“It’s almost exactly the same as the me in the real world,” Lu Mo said softly, carefully examining her reflection in the water.
In this Simulated Reincarnation, her age was similar to her age in reality. Her appearance was also almost identical. It provided a strong sense of immersion. If she hadn’t called up the system and seen the “Save and Exit” button in the top left corner, she might have thought this wasn’t a game, but that she had truly stepped into history.
Elia was fast asleep in the room, her breathing light. She hadn’t slept for several days. After they found a quiet place to stay and stopped to rest, she had unintentionally fallen asleep almost immediately. At the moment, she lay on the bed with her body still tense. Even now, she hadn’t been able to relax.
Lu Mo covered her with a blanket and tiptoed away, careful not to disturb her.
They were staying in a small cabin in the woods. There were no signs that Shadow Moon Hall or the Frost Whisper imperial family had begun a search, so the two of them were temporarily safe. Over the past few days, Lu Mo had gathered more information about this Simulated Reincarnation.
“World Calendar year 1145.”
The real world also used the World Calendar, but compared to reality, this simulation took place over 300 years earlier.
“As for my current status…”
Lu Mo raised her hand. In the next instant, the power of shadows emerged from her fingertips, faintly threatening to erode the surroundings. This was the strength of a High-order Rank 7.
A sixteen-year-old at High-order Rank 7—this kind of talent would allow one to be groomed directly as an heir to the throne in the Ward Duchy. Furthermore, in this Simulated Reincarnation, Lu Mo possessed a special talent.
Special talents referred to powerful gifts in fields other than cultivation. For example, specific bloodlines or innate holy bodies all fell under the category of special talents. The special talent Lu Mo possessed was called [Light and Shadow]. Her affinity for both the light and dark attributes was “Transcendent.”
This meant her speed in comprehending battle techniques of these two attributes was several times faster than others. When performing corresponding techniques, their power would also be greatly enhanced. It would be much easier for her to enter the Earthen Pulse Realm using light and darkness than it would be for anyone else.
This was also the reason she had been targeted and forcibly taken away by Shadow Moon Hall back then. However, Shadow Moon Hall had only detected her dark attribute talent at the time. She had always hidden the fact that her special talent was [Light and Shadow].
She had no fondness for Shadow Moon Hall either. For the past dozen or so years, she had been shrouded in darkness and blood. It was oppressive and suffocating. Escaping with Elia actually gave her a sense of relief.
‘If only I could bring this kind of power back to the real world during the final settlement.’
Lu Mo felt that her current strength could instantly kill the version of herself in reality.
‘Wait a minute, why has the real-world me become a unit of measurement!’
“Never mind, never mind.” Lu Mo shook her head with a bitter smile.
While Elia was asleep, she quickly walked out of the house alone and began to cultivate in the clearing. She first practiced the *Shadow Moon Secret Manual* as she usually did. After all, the *Shadow Moon Secret Manual* was the most top-tier among all the secret techniques she mastered.
However, since she had betrayed Shadow Moon Hall, she certainly couldn’t use the manual openly outside.
“From now on, I’ll cultivate both light and shadow, but I’ll mainly use light attribute power in public,” Lu Mo murmured to herself. She thought of a light attribute secret technique she had accidentally obtained in the past: *Glory Dream*.
Although it was a level below the *Shadow Moon Secret Manual*, it was more than enough for hiding her identity and for combat.
“Then, let’s begin.”
As Lu Mo spoke, she followed the method described in *Glory Dream* and began her attempt at cultivation. Her comprehension skills in this simulation weren’t bad, and in reality, while she lacked cultivation talent, she possessed an incredibly startling level of perception.
With the two combined, it only took a short while before she passed the basic threshold. She danced with her sword under the night sky, wisps of light attribute power flowing around her.
Clouds drifted by, and gradually, a sliver of the moon was revealed. The cold moonlight spilled into the quiet forest, making the girl’s figure appear even clearer. It also cast a long shadow from the girl who was hiding to the side, secretly watching her.
Without Lu Mo noticing when it started, Elia had been secretly hiding nearby, watching her practice her swordplay.
‘So beautiful.’
That was the first thought that occurred to Elia upon seeing Lu Mo’s graceful movements. She watched Lu Mo with intense focus, trying hard to memorize every step and every swing. She imagined herself holding a sword, gently swinging it through the air.
If she could be as strong as Lu Mo one day, would she be able to avenge her family?
*Whoosh—*
Lu Mo swung her sword one last time. The flowing light attribute power surged along the blade like a light dragon. As she withdrew her power, the light dragon suddenly dispersed, turning into a sky full of fireflies.
Elia tried to mimic Lu Mo’s sword swing, but because she used too much force, she instantly lost her balance.
“Whoa—!”
She tumbled forward and fell face-first into the dirt.
“That hurts…” she whimpered softly. Then she realized she had been exposed!
Looking up in a panic, she saw Lu Mo walking toward her.
‘What is Lady Lu Mo going to do?’
Elia panicked. She suddenly remembered when she was a child, two external members had tried to steal imperial secret techniques. After being discovered, their cultivation had been stripped away, and they were exiled to the border.
Did her watching count as stealing? Would she… be punished by Lady Lu Mo?
While Elia’s little head was spinning with frantic thoughts, Lu Mo had already reached her.
“Are you all right?”
Contrary to her expectations, Lu Mo didn’t intend to blame her. Instead, she expressed concern for her well-being.
“I-I-I-I-I… I’m fine!” Elia answered clumsily, accidentally biting her tongue.
“You were watching me practice just now, weren’t you?” Lu Mo asked.
‘As expected, I couldn’t hide from Lady Lu Mo’s eyes.’
Elia lowered her head and replied with some shame, “Yes… I was.”
“Actually, you don’t need to hide,” Lu Mo said with a smile.
“I’m sorry, I won’t do it again… Huh?”
Elia looked up in surprise, only to see Lu Mo’s smiling face again. The young woman crouched down to face her and handed her the sword.
“Wanna learn? I’ll teach you.”
Looking into Lu Mo’s sincere and clear eyes, Elia became even more flustered. She lowered her head, and her small face quickly turned beet red. After tens of seconds passed, she finally spoke in a small voice.
“…Thank you, Lady Lu Mo.”
Not long after, the girl gripped the sword and began to swing it awkwardly under the moonlight. Lu Mo watched from the side, either giving guidance or directly helping her correct her posture, never showing any impatience.
Every night on their escape route was like this. Lu Mo wanted Elia to increase her strength and realm by practicing *Glory Dream*.
But the cruel reality was — Elia truly had no talent.
Before awakening the Frost Whisper bloodline, her performance wasn’t even as good as an ordinary person’s. After a month, she couldn’t even manage the basic entry for *Glory Dream*. Several times, she collapsed on the ground halfway through the technique due to physical exhaustion.
Lu Mo wanted to help Elia up, but she soon saw her standing up while enduring exhaustion and pain, gripping the sword with trembling hands to continue practicing. She didn’t even care about the blood dripping from the hilt of the sword.
Lu Mo saw the persistence in her eyes. She had no talent, yet she still persisted. In a daze, Lu Mo seemed to see a shadow of herself in Elia.
‘But it can’t go on like this, can it?’ Lu Mo thought to herself.
The secret techniques she mastered were limited. And the cultivation methods of Shadow Moon Hall, which were comparable to torture, were completely unsuitable for Elia.
The best way…
‘Maybe it’s time for Elia to go to school?’
Moreover, it had to be a top-tier academy. Lu Mo pondered. After leaving the region where Shadow Moon Hall and the Frost Whisper imperial family were located and confirming they were completely safe, she should start working on this matter.
Speaking of which, wasn’t it almost time for her own school to start in the real world? Her family had spent a lot of money to finally get her an admission slot for Cangyu Academy. Cangyu Academy was considered a relatively top-tier academy among those several major domains.
As for why they wanted her to go to school? It was because the family didn’t want her education to be too low, as it would affect her marriage prospects. If her educational background were investigated and found to be fabricated, it would inevitably affect her value. Once she entered a higher institution, the chances of her being discovered by the imperial family and great noble houses would also be greater.
But who knew that she would later be targeted by that dangerous predatory woman from the Ye Lan imperial family?
***
In the real world.
“I want to go to Cangyu Academy,” Elia said.
“Certainly, Lady Elia.” The woman beside her immediately took out a notebook and wrote it down. “I’ll go and coordinate with their dean right away. Lady Elia, for your visit this time, you should have them arrange your residence in advance and put up banners…”
“None of that is necessary. I intend to enter as a student.”
“Understood, I’ll go… Huh?!”
The woman suddenly stopped speaking. The notebook and pen in her hands fell to the ground because her hands were shaking. It took a long time before she recovered her ability to form sentences and spoke with difficulty. “Lady Elia… You said you want to…”
“Yes.”Elia nodded and continued, “Elia, sixteen years old, a student. Is there a problem?”
‘There’s a huge problem, okay!’
A student? If they truly compared seniority, the dean would only be fit to kowtow to Elia. And sixteen years old…
The woman didn’t dare to think further. Beside Elia, she could only grit her teeth and reply, “No, no problem…”
‘Sixteen years old…’
Elia thought to herself as she gently stroked the crystal in front of her. That was also the age Lu Mo had been when she took her to enroll back then. That year was truly nostalgic…