[Age 30: In the past years, you dedicated yourself wholly to the rigorous task of cultivation, while also tirelessly studied scroll and skills from jade slip.]
[Age 34: Diligence was your constant companion as you continued with your cultivation. Each day was an opportunity to refine your skills and techniques further. Progress was steady and rewarding; you could feel your power growing incrementally.]
[Age 38: A significant achievement marked this year as you successfully learned a new technique from a jade slip known as the Void-Step Footwork.]
"I wanted to learn the Soaring Phoenix Sword Art first, but without a suitable sword, it is impossible. I'm sure I could have mastered it quickly compared to other skills mentioned in jade slip given my innate talent with the sword."
Surrounded by the tranquil environment of the garden, Xuan Ji stood silently, radiating a calm assurance. Without any hint, his legs suddenly sprang into action. In a moment, his figure became blurry and disappeared from its original position, leaving behind only a faint, ephemeral afterimage, akin to a strand of smoke.
In the blink of an eye, Xuan Ji re-emerged a distance away, his movements smooth and swift as if he had seamlessly moved through space itself.
"I've only reached the elementary level of this footwork technique. Still, its speed is already astonishing. Once I master it, I'll leave no trace or afterimage. It will be as though I never existed there," Xuan Ji said as he clenched his hands tightly, determination evident in his eyes.
"The footwork I picked up in the Frostbite Sect was good, but it pales in comparison to the Void-Step Footwork."
[At 42: Each step you took brought you closer to reaching Body Tempering Level 4, which filled you with joy. But your inability to understand the scroll, despite your best efforts, and not even reaching the elementary stage, brought you frustration.]
"Why can't I grasp this scroll?" Xuan Ji wondered, still appearing youthful as he sat cross-legged on his bed.
"I may not be the best at comprehension, but not even being able to reach the elementary stage of this scroll after fifty years of studying it? It's really frustrating. I was able to learn two skills from the jade slip, why not this scroll?"
Xuan Ji continued, "Wait! I have a hunch that this scroll is created by an alchemist. Many of the techniques mentioned here seem to involve alchemy, and becoming an alchemist requires a talent even greater than cultivation itself which goes same for learning this scroll as it involves alchemy. Sadly, it appears my talent in alchemy is far from impressive, more like the opposite – quite lacking, to be honest."
"I should stop wasting time trying to understand this scroll and focus on reaching Body Tempering Level 4 first," Xuan Ji decided, returning to his cultivation.
[At 46: During your cultivation, you felt the earth and your wooden cottage shake. You inspected your surroundings, but found nothing amiss. Perplexed but undeterred, you continued with your cultivation.]
[At 50: The joy of nearing the breakthrough to Body Tempering Level 4 is tempered by the dwindling resources. You're left with just a few hundred spirit stones and a handful of pills.]
[At 54: Finally, you broke through to Body Tempering Level 4. This breakthrough also seems to have boosted your innate talents, which adds to your joy.]
"Hah! Body Tempering level 4!" Xuan Ji exclaimed, sitting cross-legged on the bed. "At 54, I've reached Body Tempering level 4, but back in the real world, I'm only 35 and already at Body Tempering level 5. Ordinary talents could achieve that by the age of 50, yet here I am, still at level 4."
"The resources I used for cultivation could have created 4 to 5 Qi gathering realm cultivators. It's clear that despite the herb he got from the forest and technique enhancing my talent, it hasn't made a significant difference," Xuan Ji said, getting up from the bed and stepping outside the cottage to breathe in fresh air and relax.
[Age 55: During your cultivation, you felt the earth and wooden cottage shake again. Although you ignored it like the last time, but this time the tremors only grew stronger and stronger.]
"Wah... What's happening?" Xuan Ji's alarmed voice echoed through the air as the ground beneath him trembled violently. In a rush of urgency, he attempted to make his way towards the door, hoping to get a glimpse of the chaos unfolding outside. But before he could even take a step, a spectacle of calamity unfolded before his eyes.
The once-sturdy wooden cottage crumbled and disintegrated before him, as if succumbing to an invisible force. The very fabric of space surrounding him seemed to shatter like delicate snowflakes drifting in the wind. The ground beneath his feet contorted and twisted, causing a jolt of sharp pain to shoot through his foot as he instinctively jumped back.
To his astonishment, he turned and beheld a crack, a tearing void that defied all reason and logic seen from the crack.
Before he could fathom the true nature of this strange phenomenon, the torn void seized him with an irresistible, unyielding pull.
And a searing pain tore through every fiber of his body, making him writhe in agony as he let out a gut-wrenching scream that echoed through the void: "Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"
The last thing he saw before everything went dark were a line of words.
[Age 55: Due to the collapse of the world, you met your demise.]
…
[The candidate you invited, Xuan Ji, has spent 55 years, 5 months, and 3 days in the Celestial Simulator. You need to wait 24 hours before you can invite again.]
[You have received the following rewards --]