Wang Shen knew that the apocalypse would change fifty percent of the world on impact with the green light. He also knew that the penumbral lunar eclipse would pervade through the air itself and infect people at random.

He wasn’t at risk for infection, but it couldn’t hurt to be too careful. Wang Shen would need to start preparing the antidote now if he wanted to save his friends and family from the infection. 

That meant he needed to go to the eastern mountains near Changsha. The mountains there would have the ingredients for the antidote. 

Wang Shen thought back to his past life and grimaced. Back then, he had been too trusting. His friends had died around him that first night when people started acting strange. The insanity had gotten to the people of Changsha almost immediately, and the panicked denizens didn’t know how to react.

There had been a lot of slaughter in the coming days. Wang Shen remembered it vividly, experiencing it first hand. He had been lucky, barely surviving. 

He glanced over at his friend, Wen Yuliang. His friend stared back at him with wide eyes, astounded at his transformation. He was evidently waiting for him to address the elephant in the room. 

“How about I explain on the way,” Wang Shen casually told him. They were walking towards the grocery store inside the college campus. That would be their first stop. “But first, I need to make a few phone calls.” 

Most modern technology would stop working after the first few days of the apocalypse. Electronics, mostly. Wang Shen knew that he’d only have a limited time with his smartphone before it lost its network capabilities. 

“Hello?” A confused voice answered. Wang Shen could tell they had not been expecting a phone call.

“Hey mom, it’s me,” Wang Shen said calmly. “Is dad home?” 

“Shen! You finally remember your parents, huh? Your dad is out at the market,” his mom replied. “What can I do for you?”

“Well, mom. Tonight there will be changes in the Earth’s atmosphere, making the outside world extremely toxic and strange. It’ll happen at 10 pm tonight. You need to be inside and safe by 9. I’ll send you a list of items you need to buy before then,” Wang Shen turned serious. 

“Shen? What’s going on?” His mom sounded confused. 

“Sorry, I’ll come home as soon as I can. Just try to stay safe, and get in contact with Master Song!” Wang Shen advised. 

He then hung up and dialed another number. Wang Shen knew he would need a huge favor from old Song Weidi. The call connected. 

“Hello?” His old Wushu instructor answered. 

“Hey, Master Song,” Wang Shen spoke firmly, every word as formal as possible. “I need to ask you for a huge favor. I don’t know who to turn to, other than you.”

“Is this Wang Shen? What do you need?” Wang Shen heard the concern in Song Weidi’s voice and knew he would help. 

“I need you to help me protect my parents. Help them out, because a calamity will strike the Earth tonight,” Wang Shen gravely told him. “It’s a matter of life and death. I’ll send you the information along with a cultivation technique for you to break through that ceiling.” 

“Really?” He could tell Song Weidi’s interest was piqued. The old Wushu fogey had nothing to do all day except martial arts. In this timeline, he would be able to help protect his parents. “I’ll help you if you’re not pulling my leg.”

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“Thank you, Master Song,” Wang Shen thanked the man and hung up. Then, he spent the next five minutes typing into his phone and preparing a large document of information regarding the apocalypse. 

“Uh, Shen-ge?” Wen Yuliang was still following him. They had stopped just outside of the security guard’s office. “What’s going on exactly?”

“It’s an apocalypse. I implore you to call home as well and tell your parents that tonight won’t be safe for them,” Wang Shen advised his friend. It was the least he could do, while things were still sane. “There will be a lot of commotion tonight, best to stay indoors. School won't matter anymore, let’s get going.”

He looked over at Wen Yuliang. The lanky boy was staring at him, wide-eyed in surprise. He’d watched everything from afar, not commenting on the situation until now. 

Then he saw his friend’s expression turn dark. 

Good, he’s onboard, Wang Shen smiled triumphantly to himself. It would be good to have comrades, especially in the beginning stages of the apocalypse. Only the heavens knew what would happen in this timeline. 

Wang Shen wasted no time. He sent the document of information to Wen Yuliang’s number, along with a list of items he’d need him to pick up for him.

“Help me get these items,” Wang Shen ordered. “I’ll text you later about where we should meet.”

Wen Yuliang nodded reliably. He would help.

“Also, one more thing. Don’t come to school tomorrow,” Wang Shen told his friend very seriously. “Get out of it by any means necessary.” 

His friend had died protecting him in the last timeline the day after the penumbral eclipse. Wang Shen had regretted it and had never forgiven himself for letting that happen. He had been too weak, too trusting. 

Things would be different this time around.

He bade his friend farewell and made his way out of campus. Wang Shen headed to Mount Yuelu. The herbs there would, later on, be known as the main ingredients to the Heavenly Cure. He’d need to secure them for himself first. 

This was the only location he knew of in Changsha. There were other places, but it was the only one he knew about in the first few days. Wang Shen remembered the bloodshed these divine herbs had caused and grimaced. There would be a long fight ahead of him. 

Wang Shen boarded a train heading to Mount Yuelu station. He paid the small fee and received the ticket. Although public transportation wasn’t the best mode of travel, especially two or three years into the apocalypse, he had no choice but to bear with it for now. After all, his martial arts were still locked while his cultivation was shallow. 

By the time Wang Shen arrived at the station, it was already nighttime. Checking his phone, he saw that he had a couple of hours before midnight struck. Plenty of time for him to get to the top of Mount Yuelu. 

Wasting no more time, Wang Shen quickly hailed down a cab and directed the driver to the mountain. Thankfully, it was a quick thirty-minute drive from the station. 

It had been quite some time since he had laid eyes on Mount Yuelu.

“This is where it all began,” whispered Wang Shen. “I can’t believe I’m here again.”

Wang Shen climbed to the highest point of the steep mountain, traversing over jagged rocks and treacherous holes. He took the opportunity to practice his flightless steps, bounding quickly from place to place. Back in his prime, he had honed his stepping skills to the level of divine steps, allowing for movement faster than the speed of sound.

He reached the peak, taking in the surrounding view of Changsha. Beneath the canvas of darkness were a million stars created by humans. Light pollution from the city made it impossible to see the natural stars of the world. 

The night air was crisp and clean, a far cry from the thick smoggy air back down in the city. Being this high up in the mountains had its perks. Wang Shen could sense faint traces of chi lingering in the mountaintops, carved deep into the veins of the rocks. He knew that once the world turned, the chi veins would enrich and flow freely into the air.

But that would have to be dealt with later, for something else took precedence now. Something big. The monumental shift that would change the world.

“It’s here,” breathed Wang Shen, his eyes glued to the bright moon.  

There was a reason why people had been caught unaware when the eclipse happened. It wasn’t any regular lunar eclipse.

It was the penumbral lunar eclipse.  

Just as before, the moon dimmed as it passed underneath the sun’s penumbral shadow. An electrifying shock ran through the air, causing Wang Shen’s hair to stand on end. 

Then, hell descended on Earth.