The Star Dou Forest was a sprawling ocean of green, ancient and suffocating. Even at the outskirts, the air was thick with the scent of rotting leaves and the faint, metallic tang of blood. For any ordinary six-year-old, this would be a nightmare; for the Twin Stars of Clear Sky, it was a playground.
"Keep your senses sharp," Tang Bluebow cautioned, his hand resting on the hilt of a heavy broadsword. Though he was a high-level Spirit Douluo, he knew the forest's volatility. "Tang Chen, you need a beast that enhances your weight. Tang Feng, yours must be capable of withstanding the heat and speed of your lightning."
They had been trekking for six hours when the atmosphere changed. The usual chirping of insects died out, replaced by a heavy, static-charged silence.
Crackle.
Tang Feng's hair stood on end. His mutation made him a living lightning rod. "Father, something is coming. It's fast... and it's drawing energy from the air."
From the dense foliage, a blur of silver and violet erupted. It was a Thunder-Maned Leopard, nearly three meters long. Its fur was composed of needle-like hairs that hissed with electricity, and its eyes were two glowing pools of amethyst.
"A four-hundred-year-old Thunder-Maned Leopard," Tang Bluebow noted, his eyes narrowing. "A perfect match for you, Feng'er. But look at its tail—it has a second fork. This one is close to five hundred years. It might be too violent."
"Let me try," Tang Feng stepped forward, his Blue Crystal Hammer manifesting in a burst of sparks.
"Brother, do you want help?" Tang Chen asked, his own black hammer already heavy in his hand.
"Stay back, Chen. If I can't handle a cat, how will I handle the Gods?"
The leopard roared—a sound like a crack of thunder—and vanished. It was an Agility-System Spirit Beast, and in this terrain, it was a ghost.
Left! Tang Feng's past-life instincts screamed. He didn't look; he felt the change in the electromagnetic field. He swung his hammer behind him, not to hit, but to create a Static Discharge.
BOOM!
The leopard collided with the wall of electricity and was thrown back, its silver fur singed. It snarled, realizing this human wasn't prey—it was a rival predator. It crouched low, the forks of its tail beginning to glow.
"It's gathering a Thunder Orb," Bluebow warned, his spirit power flickering, ready to intervene.
"Don't," Tang Feng muttered. He closed his eyes. Physics don't lie. Lightning follows the path of least resistance.
He held his hammer high. Instead of attacking, he grounded himself, planting his feet firmly into the soil and channeling his spirit power into the crystal hammerhead to act as a vacuum.
The leopard fired. A sphere of pure, volatile electricity screamed through the air.
Tang Feng didn't dodge. He caught the orb with the face of his hammer. The blue crystal turned blindingly white as it absorbed the attack. Tang Feng's small body trembled, his skin turning a faint shade of blue as the excess energy coursed through him.
"Now... return to sender!"
Using the momentum of the absorbed energy, Tang Feng executed a perfect 360-degree spin—the first move of the Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer.
The hammer didn't just swing; it discharged the absorbed orb back at the leopard, magnified by Tang Feng's own spirit power. The resulting beam of light bifurcated the forest floor, leaving a charred trench in its wake.
The leopard didn't even have time to scream. The strike hit it head-on, pin-ning it to an ancient tree. Its life force faded instantly, and a shimmering Yellow Spirit Ring rose from its carcass.
Tang Feng collapsed to one knee, smoke rising from his shoulders. He was exhausted, but his eyes were burning with triumph.
"Feng'er!" Tang Chen ran over, gripping his brother's shoulder. "That was... that was insane! You ate its attack!"
Tang Bluebow approached, his face a mask of shock. "To use the Clear Sky Hammer as a conductor... I have never seen such a thing. Sit, Feng'er. Absorb the ring. This leopard's spirit will grant you the foundation you need."
Tang Feng sat cross-legged and closed his eyes. As he pulled the yellow ring toward him, he felt the violent, feral energy of the leopard trying to tear his meridians apart.
You are just a spark, Tang Feng thought, his mental willpower acting like a cage. I am the Storm.
An hour later, Tang Feng opened his eyes. A crisp yellow ring circled his feet.
"What is the skill?" his father asked.
Tang Feng stood up and gripped his hammer. In an instant, his body blurred, appearing ten meters away in a flash of light, leaving a charred footprint behind. He reappeared behind a tree, swinging his hammer with a sound like a sonic boom.
"First Spirit Skill," Tang Feng said, a smirk playing on his lips. "Thunderbolt Flash. It grants me a 50% increase in movement speed and makes my next strike deal 100% additional lightning damage."
Tang Chen laughed, slamming his fist into his palm. "Amazing! My turn now, Father! Find me something heavy! I can't let my little brother leave me in the dust!"
As the sun dipped lower, Tang Feng looked at his glowing ring. He felt the connection to the world deepening. He knew that this was just the beginning. Somewhere out there, the Sea God's trident and the Angel's sword were waiting.
But for now, the forest belonged to the hammers.