Despicable Local

Two whole days had passed since Ruthless He Zhao's last "tetanus tragedy."

Because his death had been so absurd, he took some time to unwind. He found a bar, drank until pleasantly tipsy, then slept soundly, greatly releasing the pressure of repeatedly dying ever since obtaining the Simulator.

[My Wallet: 11 Simulation Coins.]

"Enter [Campaigning]."

[Would you like to spend 10 Simulation Coins to unlock a new identity?]

"This is robbery!"

He had finally managed to save a little money, yet the Simulator could not wait to pop up and harvest him. Even the stock market did not fleece leeks as brazenly as this.

"No. I want to start from zero and turn things around."

Heh heh, the early-game strategy was ready.

This time, it would definitely be steady!

Without tetanus, let's see how you plan to kill me.

[Life After Life, Endless Joy!]

"Kill!"

"Run! The Xuandu Army is here!"

He Zhao skillfully played dead, stabbed Li Gou to death with the Manure Fork once again, then followed the cavalry unit back to camp.

Since his face was not covered in knife wounds, Hundred-Household Wu directly assigned him to an undermanned squad.

Then, at dawn the next morning, they were sent out to suppress civilians.

However, faced with the vagrants swarming across the battlefield, Ruthless He Zhao was somewhat flustered.

A few Manure Forks jabbed into him at random, killing him in a thoroughly stifled way. He could even clearly smell the stench on the forkheads.

His death did not matter, but the battle formation formed by the ten-man squad was directly breached. The remaining nine had no time to react before they were instantly swallowed by the vagrants' human-wave assault. After fighting desperately and cutting down more than a dozen vagrants, the entire squad was finally wiped out.

[Congratulations, you survived for 18 hours. After cleverly replacing Li Gou, you were assigned to an undermanned squad. Unfortunately, because you had not undergone systematic training, a flaw appeared in the squad's formation, resulting in the deaths of nine teammates. Their deaths... were unjust!!]

[Grade: G-.]

[Kills: Xuandu Army New Recruit Infantry (1).]

[Reward: 1 Simulation Coin (grade), 1 Simulation Coin (kills).]

[My Wallet: 12 Simulation Coins.]

[Would you like to replay your simulated life?]

He Zhao: "."

I don't believe it. Again!!

[Life After Life, Endless Joy!]

"Kill Great Xuan's lackeys!"

On the battlefield, Ruthless He Zhao took several deep breaths in succession, suppressing the fear in his heart as he gripped his saber tightly.

"Pfft—"

"Ah!!"

This time, he was no longer flustered. After ducking beneath several Manure Forks, he raised his hand and viciously chopped the foremost vagrant across the chest, blood spraying over his head.

But that cry of "Ah" had not come from the vagrant. It had come from an utterly unprepared teammate behind him.

It was all well and good that He Zhao had dodged, but his teammate behind him instantly suffered, impaled by a Manure Fork.

Then the squad fell into chaos again.

After bravely killing two vagrants, he was once more swallowed by the human-wave assault, and the squad was promptly annihilated.

[Congratulations, you survived for 18 hours. I hereby name you the Teamwipe Engine.]

[Grade: G-.]

[Kills: Xuandu Army New Recruit Infantry (1), vagrants (3).]

[Reward: 1 Simulation Coin (grade), 1 Simulation Coin (kills).]

[Would you like to replay your simulated life?]

[My Wallet: 13 Simulation Coins.]

He Zhao: "."

One Simulation Coin for kills?

You swallowed three vagrants' worth!

"I don't believe this."

Ruthless He Zhao entered [Campaigning] again, ignoring the prompt to spend 10 Simulation Coins on a new identity. Following the old routine, he replaced Li Gou.

Unlike the previous two times, he did not rest immediately after joining the new squad. Instead, he eagerly dragged the squad leader aside and asked about battle formations.

As a result, several burly men hauled him outside on the spot.

"Kid, every infantryman who enters the Xuandu Army must undergo half a year of training. Saber, shield, spear, three-man formations, five-man formations, ten-man formations—those who fail are sent straight back to their hometowns, unless they can pull strings."

A person named Li Gou—did you think he could pull strings to enter the Xuandu Army?

Anyone who did not know battle formations had to be a spy!

Kneeling on the ground, He Zhao had nothing to say. Li Gou never told me any of this back then!

"Pfft—"

He Zhao was beheaded again, his corpse hung from the Camp Gate as a warning.

Back in the bedroom, the Simulator promptly flooded the screen.

[Congratulations, you survived for 3 hours. You should know that having your corpse hung up is treatment only capitalists can enjoy. As a commoner, you shattered the class barriers. Your death was nothing short of great!]

[Grade: G-.]

[Kills: Xuandu Army New Recruit Infantry (1).]

[Reward: 1 Simulation Coin (grade), 1 Simulation Coin (kills).]

[Would you like to replay your simulated life?]

[My Wallet: 14 Simulation Coins.]

He Zhao: "."

I will not yield!

[Life After Life, Endless Joy!]

"Kill!"

"Run! The Xuandu Army is here!"

He threw himself down by the roadside and played dead, then got up and stabbed the Black-Armored Infantry to death with a backhand thrust. He could not flee ahead, or he would encounter five hundred armored Xuandu Army soldiers. The village was surrounded by the Great River, and taking a winter swim in the depths of winter was no different from seeking death. His only option was to return to the war-torn village and hide.

He Zhao gritted his teeth and stomped his foot. He would risk it!

At worst, he would die again. In any case, the guaranteed 1 Simulation Coin was already in hand.

He quietly slipped into the village, finding some obscure corner to hide in.

"Neighhh!!"

"Captain, the Jade Register has not reacted at all. Could the intelligence have been wrong?"

"That is none of our concern. We only need to carry out Lord Ten-Thousand Household's orders. Besides, is it not a good thing that it has not reacted? If it does react, this village will become the burial ground of all ten of us brothers."

"Eldest Brother is right. In the whole squad, Second Brother, you are the one with the most useless chatter. On the way here, I heard the Black Armored Elite mention that one of their units had come here. They thought it would only be a simple matter of killing and bloodshed, but every last one of them died here."

"Youngest Brother, is your skin itching? Is that any way to make your Second Brother shiver?"

The voices gradually faded as the cavalry unit departed.

He Zhao had overheard part of their conversation, and it left his heart feeling prickly.

Could there be something in the village even more ferocious than the Xuandu Army?

"Crack."

The sound of a branch snapping suddenly rang out behind him. Just as He Zhao was about to turn around, intense pain shot through his back.

Before he could scream, a large hand viciously covered his mouth and nose. He could only struggle frantically. Before long, darkness fell before his eyes, and he returned to the bedroom once more.

[Congratulations, you survived for 7 minutes. Rather than dying honorably at the Xuandu Army's hands, you died to a despicable sneak attack. That was truly rather stifling.]

[Grade: None.]

[Kills: Xuandu Army New Recruit Infantry (1).]

[Reward: 1 Simulation Coin (kills).]

[Would you like to replay your simulated life?]

[My Wallet: 14 Simulation Coins.]

"The locals have no manners at all! We are all vagrants, so why slaughter one another? I will avenge this blood feud!"

"Simulator, enter [Campaigning]."

As soon as the words fell, darkness filled his vision.

This time, having learned his lesson, He Zhao went through the process countless times before picking up a steel blade and sneaking into the village.

At the obscure corner where he had once died to a sneak attack, he listened in on the cavalrymen's idle chatter, keeping every nerve taut as he watched for danger behind him.

"Crack!"

"Die!!"

He Zhao roared and spun around, slashing with a desperate, life-risking strike.

"Pfft—"

The sound of steel entering flesh rang out. The local who had been preparing to ambush him wore a face full of horror.

Why was your reaction so fast?

"Thud!"

One slash sealed his throat, and the corpse toppled to the ground.

"Huff, huff, huff."

He Zhao wiped away the blood splattered across his face, leaning against the wall as he panted heavily.

"This should be steady now, right?"