While some were sleeping soundly, others couldn't catch a wink of sleep due to the sudden events during the day. One such place was the US White House.

[How the hell are you calling yourself the Central Intelligence Agency, but failed to discover any relevant intel about this f*cking cultivation bullcrap!?](?)

Through a bellow and a fist pounding on the table, the silence in the meeting room of the White House was broken. Probably all across the world, similar scenes were occurring. For nations that had plans in place even for nuclear attacks, the scene that happened less than ten hours ago was simply… unprecedented. How can you be prepared for something you didn’t even imagine happening?

[Speak! Did all of you went mute!? There has to be at least one of you that knows something? What!? Nothing at all? Or are you expecting me to call the Russian president and casually ask if he knows anything? Or should I call her majesty the Queen of England herself and see if she somehow divined this happening in her f*cking tea leaves!?](US President)

[Mr. President sir, we discovered some things, but it’s still too early to make assumptions. We have our spies in all the major countries and deployed assets even in the less developed ones, just in case anyone discovers anything. Everyone is working around the clock! We will have something soon.]

[Great! Great! Great! What a great Director of the CIA! With all the resources at your disposal, are you telling me that you want me to wait until someone else discovers something and then just aim for the remaining scraps from them!? Are you perhaps bored with your current position?](US President)

The volume of his voice lowered, but his tone got several degrees colder. It seemed that if the wrong answer was to be given, many of them might lose their job today. As the director of one of the largest information gathering organizations in the world, he breathed in to calm himself, maned up and spoke with confidence.

[No, Mr. President! We have already engaged our team and they are experimenting and writing down everything they are going through. Furthermore, if I’m not wrong, you should have already absorbed the content of the 'gift' left behind by the 'cultivator', correct?](CIA director)

[Mhm! Your point being?](US President)

[We have already compared notes between more than a thousand of our people, as well as intel from different countries, and discovered that the content is the same for everyone. What differs is the amount one can obtain from it. Some people can absorb only 10% of it, while others can devour it clean within minutes. Here is a detailed report.](CIA director)

Grabbing the file with both hands and studying it himself, while copies were handed over to the other members participating in the meeting, they all noticed the stunned face of their president. It was fairly obvious that his rate of absorption was not very high, since he was that surprised by the extra bits of information they gathered so far.

About 15 minutes later, a loud sigh was heard from the head of the conference table. The file was dropped and both hands were covering his face in exasperation.

[Shit hit the fan… badly! According to the information we have, six months from now once this trial happens, people can move to a different world and vie for resources unimaginable to the current us. Leaving aside the fact that our men and women have the possibility of reaching the same level as the god-like entities that brought this opportunity to us, our opponents this time aren’t just from our world, but 360 others, which only God almighty knows what sort of technological development have when compared to us. This has just transformed into our main priority!](US president)

Everyone gasped in understanding. While their president wasn’t the smartest cookie in the jar, he certainly knew how to grasp opportunities. Now that they realized that such a big pie fell literally from the skies, they had to fight for it.

Another person calmly stood up and inquired in a monotone, emotionless voice.

[Mr. President, what about the current project? We invested so much capital in it and we are close to seeing it through. The result should be out in another three to four months. Shouldn't we continue with it?](?)

[No! Abort the current plan.](US president)

[Abort!? Sir, however…](?)

[You don’t need to talk on this subject anymore. I will take this matter directly to the board and convince them myself. You are to have every American person focus on casting their Spiritual Roots. At the same time, keep an eye on those that make remarkable progress and recruit them. We will need them to act as a vanguard in this new world for our country.](US president)

[That... might prove difficult with the current riots going on, Mr. President…](?)

[I am permitting you to involve the army. The use of lethal force should be avoided, but, if needed to kill the chicken to scare the monkey, do it and show how serious we are about it! I am giving you three days to quell the riots in the country and if you are unable to, I am expecting your resignation letter on my desk. Over half of these 'riots' are instigated by us anyway. It shouldn’t prove too much of a task to you, are we clear?](US president)

[Understood!](?)

[Good! Everyone is dismissed and we’ll meet again here tomorrow morning. I am waiting for good news!](US president)

[[[Yes, Mr. President!]]]

All across the world, similar scenes were being played out, where countries were declaring new laws and suddenly, the most important resource, strangely became the human himself. Especially the young ones filled with potential. Young geniuses in different fields were recruited and sent to boot camps in less than 10 hours from the point where the ‘Minute Collapsing Nirvana’ occurred. The best scientists in the world were working nonstop in trying to figure out even the tiniest bit of detail, that would help them stay ahead of the competition.

The world... changed!

...............................................................................................

The night passed, but few were those that slept. In a small city in Europe however, light from the breaking dawn was shining through the windows and low curses were being thrown by the person inside for forgetting to pull the curtains.

Herman woke up and was slightly surprised when noticed that there were no aches, but upon checking on the Qi intake in his spiritual world, he nodded pleased.

He got up and stretched, only to be scared awake by a loud rumble coming from his stomach. He turned his head and saw his own widened eyes in the mirror by the closet, making him laughed aloud.

“Time to eat I guess.”

To properly train the body, impurities must be expulsed from inside of it first. These impurities have been gathered since birth through food, drinks, bathing, and other normal activities, therefore there was no quick way through which one could stop the intake of such impurities. As the world evolved and was bathed in Spiritual Qi and eventually Primordial Qi as well, everything would be refined, containing even less than 25% of their current impurities.

“However, while it’s true that it’s unavoidable to intake impurities since one has to eat and drink, one can still limit such intake by focusing on more natural food and drinks, instead of the artificially processed one.”

After a shake made out of multiple fruits and vegetables to temporarily quell his hunger, Herman changed his outfit and went out for a light jog. If it was him before, he would’ve put on the headphones and blasted some music at least, to help setting up a rhythm. Now, however, he was attuning his mind to this new world opened inside of him, while also planning for the future ahead.

He was clear that by now all the countries would put pressure on their young elites and draw them in their factions with the excuse of ‘patriotism’ and endless promises of wealth. Luckily for himself, his country was rather lax and didn’t bother in the past with actually recruiting elites or preparing to fight for resources in the Immortal World and instead focused on creating a safe environment for its people to 'cultivate' in. There were a surprisingly high number of countries reaching the same decision around the world.

“That’s why, with no butterfly effect instigated, there shouldn’t be any changes to the past I’ve experienced. Since they confirmed my spa session, I would first eat, go to the gym, come back to take a shower, and head there right after. It’s a rather forceful method to try and pry open the acupoints physically with external help, but with the time-schedule I have in place, it’s the best choice. It will be painful as hell though…”

While the sauna and the massage itself were good for the body and will help in both tempering his skin and relax his muscles, the acupuncture session was the main event. As for why?

When he woke up in the morning, there were two notifications in his system interface, both being achievements and the rewards they offered.

Fortunately, it was the same as he remembered and in line with his agenda.

Achievement earned: One with the Tao

Details: You are the 8th person to enter a state of full mediation in your world.

Rewards: 5 Spirit Jades (Locked until ascension to the Immortal World), 500 Spiritual Qi points.

With this achievement alone, he would have a much easier time opening up his next acupoint. Luckily, he already had one opened and now, at 8:30 AM, twelve hours have already passed since his passive intake began. The Qi pool in his spiritual world already reached 2304 points and was still rising. With the addition of another 500, he would soon be ready to open three minor acupoints one after the other, putting him ahead of schedule.

Still, he decided against it, due to the second achievement and what it entailed.

Achievement earned: Path to cleansing

Details: You have opened your first acupoint and stepped on the path of cultivation.

Reward: Number of acupoints open multiplied by itself in Spirit Jades (1x1=1 Spirit Jade)

Don’t bother with the 1SJ* he was awarded, as the real reward was in the possibility it offered. What if he could open all his acupoints at once? Wouldn’t the reward be 360x360 worth of SJ? Just imagining a number over 100.000 in such a valuable currency, let him dazed. Indeed he didn’t have an amazing treasure now that he returned in time, nor was his memory filled with valuable ancient cultivation methods that would allow him to soar to the heavens in one step.

All he remembered were basic things gained from his own experiences, as well as from hearsay and rumors. Basic things that many geniuses experimented with and perfected over time, in the three years he spent stuck on Earth before being able to ascend.

One of these rumors was about a genius opening over 60 acupoints at once and gaining 3600 SJ as an award for such an outstanding achievement, giving him a head start compared with others of his generation. He even closed the gap when compared with those from the first generation, making it obvious what sort of impact Spirit Jade could have if used properly.

“A little bit of pain... I can easily endure it for such immense benefits. If I'm going to re-do this trashy life, I'd better do it to the best of my abilities, as always.”

Famous last words… After going back home to eat, meditating to further stabilize his connection with the spiritual world inside his mind, hitting the gym for about an hour and a half, followed by a shower, three hours later, screams similar to a pig being slaughtered could be heard from a spa center in the middle of the city.

While the sauna was great for his lungs and the skin, even helping him expel quite a bit of impurity out of the Qi Door and the massage was so great, that after the stimulation gained by the workout and the run, Life Essence, Strength and Dexterity all grew by one point, while Vitality increased by two.

Who knew that once the acupuncture session started and the first needle penetrated the Qi Door as per his request, the pain almost made him pass out.

[Cus... customer, are you… are you alright?](?)

“Mhm! Yes, I am! You can ignore me as I am usually terrified by needles and using this opportunity to overcome them. Go ahead, please, and don't mind me.”

The truth was that, while meditating, he saw the needle come through the small acupoint, widening it and unblocking some of the impurity still attached to it. The problem was that… in the spiritual world, he was at least 100 times more sensitive to pain than in the real world.

He needed however to be in meditation while the needles were being plunged in his acupoints, all for him to attach a Qi thread to the tip of these needles. That way, once they are being pulled out, a crack can be formed in their blockage, making further attempts to clear them easier.

[Customer, you can lay down on your belly now. We’ll continue with your back](?)

“Understood. Can you give me a couple of minutes first though?”

[Of course...](?)

Luckily, the lady’s temperament was exceedingly calm and patient, allowing him to continue the session after fifteen minutes. These fifteen minutes were more than sufficient for Herman to expend Spiritual Qi to undermine the newly created cracks in the impurities and also circulate the ones that fell inside his spirit world towards the Qi Door.

He already used more than 50% of his total Qi amassed just by doing that.

The acupuncture session lasted for about an hour and a half, but for Herman, it felt like a couple of centuries at the bare minimum. To think that he would knowingly subject himself to such pain and humiliation… The way the workers in the spa looked at him was so… painful, that he didn’t know where to put his face.

Due to the intense pain, there was no way for him to go to the gym for a second time today, but rather, he should solely focus on meditation.

With the time being already 11:40 AM by the time he got home, there was still one card he had left to play, helping him further with his plan.

It all depended on the system’s greed for Spirit Jades.

“System, I want to purchase the ‘Spirit Roots casting tutorial’.”

The transaction request was acknowledged!

The cost is 20SJ.

Please confirm the transaction!

“Greedy f*cker! Wasn’t it supposed to be only 10? What the hell!?”

The transactional system is currently not open.

For any transactions to be made, double the normal payment is required.

The previous angelic voice sounded monotone and not quite pleasant. With gritted teeth and clenched fists, he accepted the transaction.

He could wait until 20 minutes later, but in that case, he would have already fallen behind the schedule.

Becoming a pauper once more, with only 1SJ left, he swore to would rob the system blind in the following months, so much that it would implore him to stop.

With less than 5 minutes left until noon, he quickly entered meditation.

Welcome to your Spirit Roots casting tutorial…

“Skip! Turn on the visual help!”

With a flash of light, numbers could be seen on each acupoint present. The smallest number was obviously on the opened Qi Door, which was at 74% of its remaining impurities. The others were ranging anywhere between 90 to 99%, meaning that I was just barely starting the process to clear them, even with the help of the acupuncture session.

Checking the Spiritual Qi points available, Herman saw that he only had about 200 points left. It was fine, however, as he wasn’t planning to attack the other acupoints today and rather wanted to focus on the one he already opened.

“Begin Qi Resonance! Use all Spirit Qi available and focus it on the Qi Door.”

The Qi Resonance process was something that could be used once per day only. At the expense of a certain portion of Spiritual Qi of your choosing, one could forcefully expel it out of your body, allowing further clearing of one's acupoints. While Qi intake would force the impurities inside the spiritual world, the Qi resonance would force them out, akin to a whale spurting out water.

The goal for the day was to place the impurities in front of the Qi Door and use resonance to force them out, as well as grabbing some of the existing blockages on their way.

The process began with a loud *HUM* following which a wind forcefully blew in the void that the spiritual world was, followed by a deep feeling of emptiness. Using all the Qi he had available, he was instantly forced awake.

Looking at the same spot on the right collarbone, a big discharge of black substance could be seen and smelled, allowing Herman to know instantly that he was successful. On his way to the shower, he brought up the system’s interface and saw an additional 5 points added to Absorption.

“It seems that I was very successful. Good! Now that it’s noon already, I can begin my plans in their truest sense. Hehe! Just you wait greedy system, just you wait!”

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*Will use SJ from now on as an abbreviation for Spirit Jades