Road to Mastery: A LitRPG Apocalypse

The New Cathedral was built on a sprawling expanse. A prairie stretched for endless miles. Blades of grass danced, occasionally trampled by the hooves of farm animals. Civilization had slowly started to appear on this beast-inhabited planet, brought about by the Church.

A brontosaurus head peeked out of a jungle in the distance, calmly chewing on wide leaves. A pterodactyl flew overhead. Deeper in the jungle, a beast roared.

This planet had no name. It was just one of the many inhabitable planets that dotted this and every galaxy. It had been chosen because of its location deep inside a cluster of stars, and also because, while it possessed life, no intelligent life forms had developed yet. The planet was covered in moist jungles and inhabited by creatures suspiciously similar to Earth’s dinosaurs.

Asking around, Jack discovered that giant lizards were a common life form in the universe. Unfortunately, them developing sapience was rare. Something to do with their cold blood. Jack would have liked to explore the subject, but he had more pressing problems.

The New Cathedral was a vast temple surrounded by a city complex. Construction had only begun two years ago, but it was carried out by high-level cultivators, so everything progressed at a rapid pace. Rows of residences already lined the city outside the temple—a mix of fairy-tale and high-tech standards. Construction sites littered the surroundings. There was water, sewage, and electricity, all dependent on a large nearby lake. People crawled around this place, seeming like ants from up-high, while farmers had already began transforming the surrounding prairie into rich farmland.

The temple itself was made of wood, glowing with life in the sun. Its shape was similar to a set of four joint spheres, with one in the middle and the other three surrounding it.

The center sphere was the largest. Its domed roof reached several hundred feet in size, while the other three were only half as tall. Balconies were visible at the top of the domes, and the open entrance of each building revealed an austere, powerful interior. Windows were everywhere.

The temple had smooth walls decorated with statues and paintings of heroes—maybe past Archons—fighting all sorts of enemies. In one prominent piece, two humanoids and what looked like a centaur faced down five robots. Numbers were painted on each robot head—from five to nine. Jack could tell they were Immortals, but the meaning of the numbers was lost on him.

“This is pretty good work for two years,” he commented. Their starship descended towards a landing base sandwiched between a park and a medieval pub.

“It’s nothing,” Elder Boatman replied. “The city is just an afterthought. All the real effort goes into the war.”

Brock pointed in the distance. “Look, bro. Big lizards. Girl Bro would be happy here.”

Jack smiled. Nauja’s tribe originally lived in the Barbarian Ring of Trial Planet, a place also inhabited by dinosaurs. This planet would have given her nostalgia. Unfortunately, she was an incalculable distance away, so she would probably never see this.

“The New Cathedral is a military base, not a sightseeing attraction,” Starhair said with a snort.

Jack laughed. “Keep it in your starry pants. There is always time to sightsee.”

“Hmph.”

“Hmph to you as well.”

“The Arch Priestess wants to see you, Jack and Brock,” Elder Boatman suddenly said. “I will take you to the main temple now. Do you know the way, Starhair?”

“Certainly, Elder,” Starhair replied. “Thank you for the trip.” He vanished.

“You know, he’s actually not that bad,” Jack said, pointing his thumb at Starhair’s previous location. “Just needs to loosen up a little.”

Brock shook his head. “Ass-Kisser bro still needs an ass-kicking. Otherwise, he will backfire.”

“Well, if you say so.”

Their starship changed course. From the landing spot they were aiming at, they were now headed towards the temple. Elder Boatman steered them to the entrance—a thirty feet tall archway depicting a kind, scholarly man at the top. The man was opening his arms as if to hug whoever entered.

“That’s Enas,” Elder Boatman explained. “It is said that life originated from one of his experiments, so he’s often portrayed as a scholar.”

Jack nodded and entered.

The interior of the temple was as expected. Rows of wooden benches led to an altar featuring another image of Enas. Cultivators of various levels lined the benches, praying, though they didn’t seem too devoted. Some chatted with one another, while a pair of children ran down the aisle. A white-robed priest silently read a book in the back.

“We’re going to the upper floor,” Elder Boatman said. He led them to a spiral staircase upward. Just like everything else in this temple, it was made of wood. Flowers sprouted from various places, like the entire temple was a living, still-growing tree. Jack could even sense his Dao of Life invigorated inside this place.

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“Oh wow,” The Stone said from his inner world. “If I had a credit for every time I’ve been inside a living tree building, I would have two credits. Which isn’t a lot, but it’s weird that it happened twice.”

“You’ve been to a similar place before?” Jack asked back.

“Not similar. I think I was stuck inside a tree hollow once. Nobody came to save me, and I obviously couldn’t dislodge myself, being a stone and all. I eventually just waited until the tree grew older and its hollow wider, and then I just slipped out.”

“You know it’s annoying when you remember random stuff but not the important ones, right?”

“Sorry, my friend. It’s not on purpose. Maybe if I speak enough, the right memories will surface! Okay, let’s see. My favorite food is—”

It couldn’t even eat food. Jack tuned out The Stone as they ascended the staircase. He counted three landings, but they kept going up. The higher they reached, the less noise was in their surroundings, though nobody questioned them being here. Eventually, they reached the top of the stairs, greeted by a door made of twisting tree branches.

“It can’t be that simple,” Jack said. “The Arch Priestess is an overlord of the universe. Surely she has her own dimension instead of sitting behind a wooden door.”

He couldn’t quite tell, but he thought Elder Boatman smiled. The old vampire knocked on the door. A moment later, a voice answered him. “Enter.”

The door swung open, revealing a place Jack could only describe as sacred.

Flowers grew from the wooden walls. A hole in the ceiling let in a column of light, with dust particles lazily floating about. The world turned quiet the moment Jack entered—he was surrounded by reverence, piety, the sound of a gentle stream. An earthly scent permeated the room, punctuated by the dirt which made up the floor. There were even ants walking back and forth. The few columns were made of wood and had vines growing around them. Everything was natural and at peace.

On the dirt floor, a lone path stretched from the entrance to the back of this dome-shaped room, leading to a throne of roots and flowers. A woman sat there—the only other person in the room. Her presence was ethereal. She was like a goddess of nature, a part of the natural world. White robes covered her entire body, revealing only a pair of smiling golden eyes and tanned, bare feet. Her toenails were unpainted.

The moment Jack laid eyes on this woman, he knew she was the Arch Priestess, the leader of the Black Hole Church. And he knew that with absolute certainty, not because of the context of his arrival here or because of her commanding position in the room, but because of the sheer amount of power which left her body. It was indescribable. The strongest person Jack had seen so far was Elder Boatman, but even his power paled before hers, a firefly to the moon. She was so powerful that Jack had the momentary illusion that she was the entire world, and he had been pushed outside of it.

Despite her great strength, however, her aura bore no pressure at all. It was like staring at the sky—beautiful, vast, but not suppressive.

Jack was lost for words. The Stone in his inner world, for whatever reason, wasn’t. “Oh wow,” it said. “If you and that woman pool your clothes together, you might be able to make two properly dressed people.”

Jack was snapped out of the illusion and had to fight not to laugh. He wore only a pair of shorts; she, robes covering her entire body, and who knows what else underneath.

The Arch Priestess regarded them kindly, yet without speaking. Elder Boatman fell to a knee. “Boatman greets the Arch Priestess,” he said. “May your life be ever blooming.”

Jack and Brock followed, also bowing. “Greetings, Arch Priestess,” they said as one. Even Brock spoke with more respect this time.

She still regarded them silently. Right as Jack was beginning to wonder, her entire being brightened. He couldn’t see her face, but he knew she’d just given a radiant smile. “Hello, Boatman, Jack, Brock,” she said. Her voice was exactly as expected. Ethereal, beautiful, yet heavy with authority. Hearing it made Jack feel warm inside, but he would hesitate to interrupt her.

“I have heard many things,” she continued. “It’s a pleasure to finally meet you.”

“The pleasure is all ours, Arch Priestess,” Jack replied.

“I’m sure it is. Don’t worry about offending me. In private, you may address me freely and speak your mind.”

Jack looked up. He didn’t straighten his back yet because neither had Elder Boatman. “Your temple is beautiful,” he blurted out. He wasn’t sure why he said that. To lighten the mood?

Her smile—which he still couldn’t see—grew wider. The feeling was like every flower in existence blooming at once. “The Immortals live in temples of metal,” she replied softly. “They worship themselves and hold no respect for life. I hope we can be better. All life is sacred, even the simplest trees and flowers. When we live in harmony, our hearts are at peace—with our hearts at peace, we can truly live.”

Jack’s Dao of the Fist resonated with her words. A casual phrase had awoken his Dao of Life. The sign of an Archon.

“Well-spoken, Beautiful Bro,” Brock said, nodding in agreement. Jack’s heart seized. Elder Boatman tensed up.

“Oh!” The Stone said. “Your bro has a crush on the leader lady! Maybe you’ll all become a big family and have half-monkey, half-priest children.”

The Arch Priestess, however, only laughed—a light, cheerful sound.

“Thank you, Brock,” she replied. “Your ancestry resonates with my temple. If we have the time later, I look forward to discussing your view of life and nature. It is rare for a beast-born cultivator to reach such high achievements.”

“Sure thing,” Brock replied.

“Time is precious these days,” the Arch Priestess said, standing from her throne. She was taller than Jack expected—slightly more than himself. Her white robes cascaded, elegantly covering her whole body. “You may take your leave, Boatman. I will instruct your disciples and ensure they take full advantage of the resources the New Cathedral has to offer. When I’m done, I will return them to you, so you can guide them more consistently.”

“Yes, Arch Priestess,” Elder Boatman replied. He bowed again, then turned and walked out of the room, closing the door behind him. Jack suddenly felt vulnerable. The Arch Priestess smiled at them.

“Let’s talk business.”

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