Standing at the edge of the mountain, Bo Saixi remained silent.
The memories of the dream intertwined with the reality, leaving her thoughts in disarray.
Or perhaps, there was no dream at all.
It might have just been another possibility in a different world. Who knows?
After sitting idly in this mountaintop temple for so many years, what had she truly come to understand?
Many events do not happen due to a single factor; instead, they are the result of overlapping contexts—perspectives, understandings, beliefs, emotions—all of which contribute to the final choice.
After a long while, Bo Saixi finally spoke again, her voice low. "I'm sorry about what happened two years ago."
"It's alright, I understand."
Su Cheng was a bit surprised. He hadn't expected her to apologize for that incident.
At the time, he had indeed been very displeased.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have immediately drawn his sword and fought with all his strength right after breaking through, even taking away her Sea God's Trident and saying those harsh words.
But time changes everything. The current Su Cheng no longer cared as much.
When one's strength and confidence far exceed their original state, their perspective naturally broadens, and they can let go of many things more easily.
"But to be honest, your actions really surprised me. In fact, much earlier, I had a similar conflict with Bibi Dong. There was some underlying hostility and threat. You don't know her well, but at the time, Bibi Dong was quite crazy and extreme.
"Yet even someone like her didn't directly attack me over some vague possibility. At most, she was just vigilant."
Bo Saixi was a bit surprised.
Su Cheng in reality was much younger. A few years ago, he might have been only in his teens.
If it weren't for that dream, how did he get involved with Bibi Dong?
No matter how she thought about it, the Pope of the Spirit Hall, with her extraordinary power and high status, shouldn't have been alarmed by a mere child.
Bo Saixi blinked and tentatively asked, "So, what's the situation between you and Bibi Dong now…"
"My relationship with her is a bit too complex to explain to you."
Su Cheng smiled and waved his hand, refusing to answer the question, then changed the subject, "By the way, if one day you decide to live differently, to live for yourself, let me know. I might be able to help you."
As he said this, he turned to look into her clear blue eyes. "After all, you're not that old. You still have plenty of time to waste."
Bo Saixi's cheeks reddened as she playfully scolded, "You're such a cheeky child, always talking nonsense."
Su Cheng pouted, indifferent to her reprimand.
"By the way, the festival at the Seagod Island market should be starting soon, right? Want to go take a look?"
"The Seagod Festival?"
Bo Saixi was taken aback by his words.
She had almost forgotten about this event.
Officially, the festival was held to thank the Seagod for his protection, but in reality, it was more of a traditional folk entertainment.
It didn't have any official significance and didn't require her, the High Priestess, to preside over it.
However, the Holy Pillar Douluo often participated.
When was the last time she attended...
"You can take your time to think about it."
Su Cheng glanced at her, then smiled and turned to leave, heading down the mountain.
"Where are you going?"
"I'll stay in Hainv City. It's too high up here; I'm not used to it."
"…Too high?"
Watching his figure gradually disappear into the distance, Bo Saixi bit her lip, then turned to look down at Seagod Island.
As the Seagod's emissary, her sole duty was to serve the Seagod with all her heart and protect the Seagod's people. There was no need to personally descend into the world.
Yet in that deep dream, her "disciple" had used all kinds of sweet talk to "lure" her down the mountain.
But in truth, the reason he did so had another purpose.
And now, faced with a similar choice, what should she do?
---
Night fell. In an ordinary house in Hainv City, Su Cheng quietly sat cross-legged on a clean bed.
Including the largest Haidragon City, none of Seagod Island's seven holy cities were fully occupied, so there were plenty of empty rooms.
With Bo Saixi's approval, moving in was naturally not difficult.
As for Seagod Mountain, he definitely couldn't stay there for long.
Su Cheng had to consider Qian Renxue's feelings down the mountain. If he caused any more misunderstandings, it would be counterproductive.
However, since he was prepared for a long-term struggle with Xiaoxue, he indeed needed a place to settle down.
Fortunately, after he arrived at Seagod Island, Xiaoxue hadn't left immediately, indicating that she was also hesitating, leaving room for maneuver.
So, he planned to directly enter a new simulation, taking advantage of the opportunity to influence reality through another world, to see if there would be any new breakthroughs.
Of course, if not, there was no need to force it; there would always be other ways to resolve things in reality.
In comparison, completing the simulation task was the most critical.
After all, Su Cheng himself wasn't sure what changes might occur in this simulation or how it would differ from the past.
But one thing was clear.
Whether it was his own future or the future fate of the Spirit Hall members closely tied to him, it all depended on him alone.
He couldn't afford to delay more important matters because of temporary emotional conflicts.
Once everything was ready, as the energy circulated, the familiar light blue panel finally unfolded before him once again.
[Villain Life Simulator Starting…]
[Please choose the ultimate goal for this life simulation:]
[1. Kill the heir of the Seagod and survive. Mission Reward: A large amount of origin power; Difficulty: B]
[2. Kill the heir of the Asura God and survive. Mission Reward: All-attribute divine power sample; Difficulty: A]
[3. Kill the Seagod himself. Mission Reward: External spirit bone enhancement; Difficulty: S]
Looking at this screen, Su Cheng's heart stirred, but he didn't immediately make a choice or take any other action.
Instead, he silently pondered for a moment, analyzing the hidden information within.
Then, he calmed his mind, fully mobilized the true power within his body, and gathered it all together, directing it towards the source power hidden deep within his bloodline.
As soon as his power touched the source power, the originally cohesive energy mass suddenly fluctuated, and the once intact surface began to show signs of being torn apart.
Clearly, the current level of true power was already capable of shaking the mighty source power.
Compared to the innate power's fused state, the transformed power within Su Cheng's body now had fundamentally different properties.
At the same time, the panel before his eyes also began to show signs of instability, gradually turning into a blurry shadow.
Seeing that his efforts were having an effect, Su Cheng immediately increased the intensity, fully squeezing his body's potential, forcing out more true power to condense into sharp sword-like projections, directing them towards a single point.
This intense internal collision, even deep within his bloodline, was not without consequences for him. His face turned pale, and his internal organs began to show subtle signs of rupture.
Fortunately, the true power and his physical body were completely integrated, able to easily merge and separate.
This characteristic greatly cushioned the immense pressure his body was currently under.
Otherwise, even with Su Cheng's current bone and flesh strength, he might have been severely injured by the continuous shockwaves, making it difficult to continue.
As time passed second by second, the source power was finally completely scattered, and the screen before him collapsed along with it. Then, it reassembled, with a flood of garbled and distorted text flashing across...
Before long, new prompts appeared.
[Simulator Error Detected... Attempting Correction...]
[...]
[Correction Completed!]
As soon as the words "Correction Completed" appeared, the light screen returned to normal.
Looking at the contents on the panel again, compared to before, there was a significant change.
The task descriptions and rewards were gone.
There were only three simple lines of text.
[Mission · Origin: Find the source of the changes on Douluo Star and establish contact with it.]
[Mission · Reshape: Change the fate of key individuals.]
[Mission · Finale: Alter the original structure of the world.]
Su Cheng carefully examined these three tasks, squinting his eyes as he noticed some details.
In "Mission · Origin," the description used was "find the source of the changes on 'Douluo Star,'" but in "Mission · Finale," it stated "alter the structure of the 'world.'"
From this, it seemed that the "world" referred to might not be just this continent.
Moreover, when he hadn't fully activated the simulator's energy before, even S-level missions had reached the difficulty level of killing the true form of the Sea God.
Now, having fully activated the immense energy, how could the mission requirements possibly stop at a mere Douluo Star?
Therefore, the scope referred to by this "world" is probably...
"The God Realm?"
Su Cheng took a deep breath, and various thoughts flashed through his mind before he calmed down.
This was something he had anticipated, so he wasn't too nervous or fearful; in fact, he felt a faint sense of excitement.
A higher and broader view, stronger and more terrifying enemies—this was going to be interesting.
As for the mission rewards not being displayed, it didn't really matter.
He didn't think that the new round of simulation, formed only after fully triggering the simulator's power, would yield anything less valuable after completion.
Of course, what he would ultimately obtain depended on how he chose to complete the tasks in this simulated world.
Soon, the task interface disappeared, and a new panel appeared.
[Initial Talents: True Physique (Replication), Trajectory Mystic Eye (Half-Sealed), Bloodline Purification (Insufficient Awakening Energy)]
Just like the task display, the initial talents also didn't offer any choice.
Instead, it directly presented three talents, with two of them seemingly not immediately available, and only the first, "True Physique (Replication)," was complete.
The effect was straightforward—it appeared to replicate his real-world physical state into the simulated world.
Just this alone could be considered an ideal start.
However, this also further highlighted the extreme difficulty of this simulation compared to previous ones.
It wasn't that Su Cheng was overestimating himself.
With his current physical condition, he was undoubtedly a powerhouse in the Douluo Continent, possessing a talent that could dominate.
Even with all his accumulated power, if he had to start from scratch, he could manifest innate force, but achieving true power would be impossible.
This unique form of power was the result of many fortuitous circumstances coming together.
The deep foundation of innate force, the tempering of Qian Renxue's Solar Flame, and the nurturing of Bibi Dong's special soul power—all these conditions were indispensable.
Or rather, at least similar conditions and environments were required for him to have a chance at recreating it.
But where could he find similar energy levels, like Solar Flame and Water Spirit Core, again?
Su Cheng even suspected that if it weren't for the abundant energy this time, the simulator wouldn't have been able to replicate his current special state, even in the simulated world.
After the initial talents disappeared, a new panel appeared.
Finally, he had a choice.
[Selectable Initial Bloodlines: None, Elemental Affinity, Dragon God Bloodline, Close Combat Instinct, Innate Sword Body]
"..."
Looking at the five options in front of him, Su Cheng hesitated.
To be honest, if he only considered the final rewards, he would lean towards choosing "Close Combat Instinct" or "Innate Sword Body."
This time's bloodline choices might themselves represent one of the potential mission rewards.
Although the last one, "Innate Sword Body," sounded somewhat unpleasant, even insulting, it would undoubtedly significantly enhance his future combat power.
In terms of technique, Su Cheng wasn't much stronger than others.
Even though he had a few self-created soul skills, they were only above average. When compared to the gods in the God Realm, who had lived for who knows how long, every one of them had a few signature moves.
His own swordsmanship might be top-tier in the Soul Master world, but it was far inferior to the beings in the God Realm.
"Dragon God, Swordsmanship... and why is this 'None' an option alongside the other bloodlines?" Su Cheng pondered.
"Could it be that a pure physique without any bloodline has its own unique advantages? Or is it that mixing in other bloodlines might not always be beneficial? There could be pros and cons? And that talent, Bloodline Purification... If that's the case..."
[Initial Bloodline Selected: Dragon God Bloodline.]
After a long pause, Su Cheng finally made his choice.
Such decisions couldn't be based solely on future possibilities; completing the tasks in this simulation was key.
With the Dragon God Bloodline, it would be easier to find allies.
For completing "Mission · Origin," it was definitely the best shortcut.
Moreover, the Dragon God Bloodline itself had significant research value.
As a being that once stood at the pinnacle of the world, its bloodline must possess unique characteristics.
As for whether it could be brought back and what impact it would have on his real body, those were just speculations—there was no need to abandon it for fear of potential harm.
[Note: Everything in the life simulation is a projection of the real world and will also affect the fate of this dimension. Please take it seriously.]
[Note: Due to excess energy in this simulation, four Spirit Cores have been deployed as companions to the Destiny's Child. Please identify them carefully.]
[Note: Due to abundant energy in this simulation, an unspecified number of Spirit Seeds have been deployed as potential Destiny's Children. Please identify them carefully.]
[Simulation Starting.]
As the prompts appeared, Su Cheng's consciousness detached from his body before he had time to fully contemplate the meaning of "Spirit Cores" and "Companions to the Destiny's Child." He entered another world that seemed as real as his own.