The cave, despite its coldness and darkness, had become Wei Shen's sole refuge, his starting point and his reference. After a night of intermittent rest, spent sensing that thin, cold thread of Blood Qi slowly circulating in his Dantian, he awoke with a new sense of sharpness. His body hadn't fully healed from the aftermath of previous confrontations or from the violent breakthrough process; the pain in his arm was still his companion, and hunger had begun to gnaw at his stomach once more.
Wei Shen rose, his limbs moving with a slight flexibility he hadn't known before. He extended his uninjured arm and focused, trying to push the Blood Qi towards his fist. He felt that cold, aggressive current flowing slowly, with difficulty, through pathways not yet accustomed to it. When he struck the cave wall with his fist, the sound of impact was slightly heavier, and the scratch he left on the rock was noticeably deeper than his previous attempts.
"Strength is increasing," he thought coldly, examining the marks from his fist. "But it's still ridiculously meager. This body is still far from efficient."
He approached the Blood-Devouring Stone. It was silent, dark, giving no hint of the demonic power it had unleashed the day before. Wei Shen touched it with his fingertips. It was still faintly warm. His narrowed eyes studied its smooth surface. He didn't expect an answer, nor did he need one for now. What mattered were results.
And results required more fuel.
"This den won't offer any more easy prey," Wei Shen decided, looking towards the cave entrance. "I've depleted its immediate vicinity. It's time to expand the hunting ground, and search for something… larger."
He drank water from the rock crevice and ate the last remaining piece of meat from the wild rabbit he had previously caught. It wasn't enough to fully satisfy his hunger, but it was enough to give him some energy for the task ahead.
He exited the cave with greater caution than ever before. He knew that moving away from this temporary shelter meant significantly increasing the risks. But he also knew that staying within a narrow safety zone meant stagnation, and stagnation was another form of death.
He moved through the Forest of Lost Souls like a wraith. His steps had become lighter, steadier. His senses, slightly sharpened by the Blood Qi, picked up every rustle of leaves, every snap of a distant twig, every strange scent carried on the damp air. His mind was drawing a map of the forest, logging potential paths, hiding spots, and the scarce water sources he encountered.
He wasn't looking for any small animal this time. He was searching for something bigger, something that could provide a richer offering for the stone, and something with which he could test the limits of his new strength.
After hours of silent, arduous tracking, which led him to depths the original "Wei Shen" wouldn't have even dared to dream of reaching, he finally found what he was looking for.
At the edge of a small clearing, where sunlight struggled to penetrate the dense foliage, stood a wild black boar, massive in build compared to Wei Shen's previous kills, its short, curved tusks digging into the earth in search of roots. Its thick black fur was coarse, and its small red eyes gleamed with savage cunning.
"This is it," Wei Shen thought, feeling the coldness of the Blood Qi pulse in his Dantian with anticipation. "Prey worthy of the effort."
He began to formulate his plan. This boar wasn't a rabbit to be caught easily. It was strong, aggressive if provoked, and its thick hide would offer it some protection.
Wei Shen spent nearly half an hour observing the boar from a distance, studying its habits, its movements, and searching for any potential weaknesses. He noticed that the boar tended to lower its head completely when digging, making it less aware of its surroundings for moments at a time. He also noted a large tree with protruding roots near where the boar was foraging.
"The opportunity lies in surprise and exploiting the environment," he decided.
He began to approach with extreme slowness, utilizing every bush and every shadow. He moved against the wind so his scent wouldn't reach the boar. When he was at a suitable distance, and while the boar was completely engrossed in its digging, Wei Shen launched his attack.
His speed wasn't astonishing, but it was sufficient. He pushed Blood Qi into his legs, feeling that cold warmth reinforcing his muscles for a few moments. He leaped onto one of the protruding roots, using it as a launch point to deliver a powerful blow with his sharpened stone towards the exposed side of the boar's neck.
The boar let out a deafening shriek of pain and rage and charged blindly, trying to shake off this unknown attacker. Wei Shen's blow wasn't fatal, but it was painful enough to make the boar lose its balance for an instant.
Wei Shen gave it no chance. Before the boar could regain its footing or attack, Wei Shen had delivered another blow, then another, targeting the same area. He fought with cold brutality, every blow calculated, every movement aimed at inflicting maximum damage.
It was a dirty, bloody battle. The boar, despite its injury, fought back fiercely, its short tusks nearly tearing into Wei Shen's leg several times. But Wei Shen, driven by that Blood Qi which granted him additional strength and a pain tolerance beyond his body's normal capabilities, continued his attack relentlessly.
Finally, after several minutes of savage struggle, the wild boar collapsed to the ground, blood flowing from its multiple wounds. Wei Shen stood over it, panting heavily, his body covered in mud and blood – his own and the boar's. He felt utterly exhausted, and a burning pain in several places where he had taken blows from the boar.
But when he looked at the massive, lifeless prey, he felt only a harsh coldness filling his chest. He had succeeded. He had proven that this new power, however dark and tainted, was effective.
"This… will suffice. For a short time," he muttered, looking at the boar.
The next task was to drag this heavy prize back to the cave. It would be an arduous journey, but Wei Shen knew that the Blood-Devouring Stone awaited its offering with impatience. And every drop of this boar's blood would transform into another thread of that cold, grim power he was beginning to feel was an inseparable part of his new existence.