After a bit of cultivation, Jing whispered, "Aukhman."

"What is it?!" The demon asked after he appeared at the edge of his bed, gazing at the busy cultivating disciples.

"Tell me more about those Game Coins," Jing said. "What can I do with those 5000 that I have?"

With a smile, Aukhman explained, "Game Coins are the lifeblood of the game," he said. "They are the medium a weak nobody like you can use to become something legendary. However, before that could be possible, you need to raise your access level. Yours now is zero, so you can't do anything other than access your window status. So, all you need to do now is put every single coin that you have into raising your access level, it is only when more options are available will you have to make a choice."

"Oh?" Jing murmured with astonishment. "Can you tell me about those access levels then?"

"Of course not," Aukhman replied as a matter of fact.

"Figured as much," Mumbled Jing. He sarcastically rubbed his hands together as he licked his lips and opened his status window.

His eyes intently focused on the Access Level tab and soon foreign knowledge was leaked into his mind.

"1,000 Game Coins to level 1?" He asked.

The demon shrugged, "I don't know, it changes every time. But just do it."

"Here goes nothing," Jing said.

Clicking a wordless accept that was transmitted more so through an intuitive feeling other than an obvious interface, he accepted the deal.

[-1000 Game Coins]

[Congratulations, Your Access Level Now is: 1]

[Representative's Leeway Grade 1.]

[Send Friend Request/Chat Option.]

Jing's eyebrows shot up in surprise, but he clicked the upgrade button once again.

[-2000 Game Coins]

[Congratulations, Your Access Level Now is: 2]

[Representative's Leeway Grade 2.]

[Send Items Through Friend Menu.]

[Cultivation Aide Grade J.]

His eyes narrowed at the second upgrade, it had a lot more...things. Unfortunately, he wasn't able to increase to level 3, as much as he was curious about what that would offer. He needed 3.000 Game Coins, and he only had 2.000 left.

He noticed that the demon's eyes were slightly unfocused as he stared in his direction. "Can you see this?" He asked.

"Yes, yes." Said Aukhman. "You've got a lot of good things here. And as I was expecting, things changed. In the previous games there was no Friend Request option, nor was there a chat, or even this crazier one Send Items. They have a lot of potential."

Jing's eyes glazed through the notifications once again, "First things first," he said. "What does that representative's leeway mean?"

"That's not a bad one," Aukhman chuckled. "It means how free I can be in interacting with you and this world. The Grade now is 2 and though it sounds like it's a lot, it's not. I can only use some of my powers in a range very close to you to help."

"What power are these?" Jing asked.

"Now, I only can record, and maybe a mental link," Aukhman said. "I can record things for you so that you'd be able to go through them whenever you want. A meeting perhaps. A fight? Something like that."

"Hmm..." Murmured Jing, with a deep pondering look. However, as beneficial as the recordings would be, his mind was more so focused on the words, 'For now.' The implication was clear.

"Anyways," He said. "Send friend request and chat option I suppose are what they say?"

"Frankly, I don't know," Aukhman said with curiosity. "I am not familiar with them, but from the name, I imagine that to be the case."

"I see," Jing uttered, his eyes continuously reading the rest. "Send items that are also intuitive, but what in the world is that Cultivation Aide Grade J?"

"Grade J," Repeated Aukhman. "Usually, it's an arena where you can fight against the other players. Though with how many changes I have seen so far, I am not entirely sure what it is now. Just open your status window and you'll find it there."

Jing did as he was told, 'System.'

[~Status Window~]

Name: Xie Jing

Age: 16

Cultivation: Body Tempering(9)

Soul Purity: 63%

Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

Affiliation: The Golden Mountain Sect(Wandering Abyss Demonic Sect)

Rank: #836

Access Level: 2

Episodes: 0

Reviews: 0

Views: 0

Followers: 0

Favorites: 0

Game Coins: 2.000

Leaderboard.

Loot(1).

Friends.

Cultivation Aide(J).

-

From the name, Jing could tell that it was something good, and so without wasting any more time he immediately clicked it. A new blue menu emerged, and at the top left corner there was only one row with the words, "Battle Simulation: 500GC"

"Hmmm..." Turning to look at the demon he asked, "It said Battle Simulation for 500 Game Coins, how does it work?"

"Oh? Battle Simulation?" Aukhman murmured. "It has indeed changed but I suppose it makes sense since this is the Great Reincarnation series. Just try it and you'll see, what are you afraid of?"

"500 is too expensive though," Jing said with a frown. But the fact that he had spent a whole 2000 to get it meant that he had to try it, and so he clicked on it. The moment that was done, his consciousness blinked out of existence. A moment passed that felt both like an instant and eternity stretched before his eyes opened.

"What?!" He said aloud due to sheer shock at the palpable change.

He found himself in a completely new place. He was in a very narrow grey rocky mountain gorge, surrounded by two wide but short mountain hills on each side. If he stretched both hands at the same time he would be able to touch the two mountains at the same time. Behind him, the gorge seemed to stretch infinitely, but when he looked forward he could see vast plains of rocky plains interspersed with hills. The sky was dark grey with large thick sinuous clouds that twisted abnormally, as arcs of white lightning thundered from time to time.

The wind's mournful howl echoed through the barren landscape, a haunting lament that seemed to carry the weight of past sorrows, giving Jing a very eerie feeling. It swept through the air with a chilling ferocity, whipping dust and debris into frenzied spirals that danced across the desolate terrain, and scaring the lone human out of his wits.

Jing's head was frantically turning left and right, trying to catch a glimpse of something that he knew was watching him. Yet, search as he might, there were only rocks and wind.

'What in the world is this place?' He thought. 'Was I teleported somewhere and I have to survive to get out?'

In the absence of life, the wind was the only voice that remained. In an attempt to ease his worries, Jing began to walk to find something else, anything. 'No no, it said simulation, I don't think this is real.' He mused, and though that thought managed to bring him some relief, the situation he found himself in was still too peculiar.

The sound of rocks falling echoed from behind him. His steps suddenly halted as he turned to look behind him with a wary and alert look. He couldn't help but nervously gulp as he studied the gorge and the surrounding mountain slopes. Even the sound of his breathing was kept to a minimum for his ears to function unobstructed. He stood there for a few minutes, and just as his head was slowly moving to its original position he caught a swift blur in his periphery vision.

Following its direction, he didn't find anything. By then his mind was already wildly beating as he could feel the fear pulsating through every inch of his body in a paradoxical mix of hot and cold that made him shiver in fright. He swallowed yet again and cautiously advanced forward. When he was but a few paces from reaching the end of the mountain a tall creature suddenly appeared in front of him.

At the end of the mountain gorge loomed a towering, menacing figure, its form obscured by the shadows cast by the jagged cliffs that surrounded it. Clad in rugged, weather-beaten rocky dirty dark brown attire, the creature stood with eyes and a mouth that resembled those of a crying man. Sharp, angular features jutted out from its stony facade, and its rocky teeth reached way below its slender neck.

Its eyes gleamed with an unearthly white glow from deep within its rocky face, sending shivers down the spine of Jing whose mouth was ajar as he stumbled backward at the sight.

With each step, the creature's rocky form seemed to shift and contort, as if molded by the very essence of an intangible matter. Its presence was palpable, a wild force of nature that exuded an aura of the unknown, awakening a fear in Jing that he didn't even know was possible.

The creature took another step, its movements were careful, slow, and unhurried. Its shadowy legs pushed the rocks on the ground forward, as if it couldn't step beyond them. Due to the sound of the moving rocks, Jing finally woke up from his panic-driven stupor and started running in the opposite direction with a heart that was even more frantic than him.

Amidst his ragged breaths and chaotic run across the rocky terrain, he would turn around to find the creature slowly moving in his direction, its face morphing into a sadistic smile. A sight that he was certain would stay with him for the rest of his days. He ran and ran through the winding path between the two mountains, and continued to run even more. He ran for hours without even stopping, and yet it was as if he didn't run at all. The path was still laid out before him, without an end in sight, and the creature was perfectly behind him, unfazed.

'What kind of cursed nightmare is this?' He yelled in his mind. However, he comforted himself that an end was surely close and he continued running. This back and forth repeated itself for the next five or six hours, until his legs felt like weak boiled noodles and he fell to the ground, his chest wildly heaving up and down.

In fact, with how ruthless and sadistic the game seemed to him so far, he was certain that if he died here he would die in reality too. That was why he kept on running for all of those hours.

How real everything was from his clothes, his body, and the environment made him even more certain of that. That is exactly why as he turned to look at the smiling monster that was emitting a god-awful sound with its long rocky fangs, blood drained out from his face and his consciousness was about to call it a day.

Step by step, the creature moved, and Jing crawled away after his legs were no longer able to hold him until he felt a cool touch behind him. When he turned around he found the creature's face less than an inch distant from his, the abruptness of it all made him release a scream that he had never heard another human utter.

Hearing the sound, the creature's expression turned angry and vicious, its sharp arms appeared out of nowhere and stabbed Jing in the throat, killing him instantly.

His consciousness blinked once again and he found himself sitting cross-legged in his own bed. However, though the environment changed his emotions remained the same. His body which was normal just a few seconds ago began hyperventilating as droplets of sweat oozed out of every pore of his body.

The sight of the demon before him, and the sounds from the nearby disciples managed to bring him enormous comfort and after a while, he calmed down. "What?" Jing asked the demon through their shared mental connection. "What the hell was that?"