89 – Ancient Bronze Lamp! The Third Group Task!

“Phew, this feeling… it’s really amazing.”

Wang Ping’s face was full of smiles as he opened his palm, the spiritual energy in his hand transforming into five different colors, each possessing a different power.

“I wonder what my true strength is now. Perhaps, if I were to face a strong expert at the peak of the Spirit Sea Realm, I could easily kill them as well…”

Wang Ping thought to himself.

The boost in strength provided by a Heaven-level Technique far surpasses that of a Heaven-level Martial Art.

Not to mention, the Five Elements Fusion Technique isn’t just an ordinary Heaven-level technique—it’s of mid-level quality.

At the Earth Level, even a minor grade difference is significant, let alone at the Heavenly Level.

“Furthermore, some techniques come with their own secret methods, and the Five Elements Fusion Technique is no exception. Although it only records one secret method, it is extremely terrifying.”

Wang Ping’s eyes shone with determination as he murmured to himself.

The Five Elements Fusion Technique’s first secret method, Five Elements Gradual Change: It can enhance the power of one attribute’s spiritual energy several-fold using other attribute spiritual energies, and can also transform between them. However, once specially enhanced, it takes time to convert it back to other attributes, and this process must not be interrupted, which requires careful attention.

The Five Elements Fusion Technique’s second secret method, Five Elements Unity: It can merge five attribute spiritual energies into one, unleashing even more terrifying power.

However, although this secret method is immensely powerful, it imposes a significant burden on the body, and the meridians cannot withstand the power for long.

Therefore, unless one refines both their physical body and their techniques simultaneously, the meridians will struggle to bear the power of the five elements’ spiritual energies over an extended period.

“It can be said that compared to the secret methods in the Red Flame Technique, although the secrets within the Five Elements Fusion Technique don’t possess specialized attack or defense means, they fundamentally enhance strength, without especially focusing on attack, defense, or unique abilities.”

Wang Ping compared the two techniques and gave his evaluation.

The improvement in the quality of energy results in an overall qualitative leap, strengthening the physical body and increasing the power burst from the use of martial techniques.

The predecessor who created the Five Elements Fusion Technique must have been someone who highly valued building a solid foundation.

From the key points of cultivation in the Five Elements Fusion Technique to the contents of its secret methods, various things can be inferred.

“Speaking of which, now that I’ve switched techniques, I wonder if I can still use the secret methods from the Red Flame Technique.”

Wang Ping recalled the secret methods in the Red Flame Technique, his eyes flashing.

Though the Red Flame Technique is of a lower grade, its secret methods are quite practical, and he was reluctant to abandon them.

Additionally, he was quite interested in cultivating the Red Flame Spiritual Fire.

Immediately, Wang Ping ascended into the sky to conduct some experiments.

“Can’t activate it? However, it seems I can make some adjustments and adapt it to run in the way of the Five Elements Fusion Technique. Besides, the cultivation method of the Red Flame Spiritual Fire is worth referencing.”

Walking on air, Wang Ping pondered various things in his mind.

If he could use the cultivation method of the Red Flame Spiritual Fire to develop the Five Elements Spiritual Fire, that would be fantastic.

Five Elements Spiritual Fire would definitely be more powerful than a single Red Flame Spiritual Fire, and its potential would be higher.

“It’s worth a try. In the future, I can rely on the Life Simulator to explore.”

Wang Ping’s eyes gleamed with determination as he made a decision.

Thinking this way, if I hit a bottleneck in the future, I can let Wang Ping in the simulations practice martial arts more, attempting to create some techniques and secret methods of his own.

I can only follow others’ paths now, but to reach the pinnacle of martial arts, I must forge my own path. Otherwise, success is impossible.

With these thoughts in mind, Wang Ping looked forward to future simulations even more.

“Continue with the simulations. Now that I have the technique, I can fully leverage Ye Chen’s path to attempt a different route.”

After collecting his thoughts, Wang Ping made a new choice.

Although Ye Chen has the life fate of a ‘Calamity Star’ that brings doom, as long as Wang Ping is cautious and avoids dying from his influence early on, he may learn some opportunities through Ye Chen.

In other words, Ye Chen serves as a good pathfinder.
“System, I want to conduct a free simulation…”

Immediately, Wang Ping said this in his heart.

He still had a thousand Mid-Grade Spirit Stones left, which meant he had only one more chance for a paid simulation. He couldn’t squander it, so naturally, it was best to use the free simulation to understand future developments.

For instance, Wang Ping had always been curious about the treasure Ye Chen stumbled upon at the market.

According to the usual script, a Child of Luck would definitely have a knack for finding bargains, and these items would never be simple.

If he could find out where Ye Chen got the bargain and what the item was through him, it would be a major gain.

“Ding, Life Simulator activated, five free simulations remaining for the host.”

The System’s voice rang, the screen appeared, and text floated up.

【On the first day, you decided to take Ye Chen as your apprentice and brought him back to the Sword Spirit Sect.】

【After three years, you learned the Sunset Sword Technique and comprehended seventy percent of the Sword Intent. Then, you took Ye Chen to the Seven Star Archipelago.】

【Upon arrival, you killed Jiang Huai.】

【Shortly after, Ye Chen stumbled upon a treasure at the market on the outskirts of one of the Seven Star Archipelago islands. You followed him and discovered the treasure was an ancient bronze lamp, which looked very old. However, you couldn’t find anything else mysterious about it.】

【Next, a thug appeared. You released your aura, intimidating him. He eventually left dejectedly, and no conflict occurred between you two.】

【You thought that was the end of it. But soon after, a mysterious expert suddenly appeared before you, saying that after searching for many years, he had finally found it through a secret method.】

【Then, without bothering to talk to you, he directly took Ye Chen away. You were very confused, not knowing whether to be thankful that you weren’t killed, but also disappointed that you couldn’t find some opportunities through Ye Chen.】

【However, your joy was premature. Six months later, during a cultivation session, you fought against someone, revealing the secrets of your techniques. A passing Spirit Nurturing Realm expert noticed and decided to attack you. Despite using all your trump cards, you were no match and were killed. You revived using the Rebirth Talisman, which piqued his interest, and he wanted to search your soul.】

【Helpless, you activated berserk mode to stop him from searching your soul. You successfully blocked the soul search and took the opportunity to self-destruct.】

【Due to your death, the simulation ended.】

‘Goodness, even if that mysterious person didn’t kill me and only took Ye Chen away, I still had to die… It just delayed it by a year. This Heaven-level Technique and martial skills are indeed precious and powerful, but they’re also a hot potato. They must not be exposed.’

Wang Ping’s expression became subtle.

However, the speed of his death this time might not be unrelated to Ye Chen’s Calamitous Star fate.

‘If only I could also get a fortune-based talent, perhaps with strong enough fortune, even taking in a protagonist with such a Calamitous Star fate wouldn’t get me killed.’

Wang Ping slightly shook his head and decided he had to give up on taking Ye Chen as an apprentice for now.

Trying to use the fortunes of the Child of Luck to seek opportunities was not the right time. Forcefully taking him as an apprentice to seek opportunities would only end in disaster.

‘Speaking of which, the origin of the ancient bronze lamp Ye Chen obtained might be even more remarkable than I imagined. That mysterious expert had been searching for it for a long time, and he can find it every time. Without enough strength, trying to keep the ancient bronze lamp would be asking for death.’

Wang Ping pondered.

However, judging by Ye Chen’s continued existence, that mysterious expert might not be one to kill people.

Or maybe Ye Chen, being a Child of Luck, was an exception, which is why he wasn’t killed.

Besides, the Life Simulator overlooked many details in this matter.

Why did the mysterious expert need to take Ye Chen? Wouldn’t it have been enough just to seize the bronze lamp? That seems entirely unnecessary.

Or did something happen after Ye Chen got the bronze lamp that Wang Ping wasn’t aware of, causing the mysterious expert to take away Ye Chen after figuring something out?

‘There’s too little information to deduce the truth. Furthermore, the ancient bronze lamp is not something I can handle at this stage. So, I can only set this opportunity aside for now. After accumulating more free simulations and becoming stronger, I can try simulations related to this again and see what happens if I don’t give the lamp to that mysterious expert.’

Wang Ping calculated silently.

‘With five free simulations left, I can’t keep simulating. Otherwise, if a group task suddenly appears, it would be troublesome.’

Several minutes later, Wang Ping exhaled softly, composed his thoughts, and muttered to himself.

The next day, at dawn, Ye Chen got up early and nervously came to Wang Ping’s door. He wanted to knock and ask if Wang Ping was willing to take him as an apprentice but didn’t dare to do so and could only stand there anxiously.

Suddenly, the door opened, and Wang Ping appeared before him, making Ye Chen’s eyes brighten.
“There is no destiny between you and me, so I won’t take you as a disciple. However, if you work hard in your cultivation, I believe that you will be able to join the Sword Spirit Sect on your own merits and become one of their disciples…”

Wang Ping looked at Ye Chen and gave his answer.

Since this kid would eventually go to the Sword Spirit Sect by himself, he might as well give him some words of encouragement.

“I will definitely work hard!”

Ye Chen listened to Wang Ping’s words, initially looking disappointed, but then clenched his fists with determination and said resolutely.

“Hmm…”

Wang Ping nodded, said nothing more, and directly soared into the sky, leaving the Ye Family.

The head of the Ye Family learned that his son was not taken as a disciple and was very disappointed, but could only sigh.

His son was just the young master of a small family, hard to catch the eye of such a grand figure.

However, for people from small families like theirs, getting so many resources from a figure like Wang Ping was already an incredible fortune, and they should not expect more.

Back at the Sword Spirit Sect, Wang Ping had just prepared to arrange some affairs and bid farewell to the Grand Elder of the Sword Spirit Sect when he heard a familiar voice.

“Ding, detected abnormality in the world where group member Wang Shuqing is located. Group mission initiated: Eliminate the anomaly. This group mission is mandatory, with five participants required. The deputy group leader must quickly select five group members for the mission. If no choice is made within ten minutes, the System will randomly select five members to be transported to Wang Shuqing’s world for the mission…”

“???”

Wang Ping was stunned.

This was truly an unexpected development…

Two months had passed without waiting for any new members to join, and now, a group mission had popped up.

Moreover, this group mission was in the world of the new member, Wang Shuqing.

This guy had just escaped the primitive forest and entered human society, toiling away, and now a group mission appeared? This was the epitome of hardship…

“Indeed, I must save more free simulation chances… Otherwise, when a group mission comes, it would be dangerous.”

Then, Wang Ping came to his senses and stopped grumbling about Wang Shuqing, sighing instead.

Fortunately, he still had five free simulation chances left and hadn’t used them all.

Otherwise, this group mission might bring life-threatening danger.

After all, he wouldn’t overestimate his all-around strength and think he could easily tackle this group mission.

In the past two simulations, he was strong enough but still died many times in the Life Simulator.

Anomalies are unreasonable; being strong doesn’t mean one can be careless.

However, this also had factors contributed by spending time in other worlds, making it impossible to accumulate free simulation chances.

Otherwise, if he could accumulate free simulation chances in other worlds, he wouldn’t be so worried.

Then, Wang Ping composed himself and entered the chat group.

At this moment, all the group members in the chat group were stirred up.

Wang Shuqing (74): “My god, I just got rid of my savage identity, and now a group mission appears? Give me a break, damn it!”

Qin Tian (77): “Wang Shuqing’s mentality is shattered… In this scenario, anyone would collapse. He was a savage for months, escaped to the city and almost got caught, escaped again and became an illegal worker, suffering even more than Wu Jun… Shortly after, he learned his world was not normal but a dangerous high martial world, and now, a group mission… I can only say, it’s too miserable, really too miserable…”

Liu Mei (15): “…”

Fang Yun (3): “Goodness, why do I feel like this kid is more pitiful than me?”

Cai Yonglong (1): “It’s not an illusion, this kid is indeed more pitiful than you.”

Zhang Hu (5): “I’m speechless. I have yet to get the Forbidden Spell Scroll this time. After all, it’s not something easily obtained. So, for this group mission, I’m considering whether to participate.”

Zhang Jun (70): “… Anyway, I’m not afraid of death. Count me in this time. Even though I was just a bystander last time…”

Cai Yonglong (1): “Ahem… I was also a bystander last time. This time, I won’t go either. If my strength doesn’t improve, I feel I’ll always be useless.”
Liu Mei (15): “I’ll stick to my original thought. I’ll just be a burden, so I’m not going.”

Ye Xiaofan (75): “Goodness, both Cai Yonglong and Zhang Hu aren’t going… We might not have enough people.”

Wu Jun (20): “…I feel like we’re gonna have to draw lots for this one.”

Chen Yao (71): “I’m quite occupied here, and the Demon Emperor could emerge at any moment, so I can’t leave.”

Fang Yun (3): “Seriously, it looks like we’ll need to draw lots. Sigh, I hope I don’t get picked. I’m so weak, I’d just be a burden too.”

Qin Tian (77): “…”

For a while, the atmosphere in the group chat was rather heavy.

Knowing how dangerous the last two group tasks were, even with Wang Ping leading the way and foreseeing the future, there was still a great risk of complete annihilation. Except for Zhang Jun, who was almost going crazy in the zombie world, everyone else was genuinely scared.

Even Cai Yonglong felt the same way.

Of course, there’s another reason: The rewards aren’t worth the risks.

Without strength, you’re just risking your life for some meager benefits, which is hardly motivating.

Wang Ping read the group’s messages with a raised eyebrow.

He understood their reluctance.

After all, the previous group tasks had made everyone fully aware of the dangers, and succeeding felt so… lucky.

None of them believed they’d be this lucky every time.

In fact, even Wang Ping would prefer not to participate in group tasks if he could.

Currently, he had gotten everything he wanted.

The Golden Finger had been optimized, and he had bought a Rebirth Talisman.

Accumulating enough points to buy a second Rebirth Talisman or to optimize the Life Simulator would require an enormous amount of points, far more than one or two group tasks could provide.

Unfortunately, as the acting group leader, he had to participate in group tasks.

This was the responsibility and obligation that came with the privileges and benefits.

“Since no one but Zhang Jun wants to go, we’ll draw lots,” Wang Ping said, revealing himself in the chat.

The group fell silent, each member silently praying not to get chosen.

Soon, the chat group’s automatic selection was complete.

“Ding, selection complete. Congratulations to group members Liu Mei (15) and Qin Tian (77) for being chosen for this group task.”

With the system prompt, the group became lively again.

Liu Mei (15): “Why me… o(╥﹏╥)o”

Qin Tian (77): “Damn, just my luck!”

Fang Yun (3): “Feeling sorry for Sister Liu. And Qin Tian, you’ve probably been showing off too much and now karma got you. Haha.”

Ye Xiaofan (75): “Agreed, he shows off too much. Always thought he’d get unlucky, and now it’s true.”

Zhang Hu (5): “A moment of silence for you. But take heart, it might not be dangerous; Brother Wang might breeze through it. Haha.”

Wu Jun (20): “The chat really livens up… too true. Wishing you both luck. Tiga prayer.jpg”

Cai Yonglong (1): “Sigh, I’m really conflicted. I actually want to go, but my strength just isn’t enough.”

Chen Yao (71): “I could help, but you all know the situation in my world. Sorry…”

Zhang Jun (70): “We knew this day would come… but I don’t care, worst case, I’ll die.”