PCJ – Chapter 748 Returning to the Void

Seeing the three men turn to leave, Qi Shuo suddenly had a strong feeling that if he missed this chance, he would regret it for the rest of his life. He quickly shouted loudly: “Wait!”

The three of them stopped. The leader turned back and asked: “What is it? Have you changed your mind?”

Qi Shuo nodded firmly.

The man smiled. “You’re not afraid we’re conmen anymore?”

Qi Shuo shook his head. “Conmen wouldn’t be able to get their hands on my in-game data, nor would they be able to link my identity in the game to who I am in real life.”

“Good. My name is Zhang Yuanbao. I’m specifically in charge of contacting players like you. If you’ve made up your mind to come with us, then pack up immediately. After signing a confidentiality agreement, we’ll take you to a place.”

Zhang Yuanbao was precisely the liaison sent out from Immortal Dreamscape to recruit players like Qi Shuo, who had managed, in an extremely short time, to gather the sparse spiritual energy delivered through the login device and successfully complete their first major circulation.

This time, there were over a hundred players like Qi Shuo who had transmitted similar results to the main system of Immortal Dreamscape. They were all cultivation prodigies. But not all of them were born with extraordinary talent. Innate advantages only improved the odds of success; they did not ultimately decide one’s fate.

“Can you tell me more about Immortal Dreamscape?” Qi Shuo asked.

“You’ll know when we get there. Do you realize how many places we have to visit this time to find people in situations like yours?” Zhang Yuanbao replied.

“A lot?” Qi Shuo asked in surprise.

“Of course not a lot. But they’re scattered everywhere. Over a hundred people spread across dozens of cities. Finding them one by one and bringing them back isn’t easy.” Zhang Yuanbao sounded somewhat helpless. Many times, people treated him like a scammer.

“Did they also think you were scammers, just like I did?” Qi Shuo chuckled.

Zhang Yuanbao asked helplessly, “Do I really look that much like a conman?”

“Conmen don’t have a fixed look. It’s just that what you’re saying is hard to believe. When you show up at someone’s door to recruit them, of course they’ll be suspicious. You should first dispel their doubts. Actually, you could have the Immortal Dreamscape main system send them a message. That way, your identity would seem more credible.” Qi Shuo suggested.

“Whatever. It’s not me who suffers from the misunderstanding. Don’t look at me like that—you’ll see soon enough that I’m not lying.” Zhang Yuanbao didn’t have much patience.

Zhang Yuanbao’s attitude surprised Qi Shuo.

But when Qi Shuo finally entered Meishan Blessed Land, he was utterly stunned. He had never imagined that such a world even existed.

Qi Shuo, along with all the players Zhang Yuanbao had brought, were gathered together.

“I don’t care what your status was before, nor whether you were rich or poor. Once you are here, all of that becomes nothing. I hope you can understand this. You all have impressive talent, but you must also realize that everyone here has even better talent and higher cultivation than you. So don’t think that this place cannot do without you. Meishan Sect will never falter because of one person.” Zhang Jiaohua stood on the stage and declared.

Among them were indeed a few exceptionally gifted individuals, some with top-grade spiritual roots. Their cultivation talent was extraordinary, and their progress faster. Under the same conditions, their chances of success were much greater. Of the more than one hundred candidates selected by Meishan Sect, only a little over sixty had made it here.

Dozens of people didn’t mean much for the Meishan Sect, but it was a very good beginning.

As long as the Immortal Dreamscape game continued to run, Zhang Jiaohua believed that more and more cultivators would join the Meishan Sect. Only then could the sect truly grow strong.

Meanwhile, Kong Fangzhou had already begun refining the meteorites brought back from the moon. This time’s harvest was plentiful, and the meteorites would surely yield large quantities of mysterious elements.

In the blink of an eye, several more years passed.

Immortal Dreamscape had become a national phenomenon. Almost every Chinese citizen had an account. By now, tens of thousands of talented players had joined the Meishan Sect through the game—surpassing the size of the Three Sacred Lands before their ascension to the Immortal Realm.

Kong Fangzhou had expanded his mining operations to several planets in the solar system, still using manned robots for interstellar journeys. More meteorites were being collected, and many mysterious elements had been discovered. Through the scientific system, he continued refining tools and eventually developed several new refining formulas.

At this point, Zhang Jiaohua had reached the critical threshold between the Spirit-Transformation stage and the Void-Returning stage. He had been suppressing his cultivation for a long time, but recently he felt that it could no longer be held back. At this stage, Zhang faintly sensed that once he broke through into Void-Returning, he might no longer be able to remain in this world.

His Dao Diagram had become increasingly complete, forming an entire self-contained world within.

Zhang Jiaohua did not know what would happen at the moment of breakthrough. He left Meishan Blessed Land alone and went out to sea.

Hovering above the ocean surface, he released the cultivation he had long suppressed.

At that moment, a strange beam of light descended from the top of his Dao Diagram world. Zhang Jiaohua had no idea where this light originated, but he could feel that it was calling to him. Could that be the place where his future lay?

Boom! In both reality and within the Dao Diagram, the light linked together, connecting the Dao Diagram with the real world. Above the sea, a radiant portal appeared.

Zhang Jiaohua knew: this was his path!

Before coming to the sea, Zhang Jiaohua had already said farewell to his family and friends. Yet, now that he was about to leave this world, he still felt a deep reluctance. But nonetheless, he stepped resolutely toward the portal of light.

Just then, the eastern sea suddenly glowed with a blazing red light.

All across China, people could see the red glow illuminating the eastern sky.

“What is that? How could such a phenomenon appear?”

Wei Chenguang gazed eastward. He knew it meant the Sect Master had successfully broken through—transforming spirit and returning to the void. But even he didn’t know what would happen after Void-Returning.

Zhang Jiaohua had already told him that he might leave this world, and that he might not be able to return.

Zhang’s parents, Zhang Youping and Liu Qiaoye, though aware that their son had attained the Dao of longevity, still wished he could live as an ordinary person—happily enjoying family bonds.

Ji Jiaxin and Xu Xiaoting sat together atop Heiyan Ridge of Meishan.

“Will he come back?” Ji Jiaxin asked, gazing at the red dawn in the east.

“He will definitely come back. Whether it’s the Immortal Realm or the mortal world, they must be connected somehow. Since he can go there, there will surely be a way to return.” Xu Xiaoting replied.

“If he doesn’t return, what will you do? Give up?” Ji Jiaxin asked.

“I won’t. If he doesn’t return, I’ll chase after him. No matter how fast he runs, one day I’ll catch up to him. What about you?” Xu Xiaoting stood up.

“Me?” Ji Jiaxin turned her head, smiled brightly, and suddenly leapt gracefully from the cliff. Her white dress shimmered under the sunlight, turning into a rainbow in the sky.