Beast ahead," Xuyi said suddenly, raising a hand.
The others froze.
I could hear it too now. A faint dragging sound branches scraping, bones clicking.
Then it stepped out.
It wasn't like the others.
It stood twice as tall as a man, with a black chitinous body, six thin legs, and a head like a skull lantern lit from within by sickly green fire. Its breath reeked of rot. Its presence pressed on the air like a stone pressing down on flesh.
"…What is that?" Ping An muttered.
"Spirit Devourer," I said quietly, narrowing my eyes. "Mid-grade. Near core rank. It's very smart and fast. Eats more than flesh."
They looked at me.
But there wasn't time to ask more questions.
Because the moment it saw us—
It charged.
Its long, skeletal limbs cut through the earth like scythes, body slithering forward in jagged, inhuman lurches. The green flame behind its skull-face pulsed brighter as it moved and its gaze fixed directly on me.
"Scatter!" Han Xuyi shouted. "We flank and strike from all sides!"
The group reacted instantly.
Ping An and Ping Bo vanished into the trees on either side, blades flashing as they launched their twin assault from the flanks. Lan Yiran's bells rang in short bursts, sending disruptive sonic waves toward the beast's legs. It didn't do much.
Han Xuyi lunged from the front, his spear glowing faintly with spiritual force as he aimed for the beast's chest.
The attacks hit the beast one by one .
But the Spirit Devourer didn't flinch. It lunged straight at me.
I dodged, barely, rolling behind a fallen log as its razor limbs struck where I'd stood, splitting stone and dirt.
"What the—why is it ignoring us?!" Ping Bo shouted, leaping in to slice at its legs.
Yiran's bells chimed again.
Xuyi's spear struck again, this time drawing a black ooze from its side.
But the beast didn't respond.
It turned, fluid and furious, its burning skull-eyes locked onto mine.
"Why is it only chasing him?!" Lan Yiran shouted, panic flaring in her voice.
I leapt to the side again, narrowly avoiding a thrust of its serrated forelimbs.
"Split its legs! Now!" Xuyi commanded.
The brothers obeyed, blades flashing again.
But the beast adapted this time—twisting, lashing out with a bladed limb that sent Ping An flying into a tree with a sickening thud.
"An!" Ping Bo shouted.
I gritted my teeth.
I can't let this continue.
They were risking their lives, and the damn thing didn't even care they existed.
Its fire-filled skull flared again. It was another charge straight at me.
As I shifted to dodge, I felt a faint pulse in my chest.
The fragment.
The Spirit Devourer's claws slammed into the earth again, kicking up soil and shattered bark.
My eyes narrowed.
It's close by. I feel its presence even more than before.
I had to move. I had to leave them.
I turned toward the group mid-fight.
"You guys, it's me that it wants!" I shouted over the crashing limbs and clashing steel. "Quickly—go!"
"No way!" Lan Yiran yelled, voice filled with defiance. "We're not leaving you behind!"
"You don't understand!" I snapped. "You can't beat this thing—not like this. Just go. Get more help instead. Hurry up!"
They hesitated for a breath too long.
Then Han Xuyi nodded grimly. "Fall back! Everyone move!"
The others fled through the mist, dragging Ping An with them.
And I was alone.
Just me.
And the beast.
It lunged again.
I ducked low, flipping backward across a slick root, barely missing another swipe. My energy was draining fast. My arms ached. My balance staggered. I was way too weak.
Then I remembered.
The talisman that Liwei gave to me.
I reached into the inner fold of my robe and pulled it free, the small, leaf-shaped parchment that Liwei had given me. It glowed faintly, pulsing once in my palm as if recognizing danger.
"Let's see if your kindness will actually end up saving me," I murmured.
I threw it toward the beast just as it raised its claws for one final strike.
BOOM.
The explosion tore through the trees, sending a shockwave that flattened everything within twenty paces. Light burst in silver-white streaks, and the beast's screech rang once…
Its charred body collapsed in a heap of smoking limbs.
I smirked faintly.
"Not bad…" I muttered.
I turned quickly, eyes drawn in the direction of the fragment's pull. It was clearer now, almost like it was screaming for me.
I took one step.
Then I heard footsteps.
I froze.
They're back already?
How so quickly?
But it wasn't them. From the smoke walked Zhou Shan, together with two of his ever-present lackeys.
He clapped slowly.
"You're so lucky," he sneered, stepping over a cracked tree root. "You were able to survive that."
I stared at him.
"What are you talking about?"
He laughed. "Before you left for the hunt… I sprayed beast flower powder onto your robe."
My eyes narrowed.
"It's a scent attractor. Draws mid-tier spirit beasts like moths to flame. I knew a Spirit Devourer had been spotted in this region. Thought I'd let it finish the job."
He grinned wider.
"But you… survived. And used that little gift from my goddess to kill it."
I scoffed.
"How pathetic."
His smile vanished.
"What's pathetic," he snapped, "is that you think this was the worst I can do."
He unsheathed his blade.
"Because now, you're going to die. By my hand."
The mist curled low as Zhou Shan stepped forward, blade gleaming in the faint light of the smoldering battlefield.
"You should've died with that beast," he said coldly. "But no matter. I'll just do the job myself."
I didn't respond.
I merely turned to face him fully, my eyes narrowing.
The two lackeys flanked him, weapons already drawn, short sabers, their stances rigid but unrefined. How dare these low tier outer sect disciples threaten me. My life has really gone bad.
"Attack," Zhou said.
They rushed in.