The ultimate chaos God

The Ashen Veil Forest part 2

The silhouette wolf charged at him with a great force

Li Tian didn't hesitate; he pivoted on his heel, dodging the initial blur of fur and shadow as he bolted toward the mouth of the cave. His boots kicked up grit, his breath coming in sharp bursts as he broke into the open air. He didn't stop, his mind racing toward the forest edge to prevent a disaster, but the shadow was faster.

With a predatory leap, the wolf cleared his head and slammed into the dirt directly in his path.

Li Tian skidded to a halt, his pupils shrinking as he scanned the beast. His eyes darted over the creature's massive frame, vibrating with a lethal, suppressed energy.

"This Wolf is currently at Earth Beast Realm Grade 5.." He breathed the words with a flicker of grim amazement, his eyes wide as they traced the rippling muscles of the creature. "I didn't expect to encounter something like this so quickly."

He narrowed his gaze and his pulse was hammering against his ribs.

The wolf didn't give him a seconds to breathe, It let out a guttural, bone-deep growl and launch toward him . Li Tian twisted his body, the wind of the beast's passage whipping his hair across his face as he narrowly avoided the snap of its jaws. The wolf landed, skidding through the dirt before spinning back to face him, its snarl more furious than before.

It leaped, claws extended to shred his chest. Li Tian thrust his arms upward, his fingers locking around the wolf's two front limbs. The impact was like a falling mountain. His bones groaned under the overwhelming weight, the sheer physical power of the Grade 5 creature threatening to snap his guard.

"Too strong!"

He threw his weight backward, executing a desperate backflip to tear himself away from the beast's grip. He landed in a low crouch, his chest heaving as he gasped for air.

If I try to match it in a battle of attrition, my qi will dry up in minutes, Li Tian analyzed, sweat beading on his forehead.

The wolf blurred. It moved with a sudden, impossible burst of speed that Li Tian's eyes couldn't track. It struck him mid-chest like a battering ram.

The force sent him flying. His body slammed into a thick ancient tree with a sickening thud, and he slumped to the roots, a thin trail of blood leaking from the corner of his mouth.

"I can't keep up with the pace of this thing," he hissed, wiping the blood from his lips with the back of his hand. He looked up at the approaching shadow. "I have to end this now, or I'll drop dead. This is the best time.. "Chaos Core Overload Burst!"

A violent, chaotic fire erupted around his hand, the air warping from the sudden heat. The wolf, sensing the shift in power, charged with a roar. Li Tian didn't move until the last microsecond. He bent low, the wolf sailing over his head in a rush of hot air. As the beast touched the ground, Li Tian spun on his heel and rushed.

He drove his fist, wreathed in the flickering chaos flame, directly into the wolf's side.

BOOM !!!

The detonation of qi threw both of them back. Li Tian dug his back leg into the earth, carving a furrow in the dirt as he forced himself to a stop.

He looked up, expecting to see a shattered carcass. Instead, his eyes widened in disbelief. The wolf was still standing. It was scorched and bleeding, its fur matted with ash, but the killing intent in its eyes hadn't faded.

Li Tian's right arm trembled, smoke rising from his knuckles. He was sweating profusely. Damn it. The Overload Burst drains an incredible amount of qi. With my current foundation, I can only use it one or two more times before I dry up completely.

The wolf growled, a low, vibrating sound that shook the leaves above. Li Tian focused, his mind searching for a solution. Suddenly, a memory surfaced a fragment of knowledge from the body he now occupied.

His eyes snapped toward the jagged, glowing mark on the beast's forehead. The Cinder Eye Mark... that's its core convergence point. That's the weak link

If I keep hammering its body, my qi will run out long before it dies, Li Tian calculated rapidly. I have to shatter that mark.

The wolf charged again, its paws tearing up the forest floor. Li Tian didn't stand his ground. He turned and ran toward a massive tree, his boots gripping the bark as he sprinted vertically up the trunk. He reached the height he needed and pushed off with every ounce of strength in his legs, flipping through the air to gain momentum.

"Chaos Core Overload Burst!"

He slammed his fist directly into the center of the Cinder Eye Mark.

A violent crack echoed through the forest, followed by a final, distorted shriek from the beast. The wolf's body went limp, crashing into the dirt and sliding several meters before coming to a dead stop.

Tian landed heavily on his hands and knees.

"Finally..." he gasped, his voice ragged. His chest heaved as profound spiritual exhaustion washed over him. He forced himself to his feet, walking over to the steaming corpse he plunged his hand into the beast's skull and pulled out its spirit core. It rested in his blood-stained palm, a perfectly round gem pulsing with a beautiful, deep sky-blue luminescence.

"This should be enough to buy a high-grade Elixir," he said, his voice a ragged whisper. He looked deeper into the dark, swaying trees of the forest. "Going further is too dangerous."

He turned away from the kill and began the long trek back toward the edge of the forest.