Apocalypse Transmigration - The Card Captor System

For the next three months, Leo did nothing but train. The black crystal became his entire world.

Day after day, he sat on its smooth surface. He circulated the Star Soul Breathing Technique, pulling tiny strands of Zen into his soul with deliberate focus. At first, controlling the chaotic energy felt impossible. Even after absorbing a single strand, Leo had to spend hours refining his grip on it. One careless moment was all it took for the Zen to run wild inside him.

But Leo improved as time went on. One strand became two. Two became five. Soon, he could absorb multiple threads of Zen at the exact same time without losing his grip. His breathing steadied. His heartbeat followed the rhythm of the technique. Even his soul started adapting to the strange energy.

Throughout the whole process, Gill refused to give him a single moment of rest.

"Again?" Leo stared at the shadowy raven in disbelief.

Gill nodded.

"You’ve got to be kidding me."

Gill raised his cane.

Leo snapped to an upright posture. "Fine. Again."

The training resumed. If Leo’s concentration slipped even a fraction, Gill’s cane tapped against the crystal.

Tap.

Leo’s shoulder twitched. "That was barely a mistake."

Tap.

"Okay, okay!"

Later, Leo decided to test the waters and slowed his breathing on purpose. Gill stared at him.

Leo grinned. "What?"

Gill pointed a feathered wing at him, then at itself, and conjured an image in the air: a bird pecking at a stick figure’s head.

Leo’s smile vanished. "...You’re getting creative."

Gill nodded, chest puffed out.

"Don’t look so pleased with yourself."

The raven’s crimson eyes narrowed. Leo went right back to his training.

Three months passed just like this. The mysterious man made occasional appearances inside the dome to check on Leo’s progress. During one visit, he found Leo standing on one leg while drawing in Zen.

The mysterious man raised an eyebrow. "What are you doing?"

Leo took a steady breath. "Training."

Gill stood several meters away, watching like a hawk. The man glanced at the raven, then back at Leo. "Why are you standing on one leg?"

Leo pointed at Gill. "He said I need to maintain perfect control even when my body is unstable."

The mysterious man gave a thoughtful nod. "That actually makes sense."

Leo’s expression brightened. "See? I’m doing something useful."

The man paused. "But why are you balancing on a single toe?"

Leo’s expression stiffened. Gill’s crimson eyes gleamed in the dim light. The mysterious man turned to face the raven.

"Gill."

The bird tilted its head.

"Are you bullying him?"

Gill shook its head without hesitation.

Leo pointed an accusing finger. "See?! He’s enjoying this!"

Gill raised its cane with utter indifference. Leo shut his mouth tight.

The mysterious man chuckled. "Keep training." He stepped back and vanished into the shadows.

Nearly another month went by. By then, Leo’s control over Zen had taken a massive leap forward. He could absorb the energy without pain. He could circulate it through his soul. He could even halt the flow in a heartbeat if something went wrong.

Yet the mysterious man still wasn’t satisfied. He appeared before Leo again on a quiet afternoon.

Leo sat still on the crystal. A thin black thread of energy entered his body. Then another. Then a third. His breathing never faltered.

The man watched in silence before giving a short nod. "You’ve become proficient."

Leo opened his eyes. "Finally." He looked over at Gill. "Did you hear that?"

Gill nodded.

Leo grinned. "That means I’m officially a good student."

Gill conjured a new image in the air. It showed a stick figure receiving a crown. The text on the crown read: DECENT.

Leo stared at it. "...Decent?"

Gill nodded.

Leo pointed at his own chest. "After months of torture, I’m only decent?"

Gill raised its cane.

Leo snapped his head toward the mysterious man. "Ignore him."

The man smiled. "You’ve mastered the first layer."

Leo’s expression turned serious. "Then what’s next?"

The mysterious man raised his hand, revealing a golden card between his fingers. "This is the second layer of the Star Soul Breathing Technique."

Leo’s eyes sharpened. The man flicked the card forward. Mid-air, it shattered into countless golden particles and sank right into Leo’s forehead. A massive wave of information rushed into his mind.

Leo’s face shifted as he processed the knowledge. The first layer had taught him how to absorb Zen while remaining still. The second layer was a whole different thing . His eyes widened. "You want me to absorb Zen while moving?"

"Not simply moving." The mysterious man shook his head. "You must maintain the breathing rhythm, control the circulation of Zen, and continuously absorb the surrounding energy while your body is in motion."

Leo frowned. "How much movement?"

The man gave a faint smile. "Start with walking."

Leo stared at him. "That’s it?"

"For now." The man turned to Gill. "Make sure he doesn’t take shortcuts."

Gill nodded. A pit formed in Leo’s stomach. The next phase of training began.

Leo stood atop the black crystal and took his first step.

Inhale.

Another step.

Exhale.

A strand of Zen drifted close. Leo tried pulling it in, but his breathing rhythm shattered on the spot. The Zen vanished into thin air. Leo stopped in his tracks.

"...That was harder than I expected."

Gill tapped the crystal. Tap.

"Yes, yes. I know."

Leo tried again, picking up his pace. The result was a mess. His breathing turned jagged, his focus broke, and all the gathered Zen scattered.

Days bled into weeks, and weeks bled into months. Step by step, Leo pushed the difficulty higher. He went from walking to jogging. Then running, jumping, and dodging. Soon, he was attacking imaginary enemies.

Every single motion needed to match his breathing. Every breath had to fuel the circulation of Zen. Every strand of energy had to stay firmly in his grip. And every mistake earned him a strike from Gill’s cane.

Tap.

"Again."

Tap.

"Again."

Tap.

"I was dodging!"

Tap.

"I was still dodging!"

Gill pointed a wing at Leo’s chest, mimicking a jagged breath. Leo fell silent. "...Fine."

A full year slipped by. Leo could now absorb Zen on a walk without a second thought. He could even hold the technique together during basic movements. But the moment he started shadowboxing? The entire system collapsed.

On one particular day, Leo tried to pull in Zen during a fast sequence of strikes. His foot slipped. His breathing hitched. The Zen inside his soul ml surged out of control.

BOOM!

An invisible force threw Leo backward, sending him skidding across the hard crystal. He groaned from the floor. "I hate this technique."

Gill waved a wing, painting a picture in the air of a stick figure crying. In the image, a shadowy bird handed the crying figure a cane.

Leo stared. "...You’re telling me to hit myself?"

Gill nodded.

Leo rubbed his forehead. "I really need a new teacher."

The real cane lifted into the air. Leo scrambled to his feet. "I withdraw my complaint."

Another year went by. Leo’s movements grew crisp and natural. He no longer had to think about every breath he took. His body simply followed the rhythm on its own. Whenever he threw a punch or dodged a strike, the Zen flowed through his veins like a second heartbeat. He could sprint across the training ground, leap into the air, twist his body, land on his feet, and pull in another strand of Zen without missing a beat.

Still, Gill demanded more.

While Leo was in the middle of a sprint, Gill launched an ambush.

WHOOSH!

The shadowy cane swept right for his head. Leo ducked out of pure muscle memory. As he dropped, he inhaled, drawing a fresh strand of Zen into his soul. He twisted to the side just as another strike came down.

THUD!

Leo blocked the wood with his bare forearm.

Exhale.

Another strand of Zen sank into his soul. He spun out of range, letting Gill’s cane miss his shoulder by a hair. He landed light on his feet, his breathing steady and unbroken.

For a few heavy seconds, neither of them moved. Then, Gill lowered its cane and gave a single nod.

Leo blinked in shock. "...Was that approval?"

Gill nodded again.

A huge grin spread across Leo’s face. "Finally!" He threw both arms in the air. "I did it!"

Gill jabbed its cane at the crystal floor. Then at Leo. Above them, it conjured an image of a towering mountain.

Leo’s smile slipped away. "...There’s more?"

Gill nodded.

Leo stared at the massive, glowing mountain. "Of course there is."

A familiar presence filled the room. The mysterious man stepped out of the surrounding dark. He studied Leo in silence before a smile touched his lips. "You’ve done well."

Leo turned to face him. "Does that mean I’ve mastered the second layer?"

The man nodded. "Yes."

Leo let out a long breath of relief. After nearly two grueling years of training, the second layer felt like second nature. He could move. He could fight. He could breathe. And he could absorb Zen. He could do it all at the exact same time.

The mysterious man looked at Gill, and the raven folded its shadowy wings across its chest. The man smiled. "Looks like you’ve finally reached the point where the real training can begin."

Leo froze. "...Real training?"

The man offered no explanation. He simply turned back toward the endless dark. "Rest for now."

Leo stared after his retreating figure, then looked at the bird. Gill raised its cane inch by inch.

Leo’s eyelid twitched. "Don’t tell me..."

Gill pointed at the black crystal beneath their feet.

Leo let out a heavy sigh. "Of course." He sat back down. The training continued.

The last two and half years felt like they had passed in the blink of an eye, yet the skills he forged would stay with him for the rest of his life. He had conquered the second layer of the Star Soul Breathing Technique. For the very first time, Zen was no longer just a force he wrangled during meditation. It had become a part of his movement. A part of his combat. A part of him.

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