The heavens trembled beneath the pressure of multiple Nascent Soul manifestations.
Storms raged.
Crimson lightning split through the clouds like the wrath of a dying world.
Below, the abyss continued to expand—shattered earth collapsing endlessly into a lightless void that seemed to devour even the concept of ground itself.
And at the center of it all—
Lizarius hovered in silence.
Golden eyes fixed steadily on the five Nascent Soul cultivators before him.
Neither side moved.
Not even a breath of wind dared interrupt the tension.
The pressure stretched tighter and tighter—
like a bowstring drawn to its absolute limit, threatening to snap and unleash irreversible catastrophe.
Then—
the male cultivator from the Dao Unity Sect suddenly frowned.
His gaze shifted downward.
Toward Lizarius's hind leg.
For a brief moment, he thought his perception had deceived him.
Then his pupils contracted sharply.
"…Wait."
The others turned toward him.
His expression changed instantly.
"Stop it!"
The shout erupted across the battlefield like a thunderclap.
"It's holding a Spatial Talisman!"
In an instant, every Nascent Soul cultivator's expression shifted.
Only now did they notice it.
Partially concealed beneath the crackling crimson lightning—
a talisman clenched tightly within Lizarius's hind claws.
Its surface was already glowing faintly.
Ancient silver runes surged across it in rapid succession, as though awakened by desperation itself.
The space around it began to distort violently.
The female Supreme Elder's eyes widened.
"It's escaping!"
The black-robed elder reacted without hesitation.
BOOOOOOM!!!
His figure vanished in an instant.
Space shattered behind him as he tore forward with terrifying speed, leaving afterimages of fractured air in his wake.
At the same time—
the elderly Supreme Elder raised a hand.
A colossal spiritual palm manifested above the heavens, descending with the weight of an entire mountain range collapsing from the sky.
The Dao Unity cultivators followed suit, launching simultaneous attacks.
Multiple techniques erupted toward Lizarius at once, each one carrying enough power to obliterate mountains and sever rivers.
The sky itself seemed to disintegrate beneath the combined assault.
But—
they were too late.
Far too late.
Because Lizarius had never intended to continue fighting.
From the moment Dragon Fury activated—
he had already made his decision.
Fight long enough.
Create an opening.
Then leave.
The jade talisman shattered.
CRAAAAACK!!!
Silver light erupted outward like a bursting star.
Space folded inward violently, layers of reality twisting and collapsing around the white-scaled lizard.
The black-robed elder's attack arrived first.
A fraction of a second away.
Just a fraction—
too late.
The spatial energy fully activated.
BOOOOOOOOOOM!!!
The world distorted.
Lizarius's figure blurred, fractured, and dissolved into shimmering fragments of displaced reality.
And then—
he vanished completely.
The descending attacks slammed into empty air.
The resulting explosion shook the heavens themselves, scattering storm clouds and rupturing the sky's fragile balance.
But there was nothing left to strike.
Only distorted remnants of space slowly dissolving into the storm.
Silence.
Absolute silence.
The five Nascent Soul cultivators froze mid-air above the ruined battlefield.
The abyss below stretched endlessly beneath them.
Cold winds drifted through the devastation.
Yet the target was gone.
The female Supreme Elder stared at the exact point where Lizarius had disappeared.
Her expression remained unreadable.
"…It escaped."
No one responded immediately.
Because there was nothing to deny.
Only truth.
The black-robed elder slowly lowered his hand.
His face had darkened to a terrifying degree.
The male Dao Unity cultivator exhaled slowly.
"…A Spatial Talisman."
"…No wonder he was willing to confront us."
The female cultivator beside him nodded faintly.
"He was never planning to win."
"He was planning to survive."
Far below—
dust drifted across the endless abyss.
The remnants of battle still lingered in the shattered land.
A Golden Core beast had fought five Nascent Soul cultivators.
Killed Elder Mo before their very eyes.
Survived a soul attack.
And escaped.
Even speaking it aloud felt absurd.
The elderly Supreme Elder gazed at the fading spatial fluctuations, his eyes narrowing slightly.
After a long silence, he finally spoke.
"…Interesting."
The black-robed elder turned toward him.
"Interesting?"
The old man did not look away from the empty sky.
"A creature with intelligence."
"A creature with patience."
"A creature that understands not only how to fight…"
His gaze sharpened.
"…but when to flee."
The female Supreme Elder slowly folded her arms.
"And now we have lost the talisman."
Silence followed.
Because that single fact changed everything.
Their only reliable tracking method—
was gone.
The storm clouds above gradually began to disperse.
The battlefield slowly quieted.
Yet none of them felt relief.
Because deep down, every Nascent Soul cultivator understood the same truth.
This was not the end.
Somewhere far away—
that creature was still alive.
Still growing.
And next time—
it would be stronger.
The shattered battlefield remained deathly silent.
Cold winds swept across the newly formed abyss as the last traces of crimson lightning faded from the heavens.
The five Nascent Soul cultivators hovered motionless in the air.
No one spoke.
Because the reality before them was difficult to accept.
They had found the beast.
Cornered it.
Overwhelmed it.
And yet—
it had escaped.
The black-robed Supreme Elder's expression darkened further.
"…We allowed it to leave."
No one refuted the statement.
Because it was true.
The female Supreme Elder descended slowly toward the ruined battlefield below.
"Search everything."
"Every trace."
"Blood."
"Scales."
"Spiritual residue."
"A fragment of its horn."
"Anything."
Immediately, the others dispersed.
Divine senses swept across the devastation like an invisible tide.
The shattered riverbeds.
Collapsed mountains.
The vast, lightless abyss.
Every kilometer of broken terrain was examined repeatedly.
Hours passed.
Yet—
nothing.
Not a single scale.
Not a single drop of blood.
Not even residual spiritual fluctuations that could be traced.
Eventually, they regrouped above the abyss once more.
The female Dao Unity cultivator frowned.
"…Nothing."
The male cultivator nodded grimly.
"The battlefield has been cleaned too thoroughly."
The elderly Supreme Elder stood with his hands behind his back, ancient eyes fixed on the destruction below.
"…No."
"…Not cleaned."
The others turned toward him.
The old man's voice remained calm.
"…Prepared."
Silence fell again.
Then he continued.
"It was acting toward a single goal—retreat."
The female Supreme Elder's eyes narrowed.
"The Spatial Talisman."
The elder nodded.
"From the very beginning."
"It never intended to leave anything behind."
His gaze sharpened.
"Even during battle."
"The poison."
"The concealment."
"The sudden transformation."
"The desperate resistance."
A pause.
Then—
"All of it was to buy time."
The black-robed elder's expression darkened.
"…You believe escaping was always its objective."
"Yes."
The answer came without hesitation.
The atmosphere grew heavier.
Because the implication was unsettling.
The beast had never truly lost control.
Even while facing five Nascent Soul cultivators.
Even while suffering severe injuries.
It had still been calculating.
Still planning.
Still preparing an exit.
The male Dao Unity cultivator exhaled slowly.
"…And the soul attack."
Everyone looked toward him.
He continued quietly.
"It survived a direct strike."
The female cultivator nodded.
"Which means it possesses methods we do not yet understand."
Silence settled again.
Then the black-robed elder spoke coldly.
"…That is precisely why this cannot continue."
His gaze swept across the group.
"If that creature reaches Nascent Soul…"
He did not finish the sentence.
He didn't need to.
The female Supreme Elder slowly folded her arms.
"…Then we may become the hunted."
No one laughed.
Because after what they had witnessed—
the possibility was no longer absurd.
The old Supreme Elder finally spoke.
"We must find it."
"As quickly as possible."
The others nodded in agreement.
The female Dao Unity cultivator spoke after a brief pause.
"A public bounty."
The black-robed elder turned slightly.
She continued.
"The beast is intelligent."
"It will move."
"It will hunt."
"And eventually, it may reveal itself."
Her eyes narrowed.
"If cultivators across multiple sect territories are aware of what to look for…"
"…our chances improve."
The male cultivator nodded.
"A reward large enough to draw attention."
The female Supreme Elder agreed.
"We release its description."
"White scales."
"Draconic traits."
"Storm manipulation."
"Concealment abilities."
The black-robed elder added coldly.
"And anyone providing verified information will be rewarded by the Azure Sky Sect."
The elderly Supreme Elder concluded calmly.
"Any sect."
"Any clan."
"Rogue cultivators."
"Wandering cultivators."
"All of them."
"We cast the net as wide as possible."
Silence followed.
Then, one by one, they nodded.
A decision had been made.
Soon—
the name would spread.
Across sect territories.
Across cities.
Across cultivation markets.
Across wilderness frontiers.
The White-Scale Demon.
A Golden Core beast that had slaughtered Core Formation cultivators.
Fought five Nascent Soul experts.
And escaped.
The male Dao Unity cultivator cupped his fists.
"It appears our involvement ends here."
The female cultivator beside him nodded.
"We will report everything to the Dao Unity Sect."
The Azure Sky Supreme Elders returned the gesture.
"Many thanks for your assistance."
The male cultivator offered a faint smile.
"Hopefully next time we meet…"
His gaze drifted toward the empty horizon where Lizarius had vanished.
"…it will be under less troublesome circumstances."
A faint ripple of spatial distortion spread outward.
And moments later—
the two Dao Unity cultivators disappeared.
Leaving only the three Azure Sky Supreme Elders suspended above the devastated battlefield.
The black-robed elder stared into the distance for a long time.
Then he spoke quietly.
Coldly.
"…Find it before it grows stronger."
The wind howled across the abyss below.
No answer came.
Because far away—
the creature they sought was already gone.
And with every passing day—
it would only become more dangerous.
The night stretched endlessly above the wilderness.
Countless stars shimmered across the sky while silver moonlight washed over the forest below in a pale, tranquil glow.
Everything was quiet.
Peaceful.
As though the world had never witnessed the catastrophe that had unfolded only hours before.
Yet deep within an isolated valley—
beneath twisted trees and jagged stone—
a broken figure lay motionless.
Lizarius.
The white lizard's body was drenched in blood.
Large sections of his scales were cracked or shattered entirely.
One horn had been completely torn away.
Deep wounds carved through his body where Nascent Soul power had pierced his defenses.
Dark blood stained the earth beneath him.
His breathing was shallow.
Weak.
Barely perceptible.
He looked genuinely vulnerable.
The Spatial Talisman had saved him.
But escape had not erased the damage.
Dragon Fury had pushed him far beyond his limits.
Far beyond what his body could endure.
And the moment he deactivated the transformation—
everything came crashing down at once.
Physical wounds.
Internal injuries.
Spiritual backlash.
Even his soul carried lingering instability from the Supreme Elder's attack.
Had the System not intervened—
he would already be dead.
Silence filled the valley.
Only the faint rustle of wind through leaves remained.
Moonlight spilled over his battered white scales.
For a long time—
nothing moved.
Then—
a faint pulse stirred beneath his chest.
Thump.
A second followed.
Thump.
The unconscious white lizard remained still beneath the stars.
Broken.
Wounded.
Hunted by entire sects.
Yet still alive.
And far away—
the cultivation world had already begun to speak.
Of a white-scaled demon beast.
A monster that slaughtered Golden Core cultivators.
That survived Nascent Soul pursuit.
And vanished without a trace.
None knew the truth.
That the terrifying beast they feared…
was currently lying unconscious in a forgotten valley.
One breath away from death.
And one breath away from something even more dangerous.