The old man smiled.
“I’ve been waiting for this moment.”
His gaze shifted toward the trembling, helpless boy.
He chuckled.
“I have more pressing matters to attend to.
So, as a potential parting gift… if you manage to survive, we will meet again, boy.”
The ground began to shake.
Again.
Behind the boy, something began forcing its way out of the earth.
Abominable insects crawled from beneath the surface, their unnatural bodies twitching as they emerged.
Then came the trees.
Great, dense red trees erupted from the ground, their trunks twisted and swollen, their branches intertwining with one another.
Within seconds, an enormous forest had come into existence.
A forest made entirely of flesh.
The boy slowly turned around.
His heart tightened with terror.
You’ve got to be kidding me…
He turned back.
The old man was gone.
“Damnit.”
Then—
Something moved.
Only ten meters away, the corpses of the flesh creatures began twitching.
The severed black tentacles lying among them started convulsing.
Then the bodies began to move toward one another.
Flesh merged with flesh.
Tentacles intertwined.
Bones and limbs twisted together.
The scattered remains assembled into something new.
Something far worse.
The boy felt an oppressive force emanating from the gathering mass.
The pressure alone made his body tremble.
The voice suddenly spoke within his mind.
“This is it, kid.
I know you’re tired, but keep persevering.
This is likely the final battle you’ll have to fight.”
The voice became more serious.
“That creature up there should have enough strength to stall the old man.”
The boy clenched his fists.
“I hope you’re damn right.”
The assembled flesh suddenly convulsed.
Then it transformed.
The mass of corpses became a lanky humanoid figure composed of darkness and black flesh.
Its body was unnaturally thin, its limbs far too long, its silhouette barely distinguishable from the darkness surrounding it.
The pressure radiating from it intensified.
Blood suddenly burst from the boy’s nose.
He wiped it away.
He ignored it.
Then he smiled.
A mad laugh escaped his throat.
“I still have some left in the tank.”
He lowered himself into a fighting stance.
“Come on.”
The flesh figure suddenly laughed.
It was loud.
Mischievous.
Dreadful.
Then, to the boy’s surprise, it spoke.
“I thought you’d be bigger.”
The voice was deep, yet strangely immature.
“But you’re definitely the one.”
The boy’s eyes widened.
He tilted his head.
“What the hell?”
His expression hardened.
“It speaks?!”
The flesh figure continued in a mocking tone.
“Long way from home, aren’t you?”
The boy narrowed his eyes.
“What the hell does the old man want from me?”
The flesh figure chuckled.
“Oh, I’m pretty sure you know the answer to that.”
The boy’s voice became calmer, more refined.
“Whatever it is you’re searching for, I don’t have it.
The old man wasted his time bringing you here.”
He raised his fists.
“You should move on.”
The flesh figure burst into laughter.
“And here I thought I was going to be thanking Master for bringing me someone who could actually give me a challenge.”
It spread its arms.
“I thought that person would be enlightened.”
Its laughter grew louder.
“I thought he would be intelligent.”
The creature’s smile twisted.
“And yet he sends me to kill some pale, weak boy.”
The boy’s ears perked up.
A seething wrath began rising within him.
His voice dropped to a low whisper.
“I promise you…”
He stared directly into the creature’s eyes.
“You do not want this fight.”
The flesh figure chuckled.
Then began walking toward him.
“Oh, I’m pretty sure I do.”
And then—
It vanished.
The boy barely had time to react.
The creature reappeared beside him and delivered a smooth, clean punch directly into the side of his face.
CRACK!
The boy staggered.
A mouthful of blood escaped his lips.
He didn’t retaliate.
Instead, he slowly steadied himself.
His voice was low and controlled.
“Last chance.”
He looked toward the creature.
“Leave me be.”
The flesh figure appeared several meters away.
It laughed and stretched its arms.
“You’re going to have to murder me for that to happen.”
The creature suddenly became a blur.
It crossed the distance in an instant, throwing a devastating punch toward the boy.
The boy caught the fist with his left palm.
His right fist pulled backward.
The creature’s eyes widened.
“Ah.”
A grin appeared across its face.
“Finally.”
The boy’s fist connected with its head.
BOOM!
The flesh figure was launched dozens of meters through the forest, its body skidding across the ground before finally coming to a stop.
For a moment, it remained motionless.
Then it slowly rose.
It mumbled beneath its breath.
“Alright…”
It cracked its neck.
“My turn.”
The creature vanished again.
It reappeared directly in front of the boy with a fist already cocked back.
BOOM!
The punch collided with the boy’s skull.
His bones groaned beneath the force.
But they held.
His body was sent flying.
He crashed through the flesh forest, smashing through several trees before finally hitting the ground hard on his stomach.
For several seconds, he didn’t move.
His head throbbed.
His body screamed.
He was exhausted.
But if he wanted to escape…
He had to fight again.
The boy gathered his thoughts.
Then slowly stood.
Surprisingly, he managed it without much difficulty.
Something suddenly caught his attention.
He looked upward.
The sky was completely lightless.
Then something descended from it.
The flesh figure came diving down like a monstrous predator.
The boy reacted instantly.
He barely managed to leap aside.
BOOOOOOM!
The creature crashed into the ground.
The impact shattered the earth around it, sending debris in every direction.
The flesh figure stood from the crater.
“How incredibly sad.”
It smiled.
“Oh well.”
It raised its fists.
“Come on, then.”
Its body lowered.
“Ready yourself, boy.”
The boy disappeared forward.
His killing intent exploded outward.
The flesh figure matched him.
Both charged.
And then they collided.
Fist.
Kick.
Headbutt.
Punch.
Another punch.
Another kick.
No magic.
No corruption.
No eldritch techniques.
Just two bodies colliding in a brutal, old-fashioned fistfight.
And strangely…
The boy was enjoying himself.
There was something almost comforting about it.
No madness.
No strange powers.
No incomprehensible magic.
Just fists.
Just instinct.
Just humanity’s oldest weapon.
The forest trembled around them as trees were toppled and hurled aside.
The flesh figure blitzed through the air and delivered a double uppercut.
The boy’s body shot upward—
But before he could gain any distance, the creature seized both of his legs.
It slammed him into the ground with tyrannical strength.
BOOM!
Then it hurled him upward again.
The creature bent its legs.
And launched itself after him.
It tackled the boy in midair.
The two brutes flew through the forest before crashing into a massive boulder.
CRASH!
The boulder nearly shattered from the impact.
The boy coughed up blood.
It splattered across the creature’s head.
The flesh figure laughed.
Both of its hands wrapped around the boy’s neck.
Its grip tightened with calamitous strength.
“Hahaha!”
Its grin widened.
“Come on.”
It squeezed harder.
“Tell me what I want.”
Its voice became mocking.
“The pain will stop.”
The creature cocked one fist backward.
“Really simple.”
The fist came crashing down with the strength of a giant.
The boy barely reacted in time.
He twisted aside.
The punch missed him.
The boulder wasn’t so lucky.
BOOM!
The creature’s fist tore straight through the stone.
The flesh figure chuckled.
“Are you even trying?”
The boy’s eyes hardened.
His hand shot forward.
He grabbed the creature’s head.
Then, with everything he had left—
SLAM!
The flesh figure’s body was driven into the boulder.
The boy climbed over it.
Now he was on top.
Now he was in control.
His fists began raining down.
One after another.
Again.
Again.
Again.
Every punch carried his anger.
His fear.
His exhaustion.
His refusal to die.
He poured all of his wrath into the barrage.
Then he clasped both hands together.
Raised them above his head.
And brought them down with everything he had.
BOOOOM!
The boulder exploded.
Jagged pieces of stone flew in every direction.
Both fighters crashed to the ground.
They immediately began rising.
But the flesh figure was faster.
It appeared behind the boy.
Its arms wrapped around him.
Then—
SLAM!
A suplex.
The boy felt something crack inside his body.
Before he could even process the injury, the creature’s shins slammed into his stomach.
The boy was launched through the air.
He crashed through several trees.
He struggled to stand.
His body refused to cooperate.
He grabbed onto a nearby log and used it to support himself.
In the distance, he could hear the flesh figure laughing.
“Hahaha!”
The creature’s voice echoed through the forest.
“Ohhh…”
It sounded delighted.
“Did I strike the bad boy’s nerve?”
The boy gritted his teeth.
He grabbed the log.
Then hurled it.
The log tore through the air and smashed into the flesh figure.
The creature went flying.
It crashed through several trees before finally hitting the ground.
Blood seemed to leak from its head.
It touched the wound.
Then looked at its hand.
“Ah.”
It smiled.
“You managed to make me bleed.”
The boy didn’t hesitate.
He dashed forward.
He tackled the flesh figure and drove it through the trees.
The two crashed through trunks and shattered small boulders in their path.
Eventually, they reached a massive boulder.
The boy slammed the creature against it.
Pinned.
The flesh figure retaliated immediately.
Both fists came down onto the boy’s back.
BOOM!
The boy hit the ground.
He coughed up another mouthful of blood.
Slowly, painfully, he began pushing himself upright.
The flesh figure stood over him.
Its voice carried that same mocking tone.
“Inexperienced.”
The creature’s aura grew denser.
“You’re young.”
It leaned forward.
“You should never have come to the abyss.”
Its presence became heavier.
“So…”
The creature smiled.
“Do you want to try again?”
The boy looked up.
Defiance burned in his eyes.
“You talk too much.”
He rose.
Quickly.
His left hand seized the creature’s neck.
His right fist drove into its solar plexus.
THUD!
Then another punch struck its face.
The boy prepared another.
But the flesh figure slipped away.
It moved behind him.
Then began its own barrage.
Punch after punch.
The boy weaved between them.
In the middle of the assault, he slipped through an opening and threw a punch.
The creature dodged gracefully.
Then slammed its shoulder into the boy’s chest.
BOOM!
The boy was sent crashing into the boulder.
His body didn’t break through.
Instead, he became lodged inside the stone.
For a moment, he couldn’t move.
His ribs were fractured.
His pelvis screamed with pain.
And beneath it all, he could still feel the corruption and madness fighting against his mind.
Then the flesh figure’s irritating voice reached his ears.
“You won’t talk?”
It chuckled.
“Alright.”
The creature’s smile widened.
“Maybe whoever it is you’ve got stashed inside your soul will.”
The boy’s breathing became ragged.
His body was failing.
His strength was disappearing.
But something remained.
His wrath.
He still wanted to defy.
He still wanted to survive.
And as long as those desires remained…
He wasn’t finished.
His wrath grew.
His teeth clenched.
His muscles tightened.
Then—
BOOM!
The boy burst outward from the boulder.
He emerged from his restraints like an animal breaking free from a cage.
His fist connected with the flesh figure’s face.
The impact released a shockwave that rippled throughout the forest.
The creature was launched backward.
It tumbled through the trees before slamming into a massive trunk.
The boy immediately caught up.
Before the flesh figure could even hit the ground, the boy grabbed its head.
He drove it against the tree.
Then released it.
His fist came forward.
BOOM!
The punch devastated the creature’s head.
The flesh figure groaned.
Its body went limp.
The boy grinned.
A wild, exhausted grin.
He was hurt.
Badly.
But he was still standing.
He shoved the flesh figure aside and turned toward a nearby tree.
It was smaller than the others, but still dense.
The boy grabbed it.
And with his remaining strength, he ripped it from the earth.
Roots tore free.
The boy swung the entire tree.
Then rammed it directly into the flesh figure.
Even while being crushed beneath the impact, the creature laughed.
“Hahaha!”
Its voice remained infuriatingly cheerful.
“What are you so afraid of?”
The two soon found themselves before another gigantic boulder.
The flesh figure was pinned against it.
It grabbed the tree embedded against its body with both hands.
Then tore it apart.
The wood split open like a coconut.
The creature laughed.
“Come on.”
Its eyes gleamed.
“Let’s fight some more.”
And they did.
They fought until there was almost nothing left to give.
One punch after another.
One injury after another.
Neither willing to stay down.
But gradually…
The boy gained the upper hand.
He seized the flesh figure and hurled it against the boulder.
The creature prepared to retaliate.
The boy’s foot slammed into its chest.
The creature staggered.
The boy grabbed its face with both hands.
Then—
SLAM!
Its head collided with the boulder.
Again.
SLAM!
Again.
SLAM!
The boulder groaned beneath every impact.
The boy pulled his fist back.
Then struck.
BOOM!
The flesh figure’s body went limp.
It had finally been knocked unconscious.
The boy stumbled backward.
For the first time in what felt like an eternity, he had a moment to breathe.
The voice echoed inside his mind.
“You have to finish this quickly.”
The boy stared at the unconscious creature.
His face became completely emotionless.
“I know.”
He ran.
Around the opposite side of the enormous boulder.
He planted both palms against the stone.
His entire body trembled.
Then he pushed.
With everything he had.
His muscles strained.
His wounds screamed.
His remaining strength began disappearing.
But the boulder moved.
Slowly.
Then faster.
The massive stone rolled forward.
The flesh figure was trapped beneath it.
The boy continued pushing with tyrannical force.
Until the boulder finally crushed down upon the creature.