CHAPTER 1: CHAPTER 1 GETTING GOD-LEVEL SELECTION SYSTEM【SEEKING COLLECTION】_1

Eight hundred realms of quicksand, three thousand depths of weak water.

Goose feathers cannot float up, and reed flowers surely sink to the bottom.

「...」

Within the Water Mansion of the Flowing Sand River.

Sha Chen felt the mana in his body and the divine powers ingrained in his very bones. He was utterly baffled. I can’t believe I’ve transmigrated, and to this mythological world, becoming the future Friar Sand of the Journey to the West!

He casually cast the Water Mirror Technique, revealing an image within.

It showed a towering man, twelve chi in height, disheveled and covered in wounds.

His red hair was unbound, his clothes were in tatters, and iron chains with handcuffs bound his hands and feet. The end of the chain was connected to a water cave that flickered with light.

The mere sight of this light made Sha Chen’s heart pound.

The Thousand Swords Piercing The Heart punishment! Friar Sand shattered the Liuli Lamp and was demoted to the Flowing Sand River to become a demon, subjected to the Thousand Swords Piercing The Heart! Sha Chen suddenly recalled the plot of the Journey to the West series he had once watched.

No sooner had this thought crossed his mind than the previously flickering light swelled and brightened, vaguely revealing tens of millions of flying swords brewing within.

The sharp sword qi pierced through the Water Mansion, making Sha Chen’s body go rigid and his scalp tingle.

The Thousand Swords Piercing The Heart punishment was about to begin!

This was a heavenly punishment! Unavoidable, inescapable! He could only endure!

Sha Chen’s face turned ashen. He could not imagine the pain of a thousand swords piercing his heart.

"DING!"

"Host has awakened the Choice System!"

"Detecting that the Host is facing the ordeal of the Thousand Swords Piercing The Heart. The Host can make the following choices!"

"Choice One: The mere Ten Thousand Swords Piercing Heart Pure Yang Array is trivial. A true man should face it head-on. Choose to withstand the Thousand Swords Piercing The Heart and be rewarded with the [Power of Five Elements Transmutation]. Power of Five Elements Transmutation: When attacked by Five Elements attributes, automatically refine a portion to enhance cultivation."

"Choice Two: A wise man does not stand beneath a collapsing wall. Choose not to withstand the Thousand Swords Piercing The Heart and be rewarded with the [Deception of Heaven Talisman]. Deception of Heaven Talisman: Deceive all beings in heaven and earth, creating any illusion you wish them to see."

Seeing these choices, Sha Chen’s eyes lit up.

Enduring the Thousand Swords Piercing The Heart would be worse than death. He had already experienced death once, and that feeling was unforgettable. But the Power of Five Elements Transmutation’s effect was too good to pass up. He had to try it. After all, he had no better method to rapidly enhance his cultivation, and this Power of Five Elements Transmutation could transform the metal-attribute power from the Thousand Swords Piercing The Heart, increasing his cultivation! In this mythological world, the strong are revered. Only with strong cultivation could one have the right to control one’s own destiny!

Without a second thought, Sha Chen chose to endure the Thousand Swords Piercing The Heart.

WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH!

Instantly, tens of thousands of flying swords erupted from the water cave, piercing Sha Chen’s heart.

Sha Chen immediately felt a sensation of nearing death, his eyes bulging. The feeling almost drove him mad!

However, the Power of Five Elements Transmutation awarded by the system promptly entered his body, and he instantly utilized this transmuting power!

The flying swords piercing his heart transformed into streams of mana, coursing through his limbs and meridians!

Originally, Sha Chen’s cultivation was at the Initial Stage of True Immortal and had been stagnant for hundreds of years. But now, after the flying swords converted into mana, his cultivation had actually progressed further!

There were even signs of him breaking through to the Middle Stage of True Immortal!

Sha Chen was immediately overjoyed. He no longer found the Thousand Swords Piercing The Heart agonizing. In fact, he savored the experience and cautiously approached the entrance to the water cave!

He willingly embraced it!

WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH!

Tens of thousands of flying swords struck Sha Chen’s body, but he laughed!

Exhilarating!

The flying swords transformed into mana, causing his cultivation bottleneck to loosen at that very moment!

「Three days later」

Having endured the Thousand Swords Piercing The Heart three times, Sha Chen’s cultivation reached the Middle Stage of True Immortal.

"Detection of Host’s cultivation breakthrough. You have the following choices."

"Choice One: Your cultivation has broken through. It’s time to appeal to the Jade Emperor, claim that breaking the Liuli Lamp was unintentional, and request reinstatement to your original post. Reward: [Eight-Treasure Crescent Moon Shovel]. Eight-Treasure Crescent Moon Shovel: An upgraded version of Friar Sand’s magical tool, the Crescent Moon Shovel."

"Choice Two: Your cultivation has broken through, but you must not become complacent. Continue your secluded cultivation to strive for further progress. Reward: One [Purple Gold Immortal Pill]. Purple Gold Immortal Pill: An immortal pill refined by Lord Lao Zi of the Great Monad that can increase one’s cultivation by ten thousand years."

Sha Chen was thrilled, not expecting to have another choice so soon!

Without any hesitation, he chose to continue his secluded cultivation and obtained the [Purple Gold Immortal Pill]!

This pill, capable of increasing cultivation by ten thousand years, was an incredibly rare treasure. Naturally, he wouldn’t miss out! As for the Eight-Treasure Crescent Moon Shovel, it wasn’t very useful to him right now. Moreover, go to the Jade Emperor and ask for reinstatement? What a joke! Reborn in this life, only to toil and serve others again? He already had the system; wasn’t cultivating until he reached the Da Luo realm and attained its fruit far more appealing?!

After obtaining the Purple Gold Immortal Pill, Sha Chen continued his intense cultivation.

He needed some time to completely refine the immortal pill after consuming it. Furthermore, enduring the daily ’agony’ of the Thousand Swords Piercing The Heart also advanced his cultivation!

Although his cultivation had plateaued after the breakthrough, seeming almost immovable, it now advanced visibly each day thanks to the effects of the pill and the transformation from the Thousand Swords Piercing The Heart!

「Meanwhile」

In the Purple Bamboo Forest on Mount Luojia in the Southern Sea.

The all-calculating, greatly compassionate Guanyin Bodhisattva was conversing with her eldest disciple, Muzha.

She always wore a smile, while Muzha stood by her side respectfully.

"After the Ullambana Buddhist Festival, Buddha tasked me with selecting the pilgrims for the Journey to the West. I have already made my choices: Sun Wukong, who caused a great uproar in the Heavenly Palace; Marshal Tianpeng, who was mistakenly reincarnated as a pig; the Great General for Folding the Curtain, who broke the Liuli Lamp; my disciple Jin Chanzi; and the third prince of the West Sea. These individuals are the chosen pilgrims."

Muzha said, "The others are understandable choices. However, the Great General for Folding the Curtain is merely a low-ranking attendant of the Jade Emperor and lacks potential. Isn’t selecting him letting him off too easily?"

Guanyin smiled and said, "Tianpeng and Juanlian are candidates arranged by the Jade Emperor. This is part of an agreement between our Buddhism and the Heavenly Court."

Muzha then spoke no more.

Guanyin continued, "Jin Chanzi has not yet been born into his first mortal life, Sun Wukong is still imprisoned under Five Finger Mountain, and Marshal Tianpeng has just been reincarnated. Currently, only Juanlian requires our Buddha’s enlightenment."

"He is enduring the torment of the Thousand Swords Piercing The Heart in the Flowing Sand River. The Ten Thousand Swords Piercing Heart Pure Yang Array is designed to inflict such excruciating pain that it drives one into a violent, irrational frenzy, stripping away all reason. He should have already endured this ordeal three times. By now, he ought to be consumed by madness, ready to wreak havoc on the riverbanks and vent his fury by devouring humans. That would be the opportune moment for me to guide him to enlightenment!"

How strange!

Guanyin paused, then made a quick calculation with her fingers. It’s strange... He has already endured the ordeal three times, yet he still maintains his sanity and is even cultivating!

She was shocked. Most immortals would lose their minds after enduring it just once, driven only by the urge to vent their anguish. Yet he has withstood it three times.

Muzha suggested, "Perhaps he has reached his limit and won’t be able to withstand a fourth time."

Guanyin nodded.

「One month later」

Guanyin became restless. Why hasn’t he succumbed to madness yet? It has been thirty rounds of the Thousand Swords Piercing The Heart! An ordinary immortal would likely have been driven to suicide by now. Could it be that the Jade Emperor wasn’t just fobbing our Buddha off, but genuinely presented someone extraordinary to our Buddhist faith?!