On the Taihe Mountain, the impact and influence stirred up by the likes of Pei Xuanjing were far beyond their own expectations, truly unimaginable.
It can be said that in his life simulation sessions, Pei Xuanjing's description of this period falls severely short of encapsulating such a grand spectacle, it can even be said to lack by a factor of ten thousand.
Of course, these circumstances were within Pei Xuanjing's expectations, as the actual operation this time, unlike the actions taken during the life simulation, involved several top-tier figures from the Jianghu realm.
In the end, it was Pei Xuanjing himself, who had already transformed into a Yin Spirit, who stepped in, utilizing the power of all beings, to break the chains and genuinely rejuvenate Heaven and Earth.
Pei Xuanjing's words, transmitted through the Divine Intent Array to the entire territory of Great Ming, spread his reputation far and wide after that move. His popularity reached such a height that he became a household name.
Of course, as a result of this, their previous plan to form an alliance was also laid bare for all to see.
Pei Xuanjing, representing the Shenxiao Sect, joined forces with the True
Martial Sect, Dragon Tiger Mountain, Baiyun Temple, Chunyang Sect, and Bai Xiaosheng, forming a six-party alliance and employed the array method passed down from the Shenxiao Sect to enfeoff the Gods and break the sky-earth shackles.
Amidst this opportunity, Pei Xuanjing broke free from his own shackles, transformed into a Yin Spirit, passed through the Thunder Tribulation, and stepped into the Spirit Realm, becoming the first to do so in the thousands of years after the Tang Dynasty.
All this news immediately spread throughout the Jianghu realm of Great Ming, leaving countless martial artists agog and in awe.
However, when these news reached the major powers, they were even more alarmed than the ordinary martial artists. They began to silently strengthen their forces, secretly aligning with closely related forces, eager to know Pei Xuanjing's true intentions.
It's important to remember that whether it's Pei Xuanjing's Shenxiao Sect or other powers like the True Martial Sect, any one of them, even without the alliance, can be considered a force of the highest order in the Jianghu realm, capable of ruling a province and influencing the world's order.
But now, with their six-party alliance, their terrifying strength was enough to sway the course of the entire Great Ming Empire, which would undoubtedly horrify anyone who thought about it.
Of course, some people noticed that of these six forces, apart from Bai Xiaosheng's faction, the remaining five belonged to the Taoist School.
If viewed from this lens, countless people are intrigued by what this could mean, and reminded of the never-ending power struggle among the Taoist, Brahman, and Demonic factions throughout millenniums.
Since the establishment of the Great Ming Empire, the Demonic Cult had laid low, the Brahman Gate had retreated, and the Taoist School's influence had grown. Although very few conflicts among the three factions ever surfaced, no one believed that the struggle among the three factions would genuinely cease.
Considering this, not only did some slightly weaker forces in the Taoist faction sent out inquiries, even the South and North Zen Sects and other major Brahman factions also secretly increased their communications, showing signs of preventing a possible crisis.
Even the inner fights within the Demonic Cult, which had been ongoing and remained a matter of public knowledge, temporarily ceased. The factions within the Demonic Cult gathered at the Sky Demon Sect, discussing measures to ward off potential attacks.
Of course, the most shocked were the royal family.
They never expected that the True Martial Sect would ally with Pei Xuanjing, they were utterly dumbfounded.
All the concessions they had previously offered to the True Martial Sect in hopes of them offsetting Shenxiao Sect's power were in vain.
Looking back now, not only did their plan fail, but they had also invited the wolf into their home, they deeply regretted their decision.
The consequences led to some criticisms of Prince of Xiang, Zhu Yousong, who had advocated the concessions at the time, although his reputation within the royal family did not completely plummet.
As time flew by, three years passed in a blink of an eye.
Ever since that day on Taihe Mountain where several strong men from the Taihe Mountain True Martial Sect set up the array to break the sky-earth shackles, the Essence Qi of Heaven and Earth had been rapidly recovering. For everyone in this world, this was undoubtedly good news.
Those strong men trapped in the First-grade Realm for countless ages who were unable to make progress, felt as if the shackles had been lifted and sensed an opportunity for breakthrough once the sky-earth shackles were removed.
For the common martial artists, the increase in the Essence Qi of Heaven and Earth considerably aided their cultivation. Many martial artists, who were initially restricted due to their aptitude or resources, began to loosen their realms under the nourishment of the Qi Essence of Heaven and Earth, showing signs of breakthroughs.
Even the most ordinary people, nourished by the Essence Qi of Heaven and Earth, experienced changes in their bodies. Their original illnesses disappeared, and their bodies became more robust.
Some animals and plants also benefited from the enhancement of the Essence Qi of Heaven and Earth. The animals became smarter, more agile, and more robust, the plants grew more vigorously, and even some rumored extinct Heavenly and Earthly Treasures silently sprouted.
Putting it simply, after the breaking of the sky-earth shackles and the rise in the Essence Qi of Heaven and Earth, the entire world saw various benefits and everyone gained from it, to varying extents.
In these three years, the dissemination of Martial Classics became more widespread, and even the last two volumes of the Martial Classics gradually spread under Pei Xuanjing's guidance.
Over the course of three years, with the increase in the Essence Qi of Heaven and Earth, the overall strength of the Great Ming improved considerably. Blessed by the Essence Qi of Heaven and Earth, the weather was predictable, crops yielded bountiful harvests, and national strength increased.
The three-year-old emperor had gained more control over the imperial court, backed by the support of Pei Xuanjing and others, his word held immense weight with none daring to defy it.
Wang Qiong, the Minister of the Ministry of War, who also had the support of the emperor, prepared the military for warfare. He bided his time, waiting for a suitable opportunity to launch an attack outside the border and sweep away the barbarians.
For the Great Ming imperial court's actions, not only did the various forces in Jianghu not hinder them, but they also supported them wholeheartedly, showing a willingness to sacrifice their own for the nation's sake.
"Hehe, indeed, interests do move the hearts of people."
Pei Xuanjing, reading the report compiled from news about various forces, mused aloud.
Since the event on Taihe Mountain, they had all gone their separate ways, all withdrawn, and immersed in closed-door cultivation. They did not make any significant moves as many powers speculated.
In these three years, Pei Xuanjing, had been in retreat and cultivating in the Taoist Temple built for him by the emperor of Tiandu, he only occasionally met with the emperor and disregarded all matters, leaving everything to be handled by the likes of Pang Hong and Yu Zhenzi.
However, during this period, they intentionally and unintentionally spread the news about using Qi Luck to enfeoff Gods to prepare for the Great Ming's military expedition.
Just as they expected, if they had proposed the expedition prior to this, the idea of attacking outside the border would have been treated as insignificant gains by those powers.
But now, with the news of the expedition, nearly no forces want to hinder this plan. After all, looking at the benefits, expanding their territory and seizing Qi Luck would be a necessity for them..
Profit before everything, no one can resist.
Through Qi Luck and enfeoffment of gods to obtain a prolonged life, such a huge temptation is placed upfront. How could any forces resist?
Even though they had guessed that this news might have been deliberately spread by Pei Xuanjing and other forces, they ignored the potential consequences after confirming the situation of the two Taoists from the True Martial Sect.
Not to mention that the Great Ming Empire actively wanted to do it. Under such temptation of interest, even if the imperial court of Great Ming didn't want to do it, they would instigate the imperial court to do it.
court of Great Ming didn't want to do it, they would instigate the imperial court to do it.
"The chance for longevity is right in front of us. Who can willingly let it go?" A smile appeared on the corner of Pei Xuanjing's mouth.
Not only those great forces, but also civil nobles, royal relatives in the court, many people who originally had no idea about expanding territories, have at this moment become advocates of this initiative.
With the shackles of heaven and earth unlocked, and the opportunity for longevity right in front of them, no one wants to give up.
Pei Xuanjing doesn't need to intervene much. He only needs to set the target there, and countless people will rush forward, fight and work hard for it, regardless of the consequences.
"Everything goes well now, and now the Life Simulator has completely transformed. Let me see what changes the Life Simulator has after this transformation." Pei Xuanjing thought to himself.
Originally, after the last life simulation, his strength was elevated from the Mortal Realm to the Spirit Realm. The Taoyun needed for each of his life simulations was increased from 100,000 to 200,000 points. He didn't think anything of it and thought it had already ended.
But, that day, when he had a triumphant look on his face after overcoming the Thunder Tribulation on Taihe Mountain, the Life Simulator suddenly indicated that he had truly advanced to the Spirit Realm.
At that moment, the Life Simulator surprisingly began a mysterious transformation.
This transformation last for a full three years, until just a few days ago.
In these three years, he has accumulated up to 1.2 million Taoyun by observing the numerous skills and martial studies in the royal collection. However, not only did he not initiate a life simulation, but also, the Life Simulator absorbed one million Taoyun as the energy for transformation.
This inevitably made Pei Xuanjing feel very distressed. One million Taoyun were absorbed, which was enough to support five life simulations for him, but it was wasted just like that.
Perhaps five life simulations could have propelled his current level of cultivation to a whole new level?
But now, all serve as resources for the transformation of the simulator.
Hu hu…
Pei Xuanjing concentrated his mind, dismissed the distracting thoughts in his heart, and then chose to start the Life Simulator to feel what was different about it after the transformation.
[Taoyun: 213,624 points.]
[Do you want to use the Life Simulator? One use requires 200,000 Taoyun points.]
"Yes!"
[Starting life simulation:]
One year old: You were born as a sideline disciple of the Pei family in Hedong.
Three years old: Your father died in battle, and your mother died of grief not long after, leaving you alone from then on. You became silent and did not like to talk, and you were taken home by your grandfather.
Your grandfather is a veteran general who saw you were frail because of your parents' death. He taught you martial arts and swordsmanship, not for you to excel in them, but to help strengthen your body as you grow.
Unexpectedly, you revealed an exceptional talent that filled your grandfather with joy, and he taught you everything he knew.
At fifteen: You mastered the art of the sword and shocked the crowd at the martial arts competition in Yunzhong City. No one among your peers is your match.
At sixteen: You participated in the martial arts competition held by the imperial country and Da Li. You defeated countless opponents and even fought the heir of the Da Li dynasty to a standstill, becoming renowned all over the world.
At seventeen: Your grandfather ordered your uncle to take you into the army, fight battles and practice swordsmanship, accumulating merits.
At twenty-one: You earned a fair amount of merit in the army and were transferred back to the court, becoming the captain of the prince's East Palace guard.
From then on, you stayed in the capital, following the prince. In addition to guarding the prince's safety, you also became the prince's swordsmanship teacher. The prince, who is much older than you, is very affable and has often taken care of you, making you feel very close to him.
During your time in the capital, you happened to encounter the imperial superintendent of the Imperial Astronomical Observatory, who gave you four words: Heaven envies the talented.
You sneered at this, not taking it seriously.
At twenty-five: With the help of the prince, you had no worries about cultivation resources. By the age of twenty-five, you had ascended to the third rank, which is the pinnacle of martial arts. You were just one step away from the Heavenly Rank.
At twenty-seven: The former emperor passed away. The prince ascended to the throne, and you, as a close advisor to the prince, were promoted to the rank of Loyal Martial General.
Two months later, the emperor, who had just ascended the throne and had grand plans, was obstructed by his mother, the Empress Dowager of the current court.
During the former emperor's illness, the Empress Dowager reigned for many years and had a large number of partisans in the court.
In just two months, the new emperor who wanted to remove the Empress Dowager's partisans and reuse his trusted subordinates was unexpectedly deposed by the Empress Dowager and demoted to the King of Lujiang while his younger brother, King Yu, is placed on the throne.
When the prince was demoted, you escorted him far from the capital, encountering numerous assassination attempts along the way, all deftly resolved by you.
At twenty-eight: You persuaded various factions to unite with Duke Jingye Xu and others to rise in revolt in Yangzhou, intending to reinstate the prince to the throne.
You fought your way to victory, but unexpectedly, Duke Jingye Xu revealed his wild ambition to rule on his own. The two sides went to war, suffered heavy losses, and were eventually defeated by the empress dowager's forces.
While carrying the prince to escape, you encountered more than ten third-rank masters attacking you.
Stranded in despair, you demonstrated a terrifying power. You slayed more than ten third-rank masters, but died due to over-exertion.
[Life End.]
Pei Xuanjing stared at this life simulation, frowning slightly.
Is this the result of the simulators that cost him a million Taoyun to upgrade?
Is it just switching scenes to simulate?
Before he could think any further, the simulator provided another prompt. [Simulation End: You can choose from the following options.]
[First option: Receive all the realm insights from this life simulation when ended, and the findings of a lifetime of learning.] [Second option: Again project yourself into it, relive this life again.]
Is this the effect of the Life Simulator after upgrading?
As Pei Xuanjing looked at the options this time, he was somewhat unsure when suddenly, additional information popped up in his mind.
[The original life simulation was a trajectory of life where the host was unaware of the future, and external forces couldn't interfere. Projecting yourself into it means that the host will personally control this life, the trajectory of life will change, and even some unpredictable events may occur. Please choose carefully.]
"Is there a need to consider?" A smile rose at the corner of Pei Xuanjing's mouth, he muttered to himself, "Even if it's so that the 200,000 Taoyun don't go to waste, I can't miss out on this!"
"Choose the second option!"
[Prompt: Each life simulation only has one chance to project a soul attachment. Once the host dies within the life simulation, it cannot be projected again. Please confirm whether to continue!]
"One opportunity? Not too bad. If the soul attachment projection were unlimited, it wouldn't be interesting! Continue!"
[Life Simulation -Soul Attachment Mode Activated:]
In an instant, the surroundings of Pei Xuanjing fell into silence, as if even time had come to a standstill.
At this moment, his sea of consciousness was like chaos; then came a loud noise, and heaven and earth separated.
[Great Tao is fifty, but the Forty-Nine Heavenly Paths serve as its manifestation, with the one remaining in hiding! Therefore, objects in the world all have a lifeline!]
This sentence in the sea of consciousness shattered violently, transforming into countless characters, fluctuating unpredictably in his mind, dancing and arranging in a seemingly orderly yet disorderly manner.
These characters continuously collide, swallow, and reproduce with each other. Who knew how long it had been? Maybe a moment, or perhaps thousands of years.
In the end, a golden gate was surprisingly opened and Pei Xuanjing was sucked into it.
In the instant when Pei Xuanjing entered the gate, he looked ahead and seemed to see countless worlds like dust, bright, dim, scorching, cold, gloomy, rising… numerous types, too many to enumerate.
However, in a blink of an eye, he was swallowed by darkness and fell into chaos.
Relaxed, comfortable, warm.
As if soaking in a hot spring, Pei Xuanjing couldn't remember the last time he had been this relaxed.
It may have been a long, long time, or perhaps just a blink. He slowly opened his eyes.
At night, the Pei family in Hedong of Yunzhou County.
On a cold night, the cry of a baby echoed in the backyard.
"Is this the new ability of the life simulator after undergoing metamorphosis?" Pei Xuanjing murmured to himself: "I'm no longer merely simulating my own life; I can actually traverse the three thousand realms, possess the body of a person within those worlds, and experience their life journey. Is this essentially experiencing different life trajectories?"
By now, he had roughly figured out the current situation. The world he is in is not the same as before; the simulator has brought him to this world using something akin to transmigration or reincarnation.
At this moment, some information emerged in his mind:
[One year old: You were born into the World of Myriad Manifestations, in the Pei Mansion of Yunzhou.]
Hedong, Yunzhou County.
The Pei Mansion in Yunzhong City is renowned; the Pei family's master, Mr. Pei Laozhu, is originally from the Pei family of Hedong. Having followed the previous emperor through numerous battles, he made great contributions.
Even after aging, he continued to guard the borders of the empire in Yunzhong.
The majority of the commanding officers of the Zhechong Mansion in Yunzhong City were his subordinates. There were numerous military men within the entire Pei Mansion of Yunzhong.
However, what the world doesn't know is that within this Pei Mansion that could almost be considered a military stronghold, there is an ordinary boy who bears no traces of cultivation— a young member of the Pei family.
Given that the empire strongly advocates martial arts and the Pei family is a renowned military lineage, even the female members and servants of the household should be skilled in martial arts. It should not be possible for an ordinary person who hasn't cultivated to exist.
However, facing this ordinary boy, all the individuals within the Pei Mansion who knew of his existence remained silent and did not question this. No one dared to offend him as long as Mr. Pei Laozhu, who adores him dearly, did not speak.
In the quiet depths of the Pei Mansion, within a slightly neglected courtyard, a youth sat cross-legged on a loft, gazing at the distant sky. His eyes were clear, without a trace of impurity, as if he was detached from everything in the world.
As for what he saw, no one knew.
"Fifteen years have passed in the blink of an eye," said Pei Xuanjing, who had been sitting quietly for a long time.
During the previous usage of the life simulator, his life experience only appeared as a line of text accompanied by a flash of pictures.
In the process of life simulation, it was as if watching a movie or TV show in the original world, with time flowing like water.
However, this soul attachment simulation was completely different. He had actually lived through these fifteen years. There were no shortcuts.
Having spent fifteen years in this world, he had come to understand it quite a lot.
He had not expected that through the projection attachment opportunity provided by the simulator, he would genuinely arrive in another world. This world he found himself in was called the World of Myriad Manifestations.
It was also a world where cultivation flourished.
The highest realm of cultivation in this world was referred to as the Heavenly Rank. According to the information Pei Xuanjing discovered, it was roughly equivalent to Spirit Realm in the Great Ming World.
In terms of the quality of Heaven and Earth Essence Qi, it was much stronger compared to the Great Ming World, which had just started to rejuvenate. Of course, this world had already reached a limit with its Heaven and Earth Essence Qi. Unless something unexpected occurred, it wouldn't increase further. Meanwhile, the Great Ming World had just begun to rejuvenate, so it might even have the potential to surpass the current realm.
"This world's cultivation methods are somewhat surprising compared to the Great Ming World, with each having its own strengths and weaknesses," Pei Xuanjing thought about the cultivation knowledge in this world.
After attaching his soul to this world, apart from his original martial arts comprehension, only his soul power was brought along. Naturally, his original body, which had undergone one metamorphosis, and his True Qi had disappeared.
If he had already started his cultivation when he attached his soul to this world, he would continue to advance onward. However, since he was a blank canvas, he naturally had to plan carefully.
Therefore, for the fifteen years he had been in this world, apart from ceaselessly refining and strengthening his Yin Spirit, he had not immediately started to cultivate the martial arts of this world, instead opting to research.
The cultivation in this world was simple, divided into three stages: Inner Qi, True Qi, and Gang Qi. After reaching the extreme, one can try to break through to the Heavenly Rank, which roughly corresponds to the Spirit Realm in the Great Ming World.
Different from the original way of cultivation in the Great Ming World, what this world emphasizes the most is 'Qi'.
All sorts of skills ultimately boil down to 'Qi'.
In other words, if categorized according to Pei Xuanjing's
'essence-energy-spirit' method, then their approach should be the Path of Qi Refinement.
If you make a comparison, the techniques and applications of the Path of Qi Refinement are certainly superior to those in the Great Ming World.
However, with gains, there must be losses. The cultivation methods of this world have far less development in the way of Refining Essence and Refining Spirit. In Pei Xuanjing's view, even if there are some skills for Refining Essence and Refining Spirit, they are only comparable to the Fourth-grade Realm in the original Great Ming World..