High Martial Arts Races: I Ascend to the Future in a Simulation

The sky was shrouded in a black iron wall, occasionally punctuated by a gigantic sun, as large as an incandescent bulb, streaking across its steel orbit and bringing light to the creatures on the earth below.

Countless beings live within the iron-walled sky.

This is their world, a world completely different from what it was back then.

You grow up little by little, and then receive an education at school.

The teachers in the school were dedicated and conscientious, not only instructing students on the basic necessities of survival in this feudal era, but also on many ethical principles that were relevant to the present time.

[Also, if you're interested, you can audit courses at other places to prepare for your future.]

[Except for a very few exceptions, such as when the people live in peace and prosperity, without war, disease, natural disasters, bandits, or emperors who can decide life and death or exterminate nine generations of a family with a single word.]

This place is essentially a feudal dynasty: a utopian ancient kingdom, a paradise on earth.

Officials were kind and approachable, and lower-level clerks diligently enforced the law. No one ever felt that they were superior, nor did they ever feel that they were anything more than ordinary people.

Whether they are high-ranking officials or ordinary farmers, they are completely equal; the only difference is their profession.

[But there is no occupational discrimination here. No one thinks that high-ranking officials are more noble, nor does anyone think that those who collect manure are lowly. At most, they just think that the latter's surroundings are too smelly and need to be cleaned before they want to get close.]

This is an exquisitely beautiful, dreamlike world.

During your studies at the academy, you learn that the people living here call this world "the Land of Humans."

As the name suggests, it is the kingdom of men.

[It is a country where everyone can live and work in peace and contentment, grow up happily and healthily, and die a peaceful and fulfilling death.]

As for the founder of this nation, it was many, many years ago, a man known as the Great One.

There is very little information about him, after all, the era is too far removed, so far that all records have become blurred, and there is no record of him in any text or even electronic devices.

The world has maintained this state for an unknown number of years—perhaps ten thousand, perhaps a hundred thousand, or even a million.

Listen to the people here: at the edge of the world, on the iron wall at the edge, there are marks that seem to have been carved by a great being.

However, no one can confirm it, and no one knows what those marks mean.

"The End of the World..."

You have a vague feeling that the answer to the question in your mind should be there.

Either it's outside the iron wall.

But you're reluctant to go... afraid to go.

[He just drifted through life in this feudal region, attending school, choosing subjects he liked, and occasionally looking up at the huge incandescent light bulb and the surrounding dark steel sky.]

[Under normal circumstances, when people see a clearly defined, solid, steel-like closed structure above their heads, many would think of breaking it down.]

But here, no one felt doubt, nor did anyone feel that they were living in a man-made world.

[The universe has always been this way. Even those living in technologically advanced areas would only perceive their roofs and light bulbs as imitations of the heavens, without questioning whether the heavens are man-made.]

They never even considered exploring beyond the heavens, nor did they ever dream of shattering the incandescent sun, for that was utterly impossible.

This is what they learned in elementary school, and this is what they experienced as adults, so it has become an unchanging belief for them throughout their lives.

This world has no stars, no starry sky, or similar vocabulary.

[But they have already reached the pinnacle of beauty; no one needs to cultivate or explore any further. The great ones of countless years ago have already helped them reach the summit of the world.]

This is the eternally established kingdom of men.

[You will have a coming-of-age ceremony when you turn sixteen.]

[You need to choose the era in which you will live next. Your parents have dressed you up, making you look your most handsome and dashing. They have never interfered with your thoughts or controlled your future, leaving everything to you to choose.]

[Because they were treated this way by their parents and received this kind of education from a young age.]

There should be no restrictions between people that go against their will.

You can choose to fight wolves for a living on the edge of the Ninth Ring Road in Human Kingdom, or you can enjoy a fully automated and lazy life in the center of the First Ring Road.

You can turn back at any time, and there are an unlimited number of times you can change your mind.

[They can even decide their own position—whether they want to be an ordinary mayor, an ordinary citizen, or an ordinary singer.]

However, some popular positions with a fixed number of openings require competition; unless a vacancy happens to open, you'll need to wait in line and undergo an assessment.

These positions offer no special privileges or enhanced benefits.

Beside you, Ju Xiaoyi, your classmate of ten years, seemed somewhat excited.

"Xu Fei, I've made up my mind!"

"First, I'll become a chieftain in the Eighth Ring of the Human Kingdom, then a pirate singing loudly on the high seas in the Sixth Ring, then a woman in the Third Ring, and finally experience the life of a street prostitute in the Fifth Ring, to see if it's really as exciting as my father said!"

"I just don't know if I can be as resolute as my father and eventually turn back into a man... Hahaha, maybe I'll end up like my mother, deciding not to change back and marry a good brother."

"By the way, are you interested?"

Xu Fei: "..."

This human kingdom was beyond his imagination.

The degree of freedom seems too high.

And this Ju Xiaoyi... His words are completely contrary to feudalism, tradition, and etiquette!

You don't know what interests he's asking about—whether it's the desire to experience different professions, or the idea of ​​marrying your best friend—but your conservative and traditional views prevent you from asking.

You simply felt the full restoration of your inner strength, as if it were a death knell, holding a calligraphy brush in your hand, with Xuan paper spread out on the table.

After hesitating for a long time, he slowly put pen to paper, and as the ink touched the snow-white paper, he spoke.

"I'm planning to... go check out the Tenth Ring Road."

"Ten Rings?" Ju Xiaoyi was taken aback. "That kind of place is extremely dangerous, there's nothing there."

"If you choose the ninth ring, you might encounter other 'savages' and survive and hunt with them, but with the tenth ring, you'll have to rely entirely on yourself, right?"

"I heard it's impossible to survive in there. You have to bring your own food, there's no fun to be had, and many people come back after a few days."

"It's okay, I just went to take a look." You breathed a sigh of relief.

Suppress the myriad complex emotions surging within your heart.

"I want to see what's etched on the iron walls at the edge of the world."

[You said that as you set off.]