"Activate Simulated Life."
Li Ming grinned, shouting the command in his mind.
[Insufficient balance. Unable to activate Simulated Life.]
"…What?"
Li Ming froze.
He had just recharged one million yuan. One Simulated Life cost only one thousand—he should've had a thousand attempts left.
Yet the system coldly responded:
[Recharge successful. Current balance: ¥999,200]
[Do you want to use the Life Simulator?]
[Current use requires: ¥1,000,000]
Li Ming's grin disappeared.
What?!
He stared at the floating text in his mind. His expression twisted.
He had expected a price hike after stepping into the Warrior Level, but a thousandfold increase?
From ¥1,000 to ¥1,000,000 for a single simulation?!
If this trend continued, what would it cost to simulate at the God of War level? All the currency on Earth?
"Let's take it one step at a time."
He checked his balance. ¥999,200.
Just ¥800 short.
Li Ming stood up, opened drawers, checked under cushions, even flipped through old notebooks. Eventually, he scraped together the ¥800.
[Recharge successful. Current balance: ¥1,000,000]
[Do you want to activate Simulated Life?]
"Yes!"
Watching his balance reset to zero, Li Ming exhaled deeply.
He had underestimated the cost.
Originally, he thought the money from mortgaging the property would last him until after the pre-martial artist assessment. Then he'd receive his starting fund, use it for more simulations, and shoot for Luo Feng-level greatness.
But now?
That one simulation had burned through everything.
There would be no next simulation—not until he passed the test and signed a contract with a faction.
And that starting fund?
Most Warrior Levels only received ¥1,000,000.
That was one simulation.
With his talent, was one simulation enough?
Not a chance.
Especially not with that shadowy 'noble' looming in the background—one simulation might not even keep him alive past year three.
"To the Wilderness Area."
Li Ming's heart slowly became firm.
The pre-martial artist assessment would be postponed!
He wanted to strengthen his power as much as possible before signing the Warrior Level contract, to make his talent appear even more dazzling!
Only in this way could he obtain a sufficiently high amount of starting capital!
With money, he could continue to activate Simulated Life and enhance his power.
Moreover, he needed money not only for the system but also in reality.
Whether it was martial arts manuals or weapons and equipment, anything related to Warrior Level was expensive.
Whether it was martial arts manuals or weapons and equipment, anything related to Warrior Level was expensive.
And the best path for him to obtain a huge fortune now was the starting capital he would receive after signing the Warrior Level contract.
With his mind made up, Li Ming focused his gaze on the text that gradually appeared before him:
[At twenty-one, you became a pre-martial artist, and after passing the Warrior Level practical assessment, you were recruited by the two major Martial Halls, the military, and the HR Alliance, but you rejected them all and chose to go to the Wilderness Area to become a mercenary;]
[Within the mercenary group, although you did not receive the best training, the daily life-and-death struggles allowed you to make rapid progress in your understanding of martial arts;]
[At twenty-two, after a year of life-and-death struggles, your martial arts realm reached the advanced Warrior Level, and your combat skills and understanding of martial arts far surpassed before;]
[At twenty-three, the base you were stationed at welcomed a beast tide. In a desperate struggle, your sword technique broke through to Specialized Sword Skill. You were ultimately torn apart by a Beast General-Level monster.]
"Just as I thought—nothing teaches faster than blood and death."
Li Ming chuckled.
He didn't make it to age 24, but the gains were more valuable than ever.
Advanced Warrior Level. Specialized Sword Skill.
A harvest worth ten normal simulations.
[Simulation ended. Choose one of the following rewards:]
1. Martial arts realm
2. Martial arts insights
3. Half a day's memory before death
"Two."
No hesitation.
Previously, his focus was reaching Warrior Level.
But now, since he was already there, he needed depth—skill, awareness, precision.
Specialized Sword Skill was a realm normally reserved for Commander-level Warriors.
The moment he chose, a flood of insights surged into his mind—countless hours of sword drills, death matches, footwork, and feints.
Even without a weapon in his hand, Li Ming felt like a master swordsman.
For the first time, he didn't just have stats—he had skill.
Early Morning.
"Brother, why are you squatting here?"
Li Xue and Li Yu opened the door to find Li Ming sitting cross-legged outside the convenience store, smoking calmly.
Li Ming smiled at them.
"You two are skipping class today. We're going to the Martial Hall."
"Huh? Why? We have lectures—"
"Don't argue. Let's go."
Li Ming turned and walked off.
He had to reassure them. With his change in plans, he wouldn't be taking the pre-martial artist test just yet.
Letting them witness his strength was the best way to ease their worries.
And… he had a second reason.
He was broke.
He needed to borrow a sword.
At the Martial Hall, weapons could be rented by students. And right now, Li Ming couldn't afford a stick of gum, let alone a sword.
The twins looked at each other helplessly and jogged after him, calling their teacher on the way.
Half an hour later, they arrived at the gates of Limit Martial Hall.
Li Ming swiped his ID.
"Senior Brother!"
"Good morning, Senior Brother!"
Although it was early morning, there were still scattered students on the lawn in the courtyard. These students might not know Li Ming, but they recognized the advanced student ID card hanging on his chest.
Immediately, there was a wave of respect.
After all, in the entire Martial Hall, there were tens of thousands of students, but only a few hundred advanced students;
Li Ming paid no attention and walked straight towards the teaching building for advanced students.
Li Xue and Li Yu followed closely behind him.
Today, he wasn't just a hopeful.
He was a warrior.
And he was just getting started.
Inside the advanced teaching hall of Limit Martial Hall, the rhythmic thuds of fists against pads filled the air. A dozen or so advanced students were immersed in their training, their focus unbroken—until the door creaked open.
Heads turned.
"Oh? Li Ming, here to train again?"
Yang Wu, mid-spar with the scar-faced burly man from the previous day, paused to wipe sweat from his brow. He raised his voice over the noise.
Li Ming offered a calm nod. "Yesterday's breakthrough gave me clarity—I'm here to push further. Also, I need to speak with Instructor Jiang."
With a few quiet words to his twin sisters standing behind him, Li Ming made his way up the stairs to the fourth floor.
He had to first inform Jiang Nian that he would temporarily not participate in the martial artist assessment, and then see if he could borrow a weapon from Limit Martial Hall.
Upon entering the fourth floor of the advanced teaching hall, he easily found Jiang Nian.
At this moment, he was standing by the floor-to-ceiling window, looking down at the students on the lawn below.
"It's you, Li Ming. What brings you up here?"
Jiang Nian sensed Li Ming as soon as he stepped onto the fourth floor, turned to look at Li Ming, and a slight smile appeared on his face.
After Li Yue left yesterday, he used Extreme Martial Club's channels to thoroughly investigate Li Ming's information: twenty-one years old, no profound family background, yet able to meet the pre-martial artist standard.
Although he couldn't compare to those geniuses, he could at least become a Warlord level Warrior in the future, which was already quite good talent.
After all, he, Jiang Nian, was just a Warlord Level Warrior himself.
And if Jiang could recruit him into Limit Martial Hall? Rewards. Recognition. Maybe even a promotion.
"Instructor Jiang, I want to postpone my pre-martial artist assessment."
Jiang raised an eyebrow. "Postpone? Until when?"
"June 1st."
"Hmm… That's reasonable," Jiang said, stroking his chin. "Even if you passed tomorrow, you'd still wait until August for the unified combat assessment. A month's delay won't cost you."
Then came the real question. "What will you do with that month?"
Li Ming's answer dropped like a hammer.
"The Wilderness Area."
Jiang's face shifted instantly. "The Wilderness Area? Are you serious? That's suicide."
Li Ming met his gaze, a chilling gleam in his eyes. He didn't flinch.
"You know what it's like out there—and you still want to go?"
"I do."
"You haven't even cultivated gene energy! You're a pre-martial artist at best! One Warrior-level monster could end you in seconds!"
"I'm ready. After yesterday, I had a breakthrough. I believe I now meet the baseline for a Warrior."
Pre-martial artist strength began at 900 kilograms of punching power. With the simulated boost from genetic energy, Li Ming was now at 1,200.
He had reached the starting line.
Jiang Nian wasn't convinced.
"Numbers aren't everything! You've never fought a real battle! Even with the right strength, without experience, you're just meat for the grinder!"
He stepped closer, his tone intense.
"If you're determined to go, wait until after the combat assessment. Join Extreme Martial Club officially. We'll put you in a team led by a Warlord. You'll learn. You'll survive."
"I don't have time."
Li Yue's voice was iron.
The Simulated Life demanded resources. Money. And in the base city, saving a million yuan through odd jobs could take thirty years—or longer. He didn't have that luxury.
Jiang Nian stared into his eyes.
There was no room for doubt.
A sigh escaped him. "Then let's go downstairs. Show me what gave you this suicidal confidence."
Since it was his own choice, let him bear the consequences himself!
"First, let's test your Fist strength. The standard for an Beginner Warrior is an average punching power of 1200 kg. You try it."
Walking to the Fist strength testing machine, Jiang Nian looked at Li Yue and said.
Li Yue didn't dare to be vague upon hearing this. He gathered a little strength, then put all his might into a punch, striking the target of the Fist strength testing machine heavily!
Beep, beep, beep!
The punching power testing machine made three consecutive beeps.
A number then appeared on the display screen:
1415 kg!
Exceeding the Beginner Warrior Level standard by a full 200 kg!
This was considered quite good among elementary Warrior Level.
"Just one night, and your punching power increased by 200 kg?"
Jiang Nian frowned slightly, completely baffled.
The idea of cultivating genetic energy flashed through his mind, but it was immediately dismissed.
After all, even the worst Guiding Technique was not something Li Yue, an orphan, could afford, and furthermore, a twenty-one-year-old pre-martial artist could not possibly only gain 200 kg of punching power after their first time cultivating genetic energy!
"If this 200 kg increase in punching power is the source of your confidence, then I tell you, it's not enough!"
Though puzzled, Jiang Nian still made a final effort, earnestly persuading him:
"Monsters in the Wilderness Area are divided into Beast Soldier Level, Beast General Level, and Lord Level, corresponding to Warrior, Warlord, and Wargod, respectively. Even the weakest H Grade elementary Beast Soldier Level is comparable to your current strength."
"Don't talk about your current punching power being only thirteen or fourteen hundred. Even if it doubles, going to the Wilderness Area alone is a near-certain death!"
"Moreover, you don't have any combat experience!"
Li Yue stood silently.
Not denying. Not defending.
His fists were clenched—not in fear, but in resolve.
This was a gamble.
But it was his gamble to take.