Chu Xiao crouched beneath the jagged cliffs bordering Beast Mountain, hidden within the hollow of an ancient tree split by lightning long ago. The storm outside had passed, leaving the forest damp and silent. Mist slithered through the undergrowth like ghostly snakes. Chu sat cross-legged on the moss-laced floor, talismans etched in ash surrounding him in a delicate formation. His breath deepened. His spiritual veins pulsed, converging at his core.
The black jade fragment rested near his lap, glowing faintly, like a sleeping eye. He was close. One step more—just one—and he would break into the high stage of Soul Refining Realm. The foundation was stable, his body prepared. Yet unease lingered in his chest like a phantom itch.
"Master …" he whispered without opening his eyes. The elder had been recovering ever since their last battle, meditating nearby in a ghost phase, his presence almost undetectable.
Chu tightened his grip on his soul. "Now," he muttered, and began the breakthrough.
Qi surged through his meridians, blazing like molten gold. Flames of inner power danced across his body, each breath burning away weakness. His spiritual core shook. Bones cracked, not from injury—but growth. His very soul felt as though it were stretching, like a serpent shedding old skin.
From afar, beyond a veil of mist and illusion, Lin Feng stood atop a crooked ridge. His guardian, cloaked in a robe of muted jade, hovered at his side like a silent specter.
"He's about to breakthrough," Lin murmured. "A good show is about to begin."
The guardian's eyes narrowed. "He might have succeeded, do i take action...."
Lin gave a cold smile " not now, go prepare those things that i said ."
With a silent nod, the old man moved his fingers in an arcane gesture. A soft breeze stirred around Chu Xiao, carrying with it a trace of his Qi into the open wilds.
Master Han's eyes shot open. "What—?"
At that exact moment, far across the forest, a pair of crimson irises snapped open.
Wang Kuang. He had sensed it. The aura of that damned brat. And more importantly—he was also near beast mountain .
"Fool," Wang hissed, launching into the air. Even without true flight, his steps cracked the earth beneath him, leaping branch to branch like a phantom beast. His eyes blazed with killing intent.
Back in the grove, Chu Xiao's body trembled.
"Someone's coming!" Master Han growled, materializing in full form. His expression darkened. "His Qi is older… heavier… Wang Kuang!"
Chu's heart dropped. Mid-breakthrough, he couldn't move. If his process was disturbed now—his entire foundation might collapse.
From above, a scream shattered the silence.
"HEAVEN PIERCING DEMON FANG!"
Wang Kuang descended like a meteor, a curved blade of shadow energy in hand. It tore through the canopy, aiming straight for Chu Xiao's head.
Master Han blurred forward, intercepting. "Soul Guarding Shield!" A dome of pale light surged up.
Boom!
The attack struck. The shield held—but cracks raced across it instantly. Han's form flickered—his ghostly cultivation strained under the impact.
Chu's breakthrough shattered. His Qi flared chaotically. Pain lanced through his core like hot knives.
"No…" he gasped.
Wang Kuang sneered. "You dare touch my son and think fate will favor you?" A beam shot forth, striking Chu Xiao's chest.
Han screamed. "I am still here"
He surged forward, pushing past his limits. "Ghost Flame Bind!"
Chains of ethereal fire lashed around Wang Kuang, forcing him back for a heartbeat. But the damage was done. Chu Xiao's face turned pale. A wisp of red blood bleed from his body on the ground. Han coughed violently—his soul flickering.
"I can't hold form much longer," he said, soul power leaking from his spectral body. Chu Xiao stumbled to his feet, half-delirious. "What… do we do…?"
Han's eyes blazed. "Run." He drew a talisman from within his sleeve, one older than any paper Chu had seen.
"This… will cost me centuries," he muttered. He slapped it onto the ground.
Crack! The air twisted. A tear in open space wide behind them.
"Go!"Master Han flung Chu xiao inside just as Wang Kuang broke the chains. "NO!" Wang roared, lunging forward. Both of them were trying hard to get upper hand, but alas dven if Wang kuang is higher cultivation than Master Han. How can a king rank powerhouse not have any means. It was not easy for him to defeat Master Han in short time. But they don't know that there was one more person who enjoying their flight scene with great interest.
It was naturally Lin Feng and mysterious guardian with some distance near side hill.
"System, can i take his destiny now."
[Yes host. You can use your Eye of Destiny to steal his destiny but only short amount of luck. After all you only distrub his foundation and lost some of Master Han soul power. ]
"Let's see how much i can gain. EYE OF DESTINY"
Suddenly some pale golden threads release from Chu xiao's body and merge with his body. It didn't felt anything, just feel like the barrier began to lose on his cultivation.
[Ding, Protagonist Chu xiao has lost his 5% of destiny value. You have get 100 Destiny points.]
"100 points, didn't seem much." As Lin Feng talking to himself, Wang kuang and Master Han fight reach end point.
Master Han use a special forbidden technique and the rift sealed with a clap of thunder. They vanished.
---
When Chu landed, the world had changed.
The air was thick. Sulfuric. Blood hung in the air, metallic and strange. Trees looked… wrong—twisted, malformed, as if they had grown drunk on nightmares.
"Beast Mountain…" Chu gasped. "You brought us here?!"
Master Han collapsed beside him, half-transparent. "I had no choice… this was the closest… safe zone…"
"Safe?!" Chu's voice trailed off.
In the distance, a roar echoed—not of one beast, but many. Followed by silence. Then another scream. Painful. Short. Then another. They climbed a ridge. What they saw would haunt them for life.
Hundreds of spirit beasts—boars, tigers, serpents, even wind eagles—ripping each other apart. Fangs clashed with claws, wings shredded, flesh torn. Blood flowed like rivers. Yet it did not soak the ground. It vanished. Evaporated. Consumed. By what, they could not see. But the crimson mist hanging over the battlefield glowed unnaturally.
"What is happening?" Chu whispered.
Behind them, from a different hilltop, Lin Feng stood with a smirk. As he knew that they will definitely come here, but also didn't expect to reach so early.
He had spread rumors of a "Heavenly Treasure Trove" discovered deep within Beast Mountain. A few scrolls leaked. A few whispers planted. And now, sects and rogue cultivators alike were storming the region. All while he watched. His guardian appeared. "The beasts… they are not natural anymore."
Lin frowned. "Explain."
The old man pointed. "Look deeper." Lin saw not just beasts—but energy threads. Their bloodlines unraveling. Their spirit essence absorbed into something beneath the ground.
Lin's pulse quickened. "Something is… awakening." A rumble answered him. From deep within Beast Mountain, black smoke rose—like a hand clawing toward the sky.
The guardian trembled. "That is… ancient demon energy. Not seen since the Abyss War." Lin didn't speak. But a grin crept across his lips. "Let the world chase illusions," he said. "While I claim the real prize."
---
In the cursed heart of Beast Mountain, a cavern pulsed. At its center, buried under layers of bones and chains, something opened its eye.
A slitted pupil.
Breathing.
Alive again.
And it was hungry.