Idle Cloud Villa, Floating Pavilion.
“Our Emotionless Sect has never been one to owe favors, nor are we inclined to do things for others... I fear you will all be disappointed.”
The white-haired, sharp-eyed old woman spoke with indifference as she looked at the Illusion Alliance members.
【Heart Demon】calmly took a pinkish-white crystal from his storage ring and placed it before the old woman.
“This is what your Emotionless Sect needs... the Tear Crystal of the Mortal World.”
【Heart Demon】 pushed the Tear Crystal forward.
The expressionless old woman’s eyes showed a rare flicker of emotion.
The Tear Crystal of the Mortal World.
It was formed from a highly cultivated master who, trapped by worldly ties, ultimately failed to ascend to immortality.
Within it lay the countless emotions and regrets of that master, making it an unparalleled treasure for cultivators specializing in the Path of Emotionlessness.
The old woman was named Guo Yunfeng, the supreme elder of the Emotionless Sect, who had long severed all seven emotions and six desires.
Naturally, she had no need for the Tear Crystal to aid her own cultivation and advancement, but the young woman beside her did.
“Is this the Tear Crystal of the Mortal World? If I refine it, can I break through to the Nascent Soul Stage?”
A sweet-faced young woman blinked curiously.
Her name was Liu Mengli, the contemporary saintess of the Emotionless Sect.
The Emotionless Sect cultivated through emotion, and the most difficult stage for them was the Nascent Soul Stage.
Liu Mengli’s unique constitution required the aid of the Tear Crystal; otherwise, her breakthrough would be several times harder than for other cultivators.
“Speak, then. What do you want?”
Elder Guo’s gaze returned to calm as she looked at 【Heart Demon】.
“Simple. Just two small favors,” 【Heart Demon】 said, raising two fingers.
“First, in regard to Lingxiao Sect’s Lu Ze’s illusion realm, no matter how well it is crafted... you, Elder Guo, must give it the worst possible evaluation.”
“Why should I, a judge of illusion realms, involve myself in your disputes with other illusion masters?” Guo Yunfeng asked, puzzled.
“Because the theme of the illusion realm is... emotion,” 【Heart Demon】 replied with a smile.
Before the exchange began, he had set up three levels for the challenges from low to high.
The first challenge was built around illusion realms, cutting off all approaches to other types.
But Lu Ze, with his brilliant creativity, cracked it with the board-game illusion realm “Slaughter Immortal Tower.”
The second challenge centered on secret realms, stepping entirely outside the illusion realm’s domain.
Unexpectedly, Lu Ze cleverly twisted an auction into a casino, solving it with “Auction King.”
The third challenge was 【Heart Demon】’s ultimate trump card—
A direct, impossible task!
“The condition for completing the third illusion challenge is making Elder Guo weep,” 【Heart Demon】 finished.
As soon as he spoke, Elder Guo snorted and cut in:
“Hmph, you don’t need to mention that. I’ll never shed a single tear.”
She found the demand utterly contemptible.
As the strongest figure in the Emotionless Sect, she had long since severed all seven emotions and six desires.
A mere illusion realm making her cry?
That was an insult to the Dao she cultivated!
If not for the Tear Crystal of the Mortal World, she would have left immediately upon hearing 【Heart Demon】’s third challenge!
“Of course... this challenge will not be cleared by anyone,” 【Heart Demon】 said with a grin.
That was why he was so confident.
With Guo Yunfeng present, nothing in this world could move her to tears.
So this challenge...
Was unsolvable!
Even Lu Ze couldn’t do it!
What made this move truly brilliant was that, since “emotion” was involved, Lu Ze might once again use the technique from “This Demon Isn’t So Cold.”
The very technique that could gather countless paths into one point!
This was the true goal behind 【Heart Demon】’s massive expense in hosting this exchange!
“And the second request?” Guo Yunfeng nodded, giving her tacit approval to the first condition.
After all, this was a trivial matter.
Any illusion realm about “emotion” was pretty mediocre in her view.
Not that she was being forced to weep within it...
Of course, making her cry was something even a knife at her throat couldn’t achieve.
“The second request is even simpler... just give a few compliments to the Illusion Alliance’s illusion realm.”
“Deal.”
...
...
Two days later.
The day the third challenge was announced.
At the shores of Idle Cloud Lake, even more people had gathered than before.
Besides cultivators, many royal heirs of the Great Qian Empire had joined.
Not long ago, the grand spectacle of “Auction King” had drawn widespread curiosity about the exchange, and many noble visitors came to witness Lu Ze’s Illusion realm.
However, the number of participants on the lakeside platform had noticeably dwindled.
First, because Lu Ze had won twice, and the others knew they had no chance, most had dispersed.
Second, because everyone sensed the challenges were becoming increasingly difficult.
Rather than embarrass themselves by failing a challenge in public, it was better to sit among the spectators and watch.
“Brother Lu, I think... the Illusion Alliance’s third challenge will be utterly insane,” Zhong Yi said, frowning.
The Illusion Alliance’s challenges were clearly aimed at Lu Ze.
By the second challenge, they had already stepped outside the illusion realm to use secret realms.
Who knew what outrageous methods the third challenge would demand?
“It’s fine. I said before, in their territory, the Illusion Alliance has the right to set the rules. But within the illusion realm, it’s my domain,” Lu Ze replied calmly, shaking his head with a faint smile.
Rather than guessing the challenge, he was more curious about why the Illusion Alliance had gone to such lengths to lure him to this in-person event.
Both previous challenges had been aimed precisely at him.
If it weren’t for the wisdom accumulated from billions of people across his previous life, he might have fallen into their trap.
It was clearly the work of the alliance leader, 【Heart Demon】.
Given 【Heart Demon】’s cunning, hadn’t he considered the possibility that Lu Ze might solve all the challenges?
Why would he still risk using the Primordial Soul Crystal as bait to tempt Lu Ze to come here in person and craft an illusion realm?
As Lu Ze mused, the figure of 【Rakshasa】 appeared.
Beside her stood the white-haired old woman, Guo Yunfeng.
“The third challenge is announced! The Supreme Elder of the Emotionless Sect, Elder Guo, will participate!”
“Elder Guo follows the Path of Emotionlessness but has stalled in her cultivation because no earthly emotions remain to refine...”
“Therefore, this challenge asks you all to design an illusion realm that allows Elder Guo to experience the presence of ‘emotion’!”
As she spoke,
Golden characters slowly appeared in the air.
【Challenge: Love】
【Duration: 7 days】
【Requirement: Move the Supreme Elder of the Emotionless Sect, Guo Yunfeng, to tears】
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.
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.
pression Bureau] Transported to a fantasy world overrun by demons and monsters, Gu Qingfeng becomes a jailer in the Demon Suppression Prison of the Great Yan Dynasty's Demon Suppression Bureau. From this point on, bizarre cases frequently occur in the Demon Suppression Prison, once known as hell on earth and infamous for its gloomy, terrifying atmosphere! Why do the demons and monsters in the prison wail miserably every night? Why has the corpse demon, capable of transforming into various beauties, donned black stockings and switched careers to become a foot massage therapist? Why has the eye demon, expert in soul-snatching and illusions, turned into a VR headset? Why is the fox spirit performing otaku dances? Are all these occurrences a twisted expression of demonic nature, or a descent into moral depravity? After peeling away layer upon layer of mystery, all clues ultimately point to a jailer named Gu Qingfeng. Gu Qingfeng: "Hehehe... My dear demons and monsters, whose card shall we flip today?"
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."
