How convincing is my performance as a teacher

After finalizing the direction, the game development progressed swiftly.

Lu Ze divided the game into four main sections.

The first was the Campaign Mode.

This section was designed rather roughly by Lu Ze, serving primarily as a tutorial.

Since it borrowed events from the Great War between the righteous and demonic factions, he didn’t expect the Campaign Mode to contribute much to the game’s IP value.

The second was the War Mode.

This was specifically crafted for the theme of "War."

In War Mode, players could choose factions and sects, develop their forces on the map, and compete for rankings.

Lu Ze designed unique units and weapons for each sect based on their characteristics.

For example, the Wuji Sword Sect’s special unit was the Sword Immortal, with its ultimate technique being the Wuji Sword Formation.

The Tianxuan Sect’s special unit was the Tianxuan Formation Master, with its ultimate technique being the Earthfire Heavenstar Formation.

...

The third was the Competitive Mode.

Inspired by the competitive styles of StarCraft and Warcraft, this mode was designed for easier adaptation in later stages.

Compared to War Mode, it introduced a "population" limit.

Unit attributes were also more rigorously balanced, primarily adjusting overpowered units from War Mode to ensure competitive fairness.

Additionally, "Hero" units were introduced.

The fourth was the Map Editor.

Compared to the map editor in Is the Cultivator Brave Enough to Descend 100 Floors?, the one in Immortal Realm Domination was far more powerful.

It was almost entirely modeled after the Warcraft III map editor from his past life.

Back then, this very system had given rise to wildly popular modes like Chaos of the Three Kingdoms, DotA, and DotA Auto Chess...

...

Lu Ze worked quickly.

Within just a week, he had a prototype ready.

Most of his effort went into designing unit stats, while the visuals were the simplest part.

Once the prototype was complete, Lu Ze tested it himself.

He chose the demonic faction.

The demonic faction’s traits included slight attribute boosts at night and the ability to evolve additional skills as their kill count increased.

Overall, Lu Ze aimed for relative balance—each faction had its strong phases, and units countered one another.

Lu Ze swiftly concluded a match.

"The Crazy Enemy" was utterly crushed by him.

Of course, this wasn’t a balance issue but a skill gap.

If an average player were to face "The Crazy Enemy," three of them combined might still lose.

After one round of testing, there were no glaringly overpowered phases—in fact, the demonic faction felt slightly weak.

"Hmm, this time I’ll spare my dear senior brothers," Lu Ze muttered to himself.

It wasn’t out of guilt for tormenting his fellow disciples before, but because Immortal Realm Domination was meant to focus on competitive play.

Setting the AI difficulty too high served little purpose.

Just then, the system’s voice suddenly rang out:

[In the coming days, the Great War between the righteous and demonic factions will erupt!]

[Mission: As the demonic faction’s pillar, the host must spare no effort to ensure the demonic faction’s ultimate victory!]

[Reward: Demonic Cultivation Manual]

"..."

Hearing this, Lu Ze paused just as he was about to exit the illusion.

He had planned to be the good guy this time, but this damn system wouldn’t let him...

Lu Ze reopened the development interface.

"Easy Enemy"—deleted!

"Hard Enemy"—deleted!

"Crazy Enemy"—difficulty supercharged!!

All demonic faction unit stats were buffed across the board!

But that wasn’t enough.

He then opened the Campaign Mode.

Originally, he had treated it as a simple tutorial, putting little effort into it.

The Campaign Mode followed a straightforward heroic narrative—

Righteous sects gradually grew stronger, sounded the counterattack, and ultimately defeated the demonic faction.

Now, though...

Lu Ze opened the world map.

The demonic faction’s territory expanded wildly...

...

Time flew by.

Soon, it was the day to submit the illusion.

The Lingyu Pavilion was enclosed by a barrier set up by Yang Zhengxin.

Without permission, no one could communicate with the outside world.

Even mental transmissions would be intercepted by Yang Zhengxin.

After confirming the illusion crystal was flawless, Lu Ze sat cross-legged in the courtyard to meditate, waiting for noon.

He hadn’t been seated long when faint sounds of combat echoed from the sky.

Due to the barrier, he couldn’t hear clearly.

Lu Ze looked up and saw two tiny black dots in the sky.

Suddenly, the sky darkened.

A violet divine thunderbolt split the heavens, shaking the entire region.

The pale blue barrier around him cracked faintly.

"What’s going on?"

Lu Ze rubbed his eyes and peered upward.

A figure plummeted from the sky, crashing violently into the Lingyu Pavilion’s outer barrier.

The already fragile barrier shattered completely.

"You old bastard! Why should I clean up after that traitor’s mess!?"

The figure slammed into the ground, still shouting furiously.

Lu Ze stared at the newcomer speechlessly.

"Master... what kind of act are you pulling?" he muttered under his breath.

"Ahem, finally made it in."

Nangong Yuan chuckled awkwardly, sitting up in disarray and dusting himself off.

"So, how was my acting just now?"

"Master, get up first."

"No need, no need! The ground’s quite comfortable. I’ll just sit here!"

"Master, did Elder Zhao beat you up...?"

"Nonsense! A mere divine thunderbolt can’t take me down!"

"Alright, alright. So what’s this all about?"

"Shush. Here, take this defensive artifact. Drip some blood on it to bind it."

...

After some explanation, Lu Ze finally understood the whole story.

The Lingxiao Sect elders were worried he wouldn’t deliver a "War" illusion, which would reduce the sect’s resources.

Moreover, once Ding Mingcang emerged from seclusion, he would surely use this to target Lu Ze and report him to the sect master.

After discussing it, Zhao Wendao and Nangong Yuan decided to stage a performance.

Days ago, the two elders pretended to argue over the illusion, escalating their "feud" until today’s "clash."

They faked a fierce battle, deliberately crashing into Lu Ze’s Lingyu Pavilion.

This way, Nangong Yuan could secretly relay the plan to Lu Ze, and they’d act together—

Lu Ze would pretend to help Nangong Yuan out, and Zhao Wendao would "lose his temper," hurling a divine thunderbolt at them.

The illusion crystal would be "accidentally" destroyed in the chaos.

What a coincidence, right?

Under normal circumstances, the illusion designer couldn’t be replaced mid-process.

But this created an "unavoidable circumstance."

The crystal was shattered—what could they do?

They’d just have to use another pre-prepared illusion crystal from the Lingxiao Sect’s reserves.

As it happened, Elder Nangong had once dabbled in creating a "War" illusion in his free time. Everyone could make do with that!

...

After hearing the full story, Lu Ze’s lips twitched.

"Who came up with such a ridiculous script? You and Elder Zhao?"

"Never mind how it came up with this—after racking our brains, this is the only plan we’ve got. You take the crystal, and we’ll go out together!" Nangong Yuan urged.

Lu Ze felt a chill run down his spine.

"You’re saying I go out first, take a divine thunder strike from the Grand Elder, and just happen to shatter the crystal? What about me?"

"You’ll be fine! Didn’t I just give you a protective artifact? Don’t you trust your master’s treasures?"

"But all your artifacts are broken..."

"Broken or not, your master’s still alive! Here, look!"

To reassure Lu Ze, Nangong Yuan performed a kip-up on the ground.

Pfft!

Blood spurted from his nostrils.

"..."

Lu Ze silently took a large step back, his resolve to never leave the room now unshakable.

Ahem, "Your master’s just been indulging in too many rare spirit herbs lately—too much vitality!"

Wiping the blood from his nose without a hint of shame, Nangong Yuan pulled out a few pills from his storage ring.

"Relax, Elder Lin specially brewed some life-locking elixirs for you. You’ll definitely get treated within half an hour!"

"Master!" Lu Ze cut in solemnly.

"What?"

"I’ve already completed the illusion formation. And it’s flawless!"

"Huh???"

Nangong Yuan froze.

This should have been incredible news.

Yet, he couldn’t feel an ounce of joy.

This illusion…

How had Lu Ze actually pulled it off???

So that divine thunder strike earlier… was for nothing???

"Master, maybe you could… send a voice transmission? Tell the Grand Elder to stop blasting?"

"Send nothing! Yang Zhengxin’s barrier is sneaky—he’d overhear it."

"Then, Master…" Lu Ze patted Nangong Yuan’s shoulder gravely. "We’ll just have to commit to the act!"

Nangong Yuan paused.

Then, resigned, he closed his eyes and trudged step by step toward the door.

"Oh, about that artifact I gave you earlier..."

"You told me to blood-bond it, so I did. Can it even be transferred now?"

"..."

"It’s fine, Master. You still have Elder Lin’s medicine..."

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