The Return of Kaelen Viremont

Chapter 005: Hunt in the Vyrecrest Mountains

Darian Vexmoor, Deputy Commander of the Frostfang Mercenaries Group, Ninth Heaven cultivator… relentless. For days, he had tracked Kaelen, forcing the boy into constant retreat with his Wind Thunder Bow.

This was no ordinary weapon. Forged from refined iron, runes etched along its limbs, the Xuan-grade bow carried lethal energy with every shot. Even Kaelen’s Bronze Battle Body couldn’t fully tank it. Evade or die—that was the choice.

Crouched beside a blood-streaked forest trail, Darian’s golden eyes gleamed.

“You can run all you want, kid… but you won’t get far,” he muttered.

Above him, his eagle soared, scouting ahead. Every inch of the Vyrecrest Mountains was now Kaelen’s hunting ground. And his trap.

Half a million silver coins dangled over Kaelen’s head—a bounty set by Kael Draven himself. Mercenaries drawn by greed swarmed the mountains, yet Darian wanted it all.

“Why share the reward,” he whispered, “when I can have the glory—and the silver—for myself?”

He followed the blood trail like a predator. Step by step. Minute by minute. Then the forest opened to a clearing. Heavy breaths, thick shrubs…

Darian smirked. “Out of stamina, are we? Cornered yourself, huh?”

Then he froze.

A silver-armored crocodile slept before him, massive as a hill. Scales glittered beneath the canopy. That heavy breathing… not Kaelen’s. The beast of the Great Wild Forest itself.

“No… I can’t fight this!” Darian’s blood ran cold. Kaelen had led him here.

A shadow moved. Kaelen stood atop a rock, twirling a stone with a devilish grin.

“N-No… Don’t—”

“Good luck,” Kaelen whispered.

Whoosh! The stone flew.

ROARRR!

The forest trembled. The crocodile awakened, roaring so loud it rattled Darian’s bones. He scrambled for his bow—but a massive claw struck him down.

In an instant, the Ninth Heaven cultivator, Deputy Commander of the Frostfang Mercenaries… gone.

Kaelen perched on an ancient tree branch, eagle’s lifeless body dangling from his hand. A cold smile tugged at his lips.

“You don’t always need strength to win,” he murmured. “Sometimes, brains are enough.”

Three hours later, when the beast returned to slumber, Kaelen descended. He retrieved the Wind Thunder Bow, half-buried near Darian’s remains.

“A Xuan-grade weapon,” he breathed, tracing the runes. “Even in all of Thornreach… a peerless treasure.”

Not only had he eliminated a dangerous foe. He had claimed a legendary weapon.

Voices echoed from deeper in the forest. “Did you hear that? Fighting! Come on—maybe it’s that thief!”

Kaelen’s eyes darkened. “Frostfang Mercenaries… keep forcing my hand, and don’t blame me for destroying you all.”

A flick of his robe, and he vanished into the treetops.

The pursuit only intensified in the following days. Rogue cultivators, mercenaries… drawn by the bounty. When Kael Draven learned of Darian’s death, his fury erupted like a volcano. One million silver coins. Half the Vyrecrest Mountains swarmed with hunters.

But Kaelen? He was no longer the hunted.

By a moonlit lake, he drove his blade through the chest of a Seventh Heaven cultivator. The Creation Furnace activated. Corpses shimmered—spiritual stones, herbs, silver, even life force devoured and transformed into pure cultivation energy.

His power surged. Ten days later, Kaelen reached the Seventh Heaven of the True Martial Realm. His growth… monstrous. Yet the hunters only multiplied. Greed is endless. The higher he climbed, the more tantalizing the bounty.

The storm was hunting the storm.

“Quick! That little thief is over there!”

Shouts tore through the forest. Kaelen’s white robes fluttered like smoke as he melted into the undergrowth. Golden vital energy pulsed. His body ached—not fear, never fear—but irritation sharpened by exhaustion.

He needed time. Rare herbs, spiritual stones, arcane treasures. A breakthrough loomed. Once he ascended, not even Kael Draven would dare stand.

“When that time comes,” he whispered, “I’ll face him head-on. Let the world see who the real prey is.”

Footsteps approached. Armed cultivators burst into the clearing, led by Kael Draven himself. Cloak billowing, expression cold as steel.

“This is the only path forward,” Draven said. “Let him hide. The mountains’ dangers will either kill him—or drive him straight to us.”

Deep in the ancient forest, Kaelen moved with purpose. Canopy swallowed the light. White robes glimmered like snow. Rusted sword on his back. Wind-Thunder Bow humming in his hand.

No turning back. Behind him: hunters. Ahead: traps. Within: untamed Vyrecrest Mountains—deadly secrets, endless opportunities.

“They won’t follow me in,” he murmured. “Not even Kael Draven has the courage.”

The divine golden pill pulsed in his mind—a beacon of unimaginable power. Heightened senses, sharpened reflexes, awareness beyond human limits. Energy in trees, distant footsteps, the scent of blood… all detectable.

Even awe could not stop him. Swamps gurgled, trees bled poison, carnivorous flowers twitched, beasts the size of carriages slumbered. Yet Kaelen pressed on.

Until—

Boom!

A distant explosion shattered the quiet. Kaelen paused, eyes flicking toward the sound.

A massive gorge yawned below. A three-headed python slithered within, each head longer than a warhorse, violet scales shimmering, tongues flickering like fire whips. Martial artists fought desperately. Steel clashed. Screams echoed. Blood soaked the soil.

“Venomous Berserker Python,” Kaelen breathed. “No wonder the energy spike was intense. Spirit Martial Realm… maybe higher.”

Amid the chaos, a young woman stood calm, silver-armored guards at her side. Raven-black hair, a silver crystal on her brow, glowing faintly.

Seraphina Valemir. Ninth Princess.

Her guards fought to the last breath. One fell beneath the python’s coils. She remained composed, serene.

Whoosh!

A golden arrow streaked through the air, piercing one python’s head. ROAR! The beast shrieked, thrashing violently.

Kaelen leapt into the gorge, scooped Seraphina into his arms, and sprinted with the Wind-Thunder Bow ready.

“You… who are you?” she whispered, astonishment wide in her eyes.

He didn’t answer. Didn’t need to. At that moment, he was everything—guardian, hero, legend carved from moonlight and thunder.

Deep in the Vyrecrest Mountains, amid the chaos of beasts and men, a new tale began.

The legend of Kaelen Viremont… had only just begun.