The forest roared under the assault.
Wind howled. Ice shattered.
One shadow after another—destroyed. Cut apart. Frozen. Erased.
Until—only one remained.
Farther than the rest. Weaker. Slower.
The lizard's golden eyes locked onto it instantly.
*There it is.*
No hesitation.
His body vanished—
A streak of white and lightning tearing through the forest.
Distance collapsed in a heartbeat.
He appeared directly in front of the fleeing lynx.
Jaws wide, striking.
**RIP—!**
But—
The moment his jaws slammed shut—
The lynx's body **collapsed**.
Not torn. Not broken.
It melted. Dissolving into a mass of shadow that scattered into the air like smoke.
The lizard passed through nothing. Empty. Gone.
The forest fell silent for a split second.
The lizard hovered there, unmoving. Golden eyes narrowing.
Then—a faint ripple.
Behind him. Far. Much farther than before.
The real presence. Faint. But unmistakable.
The lizard slowly turned his head. His gaze pierced through the trees.
*…Not that one.*
The realization settled instantly.
The "last" shadow—had been bait. The weakest. The slowest. The most obvious. Deliberately left behind. To draw him in. To make him commit. To make him stop tracking the others.
His eyes sharpened.
*It switched.*
At the last moment—the real lynx had exchanged positions with one of the shadows. Perfect timing. Perfect execution.
Now—its presence was barely detectable. Fleeing at full speed. Already far from the clearing.
The lizard remained still for a brief moment. Then—his tail flicked. Lightning crackled.
The forest grew quiet again. The last traces of wind and frost faded, leaving only broken trees and scarred earth behind.
The lizard hovered in place a moment longer, golden eyes fixed in the direction the lynx had escaped.
Faint. Distant. Already slipping beyond immediate reach.
His tail flicked once more. Lightning crackled softly—then faded.
*…It escaped.*
No anger. No frustration. Just a calm acknowledgment.
*It managed to escape.*
His gaze lingered for a second more before slowly dimming.
*I should've just killed them all from the start.*
No testing. No observation. No delay. If he had acted like that from the beginning—none of them would have gotten away.
The thought settled, cold and certain. A lesson. One he wouldn't repeat.
The lizard turned. Without another glance toward the distant forest, his body shifted and began moving back through the air. Silent. Controlled.
The clearing came back into view. The aftermath of the battle lay scattered below. Broken ground. Splintered trees. And—two corpses.
The cultivators. Their bodies lay where they had fallen, lifeless, spiritual energy already beginning to dissipate into the surroundings.
The lizard descended slowly, landing beside them with barely a sound. His golden eyes studied the bodies briefly. Then—he lowered his head. Jaws opening.
There was no hesitation. No wasted motion. Only instinct.
Because unlike the lynx—these ones hadn't escaped.
The forest watched in silence. Moonlight filtered through the broken canopy, casting pale light over the fallen bodies.
Flesh. Blood. Bone. Everything that could be consumed—was.
The spiritual energy lingering within the bodies was drawn in, absorbed as he devoured them piece by piece.
Time passed. The sounds of the forest slowly returned. Distant insects. Wind brushing through leaves.
When he finished—nothing remained but faint stains on the ground.
The lizard lifted his head. A low hum resonated faintly within his body as the absorbed energy settled.
Then—the voice echoed in his mind.
**[Gained Evolution Points: 11,400.]**
The lizard's golden eyes flickered slightly.
The clearing was still.
Only the faint scent of blood lingered in the air.
The lizard stood quietly beside where the bodies had once lain, his golden eyes dim but focused.
Nothing remained.
Nothing… except what they had carried.
He stepped forward.
One claw hooked beneath a fallen storage pouch, lifting it with careful precision. Then another.
Two. Both intact.
He paused for a moment, studying them.
Then, with practiced ease, he threaded the cords together and slipped them around his small neck, letting them rest lightly against his scales.
They barely made a sound.
His gaze shifted.
The sword.
It lay a short distance away, half-embedded in the ground, its edge still faintly humming with leftover spiritual energy.
The lizard approached it slowly, lowered his head, and gripped it between his jaws.
The metal was cold. Heavy for his small frame—but manageable.
His body adjusted slightly to the weight. Balanced. Stable.
Then—he stilled.
Above, unseen but ever-present, the faint distortion of the mountain spirit lingered in the trees. Watching. Observing.
The lizard didn't look at it. Didn't acknowledge it.
He simply stood there for a brief moment longer. Then—
His body began to fade.
Not from speed. Not from movement. But from absence.
The air shimmered faintly as invisibility wrapped around him once more, swallowing his form completely.
Scales vanished. Golden eyes dimmed into nothing. Even the faint sound of his breathing disappeared.
Within seconds—he was gone.
The storage pouches. The sword. All vanished with him.
Only the quiet forest remained.
And above—
The mountain spirit drifted silently, unable to perceive where the small predator had disappeared to.
As if he had never been there at all.
Far from the ruined clearing—
The forest blurred. Trees stretched into long shadows as the lynx raced through them, its body moving at full speed, every muscle pushed to its limit.
It didn't look back. Didn't slow. Didn't stop. Only forward.
Branches snapped behind it. Leaves scattered in its wake.
Its breathing was controlled—but heavy beneath the surface. Its shoulder still bled. Each step sent a dull pulse of pain through its body.
But it ignored it.
Because one thought drowned out everything else: *I lived.*