247: The life I yearn for

Zhou Yan chose not to follow Zhou Haoyu home, even though he knew the direction the other person was driving was toward his house.

He transformed into a wisp of breeze and swiftly flew in the opposite direction.

Along the way, he cast a Spell to extract some gold from the earth and exchanged it for money.

He first wired the money to his family, even though everything here was illusory.

Afterwards, Zhou Yan used the remaining money to buy a camera and several sets of clothes, beginning his journey to various historical sites and tourist attractions.

Just as he had said before, at this moment, he truly looked like a tourist.

He appreciated the sunsets in different countries and tasted local delicacies everywhere.

At the same time, he experienced everything he had once thought about but never dared to try: parkour between cities, extreme sports, attempting to land on the moon, and even wandering through the Earth's core.

At this moment, he was like an Immortal playing in the mortal world, leaving his footprints everywhere.

In the morning, he could eat Jianbing Guozi atop the Statue of Liberty, and at night, he could gaze at the aurora borealis in the Arctic.

He seemed to have forgotten time, freely enjoying and recording everything.

Days passed, until Zhou Yan returned to the initial tall building, where snow was already falling from the sky.

Zhou Yan also followed the season, changing into a padded jacket.

He sat quietly, watching brilliant fireworks bloom across the night sky.

This further confirmed the world's illusory nature, as setting off fireworks was forbidden in the city.

“You should leave.”

A voice came from behind him.

Zhou Yan knew without turning around that the Heart Demon had arrived.

He didn't get up, merely patting the eaves beside him.

The Heart Demon understood and sat down.

“You really are cheating,” Zhou Yan said. “By all rights, you should be trying to lure me now, saying that this Illusionary World isn't so bad, trying to make me stay, and then I’d fight you, tearfully slay you, and watch your Defeat CG. That's how it should go.”

The Heart Demon first gave Zhou Yan a strange look, then said glumly.

“You bastard, you just wanted to beat me up, didn't you?”

Zhou Yan turned his head and gave the Heart Demon a mischievous smile.

The Heart Demon calmed down and asked, somewhat confused.

“I really didn't expect this place to trap you for so long.”

“Even more surprisingly, you never went home once, instead traveling all over the world. Is enjoyment more important than going home?”

Zhou Yan conjured two cans of Carbonated Beverage out of thin air and handed one to the Heart Demon.

“If I said I stayed this long because I wanted to finish watching the Spring Festival Gala, would you believe me?”

The Heart Demon took the drink but didn't open it.

“You really know how to make things difficult for me.”

“How could I possibly simulate what the Spring Festival Gala is like? And even if I did, would you actually watch it?”

Zhou Yan immediately gesticulated wildly, pointing his finger at the Heart Demon until he swallowed a mouthful of the beverage before continuing.

“That's exactly the point!”

“It's precisely because this world is too wonderful, too unrealistically wonderful, that I could never truly immerse myself, nor did I feel like confronting any Heart Demon.”

“However, the world you constructed is genuinely great for enjoyment.”

“I experienced many aspects of The Life I Long For this time, and it was truly satisfying.”

“After going back, I probably won't have the chance to do any of this again.”

“After all, these memories have always been a weakness in my heart.”

“If I saw these things outside, I don't know how flustered I'd be.”

“But you are different.”

“I'm different?” The Heart Demon was confused.

“Didn't you say you were the manifestation of my True Self?”

“After I passed those previous trials, my mental state had already reached Perfection. What you created later on is no longer an obstacle.”

“Because ‘home’ was never an obstacle.”

The Heart Demon quietly watched Zhou Yan.

“What if... this is also part of the Heart Demon?”

“Don't be silly.”

“People remember the good times because they omit the cruel and sad parts of those good times, leaving only the good—of course, that seems wonderful.”

“Loss is what makes people cherish things the most, so this place is indeed very attractive to me.”

“But I know that my original world isn't this good.”

“Besides The Life I Long For, that place is also filled with Negative Energy and many painful areas, but that is my real home.”

“If you constructed pain, it would make me want to leave, but if you constructed something too wonderful, it couldn't make me fall into depravity.”

The Heart Demon opened the Soda and took a sip.

“Is it possible that its position in your heart is too important, and your goal is too clear, so... you fundamentally have no Heart Demon here?”

“Actually, I didn't want to construct all this, but I truly ran out of options.”

“With your relatively sound Worldview, your decent life, and the fact that you wouldn't worry about unfinished business even if you left suddenly, I truly couldn't figure out how else to deal with you the moment you chose not to go home.”

“Come on, kill me.”

“Slaying the Heart Demon and being free from worries means your return trip wasn't wasted.”

The Heart Demon closed its eyes, waiting for Zhou Yan to strike.

But Zhou Yan merely tapped his drink can lightly against the other's, and then, as a massive firework bloomed, he finished the rest of his drink.

“You won't kill me?” The Heart Demon was confused again.

In reality, after Zhou Yan passed the first two Heart Demon trials, the Heart Demon could no longer control him, which is why it didn't understand why Zhou Yan acted this way.

Zhou Yan simply looked at the fireworks in the sky, which symbolized the ringing of the New Year's Bell.

“Didn't you say you were my True Self?”

“If I forget my True Self for the sake of cultivation, then what am I cultivating?”

“I don't know how others Cultivation to become an Immortal, but at least I have always practiced what I said before: I will not forget who I am, and that naturally includes my True Self.”

“If I do something wrong, I will change, but I might also make the mistake again. I will miss home, and I will have desires.”

“But this is the manifestation of the True Self; this is me.”

“You... you interpret it this way?”

“Ha—in this case, I truly lost.”

The Heart Demon also tapped its drink can against Zhou Yan's can, then drank it all in one go.

As the drink was finished, the Heart Demon transformed into specks of Golden Light and merged into Zhou Yan's heart.

“You better not waver easily, or you'll see me again.”

Only that sentence and an empty drink can remained on the rooftop.

“It's not bad to see your True Self more often. At least I have a Fellow Countryman to chat with.”

Zhou Yan looked at the snowflakes drifting down, picked up the Heart Demon's drink can, washed off the residual liquid, flattened it, and then flashed onto a deserted street.

He threw both cans into the Recycling Bin and then walked into the distance.

The sky gradually brightened.

After the heavy snow, the mountains were cloaked in silver, and the air was exceptionally fresh.

Zhou Yan walked slowly along the mountain road, enjoying the final moments of peace until he stopped in front of a Music Box.

The Music Box was still playing that Instrumental Piece, but listening to it now, the feeling was different.

Zhou Yan, feeling satisfied, now only felt peace emanating from within, no longer experiencing the initial loneliness.

“What a wonderful dream. It helped me fulfill quite a few wishes.”

“It's a shame this world is too illusory, and many wishes still couldn't be realized. It looks like I'll have to rely on myself to achieve them in reality later.”

Zhou Yan held up the Music Box, looking at the dancing figurine inside.

“Good morning, Zhou Yan.”

“My journey has just begun.”

“Snap.”

As the Music Box closed, the surrounding space began to shatter.

At the same time, Zhou Yan felt tangible power and the real world.

He returned to the Void Realm, but this Void Realm was not that Void Realm.

It was much brighter here, devoid of that sense of loneliness, leaving only boundless vastness.

And all this brilliance originated from the two Golden Cores ahead, shining as brightly as the sun.

Zhou Yan gazed at the two Golden Cores, as two streams of Divine Thought were injected into them.

“Crack,” “crack.”

Two crisp sounds, like breaking glass, came from the front.

The surfaces of the Golden Cores quickly became covered in cracks, finally bursting open completely, and two translucent giants resembling infants appeared before Zhou Yan.

The Starlight in the surrounding Void Realm grew increasingly bright.

Everything happened naturally, without any hindrance.

At the same time, Zhou Yan in the Immortal Cave opened his eyes.

A tear silently slipped from the corner of his eye and dropped onto the ground.

“Ding, Player Zhou Yan has comprehended the Dao Heart [Innocence].”

[Innocence]: Possessing all Three Natures, impervious to External Evil. The power of the True Self cannot be shaken, and nothing can harm you further.

“Ding, comprehension of the Law of the Heart +100%.”

“Current comprehension of the Law of the Heart is full. Congratulations, Player Zhou Yan, on comprehending the Law of the Heart Lv. 1.”

[Zhou Yan]

[Realm: Nascent Soul Early Stage First Layer / Lv. 41]

(Note: Heart Demons are highly subjective. Usually, the form they manifest depends on the state of mind of the person Undergoing Tribulation. However, Zhou Yan used a Cheat and exploited a Loophole, so the Heart Demon didn't actually pose much of a threat, as Zhou Yan's Worldview is generally sound, and he doesn't have too many intense life experiences.)