The moment the bear's lifeless body hit the forest floor with a heavy thud, Li Qingyue didn't stop to catch her breath. Her feet, light as wind, carried her swiftly toward the rock where two small tiger cubs trembled behind its shadow. They had been hiding, their fluffy bodies curled tightly, their eyes wide with fear and confusion.
At first, they flinched at her presence. One whimpered, another growled softly in instinctive defense. But when Qingyue showed them their unconscious sibling—its blood still warm, its breath shallow—their eyes flickered with recognition. The hostility faded. She was not the one who hurt them.
With careful hands, Qingyue reached out and rubbed their small heads. They were warm, soft, far too small to be alone in this forest. Her heart tightened. These cubs had just lost their mother to the bear she had slain. That loss—raw and recent—spoke directly to a sorrow she understood all too well. Though they were beasts, they were not without grief.
Minutes passed, and the two conscious cubs nuzzled against her legs, now trusting. She carried the injured one to a small cave nearby, nestled among moss-covered stones. Inside, the air was cool and quiet. The cub's wound stretched diagonally across its abdomen, a brutal claw mark from the bear. Despite being a spirit beast, albeit a young one, such an injury could take weeks to heal naturally.
But Qingyue didn't hesitate. She sat cross-legged and placed the cub in her lap. Golden-red light gathered in her palms as she circulated her spiritual energy, her cultivation now stable at the Foundation Establishment Realm. Her control had improved by leaps and bounds. Though she had only begun cultivating that very morning, her body remembered techniques she had mastered in her previous life as a Golden Core cultivator. Her energy flowed steadily into the cub, knitting flesh and calming its vital essence.
She glanced at her hands. Foundation Realm, she reminded herself. This morning, I was only starting.
Back then, in her former life, she was hailed as a prodigy, the pride of the jade lotus Sect. Yet even for her, reaching Foundation Realm had taken two years of arduous cultivation. What had changed? What door had she opened this time?
Her thoughts drifted back to the fiery cocoon that had surrounded her, the fierce tribulation lightning, the terrifying yet exhilarating power that had surged through her veins. None of that had occurred in her past life. Even the Moon Blades—now resting silently at her side—felt more than just weapons. They pulsed with a sentience, a hidden legacy.
But even they can't be solely responsible, she mused. Something else is changing within me.
The wound on the cub's belly faded, leaving behind only a faint scar. Still, it remained unconscious. Qingyue sighed. The cub would live, but its siblings couldn't survive the forest alone—not with cultivators hunting for beast cores and spirit beasts lurking in every shadow.
Yet she couldn't just bring them home. Her mother would ask too many questions.
Worse still, she sensed something more urgent—her mother, along with a group of villagers, was searching for her in the forest. Her grandfather's spiritual sense flared like a beacon, and Qingyue knew that the man was with them.
He was powerful—stronger than any other in their village. No beast in the outer regions of the forest would be a threat to them. Except one.
Her heart dropped. What if they encounter the serpent?
She had to warn them, but she couldn't just appear before them like this. Her body was still wreathed in the shadowy veil that she had conjured to cover herself. If she revealed herself now, everyone would know she had become a cultivator. Her mother could know—but not the whole village. Not yet.
Qingyue made her decision.
She cloaked her aura and vanished into the trees. The forest blurred past her, her speed far greater than before. In just minutes, she reached her home. Leaping through her bedroom window, she gently laid the cubs on her bed. Their wounded sibling was nestled in the middle. She patted their heads.
"Take care of your big brother. I'll be back soon," she whispered.
Though they didn't understand her words, they sensed her intention. The two cubs stood guard over their sleeping sibling. Qingyue created a small formation around the bed—concealing their presence and offering light protection. She grabbed a clean set of clothes and quickly changed before leaping back out into the night.
Meanwhile, the villagers had reached the site of her tribulation. The ground was charred and cracked, the air still thick with the scent of blood. No body was found, which meant the cultivator had survived.
But near the area, the corpse of a massive saber-toothed tiger lay mangled—claw marks, bite wounds, and a missing chunk of flesh on its neck. It had clearly been killed and partially devoured by another beast. Then left unfinished.
"Was it killed by the cultivator?" one villager murmured.
Li Huoshan, Qingyue's grandfather, frowned deeply. Her mother was frantic, pacing the edges of the clearing. At her request, Huoshan once again extended his spiritual sense. A Foundation Realm cultivator himself, he quickly found the bear's corpse half a mile away.
Then he sensed a faint life force—not far. It was a young girl.
Qingyue!
He vanished in a gust of wind, arriving moments later at a spot not far from the bear's body. There, lying among the roots of an old tree, was Qingyue, her breathing soft and shallow. He dropped to his knees beside her and checked her pulse. Stable. Just unconscious.
Or so it seemed.
Qingyue, sensing him draw near, played her part. She had chosen this spot on purpose, knowing his spiritual sense would reach her here. When his warm, calloused hand touched her wrist, she stirred.
Her eyes fluttered open, filled with confusion and fear. "Grandfather?" she murmured. "Where am I?"
"Qingyue! How did you get here? Are you hurt?" Huoshan asked, his usually stoic expression cracking with genuine concern.
She sniffled, playing her role well. "I… I was just playing. Then I saw a tiger and a bear fighting. The bear won. It started chasing me. I thought I'd die, but then… someone came. A cultivator on a flying sword. He saved me."
Huoshan listened carefully, piecing together the story. The saber-tooth corpse, the bear… everything aligned.
But something didn't sit right. "And what happened to the cultivator?"
Qingyue's expression twisted with fear. "He tried to fly away, but a giant green snake extended its head from a tree and… ate him."
That startled Huoshan. "A snake… ate a sword-flying cultivator?"
She nodded, eyes wide. "I ran, but I must have tripped and fainted."
Her tone was earnest, but her motive was clear. She needed him to understand the danger.
"If such a beast truly exists, it must be far beyond Foundation Realm," he muttered. "Spirit Formation? Golden Core? But why is it here? Why hasn't it attacked before?"
Seeing his uncertainty, Qingyue added one more detail. "It tried chasing me… but couldn't pass the tree. As if it was sealed."
That was the piece he needed.
A sealed beast of such caliber was beyond troubling. If it could kill a flying cultivator while sealed, then its true strength must be terrifying.
"I need to see it myself," Huoshan said.
Qingyue led him a short distance before stopping. She pointed toward a massive, ancient tree. Huoshan peered ahead. At first, he sensed nothing. But when he narrowed his eyes—there it was. A giant serpent, coiled tightly around the trunk, so still it was almost invisible.
He followed its body upward.
Then the snake's crimson eyes snapped open—and locked with his.
Time froze.
A chill ran down his spine. All his years of experience, all the battles he'd faced… none of it prepared him for this. His limbs froze. His breath turned shallow. His knees gave way. Sweat drenched his robes.
The beast's expression—if such a creature had one—seemed almost amused.
It was smiling.
From behind the bushes, Qingyue saw her grandfather collapse. Panic surged in her veins. She crept close and whispered urgently, "Grandfather, don't look at it. Close your eyes. We need to run."
Her voice cut through the paralysis.
He shut his eyes tight. His limbs, no longer under the serpent's gaze, slowly responded. He grabbed her and bolted, dashing back towards the search party.
As they fled, Qingyue heard it—a voice, cold and sinister, echoing in her mind.
> "Little girl... I saw everything. I knew you were ssspecial... Run as much as you want. The treasure you carry... I will be coming for it."
Her blood ran cold.
The serpent had seen her moonblades.