A Post-Apocalyptic Journey to Another World

Zhang Xi didn't care about his classmates' discussions. Sitting in his seat, Chen Si thought: His body was too weak now. Although he had been struggling at the bottom for ten years in the apocalypse, his strength had reached the eighth level of Silver, and he was just about to reach the Gold level.

In today's terms, he'd be a mini-superman.

Light weapons, firearms, and even sniper rifles are no longer effective against him. Using his peak Silver-level consciousness to control his current body and fight, he injures himself before he can even harm anyone else.

This was still the result of him only wanting to teach the other party a lesson and not wanting to hurt anyone.

I need to start training quickly; I only have one year to prepare for a major catastrophe.

Zhang Xi's initial cultivation plan was very simple, and anyone on Earth could use this method to cultivate: basic training such as running and doing push-ups.

In the apocalypse, some of the powerful beings have reached levels of strength beyond humanity, creating their own domains. They can be considered demigods, yet they all started with basic training like running.

No one can obtain power out of thin air except cultists and believers in gods; no one is an exception.

Zhang Xi was even more wary of power obtained from others, even if the other party claimed to be a god.

In China, the entrance examination system for junior high school to senior high school has been abolished. Students are now assigned to senior high schools based on their region, and the education is completely free.

However, private schools like No. 1 High School are not subject to such restrictions, at the cost of high tuition fees. Students have the freedom to choose where to attend high school, so students at No. 1 High School place great importance on exam scores and teachers' systematic evaluations, which are their key to choosing a high school.

Zhang Xi is currently at the end of his second year of junior high school and will be entering a preparatory class for high school after the summer vacation. The students have already sensed the tense atmosphere of the upcoming high school entrance exam and are all listening attentively in class.

Zhang Xi kept his head down, silently searching his mind for information about the coming year. After all, it was a memory from ten years ago, and he needed to recall it carefully. At the same time, he silently listed some necessities on his e-book and made a training plan.

During the break, Zhang Xi only went to the infirmary to check his arm, got some medicine, and then sat still in his seat.

During lunch, Zhang Xi only chatted with Wang Ruilong for a while. Then, he silently attended class again. Finally, school was over, and Zhang Xi rushed home without delay, turned on his computer, and logged onto the internet.

I entered a forum for people who love strange and unusual stories, and sure enough, I found it.

A post by a netizen has been pinned by the forum moderator and is titled "Skull Attack Incident Occurs in Tianhai City".

The message reads: "My name is Cat Lover. This afternoon, three skeletons suddenly rushed into our neighborhood."

No, they're more like skeleton warriors. They're wielding swords over a meter long, hacking and slashing at anyone they see. Did they somehow cross over from a game? I'm sure this isn't a movie shoot; so many people died at the breakfast stalls downstairs.

Over a hundred police officers arrived, and the gunfire continued for several minutes. The people in our neighborhood were terrified, and even now, more than a dozen police officers are still on duty nearby.

The post also included several photos, including a close-up of a skull and photos of armed special forces on patrol.

Zhang Xi was very familiar with the skull in that photo. The photo was clearly taken from upstairs looking down, and it was obvious that the photographer was a photography enthusiast, as the picture was very clear.

The skull was pure white, not dark brown, indicating that it was a basic skeleton cannon fodder, not tempered by darkness. It was raising its head, with green flames burning in its eye sockets.

Zhang Xi hated these things the most because they seemed endless and worthless; killing them yielded nothing but skeletons and the longsword.

The thing mercenary hates most is a battle that yields no reward. Even fighting someone as penniless as the Little Devil can occasionally yield elemental crystals.

The last glimmer of hope in Zhang Xi's heart vanished, and she dialed an overseas video call. Soon, a familiar, loving face appeared on the other end of the line: "Xi'er, it's been so long since you called your mother!"

Zhang Xi's tears suddenly welled up. Ten years! He hadn't seen his parents or heard their voices for a full ten years.

Zhang Xi's parents were typical late-marriage couples; her father married her mother when she was 31 and he was 36.

Zhang Xi was born when his mother was thirty-four years old. Having a son in middle age, the couple doted on Zhang Xi immensely.

Now both of them are around fifty years old, and they used to have stable jobs in the local branch of their company. But they've been traveling all over the world for their son's education. Zhang Xi originally wanted to attend a public high school, but his parents disagreed, saying they were afraid it would hinder his development and that he had to go to the best school.

"Mom and Dad, I love you!"

Zhang Xi suddenly cried out these words, which startled the two elderly people on the other end.

Chinese people value family highly, but they are not good at expressing their emotions. Parents and children usually care for each other silently, but rarely say "I love you" directly.

When the mother heard her child say he loved her for the first time, she was speechless for a moment.

The father was the first to recover from his agitation: "What's wrong, son? What happened? Tell me quickly!" Zhang Xi noticed that he was now like a boy who had been bullied at school and was crying.

Afraid of causing her parents unnecessary worry, she quickly wiped away her tears: "It's nothing. I saw a picture of a monster online, and I'm very scared. Mom and Dad, let's come home. I miss you."

The father frowned: his child was good in every way, except that he was a little timid and cowardly.

Some people are really bored these days, posting all sorts of weird and supernatural information online all day long. Today, there are similar scary things in the US too. It seems that the spirit of pranking is the same all over the world.

I hope that as my child grows up, he/she will gradually become stronger.

"My dear son, don't believe those nonsense things. Your father and I are almost finished with this project, and we'll be coming back to China to see you next month." The mother was clearly still immersed in her son's words, "I love you both."

Zhang Xi talked to the elderly couple for a long time, mainly because she wanted to see them a little longer. She repeatedly urged them to come back to China during the summer vacation. After chatting for a while, she hung up the phone.

Then I started shopping online: first I bought a pair of dumbbells and some weighted metal blocks. And that's how I ended up with no allowance for the month.

We need to find a way to make more money, because in the post-apocalyptic world, we'll need a lot of resources to quickly gain power. Making money isn't difficult for a transmigrator, but being a minor is a bit of a problem.

The next morning at five o'clock, Zhang Xi got up and went to the riverside park not far from the community. There were already many elderly people doing their morning exercises there.

Eighty percent of the people here are elderly. In China, young people are not very enthusiastic about fitness.

The park has a cement path specifically for people to jog in the morning, with a stone bollard every 500 meters to help runners determine the distance.

Nearly thirty-five minutes later, Zhang Xi finally finished running the five kilometers.

When he first reached the first stone pier, this kid was panting like a dog. He was worried: "I can't even finish 500 meters? Was my body this weak when I was fourteen?"

Fortunately, I am now determined and am forcibly pushing my legs forward.

He could force his body to overexert itself through sheer willpower, but this was for fitness, not combat. It wouldn't be worth injuring himself again and having to spend time recovering, so he had no choice but to patiently run slowly.

After resting at home for a while, I ate and washed up, then browsed the internet, silently noting down locations where monsters were reported to have appeared. At the same time, I racked my brains trying to figure out how to get money quickly, before boarding the bus to school again.