Road to Mastery: A LitRPG Apocalypse
Chapter 374: Absorbing the World Anchor

The square had gone silent. The Cathedral had gone silent. That entire patch of space had gone silent.

Jack Rust had challenged everyone ranked below 150 and won…and then he’d even defeated the 117th ranked Shi Mo!

Many people could have done the same, but Jack was only a two-fruit C-Grade! Just six or seven months ago, he had struggled against Marcus William, who was ranked 281st. In the Cathedral, progress was counted with decades as the unit—such quick advancement was simply unheard of.

How long had it been since a two-fruit C-Grade possessed such combat prowess? Perhaps even Sovereign Heavenly Spoon in his youth hadn’t been so fierce!

“He is…interesting,” Min Ling finally acknowledged, her sharp eyes focused on Jack.

On the raised platform, the Space Eye Sovereign leaned towards the Head Envoy. “You know,” she said, “this is a bit too much. I’m beginning to suspect his Life Artifact is not as simple as we thought.”

The Head Envoy—Sovereign Heavenly Spoon—only chuckled. “No matter how fierce, body enhancement is only useful up to the B-Grade. Even then, it’s vastly understated. Let him keep his lucky chance.”

“I wasn’t suggesting to take it away. I’m just saying, we should maybe start asking questions.”

“But where’s the fun in knowing? Is it not enough that he will shine for us in the hidden realm expedition and the banquet before? The Church has need for powerful C-Grades.”

Space Eye’s gaze was piercing, but the Head Envoy didn’t budge. Eventually, she pulled back. “As you wish,” she said. “You’re in charge.”

The Head Envoy nodded at her. Then, he rose to his feet, floating over the platform to face Jack and the crowd.

“This spectacle has ended in Jack Rust’s complete and overwhelming victory!” he announced, his undertone bustling with excitement. “As the Head Envoy of the Black Hole Church, I congratulate your achievements, and I look forward to the excellence you will show in the future.”

The crowd cheered in agreement.

“Now,” the Head Envoy continued, reaching for his space ring. “As promised, the World Anchor is yours—you’ve earned it.”

An orb of swimming colors appeared in his hand, then floated down at Jack. He reached out to grab it. As soon as the world anchor made contact, Jack felt like he’d grabbed a falling star; his hand almost crashed into the floor, and he had to hurriedly pull it closer to his body to resist the weight.

So heavy!The Head Envoy was holding it casually because he’s extremely strong!

It was hard to imagine that the Head Envoy’s lanky body contained more strength than the ripped and beefy Jack Rust, but that’s how cultivation worked. Not everything was visible to the naked eye.

Jack took the world anchor into his space ring, relieving himself of the weight. He also felt the ring’s inner dimension shake, as if about to shatter, but it barely held.

How am I supposed to put that thing inside my body? he wondered. I’ll break!

“I hope you’ll put it to good use,” the Head Envoy spoke from up above. “Additionally, as promised, you will enjoy free use of the Dao Chamber for the next six months. The only stipulation is that you need to book your stay beforehand so as not to obstruct the training of others, and I would also urge you not to hold onto the rooms for longer than necessary.”

“Of course,” Jack replied. “I will train hard, but I will also respect my fellow disciples. Thank you for this opportunity.”

“You should thank yourself. The tests you passed were not easy.”

Jack nodded deeply in gratitude.

Soon after, the Head Envoy was done talking, and all Envoys flew away.

“We’re leaving,” Baron Longform said sharply, not sparing Jack another glance. He and his followers flew away as well.

As they did, Jack’s gaze remained on Baron. The two of them were irreconcilable enemies—Jack had killed the other’s cousin, and now Baron had repeatedly tried to block Jack. Even if Jack had once benefited from Baron Longform in the form of a Dao Vision, their enmity ran too deep. Sooner or later, they would need to battle, and one of the two would die.

I wonder what will happen in the hidden realm… Jack thought, then put the issue out of mind. For the next six months, he would keep training as hard as possible. Whatever happened in the hidden realm after that, his own strength was the only guarantee he could have.

A flood of people arrived to congratulate Jack. Leading them were the bros, who fell on him like excited children.

“You were awesome, big bro!”

“That was spectacular!”

“You are so handsome!”

That last comment was a little uncalled for, but it did remind Jack he remained shirtless. Oh, well.

“Thanks, guys. I couldn’t have done it without you.”

“Big bro,” Brock said, approaching. “Good job. I proud.”

“Hah. I’m sure your accomplishments will match mine soon,” Jack replied, bumping fists with his brorilla.

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Several other people congratulated him afterward. Most desired to befriend him, offering various gifts or inviting him to places, but Jack politely refused everything.

“Hey,” said a blue-haired girl. Jack faintly remembered her as Esmeralda Polen, the one Dorman had tried to steal from. “That was a great fight!”

“Thank you,” Jack replied.

“Hi, Ponytail Sis,” Brock added. “Long time no see. What you doing here?”

“I couldn’t miss such a spectacle, could I? My friend was here too, but she left already. Something about Jack being so powerful it inspired her to train. However…” She winked at Brock. “She was also impressed by Jack’s performance. He really is as cool as you once claimed. The day when she takes this seriously is not too far away.”

Brock nodded. “Naturally. Big Bro is the coolest.” Sᴇaʀᴄh the N0vᴇlFire(.)nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

Jack had no idea what they were talking about. He didn’t even know what friend Esmeralda was referring to…but, since Brock sounded like he had it under control, Jack saw no need to intervene.

The random cultivators congratulated Jack and walked away, leaving only the bros and Esmeralda, who seemed intent on sticking around. Jack invited everyone to the fields outside village four and treated them to some wine, finally relaxing a bit after six months of rigorous training.

Unfortunately, a bit of time was all he could spare. The duel was done, but the hidden realm still loomed in his future—and he had a premonition that, if his strength wasn’t at the very limit, he would perish there.

After everyone relaxed and got a bit drunk, Jack left the gathering. He returned to his cabin, shut his door and windows, and sat cross-legged on his meditation mat. Utter silence filled the world. He was alone, slowly hyping up himself for yet another fight.

After adjusting his mental state for a few minutes, he reached into his space ring and retrieved the World Anchor. It remained heavy—just holding it made his muscles bulge. Any other two-fruit C-Grade couldn’t even lift it.

Jack held it to his eyes. A little ball of liquid was suspended in the center of this crystalline orb, pulsing slowly and shining with a myriad colors. This was the essence of creation—the remnant core of an ancient powerhouse’s inner world. This little liquid contained all the rules needed to form a world, all the laws and concepts and Daos. It was not a world itself, but a core that would stabilize Jack’s inner world in the future and help cleanse its impurities.

When he reached the B-Grade and formed his inner world, this core would be of immense assistance.

However, even now, its value could not be understated.

Jack brought the world anchor to his mouth. Taking a deep breath, he swallowed it, feeling it fall into the pit of his stomach like an iron anvil. Just this act of swallowing had injured his mouth, throat, and stomach. If a normal two-fruit C-Grade tried to absorb it, the world anchor would probably fall right through them, killing them on the spot.

Of course, Jack had long ago asked about the dangers and method of absorbing it, so he knew he could handle it.

Inside his tempered body, the world anchor remained still, like a stone. The walls of his stomach curved downward but contained it. Jack stilled his mind, enduring the pain as he waited.

Eventually, the crystalline surface of the orb began to melt. It turned into pure Dao, which entered his body and nourished it, paving the way for the true world anchor. The multi-colored liquid remained by itself, still suspended inside Jack’s stomach, and it became clear that the source of the anchor’s immense weight was exactly this liquid.

Then, drop by drop, it began to disperse. It was absorbed into Jack. Every drop filled him completely, swarming his body with energy and his mind with visions of the infinite laws that held the universe together. Jack’s heart skipped a beat—he quickly submerged himself in these insights, unwilling to miss even a single one. Under the influence of the world anchor, the purest and grandest Daos became clear, untainted by the many variables of the real world.

Jack sank into a trance. He lost track of time. The world anchor remained in his stomach, melting away over the course of several days. Jack’s physical body was smoothened. The immense strain it had endured after so much tempering partly receded as the world anchor changed his properties and transformed him into a being more compatible with the Dao of Life. It raised the ceiling of his body tempering.

At the same time, the visions hadn’t stopped coming. Jack witnessed the endless void outside the universe, the endless nothingness where everything began. He saw a massive explosion that birthed a world, and he saw spacetime expanding at speeds that vastly eclipsed the speed of light. In an instant, the newborn universe grew from a dot to the size of a solar system, then kept going.

He saw stars form. Galaxies. He witnessed the vast universe slowly cool down, allowing all sorts of phenomena to exist, and observed the endless cycle of existence. Even celestial bodies, though not alive, had their own life cycle. They formed out of dust, stabilized, expanded, then blew up and became dust again, joining massive depositories which would in time form new stars.

It was similar to how humans were born and died, always cycling, rising from dirt and falling to dirt.

Jack was one with the universe, experiencing the fundamental forces. Gravity was the interaction between matter and spacetime. Electricity was carried by the miniscule magnetic charge of infinitely tiny particles. Groups of particles were held together by vast amounts of energy, so dense it turned into matter, and even these particles were nothing but manifestations of even smaller particles vibrating in a specific way.

All these insights were far beyond the scope of Jack’s current level, but they gave his Dao a foundation that other cultivators lacked. By gaining some insight into the fundamental properties of the universe, from which everything else was derived, he would always have a direction to walk towards. He could always validate his Dao against the core truths of the universe, avoiding many false insights and grasping things that others would find abstract.

His current Daos didn’t progress much, but thanks to these visions, his future road would be much smoother. Just this benefit alone was tremendous.

Finally, the visions ended, and Jack found himself sitting on his meditation mat in the real world. It took him some time to adjust. When he did, he noticed that his stomach was empty—the world anchor had already been completely absorbed by him, and it now hovered inside his soul world, a multi-colored sheen covering his Dao Tree.

Just by probing it a little, he could sense that it slightly purified all of his Dao, pulling it closer to the source of all Daos. It had not changed in quantity, but its quality had risen. Not only did this world anchor enhance his body and deepen his general understanding into the Dao, but it also increased his current strength.

Jack took a deep, excited breath. This treasure was possibly the greatest lucky chance he’d ever received, on a similar level as the Life Drop. It was also exactly what he needed.

His current achievements were in part due to the Life Drop. However, unless it had other uses he had yet to discover, its body-related benefits would taper off at the A-Grade. Even at the B-Grade, they would be much more auxiliary than they currently were. At that point, he would need to depend on the robustness of his inner world and his comprehension of the Dao, which were exactly what the World Anchor focused on.

If the Life Drop was the foundation he needed to earn his place in the cultivation world, the World Anchor was a vehicle that could help him reach the end of the road. Of course, even the World Anchor could only assist him; in the end, everything would depend on himself.

But Jack was determined to succeed. As long as he didn’t die, he had confidence that he would walk farther than anyone, look deeply into the Dao and step inside its heart. His own talent and determination were his greatest weapons, and he would utilize them to the fullest.

Jack’s gaze sharpened. His aura rose, and an unstoppably dominant air erupted from his body, whipping the walls of his cabin and conjuring up a storm. His hair flew wildly. In that moment, Jack was not a human, not a man.

He was a cultivator of unstoppable will.

No matter what happens, with my own two feet… I will walk my Road to Mastery!

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