"Dead? But she's the Female Emperor! Shouldn't she be incredibly powerful? How could she..."
Shen Jia spoke to you about the war situation over at Cangqiong Ridge.
It wasn't just the Female Emperor.
Around seventy percent of the martial forces within the Five Regions were either wiped out or nearly annihilated in this war between the two races.
Even the eight strongest sects, hailed as the Eight Pillars of the Five Domains, saw five of them lose all their elites, their higher-ups slaughtered. The remaining three aren't doing well either.
Even the Sword Lord, known as the strongest in the Five Regions, perished after unleashing that one sword that beheaded three demon ancestors, having exhausted all his life force.
And then there's that incompetent emperor of the Great Qian Dynasty.
Everyone called him foolish and incompetent, but he was also a powerful martial artist. Not only did he personally lead the campaign, but he also fell in battle on Cangqiong Ridge.
Without his sacrifice, the Sword Lord's earth-shattering sword strike would not have been possible.
This emperor was originally unpopular, but after he fought for humanity and returned wrapped in a horsehide shroud, the common people of the land petitioned to grant him the temple name "Qianwuzong" (Martial Ancestor of Qian).
There were many, many more prominent figures, each with a name and reputation, who fell on Cangqiong Ridge.
Shen Jia also heard that the Divine Monkey General from Divine Arms County transformed into a giant rock overseas, forever sealing that Great Vanguard Demon Ape beneath the sea.
The war continues to this day, still not over.
Both sides exhausted their top-tier combatants, then started depleting their high-level forces. Once those were gone, they moved to the mid-level, and finally the lower-level forces. Who knows when it will end.
You let out a heavy sigh.
"What's the point of this war... there are no winners..."
Your vision went dark, and you felt your five senses drifting away from you.
You knew your time was almost up.
"Shen Jia, you should be in the Martial King Realm by now, right?"
With the Female Emperor's support and Shen Jia's own High-Grade bone structure, you thought she should have been able to step into the Martial King Realm.
Shen Jia shook her head.
"Uncle, I'm at the Spirit Sea realm, still far from the Martial King Realm. I'm afraid I can't harbor such extravagant hopes in this lifetime."
"The martial path is difficult... more difficult than ascending to the blue heavens. Those who succeed all have some measure of destiny on their side. You must maintain a balanced mindset."
"Uncle, the fact that I could even step onto the martial path in this life is all thanks to you. Being able to cultivate to my current state is even more thanks to my master. I have no regrets..."
At this point, Shen Jia lowered her head.
"But Master does..."
Looking at the thick letter in your hand, you said calmly, "Shen Jia, go attend to your duties. I'll read the letter."
"Uncle..."
"Go."
Shen Jia reluctantly lifted the military tent flap. She knew that once she left, when she returned, she might be facing your cold, lifeless body.
But, birth, aging, sickness, and death—these are things no one can control.
You opened the final letter Li Lingyue wrote to you.
She wrote a lot, because she had so much she wanted to tell you.
Her life was a lonely one. Only when facing you, even if just the you on paper, was she willing to speak her mind freely.
"To my dear Chen Lang,
For you, I won't use 'Zhen' (the royal 'We').
Tomorrow, the stratagem I devised with the Sword Lord will be put into action. Success or failure hinges on this battle.
I have a bad premonition, so I'm writing this letter, hoping Shen Jia can deliver it to you.
Thanks to the Sword Lord, I finally learned who you are now and where you are.
I searched for you for half a lifetime and finally found you, yet I don't know if I'll have the chance to see you.
I was originally just a daughter of the royal family. Within the imperial household, lacking bone structure meant you couldn't decide your own fate.
The political marriage was not my wish. I resisted unto death, but unexpectedly, you saved me.
Since I had already pledged this body to you, how could I then yield myself to another?
I fled again, but the pursuing soldiers chased me to a cliff..."
From Li Lingyue's letter, you learned of her experiences.
Forced to jump off the cliff, accidentally consuming a strange flower, awakening of a sacred physique, rescue by a mysterious old woman, apprenticeship, aiding the distressed and relieving the suffering, gradually rising prestige, seizing power...
All the way to proclaiming herself emperor.
The Southern Borderlands were different from the Central Plains. Over there, countries, political systems, kings—they changed every other day.
So even if a female ruler appeared, it wouldn't face fundamental rejection, nor would a bunch of pedantic Confucian scholars jump out, yelling about the collapse of rites and music, or 'what kind of state is this?'
Afterwards, Li Lingyue used the Great Shi Kingdom as a starting point, rapidly consolidated the Hundred Kingdoms of the South, forming the Southern Borderlands Alliance centered around the Female Emperor.
Immediately after, without pause, she issued a proclamation for the Northern Expedition, declaring herself the legitimate ruler of the Central Plains, vowing to recover the old territories and return to the old capital!
The subsequent grand narrative, you basically already knew.
Li Lingyue's experiences could be called thrilling, enough to be written into a novel.
Of course, you wouldn't be so narcissistic as to think the Female Emperor attacked the Central Plains for you.
Because in the first two simulations, when the two of you had no real connection, she attacked anyway.
She was a career-oriented, strong female lead. It's just that this time, she also developed feelings for you.
Outside the simulation, Chen Yi felt quite emotional.
"To think that princess, whose beauty overshadowed the Five Regions, would eventually grow into such a formidable female lead..."
Just a single night's affair in a cave was enough to make a Female Emperor cherish him for a lifetime.
Chen Yi couldn't help but wonder: Is it that my personal charm is too great, or is "Dragon Plays with Phoenix" just too overpowered?
So hard to guess.
It must be said, this mere white-tier trait "Dragon Plays with Phoenix" possesses a terrifying potency that traits of its color shouldn't have.
"If I had known the Female Emperor was looking for me, why did I run around all over the place? It would have been so much easier to just pledge myself to the Female Emperor! The Sword Lord, the Female Emperor... these connections with major figures must be maintained..."
After finishing the letter, in a daze, you saw that peerlessly beautiful face once more.
She was wearing phoenix crown and ceremonial robes, reuniting with you amidst ten thousand zhang of holy light.
"I have lived this life, I have fought. Though I did not achieve complete success, I have no shame in my heart..."
You breathed your last breath and heard the final sound of this lifetime.
It was the soldiers of the Demon-Extermination Army outside the military tent. They had knelt in a vast crowd, the sound of their weeping filling the wilderness.
"Grand Marshal—"
You sacrificed yourself.
Simulation Evaluation: From Eastern Wastes and Xiliang across the Central Plains, slaying demons and monsters with the Ten Thousand Souls Banner. In advanced age, why take command as marshal? To bring peace to the Five Regions, the words of an old minister.
Congratulations, you have obtained the following inheritance:
Sixty-seven years of travel memories; Cultivation at the first level of the Golden Body realm; A total of sixty-seven traits including: 「Proficiency」(Rainbow), 「The Most Severe Father to Non-Humans」(Gold), 「Mortal Bones」(Gold), 「The Only True Prophet in the Whole Game」(Purple), 「Senior Tomato User」(Purple), 「Sudden Inspiration」(Purple), 「Foreign Languages Should Be Learned」(Green), 「Silent Step」(Green)... etc.; External Technique《Heartflame Profound Art》(Transcendent Mastery), Internal Technique《Pure Yang Spirit-Guiding Profound Art》(Perfection), Heart Art《Azure Flame Heart Art》(Perfection), Martial Art《Shattering Star Ripple Finger》(Minor Achievement), Martial Art《Dragon Flame Profound Art》(Perfection), Martial Art《Rocket Step》(Transcendent Mastery)...
"That was truly a thoroughly satisfying simulation..."
Although the simulation had ended, Chen Yi still couldn't help but savor the rich and colorful life his simulated self had experienced.
But now, please pull your thoughts back to reality.
Including the handsome guy in front of the screen—yes, I'm talking about you.
The real Chen Yi is still just an ordinary small-town youth who just escaped from a gang, came to the county town to seek refuge with his Third Sister, and is merely at the Golden Body realm.
A simulation is just one possibility, not an established fact.
Any slight disturbance in reality is enough to rewrite the course of history.
The reality Chen Yi finds himself in is still filled with infinite possibilities for the future.
The simulation only shows a potential fate. The true fate must be grasped in your own hands, ya!
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