The villagers rarely set foot inside the forest. They knew only too well that wild beasts roamed within. If one was unlucky, an occasional Rank 1 Demonic Beast might even appear. Only martial arts practitioners had the guts to enter the wilderness, whether it was to train or to hunt. Even then, practitioners at the Body Refining Stage were barely a match for the Rank 1 Demonic Beasts.
Similar to humans, some beasts were able to absorb the Essence of Heaven and Earth. Those that do were able to refine Qi and form a beast core. These beasts were the ones that had come to be known as Demonic Beasts.
These beasts were not necessarily demons. The only reason they came to be called as such was due to the fact that they were able to wield elemental powers that normal wild beasts could not. For that reason, they were several times deadlier. Yet, despite this danger, martial practitioners still hunted Demonic Beasts for their beast cores. The refined Qi within the cores could be directly absorbed to aid in cultivation.
"Captain... What was that just now?" A white-haired old man pushed through the villagers.
"Village Elder..." The crowd quickly gave way and respectfully bowed towards the old man.
"Dad! Are you going out there to look?" Although he had taken the brunt of the ferocious gust of wind, the little boy wasn't gravely hurt. He only had minor cuts and scratches. He quickly rushed up to his father, his little face filled with fear.
"Five of you make preparations to head out at once." The City Guard Captain barked to his men.
"Elder, please have everyone return to their homes. As for you..." He sighed as he eyed his tearful son. "Go back with your mother."
"But, dad..." The boy pleaded, tears spilling down his cheeks as his mother quickly stepped forward to take him away.
"Be careful, dear..." The captain's wife whispered. Worry and terror were clearly reflected in her eyes. She knew the white light wasn't anything normal. It was the first time something of the sort had ever happened in their area.
The captain nodded slowly, a grim look on his face. Turning towards his men, he waved his hand and strode towards the forest. "Let's go!"
As the villagers headed back to their homes, the six men of the City Guard entered the woods. They walked in single file with the captain at the front. The men drew their swords and warily picked their way through the dense forest.
The men of the City Guard were all at the Body Refining Stage. The strongest among them, the captain, was at the 7th Layer. The weakest was at the 5th Layer. Using the Essence of Heaven and Earth, they had already tempered their physical bodies to the middle stages of Body Refining --- having successfully strengthened their flesh and muscles and were well on their way to tempering their organs and bones.
The strength they possessed in each fist was enough to decimate a large boulder into dust. However, being practitioners at the Body Refining Stage, they were unable to manifest Qi or use spirit techniques. They mainly relied on the strength of their physical bodies and martial arts during combat.
The men continued to make their way towards the general direction of where the white glow had appeared. The forest was as still as a tomb, not a single sound was heard, not a shadow of a wild beast was even seen. It seemed as if even the wind had stopped. Instead of feeling relieved, the men only grew increasingly wary.
Time slowly crept by, the six guards proceeded unhindered, without a single attack from wild beasts.
"Boss, something isn't right... It's too damn quiet." The second-in-command muttered under his breath, sweeping his piercing gaze across his surroundings.
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Soaring Dragon
الخيال (فانتازيا)A brutal war that rent the firmament asunder had robbed a child of his Legacy. Faced with a vicious enemy, who would stop at nothing to destroy him, the child treads a perilous path towards the Heavens to take back what was rightfully his. This is a...
