Old Zhong, Don't Die

After Lu Ze's livestream ended, three major changes occurred in "My World."

First, players could now enter Lu Ze's illusionary realm from anywhere.

Second, the game's graphics underwent a dramatic upgrade, attracting many cultivators who valued visual immersion.

Third, the introduction of modding functionality greatly enhanced the realm's adaptability.

Regardless of which change played the biggest role, one thing was certain—the online player count of "My World" skyrocketed.

......

......

Danqing Peak

Xiao Hongzhi had just finished circulating his cultivation technique. During a brief moment of rest, he couldn't resist taking out his Illusion Tower.

"Just a quick mining session shouldn’t hurt, right?" he muttered to himself before channeling spiritual energy into the Illusion Crystal and immersing his consciousness into the realm.

He had joined "My World" relatively late and was still in the mining-and-building phase.

Upon hearing about the massive graphics upgrade, he rushed to log in and continue his "Foundation Establishment" project.

Even though he had recently broken through to the Nascent Soul realm, he still found the idea of "Foundation Establishment" in the illusionary realm oddly appealing.

"Huh? Now just being in the realm consumes spiritual energy? Whatever, it’s not much anyway."

Xiao Hongzhi quickly noticed that his spiritual energy continued flowing into the Illusion Crystal even after his consciousness entered the realm. Fortunately, the drain was minimal.

Considering the massive consciousness array now covering the entire cultivation world, contributing a bit of energy wasn’t unreasonable.

"Where’s the graphics upgrade?"

The moment he logged in, Xiao Hongzhi pulled up the system interface, searching for the features Lu Ze had mentioned—[High-Resolution Texture Pack] and [Ray Tracing].

"[High-Resolution Texture Pack]—increases energy consumption, weaklings beware? Hah! Lu Ze really has a sense of humor!"

Amused by the system warning, Xiao Hongzhi didn’t hesitate to enable it.

Next, he toggled on [Ray Tracing].

[Ray Tracing: Extreme energy consumption. Use with caution!!]

Another warning popped up.

"Seriously? I’m a Nascent Soul cultivator. Do I really need to worry about spiritual energy drain in a game??"

Xiao Hongzhi scoffed and enabled it without a second thought.

The moment both options activated, his world transformed.

Textures—maxed out! Lighting—perfection!

It was like stepping into an entirely new universe.

"This is insane! Hahaha, time to go mining~"

Marveling at the technological marvels, Xiao Hongzhi grabbed two iron pickaxes from his chest and headed into the mineshaft to dig for diamonds.

Following the tunnel beneath his house, he soon reached the massive cave system he had been exploring earlier.

The moment he entered, he spotted shimmering veins of ore everywhere.

Every block now had an unparalleled level of detail.

"With these features, I can spot ores just by their glow! This is amazing!"

Grinning, Xiao Hongzhi raised his pickaxe—

Then, a wave of dizziness struck.

The illusionary realm went black.

Just before losing consciousness, he faintly heard his fellow disciples shouting.

"Senior Brother, why are you smoking?!"

"Senior Brother! Senior Brother!! What’s wrong?!"

"Whoa! He’s foaming at the mouth!!"

"Go get the master!!"

......

......

Zhong Yi’s Illusionary Realm

"Log in, log in! Hurry up, I’m starting the iron farm and crop fields!"

Zhong Yi urged the others.

As a core disciple who had recently hit a cultivation bottleneck, he had plenty of free time.

Ever since witnessing Lu Ze’s automated mega-factory, he had gained new insights into redstone mechanics—especially timing circuits.

Now, he had a plan.

If successful, he could achieve full automation.

"Coming, coming."

Under his impatient prodding, the other three leisurely logged in.

Remembering Lu Ze’s mention of the graphics upgrade, Zhong Yi immediately opened the system settings.

"[High-Resolution Texture Pack]—increases energy consumption? Will it make me sweat? Turn it on!"

"[Ray Tracing]—extreme energy drain, use with caution?? Pfft. I’m a Divine Transformation cultivator. Even the Heavenly Dao Secret Realm gives me face… Turn it on!"

"Oh? [Server-Shared World]—host bears all spiritual energy costs for others? Consider it endurance training. Enable everything!"

Without hesitation, Zhong Yi maxed out every setting.

Instantly, the world’s visuals ascended to breathtaking heights.

Every block now boasted ultra-realistic textures.

"Wow, the scenery is actually beautiful now!" Zhou Qiaoling gasped, admiring the surroundings.

"Lu Ze’s mastery over illusionary realms is truly impressive," Zhong Yi remarked approvingly.

The four quickly got to work.

......

About half an hour later, Zhong Yi suddenly felt… empty.

The kind of emptiness that comes from being spiritually drained.

‘Strange… Have I been slacking in my cultivation lately?’

He frowned but quickly brushed it off.

Ridiculous.

A Divine Transformation expert like him couldn’t possibly be overwhelmed by a game’s energy demands.

What kind of joke would that be?

Determined, he briefly logged out, replenished his spiritual energy to the brim, and dove back in.

......

"Damn, Zhong Yi! Guess what I found? A massive—no, a GIGANTIC spirit stone vein!!"

"Ghk—!!"

"Yo, you okay?"

"I’m… fine…"

......

"Hahaha! Senior Brother Zhong, I finally finished the full-scale model of our Forgegold Peak! One, two… wow! Eighteen mountain peaks, all fully built!"

"Ugh… ah…"

"Senior Brother, what’s wrong?"

"Just… a sore throat…"

......

"Bro! Bro!! Help!! This elite mob’s HP is insane!!"

"Coming! Brought twenty Blast Talismans—this thing’s getting vaporized!"

"BOOM—!!"

"Whoa, why did it lag just now?"

"Guh…!!!!"

"Senior Brother Zhong, are you alright?"

"I’m… fine…"

......

"Odd. Elder Lin just messaged me—said an inner disciple passed out in the illusionary realm and asked me to check… Guess I’ll head back for now."

Zhou Yue reluctantly logged out of "My World."

Ever since the graphics upgrade, the game had become addictively immersive.

As he turned to leave, he noticed something off—

Zhong Yi, sitting in the center, was bright red, steam rising from his forehead.

"Hey… Zhong Yi? You good?"

Zhou Yue patted his shoulder.

"SPLURT—!!"

Blood gushed from Zhong Yi’s nostrils.

Zhou Qiaoling and Mu Yawen snapped their eyes open.

"What happened? Why did the realm disconnect?"

"Holy—?! Senior Brother Zhong, why are you steaming?!"

"Zhong Yi, don’t die on us… Zhong Yi! ZHONG YI!!"

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