It Can Actually Be Used for Battle?

When Xiao Hongzhi returned to his residence, it was already night.

Following his usual routine, he sat cross-legged on the bed and began cultivating his Cultivation Method.

He had only completed one minor circulation when he felt an unbearable restlessness in his heart.

"No! I really can't accept losing to a Qi Refining cultivator!"

Xiao Hongzhi stopped circulating his spiritual energy and punched his thigh.

"If this knot in my heart isn't untied, it may become a mental barrier in the future... Today, I must break it!"

He still could not let go of losing to Zhang Ming.

How could a Golden Core Stage cultivator possibly lose to a Qi Refining Stage cultivator?

Xiao Hongzhi, who had always refused to yield, took out the Mini Illusion Tower and the Illusion Crystal Stone he had bought from Lu Ze from his Storage Ring.

"A quarter of an hour... No! Half a quarter of an hour!"

"As long as I survive for half a quarter of an hour, that will be enough to surpass Junior Brother Zhang's record."

"That way, there definitely won't be any delay!"

Xiao Hongzhi nodded and poured spiritual energy into the Illusion Tower, beginning to play "Demonic Path Escape."

"Cock-a-doodle-doo~"

A loud rooster's crow rang out from the summit of Ten Thousand Beasts Peak.

That meant dawn had arrived.

Xiao Hongzhi withdrew from "Demonic Path Escape." Looking at the sunlight outside the window, he felt somewhat dazed.

One round of "Demonic Path Escape" only lasted half a quarter of an hour.

How had it suddenly become daylight?

He had clearly only played for... no, only cultivated for a short while...

Most importantly, he still had not surpassed Zhang Ming's record.

"What a sin, what a sin..."

Feeling that his sins were grave, Xiao Hongzhi muttered the words again and again.

There was now less than half an hour left before he had to attend class.

As a Golden Core Stage cultivator, staying awake for a night had no effect on him.

But after missing an entire night of cultivation, he felt as though he had lost a whole day's worth of progress.

"Sigh, I can't do anything in this half hour anyway... I might as well continue the Trial, surpass Junior Brother Zhang as soon as possible, and finally untie this knot in my heart."

He entered "Demonic Path Escape" once more.

Artifact Forging Hall, Training Hall.

Lu Ze rubbed his eyes as he walked out of the central control room.

He had not rested last night either.

After seeing the sect disciples' enthusiasm for playing "Demonic Path Escape" yesterday, he felt that the difficulty was still lacking.

So he spent the entire night drastically increasing the difficulty after three thousand steps.

He also added two new functions: Battle Function and Forum.

If it were only a single-player experience, then even with a Leaderboard, the disciples would inevitably grow bored over time.

But adding the Battle Function was different.

Once people started competing against one another, it was far more intense than a Leaderboard.

However, with his current technical capabilities, Lu Ze could only make face-to-face challenges possible.

For the current situation, that was enough.

The moment he stepped out of the central control room, he discovered a group of Outer Disciples playing "Demonic Path Escape" with bright, energetic expressions.

Quite a few Inner Disciples had also spent the entire night playing here.

It was not that they could not afford Mini Illusion Towers, but that the atmosphere here was better.

Lu Ze nodded in satisfaction.

The Demonic Value provided by the Outer Disciples might be no more than mosquito-leg meat, but he was not picky.

Besides,

these Outer Disciples were his best means of publicity.

He walked over to the central Illusion Tower and placed the modified Illusion Crystal Stone inside.

Before long, the Training Hall became lively.

"Damn, why is there suddenly a Battle Function?"

"I have trained day and night and crossed the Thousand-Step Barrier. Who dares fight me?"

"Fellow Daoist, get on the Leaderboard first before saying that."

"Are there any fellow Daoists below a thousand steps? Let's spar!"

"You can actually form teams for battle? Which fellow Daoist can carry me? Payment provided!"

"Damn it, who was that battling me just now? Fight fairly and take off your Mount!"

"Fuck! Which fellow Daoist is so vicious? You actually used hidden weapons to hurt me during a battle!"

"Fellow Daoists, hear me out. Our cultivation emphasizes tempering one's nature, so how can we harm our harmony over a mere Trial? If we stop at nothing for victory, how are we any different from the Demon Path... Holy shit! Who the hell threw stones at me? This poor Daoist just picked up some darts—if you are heartless, don't blame me for being unjust!"

Lu Ze made a few modifications based on the games from his previous life.

Just as in his previous life, during a battle, the players each ran along one of two tracks, left and right.

But Lu Ze placed some special battle items at random locations on both tracks.

For example, stones, darts, and even spittoons.

Further on, the items became more vicious one after another, and Talismans capable of summoning all manner of traps would even appear.

Stone Talismans could summon a slowing stone array, while Wood Talismans could summon vines to briefly bind an enemy.

Even more outrageous were Fire Talismans and Wind Talismans. The traps they released were far more powerful than those on the original path.

With the timing and placement of their release entirely up to the players, the difficulty of the competition immediately soared.

Watching the refined and harmonious scene in the Training Hall, Lu Ze felt greatly comforted.

If this continued, his mission would soon be completed.

Thunder Peak, Disciple School.

Chao Wendao looked at the disciples below the platform, his white brows knitting together.

There seemed to be fewer people attending class today?

He was the Grand Elder of the Spirit Cloud Sect.

Not only was he highly respected, but his lectures were also quite interesting. Every time he taught, the students filled the hall to capacity.

Yet today, the classroom somehow felt a little empty to him.

"Why do there seem to be especially few disciples attending today's lecture?"

Chao Wendao stroked his beard.

"I heard that a new Illusion Realm Trial has appeared. Many Inner Disciples are struggling to overcome it and are likely seeking a way to crack it."

A disciple below bowed as he answered. It was Xiao Hongzhi.

"So that's how it is."

Chao Wendao nodded, thinking that some Grandmaster had once again left behind a shadow image for the students to challenge.

Among the Inner Disciples, only certain special courses required mandatory attendance.

The elders regularly imparted the Dao, but they did not force the disciples to attend.

Inner Disciples could freely arrange their own cultivation schedules.

Chao Wendao had always been known for making his lectures interesting, and every time, disciples fought for the chance to attend.

Yet there were so many fewer people today that the sense of disappointment in his heart was immense.

Had his lectures become too boring lately?

The students would rather cultivate and comprehend the Dao in an Illusion Realm than listen to him teach?

Chao Wendao secretly made up his mind that at his next lecture, he would bring out everything he had kept hidden away and defend the dignity of the sect's most popular teacher.

"Hongzhi, judging from your complexion, did you study through the entire night again?"

Looking at Xiao Hongzhi's face, Chao Wendao suddenly smiled.

"This... yes."

Xiao Hongzhi hurriedly lowered his head.

"Although you have reached the Golden Core Stage, you must still pay attention to rest and balance work with rest. On the path of seeking the Dao, you must never rush recklessly!"

Chao Wendao nodded in satisfaction and gestured for him to sit.

Xiao Hongzhi was a regular in his classes.

His talent stood out among the Inner Disciples, and he was usually diligent in his cultivation as well.

"This disciple understands!"

Xiao Hongzhi hurriedly sat down, not daring to meet Chao Wendao's eyes at all.

He had indeed stayed up all night.

But he had not been cultivating his Cultivation Method. He had been addicted to "Demonic Path Escape."

Only when he saw that Chao Wendao was not suspicious and continued teaching did Xiao Hongzhi finally let out a breath of relief.

He steadied his breathing and began transmitting his voice with Spiritual Sense.

During class, the students below would generally use Spiritual Sense to transmit messages among themselves.

The teacher on the platform possessed profound cultivation and could naturally tell at a glance that the students below were using Spiritual Sense to communicate.

But the elders knew the character of the Spirit Cloud Sect's disciples well. They were surely gathering to discuss academic matters and exchange insights so as not to disrupt the atmosphere of the lecture, so the elders would not interfere.

In the past, the students really had discussed insights into the Dao.

But today, the entire classroom's transmissions were discussing "Demonic Path Escape."

"Is 'Demonic Path Escape' really as interesting as you all say?"

"More than interesting—it's downright addictive!"

"I even suspect this is some method used by people of the Demon Path to disturb our Dao Hearts..."

"Utter nonsense! Such exquisite design could never be the work of those crude Demon Path brutes!"

"I heard our Inner Disciples lost to Outer Disciples in there?"

"What an outrage! Watch me win back our honor today!"

"You fellow disciples have piqued my interest too."

"I heard from those who returned from the Artifact Forging Hall this morning that 'Demonic Path Escape' added a Battle Function today, allowing you to challenge other fellow Daoists."

"Why doesn't my 'Demonic Path Escape' have that function?"

"I heard you have to go to the Artifact Forging Hall and have Junior Brother Lu, who manages it, update the Illusion Crystal Stone."

"Good! I can finally compete with all of you!"

The many remarks stirred Xiao Hongzhi's heart.

He could not wait to go to the Training Hall and update "Demonic Path Escape."

After cultivating bitterly through the night, he could now easily run the full two thousand steps.

He had been worrying about where he could show it off.

Now that he had heard he could battle others, excitement surged through him.

He had always been diligent and eager to learn. Every day, he sat in the front row for Chao Wendao's lectures and always felt that he could never hear enough of what the Elder taught.

This was the first time he had ever looked forward so eagerly to class ending sooner.

Over the following days, an abnormal phenomenon appeared in the Spirit Cloud Sect.

The elder lectures that had always been packed saw increasingly serious absences, and even the most popular Grand Elder was no exception.

The Outer Disciples, meanwhile, became wildly enthusiastic about taking missions. As long as a mission could earn Spirit Stones, no matter how dirty or exhausting it was, they fought until their heads bled to snatch it.

The Inner Disciples, who were known for competing fiercely with one another, suddenly stopped competing.

At the same time, all the Outer Disciples collectively found themselves short of Spirit Stones.

It truly baffled everyone.

Lu Ze, the instigator behind it all, was not surprised in the slightest.

The launch of the Battle Function and Forum was simply a crushing blow from a higher dimension to the people of this world.

It pushed "Demonic Path Escape" to an entirely new height.

Today was the fifth day since "Demonic Path Escape" had launched.

Once today passed, the mission could be completed.

That meant he would no longer have to live furtively.

At that thought, Lu Ze let out a breath in his heart.

These past few days, every time he updated "Demonic Path Escape," he had to be extremely careful to avoid prying eyes.

He also had to set up Array Talismans around the area to conceal his aura.

Otherwise, if others sensed the blood-soaked baleful aura around him, even several lives would not be enough for him to die.

Only once the mission was complete and others could no longer discover his Demonic Son System could he finally sleep with a high pillow beneath his head.

At this thought, Lu Ze was in high spirits.

These past few days, with the united efforts of the Inner Disciples and Outer Disciples, his Demonic Value had risen rapidly.

His cultivation had also reached the Qi Refining Ninth Layer.

He only needed 200 more Demonic Value to advance to the Foundation Establishment Realm.

"Hm? What's this?"

While cleaning the Training Hall, Lu Ze suddenly spotted a notebook that had fallen into a corner.

He had thought it was a fellow disciple's cultivation notes, but when he walked over for a closer look, he discovered it was a diary.

Sneaking a look at someone else's diary was no gentleman's act, and Lu Ze had no such intention.

Yet at that moment, a breeze blew in from outside the hall, rustling the diary's pages and letting Lu Ze see its contents clearly.

Seventh day of the fourth month: Fleeing.

Eighth day of the fourth month: Fleeing.

Ninth day of the fourth month: Fleeing.

Tenth day of the fourth month: Xiao Hongzhi, oh Xiao Hongzhi! How could you fall so low! You are the hope of the entire village—you cannot go on like this!

Eleventh day of the fourth month: Fleeing.

"..."

Lu Ze suddenly felt that—

Had he gone a little too far?