16: Three simulations

Looking at the simulation results, Qin Chen chose option one without hesitation.

"Boom!"

A surge of immense energy poured into his crown, and his cultivation instantly broke through to the Perfected Innate Realm.

Cultivation stacked!

Perfected Innate Realm!

"Perfected Innate Realm?" He clenched his fist, feeling the surging True Qi within his body.

"It seems it's not an overwrite, but an increase in strength."

He also discovered that the Mizong Step and Void-Piercing Sword Technique had also reached Perfection.

Although this strength could rank in the top three in Longyang Town, or even be number one, placed in the entire Yan Dynasty—it was still cannon fodder!

After putting away his excitement, he began to review this simulation.

"As expected, as long as I don't cause trouble and focus on Cultivation, my strength increases quickly."

"It's a pity I encountered a fallen emperor at the end..."

"It seems that as long as I get involved with Karma, I can't avoid trouble."

Qin Chen's eyes gradually turned cold. He understood—the stronger the strength, the greater the responsibility, and the less one could escape Karma.

Once strength is exposed, even if you don't look for trouble, trouble will find you.

Unless one acts as an ordinary person with no cultivation.

Looking out the window, the sky was already beginning to brighten. He went into the courtyard, circulated his True Qi, and struck the stone pedestal in front of him with his palm.

"Bang!"

The stone pedestal shattered in response, and rock fragments flew everywhere.

"Let's see who dares to call me trash from now on!"

Qin Chen grinned, thinking of Ji Yang who had bullied him since childhood, and a cold glint flashed in his eyes: "Should I go and slaughter that bastard right now?"

On second thought, he suppressed his impulse: "Better play it safe, let's test the waters in the simulation first."

An hour later, it was broad daylight.

Qin Chen came to the front hall and found his mother and younger sister, Qin Yu, both there.

"Did the sun rise from the west today? You actually got up so early?" Lin Xueping looked at her son in surprise.

In the past, Qin Chen wouldn't get out of bed until the sun was high.

Qin Chen got straight to the point as soon as he sat down: "Mother, can you get an obstacle breaking pill to Breakthrough to Grandmaster?"

"What do you need an obstacle breaking pill for?" Lin Xueping's expression changed.

"Mother, haven't you noticed?" Qin Yu blinked her large eyes, "Your precious son is already at the Perfected Innate Realm!"

Qin Chen turned his head sharply to look at his sister, "How did you see that?"

Qin Yu rolled her eyes: "Before, your walk was unsteady, your eyes were dazed, and your Qi and blood were weak. Now, you walk with vigor and your Aura is immense; even a blind person could tell!"

"However..." She leaned closer to Qin Chen and whispered: "You've hidden it so well for so many years; you've got some real skills!"

Qin Chen was shocked; this girl was not simple!

It seems he couldn't hide his strength.

This made him worry.

If his strength was exposed, wouldn't it bring a lot of trouble?

Lin Xueping was even more dumbfounded.

An eighteen-year-old at the Perfected Innate Realm?

The entire Longyang Town couldn't find a second one "for now"!

Even in the entire Yan Dynasty, he was a Genius-level figure.

What was even more bizarre was that eight-year-old Qin Yu could see through it at a glance?

What kind of Prodigies had she given birth to?

"Mother, the obstacle breaking pill..." Qin Chen continued to ask.

"The obstacle breaking pills are all monopolized by several major forces, unless..." Lin Xueping stopped mid-sentence.

Qin Chen understood his mother's meaning—unless he defected to or relied on these major forces.

He looked at Qin Yu again and suddenly smirked: "Want to spar?"

"You're an eighteen-year-old at the Perfected Innate Realm, and you have the nerve to bully an eight-year-old girl at the Body Tempering stage?" Qin Yu rolled her eyes.

Qin Chen smiled, shook his head helplessly, and left.

Returning to the courtyard, Qin Chen resisted the urge to go out and show off.

The next day, he couldn't wait to start the simulation.

[Ding! The third simulation begins...]

[You test the simulation, knowing you are already in the simulation.]

[The morning sunlight has just spilled into the courtyard, and your family of four is sitting around the stone table.]

[Lin Xueping and Qin Xiuwen steal glances at you from time to time, their eyes filled with confusion. You notice their gaze, but your parents ultimately don't ask you anything.]

[No one knows a son better than his father. They know your playboy behavior over these years better than anyone. Suddenly becoming a Perfected Innate Realm expert, anyone would find it suspicious.]

["Chener," Qin Xiuwen says, rubbing his hands, "should we hold a banquet for you to clear your name?"]

[You roll your eyes, and ask back: "Father, do you want to wipe out the Ji family of the Water Snake Gang?"]

["Good lad!" Qin Xiuwen slaps the stone table and jumps up, "I've wanted to chop up that turtle grandson Ji Wuming for a long time!"]

[At night, you and your father take the Acquired Martial Artists you've raised, dressed in black and masked, to sneak into the Water Snake Gang's lair.]

[The stronghold by the river is quiet. You charge in from all directions, and the shouts of battle instantly tear through the night sky.]

[Ji Wuming swings his blade to meet the fight, locked in an evenly matched battle with your father.]

[You activate the Mizong Step, flashing behind him like a ghost. A cold light flashes, and Ji Wuming's head flies into the air.]

["Father—!" Ji Yang's scream comes from afar.]

[You remove your mask and grin at him.]

["Qin..." Ji Yang trembles all over, unable to speak clearly.]

[You don't waste words with him; with a swing of your blade, the tip pierces through his back.]

[Watching the firelight fade in his wide-open eyes, you deliver another blow to behead him.]

[Amidst the soaring flames, you ride off.]

[The next day,]

[The news of the Water Snake Gang's destruction spreads throughout Longyang Town.]

[Everyone keeps a tacit silence, and even the magistrate brings his daughter to propose a marriage alliance.]

["Chener," your mother tells you with a smile, "I've arranged a marriage for you with the Meng family's daughter."]

[You mutter to yourself: Wasn't the marriage proposal three months later last time?]

[On second thought, you understand—if your strength is solid enough, the process is fast-tracked.]

[You don't think too much and wait with peace of mind.]

[After waiting for five days, you find that destroying the Water Snake Gang didn't bring any trouble.]

[Now you are finally at ease.]

[On the tenth day,]

[You suddenly remember the Liu Family Medicinal Materials Firm.]

[The destruction of the Qin Family in the first simulation might have been related to that.]

[You head to the Liu Family medicine shop, where Liu Caiping and that herbalist are both present.]

[This time you know his name—Ji Bin.]

[You don't provoke Liu Caiping and pretend to buy medicine while chatting with them.]

[Ji Bin always has an air of arrogance when he speaks, not at all like an ordinary herbalist.]

[You ask about his background, and he says he has no parents and makes a living by picking herbs, but those eyes looking at you—are like looking down at an ant...]

[This sends a chill down your spine.]

[If Liu Caiping weren't present, Ji Bin probably wouldn't even bother speaking to you.]

[Your intuition tells you that he is—the mysterious person.]

[When saying goodbye, you invite them to visit the Qin Family.]

[After that, you go to the Liu Family medicine shop every week.]

[Gradually, the three of you become more and more familiar...]

[After making a judgment in your heart, you deliberately keep your distance from them.]

[In the fourth month,]

[You don't forget Chu Chu, who sold herself to bury her mother.]

[After helping her bury her mother, you arrange for her to start Martial Arts training.]

[However, this time you don't show her concern; instead, you are cold and indifferent, ordering her around from time to time.]

[Strangely, she seems to like you better this way, and feels even closer to you.]