Passing through, the jungles residence of overgrown thickets and trees, each step dai yaun made was agony, but he pushed forward, deeper into the ravine's shadows. His mind screaming at him to rest, yet dai yaun refused to listen as he pushed forward.
As he pushed his way behind a covering of hanging canopies, dai yaun paused for and instance as the scent of something metallic, sharp, and heavy with qi, the scent of blood and beast essence assault his nose.
A fresh carcass lay sprawled between two stones ahead—a horned boar, its flesh torn apart as if by claws the size of daggers. Dai yaun's heart skipped. The tracks around it were massive, the mud beside looked seemed etched by monstrous claws of giant beast.
"This place…" he whispered as he stared ahead for a brief moment, before pushing forward as he staled his mind of the fears of whatever beast lay ahead.
Behind him, the assassins paused at the ridge.
"This energy…" one muttered. "There's something down there."
Their gaze darken in ugliness at what might lay ahead, their silhouettes blurred as they descended after him.
Dai Yaun's pace quickened, driven by desperation. He could no longer feel his wounded arm; his body ran on instinct alone. The forest canopy grew thicker, blocking even the faint light of the moon. The air was cold, filled with the sound of distant howls.
Suddenly, the ground trembled. A deep, guttural roar reverberated through the ravine, shaking the trees.
The assassins including dai yaun froze for a heartbeat.
"What was that?" one of the assassin asked, with trembling voice.
The question died on his lips as a gust of wind burst from below, thick with killing intent. A shadow, larger than a wagon, passed between the trees. For an instant, glowing yellow eyes flashed through the darkness.
"A beast…" one assassin hissed, his face paling.
Even dai yaun, gasping for air felt the pressure pressing down on him. He stumbled backward, using the brief distraction to disappear behind a fallen log, smearing mud and blood across his face to mask his scent.
Moments later, a black blur lunged from the shadows.
The assassins scattered away as a massive beast, resembling a panther with scales along its spine, crashed into their midst. Its roar shook the night as claws slashed through the air, ripping apart one assassin before he could even scream.
Dai yaun could only watch from his hiding spot, trying his best to hold his breath as much as possible. Dai Yaun heart pounding so loud he feared it would give him away.
The forest became a nightmare of motion as steel clashes against claws, qi flaring like flashes of lightning in the dark. One by one, the assassins fell, torn apart by the creature's fury.
Only their leader survived long enough to strike a final desperate blow, his blade burying deep into the beast's flank before he, too, was sent flying crashing into the distance against a tree, lifeless.
Silence followed, broken only by the beast's labored breathing.
It staggered, blood dripping from its wound, before turning its gaze toward dai yaun's hiding spot. Their eyes met.
A suffocating silence settled between them.
For a long moment, neither moved. Then, as if dismissing him as unworthy prey, the creature turned and lumbered deeper into the forest, its massive tail sweeping leaves in its wake.
Dai yaun waited until its presence vanished before collapsing onto the cold ground. His tensed muscle screaming in pain and relief.
He was alive, but survival came with a price. His body was battered, his spirit weary, and the forest stretched endlessly before him.
The night air hung thick with the stench of blood. The echoes of the earlier slaughter still lingered — the faint metallic tang, the soft drip of lifeblood seeping into the soil. Dai yaun crouched low behind the fallen trunk, his breathing shallow.
The bodies of the wu clan's assassins lay scattered across the ground torn limbs, shattered armor, lifeless eyes staring toward the stars they would never see again. The beast that had slain them, the black-scaled monster from the shadows, had long since vanished into the mist.
Dai yaun's eyes flickered with hesitation as he gaze at the corpses of his pursuers. His heart wavered, their possessions food and water could still be intact.
"…It should be safe," he murmured to himself, voice barely audible.
He waited, listening. The forest seemed still. The heavy aura that had weighed on his soul moments ago had faded.
With slow and catty movement, dai yaun emerged from his cover. His torn boots sank into the soft earth as he approached the nearest corpse. The assassin's mask was cracked, revealing a face frozen in terror. Dai yaun bent down, searching the man's belt pouch.
Dried meat. A small dagger. A few taels of silver. Nothing else.
He exhaled quietly and moved to the next body.
But just as his hand brushed against the assassin's sheath, a faint vibration ran through the ground beneath him so subtle it might have been mistaken for a breeze. Then came another. Stronger. He froze, every instinct screaming at him to retreat.
The vibration continues coming closer before turning into a tremor, then into a low rumble. The air grew heavier, thicker, as if the forest itself held its breath.
Boom!
A massive black shadow burst through the underbrush ahead, knocking down trees as if they were twigs. A beast no, a monster emerged into the the opening of the recent battle. Its form was sleek yet terrifying, muscles rippling beneath scales as dark as obsidian. Twin eyes, cold and yellow, glowed with predatory fury.
The monster resembles a tiger, covered in dark scales.
Even without cultivation, dai yaun could sense the oppressive presence emanating from it. Its mere breathing carried the weight of a peak-tier beast the sort that could rend boulders with its claws and tear cultivators apart like paper.
But before he could retreat, another shape slid out from behind it, a massive python, its skin armored with plates of iron-like scales. The creature's girth was wide enough to crush trees,the python's body coiled with silent menace. It tongue flickers as it head rises from the floor with cold blood hunger.
These are two apex predators.
Dai yaun heart pounded violently in his chest. He silently ducked behind the log again, pressing his body low to the ground as the two beasts faced each other.
A low growl rolled through the forest, like thunder before a storm. The Tiger bared its fangs, saliva sizzling against the ground as if its breath carried heat. The Python hissed, its tail lashing and whipping through the air creating thunder like crackling sounds.
Instantly the two beast erupted into a brawl.
The Tiger lunged first, a blur of dark black. Its claws met the Python's iron scales with a loud screech, echoing through the jungle the screech was piercing that it made dai yaun's ear and teeth ache. Sparks flew from their collusion, trees shattered from the ripples of their battle, and the earth itself trembled under their clash.
The python retaliated with terrifying strength, whipping it tail across the clearing, the impact sent the tiger staggering back and releases a shock wave which tore through the ground, toppling trees and send dirt and leaves swirling in the air.
The tiger regained its balance instantly, as it muscles tense before it give a ferocious roar, a sound that shook the forest to its roots.
Boom!
They collided again.
Despite being in a damp and cold place, sweat trickled down the brows of dai yaun, like ocean from his hiding place, the raw power on display dwarfed anything he had ever seen. The Tiger's claws sliced through the air with deadly precision, leaving gashes on the Python's scales. Yet the serpent's defenses were monstrous its hide absorbing blow after blow.
Their fight was nothing but pure savage, primal, and magnificent.
Suddenly the Python coiled , its body wrapping around the Tiger. The ground cracked under the pressure. The Tiger roared in agony, muscles straining against the constriction.
But it was not a creature to die easily. With a final, thunderous bellow, its body ignited in a faint black flame not of fire, but of aura so dense it seemed to distort the air. Its claws flashed, and with one desperate strike, it tore through the Python's head cleaving it from the rest of it's body.
Blood sprayed, steaming upon contact with the Tiger's aura. The serpent's death cry was shrill and brief. Its massive body convulsed once before falling limp, crushing saplings beneath its weight.
The Tiger stumbled free, its chest heaving, blood dropping out from deep gashes. One of it's eye had been torn, and a leg dragged weakly as it limped back into the clearing. Its once-fearsome presence dimmed, replaced by the weary aura of a beast that had fought to its last breath.
For a long time, neither beast nor man moved.
Dai yuan remained hiding eyes wide open as he stirred breathlessly at the savage beast. Even wounded, the Tiger was still far beyond his reach. One careless movement could end him instantly. He dared not breathe too loudly.
The Tiger turned its head toward the fallen Python and let out a low, guttural growl — not of triumph, but of exhaustion. Then, limping, it approached the corpse and sank its fangs into the Python's neck, drinking deeply of its blood essence. The sight was both gruesome and awe-inspiring.
Minutes passed. The Tiger drank until its wounds stopped bleeding, its aura stabilizing slightly. But the effort cost it dearly. Its legs trembled. Blood still seeped from the deep gash along its flank.
Finally, it let go, raising its head toward the moon.
Then it collapsed, the ground shook faintly with the impact.