Invite Players to a Cultivation World

Shortly after all three of my disciples have reached the tenth stage of Qi-Refining, I appear before them.

"Sect Master!" CoDestiny bows in greeting. "We have reached the tenth stage, but our cultivation does not increase any more. Please teach us how to break through to the next realm."

"Well done. I am very proud of you all." I say. "As for how to reach the next realm, there are three methods."

My disciples pay close attention.

"First is to experience a moment of great inspiration." I explain. "This is exceptionally rare, and most people aren't even capable of this at all. I cannot recommend this method as attempting to make it happen has never worked. Every instance has been a complete accident."

"So there's only two real options." JadeBea says.

"Second is to transfer yourself to an unassigned vessel of the appropriate realm." I explain. "The technique to make a Foundation Building unassigned vessel will be available to buy for anyone at the seventh stage of Foundation Building."

"That doesn't help us at all." PCliver says. "We can't even reach that point without breaking through first."

"This is meant as a way for players at a higher realm to aid those at lower realms." I explain. "The final, and intended method is to consume a Breakthrough Elixir, the recipe for which is now available." I take out the book.

"Thank you Sect Master." JadeBea holds out her hands to accept the recipe.

"Now hold on a second, there are some things you should know first." I caution her. "This recipe will be your introduction to alchemy, but it will not be easy. The ingredients listed don't actually exist, so one of you will have to learn the mechanics of alchemy, and after much trial and error, find suitable substitutes."

"That's a lot to ask." CoDestiny says. "Couldn't you make it a bit easier."

"This is to ensure you are actually immersing yourselves in the world." I say. "The techniques I've provided up until now were merely to enable you to interact with the world properly, anything more you will have to go out and learn for yourselves. The only other techniques I plan on selling are vessel refining of higher rank, and the future breakthrough elixir."

"Why can't we just cultivate?" PCliver asks. "I was talking to Rose earlier, and she said cultivation normally was enough for her reach Foundation Building. It's the same for everyone else in this world."

"But you are not of this world." I point out. "It was decided that since you are only avatars, some extra difficulties would be appropriate. I had no part in the decision, and I can do nothing to change it."

"Can't you at least talk to one of the other developers?" PCliver asks.

"The issue is that all the developers are dead." I reveal. "This isn't a joke. This isn't a lie. This isn't part of the lore for this game. The real IRL people died, and I was left alone."

"You can't be serious!" CoDestiny yells.

I sigh. "How about I explain things from the beginning. I worked at an underground research centre exploring the possibilities of a new discovery. You can consider this research centre to be Sect Tech, though that's not the name we actually went by. I just made up the name later.

One of the most significant applications we found was a way to create our own simulated reality. I should be clear that this isn't like the simulations you know, as everything is simulated down to the tiniest detail. It actually reached the point where we had to consider the inhabitants to be real living beings with their own intelligence and souls."

"Are you saying the things I saw while cleansing Tia actually happened to her?" PCliver asks. "It wasn't just part of some backstory someone made up?"

"It really did happen. While technically part of a simulation, that doesn't change the fact she really experienced those things." I say.

"Why would you let something like that happen?" PCliver asks.

"This simulation is very big. There are literally thousands of worlds, each as big and complex as earth. There was never any chance we could monitor everything." I explain.

"Moving on, we developed a helmet that would allow us to more directly observe with the simulation. Everyone at our research centre tried it on to test compatibility, but there was no significant difference."

"We created newer models for the helmet using different materials, which eventualy became the VR Headsets new Players now use."

"Early on we had the problem of only being able to observe the simulation while sleeping, but we eventualy discovered a way to train our brains in the simulation to allow us to be in the simulation even when awake."

"Everything seemed to be developing well for a while, until a few of our researchers got sick and died."

"Our more senior members were very paranoid about the cause, and thought it might be a highly infectious disease capable of wiping out the human race, so they sealed all the exits leaving all of us, including them, trapped inside. They even blocked off all communication with the outside world."

"Researchers continued to die, but eventualy we discovered the cause. The original helmet we made was built using some hazardous materials. The later versions were fine, but anyone who wore the original model was doomed to die, which happened to mean all of us."

"Normally this would mean we could undo the lockdown, but would you believe it, everyone who had the clearance to do so had already died. Meaning we were trapped and couldn't even tell the outside world what had happened to us."

"So we thought up a way to save ourselves. If our bodies were going to die, then what if we could upload our memories and consciousness into the simulation first. That would surely save us."

"We all got to work, despite the fact we were dropping like flies, developing everything we would need to upload ourselves. In the end we succeeded."

"Well... I succeeded."

"By that point I was the only one left. Just me and a bunch of corpses."

"So I uploaded myself to the simulation, though by that point I was in such a rush that I forgot to set myself with administrative privileges."

"As a result I 'reincarnated' into the body of what assume would have originally been a stillborn baby. I then had to wait literally years until I was able to figure out a way to get some access to the internet. And with that I was able to set up this whole MMO system so I could get some people to help me out."

...

"You're crazy." CoDestiny is the first to speak.

I facepalm. "I knew there would be no way you would believe me, but I'm being honest about this. Could you at least act like you believe me, as that would really make things easier for me."

"Then how did we get hired?" PCliver asks. "And what about the VR Headsets and earpieces we received?"

"You'd be surprised how much you can accomplish with just some internet connection. If you know what you're doing it's easy to crate a company and acquire enough money to pay a few people." I answer. "As for the stuff you received, I just hired a tech company to build and deliver them for me. Full details on how I did all this are now on the Other World Cultivation website."

"Then what about the sponsor you told us about earlier?" JadeBea asks.

"I was actually referring to the Void Fae." I admit. "They're the most powerful beings within the setting of this simulation, and the only ones aware that it is a simulation. They really do hate impurities, and beings non-native to the simulation are the only ones that care cleanse them. They're the ones who helped me out with the whole connecting to the internet thing, but on the condition that I bring in more people to cleanse impurities for them."

"What even is your goal in all this?" CoDestiny asks. "Are you trying to return to the real world."

"I haven't the slightest idea how to do that." I say. "Why would I even want to anyway, I've already spent years in this simulation. Technically from your perspective it would have been only a month, but that's only because the simulation was running at extra high speed until I was able to get it back to normal. What I really want is to live a long and happy life, and the best way to do that in this world is to become powerful. The Void Fae are willing to increase my cultivation a slight amount for every bit impurities you Players cleanse. So I just want a bunch of you here cleansing impurities. Anything else I do is probably either to keep you entertained and thus increase the player count, or to stop you all from messing up this world, as I do live here now, and would much prefer it be a peaceful place."

I spent a bit more time after that answering questions, but they seemed to remain unconvinced.

It doesn't really matter, as the real evidence is now available on my website. No doubt people will be looking though trying to find some contradiction, but they won't find any, as it's all true.

The only part I've been lying about is this being a simulation, and it's not as if they're going to realise my research centre figured out travel to other universes. Especially when the VR Headsets and Earpieces are also capable of the whole simulation stuff.

Handing out that tech may lead to some developments on Earth, but it's no big deal. They they'll never be able to create a simulation worth connecting to anyway.

It should be useful to convince people I'm telling the truth though.

AN: Please tell me if you have any confusion after this chapter. I'm really not sure if I explained everything well.