Morning came, and the group returned to the cave—only to find Madam Qu already waiting for them. What she said next left them Excited.
"After confirming the Blade-Tailed Snake was dead, we prepared to leave. That's when we noticed a group of Shadow Dwellers exiting the cave. Given how drastically their numbers have dropped, I doubted they were planning to attack the town. My theory was that they were either relocating or running out of food. So we didn't engage. We followed them."
She paused, letting the tension build before continuing. "Just as I suspected—they were hunting. They're desperate. Their food reserves must be nearly gone. That gives us an opportunity."
Her voice grew sharper, more focused. "We will now begin the second phase of my plan. It involves poison. Before sunset, we'll scatter the corpses of poisoned beasts in strategic areas. Then, we'll seal the cave exits, forcing the dwellers to eat the tainted meat. Since they won't have access to other food—and since we'll be removing any dweller corpses—they'll have no choice. The poison will kill the weaker ones and severely weaken the stronger beasts. We'll do this for three days. On the fourth day, we attack with everything we have."
The instructors then laid out the plan in detail, assigning positions and rotations. Meanwhile, at the back of the group, Lin Shu kept to himself, eyes cold and thoughtful.
"Four more days. Once we return to the institute, the tournament will be over. A shame—I won't get a chance at the Azure Crystal Mine. But it's too dangerous to stand out right now anyway. I'll wait another four months.
Still… I know the people I sold the King Infernoheart Salamander Egg to are hunting for me. I'm certain I'm a suspect. And if I'm right, they've figured out I have a lightning-type skill. That means I can't use Lightning Steps openly—not until I reach the first stage of the Thunderforge Physique. Once I do, I can mask the lightning effects with it.
But even that physique must stay hidden. If they know my body refinement technique, they'll realize exactly what I traded the egg for. The moment they connect the dots, I'm dead. No—right now, I can't reveal any more of my cards. Not a single one."
The following days passed according to plan. The group continued poisoning the dwellers, steadily weakening them one by one. The poison was terrifyingly potent—even killing some mid-stage dwellers outright.
This made Lin Shu increasingly wary of Madam Qu and her subordinates. He was particularly vulnerable to poison and lacked any reliable means of recovery—except for the Venombane Pill, a high-tier medicinal pill capable of healing nearly any condition below or equal to its rank.
"The second stage of the plan is going smoothly. We're killing the shadow dwellers quickly and safely. But… does she really plan on attacking the Mother Chamber before the Mother is dead? That's a huge risk—fighting her and her remaining spawn all at once. We could just starve her out or poison her like the others."
He narrowed his eyes slightly.
"Unless… she wants the corpse. A Rank 2 beast body—if intact and untainted by poison—would fetch a fortune. Makes sense she wouldn't want to destroy it. No wonder she's pushing for a direct assault."
Now, the day of the attack had come.
The group advanced through the tunnels in formation. At the front were Madam Qu and the two instructors. Close behind walked two of Madam Qu's subordinates, both at the high stage of Rank 1. They were followed by four other students—those who had entered the caves with Lin Shu—also at Rank 1.
Behind them trailed Lin Shu and nine more students, alongside another six of Madam Qu's subordinates.
Out of the original group that Lin Shu arrived with, six had already perished—most of them on the first night during the brutal assault on the town. They had been unlucky enough to bear the brunt of the dwellers' fiercest attack.
The group moved through the ruined tunnels, their steps echoing against the cold, damp stone. All around them lay the corpses of shadow dwellers—bloated, blackened, and twisted in agony from the poison. The air reeked of rot and bile, but no one spoke. They were close now.
Eventually, they reached a dark passage—one of the few areas they hadn't explored yet. Tension grew instantly. This was it.
They quickly formed a loose formation: a few students set up simple light arrays while others prepared for sudden attacks. As expected, shadows lunged at them from the darkness—dwellers, maddened by starvation, driven to desperation.
But they were nothing like before.
Their limbs were trembling, their strikes sloppy and slow. Their eyes, once filled with malicious hunger, now looked clouded, feverish. The poison had taken its toll.
Steel and bone answered their desperate charges. Limbs were severed. Skulls cracked. The group cut through them with ruthless efficiency, barely losing formation.
Once the last dweller fell, they advanced into the dark corridor.
The cave opened up—vast, hollow, echoing with an unnatural stillness. When they lit the chamber, they saw her.
The Mother.
Unlike her savage spawn, she was grotesquely bloated, her form sagging under her own weight. Her skin was pale and veined, her limbs thick but slow. She didn't look like a killer, but they all knew better. Poison had weakened her, yes, but it hadn't killed her—not a beast of her rank.
"We'll now kill and fini—"
The words never finished. The boy's head was suddenly cleaved from his shoulders, rolling across the floor.
A massive figure loomed over his corpse. Its hollow, jet-black eyes reflected no light. It stood deathly still, posture rigid like a statue, its breath silent—so silent that only the faint rise and fall of its chest proved it was alive. Its claws were long, curved like blades, and from its back jutted spines like black spears.
And then it vanished.
Just like that—it melted into the shadows.
The light sputtered out. Their formation had been shattered.
The beasts had cut off their visibility.
They were in the perfect hunting ground—complete darkness.
Lin Shu didn't react recklessly.
He didn't light a flame. He didn't use a skill. He didn't move. He knew—any sound, any sign of light would draw attention. And that thing? He was sure of it—it was a peak-stage Rank 1 beast.
Not his opponent. Not even close.
That was Madam Qu and the instructors' responsibility.
"Form a circle! Light up the formations!" Madam Qu commanded. "Those with defensive skills to the front! Do not scatter!"
Then, in a blink, she was gone.
All the students saw were glimpses—flashes of metal and light as her blade clashed with monstrous claws deep within the dark.
The male instructor faced off against another beast. His fists glowed with green light, the pressure around him making the very air shudder. Each strike disrupted the balance of nearby dwellers, throwing them off just long enough for him to strike with perfect timing, slicing through them like grass.
The female instructor, less suited for direct combat, stayed close to him, using precise movements to disrupt enemy patterns, protect students, and support his strikes.
The students were under siege.
From all sides, beasts lunged at them. Some defended with barrier techniques, others retaliated with powerful strikes. Chaos ruled the chamber, but they held the circle.
Lin Shu took the rear—closest to the tunnel they'd entered from. He wasn't planning to fight to the death. If things turned south, he'd run. Without any hesitation.
Clad in his Ivory Monolith armor, he tanked hit after hit from mid-stage beasts. He didn't waste energy. Just absorbed the blows, retaliated when it counted.
Then it hit him.
A strike—fast, brutal—slammed into the side of his head.
The world blurred. He was airborne, flung like a ragdoll across the chamber.
His armor shattered—his helm, shoulder guards, and part of his chestpiece torn apart. Blood streamed from his nose.
"A high-stage beast," was all he could think, heart thundering.
As he crashed against the stone floor, he rolled to his feet instinctively, his palm glowing with thunder. Lightning roared into life.
The shadows around him peeled away in a burst of light—and he saw it.
Right in front of him.
Its skin was black, its face sunken and eyeless. Its jaw opened unnaturally wide, fangs like spears ready to tear through him. It was barely a second away from ending him.
Lin Shu fired.
The beast moved—fast—but not fast enough. It twisted its body, avoiding a fatal strike, but his lightning tore through its shoulder, burning flesh and bone.
He followed up instantly. Bone surged from his back and limbs, reforging his armor. He lunged forward, shoulder-slamming the beast and driving it off balance.
That gave him the second he needed.
He ran.
Darting back toward the group's circle, he kept low, silent. He was close to the entrance. He could escape if he wanted to. Some might even say he should.
But he knew better.
Running meant death.
That beast—it might be weaker in a head-on fight, but its raw speed and strength were overwhelming. If it chased him, he'd never get far. No. Hiding within the group gave him a better chance.
But fate had other plans.
Just as he was about to rejoin the formation, the beast caught him—clawed fingers seizing the collar of his armor.
He felt the cold grip before he even registered it.
He reacted on instinct—spikes of bone bursting out to impale it—but it was too fast. Too strong.
It pulled him close—then hurled him like trash, back toward the entrance.
As if to say: Run. Try. But you will never return to them.