Chapter 2: Shadows of the Cavern
The Lotus Caverns pulsed with an otherworldly rhythm, veins of crimson crystal throbbing like arteries in a colossal heart. Lin Feng moved with newfound purpose, the system's interface a constant companion in his mind's eye. It was no mere illusion; each notification hummed with tangible qi, interfacing directly with his soul. Like the legends of ancient artifacts granting godlike boons, but this was intimate, insidious—a parasite promising ascension.
[Daily Quest Progress: 0/3 Shadow Rats. Time Remaining: 23:59.]
The prompt spurred him forward. Shadow rats were pests, elusive blurs that thrived in qi-scarce nooks, their bites carrying a debuff that sapped cultivation progress. Before, Lin Feng would have fled them; now, he hunted.
The tunnel narrowed, walls slick with bioluminescent moss. His enhanced vitality dulled the chill, Boar Charge Technique coiling in his muscles like untapped thunder. A skitter echoed—first rat. It lunged from a crevice, fangs bared, shadow qi cloaking its form.
Lin Feng sidestepped, sword flashing in a crude arc. The rat evaded, nipping his calf. Pain flared, but Poison Resistance mitigated it to a sting.
[-1 HP. Shadow Debuff: Qi Flow -5%.]
The system quantified agony, turning it into data. Enraged, Lin Feng activated Boar Charge instinctively. Qi surged to his legs, propelling him forward in a brutal lunge. His shoulder slammed the rat against the wall, sword piercing its skull.
[Devoured: Shadow Rat Alpha. Gained: 3 Essence Points. Shadow Step (Novice): Brief evasion boost.]
Essence trickled in, a euphoric rush warming his dantian—the core where qi gathered. Two more rats swarmed, siblings roused by the kill. Lin Feng tested Shadow Step, blurring left as one pounced. His sword claimed it mid-air.
The third was trickier, darting between his feet. He stomped, missing, but followed with a downward slash. It squealed, bisected.
[Daily Quest Complete. Reward: +3 Stat Points. Allocate: Strength, Agility, Vitality.]
He assigned them mentally, feeling muscles harden, reflexes sharpen. [Strength: 8 -> 11. Agility: 7 -> 10. Vitality: 12 -> 15.]
Empowered, Lin Feng pressed on, the cavern opening into a vast antechamber. Here, the air thrummed with denser qi, lotuses carpeting the floor like bloodied stars. But peril lurked: a pack of Ironhide Lizards patrolled, their scales impervious to basic strikes, guarding a cluster of superior blooms.
Disciples' corpses littered the edges—fresh kills, qi essences fading. Lin Feng's hunger stirred. Devour them? The system didn't restrict; it encouraged. He approached the nearest, a young woman in tattered robes, her throat torn.
Guilt flickered, but survival quelled it. Palm to flesh, he absorbed.
[Devoured: Outer Disciple Mei Ling. Gained: 8 Essence Points. Lotus Petal Dodge (Basic). Qi Condensation Insight Fragment.]
Memories intruded: Mei's terror, her desperate qi flare against the lizards. Lin Feng shuddered, but the knowledge integrated—her technique a fluid evasion, petals of qi shielding the user.
Two more bodies yielded similar gains: a spear technique and minor qi reserves. His pool swelled to 41/100, meridians humming.
The lizards noticed, six of them slithering forth, hisses like grinding metal. The alpha, larger with jagged spines, exuded fourth-layer Qi Condensation aura—far beyond Lin Feng's peak Body Tempering.
He couldn't charge blindly. Circling, he baited with feints, Shadow Step blurring his form. A lizard lunged; he dodged with Lotus Petal, qi blooming as illusory shields that deflected claws.
[HP: 85/100. Minor laceration.]
Seizing the opening, he thrust at the underbelly, sword glancing off scales. Frustration mounted—these weren't rats. The alpha coiled, spewing acidic spit that sizzled on stone.
Lin Feng rolled, acid scorching his sleeve. Need better weapons. His eyes fell on a fallen disciple's spear, half-buried. He snatched it, the weight familiar from Mei's memories.
Spear in one hand, sword in the other, he adapted. The spear's thrust pierced a lizard's eye, killing it instantly.
[Devoured: Ironhide Lizard. Gained: 12 Essence Points. Scale Harden (Passive): +5% Defense.]
Emboldened, he devoured on the spot, scales faintly manifesting on his skin. The pack frenzyed, but Lin Feng flowed between them—Step, Dodge, Thrust. One by one, they fell, his techniques synergizing into a deadly dance.
The alpha remained, roaring defiance. It charged, spines extending like spears. Lin Feng met it head-on, Boar Charge colliding with its bulk. Bones jarred, but he twisted, spear embedding in its throat.
As it thrashed, dying, a shadow detached—Zhao Kun, lurking in ambush. "Impressive, cripple. But that lotus cluster is mine."
Lin Feng yanked his spear free, blood dripping. Zhao Kun's wound was bandaged crudely, but his qi burned fiercer, fifth-layer now? No—pills, likely.
"You left your friend to die," Lin Feng said, voice steady. "Cowardice doesn't suit a future inner disciple."
Zhao Kun's eyes narrowed, a tic revealing deeper rage. Orphaned young, he'd clawed his way up through brutality, viewing weakness as contagion. Lin Feng's survival mocked that creed. "I'll carve that tongue out. Azure Tempest Palm!"
Qi coalesced into a storm of blows, wind howling. Lin Feng parried with spear, each clash jarring his arms. Scale Harden absorbed some force, but Zhao's power overwhelmed. A palm grazed his shoulder, dislocating it with a crack.
Pain exploded, but the system chimed: [Emergency Adaptation: Pain Tolerance +20%.]
Gritting through tears, Lin Feng countered with Shadow Step, flanking. His sword slashed Zhao's thigh, drawing blood. Surprise flickered in the bully's eyes—How?
They circled, breaths ragged. Zhao Kun's dialogues were barbs: "Trash like you devours scraps? The Dao favors the strong. I'll send you to your ancestors."
Lin Feng's mind raced, thoughts fragmented: He's holding back, preserving qi for the lotus. Exploit that. He feigned weakness, staggering. Zhao lunged, overextended.
Lin Feng's spear struck true, piercing shoulder. Zhao howled, qi flaring wildly. But Lin Feng pressed, sword following— a gash across the chest.
Retreating, Zhao spat blood. "This isn't over, worm. The sect will hear of this." He fled, vanishing into tunnels.
Lin Feng collapsed, devouring the alpha lizard. [Gained: 25 Essence Points. Lizard Tail Whip Technique.]
His pool neared breakthrough: 78/100. Weary but unbroken, he claimed three lotuses, their essence boosting his qi directly.
As night fell outside, the trial's horn blared—end of day one. Lin Feng emerged last, battered but alive, lotuses clutched. Elders noted his haul with mild surprise; Zhao Kun, arriving earlier, seethed in silence.
In his barracks that night, Lin Feng allocated points, meridians expanding. Qi stirred, coiling toward Condensation.
[Level Up: Qi Condensation Layer 1. New Skill Unlocked: Essence Scan.]
The system whispered promises. But in the shadows, Zhao Kun plotted with allies, his complexity unfolding—a man driven not just by cruelty, but by fear of falling back into obscurity.
The path to power had begun, paved with devoured souls.