Don't Look Down on the Poor Elderly

[Year 23, Age 40.]

[A martial artist of the Demonic Path broke into Baiyun County. Holding a banner billowing with black mist, he slaughtered everyone he saw.]

[The martial artists and bailiffs in the county were no match for him; they were all killed, their souls sucked into the banner.]

[A Demon Slayer from the Demon Slaying Division was alerted and fought a great battle against him for several days. In the end, at the cost of mutual destruction, the Slayer managed to heavily injure him.]

[When the Demonic Path martial artist fled, he killed your daughter in passing and extracted all her Essence Blood.]

[The Proprietress was overcome with grief; she fell bedridden and passed away with deep regret.]

[You buried your daughter first, then your wife.]

[The thought that your daughter was only seven years old, still calling out "Daddy" with such liveliness just days ago, contrasted with the gruesome state of her death.]

[Your heart felt as if it were being carved by knives, and you woke up in terror every night.]

[But you still had a son. You knew you could not collapse.]

[Year 33, Age 50.]

[A brilliant and stunning Empress emerged in the Southern Borders. She united the various nations of the south, twisting the scattered hundred kingdoms into a single rope, and launched a counter-attack on the Central Plains.]

[The battlefront pushed steadily from south to north, and Baiyun County was about to become the front line.]

[Your son decided to rush to the battlefield to defend the country.]

["Son, can you not go? The battlefield is too dangerous..."]

["Father, if the country ceases to exist, what becomes of the home? You always liked to tell outsiders 'My, Chen Dong's, son will surely have a bright future.' Now is the time for me to make my mark and establish my career!"]

[You saw your son out of the city, watching him travel far away.]

[In this moment, you seemed to have aged significantly all at once.]

[Year 35, Age 52.]

[You received your son's ashes and a suicide note.]

[Two years of living in fear and trepidation finally ended in this result.]

[You buried him beside his mother and sister.]

[You sat withered before the grave for three months, your hair turning completely white.]

[Year 37, Age 54.]

[The Great Qian Dynasty suffered defeat after defeat. Baiyun County was captured by the Empress and became the territory of the Southern Borders Alliance.]

[Bandits pass like a comb; soldiers pass like a fine-toothed grate.]

[When the Southern Borders army passed through Baiyun County, they went door to door demanding money and grain.]

[They called it borrowing, but everyone knew there would be no return.]

[Your inn was not spared; almost all the visible wealth was carted away.]

[Fortunately, the Proprietress had once told you that she had hidden some silver under the old tree at home.]

[You used it sparingly and managed to survive.]

[After this calamity, everyone in Baiyun County became destitute, and the inn business became increasingly difficult to sustain.]

[Year 40, Age 57.]

[A Tiger Demon charged out from the wild, breaking into Baiyun County and wreaking havoc.]

[The Demon Slaying Division turned out in full force, engaging in a desperate struggle with it inside the county town.]

[You were unsure if the Tiger Demon was killed, but during its battle with the people from the Demon Slaying Division, your three-story inn was smashed to smithereens.]

[This was your most important fixed asset. Seeing it destroyed like this, you wanted an explanation.]

[You went to the Demon Slaying Division to claim compensation, but naturally, you were swept out the door.]

[You looked at the ruins of the inn and laughed self-deprecatingly.]

[It was unclear whether you were laughing at your own naivety or at this wretched world.]

[With little silver left in hand, rebuilding the inn was impossible.]

[You dismissed the chef, the waiter, and the handyman.]

[You had treated them like family all these years; when they left, they only took the wages they were owed and did not accept your severance pay.]

[You chose to leave Baiyun County town. Beside the family graveyard outside the city, you repaired a thatched cottage and settled down there.]

[Year 42, Age 59.]

[Drawing Trait...]

The trait for this year was still useless.

However, Chen Yi swapped "The Older, The Luckier" into his active slot.

"I'm almost sixty. 'My' life has been too bitter. Hold on, don't collapse! The dawn of victory might be just tomorrow!"

How difficult it was for a mortal to survive in this world; this simulation made it evident.

This also made Chen Yi even more determined in his resolve to enter the martial path.

[Beside the thatched cottage outside the city.]

[You worked in the fields at sunrise, plowing and planting.]

[After sunset, you chatted with your family members, then fell into a deep sleep under the moonlight.]

[Although lonely, you found a brief moment of peace.]

[Year 43, Age 60.]

[Starting Trait Draw...]

[Triggered the pity guarantee for "The Older, The Luckier"!]

[Draw Successful!]

[Low-Grade Root Bone (Green): You obtain a low-grade Root Bone. Young lad, with this trait, you can go from trash to hero!]

[Do you wish to adjust your traits?]

[Yes/No]

Chen Yi smoothed his hands over his head, looking just like Sun Wukong in Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons when he finally tricked Tang Sanzang.

"Finally..."

Perhaps the simulated version of himself had suffered too much, and even the System couldn't stand it anymore, finally granting him the trait he wanted most!

[You replaced "The Older, The Luckier" with "Low-Grade Root Bone".]

(Seeing that many readers didn't understand, thinking that the replaced trait disappears—it won't disappear!)

(Pay attention to the previous panel; one is "Equipped Traits" and the other is "Trait Library." There is a limit to the number of equipped traits, so you often have to swap them according to the situation. The number of slots will increase with your realm later.)

(In reality, the protagonist can swap traits at will, but in the simulation, there is only one chance per year, which is during the trait draw.)

[Your heart, which had long since fallen silent due to the passing of your relatives, finally began to beat with excitement at this moment.]

[You did not forget your mission in this simulation.]

[Carrying all your life savings, you arrived at the Thunder Rush Martial Hall in the county town.]

[The martial arts instructor, Niu Dadan, wearing a training uniform and standing with his hands behind his back, looked at you with amusement.]

["Old man, stop joking. What martial arts are you going to learn at sixty?"]

["Sixty! That is the prime age for striving!"]

[You poured a pile of silver ingots onto the entrance of the martial hall.]

["I pay the money; you just teach. Whether I learn it or not is my own business!"]

[Accepting a student old enough to be his own father was a huge challenge for Niu Dadan as well.]

[However, you simply gave too much.]

["The Martial Way is the cultivation of the Three Qis!

Blood Qi! Spiritual Qi! Essence Qi!

As the saying goes, rice must be eaten one mouthful at a time, and the Three Qis must be trained one by one!

To enter the gate, you must first master external skills. Practicing external skills can enhance Blood Qi. The stronger your Blood Qi, the more your strength, speed, and physical body will improve accordingly!

When you sense a stream of heat appearing in your dantian, that means your Blood Qi has surpassed the limit of a mortal and can be stored in the dantian.

Laymen like to call this heat stream 'Inner Force,' but we martial artists must know that it is Blood Qi powerful enough to be controlled!

This is the first realm of the Martial Way, the Body Refining Realm!

The Body Refining Realm has nine stages, and each stage requires doubling your Blood Qi to break through..."]

Watching his simulated self learning the Martial Way from the master, Chen Yi's eyes also revealed a thirst for knowledge.

No matter.

Once the simulation ends, he will inherit all these memories.

"Starting cultivation at sixty, I presume 'I' won't be able to improve my realm much. Regardless, I've secured the Root Bone trait, so the next simulation will be much easier!"

[Year 43, Age 61.]

[You have cultivated for a year, yet have not advanced a single inch.]

[Niu Dadan advised you.]

"Old Man Chen, give it up. Your aging body is severely losing its Blood Qi; what sense does it make to practice martial arts?"

[Your fellow disciples at the martial arts hall, and the people in the county town who knew you, all gossiped behind your back.]

[They said you were being unrealistic, that you were old yet refused to settle down.]

[You paid no heed to the slander of outsiders, burying yourself in research and experimentation.]

"Do not look down on a poor old man! I, Chen Dong, will definitely step into the Martial Dao!"