Morning in Qingyun City was peaceful.
Vendors shouted.
Children ran.
Cultivators soared overhead with righteous expressions and absolutely unnecessary capes.
And inside the library
Chen Ping'an was asleep.
Face down.
On duty.
"…Five more minutes," he mumbled.
Then
BOOOOOOM!!!
The ground shook.
Dust rained from the ceiling.
Somewhere outside, people screamed.
Chen Ping'an slowly lifted his head.
"…Huh?"
Another explosion.
This time closer.
Shelves rattled. Scrolls fell.
"…Earthquake?"
Outside
A monstrous shadow loomed over the city walls.
A 100-meter demonic ape, its body covered in black, burning fur, eyes glowing like collapsing stars.
Each breath it exhaled warped the air.
Each step shattered the ground.
"IT'S THE HEAVEN-SHATTERING DEMONIC APE!!"
"RUN!!"
"CALL THE SECT ELDERS!!"
In the sky, dozens of cultivators gathered.
Golden light. Sword intent. Formation arrays.
One elder gritted his teeth.
"This beast… it should not exist in the lower realm!"
Another trembled. "Its aura… it's beyond Nascent Soul… beyond… everything!"
The ape roared.
ROOOOOOOOAR!!!
Soundwaves tore buildings apart.
Half the city collapsed instantly.
Back inside
Chen Ping'an blinked.
"…Okay, that's not normal."
He stood up, stretched, and walked to the door.
Peeked outside.
Saw the giant ape.
Paused.
"…Huh."
Closed the door.
"…Not my problem."
He turned around.
Looked at the mess inside the library.
Books everywhere.
Dust.
Debris.
Chen Ping'an sighed.
"…Manager's gonna be mad."
He grabbed his weapon.
Not a sword.
Not a spear.
Not some divine artifact.
A slightly dented
Secondhand industrial vacuum cleaner.
He plugged it in.
BZZZZZZZZ
Outside
The demonic ape raised its arm.
A single strike
Would erase the remaining half of Qingyun City.
In the sky
The strongest cultivator screamed:
STOP IT!
Too late.
Then
A strange force… appeared.
"…What is that?" someone whispered.
From the library doorway
Chen Ping'an stepped out.
Holding a vacuum.
Still half-asleep.
"…Can you not?" he said casually.
The ape froze.
Its massive body trembled.
Its instincts ancient, primal, absolute
SCREAMED.
DANGER.
Chen Ping'an tilted his head.
…You're making a mess.
He pointed the vacuum.
And pressed the button.
FULL SUCTION.
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Reality bent.
Space twisted.
The air screamed.
The demonic ape let out a roar of pure terror.
Not anger.
Not rage.
Terror.
ROOOOO?!
Its body
Collapsed inward.
Not crushed.
Not destroyed.
But… pulled.
Like dust.
Like nothing.
Like it had never mattered.
The sky cracked.
The ground split.
The cultivators froze mid-air, their minds blank.
"…No way…" one whispered.
"…That's… impossible…"
The ape
A being that could destroy cities with a breath
Was dragged forward helplessly.
Shrinking.
Compressing.
Breaking.
And in less than three seconds
FWOOP.
Gone.
Silence.
Absolute silence.
The vacuum hummed.
Satisfied.
Chen Ping'an blinked.
Looked inside the transparent dust chamber.
…Huh. Big one.
[DING!]
[Target Identified: Heaven-Shattering Demonic Ape (Apocalyptic Extinction-Class)]
[Reward Granted: Universal Law Immunity]
[Reward Granted: Conceptual Erasure Resistance]
[Reward Granted: +??? Realms (Calculation Overflow)]
Somewhere
A cosmic entity paused.
"…What?"
Back in the city
Every cultivator slowly turned…
Toward the library.
Toward the man.
Chen Ping'an scratched his head.
"…Do I throw this away or…?"
He shook the vacuum.
Eh. I'll deal with it later.
Then
He turned around.
Walked back inside.
Closed the door.
"…Still have to clean the second floor."
Outside
No one moved.
No one spoke.
An elder fell to his knees.
"…We… we just witnessed…"
Another whispered, voice shaking:
"…a god."
Far beyond the world
In a place where even time feared to exist
Something ancient…
Opened its eyes.
"…Entropy… has been disturbed."
Back in the library
Chen Ping'an plugged the vacuum back in.
BZZZZZZ
A small spider crawled across the wall.
…You again.
[WARNING: Target beyond classification]
Chen Ping'an raised the nozzle.
…Don't make me use max power again.