Martial Peak: Life Simulator

Yan Xiu's heart raced as the simulation ended, his mind buzzing with anticipation. He took a deep breath, his eyes gleaming with determination. "So, the best way to absorb this water is to drink it," he muttered, his tone steady but brimming with excitement.

He let out a wry chuckle. "No wonder the cultivators of the great families are so strong. They have access to treasures like this from the start."

Without wasting a second, Yan Xiu uncorked the bottle. The golden liquid shimmered brilliantly, its faint, potent aroma already stirring the Qi within his body. He tilted the bottle back, letting the water flow down his throat in one smooth motion.

The sensation was immediate and familiar, just as the simulation had shown. A soothing warmth spread, rapidly intensifying into a powerful heat that surged through his body. He remained calm, prepared for what was to come.

His muscles contracted and expanded as the essence of the water tempered them, their density increasing as though reforged by divine energy. His bones emitted soft cracks as they strengthened, while impurities seeped from his pores, staining his skin and filling the air with a pungent odor.

Yan Xiu's eyes glowed with confidence as the first breakthrough hit. A wave of energy surged through his dantian, and with a faint golden light, he ascended to the 8th Tempered Body Stage.

The second breakthrough came swiftly. His Qi surged, breaking through the barrier to the 9th Tempered Body Stage. His meridians widened, his body growing stronger, more refined. Yan Xiu clenched his fists, marveling at the newfound lightness and resilience in his frame.

But he knew this wasn't the end. The transformation continued as the energy within him coiled tightly in his dantian before exploding outward. His Qi, once turbulent and raw, began to refine itself, condensing into a purer, more powerful form: Yuan Qi.

Yan Xiu closed his eyes, guiding the transformation with focus. He felt the Yuan Qi flow smoothly through his expanded meridians, its vitality unmistakable. His lips curled into a faint smile as he opened his eyes. "Initial Element Stage," he said calmly, his voice steady and full of certainty.

The moment was profound, but Yan Xiu remained composed. He flexed his fingers, feeling the Yuan Qi respond, humming with energy. He knew he could now channel this power into techniques, even if it couldn't yet extend beyond his body.

Placing the empty bottle aside, Yan Xiu took a deep breath, his mind clear. "Everything went exactly as I saw in the simulation," he said, a trace of satisfaction in his tone. "This is the strength I need to take my first real step forward—"

Yan Xiu's thoughts were interrupted by a sudden, sharp pain in his mind. He staggered, his hand instinctively pressing against his temple as his vision blurred. The world around him dimmed, the vibrant colors of his surroundings fading into a gray haze.

"What…?" he muttered, his voice barely audible.

Then, like a ripple in still water, a memory surfaced. It was faint at first—a fleeting image, but it grew clearer with each passing moment.

A woman stood before him. Her face was gentle, framed by soft, dark hair that seemed to shimmer faintly in the light. Her eyes glistened with an unparalleled love, warm and unwavering. She gazed at him with a tenderness so profound that Yan Xiu felt his chest tighten. It was the kind of love he had never truly experienced in this world—a motherly love.

'Who is she?' he thought, his sight still dark, his mind grasping at the fleeting image like sand slipping through his fingers.

The memory wavered, but her face remained vivid, etched into his consciousness. Yan Xiu frowned, his breathing uneven. "Is this… this body's mother? Or… is this my real mother?" he asked himself aloud, confusion thick in his tone.

The pain in his head dulled, replaced by a deep sense of unease. His memories of this world—the ones he had inherited when he first woke up here—were incomplete. There were gaps, dark spots he could never seem to fill no matter how hard he tried.

Figures like his family… their faces were blank, their voices muted. All he could recall was growing up in a poor household and eventually joining the High Heaven Pavilion. But the details, the essence of his past, eluded him.

Yan Xiu gritted his teeth, frustration boiling within him. "Who am I?" he whispered, his voice carrying a weight of uncertainty.

The woman's face flickered again in his mind, her lips moving as if she were speaking. Yan Xiu focused, straining to catch even a fragment of her words, but the memory slipped away before he could grasp it fully.

Silence fell over the room, broken only by the faint hum of Yuan Qi coursing through his body. He clenched his fists, his knuckles white. "This isn't the first time," he muttered. "Fragments of memories, faces I can't recognize… they've haunted me since the day I woke up here."

He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. The warmth of the Dragon Transformation Pond's water still lingered within him, a reminder of his recent breakthrough. But the questions swirling in his mind refused to be silenced.

Yan Xiu's gaze hardened. "If this memory is real… if she's real… then I'll find the truth." His voice was steady, but his heart wavered. Was this the key to his past? Or just another fragment that would lead to more questions?

He straightened, his eyes blazing with determination. "Whatever it takes, I'll uncover the truth about myself. Whether it's this body's past… or my own."

As the lingering shadows of the memory faded, Yan Xiu turned his attention back to the present.

Yan Xiu steadied himself, his gaze falling on the remains of the Verdant Serpent sprawled across the forest floor. What was once a fearsome beast now looked like the husk of something ancient, robbed of its vitality.

Yan Xiu sighed, covering his nose against the rancid stench wafting from the carcass. "So disgusting… all of its time has really been taken away. Now it looks like it's been dead for ages," he muttered. "I wonder if I can absorb a Beast's Temporal Energy while it's still alive..."

Stepping closer, he scrutinized the corpse with a reluctant grimace. The air around it was thick with decay, and flies buzzed noisily over the withered remains. He knelt beside the creature, his fingers hovering above the desiccated flesh.

"I even have to dig through this thing to take its core," he muttered, the distaste clear in his tone.

Gritting his teeth, Yan Xiu pushed past his revulsion and pressed his hands against the serpent's chest. Its skin was rough and papery, breaking apart under his touch. He worked quickly, parting the dry, crumbling scales until his fingers struck something hard.

He pulled out the core—a dull, green sphere about the size of a stone. It emitted a faint glow, its energy subdued, as though the Temporal Energy extracted by the system had diminished its essence.

Yan Xiu frowned, rolling the core in his palm. "I thought it would be bigger with how hard he was to kill," he muttered.

Still, he tucked the core into his pouch. It wasn't much, but every resource had its use. He glanced down at the serpent one last time, the once-proud predator reduced to a pitiful shadow of its former self.

Straightening, Yan Xiu brushed the dirt from his robes and turned toward the forest. His gaze flicked to the surrounding trees, the wind rustling their leaves as if whispering of the challenges yet to come.

"If I want to get stronger, I'll need to face stronger opponents," he thought, his resolve hardening. "And absorb their Temporal Energy..."

To be continued...

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