In a land filled with green, with many enormous trees and various animals of all kinds—each one stranger than the last—a teenager with long black hair was approaching with slow steps. His eyes were cautious, observing every corner of the forest attentively.
It was Ling Wuxie, who had learned that in the jungle, one must never let their guard down, as being caught off guard could mean death.
And he didn't want to die.
Carefully, he walked without making a sound, all the while trying to locate any enemies. After a while, he saw a lone rabbit that, upon noticing him, had its eyes taken over by an intense red. In the next instant, it attacked.
'What the hell?' Ling Wuxie found it funny that such a small creature would want to kill him the moment it saw him. But at the same time, he realized something was wrong. These animals were more violent than usual.
Realizing this, he tightened his grip on the sword and quickly unsheathed it. When the rabbit came within ten centimeters, he swung the blade, slicing through the creature like paper. Grabbing his cauldron, he placed the rabbit's body inside. Instantly, only bones remained, which he stored in his case.
Ling Wuxie decided to retreat. He trusted his instincts. But when he looked back, his vision caught sight of around a hundred rabbits of the same species. All in a berserk state, extremely furious.
'I knew something was off with this forest today. Why am I so unlucky? Of all days for something weird to happen, it had to be today...'
Ling Wuxie was frustrated with his bad luck. And the rabbits ahead, filled with killing intent, attacked all at once, like a downpour.
Seeing that group attack, his body froze in fear. But his will to live made him react, and he activated his Blood Qi. The instant his sword turned crimson, he began to slash. With the first strike, he wiped out an entire wave.
But a few managed to get close and started biting him. It hurt like hell. But he held his ground and soon used his strongest move. A pulsating river of blood collapsed over the ground, wiping out all the rabbits around him. On the ground, a crater formed, and dust rose, covering everything.
Grabbing as many bodies as he could, Ling Wuxie dashed toward the trees to his left. Then, he circled a trunk and hid behind it.
The remaining rabbits grew furious and began searching through every part of the trees. Ling Wuxie, sensing the danger, started recovering from his injuries and boosting his strength.
Throwing all the rabbits he had gathered into the cauldron, he refined them. Soon, a crimson potion formed on the surface. Without thinking much, he drank all the essence. In that moment, his blood trembled.
It began to heat up. Ling Wuxie felt as if he were in a living hell. Devouring so much essence at once had side effects. He understood this and bit into his robe to stop himself from screaming in pain.
Soon, the pain faded. And then, an explosion occurred within his body. His physique was enhanced—with tougher bones, stronger skin, and sharpened senses.
He had broken through to the third level. The sound of his breakthrough reached the rabbits' ears, and they ran in his direction. Hearing the noise, Ling Wuxie took a deep breath and, with extreme speed, sprang out from behind the tree. At that moment, he was three times faster than before.
As he burst out, he extended his sword forward and slashed with force, cutting down many rabbits. Then, he spun his body and hurled his sword. A river of blood swept forward, swallowing everything in its path.
In the sky, heads flew. Dozens. In front of him, the sword—after wiping out all the rabbits—struck a tree, pierced through it, and kept going, like a wire flowing aimlessly.
Seeing the massive hole through the trees, Ling Wuxie's heart skipped a beat.
'So strong! The level difference is insane…' He was speechless. Then, with incredible speed, he ran to retrieve his sword. After eight meters, he found it on the ground. Picking it up, he returned to the previous spot and began gathering all the corpses. Once done, he left that place, which was becoming increasingly bizarre.
But as he walked the way back, he noticed it was no longer the same. The place had mysteriously changed. At that moment, Ling Wuxie began to cry. The tears wouldn't stop falling from his eyes.
Not even when he got injured did he cry. But now, he did. He was afraid he would never see his family again.
"Why? Why did this place change? Why!" He was desperate, completely panicked. He didn't know what to do.
But after a while, he clenched his fists. "I'm a swordsman. If I can't return home, I'll carve a path with my sword! Dead Star, don't mess with me!"
Ling Wuxie's eyes turned cold, no longer showing any trace of his innocence. Poor child.
'Keep moving forward in this unknown place or turn back? How do I get out of here? Or how do I find a way out?'
He wondered. And in that moment, lost in his thoughts, he heard an explosion. Instantly, the ground shook. Caught by surprise, Ling Wuxie fell to the ground, but before fully hitting it, he placed his palms on the soil.
Meanwhile, the sounds didn't stop echoing. Each explosion was worse than the last. Ling Wuxie, on the ground, gritted his teeth.
"What's going on?! First the area changes, now these damn explosions!" He was furious. And at the same time, curious. Standing up, he steadied himself. Every step was a struggle.
Walking with difficulty and stumbling, after hours, still trembling, he reached a clearing. And soon saw ahead several people in the sky, casting countless spells—powerful enough to destroy entire cities—toward a barrier.
In that moment, Ling Wuxie was stunned. His brain stopped working. His eyes watched that surreal scene, observing the powerful people.
"What's going on here? Why are they attacking that barrier? What's on the other side?" He was curious. And then fell to the ground once more. Being so close, it was nearly impossible to stand. If he forced himself too much, his muscles would spasm in pain.
Half an hour later, the barrier shattered. A white expanse of gas emerged. A fog took over, blocking any prior view. The figures above, seeing this, flew straight into the mist and vanished in an instant.
Ling Wuxie stood up, in disbelief. He couldn't believe what had just happened. It hadn't fully sunk in yet.
"What the hell is going on here?"