Illusory Realm Perfected, a True World Master!

Lu Changsheng looked at Xing Ying and Liu Qing, then nodded. "It should be ready." With that, Lu Changsheng waved his hand, and a wave of energy enveloped Xing Ying and Liu Qing. "Don't resist. I'll test taking you through a spatial shuttle." Hearing this, the two relaxed and offered no resistance, allowing Lu Changsheng's power to envelop them. *Swish.* In the next instant, Lu Changsheng took a step forward. The figures of the three vanished without a trace. *Buzz.* In a pocket of void within Heaven Prison, ripples of space pulsed outward wave upon wave, and three figures abruptly materialized. Liu Qing and Xing Ying both widened their eyes. "This... really is a spatial shuttle!" The two exchanged a glance. It was real—a true spatial shuttle. They were now at least ten thousand li away from where they had just been. Ten thousand li in an instant! If this was not a spatial shuttle, what was it? However, Lu Changsheng did not seem very satisfied. He had merely been testing. Shuttling through space with two people was indeed different from doing it alone. Bringing two others along created a real burden. Moreover, the distance of a single shuttle was limited. In essence, the burden was simply greater. Yet, despite the burden and the distance limitation, he could indeed shuttle through space. Besides, at worst, taking a few more shuttles would allow him to traverse the entirety of Heaven Prison. The impact was negligible. "Thank you both for waiting three years. Over these three years, quite a few Dark Domain lifeforms in Heaven Prison have been slain. But starting now, we can hunt those Dark Domain lifeforms with all our might," Lu Changsheng said with a smile. "Then we shall trouble Fellow Daoist Lu," Liu Qing said with a nod. She had indeed grown impatient. Three whole years had passed without earning a single contribution point. Fortunately, it was still not too late. "Let's go!" Lu Changsheng then shuttled with the two once more. This time, he had sensed their targets beforehand. Roughly several thousand li away, there were some Dark Domain lifeforms. In an instant, Lu Changsheng's group shuttled across the distance. Sure enough, five Dark Domain lifeforms lurked in the dense forest below. Judging from their auras, their strength ranged from Tier Three to Tier Six of Godhood. According to the rewards set by the Heavenly Light Holy Sect: Slaying a Tier One Godhood Dark Domain lifeform rewarded ten contribution points. A Tier Two rewarded twenty contribution points. A Tier Three rewarded thirty contribution points. Starting from Tier Four, there was a sudden jump. Slaying a Tier Four Godhood Dark Domain lifeform rewarded one hundred contribution points. A Tier Five was two hundred points, and a Tier Six was three hundred points. Then at Tier Seven, it changed again, spiking sharply to one thousand contribution points. A Tier Eight was two thousand contribution points, and a Tier Nine was three thousand contribution points. With such rewards, slaying Tier Seven Godhood Dark Domain lifeforms was clearly the most profitable. Yet how many people could slay a Tier Seven Godhood Dark Domain lifeform? Any Dark Domain lifeforms capable of invading chaos were no ordinary creatures. Every single one was an elite among their peers. Slaying them was extraordinarily difficult. Fortunately, they had Liu Qing this time. Among the five Dark Domain lifeforms, two were Tier Three, one was Tier Four, one was Tier Five, and one was Tier Six. "Fellow Daoist Liu, I'll trouble you," Lu Changsheng said, looking at Liu Qing. Liu Qing nodded. Without a word, she stepped forward. She gently extended her palm. *Boom.* Her palm pressed downward. Instantly, the dense forest below was leveled to the ground. As for those five Dark Domain lifeforms, they were dead as could be. There was no need for fancy techniques whatsoever. Overwhelming force alone was enough. With a single strike, six hundred and sixty contribution points were secured. It was almost too easy. Lu Changsheng had no intention of testing his own skills. There would be plenty of opportunities later. Right now, the priority was seizing the time to rake in contribution points. "Continue." Lu Changsheng shuttled through space with the two once more, arriving above a massive valley. Inside the valley were over a dozen Dark Domain lifeforms. However, at this moment, over twenty Heavenly Light Holy Sect disciples were actually besieging them. Among these Dark Domain lifeforms, the strongest was unexpectedly a Tier Seven Godhood creature. That was worth a whole thousand contribution points! Liu Qing's eyes lit up. Without Lu Changsheng needing to say a word, Liu Qing knew what to do. She called out coldly, "All Heavenly Light Holy Sect disciples below, you have three breaths of time to leave immediately. After three breaths, I will level this valley to the ground!" Then, Liu Qing began gathering her power. A massive palm rapidly condensed. Its aura climbed continuously, surging all the way to Tier Nine of Godhood. Such terrifying might caused the faces of many Heavenly Light Holy Sect disciples below to change drastically. "Which Tier Nine Senior Sister is so overbearing?" "It seems to be Senior Sister Liu Qing..." "Senior Sister Liu Qing is a Tier Nine powerhouse rated Peerless! Once she acts, these Dark Domain lifeforms won't even be enough for her to slaughter." "What else can we do? Run! Otherwise, when Senior Sister Liu Qing's strike falls, who among us could block it?" "But I'm so unwilling! We've been besieging them for so long and haven't even killed a few..." These cultivators were all deeply resentful. Yet no matter how unwilling they were, they had to leave. Who could blame them when Liu Qing was so strong? Even if she was "snatching Dark Domain lifeforms," they were powerless to stop her. Three breaths later, the colossal palm above the valley crashed down. *Rumble!* The valley was flattened. Naturally, all those dozen or so Dark Domain lifeforms perished. Just like that, over two thousand contribution points were earned. It was simply too effortless. Lu Changsheng enveloped Liu Qing and Xing Ying once again, and their figures vanished once more. However, this time it happened in full view of everyone. Those twenty-odd Heavenly Light Holy Sect disciples were left dumbfounded. "Was that... a spatial shuttle?" "It really does seem to be a spatial shuttle! Otherwise, how could they disappear without us sensing a thing? No matter how fast someone is, they couldn't be that fast." "Has Senior Sister Liu Qing acquired a treasure capable of spatial shuttling?" "No, it doesn't seem to be Senior Sister Liu Qing, but that unfamiliar male cultivator behind her." "He looks familiar... Is that Lu Changsheng?" "Lu Changsheng? Back in the Luojin Realm, it was said Lu Changsheng could shuttle through space. Could it be..." In no time, everyone guessed the truth. It had to be Lu Changsheng and Liu Qing joining forces. Relying on Lu Changsheng's spatial shuttling and Liu Qing's formidable strength, it was a union of powerhouses constantly reaping Dark Domain lifeforms across Heaven Prison. Needless to say, their speed in acquiring contribution points was astounding. As for danger? Liu Qing possessed the chaos supreme treasure, the Cloud Palace. Even a chaos lifeform could not breach it. She stood completely undefeated. Before long, many realized that the greatest winners of this Heaven Prison upheaval would likely be Liu Qing and Lu Changsheng. In fact, those cultivators' deductions were spot on. In the days that followed, Lu Changsheng continually shuttled through space with Liu Qing and Xing Ying, traveling across every corner of Heaven Prison. Every trip yielded bountiful rewards. Naturally, Lu Changsheng also fought Dark Domain lifeforms along the way. These creatures were indeed quite formidable. Against some Tier Six Godhood Dark Domain lifeforms, Lu Changsheng was actually unable to defeat them quickly. In the end, to avoid losing flesh avatars, Liu Qing stepped in to dispatch them. As for Xing Ying, she truly served little practical purpose. Even so, the three strictly adhered to their agreement. Day after day passed. In the blink of an eye, ten years flew by. The three of them had spent a full ten years constantly shuttling through space in Heaven Prison, hunting down Dark Domain lifeforms. Counting the time from when the upheaval first broke out, thirteen years had already elapsed. Though Lu Changsheng had lost three years comprehending spatial power, sharpening the axe did not delay the woodcutter. Thanks to spatial shuttling, over these ten years, nearly most of the Dark Domain lifeforms in Heaven Prison had been slain by Lu Changsheng's trio. During this period, conflicts had even arisen when encountering other Tier Nine disciples, but Liu Qing handled them all. They had even encountered a terrifying Dark Domain lifeform rivaling a chaos lifeform. Yet with the Cloud Palace holding the line and Lu Changsheng executing spatial shuttling, they successfully escaped. In short, after ten years, few Dark Domain lifeforms remained in Heaven Prison. On this day, Lu Changsheng shuttled across yet another region. The result was still nothing. Lu Changsheng simply came to a halt and said to Xing Ying and Liu Qing, "Fellow Daoist Xing Ying, Fellow Daoist Liu, over the past seven days we haven't found a thing and haven't encountered a single Dark Domain lifeform. It seems the creatures in Heaven Prison have mostly been wiped out. We've gathered plenty of contribution points, so there is no need to remain in Heaven Prison. "Why don't we return to the Heavenly Light Holy Sect? What do you two think?" Lu Changsheng had actually suggested returning once before. Back then, Liu Qing had wanted to keep trying. After several months, however, the returns were meager. Now, there was nothing left to gain at all. Liu Qing and Xing Ying exchanged glances. In the end, Liu Qing could only breathe a long sigh of relief and say, "Very well. It seems there really are no Dark Domain lifeforms left. Let us return to the Heavenly Light Holy Sect." Thus, the three shuttled to Heaven Prison's teleportation array. Hardly any cultivators remained near the array; most had already departed Heaven Prison. The three smoothly teleported back to the Heavenly Light Holy Sect. However, because they had teamed up to hunt Dark Domain lifeforms, all the contribution points had to be divided among them. This required them to submit the mission together so an elder of the Heavenly Light Holy Sect could distribute the points. And so, the three headed for the Mission Hall together. The moment they stepped into the Mission Hall, gaze after gaze fell upon them. Their arrival immediately stirred up a sensation. "It's Senior Sister Liu Qing, along with Xing Ying and Lu Changsheng!" "They're finally back! I heard that over the past ten years in Heaven Prison, the three of them racked up an immense mountain of contribution points and slaughtered countless Dark Domain lifeforms." "Most of the Dark Domain lifeforms in Heaven Prison were probably slain by their trio." "Senior Sister Liu Qing goes without saying—a Tier Nine Godhood cultivator with a Peerless rating, wielding the Cloud Palace chaos supreme treasure. Her strength is so terrifying she wouldn't even flinch facing a chaos lifeform. In this Heaven Prison trip, Senior Sister Liu Qing did essentially all the slaying." "However, the most crucial one on this Heaven Prison trip was Lu Changsheng. He could actually shuttle through space, ferrying Liu Qing and Xing Ying everywhere to hunt Dark Domain lifeforms. Who could match their efficiency with spatial shuttling?" "Indeed. Back in the Luojin Realm, Lu Changsheng was already able to shuttle through space. I wonder how he pulled it off—is it a treasure, or did he comprehend spatial power on his own?" "Xing Ying is the lucky one. Though a Prodigy, she's only at Tier Three of Godhood and barely killed any Dark Domain lifeforms, yet she teamed up with Lu Changsheng and Senior Sister Liu Qing to take a massive share of contribution points." "I wonder just how many contribution points they earned from this trip to Heaven Prison?" Countless eyes followed the trio. After all, their expedition in Heaven Prison had truly rocked the entire Heavenly Light Holy Sect. Even the other Tier Nine disciples could only throw up their hands in frustration. Who told them not to know spatial shuttling? Possessing strength meant nothing when they couldn't match the speed of Lu Changsheng's spatial shuttling. Some were even kicking themselves in regret. Why hadn't they thought of Lu Changsheng's ability to shuttle through space? Had they teamed up with Lu Changsheng, they were confident they would have done no worse than Liu Qing. Regardless, the Dark Domain lifeforms in Heaven Prison had essentially been wiped out. Now everyone was waiting to see just how many contribution points Lu Changsheng, Liu Qing, and Xing Ying had earned. Under the scrutiny of thousands of eyes, the three walked up to the Mission Hall elder and requested to submit their mission. "Among the three of you: Lu Changsheng sixty percent, Liu Qing thirty percent, Xing Ying ten percent. Is that correct?" the elder asked. The distribution ratio had to be confirmed first. "Correct." All three nodded. "From this expedition to Heaven Prison, you have earned a total of 2,013,200 contribution points. In accordance with your agreed ratio, all contribution points will automatically be allocated to your identity tokens," the Mission Hall elder announced slowly. *Boom!* As soon as those words fell, the entire Mission Hall erupted into an uproar. Everyone widened their eyes and stared at Lu Changsheng and his companions, faces filled with utter disbelief. Over two million contribution points! This was sheer madness! Who could have imagined it? A single trip to Heaven Prison yielding two million contribution points! Even though Xing Ying received only ten percent, that was still over two hundred thousand! This was striking it rich overnight! Even Liu Qing shuddered, her heart surging with immense excitement. Naturally, the biggest winner was Lu Changsheng. Over sixty percent of the contribution points belonged to him. That was over 1.2 million contribution points! Such an astronomical sum of contribution points was unheard of at the Godhood stage. Countless disciples looked on with envy, and even jealousy. "Over 1.2 million contribution points! Lu Changsheng won't be lacking contribution points at all now." "Not just Lu Changsheng—Liu Qing and Xing Ying also reaped massive rewards." "On this trip to Heaven Prison, Lu Changsheng's group harvested the most." "I wonder how Lu Changsheng shuttles through space?" Many knew that Lu Changsheng's spatial shuttling was the key. Without his spatial shuttling, how could they have harvested so much? Liu Qing was not the only Tier Nine powerhouse who went to Heaven Prison, yet only Lu Changsheng's team obtained such a staggering sum of contribution points. Thus, many began prying into the secret behind Lu Changsheng's spatial shuttling. Some even investigated what Lu Changsheng had done back in the Luojin Realm, hoping to uncover clues. Lu Changsheng paid them no mind. "Fellow Daoist Liu, Fellow Daoist Xing Ying, farewell." Lu Changsheng parted ways with Liu Qing and Xing Ying and returned directly to his cave dwelling. Inside his cave dwelling, Lu Changsheng immediately brought forth his Illusory Realm. In truth, there was a vast amount of dark-red flesh inside the Illusory Realm. This dark-red flesh belonged entirely to those Dark Domain lifeforms. While in Heaven Prison, they had been under constant tension with no time to scrutinize the Dark Domain lifeforms' flesh. Now, things were different. Lu Changsheng had returned to the Heavenly Light Holy Sect and could examine it in detail. *I wonder if the flesh of these Dark Domain lifeforms can be used to cultivate flesh avatars?* A thought surfaced in Lu Changsheng's mind. This thought was only natural. After all, how many Dark Domain lifeforms had they slain in Heaven Prison on this trip? Countless! Lu Changsheng had prepared early on by stowing the flesh of all those slain Dark Domain lifeforms into the Illusory Realm, specifically to study it once he returned. After all, many of those Dark Domain lifeforms were at Tier Seven or above. Their physical bodies possessed terrifying strength. If their flesh could be utilized, then no matter how many flesh avatars Lu Changsheng cultivated in the future, he wouldn't need to worry about exhausting flesh materials. This was of paramount importance to Lu Changsheng. Therefore, he wanted to give it a try. With this in mind, Lu Changsheng immediately began experimenting. *Buzz.* Lu Changsheng began attempting to condense a flesh avatar, cultivating it with the flesh of the Dark Domain lifeforms. On the trip to Heaven Prison, although Lu Changsheng had barely fought, he had still lost a few flesh avatars. Though the number was small, there had indeed been losses. Naturally, he needed to replenish those lost avatars through cultivation. Lu Changsheng started by testing it on a single flesh avatar. As Lu Changsheng began refining the Dark Domain lifeforms' flesh and using it to cultivate a flesh avatar, it went without a hitch. Before long, a flesh avatar appeared before Lu Changsheng. It was no different from his previous flesh avatars. It seemed there was no problem with the flesh of Dark Domain lifeforms. "Chaos and the Dark Domain are actually two sides of the same coin. In essence, there is little difference between the two. "The conflict between Dark Domain lifeforms and chaos lifeforms is mostly over resources and territory—essentially a conflict over living space." Lu Changsheng pondered. He continued cultivating several more flesh avatars and fused them; still, he found no issues. With this, Lu Changsheng was relieved. Replenishing lost flesh avatars would no longer pose any significant issue in the future. Lu Changsheng looked at the contribution points in his identity token. Over 1.2 million was an astronomical figure. However, no matter how large the number, if not spent, not converted into strength, and not used for cultivation, it was merely a string of numbers. Lu Changsheng immediately thought of the Illusory Realm. The Illusory Realm's progress in turning from illusion to reality was currently at 11%. Each portion of world origin he used could increase the Illusory Realm's progress by roughly 5%. He only needed to use eighteen more portions of world origin for the progress of turning illusion to reality to reach 100% consummation. What the Illusory Realm would look like upon consummation, Lu Changsheng did not know. Yet one portion of world origin cost ten thousand contribution points. Eighteen portions of world origin only amounted to 180,000 contribution points. Lu Changsheng did not lack contribution points now. And so, Lu Changsheng waved his hand without hesitation and directly purchased eighteen portions of world origin through his identity token. Soon, eighteen portions of world origin were delivered to his cave dwelling. This time, Lu Changsheng entered a death seclusion. After all, refining one portion of world origin took ten years. Eighteen portions would require one hundred and eighty years. Ever since Lu Changsheng arrived at the Heavenly Light Holy Sect—or rather, ever since he became a Taiyi Immortal Venerable—cultivating was different from before. It took a very long time. Even ordinary cultivation took several years or a decade. Secluding himself for one hundred and eighty years at a stretch was indeed prolonged, but refining the world origin genuinely demanded that much time. However, this undertaking was truly of immense consequence. Once the Illusory Realm reached consummation, it would likely undergo a qualitative transformation. During a death seclusion, no one and nothing could disturb him. Thus, Lu Changsheng felt entirely at ease in his cave dwelling. "Let us begin." With that, Lu Changsheng entered seclusion to concentrate on refining the world origin. Initially, the Heavenly Light Holy Sect was still marveling at how Lu Changsheng, Liu Qing, and the others had reaped such a vast amount of contribution points. Some attentive individuals even began digging into clues regarding Lu Changsheng's deeds in the Luojin Realm, hoping to uncover the secret of his spatial shuttling. To their surprise, they actually dug up some clues: Lu Changsheng had relied entirely on his own comprehension to grasp space through sheer force of will, mastering the power of space! When this news broke, it spread across the entire Heavenly Light Holy Sect like wildfire, sparking a massive uproar. Comprehending space solely through his own faculties—what brilliant genius! What staggering talent! Even a Prodigy had no confidence in pulling that off. If comparing comprehension alone, who could match Lu Changsheng? Some refused to believe it, trying every means to question Xing Ying and Liu Qing. Even a chaos lifeform inquired in person. Ultimately, Liu Qing and Xing Ying disclosed some details. It was no secret anyway, and Lu Changsheng had never asked them to keep it confidential. The disclosed information pointed to only one truth: Lu Changsheng had indeed relied solely on his comprehension to grasp space and master spatial power, thereby performing spatial shuttles. This was confirmed by the words of a chaos lifeform, as only a chaos lifeform had the stature to make Liu Qing and Xing Ying speak. When this news spread, everyone was in an uproar. "Is Lu Changsheng's comprehension really that high?" "High doesn't begin to cover it—it's off the charts!" "Other disciples rated Peerless or Prodigy are either special lifeforms or innately adept at battle, which is how they achieved those ratings. But Lu Changsheng is different: he relied on his terrifying comprehension to elevate his strength step by step until he achieved the Peerless rating." "With such astonishing comprehension, could he possibly become a Prodigy?" "Prodigies are generally special lifeforms or possess unique innate gifts. Achieving the Prodigy status solely through comprehension... is difficult, though not impossible, just highly improbable..." Discussions raged. Although Lu Changsheng was currently only at Tier Four of Godhood, and his rating was not yet Prodigy, his fame in the Heavenly Light Holy Sect eclipsed that of ordinary Prodigies. However, regardless of how famous one was, as time marched on, all noise and clamor gradually faded into quiet. Ten years, thirty years, fifty years, eighty years, a hundred years... After a century, perhaps a few scattered voices still mentioned Lu Changsheng. Yet because Lu Changsheng never showed himself and there was no news of him whatsoever, the disciples of the Heavenly Light Holy Sect naturally ceased paying attention. Time could settle all things. Lu Changsheng quietly refined the world origin inside his cave dwelling. Everything outside had nothing to do with him. In the blink of an eye, one hundred and eighty years passed. The eighteen portions of world origin were thoroughly refined by Lu Changsheng. *Boom.* Lu Changsheng's Illusory Realm violently shook. The eighteen portions of world origin caused his Illusory Realm to turn completely into reality. Indeed—it was no longer illusory, but thoroughly materialized into reality. At this moment, Lu Changsheng's Illusory Realm seemed to transform into a true world. From inside out, it underwent a transformation. At this instant, a flood of information poured into Lu Changsheng's mind. It was feedback from the Illusory Realm, as though received from the unseen depths of fate. In this moment, Lu Changsheng instantly understood. "So only at this moment have I truly stepped onto the path of a World Master..." Lu Changsheng murmured softly. He immediately brought up his attribute panel to inspect his condition: Host: Lu Changsheng Comprehension: Top-Tier Comprehension World Master: 0 (Embryonic Form) Flesh Particles: 2% Thirteen-Fold True Self Method: Fourth Layer Avatar Fusion Physical Method: 2,130,000 avatars On the attribute panel, the Illusory Realm had disappeared. In its place was "World Master." This also verified his current state. The moment the Illusory Realm fully materialized into reality, Lu Changsheng became a true "World Master." Of course, Lu Changsheng's World Master status was currently only an "embryonic form." From the information he had received from the unseen, Lu Changsheng understood what "embryonic form" meant. As it turned out, the World Master path had no fixed method of cultivation. Many might step onto the World Master path right from the beginning. Some might have to take control of a chaos world, similar to a Dao Ancestor, but taking it a step further to completely dominate the chaos world, only then stepping onto the path of a World Master. Still others, like Lu Changsheng, relied on illusions, the Illusory Realm, and the like, turning illusion into reality before being able to step onto the path of a World Master. Yet regardless of the method, stepping onto the World Master path meant embarking on an extraordinarily arduous journey. The path of a World Master was destined to be lonely. The reason was simple: What a World Master needed was chaos origin! Only chaos origin could advance it. A consummated World Master was on par with a source lifeform. The World Master system involved supporting a world of one's own to contend against chaos, or becoming a miniature chaos itself. When that time came, a World Master could naturally come and go freely within chaos, standing on virtually the same level as chaos itself. A source lifeform, on the other hand, relied on an overwhelmingly powerful physical body to shatter all rules and shackles within chaos—akin to transcendence. World Master: control and creation. Source lifeform: transcendence and destruction. Both were of the same tier, with neither superior to the other. Comparatively speaking, however, becoming a source lifeform was somewhat easier. After all, a source lifeform only needed to continually strengthen their flesh, without needing to forcibly seize chaos origin. And what about a World Master? They had to forcibly seize chaos origin to progress bit by bit. Yet the origin of chaos was inherently fixed. Every bit a World Master seized was a bit less origin for chaos. Over time, a World Master would naturally not be tolerated by chaos. This was precisely why World Masters were so scarce. If their numbers grew, how could a single chaos bear more World Masters? Of course, Dark Domain origin would work as well. The Dark Domain and chaos were fundamentally two sides of the same coin. World Masters also wished to steal Dark Domain origin. This was also why the Dark Domain and chaos fought one another: Not only did Dark Domain lifeforms invade chaos, but chaos also sought to invade the Dark Domain. World Masters, in particular, wished all the more to invade the Dark Domain to seize origin. "So the World Master path is a dead end right from the start?" Lu Changsheng faintly sensed the chaos origin. He was now able to perceive it. Yet from just a slight sensing, he knew that if he dared to seize even a wisp of chaos origin, the entire chaos would blast him to dust. He wouldn't even have a chance to resurrect; even his Dao Fruit fused into the Heaven Realm would be pulverized into nothingness by chaos. Lu Changsheng fell silent. He had only just set foot on the true path of a World Master, yet it turned out to be a dead end... "No matter. The cart will find its way when it reaches the mountain. Besides, I am not merely a World Master; I also have flesh particles and stand an equal chance of becoming a source lifeform..." A sharp glint flashed in Lu Changsheng's eyes. On this point, Lu Changsheng was very confident. He possessed top-tier comprehension. A World Master was merely one path of cultivation. If this path was blocked, he could simply take another. If he could not become a World Master, then he would cultivate into a source lifeform. Both were of the same tier. "It seems that in the future, I must focus my cultivation on flesh particles..." Lu Changsheng had already made up his mind.