Chapter 468: Big Shot Chu Xue (Sixth Update)

You must know that within the matrix, save for hackers who can rewrite select fragments, the virtual world contains nearly everything present in reality; only through such absolute fidelity can a mind, fully aware of the illusion, still instinctively judge it as truth.

It is a comprehensive world built from the very bedrock of existence, calculated and simulated through the supreme intellect of an artificial intelligence.

By contrast, the illusions and phantasm arrays of the present era are mostly artificial and rudimentary, achieving much if they can replicate mere appearances, to say nothing of the underlying essence.

As for the higher realms of illusion, such as the one Guild Master Zong once encountered, the facade might be seamless enough, yet the core remains patently incomplete.

Of course, these are heights only supreme grandmasters possess the standing to ponder and approach; petty cultivators and the youth would do well not to overthink it.

And the road ahead for those grandmasters is quite clearly a long and distant one.

Those are matters for the future; the only thing they could do now was perhaps—spend more time online, watch more movies, and play more games.

"Master." Wang Xie had just stepped through the door alongside Gu Tingyun when he spotted a dark silhouette.

"Senior Brother Zhou Mo?"

Zhou Mo entered, flanked by Perfected Master Baoping and Feng Yangzi, who had assisted him in supervising the Haotian Academy entrance examinations aboard the dharma vessel that day.

Just as Wang Xie moved forward to greet them, a cold face suddenly darted out from the side.

"Brother Wang!"

"Brother Xun?!"

Xun Yuan’s face wore a frigid expression: "I never expected you to neglect your cultivation to such an extent! Do you honestly believe that because you defeated me, you can afford to indulge in self-complacency? Or do you simply hold me in such utter contempt?"

At the Jiuhua City shop, Nalan Mingxue opened the Tieba forum as was her custom, eating instant noodles while uploading a neatly compiled text file.

At the Yuanyang City shop.

"Holy crap! Chuxue has posted another guide!"

"What? Chuxue posted another guide?" Wang Xie’s eyes lit up. "Master!"

"Mm!" Gu Tingyun stroked his long beard and said, "As it happens, this old master is stuck in the Ghost Realm. Is today's guide for the Ghost Realm?"

"Most likely!" Wang Xie urged quickly, "Brother Xun, we'll talk in a bit!"

Gu Tingyun's face filled with delight: "Then let us go and have a look!"

With that, he hurriedly found a seat and logged onto Tieba.

There, pinned at the very top, was a massive featured thread: [Strategy Guide] Ghost Realm Soul-Chasing Chapter, Author: Chuxue.

"Hahaha, it really is the Ghost Realm chapter!" Gu Tingyun quickly clicked into it.

Overview Map of the Ghost Realm Suburbs: (Map)

Discovered Side Quests (Partial data provided by Young Master Xiao): ...

Crucial Dialogue Phrasing for Favorability: ...

"Brother Wang?"

"Junior Brother Tang! Quick, quick! Come look, Chuxue's Legend of Sword and Fairy 3 guide has been updated!"

"Really?!"

Beneath the post, a user with the ID 'Little Immortal Lu' and an avatar of a white deer had left a reply: Thank you, Great Chuxue! This guide is fantastic! (Loud Laugh) May I ask who this adorable Young Master Xiao is? Why do they provide data every single time?

The reply was accompanied by a broad laughing emoji from the forum.

Gu Tingyun glanced at it, copied the text, and pasted it:

Thank you, Great Chuxue! This guide is fantastic! (Loud Laugh) May I ask who this adorable Young Master Xiao is? Why do they provide data every single time?

Having finished his reply, he hurriedly launched the game.

Wang Xie opened the thread only to catch sight of this exact comment: "..."

Xun Yuan, still standing by the doorway: "..."

"Young Master... was that... Senior Gu just now?"

Xun Yuan's expression darkened: "Not just him... City Master Zong is there too... along with Elder Yu, Zhou Mo, and Perfected Master Baoping..."

"Then what do we do now?"

"Let's see what they're up to." He quickly leaned in from behind.

On Gu Tingyun's screen stood a young man.

Wang Xie took a glance: "Master has already reached the Fire Ghost King?"

"Reached? The Fire Ghost King?" Xun Yuan stared at Wang Xie in bewilderment.

"Indeed. I lacked the time to explain it to Brother Xun before, so you likely remain unaware..." With that, he offered a brief explanation.

Upon the screen, endless torrents of magma erupted from all sides. Aside from the open-air stone palace baked to an orange-red hue by the intense heat where they stood, it was a world entirely consumed by fire.

Before them loomed a tall, bloated, hideous monster with three horns upon its brow (vastly different from the television adaptation).

Originally a mortal who had died burnt by celestial fire in ancient times, he transformed into a fire ghost after death. Coveting the freedom of the Ghost Realm, he refused to reincarnate, utilizing natural magma to bar Yama's entry and establishing his own domain. Possessing immense magical power, the flames he unleashed were hellish nether-fires capable of reducing a soul directly to ashes.

On the screen, nether-fires streaked through the air as magma surged from every direction, the surrounding temperature seemingly palpable even through the glass.

Xun Yuan stepped forward with a grim countenance: "I shall see for myself just how entertaining this game truly is!"

It was quite apparent that when facing the Fire Ghost King, the optimal formation required a water affinity. On screen, the positions of Jing Tian, Long Kui, and the others shifted; only by casting water-attribute spells at this precise juncture could they prevent their potency from being diminished by the surrounding heat.

Immediately following this, Jing Tian on screen formed a hand seal, and a mountain of ice pierced straight through the earth!

He watched as wind and fire danced wildly across the display, molten rock splashing everywhere as the converging flames suddenly swept across the surroundings.

"Young Master, this looks incredibly powerful!" a maidservant in purple attire gasped beside him.

"..." Xun Yuan turned his gaze toward another screen.

The adjacent screen seemed even more formidable. Four figures stood arrayed in a specific formation, their internal spiritual energy converging into a single point.

"Ten Direction Demon-Sealing Slash!" Tang Yu bellowed.

"Ah—!" He stared dumbdependently at the screen as the earth shattered and the mountains split. "This was unleashed by Young Master Tang?"

To think it could be so earth-shattering?!

Gritting his teeth, he slammed his spirit crystals onto the counter: "Owner, I want to play The Legend of Sword and Fairy too!"

"Uh..."

"Activate the game for my Zier as well!"

After playing for a full eight hours.

He bolted upright from his seat as though springs were attached to his buttocks: "How is this possible! Is this not just a game?! How can it be this powerful?!"

"Brother Wang! This game is simply incredible! An immortal reincarnated! I became an immortal reincarnated!" He turned his head in sheer excitement toward Wang Xie, who had just logged off beside him.

"Indeed," Wang Xie replied with utter composure. "It is incredible."

He turned his head again, looking toward Tang Yu nearby: "Young Master Tang, I was actually experiencing an immortal's sword technique just now?! It is simply beyond belief!"

Tang Yu remained perfectly calm: "...Indeed."

He then turned to Lei Ge, who was logging off next to them: "Junior Brother Lei!"

Lei Ge spoke with a thoroughly indifferent expression: "It is indeed quite incredible."

"..." Xun Yuan’s face twitched. Could you people at least show some expression when you talk about how amazing they are?!

Yue Bai, who was passing by, glanced at him. "How are you just finding this out now? We're already about to beat the game."

"Uh..."

Mu Qing muttered disdainfully, "Making such a fuss, honestly."

"..." He exchanged a look with his personal maid.

"Young Master, it seems like we are the only ones who just started playing..."

Xun Yuan’s face turned utterly dark.

Ignoring him entirely, Mu Qing spoke up and asked, "By the way, Senior Sister, rumor has it that Great Master Chuxue is challenging the perfect ending today. Is that true?"

"No, she ended up with the imperfect ending—surviving against Chong Lou for a set amount of time. The perfect ending will probably have to wait until next time."

"It feels so impossibly hard..." Mu Qing frowned and said, "They say everyone who cleared it over at the Jiuhua City branch only managed to get the imperfect ending."

"It can't be helped," Tang Yu added from the side. "Brother Lou already suppressed his strength and held back. If he held back any more, it would just be ridiculous."

"He's simply too strong," Wang Xie said, clicking his tongue. "In a first playthrough from scratch, you can't carry over many good items, and they say Chuxue has been using a pure swordsmanship build the entire time."

"Setting everything else aside, the way they play games over there really is something special..."

"What does being special now matter?" Xun Yuan declared with soaring, heroic pride. "Just wait until we get the hang of it later. We'll turn all those other shops into nothing but local trash!"

"Hahaha! It's good to have that kind of ambition." As geniuses of the Haotian Academy, admiration was one thing, but admitting defeat was absolutely out of the question.

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Postscript: The seventh update will be posted a bit later.

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