[Stone-Breaking Fist – Lv.1 (65/100)]
Another chime:
[Ding! Task Completed: 'Survive First Beast Hunt']
Reward: Minor Vitality + 5 SP
Warmth flowed through his limbs and core, soothing the ache in his shoulder slightly.
System Points: 25
Satisfied, the system went silent again.
Somewhere Under Another Sky… (Chu Feng)
Lightning crackled.
In a different training yard under a heavy clouded sky, Chu Feng finished a set of punches, gasping for breath.
Spirit power surged—and this time, lightning didn't sputter out as quickly.
It clung to his arm, wrapping around his fist like a living gauntlet.
He froze, eyes widening.
"…Huh."
The elder watching from the shadows felt it too.
His lightning… it strengthened slightly. But he hasn't taken any special medicine recently…
Chu Feng stared at his hand, then clenched it.
Something in his chest stirred—
a strange feeling, as if somewhere far away, another stubborn idiot was also panting after a fight.
He huffed a short, humorless laugh.
Probably my imagination.
He drove his fist forward again.
Far-Away Eyes
In a distant location, the same mist-obscured woman from before watched a different fragment of the forest through a spirit mirror.
She saw Astra taking a breath, rolling his shoulder as the group moved on.
Saw him tuck the vial into his robe instead of using it immediately, saving it for more serious injury.
She smiled.
"Saving others… taking wounds on yourself… growing steadily under pressure…"
Her tone was amused, but there was a certain warmth beneath.
"You're not just a vessel of bloodline. You're… you."
Her fingers traced his image lightly.
"Good. Don't change."
The mirror dimmed again.
As the group proceeded further into Broken Ridge Forest, the atmosphere grew thicker, spirit energy dense enough that even the weakest disciples could feel it.
Bai Ruyin stopped suddenly.
"Formation line begins here," she said. "I'll check its state."
She closed her eyes and sent out her spirit power in a fine, controlled wave.
Astra watched her carefully, silent.
Precise control. Good comprehension. No wasted flare.She's someone who earned her place, not someone who coasted.
Particles of light gathered briefly around her hands as she traced invisible lines.
"The outer formation is… disrupted," she said after a moment. "Something has been clashing against it repeatedly."
"Beasts?" Han Qing asked.
"…Maybe not just beasts," she answered quietly.
Han's eyes narrowed.
"All right. We confirm the mine status, then pull back. No unnecessary heroics."
He looked at Astra for a second.
That look didn't go unnoticed by Lin Wu, whose teeth ground together.
Why does he keep looking at that guy?
He was supposed to be a joke. Trash.If he keeps standing out…
Lin Wu's gaze grew colder.
I'll just have to make sure the forest finishes what it started.
In front of them, Broken Ridge Forest breathed quietly.
Hunter and hunted moved through its depths—
But which was which was no longer as simple as it had been.
The wolves had seen a glimpse of a predator behind human eyes.
Soon, more dangerous things would too.
And far away, lightning danced around Chu Feng's fists, growing brighter each day—
two destinies rising, slowly but surely, toward the same storm.