234 – The Hell of the Hell Ancient Star!

“Damn, don’t court death,”

Wang Ping groused as he saw the Life Simulator’s content.

It was one thing for the simulated Wang Ping to have set up a flag earlier, but now he dared to venture into dangerous places on his own. Such behavior was absurd and was simply suicidal.

Or perhaps, after acquiring the Emperor’s Weapon, the simulated Wang Ping had become overly confident and reckless.

Indeed, with the protection of the Emperor’s Weapon, unless someone of quasi-Emperor level power attacked, it would be difficult to kill him. Coupled with various talents, Wang Ping currently had excellent escape abilities.

However, Wang Ping remained quite sensitive to such scenarios where he had once been burned alive. He would prefer not to go to such places if possible.

If it were just an ordinary forbidden zone, it would be one thing, but this place wasn’t even detailed in the annals of the Taiyi Emperor Palace.

All that was known was that this place was extremely dangerous. Even a Supreme who dared to venture in would face certain doom.

This was because this place contained secrets related to a Great Emperor.

As for why it held secrets tied to a Great Emperor, and why no major forces had come to decipher these secrets and seize the opportunities therein, Wang Ping could not understand.

For a moment, Wang Ping hesitated whether he should enter the immersive simulation state again and make the simulation Wang Ping change his mind.

“Forget it, eventually the secrets here must be unraveled and the opportunities seized. Investigating now isn’t a bad idea,”

After some internal struggle, Wang Ping decided to watch from the sidelines.

【Next, you venture deeper into the Hell Ancient Star, entering the heart of the sea of fire, provoking it intentionally to force the white flames to appear.】

【Facing your provocation, the existence within the Hell Ancient Star became enraged. The sea of fire surged, engulfing the unlucky cultivators on the Hell Ancient Star, burning them all to ashes.】

【This terrified Fang Xingyu. If he didn’t know that his master was ridiculously strong, he would have left this hellish place immediately. Of course, even if he wanted to leave now, he couldn’t. Given his insufficient strength, he had no capacity to leave on his own.】

【Watching the Hell Ancient Star’s upheaval, you realize the white flames haven’t shown up. Your brow furrows slightly as you conclude your provocation wasn’t sufficient. So, you begin recklessly provoking even more, demonstrating all your keyboard-rolling skills from before your transmigration.】

【With your series of chaotic maneuvers, the Hell Ancient Star’s turbulence increased dramatically, white flames began to appear, attempting to incinerate you.】

【However, these white flames that once could turn Supreme Artifacts to ashes were already too weak for you. Though directly enduring these white flames would still result in your fall…】

【Facing the white flames, you didn’t need to endure them directly but could use Spacetime Divine Ability to transfer and protect yourself. This agitated the Hell Ancient Star further, making the white flames soar higher, determined to turn you to ashes.】

【At this point, you finally grew solemn and summoned your newly acquired Emperor’s Weapon, Eternal Space Emperor Sword, to block the white flames.】

【With the emergence of the Emperor’s Weapon, it seemed to trigger some strange switch, causing the Hell Ancient Star’s tremors to intensify exponentially, even showing subtle transformations.】

【This made you narrow your eyes and fly out into space. Sensing your attempted escape, the white flames surged into a giant hand, reaching to grab you.】

【Using Spacetime Divine Ability, you successfully dodged into outer space.】

【Then, you witnessed a shocking scene. The entire Hell Ancient Star, no longer looking like a typical star, now resembled a massive head.】

【This made you gasp, suspecting the Hell Ancient Star was actually the decapitated head of a Great Emperor who practiced fire-attribute cultivation.】

【Unable to remain calm, you seemed to see that terrifying battle of the past. Simultaneously, curiosity burned within you, wondering what kind of existence could decapitate a Great Emperor, causing such a disgraceful death.】

【However, saying they died is inaccurate. There clearly some consciousness remaining here. You couldn’t help but speculate whether this Great Emperor was entirely dead or if some of their power lingered.】

“Of course, now is not the time for you to think too much. Your previous provocation clearly enraged some kind of existence inside. The white flames still rush towards you, with no intention of giving up until they burn you to death…”

“Seeing this, you squint your eyes, not intending to confront it head-on. You want to use the golden talent: Teleportation to escape from here. Otherwise, as the white flames grow stronger, you very much doubt you could escape. It’s safe to say you’re courting death this time…”

“As you use the golden talent: Teleportation, both you and Fang Xingyu’s figures instantly disappear from here, being teleported to an unknown location…”

“With your disappearance, the white flames come to a halt. Vaguely, an illusory remnant body appears on Hell Ancient Star, staring fiercely in the direction where Wang Ping left, letting out a cold snort. If not for his special condition, how could this brat who dared to provoke him have escaped?”

“But, just wait… wait until the day he emerges…”

“The illusory remnant body harbors a deadly killing intent in its heart, but it gradually dissipates, and the entire body vanishes as well. Hell Ancient Star returns to its peaceful state, as if nothing had ever happened.”

“This Hell Ancient Star is indeed strange. It seems there’s more to it than just an Emperor’s head.”

Wang Ping looked at the contents of the simulation on the screen, his eyes flickering with thought.

The existence within seemed to harbor great resentment, whether it was provoked by him or held some deep-seated hatred from the beginning.

“However, you want to emerge… difficult. A hundred thousand years have passed, Ye Chen has already explored Hell Ancient Star, and it’s still the same. Clearly, this guy hasn’t broken free.”

Wang Ping shook his head again, muttering to himself, completely unconcerned about the entity on Hell Ancient Star.

The other party couldn’t even stop his teleportation ability, indicating that the power it could wield was below the quasi-emperor level. As long as it doesn’t break free, it’s not worth worrying about.

“But, setting up a flag, then courting death and still not dying, that’s quite a show.”

Unable to help himself, Wang Ping grumbled again and continued to stare at the screen.

“At this moment, you have been teleported to the Central Immortal Continent. This surprises you, as you didn’t expect the teleportation to be so precise, saving you a lot of travel time.”

“However, Fang Xingyu feels as if he’s been scared out of his wits, his legs trembling. He is tearfully pleading with you, his master, not to take him to such dangerous places in the future as his heart can’t handle it.”

“At this, you roll your eyes and slap Fang Xingyu on the forehead, thinking he really has no spine, getting scared over such a small thing.”

“Reprimanded by you, Fang Xingyu dares not talk back, only complaining internally in frustration.”

“Next, you plan to take Fang Xingyu away from here and return to the Taiyi Emperor Palace. But just as you are about to leave, you see someone unexpected.”

“It’s none other than the Dark Star Great Saint, who once invited you to join the Nine Star Pavilion when you reached the level of a Saint.”

“You are quite surprised to meet him here, feeling a sense of the times changing. You once feared him immensely, afraid that he, a Great Saint, might casually kill you. Now, you have already surpassed him by far.”

“As you reminisce, Dark Star Great Saint notices you and quickly hurries over, his eyes brightening.”

“When Dark Star Great Saint arrives, he grins at you, saying that you have rare and exceptional bones, a rare cultivation genius, asking if you would like to join the Nine Star Pavilion.”

“This makes your gaze turn peculiar. This Dark Star Great Saint really likes pushing memberships. Last time, he enthusiastically pulled you into the Nine Star Pavilion, allowing you to gain a lot of benefits from it.”

“Thus, given your current status, you could easily join the Nine Star Pavilion without his recommendation and persuasion. But you still decide to agree to join the Nine Star Pavilion.”

“But just as you are about to agree, you notice something changes. You are surprised to find that you can’t see through Dark Star Great Saint’s true strength. Even though you are a half-step Supreme, you discover you can’t read him. This is very unusual. In fact, this Dark Star Great Saint gives you a strong sense of danger.”

“This situation is extremely anomalous. You are among the top in your realm, even Gu Xuan may not surpass you now. However, a Great Saint gives you this feeling, so there’s only one possibility—this guy is hiding his true power.”

“Thinking of this, you quietly use your Heaven-Penetrating Eye to discern his real background. In Hell Ancient Star, you didn’t use this last resort and kept it hidden as your ultimate card.”

“Of course, you also know that regarding Hell Ancient Star, the undeveloped Heaven-Penetrating Eye’s probability of seeing through is low, only exposing your own secret in turn.”

When you used the Breaking Origin Heavenly Eye, your vision changed, seeing through falsehoods straight to the source. Then, you saw the terrifying dark power of the Dark Star Great Saint…

However, this feeling vanished in an instant. Even with the Breaking Origin Heavenly Eye, the Dark Star Great Saint still appeared remarkably ordinary to you…

This left you in silence. The feeling just now couldn’t have been false. The Dark Star Great Saint before you was at least a quasi-emperor level figure, probably even one of the top-tier quasi-emperors…

All you could say was that this guy was hiding too deeply. You felt a flood of emotions; this was the first time you had encountered someone more cautious than yourself. Clearly, he was a top-tier quasi-emperor, yet he disguised himself as an ordinary Great Saint…

In this situation, anyone who truly considered him an ordinary Great Saint would be devoured down to the last scrap. Who could guess that a Great Saint could be a quasi-emperor, and a top-tier one at that…

While you were feeling a cascade of emotions, the Dark Star Great Saint also looked at you with surprise, smiling and saying that you had hidden very deeply, even possessing the legendary Breaking Origin Heavenly Eye. This talent is not much inferior to the Spacetime Dao Body and is a visual talent that surpasses the Sacred Body…

He clicked his tongue in wonder, saying that you possess both the Spacetime Dao Body and the Breaking Origin Heavenly Eye, which might be the strongest talent in all of heaven and earth. Even in a golden age, there would be no one to compare with you. Such talent is truly enviable, making others wish to dig out your eyes and refine your essence…

Upon hearing this, you were on high alert but kept a relaxed face. You knew very well that against such a person, even if your current golden talent: Teleportation wasn’t on cooldown, your chance of survival would still be nearly zero…

There were only two ways for you to survive in front of such a person. First, Emperor Tianyu appears to save you, or second, the Dark Star Great Saint was just joking to scare you…

Next, you chuckled, saying, ‘Senior, please don’t joke around. I can’t bear such fright, or I might accidentally summon Emperor Tianyu…’

The Dark Star Great Saint chuckled, saying, ‘Kid, you’ve got some guts, daring to use Emperor Tianyu to scare me. But even if he came, it wouldn’t help. Yet, today, I don’t wish to kill, so I have no interest in attacking you…’

Hearing this, you secretly rolled your eyes, suspecting that this guy was just afraid of Emperor Tianyu. Even the strongest quasi-emperor would have their head kicked like a ball by facing Emperor Tianyu…

Of course, although you were ranting inwardly, you didn’t want to speak it out, so you praised the Dark Star Great Saint’s demeanor for not picking on juniors…

The Dark Star Great Saint waved his hand, saying, ‘Stop with the flattery, kid.’ He then took out an item, giving you a token and a secret technique from Nine Star Pavilion…

This made you thoughtful. This token was clearly much more advanced than the one you had obtained in previous simulations, made of a special material. As for the secret technique, it seemed more complete…

The Dark Star Great Saint then regretfully said that if he had met you earlier, before Emperor Tianyu, he could have raised you to be a candidate for the Nine Stars…

Hearing this, you were moved, realizing that the Dark Star Great Saint held a higher position in the Nine Star Pavilion than you had imagined. After all, he had the authority to groom candidates for the Nine Stars…

You even suspected that the Dark Star Great Saint might be one of the current Nine Stars, holding legendary power that could rival an emperor, just as he previously claimed to not fear Emperor Tianyu…

While you were speculating, the Dark Star Great Saint waved you away unhappily, still looking quite regretful…

With that, you saw no use in staying and chose to bid farewell…

But just as you were about to leave, the Dark Star Great Saint stopped you again, saying that after the golden age, he would find you again and take you to a place that would greatly benefit you, urging you not to refuse…

Hearing this, you were quite surprised but nodded, neither agreeing nor refusing. Then you took Fang Xingyu and left…

After you left, the Dark Star Great Saint was still shaking his head, muttering about what a pity it was, and his figure gradually disappeared…

‘Who knew that the Dark Star Great Saint had such a huge background? It seems I must be vigilant in the future, unless someone has exposed their true strength, I can’t underestimate any cultivator regardless of their level. Maybe a Divine Sovereign is actually a supreme being or even a quasi-emperor in disguise…’

Wang Ping looked at the text simulation’s content, speechless…

He originally thought there weren’t many old foxes like him in this world, but now it seemed he was overthinking it…

Gu Xuan was an old fox, the Dark Star Great Saint was an old fox, and his master, Emperor Tianyu, was also a cautious person, extremely low-key…

With so many examples in front of him, Wang Ping was really worried that he’d encounter someone pretending to be weak next time and wouldn’t be able to negotiate, getting killed instantly…

Hmm, indeed, survival is the ultimate principle… In reality, if I don’t become a Great Emperor, I certainly won’t take unnecessary risks. Unless… I’m absolutely broke.

Wang Ping pressed his brows, letting out a sigh.

If the Life Simulator didn’t require a fee and refreshed based on time, he would undoubtedly hide to the extreme.

But, there’s no help, it costs money, he must make money… so he could only occasionally go on adventures.

Even though his so-called adventures were actually carried out under the secure circumstances simulated in the Life Simulator, to other cultivators, this was hardly an adventure at all.

However, for Wang Ping, the multiverse is an uncertain factor, and his safety couldn’t reach one hundred percent, only ninety-eight percent.

A safety rating of ninety-eight percent… if this isn’t considered an adventure, then what is? It’s really too dangerous!

Subsequently, Wang Ping put away his various thoughts and continued to focus on the screen.

【After you completely distanced yourself from the Dark Star Great Saint, Fang Xingyu cried out with a wailing face, saying something that made your expression stiff. He lamented that following you always makes him feel that even ten lives aren’t enough… You’ve just left and already encountered several life-endangering situations. He seriously doubted whether he might actually die someday.】

【Listening to Fang Xingyu, you irritably slapped him flying. Why do you feel this brat, Fang Xingyu, is the most cowardly disciple you have, even more so than you, his master? Surely, you still prefer Wan Yu with his explosive personality and Lin Qinghe, who is usually gentle but decisive in action during crises… both of whom are much better.】

【Subsequently, you severely scolded Fang Xingyu, demanding him not to be so afraid of death and be more courageous. Only after Fang Xingyu responded with a bitter face did you satisfactorily continue your journey with him.】

【Upon arriving at the Taiyi Emperor Palace, the Dao Palace Master of the Taiyi Imperial Palace saw you return and was quite pleased. He merely glanced at Fang Xingyu and didn’t mind his talent and identity as a Dao Palace disciple, allowing him to join the Taiyi Emperor Palace.】

【Not long after, you also chose to self-seal, waiting for the coming of the golden era.】

【In the blink of an eye, nearly a hundred thousand years passed. With the advent of the golden era, you chose to emerge, adopting a high-profile route… You defeated Yu Daohong, accepted Zhu Huowang as your disciple, went to the Ji family to acquire the Essence of Time and Heavenly Frost Ice, challenged Gu Xuan, showcasing the prowess of a Great Saint, and defeated him with overwhelming power… truly shameless.】

【Subsequently, developments were not much different from your memories. The Dao Enlightenment Tea Party was held as scheduled. You drank tea at the Tea Party and your understanding of the Dao markings of space deepened a bit more. You thought if you could have a few more Enlightenment Teas, you might have a chance to truly comprehend those Dao markings.】

【Of course, this was based on the fact that your Origin-Breaking Heavenly Eye could also aid in your enlightenment… Otherwise, relying solely on Enlightenment Tea, you would need a long time and prolonged drinking to succeed.】

【Such luxurious behavior could only be afforded by someone like Qin Yue of the Qin family. Other sects… without an Enlightenment Tea Tree, couldn’t possibly have that foundation.】

【Following this, you continued to make trades at the Tea Party. However, since there was no need to obtain the Emperor’s Scripture fragment, you did not oppress the unlucky Great Saint ranked ninety-eighth, but peacefully exchanged Heavenly Frost Ice with Qin Yue for some Enlightenment Tea leaves.】

【In response, Qin Yue was very generous, indicating she could give them to you as long as you became her ally. But you refused, insisting on a trade.】

【After all, for you, in this simulation, Qin Yue’s assistance was still limited. She might still be used as bait. Therefore, not forming an alliance was the best choice. Forming an alliance and then betraying your comrade once was enough… doing it repeatedly might gradually erode your moral baseline, which is unacceptable, even in a life simulation.】

【The next day, as in your memory, you proceeded to the White Mist Forbidden Zone, used your luck to open the secret realm, and entered it.】

【Once inside, you squinted your eyes, thinking it would be easier to deal with the secret realm compared to when the Immortal Palace opens. If delayed until then, things would become truly troublesome. At that time, even with your Origin-Breaking Heavenly Eye, your survival would not be guaranteed.】

【After all, in such places, with the schemes of all sorts of hidden powers, whether you survive would no longer depend on your strength but on whether they want you alive and whether you could become the lucky one.】

【Even though in that simulation you were very low-key, those old monsters had probably seen through you… the chances of survival were slim. Not to mention, if you were to be as high-profile as now, survival would be even less likely, as you would be targeted.】

【Therefore, you had to start with this secret realm, clear out as many enemies as possible in advance so you could protect your life when the Immortal Palace opens.】

【Of course, your main purpose was still to understand why defeating Gu Xuan early would trigger this plotline.】

【However, this time, you didn’t intend to stir up trouble directly but, after saving the pure-blooded phoenix sisters Huang Yin and Huang Qing, who could greatly aid you in battle, you began a retreat to cultivate, aiming to comprehend the Dao markings of space and maximize your combat power.】

【As for whether the black mist figures and natives would find you and close in silently… there was no need to worry. Currently, with the Origin-Breaking Heavenly Eye, such stealthy advances using world-shattering secret techniques were no longer possible.】

【This illustrates the profoundness of eye-related abilities. However, not all eye-related talents are this powerful… if the level is too low, it would still be impossible to see through these world-shattering secret techniques prepared by those behind the scenes.】

【In the blink of an eye, a month has passed. You have been savoring tea and contemplating the Dao, occasionally changing locations.】

【Finally, you have successfully comprehended the Dao markings of space, fulfilling the conditions of the dual Dao markings of space and time, thus enabling you to further unleash the power of the Spacetime Dao Body.】

【This is owed to the Insightful Bitter Tea and the accumulation from your many simulations, especially the millennium of secluded cultivation in the Dao Palace.】

【Just as you comprehended the space Dao markings, you were surrounded and captured. At this moment, most of the talents other than the three of you in this secret realm have perished, captured by these people and their essences extracted.】

【Soon, the natives, under the lead of the black mist figures, set up a large formation to trap and kill you.】

【In response, you let out a cold laugh and activated the Source-Breaking Heavenly Eye, easily discerning the flaws in the yet-to-form large formation. You broke through it with brute force and took Huang Qing and Huang Yin for a guerrilla battle.】

【Given your current agility, as long as you’re not trapped by the formation, it’s impossible for them to use their numerical advantage to fight you. Even those black mist figures pose no threat unless their number exceeds ten and they have a Spacetime Dao Body leading them.】

【In fact, with your current combat strength, it is not impossible to fight one against ten.】

【As you fought, even without the formation, these natives couldn’t touch a hair on your head and were slaughtered by you. This enraged the black mist figures, who, using Secret Techniques at any cost, trapped you, seeking to attack you in an evil group assault.】

【However, facing this group assault, you did not panic. Now, you are no longer the same as in your previous simulations; you possess strong enough power to face the siege of these people.】

【It didn’t take long before you unleashed terrifying Spacetime Divine Abilities, killing them one by one. Even the black mist figures with Spacetime Dao Bodies couldn’t stop you from slaying them.】

【After killing this group, you confronted the Spacetime Dao Body. This time, you dueled him one-on-one. The result was without suspense. Even without using the Source-Breaking Heavenly Eye, the contemporary Spacetime Dao Body, who once suppressed you until you had to fight desperately and use the seven-colored talent: Instant Death Attack to kill him, was directly killed by your strong hand without managing a decent counterattack.】

【At that moment, you felt the loneliness of being invincible. Now, you are too strong.】

【Seeing this, Huang Yin and Huang Qing admired you greatly. Although they are simple-minded, as pureblood Phoenixes, they are very proud and worship strength. Undoubtedly, your power has conquered them, making them your devoted admirers.】

【Just as you were feeling countless emotions, your Source-Breaking Heavenly Eye suddenly spotted a figure; it was none other than Gu Xuan. This made you squint your eyes and chuckle coldly, finally confirming that Gu Xuan is also one of the masterminds behind the scenes.】

【Although you do not know if Gu Xuan is one of the important pawns in their hearts or if he is the leader, it is enough for you to know that he is one of them. This means your suspicions are not baseless; targeting him is not wrong at all.】

【Next, you wasted no time attacking Gu Xuan, intending to kill him.】

【Gu Xuan watched as you rushed towards him. Shrouded in black mist, his expression remained calm, without any change, quietly waiting for your arrival.】

【Soon, you got close to him and stared at him, indicating for Gu Xuan to stop pretending. His disguise is useless against your Source-Breaking Heavenly Eye.】

【This made Gu Xuan sigh and dispel the black mist, revealing his true appearance in front of you, marveling that you, as an unexpected person, are indeed unfathomable.】

【These words made you frown, sparking some speculations in your heart. You coldly stated that Gu Xuan knew about future events and had been planning accordingly. However, your appearance disrupted their plans like a butterfly effect, leading them to want to eliminate you in advance, thus luring you and the other talents into this secret realm.】

【Gu Xuan remained silent, commented that you, as an unpredictable visitor to the multiverse, know too much. Or should he say you have a vivid imagination, sharp intuition, or that you also have means to see the future.】

【Here, Gu Xuan kept some words to himself, not voicing them. You were testing him, and he was testing you.】

【Listening to Gu Xuan’s words, you squinted your eyes, finding some answers to your numerous doubts. It is evident that if he hadn’t stirred things up, everything would have gone according to the plans of Gu Xuan and the existence behind him, just waiting for the Immortal Palace to open and start harvesting.】

【However, your appearance, defeating Gu Xuan who concealed his true power, obviously differed from their known future. Therefore, they became solemn, treated this seriously, and wanted to eliminate you, the uncertain factor, in advance.】

【However, this also indicates one thing: the forces behind Gu Xuan are not as terrifying as you imagined, not a group of Emperors planning and pulling the strings.】

【Otherwise, why would Gu Xuan need such methods to trap and kill you? Perhaps he did have the idea to take out other talents along with you, but that still doesn’t hold up. After all, such a thing could have been done after the Immortal Palace opened.】

【If the forces behind Gu Xuan were really that strong, forget about you being protected by Emperor Tianyu, even Emperor Tianyu would be besieged by them, and even the Taiyi Emperor Palace would be directly annihilated by them.】

【Therefore, it only means their power is not too strong. Some things cannot be exposed and cannot be done too egregiously, fearing attention from other major forces and Emperors.】