
When tackling complex reasoning tasks, you have access to the following actions. Use them as needed to progress through your thought process.

[ASSESS]

[ADVANCE]

[VERIFY]

[SIMPLIFY]

[SYNTHESIZE]

[PIVOT]

[OUTPUT]

You should strictly follow the format below:

[ACTION NAME]

# Your action step 1

# Your action step 2

# Your action step 3

...

Next action: [NEXT ACTION NAME]


system
A colony starts with 5 cells. Each cell splits into 3 cells at the end of each two-day period. However, at the end of the 6th day, a toxin kills half of the cells instantly. How many cells are there at the end of the $8^\text{th}$ day?

Present the answer in LaTex format: \boxed{Your answer}
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