Chapter 355 - My SI Stash #55 - Lewd Cultivator in Brockton Bay by Vagabond (Worm) (1/2)

-Gots to be the first ever Worm fic I've read that has a SI cultivator~ Nut/

Synopsis: ???

Rated: M

Words: 15K

Posted on: forum.questionablequesting.com/threads/lewd-cultivator-in-brockton-bay-worm-lewd-cyoa.12270/ (Vagabond)

PS: If you're not able to copy/paste the link, you have everything in here to find it, by simply searching the author and the story title. It sucks that you can't copy links on mobile (´ー｀)

-I'll be putting the chapter ones of all the fanfics mentioned, to give you guys a sample if you wan't more please do go to the website and support the author! (And maybe even convince them to start uploading chapters in here as well!)

Chapter 1-3 (exceptional)

My name was Alan Marris, a native Brocktonite, a graduate of Arcadia, and a self-employed computer software programmer (and fishing enthusiast). Not rich but not poor, I lived on the western edge of the city's Downtown, right where the western suburb borders Downtown.

But a person named Alan Marris did not exist on Earth Bet until ten seconds ago. Twelve seconds ago. Fifteen seconds ago.

This body did not exist until twenty seconds ago.

My existence was new.

Sitting up on my bed, I began to contemplate how I could be here.

I knew that I was in Brockton Bay thanks to this new body's memories. Brockton Bay didn't exist where I came from but it certainly did. Memories of recent history played out in my mind in ways only memories can, and I groaned as I realized that I was on Earth Bet, the world at the center of the fictional story titled Worm.

Again, why was I here?

I remembered doing a Worm CYOA… a lewd Worm CYOA.

And I went the entire length of it without taking any particularly lewd choices.

I hurriedly searched for a piece of paper and pen, found them, sat down by the desk in my bedroom, and wrote down what I remembered about my own choices.

Wake Up in a New Life

Canon Knowledge

For want of a nail

More points

Male, Young A.d.u.l.t, Caucasian, Slim, Fit

Mindf.u.c.kery: alcohol

Enemies: ABB, E88, Merchants, S9, Endbringers

Kill List: Kaiser, Skidmark, Lung

Uncontrollable Mind, Blindspot

Different Power Source, Early Start, Contact, Costume

Costume: Armor, self-repairing, force field, thematic, mover

Early: 27 days

Amy Dallon: Friend

Cultivation: Enchantment, Progress renewal, Meridian Awakening, Alchemy

Roleplay Excellence, ST

I stared at the piece of paper in front of me.

And then I screamed in panic.

-VB-

It took me … two hours to calm down. It was embarrassing, seeing as I considered myself better than to break down like that.

Well, here I was.

As I sat down to consider what I was going to do.

First off, I had to make sure that my powers worked. The easiest of them to use was Roleplay Excellence. How did I activate it? Did I just think it? Did I say the role I wanted out loud? I … don't quite remember. The only reason why I chose that option out of everything was because it was the only power that wasn't directly lewd.

Why did I even touch that lewd cyoa again?

I steeled myself and then opened my mouth to speak.

Quietly, I whispered. ”I am now an expert parahuman analyst with a meticulous personality who writes down everything important.”

For a second, my vision wavered and then returned.

I immediately felt the changes. My mind was thinking differently, connecting different information. It wasn't that I was smarter; it was that there was now newfound knowledge in my head (that won't stay there when I dismiss this roleplay) that allowed me to connect information in ways I didn't could connect because I didn't know they could relate like that.

I recognized that this particular power was notably similar to Uber of Leet and Uber, whose power granted him temporary high skill of the job he wanted-

-no, I was different. I didn't affect just skills; I also affected personality.

Right now, I was already writing down all of the important bits of information I was extracting from this so far short session of self-analysis. It was abundantly clear to me that my power took further steps to change me than Uber's power did. Changing personality could not be achieved by shoving new memories into the brain; it directly affected neural pathways. This meant that my power directly influenced my brain chemistry. My mind was now-

-stop.

Poof. Just like that, my mind was clear of all previous thoughts. I remembered what I thought, but there were some points here and there that seemed like a jump in logic to me.

Hmm.

”Okay,” I spoke out loud. ”So I definitely have a superpower.” I shook in my seat giddily. ”I have a power!” I cackled out loud, jumping out of my seat and running around in circles of my room. ”GYA HA HA HA HA-!”

I stopped myself not in alarm but in ever increasing excitement.

My other power was Cultivation. The overpowered bullshit that let people ascend to godhood.

I quickly sat down to meditate…

Ring ring ring

I stopped even before I could begin, and stood up, walked to my desk, and looked at the phone there.

[Amy Dallon]

Then I remembered that I was Amy's friend. I had memories of meeting Amy first at the hospital she volunteered and then later on as we became friend, enjoyed cold and dry British humor, and alcohol.

It was to my surprise that Amy spiked her fruit juices.

But this happened because I chose Amy as a friend.

And that made me her only friend.

I quickly answered the call. ”Hey, Amy! How's my grumpy healer doing?”

”{Haven't had my shot yet,}” she grumbled.

”Me too! Wanna come and hang out at my place?”

”{...Sure. You have orange juice?}”

By orange juice, she meant the jug of orange juice she'd left with me to ferment, because she couldn't keep that in her house or at the hospital. ”Yup.”

”{I'll be there after school.}”

And then she hung up without so much as a goodbye.

Ah, good old Amy being her rude self.

”Seeing as she's coming to my house in …” I stared up at the clock. It was 8 am. ”Seven hours, I should get me some beer.”

I too was starting to feel the need for alcohol.

And while I waited for her, I could start myself on my cultivation…

Oh, there was a lot of knowledge implanted into my head. Nice, I can start there. First, I needed to meditate to understand my body and myself.

-VB-

Thankfully, my house provided some privacy with how it was made.

My house was big, despite being on the border of Downtown.

No, that would be incorrect. My actual house was small, barely three thousand square feet. It had a small front yard and backyard, the latter of which was overtaken by Amy's three fruit trees. I was the only one who didn't judge her for the true spectrum of her power and encouraged her to do more.

Which was why those trees made alcoholic fruits, not regular fruits.

Anyways, my house was big because it had two layers of bas.e.m.e.nts on top of two floors.

Those bas.e.m.e.nts gave me the privacy I needed. The first bas.e.m.e.nt was where I had my laundry machines, dryers, and other necessary household equipments of life were at.

The second bas.e.m.e.nt? It had been sitting empty for years with a few furnitures I no longer needed sitting in the corner.

Now?

It was my training room.

Here, I now practiced very few things I remembered about martial arts. Tae Kwon Do, Boxing, and even a little of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. I didn't just do it with my body. No, I overpowered myself with a command of Roleplay Excellence: ”A martial artist that has mastered three combative martial art.”

With each attack, I exerted everything my body could give me. Into each attack, I unleashed the strength of this new body.

And I felt the difference.

I had memories of this body and my life before this. Both of me practiced martial arts for exercising purposes, and I knew what it felt like to exert while practicing martial arts. Here and now, however, felt different. Spin kick felt faster and winds buffeted heavily against my leg. I followed it through with a knee strike, and ended with a backhand strike with my fist.

Each action felt lighter and stronger. The air resisted far more yet it wasn't because I was weak; it was because each of my strikes cut through the air faster.

I jumped, twirling in the air horizontally to the ground while my feet lashed out twice to the same target area, and I landed with a ground stomp that made the bas.e.m.e.nt shudder.

Oops. Might not want to do that lest the neighbors report ”strange happenings” in their neighborhood.

I straightened myself and let out a stream of pent up breath.

I was definitely stronger… but not strong enough to be considered anything abnormal. Maybe the world's elite martial artist at best but nothing that can take on a standard parahuman.

Kiii….

Hmm? Was that the sound of the front door opening?

It must be Amy.

…

Wait, how did I hear that from down here?

…

Whatever.

I walked up and saw Amy on the living room couch with a cup of orange beer.

”The first thing you do is get your pruno and not greet the owner of the house?” I asked her dryly.

She took a sip, sighed contentedly, and looked at me.

Amy Dallon was a good friend of mine for the sole fact that I liked her humor, she healed me once, and she made me alcohol.

I was actually a little buzzed right now from drinking her pruno.

”Hi. There, I said it. Now, let me get back to drinking.”

I snorted. ”You raging alcoholic.”

”Idiotic drowned.”

”Grumpy healer.”

”Masochist.”

”Oi, that was once!”

”Uh huh.”

I snorted again and walked up to the second floor bathroom.

When I finished cleaning up, changed my clothes, and came back down, Amy was watching the TV with half-lidded eyes.

I raised an eyebrow. ”Aren't you normally at the hospital by now?” I asked her.

”I am, but I haven't given you your check-up yet.”

I chuckled. ”Sure, sure,” I said as I extended my hand towards her. I stopped for a moment to dispel the Roleplay Excellence's control over my body. I slouched a little then, and Amy, looking at me with a raised eyebrow, caught my extended hand.

Her eyes glazed over as she looked through my biology.

As she looked through my biology.

Looked.

My biology.

I realized my mistake right there on the spot, and Amy's eyes widened as they gained focus. Her face and eyes snapped up to me, and I returned her look in equal part nervousness and embarrassment.

I didn't expect to be outed so soon.

The thing about cultivators was that their biology changed with their training. They became more than just humans.

And while I might not have done anything, the very fact that I was a cultivator who could do extraordinary things already set my biology apart from regular people.

And Amy here was a biokinetic.

”What happened?” she demanded angrily.

And she was angry because she was thinking that I must have gone to some bio-tinker to improve my body.

Just as she showed trust in me… I supposed it was my turn to return that trust.

While letting her hold my hand, I moved around the couch and sat down next to her. She stared at me.

”So, where would you like me to begin?”

”Who experimented on you?”

”No one.”

”Your biology is different from a mere day ago, Alan,” she spat. ”Who did this to you?”

I smirked. ”What if I said it is the product of my training?”

”... Huh? No, that's bullshi-”

Right there and then, I did one of the few things I knew so far about my cultivation: allowing the Qi to flow through my meridian points.”

Her retort froze on the spot as her eyes widened.

I knew that she couldn't detect lies, not completely, so I spun her a story. ”We humans once dominated nature. Rocks shattered, earth cratered, trees fell, and mountains disappeared under the might of not weapons but our feet and fists,” I said. And it was true in the wuxia genre of fiction.

But then again, Worm was also fiction.

”I've finally woken up today and reached a level of cultivation that you see today. This is something I've been working towards. It's not much… but I can show you what I can do.”

Tired as I may have been, but I could power through… with just a sip of beer. I stole a sip from her cup of pruno, earning me a light glare. She nodded stiffly, and I led her down to the lowest bas.e.m.e.nt.

I let her stay by the stairs, and I walked to the center of the room. I contemplated how I was going to go about this.

I mean I was a little tired but … it really wouldn't be much.

And so…

I cut it loose.

-VB-

She didn't know what she expected, but it wasn't this.

The air grew heavy on her as if a thick blanket was weighing her down. At the same time, the bas.e.m.e.nt grew darker than before. The light dimmed yet its intensity was the same.

Her hand quickly reached out and grabbed the handrail of the staircase and held on to it dearly.

She watched as Alan, her only non-parahuman friend, lifted his right leg up.

And stomped.

The bas.e.m.e.nt floor cracked and the entirety of the house shook with how strong it was.

He punched away from her, and yet the air buffeted against her face like she was sticking her head out of a train. He kicked, and the rotation of his attack with his bare foot grinded against the floor.

He jumped and twirled in the air, striking thrice, and she knew that such an attack would have knocked out most people on the spot if the attack connected.

'Brute 3 at the very least,' she thought.

And then she saw his hands curl into fists and strike too many f.u.c.k.i.n.g times in under five seconds.

'T-Thirty? No, at least thirty-five…! And each of those strikes felt as strong as the first fist strike that made the winds whoosh around and buffet her face. If anyone without armor or Brute power got hit by those-!'

Death.

The first three strikes might break a bone. By the tenth, multiple bones would be broken. By the twentieth, entire skeletal structures would be gone and organs would be damaged. By the thirtieth, there would be no organ to speak of.

He stopped with a last flourish of a kick and moved way too fast for her eyes. Vicky might be able to follow it but…

”...What the f.u.c.k,” she uttered, unable to stop herself.

Alan looked up and grinned. ”And I can make you this strong too, though it will be painful.”

She looked down at the floor. The cement floor was no longer flat and pristine. It was cracked, shattered, ground down, and … a mess.

And this was done with a bare foot that didn't break or bleed when striking a cement surface hard enough to shatter the entire thing.

”Ah. I went overboard,” Alan grumbled. ”Now I have to fix everything up.”

”What the f.u.c.k, Alan.”

”Ow,” he suddenly muttered. ”I think I strained myself.”

”Ugh, idiot,” she grumbled as she walked up to him, careful to avoid any broken shard of cement, and touched him. Or rather, she tried to. He stopped her with a finger to the palm of her extended hand. ”What?”

”I have to heal the old fashioned way. My muscles wouldn't grow otherwise.”

Both of them knew that if he wanted muscles, then she could increase them all she liked as long as she had the materials.

”Does it have something to do with your … power?”

”It's not a power if you can do the same with training, Amy.”

She snorted. ”I doubt I can do that,” she said, pointing to the crater on the cement.

”You never know,” he teased before going serious. ”But I honestly wouldn't want you to start this. The only method to start this would have you screaming for hours in pain.”

She winced. ”You…?”

”Not sure,” he replied honestly. ”I just know that you will if you follow me down this path.”

She stopped talking. ”... Fine,” she said as she turned around. ”I'm going to the hospital.”

”Be careful, okay?”

”I will.”

As she walked up the stairs and then out of his house, she couldn't help but wonder.

Could she be as strong?

Strong and glorious like Vicky?

She needed time to think.

Chapter 2

-VB-

Cultivation.

Did I mention that it wasn't too different from a Tinker or a body builder in how it functioned?

For me, I had the knowledge of what I must do to advance my body; the mind and spirit were trickier, so I was focusing on the body first. After all, what was a mind if the body could not follow through?

So, the body! There were three paths to advancements of the body known to me, thanks to the knowledge download.

The first path was the rigorous training of flesh against wood, flesh against steel, and flesh against flesh: the Path of Rock Flesh. 'Through endless pain and suffering, the body shall achieve the flesh of a mountain. All shall break before the mountain.'

The second path took martial art into the realm of the supernatural: the Art of Peerless Skin. 'Through the infusion of internal Qi onto the skin, the skin shall harden

The third and final path, the one I intended to take, was the practical application of the acc.u.mulated ancient knowledge where Qi was the central overarching force capable of influencing the body. This was the Path of One Thousand Layer.

Now, they all sounded fancy and gave the notion that some kind of supernatural training regiment was needed. Very technically speaking, they did. One could not achieve the Path of Rock Flesh without surviving against throwing your n.a.k.e.d skin against sharpened rock and come out stronger for it. The Art of Peerless Skin would have one master the neigong, which took a decade, if not decades, to master. The Path of One Thousand Layer was the easiest of them but also the most expensive.

Qi was not a force limited to each individual human. Qi itself was the human's internal energy, and there existed many other forms of energy, like the infernal Qi, found in hot springs and volcanoes, and the natural Qi, found in plants and animals.

The Path of One Thousand Layer took the understanding of the flow of Qi to gather ingredients infused heavily with Qi and infused them into the body.

This was why it was expensive. Instead of training the body, the Path of One Thousand Layer sought to implement Qi found elsewhere into the body to supplement its progress. I needed medicinal herbs in hundreds of kilograms, and a specific ratio had to be maintained in each medicinal bath I took after each training session.

Alan Marris on this Earth had $55,000 saved up so far as cash and credit. I blew half of that away in a single day for the herbs, and of that 10% was simply from the shipping fee.

I sunk deep into the medicinal bath, luxuriating in the steaming hot mixture of twelve different herbs ranging from Chinese Knotweed to half a century old wild ginseng. I tried not to think about how expensive this bath was. Considering that I chopped in a half of twenty-five year old wild ginseng, it was at the very least two thousand dollars…

A two thousand dollar (at the very least) herbal bath. Didn't think I'd be doing something so … expensive.

'I can't imagine but the most dedicated or the rich doing this in ancient times,' I thought to myself while practicing breathing with my body.

'Breathing with the body' was not actually taking in oxygen and expelling carbon dioxide with my skin. It was the most fundamental part of neigong, where my body took in energy from the outside. This process, coupled with the medicinal bath, took in nutrients and energy from the medicinal bath and reinforced the whole of my body. When I ”exhaled” with my body, acc.u.mulated wastes related to neigong and Qi.

Under the right circ.u.mstances, ”bodily breathing” was a way to purify my body as I reinforced it.

Unfortunately, I was not a master of neigong, or even the fundamental step of bodily breathing. If I was, then I would have made this bath cheaper and acquired the same benefit. But I wasn't a master. I knew what and how to do this cultivation roughly but the exact efficiency and path eluded me, because I was nothing more than a disciple in the arts not a master, and even that was because of the knowledge. On top of that, I didn't have a decade to master a single martial art.

Scion may be neutered, but parahuman gangs with their shards' conflict engines was a real thing.

I dove under it, and breathed. The water around me pulsed in rhythm with each breath. I felt the top of my head also move out of the water despite the fact that I hadn't moved. Was I taking the herbal bath water into me?