[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-simulated-to-reality-i-once-looked-down-upon-ten":3,"chapter-simulated-to-reality-i-once-looked-down-upon-ten-simulated-to-reality-i-once-looked-down-upon-ten-chapter-647":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Simulated to Reality: I Once Looked Down Upon Ten Thousand Ages?",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2347662,4587,"Chapter 647: A Thousand Mountains Cannot Match This Peak","simulated-to-reality-i-once-looked-down-upon-ten-chapter-647",647,"\u003Cp>Yu Ke made no reply.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He recalled the last time, in his previous life as “Lu Chen,” he had personally participated in an event—begun without reason, ended without reason.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had wasted a chance at “personal participation.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now, the Master had gone to great lengths to bring him to this world, to activate the Divine Shock Array—only to trap himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Ke looked up at the sky, though all had returned to normal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The night remained deep, the moon high, casting its clear radiance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Master across from him seemed no longer interested in conversation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dong Cheng sighed, “Perhaps, in all history, no one has ever driven you to such a state.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Ke knew the Master had uncovered the secret of the Kunxu Cauldron—the realm within, holding sun, moon, mountains, and rivers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Heaven and earth give birth to all things. You do not seek to repay their grace, yet harbor a grudge to devour the heavens?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Ke gazed at the Master slowly, “I do not know where you obtained the Divine Shock Array. What are you truly seeking?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Master’s expression flickered, then quickly returned to calm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“A thousand years ago, had I attained the Dao and ascended, I would have been grateful to this heaven and earth, wishing to be remembered like Lu Chen.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Three hundred years later, I swore that if I ever ascended, I would free the people of Da Qi—and all living beings—from war and strife.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Another three hundred years passed. If heaven and earth permitted my ascension, I would send disciples across the land to bestow grace and save all beings.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Heaven and earth honored me with righteousness; I repaid them with the passage of seasons.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yet today, I know heaven and earth have never favored me. So I shall become… one who defies heaven.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Ke merely smiled faintly, saying nothing more.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Is it truly so?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Didn’t you intend to replace heaven and walk its path, to share its eternal life?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Master stared at Yu Ke’s expression—as if he had long seen through his thoughts—and his face darkened further.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ordinary mortals could never stir his heart, yet the man standing before him was the very embodiment of this world’s “Dao.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If you still have the leisure to waste words with me, it proves my assessment correct—otherwise, I would already be dead and buried.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You disdain to speak to me, but today I will speak anyway.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It is we—creatures you regard as ants—who will, as humans did six thousand years ago when spiritual energy vanished, topple the altars and temples, crush the immortals beneath our feet.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With that said!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Master’s aura plunged into profound stillness; the winds and clouds darkened like ink churning, his form transforming into a vortex that devoured all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A bone-chilling cold spread outward, colder than the deepest winter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The mist along the river thickened; a light breeze brushed by, carrying endless chill.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The fog along the riverbank froze into frost flowers on the willows, falling softly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Xie Guan”’s hair stirred in the cold wind; Yu Ke felt as if standing atop a peak of ten thousand blades, before him endless snow-capped mountains, icy winds howling against his face, impossible to climb.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Too cold!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cold to the marrow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every breath he drew felt like ice needles piercing his lungs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Ke had no choice but to activate all his cultivation, drawing forth his innate true qi to resist the cold.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Clearly, the Master was now serious.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Ke suddenly opened his eyes, summoning the “Tidal Buddha Hand” taught by Master Lianchi—a hand of Liuli  golden light instantly enveloped his entire body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet, in an instant!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under the assault of the cold wind, cracks appeared on the Buddha hand, then shattered violently.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man shook his head slightly, eyes holding a touch of pity and indifference.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Indeed, you are far too weak now.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This is merely my aura.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Master rolled up his sleeves and slowly extended his hand, as if reaching from a frozen Tan , condensing cold that surged straight toward Yu Ke.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Ke had long been poised; on his spiritual altar within the dantian, two sword intentions waited like silent blades.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He formed sword fingers, drew a deep breath, and slowly pushed his hands forward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One sword—slay demons!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One sword—slay ghosts!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Two sword intentions erupted from his index and middle fingers: one as cold and clear as moonlight—the Ghost-Slaying Sword.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The other as blazing and brilliant as the sun—the Demon-Slaying Sword.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These two swords, cultivated for months and infused with the accumulated sword intent of the lake, surpassed Yu Ke’s expectations in power.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sword intentions surged skyward, their aura like a rainbow!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Ke was certain—even a warrior of the upper three realms could be slain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The surrounding mist trembled, swept up by the two swords, rushing straight toward the Master.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The stone slabs beneath cracked and flipped; soil churned like a subterranean dragon passing, leaving a deep trench.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Ke’s innate qi and spiritual force were utterly spent; his breathing grew ragged, his face pale, the Shaoyang meridian in his fingers burning with pain from the sword intent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He forced through the pain, activating the “Nourishing Will: Spirit Turtle” from the Yin Fu Seven Arts, suppressing his exhausted spirit, slowly absorbing lunar essence from the moonlight to mend his primordial spirit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Simultaneously, the pattern of the second technique, “Five Dragon Auspicious Talisman,” took shape in his mind’s sea—this method preserved essence, qi, and spirit, stabilized personal fortune, and steadied his mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Ke looked up, his gaze fixed on the direction of the two sword intentions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And he saw!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man stood motionless, face calm, a faint smile on his lips.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The two piercing sword intentions, mere inches from the Master, were torn apart by invisible Gangqi  and vanished.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The ground bore deep furrows, as if plowed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dong Cheng spoke slowly, voice icy:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Borrowed sword intent is never your own.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His gaze burned into Yu Ke, “If you have no other means… you’ve forgotten—you descended into this world, and may use only its power.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yet in this world, I am the pinnacle.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As his words ended, heaven and earth fell utterly still; even the mist and river wind halted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Ke had exhausted all his strength merely to withstand the cold, and even his two swords could not reach the Master’s side.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What realm have you reached?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Master looked up at the sky; the constellation of the Divine Shock Array—the horse-head, dragon-body stars—was now fully formed, shining brilliantly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Several arrays from the capital’s roads had surged into the heavens, linking with the Divine Shock Array; a colossal array mirrored itself across the celestial dome.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only then did Dong Cheng reveal a true smile, turning his gaze to Xie Guan, tone tinged with pride:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“In martial arts, the highest realm is the Ninth Stage—Xuandan. Yet I have long crossed into the Tenth Stage—my blood and qi never decay; even if reduced to flesh and blood, I can regenerate.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“In primordial spirit cultivation, the highest is the Tenth Stage—Yangshen. I have already condensed a Nascent Soul; even without a body, I may walk the world.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“In the six thousand years since spiritual energy vanished, I dare say I am the greatest under heaven. Even Lu Yu, who three thousand years ago claimed invincibility and whose peak surpassed all mountains, could not match me.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Or rather—even if Lu Chen returned from death, I would still defeat him.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet Yu Ke sensed a subtle shift in the Master now—more composure, more confidence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From within the thick mist, a familiar female voice rang out:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Master Dong, you boast without shame. Our ancestor Lu Yu cultivated for only forty-eight years before shattering the void and ascending alone.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Master Dong, how old are you now?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Ke turned toward the voice and saw several figures approaching through the mist.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After using the Demon-Slaying and Ghost-Slaying Swords, he had sensed several auras drawing near—three of them unmistakably familiar.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The mist gradually thinned; the figures grew clear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the left stood an old monk in simple robes, face gentle, eyes half-closed, fingers turning a string of prayer beads.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the center stood a Daoist woman wearing a wide-brimmed hat, her figure hidden beneath loose robes, face obscured—she was the one who had just mocked Dong Cheng.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the right stood a mature middle-aged man, hands clasped behind his back, temples slightly streaked with gray, bearing a refined air.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The last to appear was an ordinary-looking boy, yet his eyes held a weariness far beyond his years.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Ke recognized Master Lianchi, Lu Hua, and the Demon Master Xu Jiangxian—but the boy, he had never seen before.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the four appeared!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Master’s aura receded; the coldness faded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Ke finally caught his breath, slowly exhaling to restore his essence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Hua, seeing “Xie Guan” here, first smiled, then seemed to recall something.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The boy among the four stepped forward, bowed respectfully to the Master.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Student Xu Xian, greetings, Master.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Master seemed to have anticipated their arrival; his eyes lifted slightly, sweeping over them without surprise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Finally, his gaze settled on Xu Xian, and he said calmly:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Xu Xi, we are no longer master and disciple. I never regarded you as a student. When we left the Eastern Sea, you rowed the boat—we were companions on the journey.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Back then, the four of you joined forces to kill me. Yet you were the only one who held back.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I never expected you to arrive first today.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Xian’s face flickered with pain, but he shook his head, his voice firm: “Once a teacher, always a teacher.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He finished speaking and straightened his body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Today, Xu Xian has come because he must.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xie Guan realized: this boy was the Grand Master of the Academy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Master chuckled at this. “Teacher-student bonds? Merely an illusion in the cycle of Heaven’s Dao.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What do you mean by ‘must come’? Is it for your own selfish desires, or for those so-called masses?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His gaze shifted to Lu Hua, his tone flat: “You are the Tian Shi of the Three Truths Sect? Such youth, so ignorant of heaven’s height and earth’s depth. Even your ancestor’s ancestor would have addressed me as Senior Brother.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Beneath his conical hat, Lu Hua let out a cold, mocking laugh:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Master Dong, my ancestor San Cong long ago uncovered your secret: you stole your Senior Brother’s body. That’s why he lured you into the Tomb of the Living Dead on Mount Zhongnan. If you were truly invincible, why did you flee in disgrace from Mount Zhongnan?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Ke heard this and stirred within—he recognized in Lu Hua the exact same fearless figure from his simulations.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As expected: Lu Hua was indeed the Tian Shi of the Three Truths Sect!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Master, upon hearing this, remained as calm as water, even nodding slightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The ancestors of the Three Truths Sect have all been extraordinary.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His tone was detached, as if speaking of strangers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Master had undergone multiple corpse liberation rebirths, founding the Great Qi, the Everlasting Heaven, and the Buddhist Kingdom—all of them unconquered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only within the Tomb of the Living Dead on Mount Zhongnan did he face the undecayed bodies and enduring spiritual wills of past ancestors, whose united force shattered his body, forcing him into corpse liberation once more.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mo Ce stared at the Master before him; his spiritual sense, once released, sank like a stone into a whirlpool of mud—vanished without trace.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Worse, in his perception, the Master seemed utterly empty; had he not seen him with his own eyes, he might have doubted his very existence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He felt no presence in this world!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Master had roamed the world for a thousand years—he was no mere pretender.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>According to the Xu family ancestral genealogy, the Xu patriarch who forged the “Golden Bloodline” and elevated his clan to the highest divine lineage of the steppe.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This man was very likely one of the Master’s identities after a corpse liberation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mo Ce’s eyes glinted with cold light.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Master surveyed the four present and spoke slowly: “One is the Demon Master of Everlasting Heaven, one is the World Walker of the Eastern Holy Sect, and another is my eldest disciple—all of you are tied to me.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’ve come at last—otherwise, I’d have had to seek you out one by one.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He turned his gaze to the Immortal Pavilion atop the Lotus Banquet after the flood control.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Master said calmly, “Yet… I have two more worthy disciples. One is obsessed with the final moves of a go game; the other, burdened by guilt, has never shown his face.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Master Lianchi clasped his hands and murmured a Buddhist chant: “Amitabha. Master Dong, cause and effect never fail. Ordinary men cling to external forms; Daoists seek the heart. When heart and realm are both forgotten, true Dharma appears. When the mind arises, all dharmas arise; when the mind ceases, all dharmas cease.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“With your cultivation realm, how can you still fail to see this?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Master smiled faintly. “Buddhism speaks of rebirth and heart cultivation. But I have long seen through the illusion of this world—why cling to cultivation?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I am the one who transcends all—like the Tathagata!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Master Lianchi merely murmured softly: “Amitabha.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A thousand years ago, this Master had taken the form of a monk—he was the second patriarch of the Eastern Holy Sect, and his Buddhist sutras still circulate there as sacred texts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In terms of Buddhist cultivation, the Master was also profoundly accomplished.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Xi’s expression was complex; his gaze finally settled on Xie Guan—he had already guessed something.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Those who follow the Dao receive much aid; those who abandon it receive little.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Master, upon hearing this, seemed utterly unconcerned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yet what right do you have to judge me?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I founded nations, ended wars, established Confucian doctrine, and civilized the masses. To the world, I am the Sage.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Hua could no longer hold back: “This world had no demons or monsters until the Tang Dynasty, when people claimed the Tang Emperor married a fox demon, bringing heaven’s wrath and human suffering. But they did not know—this chaos began when you first performed corpse liberation, injecting corpse qi into the Tang’s destiny, thus unleashing the demonic age.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Countless commoners have died over these thousand years. A Sage? Is there such a Sage in this world?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You are nothing but a coward who fears death.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Master listened, then nodded, admitting:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You are right—I do fear death. But what I crave is the supreme Dao, the boundless freedom of the Great Dao. What I dread is becoming a rotting corpse, unable to learn the methods of immortality or the scriptures of the immortals.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Xian knew he could not sway the Master with mere words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Those who follow different Dao cannot work together; each follows his own will.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This is what you taught me. Today, I return it to you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",2501,"2026-06-21T01:33:03.787Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","79995a064341463f690ab92eecc6e7781707f017a0dba45a14471129cf9fa1c4","simulated-to-reality-i-once-looked-down-upon-ten-chapter-648","simulated-to-reality-i-once-looked-down-upon-ten-chapter-646",728,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fsimulated-to-reality-i-once-looked-down-upon-ten-cover.jpg"]