"I didn't know whether it was a heart demon or not."
"But judging by this, a fight was definitely unavoidable."
[Simulation continues] [Same year]
At the Qin Clan's Ninth Young Master's tenth birthday banquet, someone attempted an attack. Though they were swiftly suppressed, it still caused quite a commotion.
You stepped forward at that moment, your gaze firm as you challenged Qin Wangchuan.
The attack had only just ended. You had prepared yourself to be refused, but unexpectedly—
He agreed.
Only when you truly stood before him did you understand why so many people spoke of him.
Your palms began to sweat. You had already accepted in your heart that you would lose, but you refused to yield.
In the end, you moved.
Wanting to test him first, you struck out with a Void Seal.
The entire area was instantly eroded by the power of the void.
Yet when the dust settled, not even the corner of his robes had been damaged.
Just as you prepared to summon the Taixu Halberd, his slash arrived before your eyes in the blink of an eye.
That sword was fast. You had not even seen where it came from.
In the final second before the blade struck, you looked at Qin Wangchuan, wondering why he was three years younger than you yet still so strong.
But Qin Wangchuan was gazing up at the sky. He had not even spared you a proper glance.
The elders of your Household intervened, and your body suffered no serious harm. But your Dao heart had already shattered into powder.
"Did I beat him into shutting himself away?" Qin Wangchuan raised an eyebrow slightly.
"You came looking for me yourself, so you can't blame me."
[Year 14]
You returned to the Ji Clan. One day, while cultivating, you suddenly discovered that no matter how you urged it, your Spiritual Platform remained utterly still, as though it had fallen asleep.
The elders, senior members, and Old Ancestors of your Household all took turns examining you, yet none could discover the reason.
Some even speculated that Qin Wangchuan had damaged your meridians during that battle.
You said nothing aloud, but one question continued to trouble your heart.
"Since I can never surpass him no matter how hard I cultivate, what use is cultivation?"
[Year 15]
Your cousin brought back a Nine Nether Underworld Lotus. "Cousin, perhaps this can cure your illness."
Though you did not believe it would be useful, you still consumed it so as not to disappoint your clanswoman cousin.
Your injuries naturally did not improve. They even seemed to worsen.
[Year 16]
Your cousin came more frequently, far more attentive than before.
But you paid her no mind, focusing wholeheartedly on gathering news of Qin Wangchuan.
You knew well that he was the reason behind everything.
"As long as I win once, just once..."
[Year 18]
You dismissed the Dao Protector at your side and went alone to the Lower Realm to clear your mind.
After confirming that you had truly descended to the Lower Realm alone, your cousin, who had secretly followed you for a long time, revealed herself and captured you.
A playful sneer hung on her lips. "Cousin, you're already crippled. Keeping that Sacred Body is useless. You might as well give it to me!"
Only then did you realize her purpose, but it was already too late.
[Year 20]
You were imprisoned in an underground dungeon somewhere, where your Heart Blood was drawn.
Late one night, the cell door suddenly opened.
You roared as you snapped the chains, only to be suppressed by the newcomer with a single glance.
On the verge of death, you saw your cousin approach in Wang Clan robes, coldly taking the Bloodline Dao Pattern from between your brows.
"If you had defeated him that day and bought yourself some time, this would never have happened."
"Don't blame me. Other than the Three Great Heavenly Emperors, the Ten Great Imperial Clans have always struggled merely to survive. My Wang Clan used such methods only to protect ourselves."
"Qin Wangchuan cannot be allowed to live. If he continues to grow, the balance between the Three Great Heavenly Emperors will sooner or later be broken."
"When that time comes, all living beings will suffer. Everything is for the greater good."
[Simulation ended]
Final Achievement: One Who Struggles to Lower the Halberd.
Survival Time: 20 years.
Ending: A lifetime of obsession, all an illusion.
(You were born a monstrous genius and should have ruled over the Myriad Realms, yet a single comparison sent you plunging into the abyss of a heart demon. Your father's sigh when you were five lingered over your entire Dao Path like a curse.
You believed your talent was extraordinary and your strength immense. Even if you were weaker, you were only half a step behind him.
But reality was incomparably cruel.
Once you understood the gap between yourself and him, your Dao heart shattered, and your cultivation could no longer advance another inch for the rest of your life.
Yet burdened with countless hopes and eager to escape your heart demon, you underestimated your cousin. You failed to notice her hidden identity and purpose, and ultimately stepped into her trap.
You ended this life in humiliation.
(Additional Comment: If, when you opposed Qin Wangchuan that year, you had used your strongest move from the very beginning, you would not have lost so miserably that your Dao heart shattered. But fear had risen in your heart. In the end, you were afraid. What a pity!)
[Please choose a reward to inherit:] 1: 20 years of lifespan. 2: Emperor-Grade Cultivation Technique Void Seal, along with its key insights. 3: Origin Source +400.
After Qin Wangchuan finished reading the entire simulation, a thousand emotions churned within him.
"Ji Wuchen..." he murmured the name, a trace of mockery flashing through his eyes. "A monstrous genius, yet in the end, he was schemed against and killed by a rat."
"Was his death unjust? It was."
"Was he at fault? No."
"What a pity."
The morning mist outside the window gradually dispersed. Ye Jianwei's zither music had stopped at some unknown time.
Qin Wangchuan watched the servants bustling in the distance, but his thoughts drifted toward that Ji Clan prodigy he had never met.
"He was merely young and reckless, and encountered a towering mountain at the height of his pride."
"If he had chosen to go around it, perhaps one day he could have ascended to the absolute peak."
Qin Wangchuan shook his head and sighed softly, but there was not the slightest pity in his eyes. "Unfortunately, he chose the hardest path—challenging me."
"It may have seemed like overestimating himself, but in truth, it was an unsolvable problem."
"If a man is not reckless in his youth, he has wasted his youth. If he had chosen to go around, then he would not have deserved the title of 'prodigy.'"
His fingertip tapped lightly against the windowsill. Qin Wangchuan's gaze settled on the words "Wang Clan" in the simulation record, and a chill flashed in his eyes.
"Han Han was a chess piece, and Ji Wuchen was also a chess piece..."
"This was absolutely no coincidence. There is most likely a group behind it all."
"Wang Clan. What a fine Wang Clan."
He suddenly smiled, and the aura he gave off made Ye Jianwei, who had just stepped into the courtyard, unconsciously retreat half a step.
Her Young Master was usually gentle, but at times, he revealed a terrifying side.
Whenever that happened, she knew someone was about to suffer terribly.
Without exception.
"I choose 3."
As his words fell, the sound of shackles breaking exploded once more in the depths of his soul, and molten-gold flames ignited in Qin Wangchuan's pupils.
Countless grains of Origin Source light, like stardust, awakened within his organs and viscera, raising a silver-blue blizzard through his bloodline.
Every cell broke apart and reformed. Marks belonging solely to an Immortal Bone emerged upon his skeleton—this was no ordinary increase in cultivation, but a resonance triggered as the core of his Origin Source was ignited.
[Current Origin Source: 24.5 times.] [Current Simulation Count: 0]
Qin Wangchuan slowly closed his eyes, feeling the surging power within him.
Every increase in Origin Source was like prying loose some deeper law, raising the Longevity Immortal Body's passive cultivation speed to another level.
"Soon... at this rate, I'll enter the sixth realm before long." He murmured, a nearly imperceptible coldness curling at the corner of his lips.
"Since you all love playing chess so much—"
Qin Wangchuan raised his hand, and a black piece condensed out of thin air. It slowly spun in his palm, dark and unfathomable, as if it had devoured all the surrounding light.
"Then this Young Master will play with you properly."
"How could this few people possibly be enough? Drag everyone in and let me enjoy myself!"
[Ding! Strong emotions detected from the host. Mission triggered—Game Breaker.] [Mission Objective: Uncover the Wang Clan's conspiracy and crush the undercurrents within the Ten Directions Immortal Court.] [Reward: Unknown.]
Qin Wangchuan's lips curved slightly as he casually flicked the black piece into the air.
"For once, you're being normal, System."
[Ding! This mission was automatically issued. This system has no authority to inspect it.]
"It doesn't matter."
When the chess piece fell, it struck precisely the center of the words "Wang Clan" on the simulator panel.
"Everything begins with the tenth birthday banquet."
"I will end this undercurrent!"
Before you continue