The scattered rays of sunlight filtering through the dense canopy gradually faded.
Night approached.
Vergil stood atop a thick branch and surveyed the darkening forest.
“It is only the first day.”
“There is no reason to hunt at night.”
The first round would last an entire month.
Taking unnecessary risks now would be foolish.
Throughout the day, he had hunted six Apprentice Realm magic beasts, including the crimson boar.
His score had reached thirty points.
Whether that was impressive or average, he had no way of knowing.
But he understood one universal truth.
Dead contestants earned no points.
After choosing a suitable tree, Vergil climbed higher into the canopy.
Eventually, he stopped halfway up the massive trunk.
Too high, and flying beasts might notice him.
Too low, and ground beasts could easily reach him.
This position offered the greatest balance between safety and concealment.
Settling against the trunk, he placed his sword across his lap and closed his eyes.
Sleep never crossed his mind.
Not here.
Not in a Secret Realm.
Not on the first day.
As a Star Master, remaining awake for several days was not difficult.
Instead, he focused on cultivation.
Before leaving the underground compound, he had exchanged a large amount of contribution points for an Intermediate Sword Technique.
The Wind Wheel Sword Technique.
Normally, mastering such a technique could eventually produce a Wind-attributed Sword Star Seed.
Unfortunately, he already possessed a Sword Star Seed.
The technique itself would not increase his cultivation.
But it could provide direction.
Inside his Soul Space, the Sword Star Seed floated quietly.
Vergil reviewed everything he knew about the path beyond Star Seeds.
Nine Star Seeds could be fused into a Moon Seed.
That was the standard path.
The second method was far more difficult.
A cultivator could continuously evolve a single Star Seed until it eventually reached Moon Rank.
Almost nobody succeeded.
As a result, most cultivators chose a middle ground.
Several evolved Star Seeds.
Several ordinary Star Seeds.
Together, they formed a Moon Seed.
His attention settled upon the Sword Star Seed.
Its future path was becoming increasingly clear.
At present, Sword Energy produced pure, attributeless sword energy.
Versatile.
Reliable.
But limited.
His first direction was obvious.
Water.
The Chaos Water Wave Sword Technique had already laid the foundation.
If he could integrate the Water attribute directly into Sword Energy, its power would increase dramatically.
The second direction would likely be Wind.
The Wind Wheel Sword Technique was perfectly suited for that purpose.
As for the third…
Vergil opened his eyes.
A faint chill emanated from the sword resting across his lap.
Water.
Wind.
Perhaps they would evolve naturally into Ice.
The possibility lingered in his thoughts.
Closing his eyes once more, he entered deep visualisation.
Within his mind, countless versions of himself practised endlessly.
Water Cut.
Chaos Water Wave.
Chaos Water Lion.
Again.
Again.
Again.
The Visualisation Seed relentlessly accelerated the process.
Hours passed.
Night fully descended upon the forest.
Yet Vergil remained motionless.
Cultivating.
Improving.
Preparing.
Far away, hidden within the darkness, Niemul watched silently.
A faint frown appeared on the grey-skinned youth’s face.
Most contestants either rested or hunted recklessly through the night.
This ordinary human did neither.
Every spare moment was devoted to self-improvement.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Niemul settled deeper into the shadows.
Sooner or later, the human would encounter something dangerous.
And when that happened,
Niemul would harvest the rewards.
Outside the Wild Secret Realm, Mercury City remained awake.
Massive magical projections floated above plazas, streets, arenas, and noble residences.
Hundreds of screens displayed scenes from the competition.
The entire city watched.
Inside a luxurious residence, Almus and Sierra sat before a magical viewing instrument.
Five projections floated before them.
Vergil.
Gregory.
Cedric.
Sean.
Ricky.
Each occupied a separate screen.
Sierra watched Vergil cultivate for several moments.
Then she lost interest.
Without saying a word, she returned to her room.
Cultivation was more important than spectating.
Three years ago, she had reached the Sixth Level of the Star Master Realm.
Since then, she had remained trapped there.
Although she possessed five Star Seeds, only two truly mattered.
Light Element Control.
Healing.
The Healing Seed had already evolved once.
The remaining three Seeds would eventually serve as sacrifices when she attempted to form a Moon Seed.
Not all Seeds were compatible.
Additional Seeds increased the chances of a successful fusion.
Her current objective was simple.
Evolve her Light Element Control Star Seed.
For that purpose, she was comprehending a High-Tier Spell.
Light Death Ray.
Within her Soul Space, countless runes slowly assembled into a complex Spell Model.
Minutes passed.
Then hours.
Eventually, a knock sounded on her door.
A servant stood outside.
“Lady Sierra.”
“Young Master requests your presence.”
A few minutes later, she returned to the viewing room.
The projections had changed considerably.
Vergil was no longer cultivating.
He was hunting.
And on another screen,
A familiar grey-skinned youth moved silently through the forest.
Sierra’s eyes narrowed.
The Shadow Human.
He was following Vergil.
Almus noticed immediately.
“What is it?”
Sierra pointed.
“That one.”
Almus watched carefully.
Several moments later, understanding dawned.
“He’s tracking Vergil.”
The old bodyguard nodded.
“He is waiting.”
“Waiting for what?” Almus asked.
A faint smile appeared on the old man’s face.
“To collect points.”
“Half for defeating him.”
“All of them if he kills him.”
Silence filled the room.
Almus frowned.
“Damn.”
“He plans to strike after Vergil exhausts himself.”
“Or after he gets injured.”
“Not plans to,” Sierra corrected.
“He will.”
Deep within the Secret Realm, Vergil stood beside the corpse of a stag.
The hunt had been effortless.
Apprentice Realm beasts posed little challenge to a Star Master.
Sword Energy emerged from his finger.
Using it as an invisible blade, he sliced open the beast and removed its heart.
Then he began eating.
As the flesh entered his stomach, he felt energy spreading through his body.
His depleted reserves slowly recovered.
Yet his attention was elsewhere.
For two days now, an uncomfortable sensation had lingered at the edge of his perception.
At first, he had dismissed it.
The first day of the competition had been exciting.
Adrenaline.
Combat.
Unfamiliar surroundings.
Any of those could explain it.
But the feeling had never disappeared.
It remained.
Persistent.
Watching.
Waiting.
Vergil stared at the blood covering his fingers.
Then he stopped.
Blood.
A medium.
A material.
A paint.
Suddenly, an idea formed.
Back in Mercury City, Almus watched in confusion as Vergil raised a blood-covered finger.
Then he began drawing in empty air.
The blood remained suspended.
Almus straightened in his chair.
“What is he doing?”
Stroke after stroke appeared.
Three-dimensional.
Perfectly detailed.
A small frog gradually formed from blood.
Then,
It moved.
The frog blinked.
Jumped.
And landed upon the ground.
Almus’ expression changed instantly.
He slowly turned toward Sierra.
“Why didn’t you tell me his Painting Skill reached the Skill Seed stage?”
For the first time in a long while, Sierra appeared genuinely shocked.
“He never told me.”
Both continued staring at the projection.
Inside the Secret Realm, the blood frog hopped into a nearby pool of blood left by the dead stag.
Then Vergil calmly walked away.
Several minutes later, Niemul passed through the area.
The frog remained perfectly still.
Waiting.
Watching.
The moment Niemul crossed the clearing, the frog leapt from the blood.
Its tiny eyes locked onto him.
Then,
Boom.
The blood construct exploded into a crimson mist.
Back in Mercury City, the room fell silent.
Almus slowly leaned forward.
“Does Vergil actually have a chance of reaching the top hundred?”
Originally, he had expected Vergil to perform well.
But not that well.
Now he wasn’t certain.
Sierra remained silent.
For the first time, she realised she no longer knew the limits of Vergil’s abilities.
Deep within the Secret Realm, Vergil continued walking through the forest.
His expression never changed.
His heartbeat remained steady.
His breathing remained calm.
Because he had already confirmed his suspicion.
While hunting beasts,
He was also being hunted.
While walking through the forest, Vergil began considering how to deal with the mysterious figure following him.
Directly attacking?
He immediately rejected the idea.
The blood frog had only confirmed one thing.
Someone was there.
It had revealed nothing else.
No identity.
No race.
No abilities.
Nothing.
From the frog’s final vision, he had only seen a humanoid heat signature moving through the trees.
That information was far from enough.
If the pursuer belonged to one of the Saint-descended bloodlines, they might possess a racial ability capable of monitoring targets from a great distance.
Or perhaps they possessed a specialised tracking Skill.
If he turned around and launched an attack blindly, there was a real possibility that he would walk directly into an ambush.
No.
He needed more information.
More importantly, he needed a plan.
A real plan.
Vergil continued moving through the forest while his mind worked furiously.
Perhaps another blood construct.
Perhaps a chain of traps.
Perhaps he could lure the hunter toward a stronger beast.
Numerous possibilities appeared and disappeared inside his mind.
For once, his concentration became so focused on strategy that he paid less attention to his surroundings than usual.
A dangerous mistake.
A very dangerous mistake.
Crunch.
A faint sound echoed through the forest.
Vergil didn’t notice.
Crunch.
Another.
Still, his attention remained occupied.
Then he stepped through a wall of hanging vines.
And froze.
Less than ten meters away stood a massive feline beast.
Its yellow fur was covered in irregular blue spots.
Blood stained its jaws.
The half-eaten corpse of a magic beast lay beneath its paws.
The creature had been feeding.
Now it was staring directly at him.
Slowly.
Very slowly.
The giant cat turned its head.
Its golden eyes locked onto Vergil.
A low growl rumbled from deep within its chest.
The surrounding air immediately grew heavier.
An invisible pressure washed across the forest.
Leaves trembled.
Branches creaked.
Even the nearby grass bent downward.
Vergil felt every hair on his body stand on end.
His instincts screamed.
Danger.
Extreme danger.
This was not an Apprentice Realm beast.
This was not a powerful Apprentice pretending to be stronger.
This was a genuine Star Master beast.
And unlike the contestants, it possessed the terrifying physique of a creature born within the Wild Secret Realm.
For a brief moment, neither moved.
The giant cat stared.
Vergil stared back.
Then the beast’s lips slowly peeled away from its fangs.
The growl deepened.
“Oh, shit.”
For perhaps the first time since entering the competition, Vergil genuinely regretted being distracted.
Because at that exact moment, he suddenly realised something even worse.
The beast was in front of him.
The hidden hunter was somewhere behind him.
And for the first time since entering the Wild Secret Realm,
Vergil found himself trapped between two predators.