Dawn broke over the hunting valley, but the light felt thin and uneasy.
Mist clung to the forest floor like a living thing, refusing to disperse. Even the cries of birds were absent. The entire valley seemed to hold its breath.
Shen Yu walked quietly along a narrow ridge, his thoughts heavy after the encounter at the altar.
The seal was weakening.
He could feel it now — faint pulses traveling through the earth at irregular intervals, like a dying heartbeat struggling to continue.
Inside him, the Devouring Presence remained unusually alert.
Waiting.
Elsewhere in the valley, outer disciples gathered in groups far larger than before.
Rumors had spread overnight.
“He devours Gu without refining them.”
“My senior brother saw it himself.”
“They say even wild Gu kneel before him…”
Fear turned quickly into ambition.
If Shen Yu truly possessed such an ability, defeating him would grant immense reputation — perhaps even attention from the inner sect.
And in Black River Sect, attention meant opportunity.
A tall disciple wearing wolf-fur shoulder guards slammed his spear into the ground.
“We hunt him together,” he declared. “Anyone who helps earns half his contribution reward.”
Several disciples hesitated.
Others nodded eagerly.
Predators had begun hunting a greater prey.
Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.
Shen Yu sensed them long before they arrived.
Multiple qi signatures moved through the forest, spreading outward in a net formation.
He stopped walking.
“So it begins,” he murmured.
The Emotion Reflection Gu cooled his rising emotions, allowing him to think clearly.
Running endlessly would only worsen suspicion.
He needed strength — but controlled strength.
A sudden tremor interrupted his thoughts.
Stronger than before.
The ground beneath his feet shook violently.
Birds finally burst from distant trees in panic.
From the direction of the altar, a pillar of dark qi erupted into the sky.
Shen Yu’s expression changed instantly.
“The seal…”
It was breaking faster than expected.
At the valley entrance, deacons and elders turned sharply toward the disturbance.
Elder Han’s face darkened.
“All disciples withdraw immediately!” he ordered through a sound-transmission Gu. “Emergency evacuation!”
But the warning came too late.
Across the valley, cracks spread beneath the soil like spiderwebs. Ancient formation lines flickered weakly before shattering one by one.
Deep underground—
Something moved.
A massive pulse exploded outward.
Every Gu within miles shrieked simultaneously.
Some fled.
Others went mad.
Shen Yu fell to one knee as pressure crashed down upon him.
Not killing intent.
Authority.
Ancient and overwhelming.
The Devouring Presence surged violently in response, awakening completely as if challenged.
For a brief moment, Shen Yu felt two colossal existences staring through him.
One above.
One below.
The earth split open near the altar.
Black mist poured upward, swallowing light itself.
And within the darkness…
A colossal shape slowly rose.
Not fully free — chains of golden formation light still bound parts of its body — but enough to reveal a fragment of its true form.
A Gu larger than a building.
Its surface resembled living shadow, countless eyes opening and closing across its body.
Outer disciples screamed and fled in terror.
Some collapsed instantly under spiritual pressure.
Shen Yu could not move.
The creature’s countless eyes turned toward him at once.
Recognition.
The Devouring Presence answered instinctively, releasing a silent pulse.
The two auras collided.
The valley trembled.
High above, clouds spiraled violently as if the heavens themselves reacted.
Elder Han’s voice shook. “Impossible… that relic should not awaken!”
The inner sect envoy stared downward, eyes blazing with excitement and fear.
“…It isn’t awakening randomly,” he whispered.
“It’s responding to him.”
Below, Shen Yu felt the hunger rise beyond anything before.
Not simple desire.
Instinct screaming that before him stood the greatest nourishment he had ever encountered.
Devour it.
Grow.
Transcend.
His breathing grew ragged.
But another thought surfaced beneath the temptation.
If he failed…
He would be devoured instead.
The massive shadow Gu opened a single enormous eye.
And the world seemed to darken.
To be continued…
