A Hundred Simulations

Inside the firewood room, the light was dim.

Several holes had torn through the paper covering the old wooden window. Fine strands of moonlight spilled through them, falling across the pile of straw on the floor.

Shen Yuan sat cross-legged atop the straw, his body utterly still and his breathing long and steady. Yet his consciousness had already sunk into the vast white Martial Arts Simulation Space constructed by the Martial Arts Heavenly Stele.

Within his sea of consciousness, the Heavenly Stele floated silently.

The task he had just accepted was clearly displayed: pass the Outer Sect Assessment, and Martial Dao Point gains would be doubled.

To claim this reward, he had to fight his way through round after round of real arena slaughter.

"Wang Dong told me that in previous Outer Sect Assessments, the preliminaries were chaotic melees, while the second round was one-on-one arena combat. The candidates were a mixed bag of fish and dragons. Quite a few outer sect reserve disciples had reached the Body Tempering Seventh Layer or even the Body Tempering Eighth Layer. Some are Zhao Kun's lackeys. Once we get on the arena, they will definitely target me deliberately."

Standing in the illusory void of the Martial Arts Simulation Space, Shen Yuan sorted through the information in his mind.

Wang Dong usually gathered news everywhere. He had told Shen Yuan about the martial arts that frequently appeared in recent Outer Sect Assessments, as well as the fighting styles of all kinds of candidates. Some cultivated the Mountain-Splitting Fist, some practiced the Gale Leg Technique, and some disciples wielded short weapons.

All those fragments of information were fed into the Martial Arts Heavenly Stele.

The next moment, one phantom figure after another appeared in the void.

Each phantom replicated the martial arts routines, attack habits, strength rhythms, and pacing of a favored assessment candidate.

"Begin simulated combat," Shen Yuan commanded inwardly.

At the very front, a phantom disciple who cultivated the Mountain-Splitting Fist charged forward in great strides. His fist wind was heavy and fierce as he smashed a punch straight toward Shen Yuan's chest.

Shen Yuan's body swayed, and the Perfect Tiger-Subduing Fist unfolded. Rather than meeting the heavy punch head-on, he sidestepped and searched for flaws in his opponent's moves.

Bang!

In the first battle, after barely more than ten exchanges, Shen Yuan seized the instant when the phantom's old strength had faded but new strength had yet to arise. One punch crashed into its ribs, and the simulated opponent scattered with a roar.

Victory.

But the Martial Arts Simulation Space did not stop.

The second phantom charged in immediately after. This one excelled in the Gale Leg Technique. His footwork was swift as wind, and he circled and harassed Shen Yuan, constantly seeking openings to attack.

Man and phantom clashed once more.

In the simulated battles of the Martial Arts Simulation Space, pain was partially fed back to the soul. Whenever Shen Yuan was struck by a kick, a real, piercing pain flared through his soul. Had he taken such a blow in actual combat, his body would certainly have suffered severe injury.

One defeat, then two defeats.

Shen Yuan fell again and again, only to rise and fight anew each time.

After every defeat, the Heavenly Stele reviewed the entire battle, breaking down every weakness in his opponent's moves and pointing out the gaps in his own techniques.

"Against the Gale Leg Technique, the Subduing Tiger Fist cannot be dragged into circling by the opponent. Their movement space must be sealed." "There are flaws in the shoulder and arm defense, making them vulnerable to devastating leg strikes."

Line after line of analysis surfaced in his sea of consciousness.

Shen Yuan adjusted his fighting style over and over, refining variations specifically meant to counter the Gale Leg Technique.

Who knew how many rounds of simulation passed.

Finally, when he faced the Gale Leg phantom again, Shen Yuan no longer dodged passively. The Subduing Tiger Fist changed, its momentum spreading outward to lock down the space around his opponent. He seized the instant the phantom withdrew its leg and shattered it with a single punch.

Victory.

Time flowed differently inside the Martial Arts Simulation Space than it did outside.

Only a single night had passed in the real firewood room, but Shen Yuan had already experienced more than a hundred simulated arena battles here.

His opponents' cultivation had risen from the Fifth Stage of Body Tempering all the way to the Body Tempering Eighth Layer.

Some possessed fierce, overwhelming strength; some had uncanny movement techniques; some specialized in defense and enduring blows; others were vicious and tricky, striking only below the belt.

Shen Yuan fought every type of opponent repeatedly. He was knocked down, reviewed the battle, improved his fist techniques, and challenged them again.

His soul endured the feedback of pain from battle after battle. His head throbbed in waves, and his spirit was exhausted beyond measure. This was the price of deduction—the wounds suffered in simulation were no illusion.

But the gains were just as immense.

The original Perfect Tiger-Subduing Fist had been developed by him into countless on-the-spot variations. Against different martial arts, he could produce corresponding methods of restraint.

Even the Heavenly Stele gave him a prompt after innumerable simulations.

[Detected extensive practical combat data for Subduing Tiger Fist. Advanced martial art, True Subduing Tiger Fist, may be deduced. Deduction cost: 2 Martial Dao Points. Current remaining Martial Dao Points: 1.]

He did not have enough Martial Dao Points.

Shen Yuan frowned slightly.

The True Subduing Tiger Fist was an advanced version of the Subduing Tiger Fist, and its power would surge by a great margin. Unfortunately, he had only 1 Martial Dao Point left, still one point short.

"It's fine. I'll first hone my existing moves to their utmost limit. Once I get onto the assessment arena, defeating or killing opponents will earn me Martial Dao Points."

He withdrew from the simulated combat, and his consciousness slowly returned to his body.

Inside the firewood room, the sky outside had already begun to brighten. The night had passed.

Shen Yuan slowly opened his eyes, a sharp glint flashing through them before vanishing.

Over a hundred simulations in one night had left his body unmoving, but his soul had undergone countless bloody fights. His understanding of arena combat now far surpassed that of most cultivators at his level. The combat experience others needed years of arena training to accumulate had all been experienced by him in the Martial Arts Simulation Space in a single night.

But the exhaustion of his soul was real, and a faint swelling pain lingered in his head.

Shen Yuan circulated the improved Azure Cloud Inner Breath Art, slowly breathing in and out to nourish his weary soul.

Knock, knock, knock.

The wooden door of the firewood room was tapped lightly.

Wang Dong's voice came from outside, deliberately lowered. "Shen Yuan, are you awake? I got some information."

Shen Yuan rose and pulled open the wooden door.

Outside, dawn had just broken, and the morning mist had yet to disperse. Wang Dong clutched a crumpled sheet of rough paper to his chest, his expression grave. He hurried into the firewood room and shut the door behind him.

"Something happened." Wang Dong's plump face was full of worry. "I specifically went to ask around the outer sect this morning. Zhao Kun privately spoke with two of his trusted disciples at the Body Tempering Seventh Layer. During the preliminary melee, they are to focus on targeting you. They plan to join hands in the chaos, severely injure you, and eliminate you directly."

He spread open the rough paper, which bore crude sketches of two people's distinguishing features and the martial arts they excelled in. One used Iron Palm techniques, while the other practiced staff arts.

"The preliminaries aren't one-on-one arena fights—they're a melee. Dozens of candidates will brawl in the arena grounds, and only the last half remaining can enter the second round." Wang Dong's tone was heavy. "The melee will be chaotic, and fists and feet have no eyes. If those two join forces against you, even if they beat you severely, they can claim it was an accidental mistake in the melee. It will be difficult to hold them accountable. That is Zhao Kun's plan."

Shen Yuan lowered his head to look over the information on the rough paper. He had expected this already. Zhao Kun was narrow-minded and would never obediently watch him take part in the assessment. Since he could not act openly, he would use the rules of the melee to strike from the shadows.

"I understand." Shen Yuan remained calm, without surprise. "I have already simulated situations where multiple people attack me in the Martial Arts Simulation Space."

"Simulated?" Wang Dong froze for a moment. He did not know the Heavenly Stele's secret and assumed Shen Yuan had merely deduced combat in his own mind. "Even so, you must be careful. Two Body Tempering Seventh Layer cultivators joining forces is no joke. You are only at the Body Tempering Sixth Layer now. Facing two alone will put you under enormous pressure."

"I won't fight them head-on." Shen Yuan spoke blandly. "In a melee, the grounds are vast. I do not necessarily have to clash with them to the death face-to-face. I can circle around, maneuver with them, and wait for opportunities. I'll first avoid the edge of their blades, then break them one by one when the chance comes."

During last night's simulated battles, he had encountered two-on-one assaults more than once. He had already practiced several tactical approaches for maneuvering free and counterattacking when opportunities arose.

"And we can't let down our guard against Liu Er, either." Wang Dong recalled something else. "Though Liu Er cannot step onto the arena himself, he has many connections among the logistics servants. Before the assessment, he might tamper with your drinking water or food and secretly do something to weaken your physical condition."

Those words woke Shen Yuan up.

Open spears were easy to evade, but hidden arrows were hard to guard against. Opponents on the arena could be deduced and anticipated, but poison and secret schemes in the dark were impossible to defend against completely.

"From now on, I won't touch any food or water distributed by the sect." Shen Yuan made his decision at once. "I'll prepare my own dried rations in advance and drink only spring water from the mountains."

Wang Dong nodded. "I can help with that. I have plenty of dried rations stored away. I'll secretly bring them to you."

After speaking, Wang Dong frowned again. "There's one more thing. Several of the Outer Sect Assessment judges are disciples under outer sect elders. One of them is on good terms with Zhao Kun. Even if you defeat your opponent, he might still pick bones out of an egg and do everything possible to rule that you lost."

Heavy obstacles came one after another.

The wager hanging over him, Zhao Kun's encirclement and killing attempt, Liu Er's secret schemes, and even a judge biased toward his opponents.

To pass a single Outer Sect Assessment, he actually had to cross so many hurdles.

Shen Yuan walked to the window of the firewood room and looked toward the towering outer sect martial arts grounds in the distance.

The enormous arena there had already been constructed. Flags fluttered in the wind, waiting only for the assessment to begin.

Crises upon crises lay before him, yet Shen Yuan felt no retreat in his heart.

He had crossed into this world, suffered endless humiliation, fallen from a cliff and nearly died, obtained the Martial Arts Heavenly Stele, and endured in silence while lying low. Everything had been for this very moment.

"All schemes, all obstacles. On the arena, I'll shatter them one by one with my fists," Shen Yuan murmured.

Only two days remained until the Outer Sect Assessment began.

In the time ahead, he would continue honing his fist techniques and restoring both his body and soul to their peak condition, ready to face the coming great battle.