Without hesitation, Jyu stepped into the cave. There was only darkness, not even the faintest glimmer of light. Then suddenly, a rune appeared in his mind. The shock startled him so badly that he fell, his knees instantly going weak. Jyu kept staring at the rune, blinking repeatedly as he examined the information clearly inscribed within his thoughts.
[Welcome]
Name: [Jyu]
Rank: [Candidate]
Attribute: -
Aspect: -
Aspect Power: -
Magic Fragments: [0/1000]
Memory: -
Nothing but question marks filled his head. "So this is my power system. Not a single thing I can be proud of yet."
But Jyu was certain—after overcoming the trials in the realm of Darkent, a power would surely awaken within his body. A terrifying power. Perhaps he could control fire or lightning. Jyu laughed at the thought.
"Hopefully."
At last, he rose again, straightened his worn-out clothes, and prepared to venture deeper into the cave. And then he fell! After barely taking five steps, Jyu plunged into a hole.
"Damn it!" his scream echoed through the cavern.
Now he was falling vertically, accelerating faster and faster. If he kept falling like this and hit the ground, he would surely die—his head smashed open, or every bone in his body shattered beyond recognition. It was only a matter of time before that happened. Jyu had to do something!
The shaft he had fallen into was three meters wide. The only illumination came from shimmering stones embedded in the walls, emitting a faint blue glow. Though dim, the light allowed Jyu to observe his surroundings.
In his mind, he had to slow his descent. How? There was only one way—reach for the wall and find footing. But there was another problem. Trying to brace himself at such speed could easily break his arms and legs.
There was only one conclusion: no time to think too much. He had to act immediately, because the shaft would soon reach its end.
Finally, Jyu kicked against the wall, pushing his body slightly sideways. Then he twisted midair and kicked the opposite wall. He kept repeating the motion. Though his legs felt like they were about to snap, the tactic worked. His falling speed gradually decreased until he could leap in a zigzag pattern, stepping from one wall to the other. Eventually, he managed to stop, landing on the glowing blue stones.
He paused to rest, calming his trembling muscles.
"Why didn't you warn me about this, Yomi?" he muttered irritably, annoyed at having to face a life-threatening obstacle.
"I must have been born to challenge death."
Taking a deep breath from exhaustion, Jyu continued descending the dreadful shaft. He leaped in zigzags, almost as if flying from one blue stone to another.
At last, he reached the bottom. It was strangely bright with a grayish light. Jyu chose to hang onto the final cluster of blue stones and peeked out to see what the realm of Darkent looked like. His eyes widened in disbelief.
The Darkent Realm was truly horrifying. There was nothing but a vast expanse of gray sand, dotted with massive black cone-shaped rocks of varying heights—from two meters to dozens of meters tall.
Most horrifying of all was the area directly beneath the shaft where Jyu stood. Several mystical creatures were feasting on the bodies of Surcy, who had fallen from above. Their corpses were torn apart—no heads, no intact limbs—and blood seemed to flood the ground.
The creatures themselves were grotesque. Their heads and torsos were fused into one, with two enormous eyes and a wide mouth lined with sharp, protruding fangs. Their arms and legs were small but muscular, tipped with razor-sharp claws. They were classified as mystical creatures of the Beast rank.
Mystical beings were divided into several classes: Beast, Monster, Demon, Devil, and Arabai. Each possessed its own level of strength. Beast and Monster were the ranks considered reasonable opponents for Surcy, who had yet to awaken demonic power.
Jyu could fight them—but injury would be inevitable. Even at a low rank, their strength was not to be underestimated. In the end, Jyu chose to avoid battle. Running was his decision.
There was a large rock nearby that could serve as a landing spot. Even better, the creatures had no necks, meaning they could not tilt their heads upward to see him gliding above. Neckless monsters meant they could only look straight ahead. They could look upward, but only by lying flat on the ground. How troublesome!
Jyu swung his body back and forth several times. Once he gained enough momentum, he leaped toward the massive rock on the left side of the disgusting creatures.
He landed right behind it. But the impact made a loud noise, disturbing the monsters engrossed in their feast. From behind the rock, Jyu heard multiple footsteps approaching. His presence was almost discovered!
There was no choice but to hide. Jyu buried himself in the sand, covering his entire body until he was no longer visible. He could only close his eyes and pray that the nearly four-meter-tall creatures would not trample his small frame.
A second later, one of the neckless monsters appeared nearby.
"Go away! Just go away!" Jyu panicked as their feet nearly stepped on his face.
Their stomps shifted the sand, exposing part of his face. Jyu carefully opened his left eye and saw one monster standing with its back turned to him.
Three monsters were searching for him, yet they could not detect his presence. In truth, they were incapable of finding Jyu unless they lay flat on the ground—and even then, only if their bodies fully pressed against his.
The three monsters eventually left. Jyu survived.
After waiting until they disappeared, Jyu finally emerged. Holding his breath for several seconds had been exhausting. He rubbed his eyes repeatedly to clear out the sand. It was torture.
He did all this while running away from the massacre site of the Surcy. A larger cone-shaped rock stood in the distance—he aimed for it, believing it to be safer. At the very least, no mystical creatures were visible there.
This place was utterly barren—fitting for beings of darkness. For humans or Surcy, it was troublesome. They needed food and water. But was there any edible source here for them—including Jyu?
Apparently not. The only option might be to eat monster flesh raw and drink their blood. Disgusting—but perhaps the only way to survive in this realm. Even as spirits, Surcy still felt hunger, thirst, and pain.
Jyu finally reached the massive cone rock. After observing the Darkent Realm, he understood the difficulty ahead. Survival here would be a formidable challenge.
But he had to move quickly. Three days in this realm were a short time. Awakening his demonic power would not be easy, and he did not even know how to do it. He only remembered one message from Yomi:
"The core of your soul will guide you to your demonic power."
He needed to act—but not recklessly. His body was still exhausted, the pain intensifying. Rest was necessary. Understanding his soul's core was equally important.
Yomi had also said, "Meditate to find the core of your soul."
For Surcy, meditation was essential for training focus and understanding the core of one's soul. They had to descend calmly into their subconscious in complete silence. The awakening of the soul's core could only be achieved when a Surcy aligned their mind with it. Slowly, they would be guided toward their true power.
There was no other way.
Jyu hid within a crevice between rocks. Sitting cross-legged, he relaxed his muscles. His eyes closed—focused, yet not empty. Silence enveloped him, pulling him deeper into his soul.
Even while alive, Jyu had meditated before—but never like this. In the Darkent Realm, it felt different. Meditation was almost enjoyable. It was as if he was gathering energy to restore his body.
It even felt easy. Slowly, his meditation succeeded. Within the darkness, Jyu discovered a faint light inside himself—the core of his soul.
"What is this?" Jyu panicked as a terrifying image appeared in his mind. He remained in meditation, but the image of a massive, monstrous bear emerged. A second later, he was shown a path leading north to a small cave nestled between towering cone-shaped rocks.
Slowly, his eyes opened. "So that's where my demonic power lies. Alright!"
A satisfied smile formed on his lips. Jyu could hardly wait to reach it. He was certain the demonic power he would find would be overwhelmingly strong—a bear with sharp fangs and claws, muscles rippling with lethal force.
But danger loomed everywhere. Many monsters roamed the land. Sooner or later, he would have to fight them. There was only one thing to do—kill them.
He needed a weapon. Jyu looked around. Nothing but rocks. Then he remembered—primitive weapons were once made from sharpened stones shaped like knives or spears. An idea sparked.
After scanning the area for sharp stones, he found one that could serve as a blade. With burning determination, Jyu grabbed a blunt rock and struck the sharper one repeatedly. The stone was hard, but thin cracks gradually formed.
At last, it split apart. Jyu refined its edges until it was sharp enough to function as a sword. He even fashioned a grip so his hand would not be cut. Tearing fabric from his robe, he wrapped it around the base.
Now his deadly weapon was complete—a half-meter sword. Its edges were jagged but extremely sharp, nearly as perfect as steel. At its base was a handle that fit comfortably in his hand.
"Let's go hunting."