Jack stood over a field of broken corpses. Ant corpses. He raised his gaze, going from their drying yellow blood to the dirt mound that dominated the distance. He tightened his fist.
After the pent-up frustrations of getting cheated and chased by the Animal Kingdom, letting loose was nice. This wasn’t even his first ant swarm. Or the second.
System, he thought, show me my progress.
Name: Jack Rust
Species: Human, Earth-387
2023-03-09 17:36:01 +0000 UTC
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Update on my personal ant war: I have squashed the living shit out of them. I believe they are overrun by fear, lack of supplies, and heavy casualties. Their numbers have dwindled drastically -- I only saw one ant today, which I promptly splattered.
The war effort is going brilliantly. And, just in case they are simply feinting to ambush me at my weakest, I have prepared hot sauce and sprays as the good people in the comment section advised.
I shall not be defeated by something on...
2023-03-08 17:36:00 +0000 UTC
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Yesterday, I was writing about ants, and today, my house was invaded by those annoying tiny brown ants. How the turn tables.
But I'm on the lookout. I leave no food in the open. I kill them everywhere I see them. I will genocide them before they can multiply. I am at war.
Jack's fight is now personal.
---
The massive ant hill dominated the scenery. It rose between the titanic trees, shorter but thicker than all of them. It was built on a bed of dirt, and its slanted si...
2023-03-07 17:36:01 +0000 UTC
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The dragonfly shot at Jack like an arrow the size of an adult human. He turned around as fast as he could, but not fast enough. A set of sharp mandibles snapped at his arm, ripping off a good chunk of skin on the way.
“Holy shit!” Jack shouted, both in pain and surprise. He tried to grab its tail, but it was long gone. It flew behind a tree and disappeared. His ears were still buzzing, and he didn’t know if it was due to actual buzzing or because its wings had passed right next to...
2023-03-06 17:36:00 +0000 UTC
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“Oof,” Jack said, panting. He and Brock had just climbed down a staircase that felt like it reached from the heavens to the earth. He didn’t even know how many miles down they’d traveled. Maybe a hundred.
Even for an E-Grade cultivator with almost two hundred Physical, it had not been easy. To save time, they had been jumping from one side of the massive, stair-ridden hole to the other. As if that wasn’t enough, his anesthetic had run out half-way, and his self-healing still w...
2023-03-04 17:36:01 +0000 UTC
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Stars flew by Jack. There were hundreds of them, thousands. He saw galaxies swirling in the distance, their spires barely discernible even with his new senses. He saw something flashing periodically in the distance, and he saw a column of light stretching up and down from the center of a far-off galaxy.
They traveled through the Milky Way galaxy. There were blue, yellow, and red stars. Some large, and some so titanic that his mind couldn’t comprehend their scale. They crossed a dust c...
2023-03-03 17:36:01 +0000 UTC
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The people of Amethyst Mountain were stony, composed individuals. When immortals started fighting near their planet, leading to an explosion of fireworks, they only looked up to admire the view.
However, when a space shuttle barreled through the planet’s atmosphere, heading directly for the town, even they had to frown. The shuttle was burning red like a comet. Its surface was ignited by friction with the atmosphere, and its course was jagged, rigidly shifting to one side or the other...
2023-03-02 17:36:01 +0000 UTC
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Hey all,
Just a heads-up that I've changed my chapter-by-tier scheme. Before, it used to be 5-10-32(+1) chapters at the 3-5-10$ tiers respectively.
Now, it is 7-15-32(+1). Which means that you guys at the 5$ tier can now binge the entire final battle like the 10$ people did a few weeks ago.
I know I don't give you guys at the lower tiers much love, but I care about you all the same!
Happy March!
2023-03-02 13:30:26 +0000 UTC
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Captain Dordok faced the three Hounds in space. A blue and green planet hovered behind them, humongous beyond imagination. Dordok himself was only framed by stars and the Trampling Ram.
“We have no Jack on board,” he said furiously. He really was angry, but he was playing it up even more. Nobody became an immortal by losing their temper. “All we have is people in need of immediate medical assistance. We were just attacked by a horde of space monsters. Let us through at once!”
2023-03-01 17:36:01 +0000 UTC
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“In the name of the Animal Kingdom, surrender Jack Rust!”
The voice echoed through the starship, commanding authority and arrogance. But who could blame them? There were three immortals hovering before the Trampling Ram. Three!
Inside the starship, everyone swiveled to look at Jack, then at the captain.
“Sons of bitches,” Dordok cursed. “They sent out Hounds to hunt a mere child!”
“Hounds?” Vlossana asked, her eyes forming into wide circles. “Woooow....
2023-02-28 17:36:00 +0000 UTC
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Space cracked as the Trampling Ram pierced through it, sinking between its folds. Jack’s helmet pulled him along. The crocodile’s teeth snapped at nothing, and the tentacles of lower-level space monsters flailed ineffectively.
A frustrated roar was the last thing Jack heard before the darkness around them warped into a kaleidoscope, and they were hurtling through space from the outside.
He was still heavily injured, but he maintained enough clarity to feel terrified. He was wa...
2023-02-27 17:36:00 +0000 UTC
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The Trampling Ram flew forward as the three defenders stood on top of it. Bomn, Achilles, and Vashter stared down a horde of space monsters. To the side, Captain Dordok was desperately fighting to prevent the D-Grade monster from approaching the ship.
As they needed to stay close to the fighting captain, the ship’s speed had decreased significantly, letting the other monsters reach them. They were purple blobs of power, and each was surrounded by an arbitrary number of tentacle-like a...
2023-02-25 17:37:00 +0000 UTC
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“Horde?” Jack asked, starting to get worried. “What’s that?”
The captain didn’t reply. His eye increasingly wide, he rushed to the bridge, slamming the door open and not bothering to close it. Jack got a good look for the first time.
A ram-headed rod occupied the middle of the room, rising from the floor in the center of a circle of glowing runes. A large screen in front of it showed a three-dimensional compass, a map folded in on itself multiple times, and several but...
2023-02-24 17:36:01 +0000 UTC
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“Captain?” Jack said, knocking on the door. As the captain had only called him, he’d left Brock behind. “It’s Jared.”
“I know. Come in.”
Jack pulled the handle, opening the door. The captain’s cabin was a tidy mess of color. The walls were built to resemble polished wood, as were the floor and ceiling. A small window was at the side, circular and made to look like a fenester.
The floor was covered by a sideways, oblong carpet of concentric rings. Finally, a...
2023-02-23 17:36:00 +0000 UTC
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Jack made himself comfortable. He patted the floor before he sat, straightened his pants, shook his upper body once. There was great urgency, yes; but a few seconds of calmness before the storm could mean the world.
Beside him, Brock gave him a supportive pat on the back. Jack nodded. He closed his eyes, and the world changed around him.
It was finally time to explore his new Dao Vision.
The spotless starship walls gave way to a desert. Jack suddenly found himself in an o...
2023-02-22 17:36:00 +0000 UTC
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“Well?” Vlossana asked, jumping on a crate that lay by the side. Jack’s room, the currently unused cargo hold, didn’t have much in the way of furniture; just the hammock he’d made in the back, a chair and table that Vashter had brought him on the second day, and some old crates by the side. It was on one of those crates that Vlossana had jumped, staring at him with bright eyes. Her shirt was the same color as her eyes—sapphire—and her long skirt the same as her hair—purple.
2023-02-22 17:35:01 +0000 UTC
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Hey!
So, I have written today's chapter, but I discovered a significant plot hole literally five minutes ago. Jack has given everyone a fake name, but his species still shows as Human (Earth-387), and people should at least show curiosity about that planet -- either they know it, or they don't, and both cases are suspicious.
Anyway, I discovered this five minutes ago, and I will have to leave the house soon (it's night here,) so I can't get it fixed in time. I could patch it up re...
2023-02-21 17:41:05 +0000 UTC
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Jack was in space. He was floating and covered in a thin film that protected him from the lack of pressure and heat, as well as the radiation. The Trampling Ram awaited behind him, several faces watching through the main room’s glass walls. The ship was standing still, of course; they’d stopped their flight to let the space monster approach.
Jack had never been outside the ship before. He didn’t know what to expect besides the obvious.
The moment he stepped into space, even ...
2023-02-20 17:36:01 +0000 UTC
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Jack felt space solidify around him. Another successful warp had just ended. With a deep breath of relief, he looked inside himself.
It had already been a week since he boarded the Trampling Ram. In that time, they had met no other starships, planets, or any sort of civilization. They were alone in an endless void, light years away from anything else that could speak, with only each other as company.
Jack did not dislike it. He had used this time to finally relax and inspect every...
2023-02-18 17:36:00 +0000 UTC
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Gan Salin understood the concept.
Yes, he’d fucked up. Yes, he had lost in single combat against Jack Rust, Vivi Eragorn, Li Xiang, and Edgar Allano. Yes, three of those fights had been broadcasted across Earth-387 and the Animal Kingdom home world. And yes, he had even been assaulted by a pack of oddly muscular dogs.
But those things could happen to everyone, right? So why was he getting bullied now?
Not fun, man… he thought as space around him stabilized. They...
2023-02-17 17:36:00 +0000 UTC
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Nobody think we're going sci-fi, okay? This is the litrpg progression fantasy crew!
The majority of this Book 2 will be devoted to Trial Planet, which will be set in the litrpg-like settings we all know and love.
With that out of the way, enjoy the chapter!
***
The Trampling Ram was the largest starship in the docks—or rather, outside of them. It floated before one of the openings in the wall, five hundred feet over the city. Any random item dropped from this height ...
2023-02-16 17:37:00 +0000 UTC
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The Morningstar bar was precariously placed. Surrounded by five-hundred-foot falls on either side, it only had a flimsy fence protecting its patrons. Coupled with the cityscape stretching under it, it gave the impression of a bar in the sky—which it was, in a way.
In fact, the bar had commandeered one of the openings on the wall, laying out tall tables before it for people to enjoy the view.
As Jack approached, he was assaulted by raucous laughter and strong winds. The patrons...
2023-02-15 17:36:33 +0000 UTC
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The docks reminded Jack of a rising waterdrop, like the ones that try to jump up when you throw a rock but don’t manage to dislodge themselves from the neck of water that ties them to the sea.
Jack thought it was close-by. It wasn’t. The building rose even higher than he had estimated, and its size dwarfed practically everything around. It was like the entire city was built as an afterthought to this behemoth.
On the bright side, he found a pleasant surprise on the way there. ...
2023-02-14 17:36:01 +0000 UTC
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The feshkur brandished his dagger, seeming eager to use it. “Did you hear me, brightskin?” he asked. “Credit card. Now.”
Jack blinked. Half an hour into the galaxy and I’m being robbed… He frowned. No, wait. Three hours, if we count the time I was unconscious.
The feshkur took his silence as resistance. A hand rose to slap Jack. Jack leaned back, letting it sail before his face. The feshkur frowned. “You don’t want to do this,” he warned, sudden...
2023-02-13 17:36:01 +0000 UTC
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Pretty chonky chapter. Have fun!
---
Stars filled the sky, the ground, and everything in between. Brock was hurtling through space, feeling nothing but seeing everything. Meteors drifted by him, followed by long tails—but only when they were close to stars. Some meteors didn’t have their tails behind them, but rather in front, and Brock stared in wonder until they disappeared.
He saw rocks, planets, stars. He saw a giant purple squid surrounded by small fish made of dust...
2023-02-11 17:36:59 +0000 UTC
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Jack Rust is back!!!
Hello again, everyone. My break was wonderful, and I am now back and stronger than ever! Prepare to tour the galaxy with the strongest, truest weapon -- the Fist.
Our release schedule will continue as is. Mon-Sat for Patreon, Mon-Fri for Royalroad (starting on Monday for Royalroad), and the occasional bonus chapter on Sunday for both. The only problem with this schedule is called Hogwarts Legacy. Fantastic game, btw.
Enjoy the chapter!
---
...
2023-02-10 17:36:01 +0000 UTC
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My first published series, Cultivator vs. System, is released as an omnibus, which clocks out at 37+ hours of pure fun for a single Audible credit. It can easily last you until Friday, when I expect to restart my normal publishing schedule for Road to Mastery. Have fun!
Audible: https://www.audible.com/pd/Cultivator-vs-System-The-Complete-Series-A...
2023-02-07 15:16:01 +0000 UTC
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Here are three scenes I inserted into the book during the editing phase. You may have seen some of them, depending on when you started reading. Take this as the dessert after Book 1.
Thank you all for the kind comments on the previous chapter, and see you some time next week!
***
The Forest of the Strong burst with activity. Builders came and went, carrying materials in abundance. Their enhanced bodies made everything faster.
Gymonkeys and brorillas swung through the t...
2023-02-04 17:36:01 +0000 UTC
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Jack ducked under a strike, then pivoted and smashed out his own. Rufus took it to the chest and whimpered, but his elbow came crashing down on Jack’s head, whose hair were now wet with blood. Jack barely pulled himself aside to evade the strike, right into a knee that crunched his nose further. He endured the pain to plant his iron knuckles in Rufus’s eyes.
Every hit was brutal and meant to kill. They fought like rabid beasts, neither backing down an inch.
The merchants had f...
2023-02-03 17:38:01 +0000 UTC
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Jack smashed his fist into Rufus’s paw, then flickered to the side and ducked under a backhand swipe. The leonine stood in place, tall and proud, unleashing hits like an avalanche. He was a force of nature.
Jack met him hit for hit, but he was slowly pushed back. He was losing.
And he still had to get out of this fucking arena. But he didn’t want to run. That would be like retreating. And what kind of fist would retreat from a frontal, winnable fight?
Maybe he s...
2023-02-03 17:37:01 +0000 UTC
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