Apocalypse: Why did you provoke her? She's a cultivator.

Chapter 157 The Power of Rules
Ye Qiumian sat there for twenty days.

Throughout the night, the lightning at the valley entrance never ceased, and her figure was always enveloped in flashing electric light, like an immortal bathed in thunder.

It wasn't until the morning of the twentieth day, when another bolt of lightning struck and was drawn into her body, that familiar feeling of increased power became barely perceptible, that she slowly opened her eyes.

Looking inward, the barrier of the sixth level of body tempering remained solid, preventing him from breaking through to the seventh level in one go.

But she could clearly feel that her physical strength was vastly different from what it had been twenty days ago.

In terms of physical strength alone, he could probably rival a cultivator at the early stage of the seventh level in the cultivation world.

However, the tempering effect of the lightning power in Thunder Howl Valley on her had indeed reached its limit.

Staying any longer would just be a waste of time.

Ye Qiumian slowly stood up; her robes had already been reduced to ashes by the lightning.

At this moment, she was naked, her skin glowing with a healthy, radiant sheen in the morning light, with a faint electric light flowing beneath her skin.

She raised her hand and cast a simple cleansing spell, and a gentle current of air instantly enveloped her, brushing away the dust from her body.

Then she took out a clean, plain-colored dress and put it on.

She glanced back at the valley outside; the branches and leaves of the big tree seemed to be more lush, and the mid-grade spirit stone had turned to ashes.

"Let's go." She walked out of the canyon and whispered to the big tree.

The tree immediately transformed into a small vine, which wrapped around Ye Qiumian's wrist.

She turned and left the canyon, heading back the way she came.

The next target is the Huizhou City base.

After this body tempering, her strength improved even further.

I've been away for a while now, and if I don't go back soon, the lease on that apartment will be up.

……

Back in Ruiya Community, Ye Qiumian resumed her secluded cultivation.

The curtains were drawn tightly, completely shutting out the noise from the outside world.

Ye Qiumian slowly finished her practice, the last wisp of spiritual energy at her fingertips dissipating into her palm.

She opened her eyes, a fleeting glint of light in them before returning to calm.

After returning from the canyon, she immediately immersed herself in cultivation.

The daily operations of the state base and the tug-of-war between humans and zombies seemed to have become background noise that had nothing to do with her.

Except for the occasional need to replenish some worldly items, she almost never stepped out of the Ruiya residential area.

Five years have passed in the blink of an eye.

In the past five years, the outside world has undergone tremendous changes.

The base's alarms seemed never to stop, and the zombie hordes' attacks grew more and more intense with each passing moment.

On the human side, the losses were heavy, with several level-nine ability users alone perishing.

Those were the most elite fighting forces in the human camp, and the loss of each one was enough to make the entire base grieve for a long time.

The source of all this pressure is the zombie king that dwells deep within the city ruins.

Recently, its aura has become increasingly terrifying, and it seems to be showing signs of breaking through to the god level.

It is like a sword hanging over humanity's head, constantly radiating a suffocating pressure, leaving humanity in a perpetually passive defensive position.

Fortunately, there is no shortage of rising talents among humans. A new batch of high-level superhumans stepped up and barely managed to stabilize the defenses, preventing the zombie king from completely breaking through.

Ye Qiumian pieced together this information from snippets of conversation she overheard during her occasional outings.

She wasn't indifferent; she just knew very well that she didn't belong to this world.

If the course of this world were forcibly changed, there might be consequences that she could not bear.

Moreover, the five-year retreat yielded remarkable results.

Her cultivation had firmly reached the threshold of the late-stage Integration Realm, just one step away from the legendary Mahayana Realm. At this moment, the spiritual energy within her body was as vast as the sea, and its circulation could even subtly resonate with the surrounding天地能量 (heaven and earth energy).

However, reaching the Mahayana stage is as difficult as ascending to heaven.

The spiritual veins that once existed in the cliffside cave have now completely dried up, and not a single trace of spiritual energy can be extracted.

Over the past five years, she would occasionally go there to undergo tribulation, almost single-handedly absorbing all the essence of the entire spiritual vein.

This is what enabled her to advance rapidly from the Body Tempering Realm to the late Integration Realm.

To break through to the Mahayana stage, the required spiritual energy is enormous, and without the support of new spiritual veins, it is almost impossible to succeed.

What Ye Qiumian cared about even more was that as her cultivation level became more and more profound...

She vaguely sensed an invisible, mysterious force suppressing her.

That is the power of the rules of this world, like the ruler of heaven and earth.

She could sense it, but she couldn't resist it.

But she had a strong premonition that if she could reach the Mahayana stage, she might be able to break through this rule and find a way to leave this zombie-infested world.

Once the thought arises, it can no longer be suppressed.

Ye Qiumian stood up, walked to the window, and pulled open the heavy curtains.

Outside the window, one can see the view of the state capital base.

Beyond the towering walls, the outline of an abandoned city could be vaguely seen, and under the gray sky, the energy cannons on the fortifications gleamed with a cold metallic luster.

Five years have passed, and the base seems more fortified, but also more oppressive.

She frowned slightly, her gaze fixed on the distance, her thoughts racing.

Spiritual veins...where can we find new spiritual veins?
The spiritual energy in this world is already scarce. The few known energy points are either already controlled by the base or dangerous places infested with zombies, and the energy concentration is far from sufficient to support her breakthrough to the Mahayana stage.

Are we to explore even more remote and dangerous unknown areas?
Or perhaps, those core areas occupied by the zombie king might actually conceal undiscovered spiritual veins?
After all, the zombie king's rapid evolution speed, besides devouring human superhumans, may also be related to its occupation of certain special energy nodes.

Ye Qiumian tapped her fingertips lightly on the windowsill, her eyes gradually hardening.

She must find this spiritual vein, no matter where it is.

It's not just about breaking through to Mahayana, but also about... that sliver of hope of leaving.

A thin layer of dust settled on the phone screen, accumulated during the five years of seclusion.

Ye Qiumian brushed her fingertips across the edge, revealing the worn frame underneath. In the apocalypse where the signal was intermittent, it was still barely usable.

She pulled out her contacts and found Chu Qingyang's name.

The dial tone rang twice before being answered quickly. A slightly hoarse but still sharp male voice came from the other end: "Sister Ye?!"

"Ah."

Chu Qingyang's voice was filled with excitement: "Sister Ye, is there something you need from me?"

five years.

Since Ye Qiumian returned to the base, she has lived in seclusion in the Ruiya residential area. Apart from the occasional sighting of her coming and going by base personnel from afar, she has almost completely cut off contact with the outside world.

Chu Qingyang and Nan Shaohua were extremely anxious searching for her back then, but later they got the news from Xiao Yunliang.

Knowing that she was of a quiet and reserved nature and focused solely on cultivation, he did not disturb her further.

They only sent someone to leave a phone number and secretly instructed the guards at Ruiya Community to keep a close watch on the place.

After five years, she finally came looking for him.

Even Chu Qingyang, who was usually so composed, couldn't help but get excited at this moment.

"It's me," Ye Qiumian said bluntly. "I need your help."

"Sister Ye, please speak," Chu Qingyang's voice quickly regained its composure.

He knew that Sister Ye had been out of the public eye for five years, so it was no ordinary thing for her to take the initiative to contact him.

"Help me gather information on 'special places' around the world." Ye Qiumian looked out the window at the superhumans patrolling the base's highway, speaking steadily, "For example, places with unusually dense energy, strange environments, or unexplained fluctuations. The more remote and dangerous, the better."