The First Calamity of the Real World

A cone-shaped golden beam burst forth from the Myriad Soul Banner.

Within this beam were the resentment and soul power of the countless demon souls and ancient wild-race souls sealed within the banner, making it extremely destructive.

This destruction directly attacked the enemy's soul; once it hit, it could absolutely allow the weak to overcome the strong!

This move from the Myriad Soul Banner did catch the Old Hag somewhat off guard.

So she didn't have time to dodge.

But the long coat she wore was no ordinary item either. It closed up on its own to protect her, wrapping her up like a zongzi.

The Soul-Piercing Strike had a special effect against souls, but it was useless against the blocking of a magical artifact.

In the end, this attack failed.

The Myriad Soul Banner was furious. "Damn! Buddy, let's get out of here!"

The Old Hag's coat opened, revealing her sinister face. "This spirit treasure of yours actually has an artifact spirit. I must get you and figure this out!"

Although the Myriad Soul Banner's attack didn't work, you took the opportunity to pick up the Heavenly Dragon Blade.

There was no escape—you had already tried. The only way was to fight your way out!

Unfortunately, the Old Hag's cultivation level was crushing. You charged left and right but couldn't even touch her coat.

You could sense that the Old Hag might not be able to withstand even one of your strikes, because she kept dodging.

She seemed to have divine sense, making her judgment and reactions faster than yours.

This also meant that a few of the word strips you shot with the word-strip slingshot all missed.

During your exchange, she kept drawing divine runes.

Those runes were like stubborn plasters, constantly sticking to you, impossible to shake off.

When the runes completely engulfed you, you were frozen in place.

The Myriad Soul Banner shook wildly, using all sorts of moves to try to dissolve the runes on you.

"Buddy! It's no use! These words are stuck to you like they've grown on you!"

Only your face was still exposed, and you said to the Myriad Soul Banner. "It's useless. Ancestor Shen said these runes borrow the power of heaven and earth. You either have strength on par with the laws of heaven and earth, or you're proficient in runes yourself and can dissolve them with counteracting runes."

"Buddy, then you're done for. I might as well surrender."

"Right, surrender."

"Uh... actually, I'm not that disloyal..."

The Myriad Soul Banner was stunned for a moment, then read something from your eyes.

Just as the Old Hag was about to make her move, the Myriad Soul Banner suddenly shouted.

"Oh my!! Granny! You're truly something! I see you're mighty and extraordinary right away! You're simply amazing!"

The Myriad Soul Banner floated over, twisting its banner cloth into a pair of hands and massaging the Old Hag's shoulders.

The Old Hag snorted coldly.

"You want me to let your original master go? Hah, impossible."

The Myriad Soul Banner howled.

"How could that be! From now on, you are my master! That handsome, elegant, dashing guy who walks with style and talks with flair—who is he? I don't know him at all!"

"Save your tricks. I'll officially bind you to me soon; no matter how crafty you are, it'll be useless!"

"Absolutely~~ Bind me! Go ahead! Bind me now!"

In the end, the Old Hag didn't spare you. With a vicious glare at you, now drowned in runes, she said coldly.

"I was thinking of sparing you for the sake of our common bloodline, but since you're ungrateful, don't blame me for being ruthless!"

You felt the runes on your body explode, a fierce pain penetrating your marrow.

The Old Hag detonated the runes, blasting clouds of blood mist from your body. Countless wounds covered you, some so deep the white bone could be seen!

The blast sent you flying, and you landed in a nearby great river.

The last thing you saw was the Myriad Soul Banner screaming, trying to self-destruct and fight the Old Hag to the death, but she suppressed it with runes and took it away.

You drifted with the current and lost consciousness.

"Good thing I pulled out the 'Knight's Safe Zone' first, or this simulation would have ended before I even got to simulate properly!"

Chen Yi could feel the simulation cooldown getting longer and the missions getting harder.

If he hadn't improved in the last simulation, the next one would be tough.

So he had to live as long as possible in each simulation, draw more word strips, and keep improving.

"Killing someone for their loot isn't new, but I had no choice..."

Arriving in an unfamiliar environment, carrying a few magical items gave him a sense of security, at least more than empty hands.

Apart from the Myriad Soul Banner, all other artifact souls were gone, and he couldn't have them follow him covertly.

His storage ring was unusable, so he had to carry things on him.

It was only a matter of time before it attracted greedy robbers.

He just didn't expect it to happen so soon.

"Next time, I shouldn't take a road to death—it really is a dead end.

I shouldn't bring resources from the human world either; they'd weaken anyway due to the environment change.

Better to travel light."

This was his first real-world simulation, and summarizing lessons was an important step.

Before long, you woke from your grogginess.

Blurry-eyed, you found yourself lying in a simple grass hut with broken doors and windows, holes in the roof and walls, letting the wind blow through.

The bed beneath you was just rough hay on a wooden plank laid over a few stones.

You heard a woman's voice.

"Dad! He's awake!"

Footsteps came from outside.

You struggled to open your eyes and saw an old man and a young woman.

Both were gaunt, in ragged clothes with messy hair, looking like two beggars.

"Did you save me...?"

The old man nodded gently.

"Young man, you're gravely wounded. Don't talk, rest well and have some porridge."

He was holding a bowl of plain white congee.

For a cultivator like you, this was barely a mouthful, especially since you actually had an unlimited supply of white congee.

But it was their kindness, so you took the bowl and drank it all in one go.

The warm porridge going down was the first genuine warmth you felt in this unknown world.

You noticed your body was wrapped in strips of cloth, making you look like a mummy.

The cloth strips were rough but clean—even cleaner than the clothes the father and daughter wore.

Your head felt heavy, and you fell back asleep.

In your haze, you heard the father and daughter talking.

"Dad, there's no rice left at home..."

"No worries, I'll figure something out..."

They were a poor family.

You thought to yourself: Don't worry, kind people. That bowl of porridge will bring back countless bowls.

While you were unconscious, the demonic body-tempering technique you practiced was silently working, rapidly healing your wounds.

When you woke again, you could get out of bed.

But as soon as you stood up, the old man who came in to check on you was startled.

"Oh, young man, your skin and flesh were all rotten, and with such severe injuries, it's only been a few days? You shouldn't be out of bed and walking around—the wounds might split open."

You moved slowly and said with a smile, "Old man, it's nothing serious. I am a cultivator, so my injuries heal quickly."

"That makes sense. I guessed you weren't an ordinary person. Otherwise, with such heavy wounds, if an ordinary person had been soaking in water, they'd have already rotted!"

You noticed the old man was holding another bowl of congee in his hands.