Opening a Martial Hall for Retirement, Encountering Dachun by Chance!

[In the days that followed, you drifted in and out of consciousness.]

[Sometimes you were lucid; sometimes you were unconscious.]

[You knew someone was taking care of you, but you could never make out who it was.]

[The evil ghosts within the Myriad Souls Banner had drained a massive amount of your life Origin Qi, leaving you on the brink of death.]

[Several times, I wanted to settle your simulation, but under someone's care, you pulled through again.]

[Year 24, age 41.]

[You replaced "Effort Will Be Rewarded" with "Spider Senses."]

[You finally recovered your Origin Qi and could stay awake normally.]

[You discovered that you were living in a wooden house deep in the forest. The surrounding mountains and waters were like a painting, while the fresh air soothed the heart and refreshed the spirit.]

["You're awake!"]

[You heard a woman's voice.]

[She must have been the one caring for you all this time, pulling you back from Yama's gates time and again.]

[Even a dutiful son may not remain at the bedside through a long illness. She had cared for you for so long—she was undoubtedly your benefactor.]

["Benefactor, please accept... Xu Linglong?!"]

[You were stunned.]

[Turning around, you saw none other than Xu Linglong, the bandit from back then!]

[She had lost a little weight, but her sheer bulk was still there.]

["Hahaha! Wonderful! Benefactor is awake! You're finally awake!!"]

[Xu Linglong bounced up and down in delight, making the entire wooden house tremble.]

[Worried that the house would collapse, you hurriedly told her to stop jumping.]

["No, h-how could it be you? And why are you calling me Benefactor? Isn't that backwards?"]

[Xu Linglong told you about what she had gone through over the years.]

[Back when she had been a bandit in White Cloud County, she had happened to run into you.]

[For some reason, you had known her name and even warned her to watch out for the Second Leader of Flying Tiger Stockade.]

[Xu Linglong took those words to heart and remained vigilant.]

[Sure enough, she discovered that the Second Leader had a problem—he had been colluding with the authorities.]

[Unfortunately, her father Xu Hu was too bullheaded. Xu Linglong wore her lips thin trying to persuade him, but Xu Hu still refused to believe that the Second Leader would betray the stockade.]

[With no other choice, when the government troops came up the mountain to wipe them out, the prepared Xu Linglong could only escape on her own.]

[Later, after many twists and turns, she arrived in Sanjiang Commandery. A local sect discovered that she possessed a Mid-Grade Bone Structure and accepted her as a disciple.]

[Then, a year ago, while accompanying elders of her sect to deal with a fiend, she encountered you.]

["If Benefactor hadn't warned me to beware of the Second Leader back then, I would have died in that government raid too. It's just a pity... my stubborn fool of a father wouldn't believe me."]

["Uh... every man has his fate, every man has his fate..."]

["Benefactor, actually, I haven't married all these years..."]

[This was too awkward.]

[You saw the way Xu Linglong looked at you, her eyes practically dripping with affection.]

[Wouldn't it be far too ungrateful to be too cold toward someone who had saved your life?]

[Suddenly, an idea flashed through your mind.]

["Cough, cough... Linglong, you don't know this, but I was sent to the frontier as a convict in my early years. I took too many pills in the army camp, and... cough, cough... too much Pill Toxin accumulated in my body... Then this time, the departed souls in the Myriad Souls Banner injured my Origin Qi, cough, cough... so, well, my yang energy is insufficient."]

["What does that mean?"]

["I can't perform."]

[You watched Xu Linglong's gaze turn crystal clear in an instant.]

[She was still herself.]

[She could marry six husbands while she was a bandit; there was no way she could accept her seventh husband being unable to perform.]

["Now that Benefactor has recovered, I can consider this debt of gratitude repaid. What are Benefactor's plans for the future?"]

[Aside from the part about not being able to perform, which you had made up, you had not lied about your frail health.]

[Where should you go from here?]

[1. Find a small town, open a martial hall, and fulfill the final wishes of your old comrades-in-arms;]

[2. Continue traveling the world and see whether you could find any opportunities;]

[3. Find Old Liu and seize the Myriad Souls Banner! This great treasure is mine, hehehe!!!]

Outside the simulation, Chen Yi sighed.

"What a sin..."

To think he could run into Xu Linglong even like this—Chen Yi truly had no words.

It was one thing in the simulation, but in reality, Chen Yi did not want to become too entangled with Xu Linglong.

Looking over the progression options, Chen Yi chose 1.

His simulated self had mentioned before that he wanted to fulfill his comrades' final wishes.

Besides, after being put through the wringer by both the Pill Toxin and the Myriad Souls Banner, simulated Chen Yi's body was indeed in terrible shape.

Continuing to travel outside would only be needless suffering. He might as well retire early; perhaps he could live a few more years and draw a few more traits.

[You chose 1.]

["Is my luggage still here?"]

["Of course. I didn't touch a single thing of Benefactor's."]

["There are several Spiritual Artifacts inside. If you like, I can give you some."]

["No need. I'm in the Clear Soup Sect now, so I don't lack such things."]

["Since my luggage is still here, I want to settle down in a small town, recuperate, open a martial hall, take in some disciples, and earn enough money to support myself."]

["Good! Benefactor, I'll help you! With the name of a Clear Soup Sect disciple behind me, things will be much easier to handle!"]

["Then thank you."]

[You did not fuss over the location and settled down in the nearest town, Makou Town.]

[You had money, so securing a venue, equipment, and everything else was quickly taken care of.]

[As for recruitment...]

[Xu Linglong borrowed the fox's might from the tiger, claiming that you were a martial arts instructor from the Clear Soup Sect who had cooperated with the sect for years and offered highly professional teaching.]

[She successfully hoodwinked a large group of youths into signing up.]

[You named your martial hall Cheng'en Martial Hall.]

[After all, the teaching materials you planned to use all came from Sun Cheng'en's personal guards, so the name was fitting.]

[Year 27, age 44.]

[Makou Town was a very small place. Yours was the only martial hall there, so there was no competitive pressure at all.]

[Whether they had Root Bone or not, as long as they were willing to pay the enrollment fee, you accepted them.]

[Those without Root Bone practiced martial arts to strengthen their bodies. Those with Root Bone, you taught Cultivation Methods and guided them into Entry Level Martial Dao.]

[They could not achieve anything too lofty under you. Once they had entered the Martial Dao, you recommended that they try the Clear Soup Sect and see whether the sect would accept them.]

[Over time, you truly became a quality partner of the Clear Soup Sect, sending them quite a few promising seedlings.]

[After three years, the martial hall's business was flourishing, with disciples everywhere.]

[You now contentedly acted as the owner. You occasionally gave pointers on martial arts, while routine teaching was left to the Martial Artist instructors you had hired.]

[Most of the time, you focused on preserving your health, hoping to nurse your body back into condition so that you could live a little longer.]

["Another useless white trait this year. The probability has gone up, but my luck hasn't... Huh?"]

[That day, you saw two filthy beggars on the street. Looking closely, one of them was chubby, with his eyes standing guard on opposite sides of his face. It was unmistakably Dachun!]

[You crossed the distance in a few quick strides and came before Dachun.]

["Dachun!"]