35: Chapter 35 Simulation Ended, Qi Refining Stage 4

[Chu Sheng stood at the front line of the beast tide, watching the overwhelming number of demonic beasts.]

["This is bad."]

[On the front line of the beast tide, the scent of blood permeated the air. Low-grade demonic beasts surged in like a tide, while cultivators and martial artists formed battle formations, fighting in a bloodbath.]

[Chu Sheng was assigned to the Poison Pill Battalion directly under the City Lord's Mansion, responsible for using poison mist and poison pills to assist in defense and treat the wounded.]

[To put it bluntly, he was a smoke bomb and ambulance rolled into one.]

["This smell is wrong." Chu Sheng sniffed the air and frowned. "It's normal for demonic beasts to go berserk, but this kind of uniform agitation is like they've all collectively taken drugs."]

[During a scouting mission, he risked leaving his team. After twisting and turning, he discovered a few corpses of Qinglan Sect outer sect disciples who had just died in a hidden valley!]

[Scattered around were broken formation flags and a type of purple powder emitting a strange, sweet scent.]

[Chu Sheng crouched down and pinched a bit of the powder.]

["Beast-Attracting Incense? And an enhanced version at that!"]

[His eyes widened. "People from the Qinglan Sect died here... Could it be that they caused this beast tide and then lost control? Or... was someone silencing them?"]

Chu Sheng couldn't help but suck in a cold breath as he watched.

"What is the Qinglan Sect trying to do? What's the point of creating a beast tide? To test the disciples' combat ability? Or just to cause some trouble for the border?"

[Just as he wanted to examine it closely, a piercing murderous intent struck from behind!]

[A cultivator in the early stage of the True Condensation Realm with a sinister expression suddenly appeared, his gaze locking onto Chu Sheng like a viper.]

["Little rat, you're quite good at burrowing."]

[The sinister cultivator sneered. "Just as well. The elder ordered that if we encounter any suspicious brat at the border, we are to kill them without mercy! The smell of pills on you... It's you!"]

[Chu Sheng's hair stood on end!]

[True Condensation Realm! A whole major realm higher than Qi Induction!]

[He couldn't even run!]

[The sinister cultivator raised his hand, his spiritual energy condensing into a giant cyan claw that pressed down like a mountain!]

["Die!"]

[A desperate situation!]

[Chu Sheng's eyes were bloodshot. The faces of Liu Qingyan and Chu An flashed through his mind, along with the unborn child of the Lin family, and the City Lord's expression of "I have high hopes for you"...]

[He couldn't die here!]

[He let out a wild roar and pulled three "Super fleeting bloom pills" from his bosom! This was his final trump card, kept for a mutual destruction scenario!]

[He swallowed them in one gulp!]

["Boom!!!"]

[An indescribably violent medicinal power exploded within his body! His cultivation instantly broke through the Ninth Grade of Qi Induction and touched the threshold of the half-step True Condensation Realm!]

[But the cost was terrifying—his hair turned gray instantly, his skin cracked, and he bled from his seven orifices!]

[Chu Sheng appeared like a mad demon, temporarily breaking free from the pressure. Instead of retreating, he advanced, meeting the giant cyan claw head-on, and slammed all his erupted spiritual energy toward the sinister cultivator!]

"I'm a human suicide truck right now!"

Chu Sheng's heart raced as he watched.

"Three pills! Is he trying to speed up his own death? But this desperate fighting style really fits the persona of the Pill God—drugging myself, what the hell."

["Small tricks!" The sinister cultivator scoffed as the giant claw pressed down.]

["Bang!"]

[The phantom of the poison pill and the giant claw annihilated each other! But the gray-black mist that dissipated contaminated the sinister cultivator's palm!]

["Hmm?"]

[The sinister cultivator's expression changed slightly as he felt a numbing, stinging pain in his palm.]

["What a fierce poison!" He hurriedly channeled his energy to force the poison out.]

[Taking advantage of this gap, Chu Sheng turned and fled, but the direction was deeper into the beast tide!]

["Want to run?" The sinister cultivator was furious. After dispelling the poison, he gave chase.]

[The two pursued and fled, gradually veering away from the main battlefield and breaking into the core area of the beast tide.]

[The surrounding demonic beasts sensed the violent, chaotic, and poisonous aura on Chu Sheng and retreated one after another.]

[The sinister cultivator, however, was entangled by some high-grade demonic beasts, his speed hindered.]

[Chu Sheng's consciousness began to blur, his body on the verge of collapse. He knew he was done for. Three super life-shortening pills were enough to burn through his remaining lifespan.]

["Strong Luck... can you let me live this time?" He smiled miserably.]

[Suddenly, a rift valley appeared ahead, wreathed in black mist and churning with toxic miasma.]

[Without a second thought, Chu Sheng jumped down!]

[The pursuing sinister cultivator arrived at the cliff's edge and frowned: "Jumping down means certain death. Forget it, I'll go back and report."]

[He turned and left.]

[Chu Sheng fell into the valley, was enveloped by the toxic miasma, and completely lost consciousness.]

[He didn't know how long it had been before Chu Sheng was woken up by a jolting sensation.]

[He found himself lying in a closed carriage, his breath weak as a thread, his cultivation having fallen to Qi Induction First Grade.]

[Even the First Grade was barely maintained; his foundation was destroyed, his meridians were shattered, and he had little lifespan left.]

["I'm still alive?" He struggled to roll his eyes.]

[The carriage curtain was lifted, revealing a familiar face.]

[It was actually a reticent, trusted guard from the City Lord's side.]

["You're awake." The guard said in a low voice, "When the City Lord was cleaning up the battlefield in the later stages of the beast tide, he found you on the verge of death in the toxic miasma of the valley."]

[Chu Sheng opened his mouth, but couldn't make a sound.]

["The City Lord asked me to take you away from the border to a safe place. As for the Qinglan Sect, the City Lord will handle it. The City Lord has already sent people to secretly look after the Liu family and your wife and child."]

[The guard paused. "The City Lord asked me to pass on a message: Forget about retirement, but I, the City Lord, have noted this favor of yours. If you can survive, there will always be a place for you in Jin Xiao City."]

[The carriage drove toward an unknown distance.]

[Chu Sheng lay in the carriage, feeling his life slipping away bit by bit, replaying fragments of this life in his mind:]

[The lovely young lady of the Lin family, the beautiful snake-hearted woman of Danxia Peak, the eruption of the poison pill on the arena, the tearful eyes of Liu Qingyan, the rosy light at Chu An's birth, the City Lord's meaningful gaze...]

["This life... it was short, but also exciting enough."]

[He struggled to pull the corners of his mouth, and finally closed his eyes slowly.]

[The third simulation has ended.]

[Simulated character: Chu Sheng, died at about 24 years old.]

[Cause of death: Backlash from the Super fleeting bloom pill, foundation completely destroyed, lifespan exhausted.]

[Final status: Qi Induction First Grade (fake, foundation completely ruined), rescued from the brink of death by Murong Xiao, placed in a secret location, simulation end determined as death.]

Chu Sheng looked at himself wrapped like a zongzi in the screen, his mood complex.

"Gone at 24? That's too short! But..."

He thought for a moment, "It seems pretty exciting too. Alchemy, picking up girls, fighting, escaping, finding a foster father—I've done everything I should have."

[Start calculating the rewards for this simulation...]

[General evaluation of the simulated life: Humble beginnings, peerless in both pill and poison, brave and advancing, repeatedly creating miracles in desperate situations.]

[Although he died halfway through, his bravery, wit, and spirit of sacrifice were deeply appreciated by a hegemon of a region, and he also left behind bloodline and karma.]

[Life was short but extremely brilliant, like a shooting star.]

[Rating: B+, based on the following achievements:]

[Insidious Victory (Green): Won a key confrontation using unconventional means, reward 50 simulation points.]

[Three Lifetimes (Purple): Created a deep entanglement with a specific soul across different space-time trajectories, reward 150 simulation points.]

[I Am Not the Pill God (Purple): Walked an extreme path in the Pill Dao, especially in poison pills, reward 180 simulation points.]

[The City Lord's Favor (Blue): Gained recognition and potential support from a regional hegemon-level figure, reward 120 simulation points.]

[Total achievements: 500 simulation points.]

[Basic reward for completing the third simulation: 200 simulation points.]

[Extra reward for B+ rating: 650 simulation points.]

[Total obtained: 1350 simulation points.]

[Current simulation points: 1353 points.]

Chu Sheng's eyes lit up as he looked at this string of numbers.

"Thirteen hundred! Not bad, not bad!"

[Based on the rating and achievements, distributing cultivation feedback:]

[Extracting 50% of the peak cultivation before the end of the simulation, Ninth Grade of Qi Induction, and considering the overdraft of potential from the super pills and the impact of the backlash, comprehensively calculating and feeding it back to the host in reality.]

Chu Sheng felt a spiritual energy, far more powerful and violent than the previous Qi Induction First Grade, inject into his dantian, and his cultivation climbed steadily!

Qi Induction Second Grade, Third Grade, Fourth Grade—finally stabilizing at Qi Induction Fourth Grade!

Although the spiritual energy was slightly flimsy, it was indeed a solid Fourth Grade realm!

Chu Sheng clenched his fist, feeling the surging power in his body, and grinned.

"From First Grade to Fourth Grade, jumping three levels directly! Although this spiritual energy is a bit weak, I can slowly replenish it."

[Obtained skill feedback: Insights into poison pill refining and application, and the refining method for the fleeting bloom pill (Tier 2 Mid-grade).]

A large amount of knowledge suddenly appeared in Chu Sheng's mind: various poison pill formulas, refining techniques, escape skills...

The amount of information was explosive.

"Good grief, this is like stuffing the Pill God's experience pack directly into my brain."

[Trait selection: Please choose one to keep permanently from this simulation (The supreme trait "Many Children, Many Blessings" is already permanently bound).]

Chu Sheng fell into deep thought.

He weighed his options for a moment.

[Confirm.]

[Purple Epic trait "Pill Dao Physique" has been permanently retained.]

[Current reality trait equipment: "Many Children, Many Blessings", "Strong Luck", "Pill Dao Physique", "Trash".]

[Current simulation points: 1323 points.]

[Cooldown for the fourth life simulation: Two weeks (real time).]

Chu Sheng of Listening to Bamboo Pavilion stood up and stretched his body, which was full of strength.

The spiritual energy of the Qi Induction Fourth Grade circulated in his body, although it was still a bit weak.

But it was countless times stronger than the previous First Grade.

He looked at the night sky outside the high walls of the Lin Mansion, his eyes flashing with a sharp light.

"Qi Induction Fourth Grade, Strong Luck on me, over thirteen hundred simulation points..."

The corners of his mouth slowly curled up.

"Next simulation, I can play even bigger."

"Qinglan Sect, Jin Xiao City, Liu family, Lin family... and that mysterious City Lord Murong Xiao."

He touched the Mid-Grade Spirit Stone in his bosom.

"The troubles in reality should also be resolved faster."

The night deepened, and the sound of Xiao Huan's light footsteps came from Listening to Bamboo Pavilion.

Chu Sheng withdrew his thoughts and turned to walk toward his small courtyard.

The fourth simulation, something to look forward to.

And the path in reality must also be walked faster.