As they exited the shrine, the moonlight forest spread before them like a slumbering beast. Somewhere, distant howls echoed. Something had stirred. The hunt had begun.
And the Asura had returned.
The crimson moon loomed above, bloated and ominous, casting its eerie glow across the Endless Forest. The trees swayed like towering sentinels, their bark dark as iron, their leaves rustling with secrets. Mist crept low along the roots, carrying the metallic tang of blood and damp soil. Every shadow seemed to breathe, every gust of wind whispered like a predator circling its prey.
Li Tianchen inhaled sharply. The world felt different—sharper, more alive. His hearing caught even the faint scratch of insects against bark. His eyes pierced the gloom with ease, seeing movements in the distance no mortal should. His heart thudded not only in his chest, but in the soil beneath his feet, resonating with the land itself.
His lips curled into a grin. "So this… this is what it feels like to be reborn."
Yue Lian walked at his side, her long silver hair shimmering in the moonlight like strands of divine silk. Her eyes scanned the forest, every bit as sharp as his, but colder. "Do not get drunk on it too quickly. Power has a way of making men reckless."
[Correction: Power has a way of making men horny, reckless, and shirtless. Host currently checks all three boxes.]
Tianchen groaned. "You again."
[Who else? The sexy voice in your head.]
Yue Lian frowned at his muttering, but said nothing. She had already learned that when Tianchen muttered to himself, he was conversing with something she could not hear. A secret. And secrets, in this world, were more dangerous than blades.
The forest stirred.
Tianchen froze, his instincts screaming. He extended his senses outward. Heartbeats. At least two dozen. Fast. Predatory. Moving through the trees.
"They're here," he whispered.
Yue Lian's hand tightened around her ribbon of moonlight qi, which shimmered faintly like liquid silver. "Crimson Cloud Sect."
And then they appeared—red shadows slinking between trees, blades glinting in the moonlight, crimson robes flowing like rivers of blood. Their faces were twisted in disdain, their eyes hungry with both greed and hatred.
One stepped forward, sneering. "So it's true. Li Tianchen survived his execution."
Another spat. "Traitor to his sect, sinner against the heavens, now playing Asura in the forest. Kill him and take the woman."
The third licked his lips. "Her beauty alone could buy us a hundred spirit stones. Capture her alive."
Yue Lian's eyes turned icy. "You can try."
[Oooh, I like her sass. She's definitely waifu material.]
Tianchen flexed his fists. The crimson lightning in his veins hummed, eager to be unleashed. "Come then. Let's see who's the prey tonight."
The first cultivator charged, blade whistling with flame qi. Tianchen met him head-on, catching the blade barehanded. Sparks hissed as steel met flesh—but his flesh didn't cut. The cultivator's eyes widened, disbelief flashing an instant before Tianchen drove his fist into the man's chest.
Bone shattered. Flesh collapsed inward. The man's body flew backward, crashing into a tree so hard the trunk split apart.
"Next," Tianchen growled.
Another lunged, this one faster, his spear aimed at Tianchen's throat.
[Duck, genius.]
Tianchen dropped low, rolling forward as the spear skimmed above his head. He came up behind the man, grabbing his neck and snapping it in one brutal twist. The corpse collapsed like a puppet with cut strings.
Yue Lian moved with him, her ribbon of qi swirling like a living serpent. It lashed outward, slicing through two throats at once. Their bodies crumpled, blood spraying in silver arcs under the moonlight. She spun gracefully, elegant as a dancer, yet every step left another corpse behind.
But more poured in. Ten. Fifteen. Twenty.
The clearing became a storm of blades, qi, and blood. The forest floor cracked and burned. Trees splintered under the shockwaves.
Tianchen roared, crimson lightning exploding outward in an arc, frying three disciples where they stood. His fists blurred, every strike thunderous, every blow a death sentence. Blood coated his skin, but it was never his own.
Minutes later, silence fell.
Bodies littered the ground, steaming in the night air. The mist reeked of iron. The crimson moon reflected off pools of blood, painting the clearing like a battlefield painting come alive.
Tianchen stood at the center, chest heaving, crimson lightning still flickering faintly across his skin. His eyes glowed in the darkness like a predator's.
Only one survivor remained.
A woman.
She knelt, wounded, her crimson robes torn and bloodied. Her raven-black hair was tangled, plastered against her sweat-slick skin. Her chest rose and fell with ragged breaths, the swell of her breasts straining against her torn robes. Despite the cuts and bruises marring her pale skin, her beauty was undeniable—sharp, dangerous, like a blade hidden in silk.
Her eyes, however, were colder than steel.
"Finish it," she spat, voice hoarse but steady. "I will not beg."
The system purred.
[Compatible Partner Detected: Mei Xue. Cultivation Physique: Crimson Yin Furnace. Dual cultivation probability: 99%. Warning: Host's libido may cause spontaneous combustion.]
Tianchen's eye twitched. "What?"
[She's basically a walking yin battery. If you dual cultivate with her, your power skyrockets. Do it.]
Yue Lian glanced at him sharply. "What is it?"
Tianchen rubbed his temple. "The damn system says she's… compatible."
Mei Xue bared her teeth, hatred flashing in her eyes. "I would rather die than be defiled by a dog like you."
[Challenge accepted.]
Before Tianchen could even move, his bloodline surged on instinct. Crimson qi flared from his body, coiling into chains of energy that lashed out, wrapping around Mei Xue's wrists and ankles. She gasped, struggling as the chains tightened, pinning her against the ground.
Her eyes widened in horror. "What is this—?!"
Yue Lian's gaze hardened. "The Asura blood chooses. Even enemies are not spared. This is your nature now."
The chains pulsed. Mei Xue's qi was dragged out of her body, flowing into Tianchen in glowing streams. Her screams filled the clearing as she fought, but her struggles only fed the bond, tightening the crimson shackles.
Tianchen gritted his teeth. The pull was intoxicating. Her energy seared through his veins like fire, feeding his dantian, strengthening his core. His body trembled with the rush, his skin glowing faintly crimson.
Mei Xue's hatred faltered. Her screams softened. Her breaths grew ragged, trembling, her body betraying her defiance as heat flushed across her skin.
"No… I will not…" she whispered, even as her hips arched against the pull, her body craving what her pride rejected.
The system chuckled darkly.
[Initiating Dual Cultivation Protocol. Host, prepare for mind-blowing sex. Literally.]
Tianchen cursed under his breath, but his blood burned too hot to resist. He knelt over her, crimson lightning crackling across his body, their breaths mingling. Mei Xue glared at him, but her lips trembled, her body quivering.
"I hate you," she whispered.
"I don't care," he growled, before claiming her lips.
The chains pulsed. Energy and pleasure surged between them in violent waves. Mei Xue gasped, her nails clawing at his back, her hatred melting into moans as the Asura bond consumed her.
The clearing became their chamber. The moon their witness. Every thrust, every cry, every shudder tore deeper into both of them, binding their souls as surely as their bodies. Her qi poured into him like molten honey, filling every corner of his dantian until it overflowed. His Asura blood roared, drinking it greedily, reshaping him.
Her body trembled under his, her voice breaking into incoherent moans as pleasure shattered her resistance. Her pride cracked, her hatred drowned in heat, her body begging even as her lips cursed.
Hours blurred into one long, fevered storm.
When silence finally fell, Mei Xue lay sprawled on the bloodstained grass, her chest rising and falling in ragged gasps. Her eyes were dazed, unfocused, glowing faintly crimson.
"You… monster…" she whispered weakly. But her tone was softer, trembling with something dangerously close to longing.
The system chimed happily:
[Dual Cultivation complete.]
[Host breakthrough achieved: Asura Core Formation Stage.]
[Partner successfully bound: Mei Xue of Crimson Cloud Sect.]
[Loyalty: 41%. Lust: 98%.]
Tianchen collapsed back, wiping sweat from his brow. "Great. Now I have a half-hating, half-obsessed enemy disciple bound to me."
[Correction: Loyal bed partner. You're welcome.]
Yue Lian, who had watched the entire ordeal in silence, finally spoke. Her eyes held both amusement and warning. "Be careful, Tianchen. Desire and power are easy to entangle… but hard to control."
Tianchen rose, crimson qi swirling around him like a storm. He looked at Mei Xue, then at Yue Lian, then at the endless forest beyond. His lips curled into a sharp grin.
"Control?" he said. "I don't plan to control it. I plan to unleash it."
The system purred:
[Attaboy. More women. More power. More chaos. Welcome to the true path of the Asura.]
Above them, the crimson moon pulsed brighter, as if acknowledging the birth of something terrifying.
The hunt had only just begun.
---
--- To Be Continued ---