The woman pondered the name "Chen Yue" for a moment, as if coming up empty.
"The Real Realm is vast, far beyond your imagination. Even I can’t know everything about it, let alone matters concerning a single human. Next question."
You frowned slightly.
That last remark of hers made you detect a subtle undertone—it seemed like humans didn’t hold a high status in the Real Realm.
But judging by her appearance, she was human too, wasn’t she?
"One last question: how do I get to the Real Realm?"
Cultivation in the Void Realm had a ceiling: the peak of the Martial God realm.
But being a Martial God wasn’t the end of the path. Martial Gods weren’t immortal, and their power couldn’t be described as the ultimate force capable of destroying heaven and earth.
If you wanted to pursue a higher cultivation realm, to gain longer-lasting life—whether in simulation or reality—you’d ultimately have to set foot on the road to the Real Realm.
"There are three ways."
"That many?"
"First: shatter the void and find your own path. This requires your cultivation level to be infinitely close to the Void Realm’s limit—or even surpass it!
Second: find a 'Path to Immortality' left by a predecessor. You might not call it that around here, but in short, it’s an existing route, simpler than the first method. It’s usually left behind by a predecessor of great wisdom. But you’ll at least need to cultivate the Qi Transformation realm to perfection, or your physical body will be crushed during the transition.
Third: be summoned by the Real Realm. The Real Realm is boundless, and it’s teeming with powerful beings—like a dense forest of immortals. Some unparalleled giants, overwhelming strong ones, will always find a way to summon you up from the Void Realm. This method imposes no requirements on you, but the prerequisite is that you have connections in the Real Realm."
You silently memorized this.
Good thing this was a second playthrough, and you had a guide. Otherwise, you’d never have gotten your hands on such little-known information.
"Qi Transformation realm? What’s the Qi Transformation realm?"
The woman smugly wagged her finger.
"That’s four questions already. This is the fifth. I can choose not to answer."
You let out a bitter laugh.
"Alright."
The woman was really about to leave—just like in the last simulation. With a wave of her sleeve, the sky darkened.
A massive spatial rift spread across midair. On the other side of the rift lay the cold, boundless universe.
"Hold on! One more question!"
The woman didn’t respond to you. She stepped into the universe with one stride.
"Your name—"
A moment later, a voice like silver bells echoed through heaven and earth.
"Ji Wuqing!"
Year 71, age 90.
Now drawing trait tags…
Triggered the effect of "Luckier with Age"!
Draw successful!
"Life Loan" (Purple Epic): Based on your current realm, you can borrow a certain amount of lifespan, i.e., gain additional theoretical lifespan in advance. Afterwards, you must repay the loan within a set number of years. The longer the loan period, the higher the interest. If your lifespan is insufficient to repay, you die. Once this trait tag’s effect is used, you must repay even if it’s unequipped.
Adjust trait tags?
Yes/No
"What a strong mechanic!"
A trait tag that could borrow life had appeared!
The trait tag system really was all-powerful, encompassing everything!
"You have to pay it back, with interest, but in a simulation, who cares? I can just borrow life to solve the problem, and if I can’t pay it back, I die anyway! It’s the same as dying if I can’t solve the problem!"
For example, in this simulation, the Free and Unfettered God had mentioned that the Seven Luminaries Immortal Array might consume lifespan for the formation’s casters.
If he couldn’t hold out, he could just borrow with this trait tag, right?
And then there was the fact that it increased theoretical lifespan.
That meant the positive effect of "Half-Emperor for a Thousand Ages" would be extended!
How many extra years exactly depended on how the loan was repaid.
For now, this trait tag was naturally useless.
Borrowing early meant repaying early. There was no point in borrowing ten thousand years of life now.
At the Martial King or Martial Saint level of cultivation, there was no such thing as Demonic Path techniques anymore.
What was usually called the Demonic Path was just a high-cost shortcut or pure, malicious techniques.
The Demonic Path existed to reach Martial King as fast as possible.
Since you were already at the destination, what was the point of rushing?
You replaced "Luckier with Age" with "Bad News Spreads in Martial Circles."
You replaced "Ageless Male God" with "Trait Slingshot."
You replaced "Husband Material Vibe" with "Civil War God."
After Ji Wuqing left, you went to the Southern Borderlands and sought advice from the Female Emperor on the Faith Dao.
You heard from Li Lingyue that her master, Hua Wuyan, had gone into seclusion.
The seclusion wasn’t to break through to a higher realm, but to slow down the loss of lifespan.
The Dragon-Man tribe still hadn’t come, and the human world just barely had seven Martial God-level powerhouses. Hua Wuyan had to ensure she could stay on standby until the Dragon-Men appeared.
Year 72, age 91.
As the Southern Borderlands Empire aggressively annexed Xiliang and advanced on Great Qian from both the southern and western fronts, the position of the ruler of all under heaven was likely, before long, to truly fall to the princess of the realm.
Still, Great Qian had shown some signs of revival in recent years.
After Li Chengqian took back most of the imperial power, he governed diligently, rectified the bureaucracy, and strictly managed the military.
Combined with the Female Emperor’s aggressive advances, occupying half of the Central Plains’ eighteen prefectures, the entire Great Qian, from top to bottom, gradually united against a common enemy.
Great Qian’s national strength rose instead of falling, stalling the Female Emperor’s unification plan.
On one side was your old friend Li Chengqian, on the other your lover Li Lingyue. Both were equally precious—you could only choose not to get involved.
Year 73, age 92.
Li Lingyue truly was a Faith Sacred Physique. Her understanding of the Faith Dao surpassed even Founding Ancestor Shen, who had been a researcher on the subject.
After she taught you for a few years, your own Faith Dao made considerable progress.
"I can hear them! I can actually hear the voices of my believers!"
Li Lingyue smiled.
"You’ve been converting all the faith you receive into cultivation. Don’t do that from now on. You need to keep some…"
"Oh, why am I so tired? My head’s spinning, and I’m a Martial Saint, for crying out loud…"
"That’s the reason. To use certain methods of the Faith Dao, you need to activate them with faith. Otherwise, you’ll drain your True Qi and physical strength."
"Got it."
"By the way, what did you hear? I didn’t know you had a faith temple, Chen Lang. Which believers are praying to you?"
You thought for a moment.
"It seems like three-headed people. Can faith really cross realms? The Faith Dao is truly profound and vast!"
"In truth, the Void Realm is essentially one world. So-called realms like the Demon World or the Human World are just different planes within this world. The power of faith can cross over. By the way, what do they call you?"
When you were searching for a way home in the Three-Headed Realm, you had killed off most of the Dragon-Man Slave Management Army stationed there.
This caused the Dragon-Men to cut their losses, choosing not to invest further resources in the Three-Headed Realm.
The small number of surviving three-headed people were liberated, regaining their freedom, and continued to live in a world without Mundane Qi.
The three-headed people regarded you as their savior, built temples for you, offered incense, and worshipped you as a god.
During battle, you appeared enormous, and your hand held a golden-glowing Ten Thousand Souls Banner.
And so, they called you…
"Giant of Light!"
