Chapter 14

At the age of twenty-two, you became a Seventh Rank Warrior and left Liu Family Village. In Wang Family Gully, you saved Su Qingzhi from Guoshan Feng. At that time, the Liu family caught up to Wang Family Gully. Unwilling to get into trouble, you left alone.

A month later, you arrived at Xiangcheng, the county seat of Xiang Prefecture. A few months later, you began to stand out and gained the favor of the county magistrate, who recommended you to become one of the commanders of the city guard, responsible for capturing bandits.

Over five years, you led the soldiers to eliminate all the bandits within Xiang Prefecture. The county magistrate was promoted due to his achievements but did not take you to the capital. The new county magistrate took office, and two months later, you were reassigned to guard the granary.

You began to focus on martial arts, but your progress was slow, and you felt you had hit a bottleneck.

At the age of thirty-five, a flood hit Jiang Prefecture. After the disaster, the grain in the granary you were guarding disappeared without a trace. Seeing the situation was not good, you fought your way out of the county city and were subsequently wanted by the authorities.

You fled into Lian Mountain and lived a hermit's life. However, your cultivation could not advance, and a few years later, on a night, you were attacked by a mysterious shadow and died at the age of forty.

Gu Yang saw the result of this simulation, and a trace of worry flashed in his eyes.

What he feared the most had happened; his talent was not high, and he would hit a ceiling at a certain level.

He just didn't expect that this day would come so soon.

He was only at the Seventh Rank now.

Of course, the reason he hit a bottleneck so quickly was not just this.

Gu Yang recalled the two strikes from the Liu family's Sixth Rank Warrior during the previous simulation, which left a shadow in his heart.

[The simulation has ended. You can retain one of the following.]

[1. Martial arts realm at the age of forty.]

[2. Martial arts experience at the age of forty.]

[3. Life wisdom at the age of forty.]

He directly chose the first option.

As the saying goes, quantitative change leads to qualitative change. He accumulated through repeated simulations and was determined to break through to the Sixth Rank.

Immediately, Gu Yang felt his internal true qi continuously increase, nearly doubling.

This was the accumulation of nearly twenty years in this simulated life.

"It seems that the military path is also not feasible."

Gu Yang summarized the experience from this simulated life, thinking that he had offended too many people and touched too many interests, leading to such an outcome.

Even the county magistrate who originally favored him abandoned him.

In this world, it was truly difficult to accomplish anything.

Ultimately, it was because of his low birth and lack of support.

Thinking about this, Gu Yang made a decision and started a new simulation.

...

[... You arrived at the capital city of Jiang Prefecture and inquired about the famous martial arts experts. Soon, you had a target and wanted to become a disciple of the renowned knife expert Shi Mingchuan.]

[Half a year later, your sincerity moved Shi Mingchuan. He met with you and told you that your talent was too mediocre to become his disciple, advising you not to waste your efforts. He also pointed you to a path, suggesting you join the Lin family.]

[After much hesitation, you followed Shi Mingchuan's advice and joined the Lin family as a guard.]

[You practiced diligently for over ten years but could not break through the bottleneck.]

[At the age of thirty-six, after a flood, a rebellion broke out in Jiang Prefecture. The rebel army breached the city, and in the chaos, you were killed by the rebels, dying at the age of thirty-six.]

This time, after practicing for another ten years, you still could not break through the bottleneck.

Gu Yang chose the martial arts realm again. His power increased, but it was much less than the previous time.

"Again."

...

[... You were killed by a passing young warrior at the age of thirty.]

...

[... You discovered a murder and were silenced on the spot, dying at the age of thirty-two.]

...

[... You offended someone unknown and were poisoned, dying at the age of twenty-seven.]

...

...

Gu Yang's face grew more and more grim with each simulation.

By the sixth time, his power barely increased, truly stopping.

This meant he had reached the peak of the Seventh Rank, and the next step was the Sixth Rank.

However, this step was like a chasm for him.

In so many simulations, he joined several of the strongest families in Jiang Prefecture, but the outcomes were not good.

Mainly because his cultivation was too low, and his talent was poor, he could not access advanced martial arts.

In the last simulation, he even joined the rebel army that breached Jiang Prefecture, but unfortunately, he got involved in internal struggles and died mysteriously.

Gu Yang checked the system's balance, which was down to just over 1,500 silver taels.

This amount could only support three more simulations.

"It seems I need to change my approach."

He took a deep breath and started a new simulation.

[At the age of twenty-two, after leaving Lian Mountain, you settled in a small city outside the mountains.]

[At the age of twenty-three, you began to purchase property, marry, and have children. Over a few years, you married six wives.]

[At the age of thirty, you already had thirteen children. With your careful cultivation, two of your sons showed good martial arts talent.]

[At the age of thirty-six, one of your children had reached the rank. Due to the rebellion in Jiang Prefecture, you took your family into Lian Mountain to avoid the disaster.]

[At the age of forty, the rebellion in Jiang Prefecture was suppressed. You took your family to settle in Tianshui City. You did not compete for benefits but focused on having more children.]

[At the age of forty-three, your eldest son came of age, and you began to arrange his marriage, forming alliances with various families in Tianshui City. The following year, your first grandson was born.]

[At the age of fifty, you had over twenty grandsons.]

[Your two sons also reached the Seventh Rank but began to hit the same bottleneck.]

[At the age of sixty, your twelfth grandson, at the age of fourteen, showed exceptional martial arts talent. You personally took him to Tianmen Mountain and had him join the Tianmen Sect.]

[At the age of seventy, your grandson successfully broke through to the Sixth Rank. From him, you finally learned the reason for your many years of stagnation at the Seventh Rank: the heart demon from years ago. To advance further, you needed to break through the heart demon.]

[At the age of eighty-two, your direct descendants numbered over 256, with the highest rank being Fourth Rank. The Gu family became the leading family in Tianshui City. One morning, you passed away with a smile, ending your life.]

Gu Yang finished reading and took a deep breath.

Living to eighty-two, a life of peace and safety, leaving behind over 250 descendants, and cultivating a Fourth Rank martial artist...

It turned out that this was the correct way to live a good life in this world.

The cost was that you could never break through to the Sixth Rank.

[The simulation has ended. You can retain one of the following.]

[1. Martial arts realm at the age of sixty.]

[2. Martial arts experience at the age of eighty-two.]

[3. Life wisdom at the age of eighty-two.]

Gu Yang was somewhat surprised; this was the first time different age options appeared.

This meant that at sixty, you were at the peak of your power, and after sixty, you began to decline?

This time, he chose the second option.

In the next moment, Gu Yang's mind was filled with countless memories.

These were the various martial arts techniques he learned over sixty years in this simulated life.