Chapter 60 Day One | Breaking Point

When the ice daggers on the roof fell from the sky onto the cultivators, sickening cracking sounds resounded in the air.

A moment later, blood flooded the hallway like a river, crashing through human bodies as if they were rocks.

"Eruption Arrow!" A cultivator yelled, breaking free from his trauma.

A flaming arrow shot out at Evalyn. She easily dodged out of the way and tried to move at a distance, thinking it would be a homing arrow.

Unfortunately, the arrow exploded next to her mid-air, sending a magma-like substance onto her side and arm.

"Gahhhhhhhh!" Evalyn groaned in pain. Her body was sensitive to heat; while it was still far more resilient than a human body, it was at least a 50% debuff.

As a result, she took a knee. While staring behind the cultivator, she reached out her hand shakily, looking like she was pleading.

The man in black combat gear grinned in satisfaction, thinking she was begging.

Evalyn wasn't begging. She closed her hand rapidly, and a dagger materializing behind him shot forward, piercing the man's spine.

He looked at her in horror, uncertain what had happened. That's when he noticed that her hand wasn't shaky; it was a deception playing off the human ego.

She knew the man would take satisfaction in her begging, so she gave it to him to obtain time—and sealed his death.

Evalyn chuckled in disbelief when the man died, looked at her body, bleeding and burned with lethal wounds.

"This body tempers itself, and I can use techniques faster, but that's the only thing that makes me special." She chuckled between winces, remembering Kaze's warning.

"I needed to remember that before I got [killed by a skilled mortal with a weak cultivation technique]. If I die here, the shame will be without equal."

"Reggie!" A man yelled from the joining hall.

"I told you it wasn't enough!" Someone followed after seeing blood gushing from the hallway like a river.

"I told you we should've ambushed her the moment that we found out that her mother died! Now countless men are dead!"

"Shut the fuck up." Another growled, "You're letting her know we're here!"

Evalyn looked at the collection of bodies in front of her and chuckled in bewilderment.

There were more than thirty!

The emperor's words flooded her mind again. This time, the irony was far greater than any other, as it fit the scene perfectly.

—

"It was common sense. Those men burst through [that hallway] attacking me unprovoked. I'd be dead now if I didn't do what I did. I was a genuine victim in all regards, Evalyn."

[Common sense? Victim? Don't joke around.]

"I was a victim. The [doctor] murdered [my mother] and tried to kill me because I provided the service he requested.

My strength doesn't make unprovoked murder acceptable, yes?"

[I understand your point. However, killing one person isn't an acceptable solution to any problem, let alone thirty.

Moreover, if you had the power to resolve it peacefully, then your actions went far beyond self-defense. It's hard to find you a victim.]

"Unbelievable. You're a thoroughbred chimera of delusional beliefs. What do you think would have happened after I left that [doctor's] sight?"

—

"They killed my mom and now they're trying to kill me for it." Evalyn chuckled in perplexion, "They're summoning all of their resources to kill the victim."

Another dozen cultivators ran toward the hallway and listened.

They spent time talking about their strategic approach while two cultivators stood guard.

It was dusk now, and Evalyn's vision was hazy. Her meridians burned alongside her torched side, and her blood loss was serious.

Yet her eyes didn't waiver. She vowed to fight as long as possible before her Qi deprivation spelled her end. She'd die if she didn't.

[It was common sense].

"Now!" Someone yelled.

A dozen men with black tactical gear and masks ran into the hallway, fanning out.

Evalyn summoned an igloo-like shield to gain her time to assess their locations.

The men took the opportunity to surround her at lightning speed, proving they were on a different level than the others.

They didn't strike immediately, trying to assess the shield's strength first.

It left her bewildered; the team in front of her was skilled enough to deal with the people in the hospital without issue!

"The hospital was weak and needed help, but some how they found resources out of the blue to come back stronger to kill me." Evalyn chuckled in disbelief.

Her chuckle turned into an ominous cackling, which froze the men preparing to strike.

The shield around her exploded, and thousands of shards of ice shot into the men like they were pin cushions.

They closed their eyes and covered their faces as they flew backward.

Two of them were unlucky enough to find a dagger waiting for them when they opened their eyes.

Blood dyed the room red when the back of their skull blew out and hit the ground, falling to the tune of Evalyn's maniacal laughter.

An invisible slash cut into her back, leaving a serious wound.

The cultivators were pleased by landing a heavy hit, but everyone stopped celebrating when her laugher [intensified].

"I find your effort admirable. But surely you don't think a [mortal-grade] cultivation technique can compete against a divine-grade one, do you?" Evalyn laughed, mimicking Kaze's words.

The men froze in disbelief. They didn't know about divine-grade techniques or where they fit on the skills spectrum.

However, while they wanted to write off her words, everyone knew she wasn't normal and was extremely dangerous. So they put up their guards instantly.

Evalyn closed her eyes and began cultivating. The ice froze her wounds shut, and the Qi in the atmosphere thinned instantly as an ice vortex hit her body.

The temperature in the room started freezing, slowing everyone's movements.

Another blade of Qi shot at her body and impacted, but it barely broke the skin before the wound froze again.

"Air Slash!" The cultivator yelled.

Once again, a wave of Qi distorted the earth and slashed the blonde, but it barely made it past the frost on her skin.

Evalyn's laugh became hysterical.

She finally got it.

No, she finally accepted it.

—

"I've never lied to you, woman. You can't tell if I'm serious because you refuse to believe me, even though you're staring at the truth."

—

Everything Kaze told her, warned her about, even his mannerisms [were true].

One day.

Only one day—

—into the apocalypse.

That's all it took to learn that!

There wasn't a drawn-out realization!

It was instantaneous; already a cold hard fact!

The image of the glass ball abruptly entered her mind.

The mental image made her laughing more intense—painful even.

Evalyn constantly needed proof of his claims; now she was drowning in it!

Everything he said sounded schizophrenic, but he proved himself sane without fail.

Yet time and time again, she refused to believe despite staring at the truth.

No, she did believe him, almost to a fault; she [rejected] his words.

How could she have accepted his words without question?

For not accepting something incomprehensible?

Should she regret not believing him blindly?

Blame herself for her mother's death?

Just started murdering people?

Let him kill her mother?

Is that a sick joke?

Of course not!

No chance!

Never!

Letting him kill her mom was a line she'd never cross until the woman died a horrific fate!

He experienced that, so he accepted it; she hadn't, so she didn't. It was as simple as that.

That's what was so funny—it's the apocalypse! Trusting Kaze was fated to be pointless!

It wouldn't have mattered. She would have always ended up here, and he had told her that.

Kaze said she shouldn't trust him—to be blindly grateful for the power she had given her.

And she was grateful for the power! It was only day one, and it had already saved her life!

The cultivators were frozen because her maniacal laugher was slowly eating into their souls.

Her maniacal laughter froze the cultivators into inaction; the sound feasted on their souls.

It was traumatic, carving itself into their minds, forever haunting their thoughts like tinnitus.

The atmosphere got colder, but they still couldn't act. They felt like they were going insane.

"Kill her!" A man yelled, breaking them out of their haze, "We need to do it while she's down!"

The highly trained team reacted instantly and lifted their hands or pulled them back to strike.

—

"What was the point of giving you a divine technique if you're not willing to use it?"

—

Evalyn's eyes filled with murder, and a hundred daggers materialized above the men, hoving over them like a sphere of death.

Her entire body exploded in pain, and her meridians groaned.

She was courting death from Qi deprivation.

However, the only thing more irrational than overstressing her meridians, leaving her defenseless, was dying by not doing it—and she refused to die.

At that moment, on the cusp of life and death, something surreal happened.

Both parties attacked, but their techniques disappeared. It wasn't just that—

The raging vortex of icy wind surrounding Evalyn dissipated, making her stop laughing instantly.

If her cultivation was abruptly ended, it could only mean one thing.

Someone with stronger cultivation had arrived.

A wave of warping space spread out around her, twisting the colors on the floor in a surreal haze.

She heard footsteps from behind her and the cultivators began trembling in visible fear.