The climb toward Whispering Cliffs began with optimism and ended, for Arin at least, with regret and a scraped elbow. The winding path twisted through dense pine trees and moss-covered stones, and somewhere along the way, the air itself began to hum with spiritual energy.
"I'm ninety percent sure this place is cursed," Arin said, poking at a glowing mushroom with a suspicious face on it.
"That's a rock," Jun Bai muttered, not looking back.
"Then it's a very judgmental rock."
Serenya led the group in silence, sword drawn but relaxed. Yura followed behind her, skipping slightly, clearly enjoying the trip. Yue Lan walked beside Arin, hands folded behind her back.
"Stay focused," she said.
"I am. I'm focusing on survival."
Arin wasn't exaggerating. The further they climbed, the weirder things got. Trees shifted slightly when no wind blew. Birds sang in reverse. A squirrel stared at them for a solid five minutes before exploding into a puff of glitter and vanishing.
"I saw that," Arin whispered. "I'm not hallucinating, right?"
"You might be," said the system casually.
[System Remark: Warning — terrain contains mild spatial distortion and natural illusions. Do not trust what you hear. Or see. Or feel.]
"Oh fantastic," Arin muttered. "It's a funhouse of death."
Serenya suddenly raised a hand, halting the group. In the distance, the path narrowed between two cliffs, and on the ridge above, five spirit wolves stood watching them.
Their fur shimmered like silver smoke, and their eyes burned with pale blue flame.
"Don't run," Yue Lan said calmly.
"Who's running?" Arin asked. "I'm just preparing to retreat with style."
Jun Bai cracked his knuckles and stepped forward. "I've been waiting to punch something all morning."
Yura sighed, drew a dagger from her sleeve, and spun it on her finger. "They look hungry."
As the wolves leapt down in unison, Serenya moved first. She vanished, reappearing mid-air above one wolf and bringing her blade down with a quiet hum. The beast exploded into spirit mist. Jun Bai followed, delivering a charged uppercut that sent another flying backward with a yelp.
Yura danced between two of them, blades flashing, her movements as graceful as they were deadly.
Arin stood very still.
Then he screamed.
One of the wolves lunged at him. His reflexes kicked in just enough to summon a weak barrier, which shattered on impact. He tumbled backward, hit a rock, and groaned.
"You okay?" Yue Lan called out without turning.
"I'm fine," Arin groaned. "Just collecting injuries."
"Use your spiritual core."
"It's mostly decorative!"
Another wolf charged. This time, Arin raised both hands and shouted a fire technique he hadn't practiced properly. A small puff of fire escaped his palm and immediately set his sleeve on fire.
"Oh come on!"
He ran in circles trying to put it out until Yura flicked a water spell at him without looking.
"You're welcome," she said sweetly.
The last wolf circled Arin warily before Jun Bai landed beside him and crushed it with a spinning kick.
"You really need to stop attracting death," Jun said, brushing wolf mist off his shoulder.
"It's not on purpose!"
Once the path was clear, Serenya knelt beside one of the remaining traces of spiritual residue.
"They're scouts," she said. "There's something deeper in."
Yue Lan nodded. "Be ready. This is just the beginning."
Arin sat on a rock, panting. "Is this what contribution points cost?"
Yura handed him a bottle. "Hydration. You'll need it."
"Do they accept trauma receipts?"
As they continued up the path, the air grew colder. The trees leaned inward, forming a natural arch that swallowed light. At the edge of the cliffs, faint voices whispered nonsense in a language no one recognized.
And far above, hidden by mist and spirit fog, something watched.
Its eyes glowed red for a moment, then vanished.
Arin shivered and didn't know why.