Chapter Ten – Trial of the Spirit Beast Forest (Part Six)
The forest echoed with the sound of splintering wood.
Lin Yuan steadied himself against the trunk of a shattered tree, blood dripping from the corner of his mouth.
His arms still trembled from blocking the masked leader's strike.
One attack.
Just one.
Yet it had almost blown the Yellow-grade sword from his grasp.
He finally understood the terrifying difference between cultivation realms.
A single stage could determine victory.
An entire realm...
Could decide life and death.
The Spirit Foundation Realm
Lin Yuan had only recently entered the Spirit Foundation Realm, the stage where a cultivator forms a stable dantian and learns to circulate spiritual qi throughout the body.
At this realm, spiritual qi could strengthen muscles, increase speed, and reinforce weapons.
However, there were still nine stages within Spirit Foundation.
A cultivator at the First Stage and another at the Ninth Stage belonged to the same realm, but their strength could differ severalfold.
The Blood Moon leader was clearly at a much higher stage than Lin Yuan.
Experience widened the gap even further.
The masked leader took another step.
His boots barely disturbed the fallen leaves.
"I'll admit it."
"You've exceeded our expectations."
He glanced at the Yellow-grade sword in Lin Yuan's hand.
"You survived my strike."
"But..."
He slowly raised his blade again.
"There won't be a second miracle."
Elsewhere in the clearing, Zhao Feng fought desperately against another masked cultivator.
His broken spear was at a terrible disadvantage.
Every clash forced him back another step.
Still, he refused to retreat.
"Hah!"
He thrust the jagged spearhead toward his opponent's throat.
The masked cultivator tilted his head slightly.
The attack missed by less than an inch.
With a flick of his wrist, he struck the shaft of the broken spear.
Crack!
The remaining half snapped apart.
Zhao Feng staggered backward, now completely unarmed.
The assassin's blade rose.
"You've fought well."
"But that's enough."
Not far away, Li Tian faced two enemies at once.
Without his treasured sword, he was forced to fight using a spare dagger taken from one of his followers.
He had always relied on superior talent and equipment.
Now, stripped of both advantages, his flaws became obvious.
His movements were still refined...
But panic had begun to creep into them.
One masked cultivator slashed high.
The other attacked low.
Li Tian barely escaped.
Even so, a crimson blade carved a deep wound across his thigh.
He gritted his teeth.
"Damn it!"
Watching the battlefield, Lin Yuan's thoughts raced.
If this continues...
We'll all die.
He couldn't defeat the leader.
Zhao Feng was about to fall.
Li Tian was barely holding on.
There had to be another way.
His eyes swept across the forest.
The battle had destroyed dozens of trees.
Large boulders lay scattered across the clearing.
Broken branches covered the ground.
Then...
His gaze settled on something unusual.
Not far behind the masked leader was a rocky cliff.
At its base stood the entrance to a dark cave.
Bones littered the ground before it.
Not animal bones.
Some were unmistakably human.
A faint, oppressive aura drifted from within.
Lin Yuan's heartbeat quickened.
This cave...
Something powerful lives inside.
At that moment, Gu Chen's voice echoed in his memory.
"Never ignore your surroundings."
"In the wilderness, the strongest creature is not always the one you can see."
Lin Yuan's eyes lit up.
A plan formed instantly.
Risky.
Perhaps suicidal.
But it was their only chance.
The Blood Moon leader attacked again.
His blade descended like a crimson crescent.
Lin Yuan didn't block.
He turned and ran.
The leader laughed.
"So."
"The heir of the inheritance chooses to flee."
He chased without hesitation.
Exactly as Lin Yuan had hoped.
"Lin Yuan!"
Li Tian shouted.
"What are you doing?"
Lin Yuan didn't answer.
He sprinted toward the cave.
The Blood Moon leader followed close behind, his speed terrifyingly fast.
The distance between them shrank with every heartbeat.
Fifty meters.
Thirty.
Twenty.
Ten.
The leader raised his blade.
"Die!"
At the last instant, Lin Yuan threw himself sideways.
The crimson slash missed him.
Instead
It struck the cliff face beside the cave entrance.
BOOOOOOM!
The mountain shook violently.
Massive cracks spread across the stone.
A deafening roar erupted from the darkness within.
Every person in the clearing froze.
The roar wasn't merely loud.
It carried overwhelming spiritual pressure.
The ground trembled.
Birds burst from the treetops in terror.
Even the masked leader's confident expression disappeared.
Slowly...
A gigantic claw emerged from the cave.
It was larger than a carriage.
Each talon gleamed like black steel.
Another roar shook the heavens.
Dust poured from the cave as the enormous creature stepped into the sunlight.
It resembled a tiger.
Its fur was midnight black, streaked with silver markings that glowed faintly.
Two curved fangs protruded from its jaws.
Its golden eyes burned with fury.
The Blood Moon leader whispered in disbelief,
"...A Shadow Thunder Tiger."
His voice had lost all composure.
Lin Yuan remembered Elder Mo's explanation.
The Inner Region of the Spirit Beast Forest was home to Rank Three Spirit Beasts, creatures comparable to the Spirit Core Realm.
But this monster...
Its aura seemed even more terrifying.
The beast's gaze slowly swept across the clearing.
First to Lin Yuan.
Then to the Blood Moon assassins.
Finally...
It looked at the broken entrance to its cave.
Its eyes blazed with killing intent.
The Blood Moon leader swallowed hard.
He had come to hunt a boy.
Instead...
He had awakened the true ruler of this part of the forest.
And the Shadow Thunder Tiger was clearly very furious.
The shadow tiger let out another roar and attacked.