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Chapter 10 – The Silent Forest
The night air in the forest was damp, its chill cutting to the bone. I hid among the roots of a massive tree jutting from the earth, my breath still ragged, chest heaving uncontrollably. The wounds from earlier battles throbbed faintly, dried blood crusted on my skin, its metallic stench sharp in my nose.
This forest seemed to swallow all sound. Only the rustle of wind remained, broken now and then by the shriek of a night bird—and far behind, faint echoes of monsters' roars that still rumbled. It felt as though nowhere on this earth was safe, not even beneath the shroud of trees.
I closed my eyes for a moment. But instead of darkness, I saw the shadow of the avatar torn apart by the magma tiger, its body split and consumed by fire.
And with its destruction… a part of me vanished too.
> "They're only pawns… so why does it feel like I've lost something?"
> [Manas]: Each avatar body contains a fragment of the soul. When an avatar dies, the fragment within it disappears, severed from the host body.
> "…I see. So… does it harm me?"
> [Manas]: It does not harm the host. The soul fragment is separated when the avatar is created. Its sole function is to serve as a medium, linking consciousness so you may control the avatar's body.
"…Hah." Lu Yuan exhaled in relief, glad to have survived danger at all.
I opened my eyes again, gazing at the sky through the branches. The violet-black cracks had already faded, but their image burned clearly in my mind.
A dimensional rift.
Alien beings.
A world intruding into ours.
How small I was before all this. A magma tiger alone nearly killed me—yet beyond it came beings far stranger, far deadlier. Was I nothing more than an ant in the storm?
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I drew a deep breath and raised my hand.
"Panel."
A faint screen of light appeared before me, visible only to my eyes. Numbers and simple text floated in the air:
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Status – Lu Yuan
Main Body: Severely wounded (stamina drained, recovery slow)
Remaining Lifespan: [ -3 years ] (due to avatar consumption)
Avatars Left: 1 (Qin – returning)
Cultivation: Foundation Realm (unstable)
Evolution: Stage 1 (early)
Soul Condition: Weakened (fragment lost due to avatar's destruction)
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My gaze hardened. Three years of my life—gone, just to create an avatar that perished within minutes. Now only one remained—Qin.
I clenched my fist.
"If it continues like this… I'll burn out before I ever reach the next stage."
And yet… I was grateful. Without that avatar's sacrifice, I would already be dead. My consciousness would have shattered, and everything would've ended in vain.
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I tried to steady my breathing, forcing rhythm into my broken body. Night deepened, the cold sharpened, yet my head burned with restless thoughts.
The shadows of those alien creatures haunted me still—the humanoid with the split jaw, the giant insect dripping acid, the countless shapes I hadn't even glimpsed clearly. They were not of this world—they had come through the rift in the sky.
If one rift could unleash them… what if more appeared?
Could this world endure?
I ground my teeth. I couldn't keep running, couldn't just hide. The day would come when I had to stand and fight. For that—I needed strength, far beyond what I had now.
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Meanwhile, far across another stretch of forest, Qin hurried onward. He had just received my urgent call.
His expression was calm, but his mind weighed heavy with what he'd learned in remote villages:
– rumors of an ancient sect that once researched the "true path of evolution,"
– whispers of cultivation methods said to stabilize the soul,
– and strangest of all, old records of a "fallen gate in the sky," centuries ago.
Qin quickened his pace. He knew the main body was fragile now, and the world would not wait for us to heal.
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Back at my hiding place, I stared at my own palm. Scars from the gorilla's claws and the magma flames still burned. Yet the pain reminded me of one truth: I was still alive.
"I can't go on like this," I muttered. "There has to be another way. Evolution, cultivation, whatever it takes… I have to find it."
I shut my eyes, letting my battered body rest beneath the vast branches. Faintly, I heard Qin's presence—like a voice carried across distance, drawing closer.
I knew tomorrow would not bring safety. But for now, I had to conserve strength.
I looked at the panel one last time, then dismissed it. The glow faded, leaving only the forest's pitch-black silence.
"I'll return," I whispered. "And next time, it won't be to run away."
In the distance, a monster's roar echoed faintly, trembling through the dark. The world was still in chaos, and I was only one fragile soul struggling to endure. Yet within my heart, resolve began to harden.
The storm could come.
And I would find a way to stand within it.