Chapter 2

"The key is still to earn more money."

After Gu Yang calmed down, he thought about the most important point.

This system, just like the games from his previous life, was all about money.

With money, he could continue to simulate life.

However, now that he was a martial artist, earning money would be much easier with his strength, unlike before when he had to struggle.

Back then, he had to hide in the mountains for several days to catch that sable.

Gu Yang thought to himself, "It's time to leave Liu Family Village."

At that moment, a burly man walked in, "Gu Yang, are you okay? I just heard some noise, I thought your house had collapsed."

The man who came in was Liu Shitou, who had taken him in initially.

Gu Yang's house was also built with his help, right next to his home.

He said, "Nothing, I was just practicing."

Liu Shitou's gaze fell on the hole in the door frame, his expression somewhat shocked, "This... Could it be, you—"

Gu Yang knew what he was going to ask, so he didn't hide it and nodded, "Yes, I have cultivated true qi."

Cultivating true qi was the symbol of reaching the first rank.

Liu Shitou was so stunned that he couldn't speak.

The martial arts passed down in his family were indeed low-level. His father and grandfather practiced all their lives but never managed to cultivate true qi.

Liu Shitou didn't have any great ambitions in life, but he had practiced martial arts for many years and also yearned to reach the first rank.

Now, Gu Yang had done it.

He was genuinely happy for Gu Yang.

...

"Brother Gu."

Suddenly, a middle-aged man came from outside, the merchant who had bought something from Gu Yang, "Brother Liu is here too, that's great."

Gu Yang was a bit surprised to see him, "Old Gao, what do you need?"

"Indeed, there's something I want to discuss with you," Old Gao said with a smile.

"Come in and talk," Gu Yang invited him into the house.

Old Gao directly stated his purpose, "We plan to go to Wang Family Gully and want to hire you as a guide."

Liu Shitou's face changed slightly when he heard the name Wang Family Gully.

Gu Yang was curious, "How do you know I know the way to Wang Family Gully?"

Wang Family Gully was a swamp several dozen miles away, shrouded in toxic fog and infested with venomous insects, a dangerous place.

Strangely, there was a village nearby where everyone was surnamed Wang, which was the origin of the name Wang Family Gully.

The village was very hostile to outsiders and didn't interact with neighboring villages, which was quite peculiar.

Old Gao smiled, "The sable fur you sold me is unique to Wang Family Gully."

Gu Yang said, "Wang Family Gully is very dangerous."

Old Gao said, "If Brother Gu is willing to be our guide, we are willing to pay two taels of silver as compensation."

"Only I and he know how to get to Wang Family Gully in the entire Liu Family Village," Gu Yang showed his white teeth, "The price needs to be higher."

"How much do you want?"

"Twenty taels."

"Impossible." Old Gao almost jumped up.

This was outright robbery.

Gu Yang smiled and pointed at the table, piercing through it with his finger.

A martial artist?!

Old Gao saw this and couldn't help but draw a deep breath, looking at Gu Yang with shock and disbelief.

"I am blind and have offended you, please forgive me."

He bowed deeply to Gu Yang, his tone extremely respectful.

This sudden change in attitude was somewhat unexpected for Gu Yang.

He had shown his strength as a first-rank martial artist to negotiate the price, but he didn't expect to scare Old Gao so much.

It seemed that martial artists held a very high status in this world.

Gu Yang remained silent, and Old Gao started to sweat, quickly taking out his money bag and presenting it to him with both hands.

Gu Yang didn't take it but asked, "What's the meaning of this?"

"The market price for the sable fur should be thirty taels. Here are twenty taels, and I will make up the remaining eight taels when I return." Old Gao felt a weight lifted from his heart as the money bag became lighter.

He never imagined that this young man in Liu Family Village would be a martial artist.

If he had known earlier, he wouldn't have dared to offer such a price.

However, Old Gao felt wronged. Who would have thought that a martial artist would be so humble?

If he had revealed his identity earlier, this wouldn't have happened.

This matter was far from over.

He would have to pay a heavy price to make it go away.

Old Gao felt a sharp pain in his heart.

At this moment, Gu Yang finally spoke, "Twenty taels is enough, you need to earn something too."

Old Gao almost couldn't believe his ears. He was so relieved that he said, "Thank you, you are truly magnanimous."

"Alright, you can discuss the guide matter when you return." Gu Yang waved his hand, dismissing him.

...

After Old Gao left, Liu Shitou soon followed.

Gu Yang weighed the money bag left by Old Gao, feeling somewhat nostalgic.

Previously, he had to struggle for two years to earn ten taels of silver.

Now, just by showing his strength as a martial artist, others willingly offered twenty taels of silver, afraid that he wouldn't accept it.

The contrast was too great.

Gu Yang closed the door and opened the system page, "Recharge."

[Recharge successful, current balance: 24.5.]

There were twenty-four taels in the bag.

[Do you want to use the Life Simulator? One use costs 20 gold.]

The price had doubled.

Gu Yang felt a bit reluctant but chose "Yes."

[At age 20, you were stranded in Liu Family Village and taken in by villager Liu Shitou.]

[At age 22, you became a ninth-rank martial artist and decided to leave with a merchant caravan. In Wang Family Gully, you encountered a hunting team and were attacked. You were no match for them and fled.]

[You returned to Liu Family Village and found the village had been massacred. All the villagers were dead, and you vowed to avenge them.]

[After leaving the mountains, you arrived in Phoenix City and joined a family as a guard. After practicing for over ten years without breaking through to the eighth rank, you couldn't contain your desire for revenge. You found one of the killers and attacked, but you were killed by his guards. You died at the age of 37.]

This simulation started with him as a ninth-rank martial artist, and the events were completely different from the previous one.

The only similarity was encountering the hunting team again.

Gu Yang's expression was grim, "They actually massacred Liu Family Village!"

He had lived in the village for two years and had deep feelings for it.

He clenched his fists, determined not to let such a tragedy happen again since he knew about it in advance.

[Simulation complete, you can retain one of the following.]

[1. Martial realm at age 37.]

[2. Martial experience at age 37.]

[3. Life wisdom at age 37.]

In this simulation, he didn't break through to the eighth rank.

Therefore, Gu Yang chose the second option, martial experience.

After making his choice, his mind was instantly filled with countless knowledge and experiences, including fist techniques, leg techniques, sword techniques, and various combat skills.

These were the results of over ten years of hard practice in this life simulation.

Now, he could truly be called a ninth-rank martial artist, both in realm and strength.