Calculating Cultivation - Chapter 144: Hurdles

Bestselling author Elias Vayne has spent years writing stories to escape the horrors of his past. As a child, he was the sole survivor of a massacre that wiped out his entire orphanage. He doesn’t remember how he survived—only that when the slaughter ended, he was the only one left standing.His latest work, The Arcane Academy Chronicles, takes place in Veylin Academy, a prestigious school of magic and combat. But one night, after finishing the final chapter, Elias wakes up inside his own book—not as the hero, not as the villain, but as an extra. Worse, he’s been reborn as Kael, the very same orphan who survived a similar massacre in the story.But something is wrong. The academy isn’t as he wrote it. Characters are acting off-script, unknown forces are rewriting events, and the mystery surrounding Kael’s survival mirrors the one in Elias’s real life. The more he tries to regain control of the narrative, the more he realizes this world may not be his creation at all.

~My Lovely Harem School Life~Just like the cringy name suggests, it's a well-known dating sim that gained popularity due to the beautiful heroines, fun story, and most importantly, the significance of the player's choices that influence the endings....But why did I end up transmigrating into the scummiest character in the game, Yagami Reiji, the heir to the biggest Yakuza group in the country? The trash that harassed the main cast, the trash that bullied the students, and the trash that ultimately 'steals' the heroines if the player makes the wrong decisions.Why, God, Why!?Will my predecessor's past, a horrific mess, haunt me? Will my father, the King of the Underworld, accept me? Will the characters, now a reality, still hate me?I decided to live a regular life, slowly taking the steps to whitewash my reputation..... With an occasional punch thrown here and there......Wait, why is the original protagonist a complete idiot?

Immortal arts, magic weapons, magical powers*, and the boundless spiritual Qi between heaven and earth vanished into obscurity overnight, and all the exorcists became mere mortals.

300 years later, the Five Barbarians traversed the pass, a prelude to an era of great turmoil in China. They heralded the end of the world, where thousands of drought fiends stalked the night and the collapse of the Divine Land** was imminent.

Fortunately, within this long, dark night*** where silence had fallen on all magic, a lone star still glistened brightly on the horizon.

The Heart Lamp appeared, illuminating the vast expanse around it. A 16-year-old young man, who will end his life on his 20th birthday, embarked on a journey of reclaiming the spiritual Qi of the heavens and earth that had been sealed away — only four years remain.

The road ahead was filled with countless thistles and thorns, and it seemed improbable for him to succeed.

Chen Xing, “The important thing is that I’m the last exorcist in this world, yet the only magic I am capable of is emitting light. What can I do?”

Wait patiently then. When the Dinghai pearl reappears on earth, the uncertain trajectory of everyone’s fates will be completely disrupted before converging once more.

Chen Xing, “Could I be partnered with a more normal Protector martial god?”

Isn’t your Protector really skilled in fighting?

Chen Xing, “He is good at fighting, but when he loses it he’ll hit even me……”

There’s nothing that can be done about that, you can only blame yourself for losing yourself to lust.

—

*: Buddhist term: Abhijñā, a mysterious force that surpasses the limits of mortals gained through meditation

**: old name for China

***: figurative meaning: long period of misery and oppression

- Description from Novelupdates

A good-for-nothing man married a beautiful girl but was kicked off the bed on the wedding night. Furiously, he wrote a bill of divorce and ran away.
He was schemed a car accident in which he nearly lost his life. However, it turned out to be a blessing. He swallowed the soul that passed through the outer world, thus obtained superb medical skills and martial arts.
Later on, with the silver needles and invincible martial arts, he embarked on the road of counterattacks and was committed to his great dreams.

- Description from Novelupdates