Chapter 263: Member Meng Qi Initiates a Live Stream

With a "clang," Li Huowang drew his long sword, stabbed down, pulled it out, and a wound appeared on his palm, revealing gleaming white bone.

"Why is it still in front of me?!"

In a side chamber of the Bai family compound, Li Huowang sat cross-legged, staring in disbelief at the images before him—styles even within the Illusion World were considered "advanced."

"What the hell is this new illusion!!!"

Intense pain could not snap him out of this illusion; on the contrary, the "chat logs," styled after another world, rapidly updated before his eyes.

His thoughts, his reflections, could be instantly converted into corresponding text on this thing.

No! No! Li Sui was still inside his stomach—there could be no illusion here! The illusions from that side couldn't possibly affect him! And if a real illusion returned, the entire scene would change—yet around him, besides this new interface and a pile of text, everything was still the Bai family compound in Niuxin Village!

Li Huowang glared with bloodshot eyes around him—was the wine he drank last night poisoned?!

Something was affecting him. Something definitely was. He stared tensely at the empty air before him, slashing his sword at the images—but no matter how hard he cut, the text remained untouched.

He dragged the heavy bag of torture tools to his front, spread it open, and picked up one of the hook-shaped instruments.

"Brother Li, what are you doing?" Zhu Ge Yuan, fan in hand, watched him with concern. "Why the sudden urge to act?"

Hong Haizi's face was full of curiosity. "Is Red Middle having another episode? This time he doesn't seem to be trapped in an illusion."

"Disciple, why harm yourself like this? There are no enemies around," the Monk said, clasping his hands together, trying to stop Li Huowang from hurting himself.

"There's something in front of me!" Li Huowang suddenly remembered he wasn't alone: "Brother Zhu Ge, I've seen a new illusion! And this illusion won't leave my sight!"

As Li Huowang spoke, he suddenly saw someone in the so-called group chat @ him. He laughed bitterly—this illusion was incredibly lifelike, just like the chat group from that Fake World.

"Wait!" Li Huowang instantly realized.

This isn't an illusion. The term "group chat," and the things they mentioned—games, household appliances—these are things that only exist in the Fake World!

Now, these words weren't just appearing before him; they were discussing modern-day matters.

Could it be…

Could it be…

Li Huowang took a deep breath and roared toward the outside: "Zuo Wang Dao!"

His expression twisted, he held the long sword horizontally across his chest, watching his surroundings warily, ready to manifest the people in the illusion to aid him if anything went wrong.

"Bei Feng! Is this funny?! Get out here!"

"I'm not joking! Get your ass out right now, or I'll peel your skin off and swap your body with a pig in the latrine!"

Of course—only Bei Feng, also a Xin Su, could have pulled this off. He'd even given the bastard a cultivation scripture, and now this scoundrel was mocking him!

"Red Middle, where's this Bei Feng? There's no Zuo Wang Dao around you—what are you raving about?" the illusionary Hong Haizi asked, puzzled.

Li Huowang didn't believe a single word of it—this one was also Zuo Wang Dao, and if something interesting happened, he'd surely be in cahoots with Bei Feng.

"Group chat, huh!" Li Huowang sneered.

Li Huowang: "Bei Feng! Don't let me find you! Or I'll chop off your head in the latrine and turn you into a pig that eats shit!"

Li Huowang: "You want to chat? Fine! I'll chat with you till you're exhausted!"

Li Huowang: "Come out! When I played games in another world, I was from Zuan'an! Come on! Let's see how you chat!"

After his outburst, the group chat fell silent. The "people" inside stopped pretending to role-play.

"Heh." Li Huowang coldly laughed at the now-still group chat—but after waiting a long while, the thing didn't vanish.

Good. You better wait.

The thing shrank to its smallest size according to his thought, yet the icon remained—his perception felt as if a foreign object had been forcibly inserted into it.

With a bang, he yanked open the wooden door of the side chamber and began searching the Niuxin Village for anomalies.

As the Galaxy Baseball Hero—no, as the Explorer, Xing—though born less than a year ago, she had seen plenty.

Having just returned to the train after saving Belobog, she'd only rested one night, bidding farewell to the unique Goethe Hotel, its slightly damp room, the chilly corridor, and the twins inside it—she simply wanted to sleep in the train's warm bed until she naturally woke up.

Unexpectedly, after only nine hours of sleep, she was woken by a string of messages.

【Black Tower: Come test the Simulated Universe!】

【Black Tower: Come test the Simulated Universe!】

With no choice, she dragged her sleep-deprived body through the Domain Anchor to help Black Tower test it.

She missed Pam's breakfast. She'd planned to grab a meal at the space station's cafeteria on the way back—but as she pondered whether to try a spinning kick to make the vending machine explode with drinks, this "Multiverse Group Chat" suddenly appeared before her.

"Forget it."

She abandoned the idea, feeling her morality had slightly increased.

She'd originally thought it was some hidden ad on the vending machine—turns out it was something this powerful: the Multiverse Group Chat…

After reading the explanations from others in the group, she roughly understood the situation.

"I see. I see." Xing studied as she walked toward the Domain Anchor.

When she came to her senses, she was already in her room—until Li Huowang's refined and gentle presence awakened her.

Gurgling—

Her stomach was hungry.

Exhausted, she lay on the bed, sprawled in a star shape, staring at the familiar ceiling above.

Too tired to move. Hungry, but didn't want to move. Too lazy.

Faintly, she saw a deep violet entity formed from countless stars—familiar. Hadn't she seen it in the Simulated Universe?

If only the Simulated Universe had food.

Xing: "I still don't fully believe this is real. Here's what you do—send me some signature dishes, and I'll judge whether it's real."

Su Lin: "Open the door."

【Su Lin requests entry to your world.】

So fast?

【Accept.】

Opposite them, a portal opened, but no one emerged from it.

Just as Xing lay in bed, puzzled, a black metal tin filled with items was thrown over from the other side of the portal.

The instant the black metal tin hit the ground, the portal closed.

Xing, who had been half-giving-up, sprang up from bed like a leaping carp, staring at the black metal tin on the floor—with both fear and a flicker of curiosity.

'No way?'

'No way?'

Since being warned by March 7 and Dan Heng, she hadn't seen this thing in a long time—not even enough time to grab any local specialties before leaving Belobog.

Glug.

She swallowed hard. How did they know? Could it really be true, as they claimed, that other worlds had manga or works related to her?

This man truly understood her! This was a true kindred spirit!

Xing got off the bed, embraced the black metal tin with eager anticipation—in this moment, curiosity replaced hunger.

'Explorer, Pam worries you didn't eat breakfast.'

A girl with pink hair opened Xing's door, holding a white tray with slices of bread, bacon, and fried eggs; beside her stood a man with a slightly cold expression, holding a glass of apple juice.

'.'

'.'

'.'

The three stared at each other, but the other two's gazes fixed on the black metal tin in Xing's arms.

'March 7, Dan Heng, let me explain!' Xing stammered: 'This is… uh… a gift from a friend!'

The pink-haired girl showed clear disgust, while the cold-faced man twitched his nostrils slightly and walked straight toward Xing.

'Smells good. What is it?' Dan Heng stepped before Xing and opened the lid of the black metal tin.

Inside was a black plastic bag radiating warmth.

'I've been watching you the whole time—when did you even have time to bring up a trash can?' March 7's eyelid twitched violently: 'Hey, Dan Heng, what are you doing?'

Dan Heng's expression didn't change. He pulled out the plastic bag from the black metal tin and placed it on the ground, opening it.

Inside was an iron bowl, filled with red crustacean creatures—something like shrimp?

'It's normal food,' Dan Heng said.

At that moment, Xing didn't know why, but suddenly felt a pang of disappointment.

Li Huowang, having read the script, found that the group members who knew Xiao Huowang's role weren't particularly stirred; instead, many sighed.

Ye Fan: 'Poor kid.'

Especially Especially Especially Xiao Yan: 'Even with this modified script, my head aches. When I lie in bed reading, it depresses me.'

Su Lin: 'You actually watched it?'

Xiao Huowang: 'What else? This is professionalism.'

Xiao Huowang: '?'

Especially Especially Especially Xiao Yan: 'What are you doing, dog manager? Don't you understand personal space is sacred?'

Han Li: 'I'm starting to get confused.'

Especially Especially Especially Xiao Yan: 'Liu Li Ge… are you serious?'

Especially Especially Especially Xiao Yan: '@Li Huowang, brother, come over when you have time. Though I'm weak, I can still help you a bit.'

Ye Fan: '@Li Huowang, you can ask the admin for copyright fees. Though I don't get how this guy works—@Su Lin, go to his world and start a campaign to offset the debt.'

Su Lin didn't open his eyes to look at Ye Fan or the others—he rubbed his eyes, knowing without seeing how smug their faces must be.

Su Lin: 'I'll say it one last time—I, Su Lin, did not cheat!'

What do you mean by 'cheating'? You clearly don't understand the situation.

Aren't the points I earned through my own efforts, shining before others?

Aren't the items I obtained by risking blood loss to strike a deal with fate? Forget it—thinking about it reminds me of the 200,000 yuan I lost on the 'Strongest Food System'—no, 200,001 yuan!

Damn!

And Song Shuhang is sitting right beside you, yet you keep accusing me of cheating—what's your motive?

Lu Mingfei: 'My brother Su Lin is single and unmarried, with high character and good looks—new group members might consider him.'

Yi Leina: 'Finally, a female member has arrived—I won't be on the admin's radar anymore qq'

Lu Mingfei: 'Young Lady Yi, if he were interested in you, he wouldn't have such strange tastes…'

Yi Leina: 'Hey, do you even know—'

【Yi Leina was muted by admin Su Lin for 24 hours.】

【Lu Mingfei was muted by admin Su Lin for 24 hours.】

Kleine widened his eyes. When did Lu Mingfei get so bold? He glanced around—oh, the man had already run off. Fine then.

Su Lin: 'Open up. I'm sending you something from my world. @Lu Mingfei.'

'Damn, I should've run too,' Kleine muttered, resting his chin in thought.

'What did you say?' Su Lin lifted the sword in his hand.

'Nothing,' Kleine chose to keep watching the drama: 'Single together, good brothers.'

Su Lin shook his head: 'Your arranged date isn't over yet, good brother. If all else fails, even Amon will do.'

Kleine's expression didn't change, but he pointed his cane at the mountain beneath his feet and smiled politely.

Meng Qi: 'Amitabha. I am Monk Zhending. Greetings, all.'

A group member who had been lurking for hours suddenly spoke.

Song Shuhang: 'Master, hello. Hello.'

Meng Qi: "Why would the elder say such a thing?"

He had read them—he knew Song Shuhang lived up to his name, devoted to books, even e-books, never skipping one; he had read Kleine's works before, and naturally had read this same author's, back when he was still in high school.

Ye Fan: "No no no, you're all elders—two elders, greetings, little Ye offers his respects."

Though he didn't know why Song Shuhang called the other side "elder," he figured following along as a parrot was enough.

Meng Qi: "May I ask—are you the Holy Body, Ye Tian Di?"

Ye Fan: "I am Ye Fan, and I am the Holy Body, but not Ye Tian Di. You may call me—"

Weigong Shilang: "President."

Ye Fan: "Cough, cough—just call me Ye Fan."

Meng Qi: "?"

Ye Fan: "You know me too?"

Meng Qi: "Before I transcended, I read your works—hahaha, never thought I'd join a group with Ye Tian Di today. Was the previous one Yan Di, Especially Especially Especially Xiao Yan? Elders, I grew up reading your books!"

Meng Qi: "And the Merciful Deliverer, Han Tianzun—everyone on this group list is an elder."

Su Lin rubbed his head, feeling somehow that these people were nesting dolls.

Su Lin glanced at Kleine beside him and said: "Your brother."

Kleine sipped sparkling water to cool his tongue and said: "So Ye Fan and Chen Nan are brothers too?"

Meng Qi: "By the way, everyone, does my world have any records in other worlds?"

Han Li: "There should be—Kleine and Song Shuhang both know you. Is this Master Meng from the Buddhist path?"

Meng Qi: "Amitabha—monks do not lie. I was."

Zhang Chuang: "Master, you're quite humorous."

Zhang Chuang picked up a bite of food and turned to Su Lin across from him:

"Who is this brother? Why so cheeky?"

What do you mean "was"? "Was" means "isn't now"—so why call yourself "this humble monk" now?!

Su Lin, Kleine, and Song Shuhang fell silent.

Kleine: "Probably."

Song Shuhang: "Maybe."

Su Lin: "It's one you bowed to on Long Hushan."

"Cough! Cough! Cough!!" Zhang Chuang choked repeatedly—the chili stuck to his throat.

Zhong Li handed Zhang Chuang a cup of spiritual spring water.

"Thank you." Zhang Chuang gulped it down, then slammed the cup on the table: "What joke is this? Do we even have bald Buddha statues on Long Hushan?"

At this moment, the group message updated again.

Meng Qi: "Could the elders please check—what's my current situation?"

【Group member Meng Qi started a live stream】

Zhang Chuang curiously clicked in, then sipped water to calm his nerves.

Below was a flaming altar; above, a faint blue glow drifted, coalescing into a blue gate etched with mysterious runes in the sky.

The blue gate was ancient and weathered, as if carved from stone—each rune seemed to hold the great secrets of heaven and earth.

With a creak, the blue gate slowly opened, releasing ten thousand rays of light—golden, dazzling yet not blinding.

On the gate, ancient script read—Biyou Palace.

Before the palace gate, a figure wearing a mask, solemn and imposing, neither young nor old, stepped out slowly—it was the most common image in Daoist temples—

Yuan Shi Tianzun.

Zhang Chuang: "Pfft!!!"

(End of chapter)