Solo Cultivation in The Apocalypse

He was not Ningen.

Kuzu's men banged on the walls. Hitori forgot about the person summoning dark energy and saying: 'This place is awesome.'

He lifted his hands to create more walls to block the entrance first, then pack the person with the sinister smile inside a box. He conjured walls and blocked the entrance but when it was time for the dark wizard, he paused.

Literally, he froze. When the person in Ningen's body twisted its arms and formed a few dark balls, he looked into Hitori's eyes and lifted his upper lip as he widened his eyes.

Hitori shuddered again, he took a step back but stumbled upon the stumbled stool. He fell on the wooden stool and then rolled to the ground.

He did a pushup and got off the ground. He found his cold sweat turning the brown floor into a dark brown shade. Hitori jerked his neck, grabbed his wand, and jumped to his feet.

"Who the heck are you?" he asked, pointing his wand at the person. "Why do you know my father?"

"Oh, you will know soon." He brought his arms forward and threw the dark balls at Hitori.

Hitori was unaware of the energy balls, he had never seen one before, but one thing was sure-- if he can use whatever dark magic he is using without a wand, he is a powerful wizard.

'Should I create water walls? Ice walls? Earth defense? Or should---' He discarded his thoughts and swung his wand in a slanting slash.

The air ripple he created cut through the balls but could not deflect them properly. The two sides parted, one lit the bed of fire-- dark fire-- and another created a hole in the wall behind Hitori.

Hitori licked his lip and bobbed his head. "Ah... my walls would have..."

He sensed another attack from the person. The continuous banging on the other side, their attempts to break through the three walls Hitori had created, and then this bloodthirsty person trying to burn Hitori.

"Stop it, oh, crap, keep your face away from me!" Hitori shouted as he used the magic spells from the school of elements.

"You fucker, I told you..." he jerked his arms behind him, the dark energy pushed him off the floor, "not to use the pathetic elemental spells in front of me."

Before Hitori could swing his wand, the person's eyes pierced through Hitori's mind. He outstretched his wand and let out a scream when Ningen brought his face in front of Hitori's.

"You should know how it feels," he heard Ningen say those words before his vision disappeared.

Hitori kept his eyes wide open but could not see anything. The yellow pupils crept from the dark, and Ningen's teeth glowed. He tried to move, but he felt his limbs tied to something.

Ningen came closer to Hitori, and the next moment he was grinning under Hitori's chin. "You feel it?" he whispered, "do you feel the irritation and the pain? The pain of not being in control of your soul?"

Hitori tightened his jaw muscles, he grunted as he tried to free himself. Ningen vanished, just to appear behind Hitori.

"You dared to look into my soul..." Hitori heard his voice vanishing in the distance, "you looked into my mind, the same way I am looking into yours."

Hitori let out a shriek. "L-Let me go!" He could not find his voice, he knew he said it but he could not hear it, as if he was shouting alone in a void of vacuum.

"I can see it, you know, I can see everything... ah..." He kept changing his positions, "classmates insulted and humiliated you since childhood. Typical bullying in this world, I guess."

"D-Do not..." Hitori grunted again.

"What else do we have here--- oh, shit!" he exclaimed, "h-here is she! The entry of our heroine!"

"N-NO..."

"Ah, bam! That was a punch, god, was she a delinquent? She gave your bullies quite a beating. I wonder what happened next!"

"Do not... please..." Hitori could only plead now.

"No one ever dared to touch you ever again, did they? You spent the rest of your time with... Gin Shiro, without making a move, neither did she, though. Lived peacefully under the protection of a tycoon's daughter, would have been her husband but--- oh, ho, what do I see here?"

Hitori dropped his arms. He stopped struggling, he continued panting for air. "Oh, crap..." his voice was shaking.

"Fight him..." he heard a soft whisper in his ear, "fight him, Hitori-Kun, you have to..."

Hitori opened his eyes as soon as he recognized the voice. There she was, her signature white dress reaching her knees, and her silver hair flying behind her.

"Young master..."

"Hitori-Kun..."

"You have to live!" Their shout disappeared in the distance.

Hitori gasped for air as he pushed himself off the bindings that held him. Chains of dark energy snapped and let Hitori free. The smile over Ningen's face disappeared but his wide eyes remained.

He closed his eyes tight and raised his arms. "Go away!" he yelled. He felt something against his arms as he threw them forward.

With his eyes closed, he felt like he was on a roller coaster, but on opening, he found he had stumbled against the bed, and his opponent was leaning against the wall.

"Fuck you... you can not... you can not break through my mind, you can not, you only can when I let you!" He was shaking. His eyes and his lips were, too.

Without wasting any time, Hitori raised his wand.

"You and your fucking cheating system, you will die in my realm." He charged at Hitori. "Try it!"

The dust in the room jumped when two lights flashed behind Hitori, behind the bed. Her skirt landed on her thighs, she released her hand from her brother's, and Eya took a step forward unknown to the dark wizard in the room.

Kakashi released Eya's hand and grabbed his wand beside him-- just in case-- and took a step forward. But when a second passed and their bodies appeared, they sensed a powerful source of dark energy, and they found a man surrounded by dark flames.

The flames went past Ningen when he suddenly applied brakes. His smile faded once again, but he kept his eyes wide open.

His eyes fell on the petite female and the muscular man behind her. His eyes could not widen anymore or they would have for sure. He suddenly vanished to the end of the room and stood on his feet.

Hitori broke the breath he was holding, he gasped and turned around. He felt relieved when he found them behind him, and a smile spread on his face.

"Hitori-san?" Eya tilted her head.

"What the fuck is..." Kakashi examined the room. He followed the source of dark energy and his eyes fell on Ningen standing in front of them. "Who the fuck are you?" He raised his wand immediately.

Eya ran to Hitori, she grabbed his shoulders, and he gave in. "H-Hitori-san, wh-what happened?" She looked up and saw Ningen, she heard the banging and the earth walls.

For the first time, Ningen relaxed his eyes-- he narrowed them more than a normal human's eyes. "N-No way... w-why the hell are you two here?" he asked, pointing his trembling arm at them. "F-Fuck you, Kogara! Why are you here?"

Kakashi frowned. He noticed the redness in Ningen's yellow eyes and the tension in his voice. "Jesus Christ..." Now his eyes widened.

Eya rose from the floor. "K-Kakashi..." she called, barely enough to reach Kakashi.

Ningen scoffed. "You had to be here, had not you? You fuckers appear at the right times." He lifted his eyes and formed a smile. "Not this time. I will not let that Saibai fucker pass through my realm like that! Fucking not!" He threw his head and laughed.

Kuzu and the others stopped when they heard the sinister laugh as if a devil was laughing. With a jerk, Ningen dropped his head and stared straight into Kakashi's eyes, then at Eya's eyes.

He raised his hand and summoned a flame that rounded his fist in an instant. "This place is a good source for me. I will make good use of this place, god knows who created such place."

Ningen parted his upper lip as he spread his lips to the end.

"I will get him." He lifted his upper lip and widened his eyes.

"Tamashi!" Kakashi shouted and jerked his wand.

Eya stood petrified, but she acted soon. "It IS T-Tamashi!" she shouted, as she threw her hands at Ningen.

"Kakashi!" he shouted, "and Eya Kogara." He turned his hands and threw two fireballs at them.

Eya jumped forward, stepped in front of Kakashi, and slashed the air, she deflected the balls perfectly.

Kakashi moved past Eya, he fired a killing curse. "Shinigami no Noroi: Shi-Ne!"

Ningen jumped and dodged the spells, he conjured black flames on his boats. He landed on the ceiling and started running on it.

"Finger of Death!" Kakashi chanted.

Ningen jumped in the air, towards the windows.

"Stop him, Kakashi!" Eya shouted, left hand down, and her right hand releasing a brown beam of a curse from the school of Necromancy.

Kakashi aimed at the flying Ningen, and dropped his wand, he opened his hand. "Soul Conjuration," he chanted.

Ningen turned his eyes to Kakashi and clicked his tongue. "Fuck you, using my own technique against me."

He pushed his feet and left the ceiling, then he brought his hands together. Black energy manifested in between his hands. "Soul Conjuration: Soul Beam."

Kakashi's right hand jerked when a grey beam erupted from his hands. Ningen kicked the window and fired a black beam at Kakashi.

Their beams collided, and the wall behind them collapsed. Kuzu and his men entered the room but stopped, Kuzu stretched his arms to stop everyone behind him.

Eya jumped when she heard the thump. Her eyes met with Kuzu's, they both stood still.

Ningen grunted. "Why not ask your sister for help? It took both of you your best to beat me last time," he said.

Kakashi pushed hard. He shook his head. "We have improved. Even if I can not beat you alone, I can sure as hell hold you."

"Oh, Himbo."

Kakashi groaned, "Do not fucking call me that!"

Eya lifted Kakashi's wand with levitation and kept staring at Kuzu's eyes. Saiko was watching his brother from behind using magic despite being a scientist.

Eya gulped. She spotted the blade in Kuzu's hand and she saw the men behind him. She acted quickly and created a defense wall.

Kuzu pulled his hand back and charged the blade at her. She bent and grabbed Hitori. "Kakashi!" she shouted in her high-pitched voice.

She turned to Kakashi, he stretched his left hand behind him, but it was still far from his sister.

Kuzu pulled another blade. "Open fire, boys!" he ordered.

Saiko bent to take cover, his eyes still on his brother. Kuzu jumped to the side and got to his knees. His men cocked their guns, aimed at the trio, and opened fire.

Eya leaped forward. She stretched her hand, and finally, she grabbed his hand. A strong grip, but she felt a chill when she grabbed it.

Kakashi lowered his eyes, he was exhausted but was keeping up some. He grinned at Tamashi and said, "Nice to meet you, Tamashi."

Kakashi grasped Eya's hand tightly, they disappeared from the hospital. Ningen's beam crashed on the floor, piercing through it down to the first floor, slicing three patients on the way.

He grabbed the window sill and jumped out of the window. He closed his eyes when he reached the third floor. "Over to you, Ningen," he muttered and lost consciousness.

Eya landed on a grass field. She was holding Hitori and Kakashi tightly. She looked at Kakashi, his eyes were closed and his breathing had slowed down.

"Shit, he overused it. Using Soul magic was not the right thing, Himbo!" She searched for a mana potion.

She picked Kakashi by the pick and trusted the potion down his throat.

Hitori was seeing all of this. He was exhausted, too, but he was still conscious. He found Eya by his side. Hitori raised his trembling hand and grabbed her.

She jerked her head to him. "Lay down, Hitori-san, we will reach the academy soon."

"W-Who was he? W-Why was a scientist using dark magic?"

Eya avoided eye contact, she looked at Kakashi. "Tamashi. From the world of cultivation, the first Realm-- Soul Cultivation Realm."

"Realm? W-What?"

Eya sighed and looked at him. "You can not pass a realm unless you defeat the guardian and the realm's emperor. Well, you did not have to do either. Your system pushed you to the second realm, the same as Saibai-san. Tamashi considered it as cheating, he still does it seems, he is back... for revenge."