Absolute Destiny Game.

Chapter 520 The Mirror of Illusion
Hearing Shenjizi say this, Xiao Jie immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

It would be great if I could become an immortal! To be honest, he wasn't particularly concerned about the nameless Taoist's schemes.

The other party's existence is ultimately hidden behind the scenes, and it's hard to say whether their intentions are good or bad, or even that they have any coercive power.

Its influence on him was also negligible.

Nothing is more important than becoming an immortal. Now that Shenjizi has given such a guarantee, Xiao Jie no longer cares about that nameless Taoist.

"Then thank you very much, Immortal Master."

Shenjizi laughed and said, "Hehe, no need to thank me. Although I am willing to help you, whether you can become an immortal in the end depends on your fate. Come with me."

Xiao Jie's heart tightened. What did this mean? Did it mean there was another mission to be done?
Sigh, why is it so difficult to become an immortal?

Seeing Shenjizi turn and walk towards the inner hall, Xiao Jie hurriedly followed.

The palace was layered upon layered, with no one knowing how many courtyards it had. Xiao Jie followed Shenjizi deeper into the palace, the two walking slowly one after the other.

The palace was magnificent and grand, yet quite deserted. Apart from the main hall where immortals were feasting, most of the palaces were empty.

It carries a sense of emptiness and desolation.

As Xiao Jie observed his surroundings, he felt a surge of unease. After walking for a while, he finally couldn't help but ask, "Immortal Master, you just said that whether I can become an immortal depends on my fate? What does that mean? Could it be—"

Shenjizi said, "The matter of becoming an immortal and attaining the Dao is extremely difficult. It is not that easy. As for the specific difficulty, it depends on your choice and which path to immortality you choose."

Xiao Jie hurriedly said, "Please explain, Immortal Master, what choices do I have?"

Shenjizi spoke eloquently: "You are cultivating the ancient Qi cultivation technique. This method has been refined and modified by the cultivators of Konglao Mountain. Its technique is perfect. Theoretically, as long as you cultivate according to it, you will surely become an immortal."

The only problem is the issue of spiritual energy. This Qi Refining Technique relies entirely on spiritual energy; without it, it's like water without a source—completely useless.

"Your method of refining spiritual energy with a demon core is indeed one way. However, this demon core contains demonic energy, which is inextricably intertwined with the spiritual energy. When you refine the spiritual energy, you naturally also absorb the demonic energy into your body, affecting your mind and body. Although you now have enough spiritual energy within you, the demonic energy has also seeped deep into your bones and blood, becoming one with you. Is that right?"

"exactly."

"That's the problem. The ancient Qi Refining Technique was a method of cultivating immortality created for humankind. But you are no longer human; you are more like a demon. How can you still follow the instructions and ascend to immortality?"

Xiao Jie thought to himself, "So that's why I can't ascend. How can I remedy this?"

Shenjizi held up three fingers and said, “I have three methods that can help you become an immortal. The difficulty and risks vary, and you can choose one yourself.”

Wow, there are three of them! Xiao Jie was overjoyed. This is great. With three options, at least one of them must be useful.

"Appreciate further details."

"The first method is to throw you into the Cleansing Pool to wash away the demonic power in your body. In this way, you can return to the human race and naturally ascend to become an immortal. However, this method has a problem. Although the Cleansing Pool can wash away the demonic power in your body, it will also wash away a large amount of spiritual energy in your body that is entangled with the demonic power during the cleansing process. If this valve is used, your Qi Refining Technique will probably drop by several levels."

"At that time, you will need to cultivate again, absorbing more spiritual energy. If this spiritual energy contains demonic power, you will need to refine it again. This process will repeat until your Qi Refining Technique reaches the tenth level again, without a trace of demonic power. By the way, do you still have a large number of demonic cores available?"

Xiao Jie thought to himself, "That's not good."

He did have some demon cores in his bag, but most of them were dropped by monsters from the Demon Star Tower, and their demonic power was probably more complex, not to mention the quality of their spiritual energy.

Moreover, if it's just to replenish the spiritual energy that's currently lacking, that would be enough. But if one drops several levels, then it definitely won't be enough to reach the tenth level again.

Do I have to go back to Kyushu and farm demon cores again?
However, he had gone through a lot of trouble to get to Guyun Prefecture, and he had encountered many risks along the way. If he were to do it again, there might be some unexpected events.

Is that giant tortoise still able to send me here from the same spot?

Moreover, accumulating enough demon cores would probably be another troublesome matter; who knows how many demon bosses would need to be killed to gather enough.

Thinking to himself, he asked, "Immortal Master, is there any other way?"

Shenjizi seemed to have anticipated his question and replied, "The second option is to give up being human. Since you have already become a demon, you might as well cultivate the demon immortal method. There are two demon immortal friends in this Mountain and Sea Painting Realm. I can speak on your behalf and have them teach you the demon immortal cultivation method."

However, the method of becoming an immortal for demon immortals is completely different from the ancient Qi cultivation technique. You'll probably have to start practicing from scratch.

Fortunately, your body is rich in spiritual energy, and your Golden Core is already formed. Even if you start cultivating again, you will achieve twice the result with half the effort. It won't take long; at most, three to five months, you will be able to complete the cultivation."

Three to five months... Xiao Jie found it hard to accept. He could accept waiting three to five months, but it was hard to say about his brother.

When Ye Luo went to the River Styx to look for someone, he once said that the souls of the dead would be constantly washed away by the waters of the River Styx, gradually losing their memories and eventually disappearing completely, or they would fall into the underworld and be reborn.

In three to five months, he wondered if his brothers could hold on until then, and how many would be left.

"Is there an even faster way? Ideally, it should be successful within three to five days."

Shenjizi smiled slightly and said, "Of course there is, otherwise why would I have led you this way?"

Xiao Jie was taken aback, but he immediately realized that Shenjizi probably already knew he would refuse the first two methods.

“That’s right, I already knew you would reject the first two methods,” Shenjizi said with a smile, as if he could see right through Xiao Jie’s thoughts.

(Holy crap, this guy—does the immortal have mind-reading abilities?)
"Don't worry, I'm not good at mind reading, but your thoughts are all based on human nature, so it's not hard to deduce them."

(Holy crap...)
Xiao Jie dared not think any further. Although Shenjizi said it wasn't mind reading, Xiao Jie still felt a little uneasy.

Shenjizi, however, continued, “Immortals and mortals are two completely different beings. The difference lies in the fact that immortals can see the essence of this world, while mortals are ignorant and blindly fearful of the world.”

Cultivating immortality is cultivating truth, and cultivating truth is cultivating the Dao. The so-called 'Dao' is the essence of this world.

The third method is to open your third eye. Once your third eye is open, you will naturally be able to see through the subtle workings of things and understand the laws of all things. The Three Realms and Five Elements will no longer be a secret to you.

Furthermore, with sufficient spiritual energy within you, ascending to immortality will be a natural progression.

However, opening the third eye is not an easy thing; one must undergo the hardships and trials of birth, aging, sickness, death, separation, and reincarnation.

This mindset is like a precious gem hidden in a stone; only by polishing away the stubborn stones on the outside can one achieve true understanding and enlightenment.

However, if one goes too far in refining, it may damage one's mind and spirit. Although this third method is convenient and quick, it also carries great risks.

In the past, mortals have come here seeking the path to immortality and used this method. As a result, some went mad, some became mentally impaired, and some underwent a drastic change in personality and fell into demonic ways. In the end, we had no choice but to take action to eliminate them.

So whether or not to choose this method is ultimately your decision.

After listening, Xiao Jie thought for a moment and came to an answer. Although the first two options were safe, they were time-consuming, and he simply couldn't wait that long.

Only the third option will allow you to revive your teammates in time.

Moreover, Xiao Jie was quite confident in his gaming skills. He had overcome so many difficulties before, so what was there to fear in the final challenge? He confidently said, "Why ask, Immortal Master? If I were to refuse, would you have bothered to help me?"

"Hahaha, kid, you're really clever—we've arrived." Before them was a quiet side hall, with three large characters written on the door—Tai Xu Hall.

The two entered the hall and saw a row of huge bronze round mirrors, each more than two meters high. Strangely, the mirrors were empty, and they could not even reflect the side hall itself.

In front of the two round mirrors sat two immortals.

The two stared intently into the mirror, where various images appeared, which were actually the experiences that the two immortals were going through.

In the first mirror, the immortal, clad in iron armor, was leading a massive army, charging into battle and wreaking havoc on all sides.

In another mirror, another immortal, dressed as a noble young master, is in a brothel, embracing several beautiful women, laughing, drinking, and indulging in pleasure.

Xiao Jie was surprised and vaguely guessed the purpose of the mirror, but Shenjizi led him to the third mirror on his own.

"Immortal Master, this is—"

"This is the Mirror of Illusion, a magical artifact used to help you open your third eye."

"Are those two also here to open their third eye?"

Shenjizi laughed and said, "No, no, no, they are all immortals. This Illusionary Realm is just a pastime for immortals. This is because immortals have realized that everything in the illusion is just a passing cloud to us and they don't care about it. They just come here to pass the time."

However, for ordinary people, it is a test of their character, a trial between life and death.

So how exactly do we do this?

Shenjizi said, "It's very simple. In a moment, you will sit down in front of this Taixu Illusion Mirror and look into the mirror. When I open the illusion, this Taixu Illusion Mirror will absorb your mind and spirit into it. You will fall into an illusion and experience birth, aging, sickness and death, and a long life in the illusion world."

Everything in this illusory world is exactly like the real world, but you must remember that it is all an illusion, not real. Success or failure hinges on this, and you must never forget it, otherwise you will lose yourself, not only failing the trial but also risking the destruction of your mind and spirit.

Xiao Jie felt a chill run down his spine. "And then?"

"Then, you need to remember the second thing, which is that you must not speak to the people in the Realm of Illusion, not even a single word. If you utter a single word, the Realm of Illusion will discover that you are not an immortal. In order to protect the minds of mortals, the Realm of Illusion will expel you, and your trial will fail."

Xiao Jie thought to himself, 'Don't say a word, just remember that this world is fake,' which was simple enough.

"Is there anything else I should be aware of?"

"That's right, the third and most important thing is not to die in the illusion."

Xiao Jie's heart skipped a beat: "What if I die in the illusion? Will I really die?"

"But there is such a risk: if you forget that this world is an illusion and take everything as real, then when you die in the illusion, your soul will also think that you are really dead, and will therefore be scattered."

And once your soul dies, your physical body naturally becomes a walking corpse.

"What if I haven't forgotten, but still die?"

"Then you will be expelled from the Illusionary Realm, and the trial will end. Although you have failed, at least you can save your life."

You should know that this trial is meant to let you see all things in the world and experience the cycle of life and death. If it ends too early, before you have seen through the illusion and opened your third eye, you will fail the trial.

Therefore, you must live as long as possible, at least past seventy. The longer you live, the greater the chance of opening your third eye. Ideally, you should live to a ripe old age, remaining silent and clear-headed until your death. Only then can you be absolutely certain of success.

Therefore, the mission objective is—

1. Do not speak to the people in the Land of Illusion.

2. Live until you die of old age.

3. Remember that the world is an illusion.

That's it? Xiao Jie thought to himself, this is too easy!
"Hehe, this is not simple. The people and things in the Land of Illusion are all like real people, making it impossible for you to distinguish between reality and illusion. Moreover, you will spend a long life in the Land of Illusion. As the saying goes, time changes everything and water drips on stone. No matter how hard your mind is, it may be worn down over the long years."

If decades pass, will you still be able to maintain your original intention?
Faced with the temptations, loves, hates, and entanglements within this illusion, can you hold fast to your principles and avoid falling into its clutches?

Xiao Jie thought to himself that he could definitely handle it. He wasn't actually entering the illusory world; he was just separated by a computer screen. No matter how immersive the storyline in the game was, it was still just so-so.

He had played many immersive and touching games before. Although he was quite moved while playing them, it was impossible for him to completely forget reality.

No matter how tempting it is, I'm not afraid.

"Without uttering a word, he lived past seventy... Do you understand? Is there anything else the immortal master wishes to say?"

"That's all. Success or failure depends on your fate. If you've already made your decision, then please proceed."

Xiao Jie walked up to the mirror, clicked the mouse, and his image immediately appeared in the mirror.

Shenjizi walked behind the mirror and did something, and the image in the mirror began to change. It seemed to be shrinking in age, from a young man to a teenager, from a teenager to a child, and from a child to an infant.

A dialog box suddenly popped up in front of Xiao Jie's eyes. This dialog box was completely different from the ones that had appeared before; it was a white system dialog box.
[System prompt: Your gaming device is insufficient to support the following gaming experience. Do you wish to grant system permissions to run the game in compatibility mode? Yes/No.]

What does this mean? Xiao Jie was stunned, somewhat confused.

But he had no time to think. Shenjizi seemed to think he was hesitating, so he smiled and said, "If you want to give up, it's not too late."

Xiao Jie gritted his teeth; how could he give up at this point?

He suddenly clicked the button—Yes.

The next second, a beam of white light suddenly shot out from the Mirror of Illusion, shining directly onto Xiao Jie's face through the screen.

Before Xiao Jie could react, he felt a tremendous suction force, as if he were being dragged by an invisible force and flying towards the screen. He felt dizzy and lost consciousness.

In a daze, Xiao Jie felt a very warm sensation, as if his whole body was soaking in a hot spring, which was extremely comfortable.

His consciousness wasn't very clear; he vaguely remembered what had happened before. "What's wrong with me? Wasn't I playing a game? That light—"

Suddenly, a light appeared ahead.

Xiao Jie felt a tremendous force push him away, and then someone grabbed his feet and dragged him up.

Xiao Jie was shocked. He looked up and saw an old woman several meters tall holding him with a look of surprise on her face.

"Congratulations, sir! Congratulations, madam! It's a son!"

Xiao Jie felt a wave of dizziness. Holy crap, had he transmigrated into a game?

No, it's the Land of Illusion!

(End of this chapter)