[You have chosen to start previous life…]
[Your personal attributes are...]
[Name: Xuan Ji]
[State of mind: 1]
[Fortune: 1]
[Perseverance: 2]
[Background: 2]
[Talent: Sword]
[Hint: If any attribute reaches zero, the probability of death will be greatly increased.]
[Your simulated life has officially begun –]
[Countdown: 10, 9... 0!]
[Simulation begins!]
[Age 0: You have been born into a merchant family. Your father is the head of the merchant family.]
[Age 1: Your first year was ordinary, like that of any child.]
[Age 2: You began your cultivation, just like in the previous simulation, but this time you used the Ancient Emperor Arcana technique. You felt your cultivation speed increase by two times while using it. Without any additional resources, you knew you could break through in just five years, maybe even sooner. This filled you with happiness and determination.]
[Age 3: You decided to protect your family from the impending disaster that might happen after the death of the demonic cultivator. So, you wrote a letter to your father in the name of a great cultivator, warning him to leave the village for their safety. You also gave them the cultivation technique, which you wrote exactly like you got from the righteous cultivator in the previous simulation, to make them believe and make them leave.]
[Age 4: You took off for another place for you to live.]
[Age 5: It took you two and a half months to reach a small city, miles away from your village. Despite your journey, you didn't waste any time and continued your cultivation along the way.]
As Xuan Ji sprinted through the forest, his agile figure danced among the ancient trees, a blur of motion that seemed almost otherworldly. The dense canopy above cast dappled sunlight on the forest floor, creating a mesmerizing play of light and shadow. The air was crisp, filled with the earthy scent of moss and damp leaves.
With each nimble step, the fallen leaves crunched under his feet, and the branches above swayed in response to his passage, as if acknowledging his remarkable skill.
"Sigh! I still have to go through this, leaving a letter like before," Xuan Ji murmured, feeling a tinge of sadness. In the real world, he had never experienced parental love since his birth, leaving him with an emptiness inside. In the simulations, the love from his parents filled that void, if only momentarily.
Even though he had lived for more than a hundred years, considering the time added from the simulations, he still cherished the feeling of being cared for.
"Hah! But it was bound to happen sooner or later, so let's not dwell on it now, or I won't be able to bear leaving them again," Xuan Ji said, pushing away those emotions as he continued his swift sprint through the forest.
After running for a while, he spoke, slightly out of breath: "I will leave the resources of the demonic cultivator. Though I would love to get those resources, as they would speed up my progress by another two-fold but the problem lies in the timing. If I were to head there now, I wouldn't be able to reach the on time. Otherwise, I would have definitely taken them first."
"So, the plan now is to get my hands on the Spirit Weave Orchid. Then find the cave and start cultivating to break through to Body Tempering level 1. After that, I will use the Spirit Weave Orchid to make another breakthrough to Body Tempering level 2. Once I've done that, I'll wait for that beggar to appear and open the gate. And then, I'll strike and eliminate him, allowing me to enter the gate. It's a perfect plan."
With determination in his eyes, Xuan Ji pressed forward, his mind focused on the path ahead.
…
Xuan Ji had been trekking through the forest for many weeks in search of the elusive Spirit Weave Orchid. Its location was quite distant from his city, making the journey long and arduous. Nevertheless, Xuan Ji remained patient and persistent, driven by the desire to find this precious flower once more.
After what seemed like endless walking, his efforts were rewarded. Within a few hours, he finally laid eyes on the Spirit Weave Orchid. Its radiant and exquisite appearance filled him with awe and wonder. To his great relief, the guardian snake from his previous encounter was nowhere to be seen, bringing him a sense of reassurance and delight.
Feeling excited and determined, Xuan Ji scanned his surroundings once again, but there was no sign of the snake. He assumed it had gone hunting and decided to seize the opportunity to pick the Spirit Weave Orchid.
As he reached out, the delicate petals felt soft and silky against his fingertips. With care, he tried to pluck the orchid from its roots. But in the midst of his task, a sudden hiss echoed through the forest, shattering the tranquility of the moment.
Panicked, Xuan Ji quickly turned around and came face to face with the snake, its eyes filled with hatred as it approached him with menacing slithering.
He cursed himself for being careless and knew he couldn't escape because he hadn't yet reached Body Tempering level 1, and thus, couldn't use the Void-Step Footwork skill to flee from the snake.
Fearing for his life, Xuan Ji's mind raced, desperately seeking a way to escape the swift and relentless snake. But before he could react, the snake's powerful tail struck him, sending him flying towards a tree with a bone-crushing impact that shattered the tree in the process. The snake was relentless, swiftly catching up to him and sinking its fangs into his flesh before he could even gather his wits.
Intense pain surged through his body as the venom coursed through his veins. His vision blurred, and his strength began to fade rapidly. Xuan Ji knew he was in a life-and-death struggle, and his heart pounded with fear and determination to survive.