The silence that followed after the piercing scream was heavy, laden with a terror that none of the previous beasts could ever instill.
All eyes, from the most wounded cultivators to the patriarchs and the most exhausted elders, were fixed on the edge of the forest.
From the deep shadows, the black silhouette fully emerged.
It wasn't tall nor particularly large. But its form was… wrong.
A blot of darkness that seemed to unbalance everything around it. Its features couldn't be discerned.
It seemed only like an amorphous mass of pure hostility, moving toward everyone with almost palpable malice, slow and terrifying.
"… what the hell is that?" Someone murmured, their voice nearly breaking.
"Is it a beast?"
"No… there's no way that's a beast!"
"A-A malignant spirit?… a demon!?" Another risk is the words spreading among all.
The mere suggestion made some swallow dry, stepping back instinctively.
