Over an area heavily soaked with blood, corpses lay scattered in every direction.
Yu Han lay among the dead, his pupils retracted until only the whites of his eyes showed.
His hands clutched an arrow embedded in his chest.
With a groan of agony, he began pulling it out slowly.
Every centimeter drawn from the sharp steel sent a wave of pain rippling through his entire body.
"Endure…" Yu Han, unwilling to die, used the last remnants of his willpower to keep pulling that thing stuck in his chest.
When he finally removed it completely, he threw the crimson-stained arrow far away.
A small hole was left in his chest, spurting bright red blood.
Gritting his teeth, Yu Han forced his torso upright as every muscle fiber tensed.
It was painful to continue, but he cared about nothing except staying alive.
"I need to stop the bleeding."
Yu Han looked around, searching for anything he could use.
But his eyes found only still-warm corpses and fresh blood.
The sight made Yu Han's stomach churn violently.
Nausea climbed up his throat, itching and forcing him to vomit.
After a few seconds, it stopped.
Wiping his mouth, Yu Han picked up the arrow he had thrown away, holding it in his right hand.
With his left, he lifted his shirt.
Drawing his arm back, he used the triangular blade to rip a strip from his white tunic.
Dropping the arrow to the ground, Yu Han grabbed the torn piece of cloth.
He bit down on one end of the fabric, clenching his jaws tightly.
Revealing his bare chest, he placed the cloth behind his back and pulled both ends forward, tying a firm knot over his chest.
Applying pressure, he tightened it hard to stem the bleeding.
Once done, Yu Han rose from the ground with clouded eyes.
Looking down, he felt a pang of pity for his former companions.
"What's the difference between humans and demons? Is it really worth sacrificing so many people for a spiritual mine? And why do they only send the weak?"
"That damned sect leader who only thinks of himself. 'For the sect,' my ass! It's all for you!"
Yu Han cursed, damning the one responsible for forcing them into battle against a rival sect.
'I only survived because I pretended to be dead, and the arrow didn't hit a vital point.'
He didn't regret that decision.
There was no way he would sacrifice his life for a pointless conflict that brought him no benefit.
Especially as a talentless cannon fodder.
Even if he somehow returned alive, the most he would earn were a few contribution points—barely enough to exchange for a single Qi Pill.
'I'm not going back to the sect. The cannon-fodder disciple died here.'
With that decision made, Yu Han began walking.
But with his very first step, his legs weakened.
He had lost too much blood while pretending to be dead.
The consequences hit now that he tried to move.
'Move! Just move!'
Ignoring the physical weakness, Yu Han continued.
Each step made his muscles contract painfully.
Hearing his tendons creak, Yu Han still didn't stop.
His ink-dark eyes showed madness.
And his vision, matching the color of his pupils, grew darker.
Losing consciousness, Yu Han forced his eyes wide open.
Both out of fear of death and because of the strange sight before him.
In the shadows ahead, golden letters appeared, floating in the air.
[The Heavens reward those who are diligent]
[Your will to survive impressed a certain Venerable, who has decided to gift you the Diligent Path]
[As long as you put in effort, you may continue improving without end]
'What? Am I hallucinating?' Yu Han thought he was, and ignored the letters, dragging his feet forward.
Ten steps later, he tripped over a corpse and fell.
Before hitting the ground face-first, he put his hands forward.
Grabbing something that felt like a face, he dug in his fingers and prevented the fall.
Standing again, he ignored the corpse he had just gripped and continued walking.
[The Diligent Path has been activated]
[Extraordinary Will obtained]
[As long as you remain resolute in your actions, your will shall continue to improve]
Yu Han, no longer seeing the letters and thinking only of escaping the battlefield, stepped over countless corpses.
As he walked, he noticed his movements improving.
At some point, he could already walk without feeling the weight in his leg.
This fact jolted Yu Han awake.
Eyes widening, and vision clearing as a shock passed through his soul, he saw before him the same letters he had assumed were hallucinations.
[Extraordinary Will (10/100): You can ignore the effects of your body]
'This is real?' Yu Han was stunned. Then he recalled the earlier messages.
'A gift from a certain Venerable? Who? Why would someone so powerful help me?'
He didn't know, but he was grateful.
"Thank you, Immortal Venerable." Yu Han waved weakly at the empty air, offering his gratitude.
Then he looked down and noticed his legs were red.
'Ignore the effects, huh?' He understood the cost of his perseverance.
Every step caused his flesh to split further from the effort.
He felt no pain because of his continually improving Extraordinary Will.
Realizing this, he didn't linger and ran with all his strength away from the battlefield.
The battle had taken place in the Black Wind Hills, a region full of brush and mountains.
The mine they fought over was inside one of those mountains.
It had originally been discovered by the Green Spirit Sect, enemies of Yu Han.
Then a spy leaked its location to the Blue Moon Sect.
The greedy sect leader sent scouts first—the infamous "cannon fodder"—who were met with a rain of arrows.
'Where should I go now?' As he exited, Yu Han felt lost, unsure of where to head.
'I still want to become an Immortal.'
That had always been his goal since discovering that immortality existed.
Retreating now was merely a necessary step toward that goal.
'I'll join a demonic sect for now.'
Yu Han no longer cared about righteous or demonic, and decided to head toward the White Fox Mountains, where such a sect existed.
'My godfather's token will be useful now.'
He could have joined a demonic sect from the start, but chose the righteous one.
Now, he regretted that deeply.
"With the Diligent Path… things will be easier."