The man fell dead at Li Shen's feet. His blood steamed where it touched the rain, mixing with the mud. Li Shen's breath came ragged and sharp — each heartbeat pounding like a war drum in his skull.
He expected to feel horror. Revulsion. But all he felt was… clarity.
More, the voice urged. It slithered through his mind like coiling smoke. Feed. Grow. They would have feasted on you — now taste their fear instead.
The remaining bandits circled him. Four of them — armed with rusty sabers and scraps of spirit iron armor. They did not look so confident now.
"He's just a boy!" one spat, wiping rain from his brow. "Kill him before—"
Li Shen lunged. His body moved with unnatural speed — the sword in his hand a flicker of cold silver under the storm. Metal clashed, sparks danced — and then a cry cut through the wind as another man dropped, clutching a gash that spilled his lifeblood into the mud.
Li Shen didn't stop. He pivoted, blade slicing up through a throat, spraying warmth across his cheek. Another fell. Two left.
One turned to flee. The other roared and charged, eyes wide with madness. Steel met steel — Li Shen parried clumsily, his arm aching with the force. The bandit snarled, pushing him back, but Li Shen bared his teeth and twisted. Pain surged up his spine — but so did power.
Pain is strength, the Codex whispered. Bleed. Break. Rise.
He let the sword slip through his opponent's guard. It buried in flesh. The bandit's eyes widened in shock — then went glassy.
Li Shen staggered, breath coming in ragged gasps. The last bandit was gone — vanished into the trees.
He could chase him. Part of him wanted to — but the voice inside him murmured, No. He will spread fear. Fear is your shadow. Let it grow.
Li Shen dropped the sword and fell to his knees. The rain washed blood from his hands, but it couldn't wash it from his bones.
His chest burned. The scroll's symbols coiled beneath his skin, etching themselves into his meridians. His dantian — the core of all cultivators — pulsed like a beating heart.
He felt stronger. Faster. Alive.
But also… hungry.
You belong to me now, the voice rasped. The Bloodbound Codex is your soul. Through slaughter you ascend. Through pain you are reborn.
Li Shen raised his head. Ashvale Village lay in ruin. There was nothing left for him here — only ghosts and cinders.
He stood, ignoring the ache in his limbs. His eyes, once brown, now gleamed faintly red under the storm.
"Who are you?" he whispered into the wind.
I am Ku Mo. Once Lord of the Abyss. Now your master — and your burden. Kill for me, and I will raise you above the heavens themselves.
Lightning split the sky. Somewhere deep inside, Li Shen felt something break — a boy's soul shattering to make room for something far more terrible.
He turned away from the corpses. The path ahead led into the endless forest — and beyond that, to the world that had forgotten him.
They would remember him soon enough.
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⚡ End of Chapter Two
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