-oriented tropes, Qin Xiao grins and raises his hand to unleash—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! I am the Emperor. Why would I bother reasoning with you? Seal the gates! Leave none alive!
