A lifeti, and another.
He didn’t know how many cycles of cold and warmth, spring and autumn he had experienced, nor how many reincarnations of joy and sorrow, partings and reunions.
He transford into a peddler, experiencing the sufferings of the human world; he reincarnated as a king or minister, going through the struggles of power; he sank into love and hatred, tasting unforgettable experiences...
Countless familiar faces, countless unforgettable events, revolved and played out in his consciousness like a carousel.
Initially, he could still rely on his Dao heart to maintain a slender insight, "I am undergoing tribulation."
But as the reincarnations deepened, the erosive power of the illusion increased geotrically.
The emotions were too real, the pain too clear, the pleasure too intoxicating...
Xu Ping’s Dao heart was like being wrapped in layers of warm quagmire, his consciousness gradually imrsing within it.
The boundaries between reality and illusion began to blur, as if the endless reincarnations were his true fate.
...
"Young Master, how long do you plan to sleep?!"
The familiar voice of his mother rang in his ears, with a hint of pampering urging.
Xu Ping suddenly opened his eyes, the familiar ceiling chandelier ca into view, and the aroma of food perated the air.
Warm sunlight spilled through the curtains onto the desk, the computer screen still paused on last night’s ga interface.
He touched the soft bed beneath him, feeling the cool breeze from the air conditioner, a sense of long-lost peace belonging to "ho" enveloped him.
Yet for so reason, deep in his heart, there was always an indescribable emptiness, as if he had forgotten sothing extrely important.
Sothing concerning the essence of life, an unforgettable major event.
Just as Xu Ping looked around blankly, his father’s loud voice ca from the living room.
"What are you daydreaming about? After washing up, co and eat!"
The voice had a slight dissatisfaction, but Xu Ping could hear the unhideable concern.
"Oh!"
Xu Ping subconsciously responded, swiftly got up, and washed up.
Warm water flowed over his cheeks, a young face with a hint of confusion but untouched by hardship reflected in the mirror.
Sitting at the familiar dining table, his mother served him a steaming bowl of white porridge filled to the brim.
"If work isn’t going well, just change jobs, no need to force yourself..."
His mother was chattering non-stop while placing a golden fried egg on his plate.
Xu Ping’s gaze slowly swept over the fine wrinkles at the corners of his mother’s eyes while she chattered, glimpsed the new strands of white in his father’s hair as he silently chewed.
Finally landed in the small living room filled with the atmosphere of everyday life, every detail incredibly familiar.
An indescribable warmth surged in his heart. He almost silently muttered, with a hint of relief and indulgence that even he hadn’t noticed:
"Such a life... seems... really... not bad."
The following days, as if a reset button had been pressed.
He lived like an ordinary urban youth, taking the subway, working, overti, dealing with uncomplicated human relationships.
His parents were healthy, with love hidden within their nagging.
Colleagues, although occasionally bickering, got along well!
Even, he had a gentle, beautiful, understanding girlfriend, a stable and sweet relationship.
Everything was as magical as a fairy tale.
The vague, elusive concerns in Xu Ping’s heart also faded, becoming more distant and illusory amid the everyday life of cooking and chores.
Finally, the wedding day arrived.
The bridal chamber, candles burning high, the room filled with warmth and romance.
The bride wore a bright red dress, dazzling and shy, her eyes full of lingering affection.
She walked gracefully towards him, her scent drifting to Xu Ping’s nose, her red lips parted, breath fragrant like orchids: "Husband..."
In this mont of tender affection and seamless transition.
Xu Ping gazed at the flawlessly beautiful face before him that could captivate any man.
But deep in his profound eyes, a flash of weariness from surviving countless tribulations and... an understanding of everything complexity suddenly appeared.
He gently raised his hand, the gesture so tender as if brushing away fallen petals from a lover’s hair, yet with the decisive resolve to sever worldly ties, a long sigh echoed in the silent bridal chamber:
"This Heart Demon illusion... indeed treacherous and enigmatic, piercing to the deepest void of the heart...
Even I, have been drawn into this for such a long ti before barely breaking free..."
"Husband, what are you saying..."
The Heart Demon’s bride showed a trace of bewildernt and panic, still trying for the final retention, her captivating voice carrying a srizing power.
However, before she could finish speaking, Xu Ping’s sleeve swept out, a gust of wind infused with supre heart’s resolve arose.
Where the breeze passed, the radiant bride, burning candles, the festive bridal chamber...
Like reflections shattered and twisted on a water surface after a stone is cast, finally turned into dim light points scattered like fireflies, silently vanishing into nothingness.
The first Heart Demon Tribulation world, shattered!
...
Xu Ping’s mind stood alone in an absolute void and nothingness, the expression on his face returning to the calmness of an ancient well.
However, he was not joyful over the destruction of the illusion but rather carried a faint sense of sorrow, softly speaking to himself:
"This first Heart Demon Tribulation world, in a way... made up for a tiny earthly regret in Xu’s heart."
If asked what regrets remain in the heart of Xu Ping, whose Dao heart is now clear?
It would undoubtedly be his ordinary yet deeply loving past life parents, those quarrelso but sincerely treating friends and family, and the once-touchable, warm worldly life.
Though the Heart Demon illusion was false, the warmth and Perfection within ultimately gave his Dao heart, already cold and hard as iron on the path of cultivation, a tiny, insignificant yet real solace.
But soon, Xu Ping had no ti to feel the slight sorrow in his heart, for he was drawn into a new cycle once more.
...
...
Who knows how much ti passed later.
Valley of Ten Thousand Demons.
This place once a paradise with Spiritual Springs and waterfalls, mythical birds, and exotic beasts roaming freely, now transford into a hellish realm.
Among the wreckage and ruins, corpses piled up, rivers of blood flowed.
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