Vergil had learned that Secret Realms connected to the Underground Realm through vast tunnel networks.
Most tunnels led to ordinary caverns.
Others connected directly to Secret Realms.
The Wild Secret Realm was one of them.
The flying ship travelled through a colossal tunnel before emerging beneath an open sky.
For a brief moment, Vergil thought he had returned to the surface world.
A blue sky stretched endlessly overhead.
White clouds drifted lazily across the horizon.
A cool breeze brushed against his face.
Then he remembered where he was.
The Wild Secret Realm.
The moment the ship entered the realm, contestants began jumping overboard one after another.
Protective shield spells enveloped each participant before carrying them toward the forest below.
When his turn arrived, Vergil stepped off the edge without hesitation.
Wind roared past his ears.
The forest rapidly expanded beneath him.
Unlike many contestants who flailed during their descent, Vergil remained calm.
At the same time, he carefully observed his surroundings.
An endless forest stretched toward the horizon.
Trees towered like mountains.
Floating islands drifted high above the canopy.
Massive vines connected several of them together.
Farther away, gigantic flying beasts circled through the clouds.
Vergil narrowed his eyes.
The creatures were enormous.
Even from this distance, he could feel the pressure radiating from them.
Most were Star Master-level beasts.
Yet their bodies were far larger than any Star Master beast he had ever seen.
Moments later, he landed.
Boom.
The protective shield absorbed most of the impact before dispersing.
Immediately, his expression changed.
A tremendous weight settled upon his body.
His knees bent involuntarily.
For a brief moment, he nearly collapsed.
“The gravity is stronger.”
Realisation flashed through his eyes.
No wonder the beasts here were so massive.
Creatures born in such an environment naturally developed denser muscles, sturdier bones, and greater physical strength.
After adapting to the pressure, Vergil slowly straightened.
Then he drew his sword and stepped into the forest.
The icy-blue blade reflected scattered sunlight filtering through the leaves above.
If I had been allowed to bring my paints and brushes, I could have created scouts.
Unfortunately, the competition rules allowed only clothing and a single weapon.
Nothing else.
Before departure, Almus had permitted them to choose Star Tier equipment.
Vergil glanced at the sword.
A stream of inner energy flowed into the blade.
Frost immediately spread across its edge.
An ice enchantment.
After confirming its effect, he withdrew his energy.
There was no reason to waste strength.
Sword in hand, he continued deeper into the forest.
As he walked, inner energy circulated through his body to counter the increased gravity.
The process continuously consumed energy.
At the same time, he could feel his body slowly adapting.
The improvement was extremely subtle.
At this rate, meaningful growth would require years.
Still, he had no choice.
Without using inner energy, every movement felt sluggish.
And right now, time mattered more than efficiency.
Several minutes later, a faint rustling sound reached his ears.
Vergil immediately slowed.
Concealing his presence, he advanced toward the source.
Soon, a clearing appeared ahead.
A gigantic crimson boar stood in the centre.
Its hide resembled dried blood.
Its back faced him.
Even from a distance, its size was intimidating.
The boar’s legs alone were nearly as tall as Vergil.
Back in White Fawn Village, he would have retreated immediately.
Any beast with unusual colouration was dangerous.
Even after arriving at the underground camp, he had maintained the same habit.
Research first.
Hunt later.
Preparation saved lives.
Unfortunately, this was a competition.
And freedom waited at the finish line.
Vergil tightened his grip on the sword.
Then he exploded forward.
Inner energy surged through his legs.
The distance vanished rapidly.
Just before reaching the beast, he jumped.
His feet landed against the boar’s hindquarters.
Using the impact as leverage, he launched himself higher.
The second leap carried him onto its broad back.
The boar immediately sensed danger.
A deafening scream erupted from its throat.
Vergil lowered his centre of gravity and grabbed a fistful of coarse crimson fur.
Then he drove his sword downward with all his strength.
Crunch!
The blade sank deep into flesh.
Blood erupted from the wound.
The boar shrieked in agony.
Its massive body exploded into motion.
Boom!
The beast charged through the forest like a living avalanche.
Trees shattered.
Branches exploded apart.
The earth trembled beneath its hooves.
Vergil held tightly to the embedded sword.
Every impact sent violent shocks through his arms.
At the same time, icy sword energy flowed through the blade and into the beast’s body.
The boar screamed again.
Its movements gradually became less coordinated.
Frost spread beneath its hide.
The creature possessed tremendous physical strength.
But its energy fluctuations remained at the Apprentice Realm.
A beast specialised entirely in brute force.
No ranged attacks.
No special abilities.
Just overwhelming physical power.
The icy sword energy continued advancing.
Muscles ruptured.
Organs froze.
Then the giant boar finally collapsed.
The forest shook from the impact.
Silence followed.
Vergil slowly turned his head.
“Come out.”
His voice echoed across the clearing.
Several seconds passed.
Then a young man stepped out from behind a tree.
Red markings covered his face.
A dark cloak draped over his shoulders.
Faint magical light occasionally flickered across its surface.
A magical item.
Vergil immediately noted it.
The youth smiled awkwardly.
“I wasn’t planning to attack.”
Vergil ignored him.
His gaze shifted toward another section of the forest.
“You too.”
A brief silence followed.
Then a second figure emerged.
Grey skin.
Broad shoulders.
A long spear rested casually in his hand.
Unlike the first youth, his expression remained unreadable.
Vergil slowly pulled his sword free from the dead boar.
Neither newcomer moved.
Neither lowered their guard.
The three young cultivators stared at one another across the clearing.
No one spoke.
No one relaxed.
Vergil carefully observed them.
The two boys looked at him warily.
More importantly, they were watching each other with equal caution.
Relief flashed through his heart.
They were not allies.
That was good.
He could confidently face one Star Master at his level.
Facing two at once was a different matter entirely.
“What do you two want?” Vergil asked.
His grip tightened around his sword.
The red-marked youth shrugged.
“I heard fighting and came to investigate.”
Vergil shifted his gaze toward the grey-skinned youth.
“Same.”
His answer was brief and emotionless.
Vergil’s eyes narrowed.
“If you’re done investigating, then leave.”
The red-marked youth nodded.
He turned and began walking away.
Then he suddenly stopped.
Looking back, he asked, “How many points did you get for killing that thing?”
Vergil glanced at the watch-like artefact on his wrist.
The device had been distributed by the Mystic Silver Clan before the competition began.
It automatically recorded points.
A glowing number displayed on its surface.
5.
“Five points.”
The red-marked youth whistled.
“Five points for a single Apprentice Realm beast.”
A smile appeared on his face.
“Interesting.”
He turned around and continued walking.
Before disappearing into the forest, he raised a hand.
“Nice meeting you.”
“I look forward to fighting you next time.”
Vergil watched him leave.
Then he turned toward the grey-skinned youth.
Only to discover he was gone.
His eyes narrowed.
Not a sound.
Not a trace.
The man had vanished completely.
After waiting several minutes and sensing nothing, Vergil finally jumped down from the boar’s corpse.
He began cutting into the beast to retrieve its heart.
Several hundred meters away, the grey-skinned youth leaned casually against a massive tree.
His spear rested across his shoulders.
His eyes never left Vergil.
Meanwhile, Vergil crouched beside the boar’s corpse.
Using his sword, he cut through flesh and bone before finally extracting the beast’s heart.
The organ was nearly the size of a human head.
Without hesitation, he tore off a piece and began eating.
Warm blood stained his hands.
To an ordinary observer, the scene looked savage.
Vergil, however, paid little attention to appearances.
Food was food.
The moment the meat entered his stomach, he felt a faint stream of energy spreading through his body.
His depleted inner energy slowly began recovering.
A thoughtful expression appeared on his face.
Ordinary humans could not absorb the magic energy naturally present in the world.
Even after reaching the Star Master Realm, that fact remained unchanged.
The only exception was through external sources.
Magic beasts.
Special treasures.
Rare medicines.
The descendants of Saint Realm cultivators were different.
Their bloodlines had been permanently altered.
Magic energy flowed naturally through their bodies.
Their inner energy contained traces of magic power from birth.
As a result, they could absorb environmental magic energy far more easily than ordinary humans.
One of the advantages of a superior bloodline.
Vergil tore off another piece of meat.
The boar’s heart tasted terrible.
But the energy contained within it was real.
After finishing the heart, he stood up.
His recovered energy circulated through his meridians.
Then he resumed his hunt.
Unaware that he was no longer hunting alone.
Behind him, Niemul silently followed.
A faint smile appeared on the grey-skinned youth’s face.
In the competition, defeating another contestant granted half of their accumulated points.
Killing them granted all of their points.
Niemul had no intention of taking unnecessary risks.
Why struggle to hunt beasts himself when someone else could do the work?
The ordinary human possessed decent strength.
Let him fight.
Let him bleed.
Let him gather points.
Then, when exhaustion and injuries accumulated, Niemul would harvest the rewards.
If the human died first, that was acceptable as well.
The points collected by whoever killed him would simply become Niemul’s next target.
Either way, he profited.
It was a strategy he had successfully used before.
His race, the Shadow Humans, excelled at such tactics.
Their bloodline granted them a natural affinity for darkness and concealment.
Niemul stepped onto a shadow beneath the trees.
His figure immediately blurred.
The surrounding darkness swallowed his presence.
His scent vanished.
His footsteps disappeared.
Even his heartbeat became difficult to detect.
Like a ghost drifting through the forest, he continued following Vergil.
Ahead, Vergil moved from tree to tree while searching for his next prey.
Completely unaware.
As he hunted through the Wild Secret Realm— something else was hunting him.