Apocalypse Upon Arrival?

Among the three thousand dimensional spaces, within the cosmic sea of one dimension, a World Beast King was frantically devouring the Primordial Universe. Aside from the Primordial Universe itself, all other small universes and sacred universes in the cosmic sea had long been consumed. As the World Beast King continued to devour, the Primordial Universe gradually shrank, on the verge of collapse...

Suddenly, a figure towering hundreds of millions of light-years emerged. With a faint, almost imperceptible sigh, it extended a finger and gently tapped. Before the World Beast King could react, it disintegrated layer by layer from the outside in, reduced to dust, churned by the chaotic currents of air, and vanished without a trace.

Gazing at the already ruined Primordial Universe, It sighed again. "Since even the will of the source is gone, and the laws of time have been devoured clean, there's no point in saving it... Hmm, might as well create an opportunity and see which lucky little one gets this stroke of fortune..."

It stretched out its hands, emitting waves of profound mystery, peeling away the ruined Primordial Universe layer by layer from its membrane wall, until only the core remained. Cupping the core in its hands, It pressed gently. Under the force of unimaginable power, the core condensed bit by bit, eventually becoming something like a mustard seed.

Looking at the core resting in its palm, It blew a soft breath with a hint of a smile...

"Congyang..."

"Congyang, Congyang, wake up..."

An urgent shout pierced his hazy consciousness. Yin Congyang felt his head splitting with pain, his thoughts still lingering on the moment before—swinging his axe to chop a dead tree, when a brilliant flash of light suddenly erupted, filling his entire vision, and then he lost consciousness.

As the chaos in his mind subsided slightly, a sharp pain deep within his body struck, sending him back into unconsciousness.

Consciousness slowly returned. Yin Congyang forced his eyes open, and what met his gaze was a snow-white ceiling. Faint light filtered through the thin gauze curtains behind the window into the room.

Lying in bed, he turned his head with difficulty. On a chair by the bedside sat a young man in his twenties, slumped over the edge of the bed, his steady breathing indicating he was fast asleep.

"Where am I? How did chopping a tree land me in bed..."

Yin Congyang was the heir of a logging family on Earth—yes, you read that right, a logging family. His family had been lumberjacks for generations, passing down a set of techniques called the Thirty-Six Heaven-Opening Axes, which, according to legend, could make one invincible under heaven. Yin Congyang had practiced them for nearly twenty years. Whether they made him invincible or not, he hadn't tested, but they sure worked well for logging. Every move and stance had become instinct, deeply etched into his mind.

Suddenly, his mind buzzed. A surge of memories not his own emerged from the depths of his consciousness. Words like "monster," "martial artist," "Limit Dojo," and "Thunder Dojo" left him dazed: I was just reading Swallowing Starry Skies, got to the part where Luo Feng returned from the Outer-Domain Battlefield, and hadn't even finished the rest—how did I end up inside it?

Thinking this, he wanted to pinch himself to see if he was dreaming. As he moved his arm slightly, a faint sound escaped, but it jolted the young man on the chair upright like a thunderclap. A trace of fear flashed across his face as he assumed a defensive stance. Then, seeming to realize where he was, his gaze swept over Yin Congyang's face, and the fear turned to joy. He shouted, "Congyang, you're awake!"

The young man skirted the chair, took a few quick steps, pulled open the door, and called out, "Captain, Captain, come quick, Congyang's awake..." Urgent footsteps sounded from outside, and then several people squeezed through the door, filling the small room to the brim, all talking to Yin Congyang on the bed at once.

Yin Congyang helplessly watched these people fire off words like a machine gun. The last few scenes from that sudden influx of memories told him that his predecessor's squad had been hunting monsters in the wild.

Captain Li Hesong, a senior warrior, had led the five-man squad on a week-long hunt around County 0316. On the way back, they encountered two advanced beast-level Red-Eyed Dogs traveling together. Captain Li Hesong took on one dog alone, while the remaining five squad members held off the other.

Among the five, only two were intermediate warriors; the other three, including Yin Congyang, were beginner warriors. Against an advanced beast-level Red-Eyed Dog, they were stretched thin. One of the beginner warriors, Yu Xiaopeng—the young man who had been by the bedside—was caught off guard by the tip of the dog's tail. As the dog twisted its head to bite his throat, Yin Congyang shoved him aside, wedging his axe into the dog's fanged maw. But he couldn't dodge in time and took a claw to the chest, severing his heart meridian. Then the Earth Yin Congyang's soul pierced through.

It seemed that after the captain killed one Red-Eyed Dog, he rushed over to kill or drive off the other, bringing Yin Congyang back to the martial artist supply base.

Yu Xiaopeng was deeply grateful to Yin Congyang for saving his life, so he stayed by his bedside. After the life-or-death crisis, exhaustion set in, and he soon fell asleep slumped over. In his dream, he was locked in a deadly struggle with the Red-Eyed Dog when he heard a sound from the bed, jolting awake—hence the look of fear.

County 0316 was located near Southwest Base City, a region of rolling hills and dense waterways. The wilderness around it had a high density of monsters, putting heavy pressure on the defenses of the base city and its satellite towns. So, beginner warriors and intermediate warriors were usually led by senior warriors or junior generals in squads to actively hunt monsters in the wild. Of course, the valuable materials harvested from monsters also brought in decent income.

"This time, thanks to Congyang, we didn't lose anyone. Xiaopeng only got a light injury... But Congyang, that claw to your chest must have knocked the breath out of you. When I saw you, I thought you were..." Li Hesong said with lingering fear.

Yin Congyang grinned. "We're teammates, after all..."

"You're right, we're teammates, comrades sharing life and death." Li Hesong said solemnly.

"Captain, what happened to our squad after that?" Yin Congyang asked curiously, hesitating before speaking.

"We were really lucky this time," Li Hesong said with a trace of fear. "When we ran into those two Red-Eyed Dogs, I sent a distress signal through my watch. After you got hurt, a passing martial artist squad picked up my signal and came. Their captain was a junior general, and he took care of both dogs. Otherwise, the outcome would've been uncertain... But they'd just left the base, so they probably won't be back for at least ten days or half a month."

The other teammates chimed in, asking about Yin Congyang's injuries. After thanking them for their concern, Yin Congyang used the excuse of being tired from his wounds to send them off.

Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath. His chest still ached faintly, but miraculously, the wound was nearly healed. His predecessor didn't seem to have such recovery ability—was it a side effect of the transmigration?

Come to think of it, what exactly had he hit before the time travel? Now that he was calm, he should look into it. As he focused his mind, he vaguely felt something different in his dantian, but it was hazy and unclear.

Thinking of his past life—parents, siblings, all loving each other—a pang of sadness hit him. At least with so many siblings, his parents probably wouldn't grieve too much over losing one, though he knew he was fooling himself. Still, not being able to return to his original world after crossing over seemed to be a common trope in many transmigration novels.

Compared to his past life, Yin Congyang's life in Swallowing Starry Skies was far more brutal. During the Great Nirvana, both his parents were orphans. His father, a junior general, had died in the wilderness from a monster attack over three years ago, leaving no remains behind. His mother had been consumed by grief ever since, and her sorrow festered into illness. Not long after her son passed the martial artist practical exam, she passed away.

After burying his mother together with his father's cenotaph, Yin Congyang joined Li Hesong's martial artist squad through the Limit Dojo and began his wilderness career.

His predecessor's weapon was a short-handled axe. Under the guidance of his father and the dojo instructors, his foundation was solid, but the Mountain-Suppressing Axe Technique and the guidance technique he'd bought were only average.

Lying still for over two hours, he felt strength return to his body. He got up and saw the short-handled Mountain-Suppressing Axe on the table. His hands itched—he used to practice axe techniques countless times a day for logging.

Seeing the room was spacious enough, he picked up the axe, weighed it in his hand, and found it felt decent. Recalling the memories, he decided to give it a try. He went through the Mountain-Suppressing Axe Technique move by move. After finishing the last stance, he naturally transitioned into the Thirty-Six Heaven-Opening Axes he'd practiced for twenty years. A familiar feeling surged, and his mind gradually sank into it. The not-so-strong genetic energy in his body slowly stirred. As the axe flashed, sharp sounds of cutting air filled the room.

"Bang~~"

The door suddenly burst open. Yu Xiaopeng poked his head in, looking shocked. "Congyang, you just got hurt and haven't recovered yet. Do you have to train this hard?"

Yin Congyang casually twirled the axe, looking at Yu Xiaopeng, and said softly, "Brother Peng, my injury isn't that bad. See, I'm mostly healed. I had a bit of insight into the axe technique during that life-or-death moment. If I don't practice it now, I'm afraid I'll forget it later."

Yu Xiaopeng stepped forward, carefully examined the wound on Yin Congyang's chest, and found it was indeed scabbing over as he'd said. The earlier flurry of axe swings hadn't seemed to cause him any discomfort. Relieved, he said with a mix of envy and gratitude, "No wonder the captain says you're talented. You passed the martial artist practical exam at twenty, and in less than three months as a martial artist, you're already close to intermediate warrior... By the way, I never got to thank you properly. If you hadn't done that, I'd probably..."

"Brother Peng, we're teammates who trust each other with our lives. It's only right. I believe if we switched places, you'd do the same!" Yin Congyang interrupted. "Besides, I'm fine now, aren't I?"

"Still, Congyang, I owe you one. From now on, if you ever need me, just say the word. If I back out, I'm a fool!"

"Alright, alright, Brother Peng, I'll remember that. By the way, is there any food? I'm starving."

"You mentioning that almost made me forget. I came to see if you could get up. If not, I was going to bring you food." Yu Xiaopeng stepped over and put an arm around Yin Congyang's shoulder, speaking cheerfully. "Come on, let's go eat. You don't know this, but after you got hurt saving me, none of us had the heart to eat..."

The two walked together to the supply base's dining hall. Though it was past mealtime, the hall was still fairly crowded.

Li Hesong and the other squad members were already waiting at the entrance. Seeing Yin Congyang walking briskly, they all breathed a sigh of relief, their faces brightening as they called out for him and Yu Xiaopeng to come in and eat.

Once inside, the captain paid the meal fee. They quickly got their food and sat around a table to eat.

Yu Xiaopeng ate while boasting about Yin Congyang to the others. "You guys don't know, before I even reached the room, I heard the swish swish swish of cutting air from inside..."

Suddenly, a solemn and sorrowful voice came from the LCD screen on the wall: "...Tonight, I am filled with immense pain and grief. This is a disaster for all of humanity. We fight for survival..."