The Hell World changed the deeper Xu Yuan went.
The land beneath his feet gradually hardened, shifting from cracked plains into stretches of obsidian-black ground veined with faint crimson light. Each step felt heavier, as if the world itself resisted his presence more strongly the farther he traveled.
The air thickened.
Not with heat alone, but with pressure—an invisible weight that pressed against his skin and seeped into his bones. Even breathing required more effort now, each inhale dragging against his lungs like thick smoke.
Xu Yuan slowed.
"This is no longer the outer zone," he murmured.
[Environmental Shift Detected.]
[Entering: Low Hell World – Inner Boundary.]
[Monster density increased.]
[Existential pressure elevated.]
So this was it.
The first boundary.
In Hell Worlds, power was not evenly distributed. The outer zones were hunting grounds for weak monsters, places where newly born abominations fought endlessly for scraps of survival. But beyond that lay inner regions—territories claimed by stronger creatures, ruled by instinctual hierarchies forged through blood.
Crossing this line meant one thing.
The prey became the hunted.
Xu Yuan tightened his grip on the broken sword and continued forward.
Almost immediately, he felt it.
Eyes.
Not physical ones, but awareness—primal and hostile. Something was watching him from the shadows beyond the twisted stone formations ahead.
Xu Yuan did not pretend otherwise.
He walked openly.
Calmly.
As if unaware.
The ground trembled.
A massive shape emerged from behind a jagged ridge, its body covered in layered plates of hardened flesh that glowed faintly with internal heat. Thick limbs slammed into the earth with each step, cracking the ground beneath its weight.
A Grade-Two Hell Monster.
Larger than the one he had fought before. Stronger. More complete.
Its presence alone pressed against Xu Yuan like a physical force.
[Threat detected.]
[Estimated survival probability: 14%.]
Xu Yuan exhaled slowly.
"So this is the next step," he said quietly.
The monster roared, the sound reverberating through the inner zone and triggering distant responses—other roars, answering calls from creatures hidden deeper within.
Xu Yuan's eyes sharpened.
He could not afford a prolonged fight.
He moved first.
Not forward—but sideways.
He sprinted toward a cluster of narrow stone spires, forcing the monster to pursue him through uneven terrain. Each step sent pain flaring through his ribs, but he ignored it, focusing solely on movement.
The monster charged after him, massive body crashing through stone with brute force rather than finesse. Rocks shattered. Debris flew.
Xu Yuan ducked behind a spire just as the creature slammed into it, the impact splitting the stone down the middle. He rolled beneath its sweeping arm, narrowly avoiding being crushed, and slashed upward with the broken sword.
The blade scraped uselessly against hardened flesh.
No blood.
Xu Yuan's pupils contracted.
"So it's that tough."
The monster turned faster than expected, its tail whipping toward him like a battering ram. Xu Yuan barely managed to leap aside, the strike grazing his leg and sending him tumbling across the ground.
Pain exploded.
He rolled to a stop and coughed, blood spattering the obsidian ground.
[Warning: Bone stress critical.]
Xu Yuan forced himself upright.
"This won't work," he muttered.
Brute force alone was no longer enough.
He needed something else.
Xu Yuan's gaze flicked toward the broken sword.
Law.
He couldn't wield it directly—but perhaps he didn't need to.
He adjusted his stance, slowing his breathing despite the chaos around him. His grip on the sword loosened, fingers relaxing just enough to let sensation flow.
Not force.
Understanding.
A faint, razor-thin sharpness brushed against his awareness.
Sword Law – Fragmentary Resonance.
The pain came instantly.
Xu Yuan's arms trembled violently, veins standing out as if they might burst. Blood seeped from the corners of his mouth as his body screamed in protest.
[Warning: Law resonance exceeding tolerance.]
"Just a moment," Xu Yuan growled.
The monster lunged again.
Xu Yuan stepped forward instead of retreating.
He swung.
The blade traced a simple arc—no flourish, no wasted motion.
The moment it struck, the world seemed to hesitate.
A thin, invisible line appeared across the monster's chest.
Then—
The armored flesh split open.
Black blood erupted outward as the creature staggered, roaring in disbelief. Xu Yuan did not pause. He followed through with a second strike, then a third, each one precise, each one tearing deeper into the monster's body.
The backlash was immediate.
Xu Yuan screamed as his arms went numb, bones cracking audibly under the strain. He nearly dropped the sword as his vision blurred.
But the monster was already dying.
It collapsed with a thunderous crash, its massive body shaking the ground as it fell.
Xu Yuan staggered back and dropped to one knee, gasping for breath.
Blood dripped from his nose.
His hands shook uncontrollably.
[Emergency stabilization required.]
He pressed his palm against the corpse without hesitation.
"Temper," he whispered.
The response was brutal.
Vitality surged into him like a tidal wave, far more violent than before. His muscles seized, bones screaming as they were forced to adapt yet again. The pain eclipsed everything, driving him to the edge of consciousness.
Xu Yuan bit down hard, teeth cracking slightly.
"I won't… break," he snarled.
The corpse withered rapidly, its immense vitality pouring into him. His ribs knit together with dense, hardened tissue, bones thickening to endure the punishment they had barely survived.
At last, the flow stopped.
Xu Yuan collapsed onto his back, staring up at the crimson sky, chest rising and falling in slow, shallow breaths.
[Third Flesh Tempering complete.]
[Body refinement approaching next threshold.]
[Killing Aura accumulation increased.]
Something stirred within him.
Not power.
Authority.
The air around him felt subtly different, as though the world acknowledged what had just occurred.
Xu Yuan felt it—and immediately suppressed it.
[Ring of Originless Silence: Aura sealed.]
Silence returned.
He lay there for a long time before finally forcing himself upright.
"This is the boundary," he said quietly. "The line where survival alone isn't enough anymore."
He looked deeper into the inner zone.
Beyond this point lay stronger monsters. Demons. Territories claimed by beings that ruled through slaughter rather than instinct.
And beyond them…
Ascension paths.
Xu Yuan wiped the blood from his mouth and stood.
"If I'm going to leave this hell," he murmured, "I'll have to cross every boundary it throws at me."
He stepped forward once more, into territory where few humans had ever survived.
Xu Yuan advanced deeper into the inner zone.
The pressure increased with every step, not only on his body but on his senses. The air itself felt denser, carrying a faint metallic tang that scraped against his throat. This was no longer a place where weak monsters wandered freely. Territories here were claimed, marked by blood and dominance.
He noticed the signs quickly.
Scattered bones arranged deliberately. Claw marks carved deep into stone, not from battle, but from warning displays. Faint residual pressure lingered in certain areas—territorial imprints left behind by stronger beings.
"These aren't mindless beasts anymore," Xu Yuan murmured.
[Observation confirmed.]
[Inner Zone contains proto-territorial entities.]
In other words—rulers.
Xu Yuan slowed, adjusting his path to avoid crossing too deeply into any single territory too quickly. His goal was survival and steady growth, not reckless provocation. Not yet.
Still, avoiding conflict entirely was impossible.
A low growl echoed ahead.
Xu Yuan stopped.
From the shadows beneath a collapsed stone arch emerged a creature unlike the monsters he had fought so far. Its body was leaner, more proportioned, its movements deliberate rather than feral. Dark red patterns pulsed faintly beneath its skin, forming crude symbols that resembled twisted runes.
A Demon.
Not fully humanoid, but no longer a simple beast.
Its eyes locked onto Xu Yuan with clear intelligence—and interest.
"So you're different," Xu Yuan said quietly.
The demon tilted its head slightly, lips pulling back to reveal rows of sharp teeth. It did not attack immediately. Instead, it circled him slowly, studying him.
[Demon-class entity detected.]
[Threat level: Variable.]
Xu Yuan remained still.
Demons were not like monsters.
They could think.
Which meant they could hesitate.
The demon's gaze flicked briefly to the broken sword in Xu Yuan's hand, then to the ring on his finger. Its brow furrowed slightly, as if sensing something it could not understand.
That moment of hesitation was enough.
Xu Yuan moved.
He closed the distance in an instant, stepping inside the demon's reach before it could fully react. The broken sword flashed upward in a tight arc aimed at its throat.
The demon snarled and twisted aside, claws slashing toward Xu Yuan's chest. Xu Yuan took the hit head-on, pain exploding as claws tore through flesh, but he did not retreat.
Instead, he stepped closer.
The sword plunged into the demon's shoulder.
Black-red blood sprayed out, thick and hot.
The demon shrieked and staggered back, eyes wide with shock.
It had underestimated him.
Xu Yuan pressed the advantage mercilessly.
He did not rely on Sword Law this time.
He relied on his body.
Every strike was crude, brutal, driven by momentum and intent rather than technique. He absorbed blows that would have crippled him hours ago, his reinforced flesh and bones barely holding under the strain.
The demon tried to retreat.
Xu Yuan would not allow it.
He slammed his shoulder into its chest, driving it back against the stone arch. The impact cracked the rock and shattered several of the demon's ribs.
Xu Yuan raised the sword.
The demon looked at him then—not with rage, but with fear.
Xu Yuan did not hesitate.
The blade fell.
The demon's head hit the ground with a dull thud.
Silence returned.
Xu Yuan stood there, chest heaving, blood dripping steadily from his wounds. The fight had been shorter than his previous battles, but far more dangerous.
Demons fought smarter.
Which meant killing them mattered more.
[System Points acquired: Significant.]
[Killing Aura accumulation increased.]
Xu Yuan closed his eyes briefly.
He could feel it clearly now.
The pressure within him had thickened, deepened. Not overflowing—but no longer negligible.
"Still dormant," he muttered.
[Killing Aura: Dormant (Mid).]
"Seal it."
[Ring of Originless Silence: Aura fully concealed.]
The world quieted once more.
Xu Yuan knelt beside the demon's corpse and pressed his palm against it.
"Temper."
The response was immediate—and violent.
Vitality surged into him in dense, refined waves far purer than what the monsters had provided. His muscles tightened painfully as they absorbed the energy, fibers compressing and strengthening. His bones hummed as their structure stabilized further.
The pain was intense—but controlled.
Xu Yuan endured it in silence this time.
[Fourth Flesh Tempering complete.]
[Body refinement stabilized.]
[Foundation strengthened significantly.]
He exhaled slowly.
"This is the difference," he murmured. "Demons… are worth killing."
Xu Yuan stood and looked around.
The surrounding area remained silent.
No immediate retaliation.
Good.
He moved deeper, carefully, memorizing the terrain as he went. The inner zone stretched vast and layered, with multiple overlapping territories. He could sense stronger presences deeper within—entities that would crush him without effort if he faced them now.
But he did not feel fear.
Only anticipation.
Hours later, Xu Yuan reached a natural depression in the land—a hollow surrounded by tall, jagged stone walls. The pressure here was stable, the monster presence minimal. A temporary refuge.
He sat down and allowed himself to rest again.
His body trembled faintly as delayed pain caught up with him. Wounds burned, muscles screamed, bones ached.
But beneath it all, something else existed.
Stability.
He was no longer on the brink of collapse.
Xu Yuan closed his eyes and focused inward.
He could feel his body clearly now—the density of his muscles, the reinforced structure of his bones, the steady rhythm of his heartbeat. The Hellforged Body Tempering Art had taken root.
"This is only the first boundary," he whispered.
[Correct.]
[Current progression insufficient for boundary breakthrough.]
Xu Yuan nodded.
"I know."
He opened his eyes and stared at the crimson sky above the hollow.
"This hell tried to erase me," he said calmly. "Instead, it's forging me."
The ring on his finger pulsed faintly, almost imperceptibly.
Far above this Hell World, beyond layers of reality, existence itself shifted again—more noticeably this time.
Something had crossed a line.
Not enough to draw attention.
But enough to be remembered.
Xu Yuan rose to his feet.
He would keep moving.
He would keep killing.
And one day, he would leave this hell behind—not as a survivor, but as something it could no longer contain.
________________________
Author Note
Chapter 4 establishes the first true boundary of the Hell World and introduces demon-class entities, marking a shift from survival to territorial conflict.
From here onward, growth will accelerate but so will the dangers.
If you're enjoying the progression and atmosphere, your support and feedback help shape what comes next.