Lu Ze

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Lu Ze (陆泽)
Alias(es)	White Curtain; Bai Mu; Old Devil Lu
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Spirit Cloud Sect; Glazed Fire Peak
Occupation/Role	Inner Disciple; Illusion Realm designer; game developer
Status	Alive
First Appearance	Chapter 1

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Foundation Establishment	15	Activates the Ice Breath Technique after receiving it as a mission reward; the technique immediately reaches Great Completion through his physique.
Golden Core Realm	102	Accumulates enough Demonic Value to advance after receiving the Origin Returning Heaven Concealing Mirror from Nangong Yuan.
Mid-stage Golden Core	165	Advances through the rapid Demonic Value gains generated by Bed Wars.
Nascent Soul	255	Reveals his cultivation during a sparring match, stunning Zhou Qiaoling and the others.
Further Nascent Soul advancement	334	Rapid cultivation on Glazed Fire Peak produces a vortex that astonishes Chao Wendao even beside Li Moran’s Spirit Transformation breakthrough.
Half-step Spirit Transformation	418	Describes his strength on paper as half a step from Spirit Transformation during the Illusion Realm competition.

Background / History

Lu Ze is an Inner Disciple of Spirit Cloud Sect’s Glazed Fire Peak and a disciple of Nangong Yuan. Before the events of the novel, he spent three years studying the sect’s Illusion Tower technology while drawing on game-design experience and an extraordinary memory from his past life. He also possessed abundant Spirit Stones and purchased an Imagery Instrument to extract music and imagery from his mind for future game development. 2

He becomes bound to the Demonic Son System, which cannot be unbound. Its initial advancement condition requires him to kill roughly one hundred Righteous Path cultivators, an objective he considers impossible at his then-current strength. 1

Rather than kill cultivators directly, Lu Ze decides to distract Spirit Cloud Sect disciples from cultivation through games. He transforms Illusion Tower training into Demonic Path Escape, using gameplay, leaderboards, shops, artifacts, mounts, and cultivation methods to retain players. 2 4

His games unexpectedly affect reality: when players are genuinely convinced by his creations, the system can reward Lu Ze with one of their attributes. Zhang Ming’s movement technique improves while playing, proving that the Illusion Realm can produce real cultivation gains. 4

After causing more than sixty percent of Spirit Cloud Sect disciples to lose focus on cultivation, Lu Ze receives the Myriad Manifestations Xuan Demon Immortal Physique. He uses its aura-changing nature and the Ice Breath Technique to conceal his true strength and demonic identity. 9 15

Although the System continues to offer rewards for harming Righteous cultivators, Lu Ze does not always follow its incentives. When a mission would require him to harm a Spirit Cloud Sect acquaintance who might receive a fortuitous opportunity, he decides to forgo the reward rather than risk doing so. 375

Appearance

Lu Ze is repeatedly described as ordinary-looking and unremarkable enough to disappear into a crowd. His concealed aura reinforces this impression, leading many elders to underestimate him. 19 107

• Usually presents himself as a mediocre Inner Disciple with ordinary cultivation. 19 107
• Uses the Ice Breath Technique to suppress and hide aura fluctuations. 15 107
• Can appear in-game under the disguised identities White Curtain and Bai Mu. 157 165

Personality

Lu Ze is clever, opportunistic, and highly confident in his game-design ability. He consistently turns sect disputes, competitions, and System missions into opportunities to gain Demonic Value, resources, influence, or infrastructure for the Illusion Realm. 43 72 115

He often presents himself as principled, polite, or righteous while maneuvering others into deals that benefit him. When summoned to help the elders defeat the Demonic AI, he refuses “cheating” before extracting their promise to assist with a spatially unrestricted illusion formation. 72

His methods are frequently shameless or psychologically cruel, earning him the nickname “Old Devil Lu.” He designs punishing games, farms negative emotions, deceives opponents in social-deduction games, and repeatedly exploits players’ pride and frustration. 115 157 196

Despite this, Lu Ze is not wholly indifferent to others. He sincerely helps Shen Yan confront his Heart Demon and achieve Man-Hammer Unification, and later offers to use an Illusion Realm Server to save Sky Profound Gate’s Fragment of the Heavenly Dao from karmic collapse. 108 115 117

He also defends Li Moran when he believes the Limitless Sword Sect has deliberately slighted her. His concern coexists with a willingness to provoke her, and his bluff about an unwinnable Palworld encounter earns her retaliation. 552 560

Abilities & Skills

Myriad Manifestations Xuan Demon Immortal Physique

A rare physique obtained as a critical System reward after Lu Ze’s games disrupt Spirit Cloud Sect cultivation. It removes the usual incompatibility between righteous and demonic auras. 9

• Can emit righteous or demonic aura at will. 9
• Possesses no obvious weakness, described as making Lu Ze a “perfect hexagon warrior.” 9
• Greatly accelerates his cultivation and skill mastery. 15
• Raises the Demonic Value required for his future advancement. 9

Ice Breath Technique

A high-level concealment technique acquired after completing a mission involving Li Moran. 14 15

• Reaches Great Completion almost instantly due to Lu Ze’s physique. 15
• Conceals his aura from probing Divine Sense. 15
• Later refined through nearly a hundred years of accumulated cultivation experience. 107
• Can deceive most cultivators unless they probe deeply into his soul. 107

Heaven and Earth Unification Art

A cultivation method whose properties Lu Ze works out after several days of practice. It is particularly well suited to his physique and the cultivation methods he receives as System rewards. 41 44

• Can devour other cultivation methods to raise its own rank and inherit their traits. 44
• Requires Lu Ze to learn a method himself before assimilating it; it does not simply consume a written manual. 44
• Benefits from the comprehension granted by the Myriad Manifestations Xuan Demon Immortal Physique, which makes learning many different methods more practical. 44

Dao Transformation Art

A difficult cultivation method obtained from the Fragment of the Heavenly Dao. Lu Ze values its potential for story-driven Illusion Realms, but discovers only after beginning it that it has a companion method the Fragment does not possess. 418 422

• Begins learning the art within half a month, impressing the Fragment despite his complaints about its difficulty. 422
• Invests hundreds of years’ worth of accumulated enlightenment to bring it from minor mastery through major mastery to perfect mastery without the companion method. 422

Illusion Realm Design

Lu Ze’s principal specialty is designing Illusion Realms that combine entertainment, cultivation, competition, social interaction, and psychological pressure. His creations frequently draw disciples away from conventional cultivation and can cause genuine breakthroughs. 2 4 42

• Creates Illusion Realms at exceptional speed; he completes a tournament mechanism illusion in an hour and a half. 49
• Designs levels, systems, music, items, progression loops, and retention mechanics. 2 4
• Uses Illusion Crystal Stones to distribute his games. 49 115
• Builds worlds ranging from tower trials and card games to open-world assassin simulations. 96 170 295
• Integrates the Fragment of the Heavenly Dao into the Illusion Tower, creating the basis for a world-spanning server. 120
• Adapts Immortal Abyss Continent Operation into an extraction-based competition, then creates Slay the Immortal Spire with roguelike deck-building and team play. 346 439 442
• Gives Palworld a less prominent main quest to encourage exploration. Its individually designed tower bosses have hidden recruitment conditions, bonds, partner skills, and final bond quests. 507 530 541 544
• Creates a Sekiro-inspired sword Illusion Realm that suppresses cultivation, spiritual energy, root bone, and accumulated sword insight. Its limited numerical progression forces players to improve their own timing and technique. 561 581
• Allows players to challenge even ostensibly friendly characters in that sword Illusion Realm, creating difficult optional encounters and opportunities for insight. 599 602

Formless Iterative Realm

An illusion-focused technique obtained from the Fragment of the Heavenly Dao after the Immortal-Demon Supremacy match. 282

• Lets Lu Ze perceive everything within an illusion as data. 282
• Allows him to replicate techniques and modify illusion phenomena with ease. 282
• Enables him to reproduce Jiang Lingfeng’s formation with more powerful illusory figures. 282
• Is substantially more effective inside Illusion Realms than in reality. 282

Game Strategy and Mechanical Mastery

Lu Ze possesses elite game knowledge, reactions, and tactical planning derived from his past-life experience. His strength remains exceptional even in Illusion Realms that suppress cultivation and physical advantages. 83

• Uses item timing to create unexpected combo effects, such as combining Wood and Water Talismans against Li Moran. 14
• Clears fifty waves of the Barbarian Zombie Trial’s Endless Mode without dying. 43
• Executes multi-front micro-management at an estimated four-digit actions-per-minute pace. 83
• Uses economic warfare, accelerated mining, worker splitting, harassment, and map control in Immortal Realm Supremacy. 77 79 82
• Demonstrates advanced Minecraft combat, aerial bridging, traps, resource control, and respawn-point containment in Bed Wars. 157 158 162
• Displays mastery of MOBA heroes including Yasuo and Zed, using Soul Unification, Double Wind, EQ Flash, shadow manipulation, and precise lane control. 223 224 227 230
• Enters an extraction match with little equipment and a handgun, ambushes a heavily equipped opponent, strips his gear, and escapes rather than taking an unnecessary fight. 389 390 391
• Employs sniping positions, extraction-point camping, and terrain kills; as the Shield Cultivator Deep Blue, he combines a shield, grappling hook, and elbow strikes to knock opponents into lethal pits or water. 392 399 400
• Demonstrates exceptional aim and movement against a three-person squad, using a feint and a jet-boosted backstep to defeat opponents attempting to anticipate or surround him. 413

Deception and Psychological Warfare

Lu Ze excels at reading opponents, exploiting expectations, and presenting false identities.

• Uses the identity Number 2 to pose as a Righteous Path cultivator in Demonic Murder. 196
• Manipulates Zhong Yi’s logical reasoning to conceal his Demonic Path role until the decisive moment. 196
• Reads Wang Tianjing’s behavior and deception habits in Liar’s Teahouse. 173 176
• Uses taunts and deliberately prolonged games to provoke opponents into emotional mistakes and generate Demonic Value. 157 227 228
• Infiltrates a temporary alliance assembled against bridge campers, attacks its members from within, and lets their suspicion turn them against one another. 404

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Imagery Instrument — Artifact used to extract images and sounds from Lu Ze’s memories for game production. 2
• Illusion Crystal Stones — Physical media used to distribute and install his Illusion Realms. 49 115
• Origin Returning Heaven Concealing Mirror — Artifact given by Nangong Yuan; conceals aura fluctuations up to the Transformation God Realm. 102
• Heavenly Dao Server / Fragment of the Heavenly Dao — Fragment integrated into the Illusion Tower, serving as the foundation for a world-spanning Illusion Realm server. 116 120
• Mod Editor — Illusion Realm creation tool that can produce creatures, spells, techniques, items, and worlds, though complex mods require relevant knowledge. 139

Relationships

• Nangong Yuan — Lu Ze’s master and the elder of Glazed Fire Peak. Though frequently exasperated by Lu Ze’s behavior, he protects and supports him, gives him artifacts, and trusts his abilities. 43 44 49 102
• Chao Wendao — Spirit Cloud Sect’s Grand Elder. He recognizes Lu Ze’s insight, grants him special True Disciple-level benefits, and repeatedly supports his Illusion Realm projects. 20 43 72
• Zhong Yi — True Disciple, frequent player, commentator, tester, and occasional teammate. Zhong Yi admires Lu Ze’s game design and skill but is also repeatedly manipulated or tormented by him. 29 83 157 196
• Li Moran — Sword-path True Disciple. Lu Ze defeats her through game tactics, receives Sword Proficiency from her admiration, and later fights alongside or against her under his White Curtain identity. 14 42 160 279 Her Illusion Realm experiences lead to major cultivation insights, while Lu Ze both supports her and risks her anger through his designs and remarks. 334 335 529 539 552 560
• Shen Yan — Saint of Sky Profound Gate and a hammer cultivator seeking the essence of swordsmanship. Lu Ze creates Getting Over It for him; Shen Yan overcomes his Heart Demon and achieves Man-Hammer Unification. 107 108 115
• Chi Shengtian — Grand Elder of Sky Profound Gate. He entrusts Lu Ze with the sect’s secret regarding the Fragment of the Heavenly Dao and supports Lu Ze’s attempt to save the sect. 116 117
• Lin Anzai — Sky Profound Gate elder and enthusiastic supporter of Lu Ze’s Illusion Realms. He defends Lu Ze’s skill before the skeptical Lu Gu. 95 116 117
• Lu Gu — Sky Profound Gate elder who repeatedly doubts Lu Ze because of his apparent cultivation level, though he is forced to acknowledge Lu Ze’s Illusion Realm ability. 116 117
• Ding Mingcang — Elder and persistent adversary who accuses Lu Ze of falsely claiming credit for Demonic Path Escape. Lu Ze defeats his challenges and contributes to his punishment in Repentance Valley. 18 20 43
• Yang Zhengxin — Azure Peak Sect elder who underestimates Lu Ze and challenges his Illusion Realm work. Lu Ze gives him a chance to save face before humiliating him with a trap illusion. 46 49 53
• Fragment of the Heavenly Dao — A damaged, childlike fragment of Heavenly Dao will that becomes Lu Ze’s server partner and protector. It assists him inside Illusion Realms and protects him from Wei Chengfeng’s attack. 120 165 283 Lu Ze later consults it about possible fortuitous opportunities hidden in Palworld and learns the Dao Transformation Art from it. 422 542
• Zhou Yue — Spirit Cloud Sect True Disciple and frequent player whose unusual misfortune makes him a recurring source of Lu Ze’s interest. Lu Ze’s later sword Illusion Realm helps Zhou Yue gain insight into his Karmic Fire. 87 605
• Chen Yuan — Grand Elder of the Limitless Sword Sect. Lu Ze confronts him over his treatment of Li Moran and wagers that Chen Yuan cannot clear his sword-training Illusion Realm within five days. 552 560

Story Role / Major Arcs

Demonic Son System and *Demonic Path Escape*

Lu Ze receives the Demonic Son System and rejects its direct-killing approach. He instead uses games to distract Righteous Path cultivators, beginning with Demonic Path Escape in the Illusion Tower. The game proves capable of improving players’ real abilities and supplying Lu Ze with their attributes when they are convinced by his work. 1 2 4

Exposure and the Ding Mingcang Conflict

Ding Mingcang accuses Lu Ze of falsely claiming credit for Demonic Path Escape. Lu Ze withstands pressure, gains support from Li Moran and Chao Wendao, and ultimately proves himself by clearing fifty waves of the Endless Mode that elders and True Disciples could not overcome. 20 43

Martial Arts Tournament Illusions

Commissioned by Chao Wendao, Lu Ze creates an Illusion Realm for the Martial Arts Tournament. He confronts the Azure Peak Sect’s Yang Zhengxin and produces If You’re a Cultivator, Descend a Hundred Levels, an illusion that becomes a cross-sect leaderboard phenomenon. 43 46 49 57

Server Construction and Righteous-Demonic War Game

The System assigns Lu Ze a mission to secure victory for the Demonic Path in the Righteous-Demonic War. He designs Immortal Realm Supremacy, using faction-specific units, campaign content, and competitive war modes. He later leverages the elders’ need for his help to obtain support for a spatially unrestricted Illusion Realm formation. 64 72

Sky Profound Gate and the Fragment of the Heavenly Dao

After Shen Yan’s growth through Getting Over It, Lu Ze is brought into Sky Profound Gate’s inner secret. He learns that its Fragment of the Heavenly Dao is a “celestial server” from his future and proposes integrating it into an Illusion Realm Server to resolve its karma. He succeeds in winning the Fragment’s approval and integrating it into the Illusion Tower. 115 116 117 120

World-Spanning *Minecraft* Server

Lu Ze expands the Illusion Realm to the entire Cultivation World. Through the Mod Editor, Redstone, Command Blocks, Survival Mode, Spirit Beast Collection, and player-created content, he establishes an open-ended world where cultivators can create their own spells, techniques, and environments. 139 140

White Curtain and Competitive Games

Using the identity White Curtain, Lu Ze dominates Bed Wars and later MOBA competitions. He exploits opponents’ personalities for Demonic Value, conceals his real identity with cyber souls, and gains enough Demonic Value to reach Mid-stage Golden Core. 157 165 222 230

Illusion Alliance Conflict

Lu Ze confronts Illusion Alliance experts in the Heavenly Dao Mystic Realm. Using Formless Iterative Realm and the Fragment’s support, he copies and surpasses Jiang Lingfeng’s illusion techniques, survives Wei Chengfeng’s intervention, and repeatedly kills Jiang Lingfeng inside the Illusion Realm for Demonic Value. 282 283 284

Demon Slaying Assembly

Lu Ze enters an illusion-creation competition intended to challenge Spirit Cloud Sect. His System task requires him to alter Righteous cultivators’ views of the Demon Path, leading him to create an immersive assassin-themed open world centered on Li Ang, a demonic cultivator forced into the path as an infant. 288 291 292 295

The story and Sutier’s fate leave even Chao Wendao heartbroken. Li Moran’s intense response contributes to her breakthrough, after which she confronts Lu Ze; despite the punishment he receives, she later acknowledges that she could not defeat him while testing his strength. 334 335 355

Demon Path Treasure Land and *Immortal Abyss Continent Operation*

A System quest offers Lu Ze a permanent Demonic Value bonus for Righteous cultivators who kill one another while he is inside a Demon Path Treasure Land. He turns his attention from a larger battlefield mode to an extraction-based Illusion Realm, beginning with Zero Dam. Its loot, combat, and extraction systems attract players and substantially increase his Demonic Value income. 341 346 374

When a later task requires him to damage the public image of a “Saint,” Lu Ze enters the Illusion Realm competition under his real name. He begins with little equipment, then draws a vast livestream audience through handgun ambushes, sniping, extraction camping, and increasingly outrageous terrain traps. His infiltration of an alliance at Immortal Bridge completes the task by changing spectators’ perceptions of saints. 386 389 391 392 399 400 404 405

*Slay the Immortal Spire* and *Palworld*

Lu Ze creates Slay the Immortal Spire, using varied characters, card builds, roguelike runs, and a cooperative mode to keep players returning. He includes an early guaranteed run in which a powerful build comes together, giving newcomers a taste of its possibilities. 439 442

He later adapts Palworld into an open world with a subdued main quest and tower bosses who can become companions under individual conditions. Using He Qingyue’s Cybersoul as the basis for Zoe, he unintentionally preserves traces of her attachment to Zhong Yi despite erasing her identity and memories. He watches their bond develop with amusement and investigates whether Zoe may conceal a Heavenly Dao opportunity. 507 513 529 530 542 545

Limitless Sword Sect Wager and Sword Illusion Realm

After learning of the Limitless Sword Sect’s slight against Li Moran, Lu Ze challenges Grand Elder Chen Yuan. He wagers over the Three Tribulations Sword Art, promising a sword-focused Illusion Realm that will improve its challengers and setting Chen Yuan a five-day deadline to clear it. 560

His Sekiro-inspired realm removes cultivation advantages and accumulated sword insight, requiring players to rebuild their skills through observation, deflection, and repeated failure. Lu Ze also lets players challenge friendly or neutral characters. The encounters yield unexpected cultivation gains: Li Moran gains insight into Void-Returning Sword Intent, and Zhou Yue approaches a breakthrough after facing the Buddha Carver’s Karmic Fire. Asked by Chao Wendao whether these opportunities were deliberate, Lu Ze admits they were not specially arranged but suggests other suitable opponents for the sect’s elders. 561 566 581 599 602 605

Trivia

• Lu Ze originally considers games a way to stop disciples from cultivating, but repeatedly benefits when players instead gain insights and breakthroughs from them. 2 42
• He calls Zhou Yue a potential “XP pack” upon learning the True Disciple’s tragic reputation and unusual fate. 87
• His games use monetization systems, skins, loot draws, and shops not merely for Spirit Stones, but to improve player retention and generate Demonic Value. 4 105 178
• He considers the Fragment of the Heavenly Dao less a sacred relic than his “future celestial server.” 116
• He deliberately preserves the White Curtain persona by having Li Moran’s cyber soul impersonate it in public matches. 165
• He incorporates the Grand Dao Truth Incantation into the striking [Perilous] and [Death] warnings in his sword Illusion Realm. 574
• He leaves a difficult terrain-kill tactic available in that realm and adjusts an enemy’s behavior so an inventive player can discover it. 590