Cold mist clung to the damp earth, smelling of crushed pine needles and the sharp tang of wet clay.
Shan Lu worked his fingers into the cold soil, pulling at the stubborn roots of a wild ginseng plant.
His knuckles were raw, but he didn't care about the minor pain.
---
Gray mud stained his rough linen trousers, a testament to the hours he had spent kneeling in the damp valley floor.
Beside him sat an empty wicker basket, its hollow space reminding him of his sworn brother's absence.
Han Jue had left before the first light of dawn had even touched the eastern peaks.
---
Han Jue carried his favorite ash-wood spear, its iron tip polished until it shone like a mirror.
"Keep your head down today, Lu," his brother had warned, a rare, serious frown creasing his young forehead.
"Tracks near the western ridge are larger than usual, and the air feels thin."
---
"I will be fine," Shan Lu had replied with a reassuring nod.
"Just bring back enough venison to salt for the coming winter months."
Laughing softly, Jue had disappeared into the dense forest, his silent footsteps leaving barely a trace on the dew-covered grass.
---
Now, the sun crawled sluggishly over the jagged peaks of the Myriad Expanse, casting long, pale shadows across the village.
Soft gold light bathed the thatched roofs of the small settlement, making the simple wooden huts look almost peaceful.
Such quiet mornings were rare in these borderlands, where danger always seemed to lurk just beyond the horizon.
---
A sharp breeze whistled through the valley, carrying the comforting scent of woodsmoke and roasting barley.
Auntie Mei was already outside her hut, calling out to her young son who was chasing a stray chicken.
Down the dirt path, Old Zhao dragged his creaking wooden cart, his dry joints popping in rhythm with the squeaking wooden wheels.
---
Sweat dripped from Shan Lu's brow as he finally unearthed the thick ginseng root, placing it gently into his pouch.
His mind, however, refused to settle, constantly drifting back to the dark forest where Jue was hunting.
Rumors had been drifting from the eastern towns for weeks, brought by pale, terrified merchants seeking shelter.
---
Travelers spoke of ancient seals cracking open in the deep, untamed wilderness.
Whispers of monstrous beasts and divine beings clashing in the skies had kept the villagers on edge.
Shan Lu shook his head, trying to clear the dark thoughts, but the uneasy feeling in his gut only grew stronger.
---
Suddenly, the birds in the surrounding forest fell dead silent.
Silence stretched over the valley, so thick and heavy that it felt like a physical weight pressing down on Shan Lu's chest.
Even the wind died instantly, leaving the air hot, stagnant, and smelling faintly of sulfur.
---
Shan Lu froze, his hand hovering over the dirt as his heart began to hammer against his ribs.
Deep within the earth, a low hum began, a vibration so powerful it made the rocks in his basket rattle.
A single drop of sweat rolled down his temple, burning his eye, but he didn't dare to blink.
---
"What in the heavens is that?" Old Zhao muttered, halting his cart in the middle of the dirt path.
Before anyone could answer, the very sky above them seemed to tear open like wet paper.
Red light erupted from the massive rift, painting the clouds in shades of fresh, dripping blood.
---
Screaming winds whipped through the valley, carrying a pressure so immense it forced Shan Lu to his knees.
Earth erupted in violent geysers along the northern ridge as a colossal figure plummeted from the crimson sky.
Splinters of shattered trees flew in every direction, raining down on the outer perimeter of the village.
---
Dust billowed outward in a massive wave, choking the air and blotting out the morning sun.
Slowly, a towering nightmare rose from the smoking crater, its massive silhouette casting a shadow over the entire valley.
Towering over thirty feet tall, the creature possessed a massive, hunched torso covered in thick, interlocking crimson scales.
---
Thick, oily fluid dripped from its joints, sizzling as it touched the scorched earth below.
Sharp horns protruded from its skull like jagged swords, and its eyes burned with a pure, chaotic malice.
Panic erupted through the village as the monster let out a roar that shattered every glass window in the settlement.
---
Women and children ran blindly from their homes, screaming in absolute terror as the ground buckled.
"Run!" screamed Auntie Mei, desperate to pull her child toward the safety of the southern woods.
Before Shan Lu could even push himself off the ground, a second pressure descended from the heavens.
---
Heavy, suffocating gravity flattened the high grass for miles around, pinning Shan Lu to the dirt.
Air vanished from his lungs, leaving him gasping for breath as he stared up at the sky.
Above the crimson demon, a sphere of blinding, pristine light materialized.
---
It was a 'Lord.'
Cold, geometric halos of pure white light rotated slowly around a perfect, faceless humanoid figure.
Absolute silence followed its descent, as if the world itself held its breath in the presence of this divine being.
---
"Abomination," a voice echoed, vibrating directly inside the minds of everyone in the valley.
No mouth moved on the faceless entity, yet the sound carried the weight of a collapsing mountain.
"Your presence taints this realm, and your existence is hereby revoked."
---
With a furious bellow, the crimson demon lunged upward, its massive claws tearing through the air.
Crimson energy crackled around its fists, leaving trails of black, burning smoke in its wake.
Unflinching, the Lord merely raised a single, glowing finger to meet the cataclysmic charge.
---
Brilliant white light collided with the demon's red fire, and the world dissolved into a deafening roar.
Shockwaves tore through the valley, ripping the thatched roofs right off the wooden huts and shattering them to splinters.
Shan Lu dragged his body toward a low stone wall, clawing at the dirt as the wind threatened to blow him away.
---
Crawling into a tight space behind the stones, he pressed his face into the dirt, trembling violently.
Through a narrow crack in the wall, he forced himself to watch the horror unfolding before him.
Huge, clawed feet crushed the village well, sending stone and water flying like lethal shrapnel.
---
Wood, stone, and human bodies were tossed into the air, caught in the crossfire of the titanic struggle.
Old Zhao screamed as a stray beam of white light struck his wooden cart, vaporizing it instantly.
One moment the old man was there, and the next, only a pile of gray ash remained, scattered by the wind.
---
Tears mixed with the dirt on Shan Lu's face, his chest burning with a terrifying, suffocating powerlessness.
Anger, hot and useless, flared in his chest as he watched his neighbors slaughtered like insects.
He was nothing but a speck of dust to these entities, an ant waiting to be crushed by their careless footsteps.
---
Where was Han Jue?
If Han Jue returned now, he would be obliterated in an instant, no matter how sharp his spear was.
"Please, Jue," Shan Lu whispered into the dirt, his voice trembling. "Stay in the forest. Do not come back."
---
Up in the sky, the battle reached a violent climax as the demon managed to grip the Lord's glowing arm.
Brilliant halos fractured under the monster's sheer physical strength, scattering glowing shards across the sky.
Searing heat radiated from the wounds of both beings, boiling the river that ran through the valley.
---
Roaring in agony, the demon sank its massive fangs into the Lord's shoulder, seeking to tear the light apart.
Teeth sank deep, but the Lord did not scream, its cold indifference unchanging even in the face of destruction.
Pure white energy surged from the Lord's body, expanding outward in a blinding wave of power.
---
For the first time, a flicker of genuine shock seemed to ripple through the demon's burning eyes.
Gathering its remaining strength, the Lord pointed its glowing hand directly at the demon's massive chest.
Blinding light pierced the monster's heart, exiting through its back in a pillar of solid energy.
---
Direct hit.
Yet, the demon's dying scream was accompanied by a massive explosion of its remaining crimson core.
Chaos erupted as the blast shattered the Lord's protective barrier, sending divine fragments raining down upon the valley.
---
Shards of brilliant white light, hot as fallen stars, hissed as they pelted the ruined earth.
One massive fragment, pulsing with an intense, pristine warmth, sheared through the air toward the stone wall.
Desperately, Shan Lu tried to throw himself to the side, but his muscles were completely locked.
---
Terror anchored him to the spot as the dazzling shard tore through the stone barrier like hot iron through butter.
Searing heat exploded in his chest as the fragment embedded itself deep into his flesh, fusing with his bones.
Screams tore from his throat, but no sound escaped the vacuum of pressure surrounding him.
---
Unbelievable force surged through his veins, writing new pathways of pain through his nervous system.
Darkness swirled at the edges of his vision, pulling him down into a deep, inescapable void.
As the dust settles on the ravaged village, a searing fragment of the 'Lord's' light, pulsing with an unnatural warmth, embeds itself directly into Shan Lu's chest, radiating an unknown power. Unconscious, a white glow can be seen coming from under his eyelids…