What You Sow, You Reap

Zhong Yi's livestream.

"Go to the lunar realm?"

Zhong Yi looked at his senior sister Qin Li'en behind him with a stunned expression.

"Why are you looking at me... I can't read minds."

Qin Li'en rolled her eyes at him, not holding back her sarcasm.

In Lu Ze's original version from his past life, the game was a pixel game, and players progressed through the story following the perspectives of a male and female researcher. After modifying it to first-person perspective, it couldn't be made that way naturally, so Lu Ze made a bold adjustment.

Each player would always have a senior brother or sister of the opposite gender, whose personality would complement the player's. At this moment, Zhong Yi was a talkative junior disciple, while his partner had become a sharp-tongued, outwardly cold but inwardly warm, reliable senior sister.

This design, similar to the male and female researchers with contrasting personalities from the original version, ensured that as the story progressed, players wouldn't feel too lonely or bored.

"Damn it! Is this what Junior Brother Lu thinks love is?!" Zhong Yi grumbled inwardly.

He also felt that Qin Li'en was the romantic interest Lu Ze had arranged for him.

"I miss Sudi'er... Ah!"

Zhong Yi let out a sigh.

At that moment, a new piece of information appeared in his notebook: [Lunar Realm: The celestial domain where the moon resides]

"Do you know why your master wants to go to the lunar realm?"

Qin Li'en asked.

"I don't know... The master always liked to gaze at the moon under the lighthouse, watching until midnight. That's all I know."

Chen Lili thought hard for a moment before answering.

"Not knowing the reason makes things difficult..."

Qin Li'en nibbled on her finger, looking troubled.

"Can you tell me more about your master?"

Chen Lili sighed: "I've cared for the master for two years now. He's truly a kind man... but also a strange one. He speaks very little, and I dare not ask too much."

"The master used to be a carpenter; this old mansion was entirely built by his hands..."

"Oh, and the master had a wife who passed away not long before I came here..."

"Aside from that, I really don't know much. I only know the master is truly a good person."

Hearing this, Zhong Yi couldn't help but complain: "Listening to you is like not listening at all... Absolutely no useful information!"

Qin Li'en shot him a glare: "Shut up and do your job!"

Chen Lili looked somewhat embarrassed: "I'm terribly sorry, honored immortals. I really don't know much. Perhaps you could take a look around the old mansion; you might find letters or notes left by the master?"

"Mm, I suppose we'll have to do that."

Qin Li'en nodded and turned to Zhong Yi.

"Junior Brother Zhong, do you remember the key to my dream-weaving formation?"

"What is it?"

"...I'm asking you!"

Qin Li'en pressed her forehead, then explained to Zhong Yi.

"Our Dream-Weaving Sect's techniques don't create something out of nothing; we must plant causes to reap results..."

"If we want to realize the 'result' of the master going to the lunar realm, we must plant the 'cause' that makes him want to go."

"So we must first figure out why the master wants to go to the lunar realm, so that the 'cause' can be accepted by him personally."

After listening to Qin Li'en's explanation, Zhong Yi nodded thoughtfully.

"This technique may be rough, but the theory has some merit... As expected of Junior Brother Lu."

"I'll stay here to set up the artifacts. You go search the old mansion for clues—the more, the better."

Qin Li'en tucked a strand of hair behind her ear as she spoke to Zhong Yi.

As her words fell, the main quest in the upper right corner of Zhong Yi's vision updated:

[Main Quest Updated:]

[Go to the old mansion's surroundings and gather clues about "Gu Yun"]

"Got it!"

Zhong Yi agreed with a smile and was about to step out of the room when the Divine Doctor called him back.

"Wait! Please take this!"

Wen Yaoxin handed over a half-black, half-white Gu worm, which was steadily emitting a rhythmic "beep-beep" sound.

Zhong Yi was curious: "What's this?"

"A Twin-Life Gu worm... It can sense the condition of the Heartstrong Gu within the master."

Wen Yaoxin explained.

"Its chirping matches the master's heartbeat..."

"The white part represents the master's remaining time. If the Twin-Life Gu turns completely black, then the master will soon pass away."

"Take it with you, so you'll know the master's condition. I'll watch over him here, so I won't need it for now."

Zhong Yi took the Twin-Life Gu worm and watched as its black color slowly crept upward, its "beep-beep" cries lingering endlessly.

[Twin-Life Gu: Can sense the host's fading life force (Remaining lifespan: 1 day and 7 hours)]

"The master is truly a pitiful man..."

Zhong Yi sighed, stored the Twin-Life Gu in his backpack, and headed downstairs.

Following the quest's guidance, Zhong Yi arrived downstairs.

Chen Lili's two children were playing the strings of an instrument together.

It was a melody Zhong Yi had never heard before.

Melodious, graceful, yet carrying an indescribable hint of sorrow.

"Strange, this melody feels almost magical... Not only does it make my nose sting, but now everything in this mansion seems fascinating to me..."

Zhong Yi muttered to himself while stroking his chin.

It was odd, but not unpleasant.

Watching the livestream from his end, Lu Ze blinked in surprise: "Senior Brother Zhong is quite sharp!"

The song concealed a hidden secret.

The Fear-Soul Heartbinding Formation.

This was a profound technique he had obtained from the system a long time ago.

It could ignore cultivation levels and sway a cultivator's emotions.

The BGM of To the Moon was already a tearjerking masterpiece, and with the enhancement of the Fear-Soul Heartbinding Formation, its emotional influence became even more potent.

Considering that their target was an emotionless elder from the Heartless Sect, Lu Ze didn't bet everything on guiding love or grief.

When the BGM played, the cultivators' melancholy came from the music itself.

The Fear-Soul Heartbinding Formation guided instead—

Curiosity. The desire to explore.

Once Guo Yunfeng began actively seeking the truth under this influence, he would naturally immerse himself in the storyline.

With his psychological defenses lowered, Lu Ze could then use the formation to steer emotions toward sorrow.

If, after this combination of tactics, Guo Yunfeng still managed to remain calm...

Then Lu Ze would have no choice but to call upon the remnants of the Heavenly Dao.

After all, the Illusion Alliance had been unjust first; this couldn't be considered improper on his part.

As for the reward...

He was already prepared.

[[To the Moon] is a frequent guest in game novels.]

[But... I should be the first to adapt it into a cultivation story, give it a magical twist, and make it reasonably fitting.]

[Those of you following the updates are also the first to witness the cultivation version of To the Moon. I hope fate can be defied, and that both the story and its readers can overcome hardship.]