Chapter 32: A Flaw in the Mind

Qin Luan woke up feeling a bit dazed. As he gradually regained clarity, he realized everything just now had been an illusion and couldn’t help but be startled.

When he saw a weak young woman calling for help, he saved her out of sympathy. Then, driven by compassion for the people of the world, he sought to unify the land, end the wars, and bring about an era of peace.

Although he did eventually quell the conflicts and establish a new nation, deep down, he knew—what bulls**t sympathy? He was just lusting after her body!

If it weren’t for his firm belief in cultivating according to his own principles and his refusal to consume heavenly treasures, he might have truly fallen into the illusion.

Qin Luan was an exceptionally intelligent person, and after thinking for a moment, he understood what this mystic realm was testing.

When he noticed that only he and Jiang Li had awakened, he knew that, for now, only the two of them had passed the first trial of the mystic realm.

As for this person named Kong Li—he had woken up even earlier than Qin Luan, which made Qin Luan deeply admire him.

“Kong, my friend, you truly hide your strength well,” he sincerely praised. To think he had considered himself powerful and even shamelessly claimed he could protect the guy.

In his eyes, breaking through the mystic realm in a month was already an astonishing feat—among his peers at the same stage, no one should be able to surpass him.

Yet reality told him otherwise.

You’re not the strongest of your generation.

You must not become arrogant.

Breaking through the mystic realm didn’t elevate Qin Luan’s state of mind, but seeing Jiang Li surpass him did. It made his mindset improve even further.

“Just luck, all luck,” Jiang Li chuckled.

Such a humble person.

Qin Luan admired Jiang Li even more.

Jiang Li was starting to feel a little bored, so he muttered, “Senior Meng, could you show me how the others are doing in the illusion?”

Moments later, the mist within the mystic realm condensed into a smooth water mirror, displaying the experiences of the other participants within the illusion.

Qin Luan assumed this was a reward for waking up early and leaned in to watch.

The person who had been possessed was named Li Litong, and the water mirror displayed his illusion.

The trials in the illusions were all quite similar—a pitiful young girl seeking help. Jiang Li encountered Meng Chun, Qin Luan encountered a different girl, and Li Litong encountered yet another one.

After saving the girl, Li Litong followed her suggestion to pacify the world and rescue the people—but his methods were violent. He slaughtered people by the thousands, going through countless dulled blades.

He believed that saving the world was the key to passing the mystic realm.

Forget that he was a Soul Formation cultivator who had taken over this body—even if his previous life’s self had entered this illusion, he still wouldn’t have realized it was fake!

As he killed, Li Litong’s cultivation steadily grew, pushing him close to the peak of the Foundation Establishment Stage.

Jiang Li could tell that this man’s cultivation technique was related to absorbing blood energy—killing people maximized blood energy, which he then absorbed. This type of technique was very similar to Demonic Dao, but the two weren’t necessarily the same.

The Demonic Dao is a philosophy, while a cultivation technique is just a technique.

There are no demonic techniques—only people who cultivate demonically.

Most who practiced slaughter-based cultivation techniques would either join law enforcement or the military, while a smaller number would enter sects and hone their skills through sect battles.

Li Litong was the latter type.

Inside the illusion, he was like a fish in water—he had an endless supply of Qi Refining Stage cultivators to use for cultivation.

If he had joined the military in the Nine Provinces Continent, he’d be nothing more than a Foundation Establishment Stage foot soldier—cannon fodder. But here, in the illusion, fighting against armies, he was a god of war!

He was dazed for a moment, as if he had returned to the peak of his Soul Formation Stage, where all revered him!

Li Litong also consumed heavenly treasures, but he was cautious—taking only small amounts. Clearly, he understood that over-relying on them would lead to bottlenecks later in cultivation.

It took him twenty days to unify the world, a month and a half to stabilize his rule, and along the way, he even advanced to the Golden Core Stage—but he still hadn’t cleared the trial.

Yet he wasn’t anxious. He enjoyed being revered, feeling as though he had returned to his past self.

Beyond the Nine Great Imperial Dynasties, there were countless smaller nations in the Nine Provinces Continent, and most of their rulers had cultivation at or around the Soul Formation Stage.

After two months, Li Litong passed the trial—not because of his great achievements, but because he never indulged in the women of his harem. The illusion determined that he hadn’t fallen to lust, and he cleared the stage.

While Li Litong liked beauties, he practiced Celibacy Cultivation, which meant he couldn’t be intimate with women.

What could he do? The strongest technique he knew was Celibacy Cultivation, and it frustrated him to no end.

That said, upon closer examination, his self-discipline was indeed strong, meeting the trial’s criteria.

When Li Litong woke up, he found himself still at the late Foundation Establishment Stage and realized that everything had been an illusion. His heart suddenly felt empty.

Seeing Jiang Li and Qin Luan intently watching the water mirror, he immediately understood that he had only placed third in this trial.

This made him extremely displeased—he was a possessor, after all. He looked down on mere Foundation Establishment cultivators, believing himself naturally superior.

Moreover, he wanted to be the champion of this trial—the first-place reward would be critical for him to return to the Soul Formation Stage and even go beyond.

But ranking third in just the first stage?

To take first place overall, he had to dominate the second trial.

He wasn’t confident.

At that thought, his face darkened. Before entering the mystic realm, they had all signed life-and-death contracts—even if something happened inside, the Great Zhou Dynasty wouldn’t investigate!

Boom!

Li Litong’s blood energy surged, slicing his palm open. With his blood, he forged two daggers, launching them like cannonballs toward Jiang Li and Qin Luan.

These two only had slightly better mindsets—so what? He didn’t care.

In the end, battle strength is the foundation of cultivation!

And he was very confident in his combat ability!

“Kong, watch out!” Qin Luan reacted swiftly, shielding Jiang Li. The pressure was immense—this guy was even more terrifying than Song Ying and Seven Kill Daoist!

He was almost certain he would lose this fight!

Jiang Li didn’t even hesitate—he simply kicked Li Litong away.

Forget Qin Luan—not even Li Litong himself saw it coming!

“And someone with such a weak mindset managed to reach the Soul Formation Stage? Must’ve been sheer dumb luck.”

Jiang Li sneered, no longer paying attention to Li Litong and resuming his watch on the water mirror.

That one simple transmission of words shattered Li Litong’s greatest secret, leaving him trembling, cold sweat pouring down his body like he’d just been pulled out of water.

“Integration Stage… This is an Integration Stage powerhouse!”

Jiang Li sensed Li Litong’s reaction through divine sense and shook his head lightly.

He had wanted to warn Li Litong about his flawed mindset, but it seemed pointless.

Because the conversation had been transmitted privately, Qin Luan didn’t hear a thing—he just admired Jiang Li even more.

“Kong, what sect are you from to cultivate to such terrifying strength?”

To Qin Luan, Jiang Li’s power must have come from an incredible technique.

Jiang Li smiled. “Interested in joining my sect? It’s not impossible.”

He wasn’t lying—Qin Luan’s talent and mindset made him a strong contender for Human Sovereign.

“Look, it’s Song Ying’s illusion now.”

Qin Luan still wanted to say something, but the mention of Song Ying’s trial made him itch with curiosity—he couldn’t wait to see how she handled it.