Calculating Cultivation-Chapter 111: A Great Worm

Around a full year of traveling across the Great Desert and I could feel my brain beginning to cook. Each time we came to a stop it was harder and harder to determine the correct way to go in order to head towards the center of the Great World.

The Life Light was mostly constant. There were some very minor variations in its output. While these would normally never be a concern, when trying to figure out the direction using shadows by a few degrees, every little bit mattered.

I didn’t say anything as we left from our rest spot. No one said anything. We traveled in silence with only the wind and the movement of the white sand making noise. Traveling this long I had come up with the theory that the color of the sand was leached out by the Life Light in some way. A white star and white sand had to be connected, it couldn’t be coincidence.

While traveling I would think about what this connection could be between the two. There wasn’t anything else out here unfortunately. Look, another dune, oh, some sand. What was that? A lot of heat? You didn’t say?

I felt a tremor move through the ground and came to a stop on top of a sand dune looking around. There was another tremor and I saw a cloud of sand rising up into the air in the distance. The cloud was heading for us. Something burst through a sand dune and was headed in our direction. The energy of this creature was impossible to determine. It had a near perfect grip on its energy. That meant it was at or above the level of skill of the Cultivator Killer.

“Spread out and try not to die,” I said while freeing my sword from its sheathe. I advanced as the cultivators behind me all dispersed.

The giant creature burst through another sand dune and it was massive. Both in girth and length. While not as big as a building of the Forever City, the creature was probably a quarter of the floorplan of such a building in girth and about a hundred floors in length. There was no mouth, it was completely armored, shaped like a snake or a worm.

Worm was probably the best description, since it had no mouth and snakes did have mouths. The armor that lined its body was thick, very thick and there was a cloud of energy over the creature. It was fairly tight around its body, but that energy was there. The cloud of sand had obscured such a cloud further out.

My mind raced and I quickly realized that the creature had probably taken in a nexus crystal, possibly several and reworked them, so it would be bathed in a constant source of energy. This fight went from hard to very dangerous in an instant. The creature had made its body an instrument of perfect destruction, using its sheer bulk to crush any opposition.

At least I was able to spot it from a long distance away, giving me time to mentally prepare. There was no sneaking up on anyone in the Great Desert. To grow as large as it had, it probably plundered every nexus crystal that had existed in the Great Desert. I had been wondering why I hadn’t seen anything, or other creatures.

This giant worm was also traveling incredibly fast. Looking closely, I could see it sucking in air at its front, under its scales, and then using that same air to propel itself. It was probably mostly hollow, with only the scales being the heavy portions of the creature. It probably had some sort of lattice work structure on the inside to support itself while absorbing the tremendous forces imposed on its massive body.

I was taking my time to assess this worm, because it was going to be a very hard battle. Unlike the Cultivator Killer, I did not think we would reach an agreement of some kind. The Cultivator Killer had modeled its avatar after humans, taking inspiration from them. The Great Worm was nothing like that. In fact, it probably needed such a large body to contain all the nexus crystals.

If it could control its own biology and had energy, its scales would be impossible to penetrate. The fact it could draw in and expel the surrounding air through tiny gaps between the scales, meant it could probably repurpose those vents for attack and defense. Two big outer layers, with scales the size of a person and probably a smaller inner layer.

Also, if I could control my biology and was a giant desert worm I would have my scales act as a means of attack besides my bulk. Either acid or explosions of some kind. Otherwise, smaller creatures would try to turn its large bulk against it. Explosions were the most likely. With its mastery over air manipulation highly compressed air would be most likely as a form of reactive armor.

The giant worm was getting closer. With its control over its biology, once I was killed, it would probably move some scales and draw my corpse into some kind of stomach to process my corpse and belongings. It would not take the risk or have the weakness of having an obvious mouth.

Oh, it was also adjusting the air mixture it was drawing in and expelling. With control over its bodily functions, it would probably need to perform minute adjustments to such processes, but it also meant that the worm could probably ignite the surrounding air. That was more likely than reactive armor, since reactive armor would waste material.

I had one attack. It was a very good attack almost all of the time, but the problem was that if my sword swing didn’t work, then I would be in trouble. The worm was traveling in a straight line as fast as I could travel as well, if I wasn’t pushing myself to the extreme. I had no doubt that the worm had far more endurance than me with control over its biology.

The best option was to attack head on and deliver such an impactful opening blow, it would run away or be crippled at the very least. A drawn out battle would be a disaster. I began focusing on my blade and pushing energy into it. I could control the amount of energy used in my attacks. I was going to go right up to the limit of what my blade could handle.

One weakness the worm had that could not be easily mitigated was its speed and overall bulk. No matter how light it was, it would not be able to stop quickly, and it was clear that the Great Worm here used its mass as a weapon.

The worm drew closer. Its armored front like an approaching missile as the ground shook and the sand began to vibrate. I noticed arcs of electricity near the base of the worm. It probably incorporated the white sand into its armor as another form of protection.

I could respect such a creature. It was stacking up every possible advantage it had to make sure nothing could ever threaten it. Unfortunately, it had come across me and I was going to make it regret targeting me.

“One Thrust to Pierce The Heavens,” I said while focusing on my attack. I leapt off the ground towards the worm as it charged right at me. I thrust out my blade and struck the armored tip of the creature. My blade sank into the amor with some resistance, but it did go in. Once my blade went up to the hilt my shoulder impacted the giant scale at the front.

The energy inside my blade was released as a piercing attack, traveling the length of the worm. The massive creature came crashing to a halt. I used the momentum from its stopping to yank my blade free and kick off its scales.

While tempting to land and think the giant worm was dead, I knew such an attack was only a wound. I couldn’t tell how bad it was, but the fact that the creature had not lost control of its energy, showed it wasn’t a mortal wound and might not be that serious either.

“One Swing To Sperate Heaven And Earth,” I intoned and raced forward and leapt back up. I struck the snout where I had pierced the worm already. I could see the armored scale closing back up. It was slow, since the creature was probably dealing with all the internal damage first. I swung with all my might.

The armored scale in the front separated in half and a blast of putrid air emerged from inside the worm towards me. The foul air began to ignite as I quickly brought my blade up vertically and swung down. The putrid air exploded out of the giant worm but my swing pushed the fire back into the creature along with the slash of energy.

Compared to its overall bulk, the damage to the front of the worm was minor, but it was crippling, since my attacks had managed to break through the scales into its flesh below. The piercing attack had shattered the majority of its defenses and shocked the creature. My follow up attacks allowed me to take advantage of that distraction to break apart its front.

I landed back down on the sand in front of the creature, sliding backwards from the force imparted onto my body from the two swings I had done in mid-air. There was no blood leaking from the creature. Not a single drop. It truly had immense control over its biology. ṛÁ₦ОβÊŝ

Pulling out a spirit stone, I focused on drawing upon its energy as I advanced back towards the worm swinging over and over. Three slashes, five slashes, and finally twelve slashes cut into the giant worm. The entire front was completely cut up.

That was when the front part that was heavily damaged broke away and the giant worm began to retreat. It was a segmented worm, since the new front part was just as armored as the front portion I had destroyed.

I let out a sigh of relief. Anymore and my energy levels would have dipped into dangerous territory, leaving my body vulnerable to the desert. I watched the giant worm leave while the cultivators traveling with me rushed over.

I made my way to the abandoned front portion of the giant worm. The insides were dried out and burnt flesh that was shredded. The worm had probably drawn-out whatever liquid was inside of them before abandoning that portion of its body.

That was the problem and benefit that advancing in their cultivation brought these creatures. They were too smart. That killer instinct they had was tempered by the possibility of loss. Now that they were strong enough, they didn’t want to risk death in a drawn-out confrontation. It was the same with most senior cultivators as well. The stronger they became, the more cautious they grew when encountering a threat that could actually hurt them.

For cultivators and creatures, it was a moment of evaluation and realization that they weren’t the strongest and that their opponent had hidden strength. Pulling out a spirit stone would also be a shock to the creature since my energy levels would appear to surge out of nowhere.

If I pushed the fight and chased the giant worm, then it would have probably used more tricks and abilities to try and kill me. But it was stronger than me in terms of endurance. I was more of a glass cannon. I had a powerful attack and my cultivation boosting my abilities, that was it. I had nothing else. The giant worm with its ability to manipulate its biology probably had several more techniques it could use.

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A shame the worm couldn’t be captured and ridden. That would have made traveling across the Great Desert much more enjoyable. Traveling by giant worm instead of having to run across the sand dunes.

I considered all the techniques the giant worm used. It had probably not broken through. It was at the absolute pinnacle before the first breakthrough, but it had not crossed that threshold. Instead, it had mastered a range of techniques, becoming a near unstoppable power at its level of combat. I would say that I probably wounded it about 5% at most, with what it had broken off.

Looking at the shed scales and frontal section I went over to take a look at them more closely. Like a lizard shedding its tail, it was a worm shedding its front section. A smaller creature would be unable to do such a thing. I poked the hard and thick scales with my sword. The material was strong, but it was more like large steel plates. Reworking it into anything useful would take a lot of time and effort.

What little flesh was left behind was completely desiccated, not a drop of water remaining. It was dry and brittle with the hot hair already turning what flesh there was to dust. The giant worm had taken whatever liquid had been present with its mastery of biology.

I had the room, so I tossed a couple of scales into my spatial storage. “Take what you wish, we leave shortly,” I said to the rest of the cultivators who had come over. They descended on the materials like a bunch of locusts. They would only be able to bring so much without a spatial device. But that was their decision. Perhaps they would make hats to help protect themselves from the Life Light.

Looking around I found a scale and began cutting the scale with my sword. Thankfully a wide brim hat shape wasn’t too hard, and the scales were designed to counter as much of the heat and light as possible. It was a horribly designed hat, but I felt cooler under its shade.

“Senior, can you help the rest of us make hats?” Junior Wei asked. I mentally let out a sigh, but these cultivators were struggling in the heat. Still, if I had needed to run away from the giant worm, they would have been useful distractions. They probably knew this as well, but that was why Junior Wei was confident in asking for my help. There was only a handful of cultivators left as well, so it wasn’t too burdensome.

After carving out a bunch of heavy worm scale hats we set off again. The general mood had improved by quite a bit. Seeing me scare away such a monster and having hats that resisted the burning heat and light of the Life Light made everyone much more confident in our success despite the deaths from radiation previously.

Several days later, the ground shook once more and I paused on top of a large dune. I could see the sand trail of the giant worm off to the side. It was incredibly far away, but it was there. The giant worm was shadowing us. I frowned at that. If it was shadowing us, then it clearly felt it could win at a certain point in the future. Either from ambush or from the situation changing due to another creature or the environment.

I had gained a lot of familiarity with creatures and their behaviors traveling through the Great Jungle. I didn’t think something as intelligent as the giant worm would shadow our group. I had hoped it would go back to recover the scales and material we left behind. It most likely had done so but was far faster in traveling through the desert than my group.

Unfortunately I had no good options unlike the creatures in the Great Jungle. Those that followed me there, I could confront since they were weaker. The most dangerous, the Cultivator Killer, thankfully showed up at the very end. This giant worm showed up in the middle of our trek, over a year after we had left the Last Mountains.

There were four choices. Go back, which was not happening. Stay in place, which would invite an attack and not accomplish anything. Go after the giant worm, which I probably couldn’t defeat anyways. Or keep going. The last choice was the only viable option and I didn’t like it for the simple reason that the giant worm was smart.

If it had chosen to follow us, it clearly knew something we didn’t. Either another creature would show up or the situation would change. It could be hoping to hunt us down over a long period of time. But I noted that the giant worm had slowed to a stop once I had come to a stop. The change came the moment I stopped while the rest of the cultivators caught up with me. The giant worm was shadowing me, not them. It knew who the real threat was.

I let out a long sigh, my voice carried away by the scorching out wind. I started moving once more. When I took a chance to glance back, the giant worm had resumed following me. I disliked being shadowed by something I could not defeat. That was the advantage the giant worm had with its massive size. It could take a bunch of attacks and still be fine.

The next time we stopped to rest I considered laying a trap for the creature. But poison wouldn’t work and there was no chance of an explosion working, unless it was a nuclear sized blast at point blank range.

“If anyone has any suggestions on how to kill or scare away the giant worm with a crippling blow, feel free to speak up,” I declared to the cultivators traveling with me. All I got was silence that continued to stretch.

“Senior, there might be a way. I have with me a vial of the Silent Death poison,” one of the cultivators finally said. Everyone gave them a look and moved away slightly.

“Why do you have such a thing?” Junior Wei asked, but I held up my hand and everyone became quiet and stilled in our little pit.

“What does it do?” I did not care for this man’s history. If he had something that could scare this worm, then it would be useful. The cultivator pulled out a crystal phial and brought it over to me. I carefully took the crystal phial and inspected it. I noted the clear liquid being repelled from the crystal.

“Senior, it is a very rare poison that targets a person’s cultivation. It is like water, but once ingested, it builds in strength, drawing strength,” the cultivator explained. I carefully removed the stopper, breaking the wax seal. I only got a slight sense of danger from the Silent Death. I put the stopper back in place and used my finger to spread out the wax once more.

I then handed it back to the cultivator who had brought it out. “It is powerful, but it is at the same level as that wood sap, using a similar but more targeted method of damaging a target. For a creature that has perfect control over its biology, this wouldn’t do anything.” I pulled out a spirit stone and tossed it over to the cultivator. “It was a good idea, but it won’t work, even if it took the poison into itself unknowingly.”

“Senior, I have a suggestion,” another cultivator spoke up. “I have several bombs with me, that my Sect uses in combat.” He pulled one out and handed it over. A couple of questions later and I confirmed it was gunpowder based. I shook my head and handed them back. This was a weak suggestion, and the cultivator didn’t get a spirit stone.

At least the poison was mildly interesting and against anything else it would have been a threat. Even me, if I ingested such a thing. I had no doubt that the cultivator with the poison had joined up to look for benefits, possibly even assassinating me.

Unfortunately, after the wood sap nonsense, I was much more careful of anything, including air that went into my body. I was not going through anything like that ever again. The cultivators traveling with me confirmed that they were only useful as distractions.

Only one of them traveling with me had broke through the pre-bottleneck. The rest had stayed behind. And this one cultivator was struggling for greater control over their biology. I suspected that whatever plant-based item they had found in the Great Jungle to help them, had compromised their cultivation.

After resting, we set off again, the giant worm still maintained its distance, which was stressful. Unfortunately having repeated battles would confirm in the creature’s mind that it was stronger than me if it just persisted in fighting to the bitter end. It could recover from any wound with its control over its biology.

While my slashes attacked the soul a bit as well, it was a pinprick compared to the level of physical damaged unleashed. Physical damage was the focus of my slashes. If I had energy to spare, then it would have been worthwhile to practice adjusting how my slashes did damage, but I did not. I had my one set of attacks and that wasn’t going to change any time soon. Getting any better would require a lot more spare energy and a lot of time to practice.

The only real option going forward was to keep going with the status quo until something changed. I would not be able to easily defeat or drive away the giant worm a second time. At least it kept its distance far enough away that it would take at least ten minutes to cross the distance. More than enough time to deal with any immediate threat.

“Senior, we could attack as a group. If you manage to engage it from the front, we can all attack from the sides,” another cultivator suggested. I looked at the woman like she had just lost her mind along with the rest of the cultivators.

“And how would you even begin to injure the giant worm?” I asked.

“We have weapons, swords, spears, and such. We can drive them into the creature when you stop it,” she said.

“You would do nothing except be a distraction. If I thought I could kill it, then it might be worthwhile. But it is too big and has too many techniques it can exploit with its biology,” I shook my head at the suggestion. The silence stretched out.

I could use my gun, but that would be like stabbing a human with a needle. Unless I hit a critical part of their body, they wouldn’t die. Even then with the control the giant worm had over its biology I was doubtful I could employ a one hit kill. Whatever brain was inside the creature was sure to have another layer of shielding under the external armor.

“Senior, we have a small reserve of oil. We could use that to light the creature on fire to try and overheat it,” another cultivator suggested.

That wasn’t a completely horrible idea. If I had some kind of fire technique it would be useful for causing the creature to overheat. But a single barrel of oil would be like a molten spark of metal landing on a person’s skin. While it might be incredibly hot, heat was still governed by physics. The molten spark was too small.

Heat was about the total amount of movement of particles in a given volume. Empty space tended to be quite hot, but the temperature was low, due to the low number of particles in space. It wasn’t just the amount of heat, but the size of what was heated as well.

Cooling the worm would actually be more dangerous in my mind. The outer scales were incredibly solid to resist heat and also malleable to some extent under the Life Light. A strong burst of cold would be much more dangerous than more heat. It couldn’t get much hotter than this unless everything caught on fire and started melting. Any hotter and the air itself would catch fire.

Also, with the giant worm’s control over its biology and its size, elemental based attacks would not be a knockout blow. The creature was just too big.

“We will continue on. The suggestions are interesting, but ultimately the creature is too big to impact easily. Even my cutting attacks will only dig into it so far and it was able to shed and add another layer of armor. We must keep watch when we stop in case it moves towards us in stealth. While unlikely, it is highly intelligent,” I said. Three cultivators left our rest area to quickly check. Only one of them needed to exit, but three did.

The giant worm was holding position, but it was another thing we would have to guard against. While it went against common sense, that something that large would try a sneak attack, that was also the reason why it would be so effective. If it could close the distance and rampage on our group before anyone realized, the remaining cultivators would be killed.

I would live of course. Even if I was forced to run, on my own, I wasn’t worried about the giant worm. Really the best way to attack the giant creature would be some kind of large scale attack. All my opponents that I could fight against had been beasts or human shaped creatures. I had always valued precision in the past, but clearly that had been a mistake. I really should have learned more techniques while I had the chance instead of mastering my sword attacks and focusing on my cultivation.

While these people had bad suggestions, they had found that tunnel. Also, if the giant worm attacked in the future I could use them as distractions. It wasn’t time to leave them behind just yet. But I also wasn’t going to go out of my way to save them going forward, even more so than before.

The giant worm following us had raised the stakes considerably and I would need to retain every possible advantage for myself. Their dedication and belief was inspiring, cultivation was ultimately an individual journey. You can depend on others and get help, but if you count on them to survive, then you have no agency and no right to complain when you finally die.

The cultivators who had stayed behind in Zama had realized this truth or weren’t as desperate. Regardless, these people’s lives with me were probably over. Their only hope was that I would be able to clear a way forward for them.