Others Level Up, but I Pursue Cultivation! - Chapter 157

Chapter 157: Chapter 135: The Fear Barrier, The Terror in Su Xing’s Heart?

“Impossible! Absolutely impossible! How could I be such a shameless person?”

Su Xing saw his simulated self living a carefree life, and it made him so frustrated that his teeth itched.

“Well done, is this how you undergo worldly experience? It seems like you’ve learned your lesson!”

Su Xing wished he could directly initiate the immersive simulation and replace it with his body.

“Well, let’s see just how effective this worldly experience is, shall we?”

After hesitating for a while, Su Xing still looked toward the simulation panel.

[After entangling with Luo Shuying for several months, your waist strength -3, resistance to beauties +10.]

[But you still feel unsure, so you went to see Wang Qingxuan again…]

Su Xing:

[After such repetitious training for a year, you believe that your resistance to lust is sufficient, so you begin to prepare for a closed-door training to sever the ties of lust!]

[You took two Mind-Clarifying Pills, sat cross-legged before a thatched cottage, and united your thoughts with your Nascent Soul, allowing your spirit to slowly sink into it.]

[Soon, your consciousness slowly drifted away, and when you woke up again, you found yourself on Earth in your previous life.]

[It all seemed like a dream. In this life, you were a playboy, basked in the charms of beauty every day, and moved among various women as easily as a fish swimming in water.]

[You squandered your time, indulging in wine and pleasure without a second thought.]

[And so, ten years passed.]

[One day, as you were about to break up with a girlfriend you’ve been with for two weeks, you suddenly realized she looked familiar. In a sudden flash of insight, you remembered everything…]

[Because the girlfriend in front of you looked exactly like Jin Congxue.]

[Memories flooded your mind like a tide, and you quickly realized you were in a simulation, undergoing the lust challenge among the five trials!]

[When you realized all this, you successfully walked out of the illusion and returned to the real world.]

[When you came back to the real world, you found that a whole month had passed.]

[But the ten years of memories in that illusion, as if truly lived through, were etched in your mind, enhancing your mental state.]

[Congratulations on successfully overcoming one of the five challenges of Divinity Transformation, the Lust Challenge!]

Su Xing’s eyes flashed with a hint of confusion as he read this.

“Is that it? One of the five challenges of Divinity Transformation, the Lust Challenge, doesn’t seem that difficult!”

“And… what exactly is the key to breaking through? Is it realizing that I’m in a simulation?”

Su Xing’s eyes held some doubt.

With just the simple simulation text, it was hard for Su Xing to imagine what he had gone through in the Lust Challenge.

“But… it’s good to get through it. If the first test was passed so effortlessly, then the remaining ones shouldn’t be difficult either, right?”

“Strange, why is the difficulty different from what’s described in the ancient books? Could it be… I’m a genius?”

Su Xing felt excited for a moment and looked toward the simulation panel.

The second of the five challenges is the Fear Challenge!

“So, what is my greatest fear?”

Su Xing seemed lost in thought.

“After passing through the Passion Trial, although you spent ten years in the illusory realm, only one month has actually passed in the real world.”

“During this month, there has been no change in the real world; everything outside remains as it was.”

“You start preparing for the upcoming second trial, the Fear Trial, but after much contemplation, you couldn’t think of anything you are particularly afraid of, so you decide to begin the trial of the Fear Trial.”

“In the seventh year, you chose an auspicious day, united your thoughts, and initiated the Fear Trial.”

“The Fear Trial, unlike the previous Passion Trial, brought you into a void, where you could not sense the passage of time or even feel your own existence… ”

“When you awoke again, you found yourself back in the real world, apparently having successfully breached the Fear Trial.”

“Everything was the same as before.”

“Thus, over the next year, you continuously broke through three barriers and entered the Divinity Transformation Stage!”

“After stepping into Divinity Transformation, you were like a fish in water, effortlessly slaying Damned Zong and claiming his legacy.”

“Having absorbed this legacy, your strength greatly increased and in just ten short years, you reached the peak of the Divinity Transformation Stage!”

“Subsequently, you entered the Demon-Subduing Pass where, with your formidable strength, you continued to slay members of the Demon Race and even vanquished Legendary Demon Beasts, gaining a large amount of Flesh Essence.”

“In just five years, you brought your Body Refinement Cultivation Level to the completion of the Divine Strength Realm!”

“Following this, it seemed as if the heavens favored you, the Son of Destiny.”

“You accidentally received news that the Great Xia Country had discovered a mysterious Cultivation instance, so you entered to explore the Cultivation instance.”

“Half a year later, you emerged from the instance, having gained greatly from it, with countless Spirit Stones and Cultivation Techniques, and in just a few years, you made another breakthrough, entering the Return to Void Realm!”

“It all seemed to be progressing towards the better… ”

“After breaking into the Return to Void Realm, in pursuit of the path to higher realms, you activated the Qingyun Sect Token and entered the world where your master, Qing Yunzi, resided.”

“Qing Yunzi took a great liking to you, you received his inheritance, and in less than ten years, you broke through again, becoming an Integration Phase great power Cultivator!”

“After breaking into the Integration Phase, you returned to the real world, where the Human Race was facing an existential crisis, but you took action!”

“You supported the faltering Great Xia, single-handedly defeating countless Foreign Races at Demon-Subduing Pass.”

“Alone, you extended the destiny of the Human Race for a hundred years, where the world seemed to return to peace and Demonic Beasts became but legends among professionals.”

“And within this hundred years, you successfully broke into the Mahayana Realm, ultimately achieving Immortality.”

“Just when you were full of pride, the entire sky darkened, and a gigantic beast that blotted out the sun appeared before you, countless demons crawling out of the Abyss.”

“It seemed the Foreign Race had never left; they were merely waiting silently for an opportunity.”

“However, you held them in contempt, for now, as an Immortal, you regarded yourself as invincible in the world.”

“But no matter how you wielded your Divine Skills and Mana, you still couldn’t harm a single hair of the beast before you… ”

“You were utterly afraid; could it be that even as an Immortal, you cannot drive out the Foreign Race?”

“Suddenly, a thought came to your mind: when you realize that no amount of effort can bring change, will you still hold on?”

“You chose to give up, and fear engulfed you…”

“The beast swallowed you whole, and consumed with intense fear, you died within the belly of the beast…”

“You died!”

[Ding, your Primordial Spirit has dissipated due to failing to sever the fear, and the simulation has ended!]

Su Xing was stunned for a moment.

“What the hell? So everything that just happened… was all in an illusion?”

“My greatest fear… comes from this?”

Su Xing slightly frowned.

He had realized something was amiss halfway through the simulation.

Everything had been going too smoothly until the simulation ended, and only then did Su Xing come to an epiphany.

“I was wondering… if becoming an Immortal directly through a simulation wasn’t too hasty a conclusion…”

“So everything was fake! I was merely trapped in the illusion of the fear trial, and everything that followed was shaped by my deepest fears and imaginings?”

Su Xing was slightly shocked; without experiencing the fear trial firsthand, he couldn’t imagine how all this happened.

“So, is it about realizing that I am in an environment and then dispelling the delusions in my heart, facing them head-on, to successfully pass the test?”

After two simulations, Su Xing realized the key to breaking through.

He then looked at the rewards for this simulation.

[Profit-Seeking Avoidance]: Purple Talent, priced at one million points of energy.

[Six Years of Alchemy Experience]: Alchemy insights, including some Infant Tempering Elixirs (Mahayana Level), priced at one million points of energy.

[Half-step Divinity Transformation (Fear Trial)]: Cultivation level and mindset insights, upon purchase you will directly sever the desire trial and obtain the memories and experience of passing through the fear trial, priced at three million points of energy.

Su Xing lightly frowned because of the failure to break through; the reward choices left for him this time were somewhat few.

“Tsk, just three rewards, saves me the trouble of choosing!”

Su Xing silently thought to himself.

“I choose the Purple Talent Profit-Seeking Avoidance and the half-step Divinity Transformation cultivation level!”

[Ding, it’s detected that your talent column is full, you can spend one million energy points to expand to a third additional talent slot, would you like to expand?]

“One million? Sure enough, it’s increased tenfold… but I can afford this amount of energy!”

Su Xing silently thought:

“Expand the additional talent slot!”

Then, a prompt was heard by his ear.

[Ding, congratulations on successfully expanding an additional talent slot, cost one million energy points, remaining energy points 43.88 million.]

[You have successfully taken out the talent Profit-Seeking Avoidance, cost one million points of energy, remaining energy points 42.88 million.]

[You have successfully taken out the half-step Divinity Transformation (Fear Trial) cultivation level, cost three million points of energy, remaining energy points 39.88 million.]

Once the simulator’s notification sounds ended, two streams of energy surged into Su Xing’s body.

Immediately after, his body underwent subtle changes; his grasp over nature’s spiritual energy around him seemed even more effortless, with a simple inhale and exhale, he could mobilize a vast amount of spiritual energy.

Not only that!

This was Su Xing’s most unique breakthrough!

Because apart from the advancement of his cultivation level, many memories also flooded into Su Xing’s mind.

It was everything he had seen while breaking through the desire and fear trials!

Su Xing closed his eyes to recuperate, beginning to assimilate the memories in his mind.

In the first memory, Su Xing, who had initially lingered among the playboys in the Hundred Flowers Pavilion, experienced every scene from those ten years as if he had lived through them himself.

In the end, Su Xing saw through the illusion and achieved an elevation in his mindset.

As he watched everything in the memory, Su Xing indeed indulged his eyes.

However, the second segment of memories was not as pleasant.

In this memory, Su Xing initially swept through everything as if he were the Son of Destiny, achieving Immortality.

But even after making his utmost effort, he still failed, and the feeling of powerlessness and fear made Su Xing empathize deeply.

Su Xing had his eyes closed for a long time before opening them again, with two teardrops sliding down the corners of his eyes.

Only after personally experiencing the fear trial did he realize how terrifying it was to confront one’s innermost fears.

Just like someone afraid of snakes waking up to find themselves in a nest of snakes, surrounded by venomous serpents and pythons, feeling so helpless and terrified…

After a while, Su Xing’s voice carried a touch of vicissitude:

“So this is what the five trials of Divinity Transformation are like… facing the most real part of oneself squarely through the illusion, to break through the true self and strive for Divinity Transformation…”

Su Xing felt somewhat fortunate; without his simulator, trying to pass the five trials would have been like using a cheat code, otherwise, passing the five trials of Divinity Transformation would have likely been incredibly difficult.

“No wonder so many talents in the Cultivation World fell at the hands of these five Divinity Transformation trials, with the ones who had the potential for a perfect Nascent Soul Integration if a hundred existed, ninety-nine would probably be unable to pass…”

“And once failed, only death awaited!”

“Fortunately, I have the simulator, which allows me to simulate and restart over and over. Passing these five Divinity Transformation trials is just a matter of time for me!”

For Su Xing, after digesting these insights.

He had not only gained the confidence to break through the fear trial but felt even more certain about the next three trials!

“I’ll strive to break through more barriers in the next simulation and enter the Divinity Transformation Stage sooner!”

Su Xing clenched his fists, filled with motivation.

Afterward, as usual, following the simulation, Su Xing proceeded to make elixirs.

In one week, six thousand elixirs were successfully crafted!

Later, Su Xing made a trip to the villa, Jin Congxue was away on business this week, so after Su Xing collected the new week’s goods, he entered the Spirit Field Blessed Land again.

The energy value of this batch of goods was still around fifteen million.

“Tsk, a weekly income of fifteen million energy, it feels quite nice indeed!”

A slight smile curled at the corners of Su Xing’s mouth.

On May 27, 2024, Su Xing punctually began his thirty-eighth simulation.

“This time, I will definitely break through the fear trial!”

After assimilating the insights from the previous simulation, Su Xing was filled with confidence as he looked at the simulation panel.

“Begin simulation!”