Simulated Joining, a Life Beyond One's Control

[The war has begun.]

[You intend to kill the Star Rank 9s first. This group of space pirates is massive, with tens of thousands of Star Rank 9s alone, but your strength has long since surpassed those of your level. It didn't take long for you to kill 1,000 of them.]

[However.]

[Your immense strength has caught the attention of a Universe Rank space pirate. He is a Universe Rank 2.]

[Fortunately, you have comprehended the Rotten Wood Blade to the sixth level, allowing you to unleash 36 times your base power. Combined with your domain, you are fully capable of killing a Universe Rank 2.]

[You win by a narrow margin.]

[Although the honing mission is complete, escaping safely is also a test. You must realize that by exposing your domain, many Universe Ranks now want you dead.]

[You are surrounded and attacked.]

[Among the surrounding pirates are three Universe Rank 7s. You are unable to resist and can only rely on your domain to flee. People in the military want to save you, but unfortunately, they underestimated this group of pirates and cannot spare any extra manpower.]

[In this emergency, you decide to gamble by heading toward the Domain Lord battlefield. After all, you have the Gold Wood Grass for protection, while those pirates do not. You bet that they won't dare to follow.]

[You succeed, but you expose the Gold Wood Grass in the process.]

[After the battle ends, you return to the administrative planet. Sen Ran has been waiting for you there the entire time. In fact, he watched the entire battle process, and when you revealed the Universe Rank 9 Gold Wood Grass, he clearly wore a peculiar expression.]

[He knows you must have treasures, but fortunately, you are a core member of the Dojo, so you aren't worth him violating the rules. He warns you not to use the Gold Wood Grass lightly.]

[You agree on the surface, but you will still use it when your life is in danger.]

[At 40 years old, you are still at Star Rank 9, while your plant life legion, apart from the Gold Wood Grass, has all broken through to the Domain Lord level. The Spirit Silk Grass is even at the high stage of the Domain Lord level.]

[Your domain has broken through to the peak of the fifth level, extremely close to the sixth, but you know this step is very difficult for you.]

[Fortunately, your Rotten Wood Blade has been comprehended to the eighth level. You are extremely talented in this secret technique, and your melee blade skills are incredibly exquisite.]

[You are arranged to undergo life-and-death honing.]

[This time is different; you are required to go to a secret realm to hunt Universe Rank exotic beasts, and you are not allowed to carry the Gold Wood Grass.]

[You suddenly remember that you have a set of mysterious coordinates recorded for a location within the Thousand Wave Secret Realm. Unfortunately, you are not in control of your own destiny right now and have no opportunity to explore it.]

[Before entering, your body is scanned by instruments.]

[The Silver Token is discovered. You clearly become panicked at this moment, but fortunately, the Silver Token looks extremely ordinary on the surface and does not arouse suspicion.]

[However, your trump card for survival has been taken away, and the mortality rate for this secret realm trip has greatly increased.]

"Sigh~"

"Which genius can truly control their own fate? It's just that some benefits outweigh these costs," Han Han laments.

[Based on your strength, the Dojo requires you to hunt 100 Universe Rank 1, 10 Universe Rank 2, 3 Universe Rank 3, and 1 Universe Rank 4 Azure Wood Beast.]

[Exotic beasts are different from space pirates; their weapons are their own sharp claws, and their defense is their own scales. Compared to space pirates of the same level, they are easier to kill.]

[You easily complete the first two hunting targets.]

[Facing the Universe Rank 3 Azure Wood Beast, you find it a bit tricky. You need to plan carefully and find a lone Azure Wood Beast to hunt it safely.]

[You don't care about the time limit; after all, in your view, the assessment results are far less important than your life.]

[At 45 years old, it took you five years to complete the third Azure Wood Beast hunting target.]

[The Ganwu Dojo's assessment of you was very accurate. The Universe Rank 4 Azure Wood Beast requires you to fight for your life to have even a glimmer of hope of killing it—this is what is known as life-and-death honing.]

[You begin to plan.]

[After all, you absolutely cannot be disturbed this time, not even if a Planetary Rank beast wanders in.]

[At 48 years old, after three full years, you find a natural valley in the secret realm. It is surrounded by mountains on three sides with only one exit. You need to lure the Azure Wood Beast inside and seal it; it is an excellent place for a battle.]

[You begin your action.]

[You lure a Universe Rank 4 Azure Wood Beast into the valley to hunt it. During the first contact, you are in the shadows, relying on a sneak attack to first blind one of the Azure Wood Beast's eyes.]

[Although the Azure Wood Beast has three pairs of eyes, it will ultimately create a blind spot.]

[You fight a grueling battle.]

[Even with the support of your domain, the gap in your levels is there. Whether in speed or other aspects, the Azure Wood Beast is stronger than you.]

[You decide to launch a sneak attack.]

[Since the Azure Wood Beast has lost one eye, you can fully launch a sneak attack from that visual blind spot.]

[The sneak attack succeeds. You see hope for success and seize the opportunity to quickly exacerbate the Azure Wood Beast's injuries. As time passes, its strength will inevitably decline, and that will be your chance.]

[Unfortunately, the more injured an exotic beast is, the more violent its counterattack becomes. Even though you are careful, you are struck by its sharp claws, and three bloody gashes appear on your chest. Unfortunately, this time you cannot consume the Locke Divine Water to recover quickly, and the Azure Wood Beast will not give you a chance to stall. You can only continue the battle while injured.]

[Between life and death, your blade technique breaks through.]

[The ninth level of the Rotten Wood Blade turns the situation around. The extra 6 times of power output allows you to win by a narrow margin repeatedly during the battle, eventually killing the Azure Wood Beast.]

[Unfortunately.]

[The strongest blade you unleashed cuts a gully into the mountain peak deep in the valley. Who could have imagined that inside, a life form known as Shanhe was being nurtured?]

[The point is, the Shanhe was not nurtured naturally, but is a special ethnic group within the secret realm.]

[It turns out you weren't the only one who liked this valley; Shanhe had also chosen it as the place to incubate his offspring. Although you interrupted the incubation and the child didn't die, its potential has been greatly diminished as a result.]

[You hear a roar that shakes the heavens.]

[Sensing that things have taken a turn for the worse, you immediately flee the valley, but having just fought the Azure Wood Beast, there is absolutely no way you can leave the secret realm before being caught.]

[Fortunately, you aren't foolish. The moment you realized the situation, you used the Virtual Universe to call Sen Ran for help. Although this will cause your assessment score to drop significantly, so what?]

[You need to hold out for half a day.]

[Severely injured, you have no choice but to hide wherever you can. You are lucky enough to discover a beast nearby—Demon Eye—who is currently hunting, and he is also at the Domain Lord level.]

[You use every ounce of your strength to rush toward Demon Eye, because Shanhe is currently charging wildly; passing by him will surely provoke Demon Eye and trigger a battle between the two. Even though it is still unlikely you will survive, your chances are at least better than facing Shanhe alone.]

[Your scheme is only half successful.]

[After all, being at the Domain Lord level, they already possess considerable intelligence. After a brief exchange, the two seem to have reached some kind of deal, and Demon Eye joins in the hunt for you.]

[Half a day.]

[You are caught. Looking at the faint human silhouette appearing in the distance, you recognize it as Sen Ran, but unfortunately, you truly lack the strength to hold on any longer and are ultimately smashed into a pulp by Shanhe.]

[You have died.]