The cave was silent except for the steady sound of Xuan Tian's breathing.
He had finally stepped fully into the Qi Gathering Realm, but he knew it wasn't enough. He was still weak, his Qi fragile, his body thin.
> "Qi alone won't save me… I need strength. I need a way to fight."
The Wild Beasts
Xuan Tian left the safety of the cave for the first time in weeks. The mountain wilderness was vast, filled with towering trees and echoing roars.
Wild beasts lurked everywhere. Most were ordinary, but some were Spirit Beasts—creatures that had cultivated Qi for centuries.
He carried nothing but a broken sword he had found in the ruins of the sect, its edge chipped and dull.
> "I need to kill a beast. If I can't… I won't survive the outside world."
The Battle
He didn't have to wait long.
A Silverfang Wolf, taller than a man, padded out from the shadows, its glowing eyes fixed on him. Its aura was terrifying for someone at his level.
Xuan Tian's hands trembled, but he didn't run.
The wolf lunged, fangs flashing.
> "Now!"
He sidestepped at the last moment, dragging his Qi through his body the way he had practiced. His broken sword slashed out, fueled by the technique he had been forming in his mind.
But his weapon was too dull. The blade barely left a shallow cut along the beast's side.
The wolf roared in fury and swiped with its massive claws, sending Xuan Tian crashing into a tree. Blood spilled from his lips.
> "I'm too slow… too weak…"
---
The Technique
As the beast charged again, Xuan Tian's mind raced. He recalled the patterns of Qi he had experimented with while cultivating.
> "What if I release my Qi all at once…?"
He forced the energy in his meridians to surge into his arm, his body screaming in pain from the strain.
> "Break!"
The broken sword flashed, glowing with his Qi.
The strike met the wolf's charge head-on.
BOOM!
The energy exploded outward. The blade shattered, but the force of the strike tore straight through the beast's skull.
The Silverfang Wolf collapsed lifelessly at his feet.
---
First Kill
Xuan Tian dropped to his knees, panting heavily. His arm was numb, the meridians nearly ruptured from the reckless outburst.
But for the first time, he had killed an opponent with his own strength.
He stared at his blood-covered hands, a strange calm filling him.
> "I need to master this…"
He looked at the beast's Qi core, glowing faintly in its chest. Swallowing the disgust, he extracted it carefully. The core was a treasure; it would nourish his Qi and speed up his cultivation.
> "I will use everything I can. I must become stronger."
---
The Foreshadowing
That night, back in the cave, he sat cross-legged and absorbed the Qi core. His energy swelled, his technique improving.
As he meditated, a memory surfaced—something an elder had once whispered:
> "They say beyond the Immortal Sovereign Realm… lies a place where even the heavens cannot look. A place of true creators, who shape reality itself."
Xuan Tian opened his eyes.
> "Then I'll reach that place… and go even further."