"Man… I really didn't want to leave that place," Arin muttered, tears slipping down like a quiet river.
"Are you all eating machines?" he complained. "How did you manage to devour the whole area?"
A thought struck him mid-sentence.
"…What? I ate more than all of you combined."
The four serpents slithered behind him in silence, as if they hadn't heard a single word.
Time passed.
Slowly, they drew closer to the mystic forest.
The nearer they came, the heavier the air felt — thick, oppressive, pressing down on their bodies.
And then, they were there.
One more meter.
One step, and it would be their new home.
Arin inhaled deeply.
Then, in a blink, he crossed the boundary.
"Wait," he signaled, tail lifting.
He drew in another breath.
A strange, almost jolly jolt ran up his spine.
"Ahh~ good qi," he muttered, a smile spreading across his face.
The other serpents glanced at him oddly.
"…Anyway."
He extended his senses, feeling the area around him.
"Hmm… cultivators—beasts," he muttered.
"Around the seventh stage of Body Tempering," his focus sharpened.
"…Huh? First stage of Qi Refinement?"
He exhaled.
The atmosphere seemed to lighten.
"Wonderful," he murmured, a deep smile spreading across his face.
His heartbeat quickened.
Hehehe… I can't wait to break through, he thought.
He surged forward—fast.
Then he glanced back.
They were already scattering.
Nyss and virex to the left.
Gorath to the right.
Kael stayed behind, following him.
"Hey! Where are you going?" he shouted.
He struck.
One bite.
Then another.
Gorath froze, staring at what had happened to the others—
and quietly followed.
"C'mon," Arin said, tone oddly casual.
"We need a specific area, or you'll get lost."
They surged forward, fast.
Moments later, they reached the heart of the forest.
Arin slowed.
"Hm. We'll stay here," he said.
Then—
his gaze fell on a stone.
Blood.
Fresh.
Splashed across its surface.
His scales tightened.
A roar tore through the forest.
From behind.
Arin twisted—
A leopard.
Green-scaled.
Smaller… than he expected.
Its ears were unnaturally large, twitching.
Its eyes—too many scars, too much pain.
Purple pupils burned with madness.
Fangs curved out from its jaws.
Beneath its paws—
Gorath.
Crushed.
Helplessly struggling.
Shattered scales littered the ground, broken and scattered like gravel.
Nyss and Virex were latched onto the beast's legs, fangs buried deep—
but nothing.
Not a single drop of blood spilled from the leopard.
Gorath, however—
Arin froze.
It took him a second to understand.
No justification followed.
No complex thoughts.
Only rage.
Pure. Violent. Overwhelming.
It surged through him and seized control.
Arin lunged.
His fangs sank into its hairy flesh.
Blood splattered.
The beast roared in pain and swung its forelimbs relentlessly.
Virex and Nyss were launched into the air.
The sound of their bodies crashing into tree bark boomed through the forest.
Still, Arin didn't give up.
The next moment, its paws were free—
its grip gone.
With regained strength, it seized Arin's long body and thrashed him violently.
The chunk of flesh Arin had torn free ripped away completely—
and in the same blink, he crashed into a massive boulder.
Tiny, razor-sharp fragments of stone exploded into the air.
Arin didn't stop.
And neither did the others.
Nyss reemerged from behind.
Finally, he pierced through.
Blood sprayed.
The beast flipped—
its front now facing Arin.
In response, it lashed out again, sending Nyss flying.
Free once more.
Then—
Virex struck.
Poison splashed into the exposed wound, seeping deeper—
not into flesh,
but into something beneath it.
Who knew what it did?
The beast screamed.
But there was no pause.
Arin surged forward again.
This time, his target was the tailbone.
He bit down, tearing away the very point where the tail began.
The beast reacted instantly.
With brutal reflexes, it hurled Arin back into the same stone.
The lion staggered and looked back.
Tears streamed down its face.
Tailless.
Yet—
the wound twitched.
Regeneration had already begun.
It gathered itself.
Then charged.
Fast.
Violent.
Straight toward Arin—
But its body suddenly pitched downward.
Ruthlessly, it stared at its leg.
Gorath.
Wrapped tightly around the paw that had once crushed him.
The beast bit through Gorath's grip, shaking its head violently before flinging him away.
It roared.
But this time—
Something was wrong.
As the scream thundered through the forest, its eyes changed.
Scars split open.
And from them—
More eyes emerged.
Dozens.
All staring directly at Arin.