3 Chapter 3: beginning of the end

Driving out of the parking lot of the cemetery we made our way to the downtown area. Tyler is a regular sized city for Texas and has about 100,000 citizens.

The cemetery is on the outskirts of the city and on a normal day it would take about 10 minutes or so to go downtown. However after the meteor shower a lot of people are hurrying to their destination regardless if there are stop lights are not.

Dodging traffic is easy for a person of my skills but other people are getting in wrecks all along the way. Asuka points to a house on one side that looks like it was flattened like a pancake. On top of the flattened house is stone rubble that looked out of place.

"It seems that a meteor fell here but where are the monsters?" Asuka had a confused look on her face but I was deep in thought.

Breaking from my thoughts and deciding to start gathering as much intel as I can, I turned on the radio to try and glean as much info as possible.

{"According to local news, the strange meteors fell everywhere in the city including most of which that fell in the downtown area. Everyone is advised to stay inside and keep whatever weapons you have on you ready as reports state that monsters come from inside the rocks.

Tyler PD is working with the state troopers and local reserve army forces to keep the situation in control. A press release was given that explained how most monsters can be killed with low caliber guns, however there are some that have massacred squads of SWAT teams and are roaming the streets and gathering weaker monsters to form groups. If you see these monsters, call 911 and leave the area immediately"}

After turning the sound down I looked over to my wife with an amused expression, "That's what I love about U.S.A. and freedom of speech; no one gives a shit about censoring the media when all hell breaks loose."

She rolled her eyes at me then returned to searching for threats that might pop out from the buildings in front of us.

The road was littered with wrecked cars and the occasional lone monster that got separated from the packs they have created. suburban neighborhoods had families that looked through their windows at the scene outside, while other houses started to board up windows.

Finally after about 30 minutes of dodging and weaving, we arrived on the outskirts of the downtown area. At this point the street was too congested to drive so we had to exit the vehicle and go on foot.

I looked at my dad's old truck with reluctance as the memories flooded through me. I studied all of the scratches made and the chips of paint on the hood before I mustered up the resolve and turned around to continue our journey.

Asuka walked beside me in her military spec suit with the katana at her waist. She met my eyes for a moment and smiled then pressed a button on her forearm. The suit activated it's artificial camouflage and she disappeared in front of my eyes. The camo is perfect when the user stays still, however when they move it has a similar effect as the one in the Aliens vs. Predator movies.

I understood what she decided to do, as it's always been her that took the assassin support role when we team up while I am the tank.

The inner city was hectic compared to the suburban districts as people ran to and fro trying to buy as much provisions as possible. Police and the army supervised as much as they could to prevent theft and other crimes, even though they were spread thin.

At this point any type of crime was punished harshly as there wasn't any time to put them in a police car and take them to the jail. All of them were rounded up at various spots where the army was and cuffed before being ordered to lay on the ground.

I knew also that we needed to stock up on foods and other essentials, however the safety of my mom was top priority. The 5 subordinates of mine that are driving to meet up with me will have the same idea and have that issue covered for now.

As we walked through the crowds and got closer to our destination which was in the center of the downtown area, the police presence increased and the crowds lessened.

A sense of foreboding filled me as I turned the corner and saw a road block made of cars with police tape to stop people from entering the inner area further.

Past the roadblock was like a different world unfolded before me. The buildings on the other side were trashed as if a riot happened. Broken windows, overturned cars, fire that consumed smaller buildings, everything looked ruined.

The tense and scared faces of the policemen and army soldiers spoke volumes about what kind of horror they faced holding back the enemies.

After I strode closer to the roadblock and enhanced my vision I could see between the gaps of the cars several dozen dead creatures of various size and shape. Blood pooled everywhere and you could smell the metallic scent from afar.

The law enforcement was shaken up and some who held their guns trembled. I wasn't particularly bothered by it after the years spent traversing the criminal underworld and jianghu. The scent was nostalgic and made my blood boil, hoping to find an enemy that I could test my skills on.

Finally some of them spotted me and one who looked like the leader approached me with a tired face.

"I'm gonna need you to stay away from this area, it's not safe. You should return home and shut the doors and windows."

The middle aged officer patiently explained to me, which was impressive considering the massive shit that he's gone through in the past hour.

Giving the officer a non-threatening look, I inwardly sighed about how this was going to be troublesome, "I have family I need to rescue over there. You don't need to worry about taking responsibility if something happens to me; pretend I was never here."

The officer gave me an incredulous look before finally sighing and moving out of the way,

"Your funeral bud."

Strolling over to the barricade like I'm in a garden, the others also gave me various looks too many to identify. I ignore them and decide to leave with style because there's no point hiding my strength when it's the end of the world.

The golden core in my chest revolves as the chi flows out naturally into every inch of my body, strengthening my flesh, muscles, tendons, and bones.

Bending my legs I push off with minimum effort, the pavement leaving a small spiderweb crack as I soar over the barricade, landing on the other side. The dust and paper debris float in a circle away from me as my foot makes contact with the street.

Turning around I see the priceless scene of over a dozen policemen with their jaws dropped and eyes popping out of their heads comically. Everyone gulps at the same time with a few that pray to God, thinking it's fake.

Without wasting anymore time I speed off towards my destination slightly slowing down so Asuka can keep up by using Inner Strength, which is a stage below my cultivation.

The difference between Inner Strength and my Golden Core stage is that anyone can use Inner Strength, however it has a low limit and the power isn't as explosive. Inner Strength users store as much chi absorbed from the air as they can into their muscles, bones, etc. until they hit the limit that the body can take.

This could take years to do, and when they are full it is Peak Inner Strength level. Regenerating chi is very slow at Inner Strength stage and once you are at the Peak level you can boast to others that you're one of the strongest martial artists in the world.

Regarding the next level of cultivation, the Golden Core, it is the current peak of martial arts. The Golden Core allows you to replenish all of your chi in a few hours compared to the several days it takes for an Inner Strength expert.

The Golden Core is also a type of transformation of the body where your chi is more condensed, giving explosive power many times more than that of Inner Strength chi. Including the fact that since it is condensed, it allows you to store insane amounts of chi.

If the two stages were given a comparison, the Inner Strength stage would be a steam engine, and the Golden Core a combustion engine.

However how many people have ascended Inner Strength stage and broken through to Golden Core? Currently, only me.

Breaking through is extremely dangerous without enough resources and determination. Determination and will make most of the difference. The feeling of taking all of the chi that has been stored in your body for years and removing it to place it in your chest is like ripping duct tape from your skin x 1000.

Most experts end up failing at that moment and the chi runs rampant, eviscerating the organs inside their body, leading to instantaneous death.

Ever since wars started becoming less and less over the centuries and swords and arrows became almost extinct, the determination to endure soul-shattering pain has waned among the population.

Such a thing has led to the increasing decline of martial arts.

Broke from my reverie, the roar of a monster alerted me to a group of enemies a block away. The same direction as the hospital.

My heart almost jumped out of my chest as I turned the corner and saw large gray skinned humanoid monsters bashing the entrance of the hospital my mom works at. The entrance barely stood together a few seconds before being destroyed by the blunt weapons they wield.

My eyes turned red from fury and the muscles in my body hummed with chi as the golden light coalesced around me forming a indistinct armor.

Letting out a roar that overshadowed the monsters previous one, I sprinted to the pack of monsters, leaving deep imprints with cracks surrounding it in the reinforced concrete road.

All of the orcs stopped and turned to look at me, surprised that a human could be so strong. The tallest of the group, that held a bent up lamppost as a weapon, squinted its eyes at me with a dangerous gleam.

I charged into the group, the first orc dying to my knife-hand attack as it passed unhindered to the heart in it's chest. Without looking at the kill, I sidestepped the other orcs attacks as their wooden clubs only hit air.

I was a whirlwind of death, passing through the group reaping lives like it was a light exercise. A backhand crushed the skull of one orc followed by a palm strike that shattered the ribs of another orc, that sent it flying into its brethren.

While I decimated the orcs surrounding me, Asuka was silently taking down the ones on the outer ring with her daggers and throwing knives. Stabs to the heart and temple dropped them like a bad habit as she circled the group.

Feeling like it had enough and enraged by it's brethren dying the leader pushed aside its lackeys effortlessly, seriously injuring most. Steam snorted from its nose as the muscles along its arms tightened as it raised the metal lamp post.

Since I always kept myself alert to what the leader was doing, I was able to dodge the metal post as it was swung down like an executioners blade. The wind screamed as the air parted for the weapon and created a gust of wind while the orcs still alive watched with awe.

The weapon hit the ground and created a crater in the concrete pavement. I ignored it and sidestepped the attack to decrease the distance. Using the Tiger Form of Chinese Kung Fu I opted to go for blunt force damage and landed a series of palm and claw strikes and then changed to Mantis, targeting the joints of his arms.

The orc roared in defiance and swung the metal post several times trying to hit me. However I countered strength with speed, moving around his blind spots or using his attacks against him similar to tai-chi.

The defense of the orc was insane as my full powered punches only broke his bones instead of shattering them. Although the fight sounds like it lasted a long time, it was over in less than 30 seconds.

With most of the important bones broken in his body and his arms ruined, I didn't have to worry about retaliation as I looked into his eyes that were still showing defiance. Respecting his strength, I routed all of my chi to my arm and sent a fist straight to his temple, shattering his skull and making his brain paste.

Breathing deeply in satisfaction of a great warm-up, I turned to the entrance of the hospital and prepared to meet my mom.