The sword seller, dressed in red, deserves applause for the prankster.

"The path to immortality has collapsed, but the desire of cultivators to become immortals has not diminished but increased. They are unaware of the matter of the Dao Seed, but they can see with their own eyes that the spiritual energy of Miaohua Continent is becoming increasingly thin. The cultivators believe that it is the lack of spiritual energy that makes it impossible to become immortals."

"Therefore, the cultivators in the Tribulation stage, whose time was about to expire, plotted a major event together: restarting the plan."

"The so-called restart plan, to put it bluntly, is nothing more than mass slaughtering innocent and weak creatures to return the spiritual power within them to Miaohua Continent itself, and then using this power to break through the barrier."

"In the year 204 of Miaohua Continent, humanity was already struggling to survive under the captivity of the demon race. What truly plunged humanity into despair was that the powerful human race, disregarding the interests of their own kind and pursuing immortality, initiated the Restart Plan. Overnight, hundreds of millions of mortals lost their lives."

"A woman in white suddenly appeared, single-handedly suppressing dozens of Tribulation Transcending stage experts, and selected four of the most talented survivors to leave and establish a sect—the Secret Sect."

"The four children are known as the Four Sons of Tantric Buddhism. They are Tianxi Jun, Tiannu Jun, Tianle Jun, and Tianbei Jun."

"And I am the Heavenly Sorrowful Lord."

"In the year 214 of Miaohua Continent, ten years have passed. The Tribulation Transcending stage experts are constantly worried about their demise. They are becoming increasingly obsessed with the restart plan and are increasingly resentful of it. They have even spread the news to the Mahayana stage and the Nascent Soul stage. The temptation of becoming an immortal has caused the cultivation world to fall apart, and dark clouds have not dissipated."

"In the year 216 of Miaohua Continent, the Four Disciples of the Esoteric School emerged. They possessed a power called 'Tao Seeds,' and each had the ability to challenge opponents of higher levels. The power of the Tao Seeds came from hunting demons."

"In the year 218 of Miaohua Continent, the top human race publicly restarted the plan, but secretly they had already bred a group of weak creatures with other races, numbering as many as 10 billion, and they were to be exterminated in the following month of the same year."

"On the day the restart plan was launched for the second time, Tianxi Jun single-handedly blocked the powerful beings of all living beings, and killed hundreds of Tribulation Transcending stage cultivators, thousands of Mahayana stage cultivators and Nascent Soul stage cultivators with his own strength, and died on the spot."

"The Tantric sect appeared before Miaohua Continent in full force, confronting the entire cultivation world. The battle lasted for a whole month. I don't know how many enemies I killed or how rational I was. When I came to my senses, I had already slaughtered half of the cultivation world."

"The restart plan is complete. The spiritual power of Miaohua Continent has reached an unprecedented level. I, who possess both the Dao Seed and abundant spiritual power, ascended to heaven on the spot."

"As for Miaohua Continent itself, it had already disintegrated and become a ruin because it could not withstand such an intense battle. I used my immortal power to divide Miaohua Continent in two, one into illusion and the other into reality, which influence each other."

"I sealed off the Realm of Truth and named it the Heavenly Sorrow Cave, while the Realm of Illusion... became the Miaohua Continent of today."

"For such a heaven-defying act, my immortal position shattered on the spot, and with my last bit of power, I transformed it into a protective force, encircling the entire human territory."

"The immortal has fallen, and heaven and earth grieve together."

The second part is closely connected to the first part. The moment Chi Miao finished reading this history, she felt as if countless forces were bombarding her brain, making her reflect on her own abilities.

With a tremor of his fingers, the manual slipped from his hand.

Chi Miao's face was tense, her golden pupils filled with shock. She remained silent for a long time, only her trembling lips uttering:

"Is the current Miaohua Continent an illusion?"

The Heavenly Sorrow Immortal nodded, a hint of indescribable sadness on his face.

"Yes."

"How could this be... how is this possible? What about them? What about me? My sect, my master, my senior brothers, my family and friends... are they all fake?!"

"Yes."

The affirmation from the Heavenly Sorrow Immortal caught Chi Miao off guard, leaving her mind in a state of chaos.

Almost unconsciously, she asked, "What is the real Miaohua Continent like? What is it like beneath the illusion?"

The Heavenly Sorrow Immortal pursed his lips and stared at Chi Miao for a long while.

"Actually, you should already know this."

Chi Miao fell silent, lowering her head quietly, her expression unreadable.

Only after a long while did she ask the question she already knew the answer to:

"This is the Heavenly Sorrow Cave I'm standing in, isn't it?"

"Yes."

The moment she received the definite answer, all of Chi Miao's strength collapsed, as if her bones were about to give way. She barely managed to stand up by enduring the tingling sensation on her scalp.

Miaohua Continent has been divided in two. Its bright and beautiful exterior is an illusion, while the desolate land under our feet is the true appearance of Miaohua Continent.

What sustains this illusion? What will happen after it shatters?

Immortal Tianbei shook his head: "I don't know. It could be Senior Brother Tiannu, or it could be Junior Brother Tianle. Everything we do is in accordance with our master's will."

"We will know nothing except what we ourselves need to give."

"But if the illusion shatters, then... it means that the one who supported the illusion has fallen, and at the same time... Miaohua Continent will become as desolate as Tianbei Cave overnight, without even spiritual energy."

"It can be said that all the cultivation and techniques you possess in Miaohua Continent now are eroding his life."

Chi Miao's throat tightened, and her mind became increasingly confused. There were many things she couldn't make sense of right now, but one thing was very clear to her.

The being that created the illusion for Miaohua Continent for over a thousand years is paying an unimaginable price every moment, every second!

"Is your master Jiang Yue?"

The Heavenly Compassionate Immortal nodded: "Yes."

Chi Miao's mood became extremely complicated, and she pondered with a somber expression.

Jiangyue, what were you thinking and doing back then? How could you be so heartless as to let your disciples die or live a life worse than death!

And this person was her past life.

Where were you when Tianxi Jun died? Where were you when Tianbei Xianren sacrificed himself to save Miaohua Continent? Where were you when Tiannu or Tianle Jun suffered terribly to clean up the mess in Miaohua Continent?!

Tantric Buddhism...

Why did you establish Tantric Buddhism, and why are you so ruthless?

Are you really me?

Chi Miao felt that the more she knew, the less she understood herself.

However, at that moment, the Heavenly Sorrow Immortal reached out and stroked her chin, gently lifting it up.

He saw the stubbornness and doubt in Chi Miao's eyes, a thin layer of mist welling up in them, and he said:

"Chi Miao, please don't doubt yourself, the path you've chosen."

"Everything we did was voluntary and insignificant."

"The path you have steadfastly paved through countless lifetimes is for the sake of the world, for the sake of universal love."

"Our master once told us: If Miaohua Continent is destroyed, then everything will vanish into nothingness, and all living beings will have nothing left."

"Although I don't know what she did in the end, before we made our sacrifice, she became a mortal without any cultivation, living in a state of neither life nor death."

"If you still don't understand, please read the last chapter of the manual—The Mission of Tantra."