Rebellious Disciple! Was It You?

Plants vs. Zombies' Adventure Mode was not particularly large in scale.

For players from his previous life, even on their first try, they would probably only need seven or eight hours to clear it.

The cultivators of this world had simply had too little exposure to games.

Their instincts for using various items were somewhat lacking.

Lu Ze's Plants vs. Zombies had been released for an entire day, yet by evening, no one had cleared it.

Most disciples were stuck on Level 4.

The combination of nighttime, fog, and a pool had made the disciples suffer terribly.

Not only were the disciples not discouraged, they became more addicted the more they played.

Putting victory and defeat aside.

Watching Sunflowers throughout the Spirit Field continuously emit spiritual energy as the spiritual energy count in the upper-left corner steadily rose;

Peas, flying needles, and bubbles filling the screen as they relentlessly smashed into the invading zombies...

The satisfaction of building up like this was simply too easy to get hooked on.

Late at night.

Thunder Peak, Azure Cloud Pavilion.

"One more, one more... just one more hit!! It's down!!!"

"I! CLEARED IT!!!"

The entire pavilion shook in response.

The roar burst from within the pavilion with astonishing force, making the Barrier surrounding it tremble.

"Cough, cough, cough. That was unseemly, unseemly."

Zhong Yi happily exited the Illusion Realm and used a Spell to clean up the mess in the room.

He had just cleared the final level of Adventure Mode and had been so excited that his uninhibited roar had carried a trace of overflowing spiritual energy.

Fortunately, True Disciples lived alone, and a Barrier had been set up around the area. Otherwise, there would have inevitably been some minor disturbance.

"This Illusion Realm is truly too interesting... tsk, tsk!"

Zhong Yi savored every moment of clearing the level, still wanting more.

The final level had pitted him against the Demon God Zombie controlled by the demonic sect. The battle had been fraught with danger, and he had been instantly killed many times.

"Oh, right, Plants vs. Zombies seems to have a Forum too. I should go take a look!"

Zhong Yi suddenly remembered the Forum and hurriedly entered the Illusion Realm again.

Ever since Lu Ze had introduced the concept of a "Forum" in Demonic Path Escape, it had become immensely popular among the disciples.

It was an excellent place to exchange insights and share experiences.

As Nameless rose to the top of the rankings, the disciples discovered that they did not need to use their real names in the Illusion Realm. Giving themselves nicknames soon became a trend.

The disciples all became this-or-that Daoist, indulging in the thrill of being an expert for once.

This time, Lu Ze had put even more effort into the Forum's design. Its functions and user experience were even better than before.

At this moment, the Plants vs. Zombies Forum was exceptionally lively.

Most disciples were stuck on Level 3 or Level 4 and flocked to the Forum for help.

Fellow disciples, how should one deal with General Zombies after nightfall?

My spiritual energy is completely insufficient. How do you fellow Daoists always manage to fill the entire Spirit Field with spirit plants?

Help: How do I choose between Puff-shrooms and Scaredy-shrooms?

How do you deal with that zombie carrying a ladder? My Tall-Nuts become useless the moment it touches them!! (crying)

Level 4 is too difficult. Junior Brother Lu's design is a little inappropriate.

How exactly should one deal with the fog? If I bring a Fog-Clearing Card, my combat power is insufficient; if I do not, I keep getting ambushed...

Zhong Yi grinned as he read.

After scrolling through all kinds of posts, his fellow disciples' highest progress was still only Level 4.

Yet he had already cleared Adventure Mode!

A sense of superiority naturally welled up within him.

Previously, when browsing the Demonic Path Escape Forum, whenever battle strategies or solo running routes were mentioned, Zhong Yi's opinions were always mocked by everyone because of his record.

"What are your results?"

"Fellow Daoist, go run three thousand steps solo before coming back to discuss this."

"You call yourself a True Disciple? If you're a True Disciple, then I'm an Elder!"

"Cut the crap. If you don't accept it, come fight me."

Perhaps because they were using Online Aliases, some of the disciples' conversations had actually taken on a rare edge of hostility.

Sometimes, Zhong Yi got so angry that he even wanted to settle things in a Real-life Fight.

In Lu Ze's previous life, this was called "wanting to crawl through the internet cable and chop the guy up."

Unfortunately, he really was hopelessly clumsy at Demonic Path Escape. He had no way to refute them and could only suffer the humiliation in silence.

But this time, things were different!

When it came to Plants vs. Zombies, he was miles ahead of everyone else!

At last, it was his turn to show off...

Zhong Yi began replying to the posts one by one.

"Someone who just cleared it is telling you: don't listen to the person above. Cherry Bombs are too expensive, and Qi is scarce at night. Hypno-shrooms are the best way to deal with General Zombies."

"Here's a strategy I used all the way to the end: prioritize filling two columns with Sunflowers or Sun Mushrooms. Come beat me up if you lose."

"This is simple for someone who's already cleared it: they're all strong, but I personally prefer Puff-shrooms. They're a must-pick!"

"Advice from a player who cleared it: one Magnet-shroom solves a thousand worries. During the day, just add an Awakening Bean."

"As someone who has already cleared Level 5, I disagree: Junior Brother Lu's level design is perfectly reasonable. There's nothing wrong with it!"

"I've cleared it, so let me answer this: not bringing Lampweed into the fog level is abnormal."

With every sentence, Zhong Yi conspicuously tagged himself as a "player who had cleared the game," terrified that someone might not know.

Answering the posts one by one gave Zhong Yi a taste of the thrill of acting like a big shot online.

This felt far better than usually instructing his junior brothers in cultivation!

At first, quite a few disciples thought he was just bragging.

Especially when someone recognized his name. He was the "Keyboard Warrior" from Demonic Path Escape who had argued with others for hundreds of comments despite having abysmal results.

But as more and more disciples tested his advice and found it remarkably accurate, they began speaking up to clear Zhong Yi's name.

The disciples became curious about what Level 5 was like and what scene awaited them after clearing the game.

Seeing this, Zhong Yi simply created a separate guide post to share all kinds of tips and experience.

"If you want to clear the game, first build up your Qi. The key to clearing it is to prioritize planting two columns of Sunflowers or Qi Mushrooms! This is the most important thing!"

"The Wall-nut Brothers are especially useful. If there are Pole Vaulting Zombies and Pogo Zombies, you absolutely have to bring Tall-Nuts."

"Ice Peashooter is my favorite spirit plant. It's a must-pick."

"For night levels, put Puff-shrooms toward the front. Just treat them like demonic cultivators and be done with it."

"Remember the weaknesses of special zombies. You must bring spirit plants that counter them!"

"Cherry Bomb? I never bring such one-use spirit plants. The firepower of shooters and throwers is completely sufficient."

From the perspective of his previous life, Zhong Yi's advice had quite a few flaws.

But at this stage, for players tackling Adventure Mode, it was immensely valuable experience.

Everyone eagerly took his advice and began asking Zhong Yi what Level 5 was like.

"Actually, it's very simple. For me, it was even easier than Level 4."

"Level 5 has you fighting zombies on a rooftop, so Peashooters are almost unusable..."

"The new throwing spirit plants are very powerful, no weaker than shooters!"

"There's one called Watermelon Thrower. The watermelons it throws are like cannonballs—they can smash a whole group of zombies in one hit! It's incredibly fierce!"

"But the zombie side is also very strong. Later on, there's a Barbarian Zombie that nearly punched through one entire lane by itself. It was simply insane."

"The final level has you fight a Demon God Zombie as large as a small mountain."

"The Demon God Zombie is terrifying! It can lift a huge boulder and smash it down, instantly crushing a whole bunch of spirit plants! The battle is extremely perilous!"

"It probably looks something like this..."

Zhong Yi vividly described his experiences in Level 5.

Even though he had restarted Level 5 countless times, he described it with complete nonchalance.

Many disciples expressed their desire to witness the Demon God Zombie's appearance for themselves.

Due to technical limitations, Lu Ze was currently unable to create features like "screenshots" and "recordings."

However, the Forum did support manual drawing.

Zhong Yi happened to be highly skilled in painting and calligraphy, so he immediately picked up a brush and drew a sketch of the Demon God Zombie for his fellow disciples.

The disciples gasped in amazement, all declaring that they too would work hard and witness the might of the Demon God Zombie for themselves.

Zhong Yi felt immensely satisfied and logged out of the Forum.

"Ah, this illusion realm only has five stages. What a pity... It would be great if there were endless challenges!"

Zhong Yi muttered to himself.

Just then, he made a startling discovery—

Beneath Adventure Mode, the third option had suddenly become available.

The words displayed there were: Survival Mode.

"!!!"

Overjoyed, Zhong Yi hurriedly opened it.

It really was a new stage!

Just as he was about to enjoy himself.

An incomparably imposing voice suddenly rang out beside his ear: "You unfilial disciple!!!"

The furious roar made Zhong Yi jolt, and he hastily exited the illusion realm.

Sure enough, his master, Chao Wendao, was glaring at him in a rage.

"M-Master..."

Feeling guilty, Zhong Yi hurriedly tried to hide the Mini Illusion Tower in his sleeve.

But how could such a little movement escape Chao Wendao's notice?

Chao Wendao immediately grabbed his wrist, his tone stern. "So you really were playing Plants vs. Zombies!"

"I..."

Unable to defend himself, Zhong Yi replied with utmost sincerity:

"This disciple neglected his cultivation and admits his guilt! I merely felt that Junior Brother Lu was innocent and wanted to support him, so he would receive less punishment..."

"The Genius Cultivator on the Forum was you, wasn't it?!"

Zhong Yi had originally called himself Genius Cultivator Bad at Escape. Having been flattered by his fellow disciples just now, he had gotten carried away and simply changed his name to Genius Cultivator.

Faced with Chao Wendao's questioning, Zhong Yi was somewhat bewildered. "Y-Yes... it was this disciple."

"Come help your master figure out how to clear the third stage!"

"???"