Rusty Sword, Sword Mastery!

The morning sun rose, and the thin mist broke at dawn.

A youth in a cyan-blue robe was dancing with a sword in the courtyard, yet the sword in his hand was nothing but a rusted blade!

This youth was Mu Xingqi.

A month had passed since his last simulation.

It was now May.

"This rusted sword is truly extraordinary." Mu Xingqi slid the rusted sword into its scabbard—a scabbard he had specifically commissioned.

The rusted sword he spoke of was the reward he had chosen at the end of his last simulation, obtained from that eerie Palace.

"I specifically asked Father to take a look at it; even though this rusted sword is corroded to such a degree, it still possesses the power of a Spirit Tier Low Grade weapon. It must have been extraordinary in its original state!"

Mu Xingqi gazed at the rusted sword in his hand, sighing with emotion.

"Continue practicing!"

With that, Mu Xingqi drew his sword and stood ready, raising the blade to strike lightly.

This was a sword technique he had specifically sought out from the Scripture Pavilion, known as the Nan Sword Art, a Yellow Grade High Rank Wood Attribute offensive technique.

It was the undisputed strongest sword technique of their Mu family, passed down by the Founding Ancestor.

Nan, Zhang, Zi, and Chou woods are known as the "Four Great Imperial Woods," among which Nan wood is hailed as the "King of Hundred Woods." The Nan Sword Art was a technique created with inspiration drawn from Nan wood.

After a month of practice, although he had yet to reach the Beginner stage, it had deepened his understanding of swordsmanship.

Reaching the Beginner stage from here on would be much easier.

The next day, Mu Xingqi arrived at the Pill Hall and saw his Mother, Lin Qinghua.

Of course, he also saw Mu Xinger.

Mu Xinger was dressed in a jade-green dress embroidered with intertwining medicinal patterns. Three small pills hung from the jade token at her waist, clinking with every step she took, sounding even more lively than the wind chimes under the eaves.

She possessed a strikingly brilliant appearance. When she arched her brows, there was a hint of careless charm, yet the corners of her eyes were adorned with shallow dimples. When she smiled, even the medicinal mist rising from the pill furnaces seemed to be imbued with warmth. Her unbound dark hair was loosely held by a jade hairpin, with a few stray locks falling against her cheeks, which only served to highlight the unique, naive, and vibrant beauty of a young girl.

You felt a sense of wonder; the Mu Xinger before you was indeed as beautiful and moving as described in the simulation.

Especially those bright, beautiful eyes of hers, with a glimmer in them that truly seemed to hold stars.

It made it hard for him to look away.

Mu Xingqi greeted her somewhat reservedly, which made Mu Xinger feel a bit restless as well.

Fortunately, his Mother was there by his side; otherwise, you felt this situation would have been awkward enough to kill you.

Because this was also his first time seeing Mu Xinger in reality, he was caught off guard for a moment.

You chatted very well with Mu Xinger. For some reason, you always felt as if the Mu Xinger before you was your own younger sister, and you subconsciously wanted to protect her.

Seeing that the two of you were getting along unexpectedly well, your Mother smiled with great satisfaction.

After spending several days together, your relationship with Mu Xinger became even more harmonious. Mu Xinger would call you "Brother Xingqi," which made you very happy.

A sense of satisfaction welled up from the bottom of your heart, as if you had truly become an older brother.

Another month passed. After Mu Xingqi learned from his Father that he could accept clan missions to earn contributions that could be exchanged for resources, he spent the entire month busy completing various tasks.

Although he had already broken through to the Qi Refining Seventh Layer, his parents deliberately kept it hidden to protect him, telling the outside world that he had only just broken through to the Qi Refining Fourth Layer.

Therefore, he could only accept some simple missions.

Either teaching disciples or guarding properties.

To be honest, it was quite boring.

At the end of the month, he finally gathered the thirty Spirit Stones needed for his next simulation.

Arriving at the Finance Hall, he exchanged all his contributions for Spirit Stones.

His actions left the disciple in charge of the exchange somewhat bewildered.

After all, using contributions to exchange for Spirit Stones was a bad deal; wouldn't it be better to exchange them for Spirit Pills and Medicines or other resources that could improve one's cultivation?

Although the disciple in charge was puzzled, he didn't ask any questions.

What if the guy just had a unique preference for Spirit Stones? What if he had some strange hobby?

This was what the disciple in charge was thinking, something Mu Xingqi was naturally unaware of.

He was currently holding the Spirit Stones he had just received, returning to his room with a silly grin on his face.

It must be said that Mu Xingqi currently looked truly as wretched as a creep.

"Finally, I can start the simulation again. Simulator, activate!" Mu Xingqi roared.

[Simulator is starting]

[Detected that the talent from the last simulation has not been saved. Do you wish to move the talent "Brave Advance (White)" into a talent slot?]

[Remaining talent slots: 0]

"No!"

Simulated Memory was a cheat-like ability akin to a rebirth; it was the key to breaking his current predicament, and it was worth a lifetime of the white-tier talent Brave Advance.

[Talent Slot: Simulated Memory]

[Remaining Talent Slots: 0]

[Simulation starting...]

[30 Simulation Points deducted]

[Simulator starting...]

[Randomly drawing simulation talent...]

[Simulation talent drawn: Sword Mastery.]

[Congratulations on obtaining the Green-tier simulation talent: Sword Mastery]

[Sword Mastery (Green): You are extremely passionate about the way of the sword. You can practice sword techniques day and night for days on end. Your cultivation speed in the way of the sword is extraordinary, more than twice that of an ordinary person, and your comprehension speed for sword techniques below the Profound tier is also exceptionally fast.]

"Oh? A rare Green-tier pull."

"I just happened to start practicing a sword technique; heaven is truly helping me!"

Mu Xingqi clenched his fists in excitement.

He turned his head back to the simulation panel, looking forward to this simulation.

[You bolt upright from your bed, an involuntary panic rising in your heart.]

[You had a nightmare.]

[You dream that three years from now, you and your Fifth Sister, Mu Xinghuang, enter a secret realm to explore.]

[In a palace within the secret realm, you and your Fifth Sister enter the third floor together, only to be killed by the suddenly appearing Fire Cloud Evil God!]

[Your Fifth Sister dies right in your arms, consumed by guilt until her final breath for having brought you to this secret realm.]

[You rise in a final fit of rage, but are instantly killed by a single strike from the Fire Cloud Evil God!]

[You are filled with shock, unable to believe that all of this is real.]

[But when you turn your head, you discover a rusted sword standing by your bedside.]

[You feel that this rusted sword is very familiar, yet you cannot for the life of you remember how it appeared in your room.]

"Does the Simulator erase the memories of the rewards I obtain from the simulations?" Mu Xingqi wondered, puzzled.

It was the same with the Qi Gathering Pill from a previous simulation; in the simulation, he hadn't known how he had obtained it either.

"Or to be more precise, any memories related to the Simulator are erased, including the Simulator itself!" After some careful thought, Mu Xingqi boldly deduced.

You pick up the rusted sword and realize, isn't this the Elegant Sword you and Fifth Sister obtained on the second floor of the Palace in the secret realm?

But how did it appear in your own room?

In the end, you conclude that it was this very rusted sword that brought you back to life.

You firmly believe that you must have been reborn; otherwise, how could you have had a nightmare about three years in the future?

You raise the sword and suddenly feel a surge of...