Another Life, Another Ending

Qin Wangchuan's gaze swept over the six awards one by one.

Lifespan, breathing techniques, and the Wood Spirit Root are all useless to him now.

The only thing that truly deserves to be called a reward is those six hundred Origin Source.

But frankly, this amount of Origin Source isn't much.

After thinking it over, my gaze finally settled on the fourth and sixth items.

A small, blunted hatchet.

A Peach Blossom Hairpin that was never given away.

They appear to be just two ordinary, worthless objects.

One harbors unfulfilled ambitions, the other harbors unspoken affections.

When pieced together, it becomes the short life of that boy.

Qin Wangchuan remained silent for a moment, then made his choice.

"I choose four or six."

[Reward selection complete.]

[Congratulations, host, you have obtained: a small, blunted hatchet.]

[Congratulations, host, you have obtained: the Peach Blossom Hairpin that you were unable to give away.]

The two items then fell into his hands.

The machete is smaller than it appears in the picture.

The blade was crooked, the edge was curled up, and the burlap wrapped around the handle was loose.

Let's look at the Peach Blossom Hairpin in her other hand.

The workmanship was also not good; the petals were crookedly squeezed together, the hairpin body was not polished smooth, and there were several obvious hammer marks on the edges.

It's hard to imagine that these two items would become a reward, placed next to the six hundred Origin Source.

"Useless things are also another kind of priceless things."

"Keep it with you, both as a memento and as a reminder."

Reward claimed.

Next, we should look at other options.

Summoning the Qin Clan for reinforcements would certainly allow them to easily annihilate the Alien Race, but it would also ignite the flames of Attack Heaven.

This path has proven to be unworkable.

As for the second option...

The images of Chu Wujiu and the others quickly appeared in Qin Wangchuan's mind.

Let's see a different future.

[Directional Simulation started.]

[Simulation location locked: Lower Thousand Provinces, Swallowing Cloud Realm.]

[Simulation range: Global.]

[This simulation spans two realms and requires 4 Simulation Count.]

[Continue?]

"Continue."

[Simulation Count -4.]

[Simulation Count remaining: 18.]

[The Swallowing Cloud Realm - Global Directional Simulation has begun.]

[Your name is Ning Xiao'an, born in White Reed City, in the Eastern Territory of the Swallowing Cloud Realm.]

[My father made a living by collecting medicinal herbs in the mountains, while my mother worked as a helper in a pharmacy in the city. Although their lives were poor, they were relatively stable.]

[Born with extraordinary Spirit Root, destined for the immortal realm.]

[Year 0]

The year you were born, a plague was raging White Reed City.

Every day, people were carried out of the city, and the thick smoke from burning corpses almost covered half the sky.

Your mother held you, who had just been born, and thought for a long time, but still couldn't come up with a satisfactory name.

But my father felt that in those times, simply being able to live peacefully was better than anything else.

So I named you Xiao An.

I do not seek wealth or longevity.

My only wish is for this daughter to live a peaceful life.

[Year 3]

After you learned to walk, your favorite place to go was the pharmacy where your mother worked.

Other kids love sweets and snacks, but you always squat under the rows of medicine cabinets, watching the clerk dispense medicine.

Occasionally, when no one is looking, he will secretly stuff a piece into his mouth.

Licorice has a slightly sweet taste.

Astragalus has almost no taste.

You only took one bite of Coptis chinensis, and the bitterness made you cry for half a day.

Your mother was both angry and amused. She grabbed your ear and warned you not to take any more medicine indiscriminately.

You agreed while crying.

The next day, while she was turned away, he stuffed a few bright red goji berries into her mouth.

[Year 5]

When my father returned from gathering herbs, he accidentally cut his palm on a rock.

His mother scolded him for being careless while fetching medicine to clean and bandage his wound.

The powder landed on the wound, and the father immediately winced in pain.

Noticing you squatting nearby watching, it immediately put on an indifferent act.

"It's a minor injury, it doesn't hurt."

You obviously don't believe it.

He leaned close to the injured hand, puffed out his cheeks, and gently blew on it a few times.

"Blowing on it will make it stop hurting."

The father was stunned for a moment, then the pain on his face gradually turned into a smile.

"It doesn't seem to hurt as much anymore."

You raised your head and said earnestly:

"When I become a doctor, I'll be able to cure Dad."

"OK."

Your father reached out his other hand and ruffled your hair.

"Then Dad will be waiting."

[Year 6]

Your father still remembers your words about wanting to be a doctor.

Whenever the weather is fine, I will take you to the nearby mountains to collect herbs.

You carried a specially woven small medicine basket on your back, following in his footsteps, stumbling and falling behind him.

Along the way, my father would point out the flowers and plants and patiently tell me their names and uses.

After you get home, they'll randomly take a few plants from the medicine basket and ask you to identify them again.

At first, you always got them mixed up.

Today they mistake white bud grass for heart-clearing leaf, and tomorrow they'll have completely forgotten the name of the herb they just learned.

The father wasn't angry.

If you admit you made a mistake, then teach it again.

Over time, you became more and more familiar with herbs, and your father began to deliberately mix in a few similar-looking herbs to test you.

[Year 7]

That day, as usual, the father placed the medicine basket he had just brought back in the yard.

You squatted down and searched for a while, and soon picked out a rotten leaf from a pile of white sprouts.

"This can't be put in there."

The father was somewhat surprised.

How did you know?

You held the leaf and looked at it for a long time, but couldn't explain why.

The father noticed something was wrong and asked the pharmacy owner about it.

The shopkeeper casually picked out several medicinal herbs you had never seen before, mixed them together, and asked you to pick out the differences.

Although you couldn't name them, you quickly picked out a few.

I tried several times, but still no mistakes were made.

The shopkeeper's eyes flickered slightly, as if he had thought of something, and then he took out a Spirit Stone from under the counter.

"Xiao An, put your hand up here."

If you don't understand, just do as I say.

A moment later, a layer of bluish light shone on the dark stone surface.

His suspicions were confirmed, and the shopkeeper's face lit up with joy as he grabbed his father's arm.

"It really is Wood Spirit Root!"

"You herb gatherer, your daughter has Spirit Root!"

The father had naturally heard of cultivators and understood what it meant to possess Spirit Root.

After a brief moment of surprise, a broad smile immediately spread across his face, which was tanned dark by the wind over the years.

"So, my little An can also cultivate immortality?"

"Able!"

"Of course!"

When we got home, your father picked you up and carried you on his shoulder.

He walked very fast, and before he even entered the house, he shouted to his mother from half a street away:

"Our daughter has Spirit Root!"

"I can become Immortal someday!"

You held your father's head in your arms, the medicine basket behind you swaying with your steps, and you couldn't help but laugh along.

Upon seeing this, Qin Wangchuan gently shook his head.

"Spirit Root..."

People of the Immortal Court are born with perfect understanding of the five elements, and their cultivation never considers Spirit Root.

However, in the Lower Thousand Provinces, this ancient classification of qualifications is still regarded as the first threshold separating immortals and mortals.

Chen Gou'er was angry because of it, while Ning Xiao'an was happy because of it.

[Year 8]

The following spring, the Verdant Medicine Sect from nearby White Reed City came to recruit disciples.

Your father woke you up before dawn.

Your mother dressed you in new clothes that she had sewn overnight, and then combed your hair neatly, tying it into two braids that hung down behind your shoulders.

During the test, you will place your hand on the spirit-testing Spirit Stone.

A cyan light slowly appeared.

The elder in charge of accepting apprentices glanced at it and nodded slightly.

"Medium-grade Wood Spirit Root."

There were no setbacks or unexpected events.

You passed the test smoothly and received a wooden plaque engraved with your name as a disciple.

The father held the wooden plaque and looked at it again and again.

Upon seeing someone I know well, I can't help but boast:

"This is my daughter."

"A mid-level Wood Spirit Root; you'll be going to a sect to cultivate in the future."

Before you left, your mother held your hand and repeatedly told you to listen to your elders, eat on time, and not to argue with your fellow disciples once you arrived at the sect.

The father didn't say anything.

I'll just repair that medicine basket that's been with you for so many years and carry it on your back.

Only when the Verdant Medicine Sect urged the new disciples to set off did he raise his hand and pat your head.

Study hard.

"Your parents are waiting for you at home."

You nodded vigorously and followed the group out of the city gate.

At first, I could hold back, but I kept looking back over my shoulder.

Tears finally fell only after the mountain road rounded a bend and White Reed City completely disappeared from sight.

[Year 9]

After joining the Verdant Medicine Sect, you were assigned to the Medicine Hall.

In addition to identifying medicinal herbs and tending to the medicinal fields every day, they also have to learn how to guide qi into the body from their teachers.

I first sensed the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi in the third month after I entered the sect.

The energy flowed slowly along the meridians, eventually converging into the Dantian.

Since then, the whole world has changed.

You have officially become a cultivator.