Kaien kept his burning gaze fixed upon the mysterious figure while the clearing remained deathly silent around them, broken only by the frightened breathing of the rescued traveler and the crackling flames dancing around his hand.He raised the bloodstained blade he had taken from one of the masked men before pointing it directly toward the stranger.“Who are you”The stranger merely stared at him for several long moments.Then he laughed again.The sound echoed throughout the jungle with unsettling delight.“After everything that happened many years ago, I never imagined the little brat from back then would somehow survive.”His laughter grew louder with every passing second.Kaien’s voice became colder.“Who are you, and why have you been slaughtering innocent travelers crossing this jungle?”The stranger finally stopped laughing.An eerie silence followed. His sharp eyes carefully studied Kaien from head to toe. Several long moments pas

Li San stared at Kaien in complete disbelief after he told her that he had made up his mind to evacuate everyone. That was the last thing she had expected him to say.She searched his face for even the slightest trace of uncertainty, yet she found none.“Kaien, are you seriously planning to evacuate everyone inside this enormous jungle?”Kaien gave a slow nod without the slightest hesitation.“Everyone who is still alive deserves the chance to leave safely.”Li San frowned deeply before glancing toward the endless forest surrounding them.“You cannot possibly save every single traveler hiding throughout this entire place.”“I know that very well.”“Then why are you still trying to do something almost impossible?”Kaien looked deeper into the forest while tightening his fists.“Because if I do nothing, then every death becomes something I knowingly ignored.”Although Li Sam still believed the task sounded impossible, she also understood there would be no changing Kaien’s mind once he

Han Seojun nodded without the slightest hesitation.“Yes, I can still move without any problems.”Without wasting another second, Kaien firmly grabbed the boy’s wrist before turning toward the surrounding forest.“We’re leaving before more soldiers arrive.”Neither of them looked back even once.Before the remaining soldiers could recover enough to continue chasing them, Kaien and Han Seojun had already disappeared into the dense jungle.They traveled quickly through the forest without stopping even once, putting as much distance as possible between themselves and the destroyed settlement.Only after they had traveled a considerable distance did Kaien finally slow his pace enough for Han Seojun to breathe properly.The exhausted boy struggled to keep pace before finally asking the question weighing heavily on his mind.“I… I thought you were supposed to stay with Li San and the merchants.”“I was staying with them before your uncle’s soldiers appeared and captured you.”Han Seojun loo

While Kaien’s clones fiercely engaged the remaining cultists across the battlefield, the real Kaien charged directly toward the mysterious man who had attempted to steal Li San’s Qi.Their weapons collided repeatedly with explosive force, sending violent shockwaves across the clearing as neither fighter showed any intention of backing down from the deadly confrontation.During one particularly fierce exchange, the man laughed with unmistakable amusement.“Has your perception truly become this dull, or have you truly failed to recognize exactly who stands before you today?”Kaien refused to answer the question and instead intensified his assault, driving the mysterious man backward with an endless barrage of calculated strikes.He refused to let his emotions cloud his judgment.Nearby, Li San finally managed to summon her sword back into her waiting hand before cutting through the ropes restraining her body with one clean slash.Without wasting another precious second, she rushed towar