Cultivator Apocalypse

Chapter 10

Zhang Xuan felt himself on the verge of a breakthrough from the constant cleaning, his body exposed to the spirital qi while under heavy strain and hard work. 

"Is this the results of hyper cleaning in this enviroment? I feel my whole meridians glowing with strength!"

Zhang Xuan feverantly worked harder on the cleaning, this was proving to be more intensive than any exercise he had done before at all. He had just finished wiping the last speck of dirt, after burning through several cleaning rags and cleaning liquids in order to disinfect the apartment.

But, to his surprise, he suddenly felt something shift inside his body. The spiritual qi that had been circulating through him began to flow even faster, and he could sense a sudden influx of energy into his meridians like never before.

He could feel a sudden jolt of energy and vigor coursing through his body. His heart was racing and his limbs began charging with a powerful strength, like liquid thunder roared through them.

He could almost sense the spiritual qi in the air around him, flowing freely into his pores and absorbing directly into his body. It was as if every inch of his skin had become a magnet for this powerful energy, pulling it in and seizing it for himself.

"Is this the feeling of having reached a breakthrough?" He thought excitedly, as an uncontrollable urge to meditate and cultivate surged within him.

Helping himself down onto the ground near the window, Zhang Xuan closed his eyes and took some deep breaths in an attempt to quickly focus and harness this newfound energy. Plunging deeper into a state of meditation, he let the spiritual qi flow freely throughout his body as he immersed himself in his newfound power.

With each breath he took, more of the powerful energy streamed into his body, filling him with newfound vitality and strength. Each passing moment brought him closer to a powerful breakthrough, pushing him ever closer to the next level.

The mysteries of the True Blade Emperor Cultivation began to reveal themselves within Zhang Xuan, his consciousness was suddenly brought into a glowing tinted blue spiritual space within himself.

Inside of it, he stood in front of a series of letters that began to form in front of him. 

They fully spelled out the word, Nascent Soul.

However the letters began to crumble, shift and form. Molding themselves into a new word.

"Shining Nascent Soul."

Zhang Xuan's spiritual space began to grow rapidly, changing to appear more full of life and flowing water. The blue inside of it became refined with a greater variety of vivid colors that shocked his senses.

His meridians calmed down from the sudden qi gain, Zhang Xuan sighing in relief. "I've hit a new level!" But before Zhang Xuan could say anything else, his mind was suddenly assaulted with new knowledge he had never known before.

Deep inside his mind, the knowledge of the different levels of Cultivation on this earth were being made clear to him.

It came to him in the following order,

Nascent Soul

Shining Nascent Soul

Shining Nascent Soul Emperor

Transcendent Nascent Soul

Transcendent Nascent Soul Emperor

Saint Soul

He could fill a massive gap between himself and the next level of cultivation, as if he were a frog in a well that merely got lucky. The amount of qi required for one to go from Shining Nascent Soul to Shining Nascent Soul Emperor level was more than a one hundred times what he possessed currently.

"I knew my luck had to run out at some point." Zhang Xuan contemplated, as he released his grip on the soul space and returned back to reality.

Even though he had expected that his breakthrough would be difficult, he never could have thought that the difference in qi between the two levels would be so vast. At his current rate of absorption, it would take him years before he could reach the next level…

A bitter smile tugged on the corners of Zhang Xuan's lips as he slowly got up to his feet. It seemed like his journey to becoming an expert was going to be a long and arduous one.

"But even so, I can't let myself wallow in self-pity. I need to continue working hard and strive to reach the next level as soon as possible!"

He was not one to give up so easily. After all, if there was one thing that he was good at, it was grinding away at things until he achieved his goal.

He might not be able to reach the next level immediately, but given some time, he was confident that he would get there eventually!

In the midst of his thoughts on what to do, his family came to mind. Zhang Xuan felt a pain in his heart and frustration about leaving them.

"Should I go back to them?" Zhang Xuan thought, a pang of regret flowing through him. But they would be of no help to him in the future, only a burden that would sabotage him at every end.

Yet, he couldn't shake off his concern for them.

"I have time to think about this, I can make my decision later." He looked at the current day. There were only 45 days left still until the apocalypse began.

"Are things really the same as I knew them before?" Zhang Xuan contemplated looking outside, it was currently night out. "Perhaps I should rest, I could use a break."

Every day he had spent training or honing himself, with little regard for his own body. Zhang Xuan was not like an infinite machine, he needed a break just like everyone else! The young cultivator moved over to his bed.

As he entered his bed, Zhang Xuan's mind was filled with thoughts about his family. Would it be better for him to head back to them and include them on his journey or should he continue on?

 

The decision was a difficult one, but in the end, Zhang Xuan realized that it would be pointless for him to return. His family was a burden that would only hold him back the more he kept them around.

 

So instead of going home, Zhang Xuan resolved to continue working hard and striving towards reaching the next level. Without his family in his life.

 

 

Zhang Xuan's eyes slowly drooped shut as he allowed himself to drift off into sleep.

 

However, instead of the peaceful slumber that he was hoping for, Zhang Xuan found himself in the midst of a nightmare.

 

In his dream, he saw his family dying one by one in front of him. No matter how much he tried to save them, it was all in vain. Their screams and pleas echoed in his mind, tormenting him endlessly. He saw them explode into bursts of blood, one by one in front of him.

 

They all pleaded and reached out to Zhang Xuan. Their hands reaching at him like claws. The sight terrified Zhang, causing him to snap out of the nightmare with an immense yell.

 

He woke up in a cold sweat, his heart pounding uncontrollably in his chest. It took him a few moments to regain his composure before he realized that it was just a dream.

 

Even though it was just a dream, the pain and anguish that he had felt were very real. The sight of his family dying over and over again left him feeling hollow and empty inside.

 

The young cultivator sat up on his bed, grappling with his inner demons. It was only after a long while that he finally managed to fall back asleep, but even then, the images from his nightmare haunted him throughout the night.

 

"Can I really leave my family to die?" was his last thought before he fully drifted to sleep.

 

 

As the day dawned and the first rays of light streamed into his room, Zhang Xuan was left emotionally exhausted from the nightmare.

 

Yet even so, he knew that he had to keep on pushing forward, no matter how hard it seemed. For if he stopped, then all would truly be lost.