The golden core spun silently in his dantian.
It pulsed like a second heart.
No—stronger than a heart. It was a star.
A small, divine sun that radiates warmth and strength into every vein of Raiyo's body.
He could feel it.
His fingers trembled, not with fear, but anticipation. His breath moved like wind over steel. The world around him no longer felt distant. Every vibration, every echo of sound, was clearer, sharper. The scent of old wood, dry parchment, and sacred ink from the Archive of Eternity still clung to his skin like memory.
His eyes opened.
And for the first time since he had fallen into this forsaken world, he smiled.
"Let's see what this body can do."
He stepped out from the great library and into the radiant world of Harikiru—the Plain of Life. The grass shimmered in tones of green too vibrant to be natural. The sky above was like a canvas painted by gods who had forgotten despair.
But Raiyo had not.
A lone creature grazed a few meters ahead. It looked divine—its six legs moved like silk across the grass, ivory fur glistening under the sun. A set of crystalline horns protruded from its head like the branches of a sacred tree.
It hadn't noticed him.
Raiyo clenched his fist. Golden energy flowed from his core, racing through his arm like liquid fire. He locked onto the creature.
Then—
FRFFFF!
His punch shot through the air like a thunderbolt. It struck the divine beast in the side, bursting wind and dust in every direction.
But when the dust settled… the creature remained motionless.
Untouched.
No bruise. No blood. Not even a single misplaced hair.
Raiyo's smile faded. "Tch…"
He gathered more energy this time, compressing it deeper, channeling all the power his core could afford into one devastating blow.
He struck again.
BOOOOM!
The earth trembled beneath him. The sound echoed through the plains..
Yet… still…
Nothing.
And then—
CRACK!
A hoof slammed into his ribs. He was sent flying backward like a broken arrow, skidding across the ground, grass and dirt torn by his body.
Pain bloomed across his chest. He coughed, blood staining his teeth.
Lying on his back, Raiyo stared at the clear blue sky and laughed bitterly. "Ah… right."
He sat up, wiping blood from his mouth.
"They're divine beings… Only the Yin energy can hurt them."
He stood, shaky but grinning.
"You guys are cute. That's why I'll let you die last."
Turning away from Harikiru, Raiyo's gaze fixed on the dark horizon—the rotting treeline of Yomimori, the Abyssal Forest.
A few dozen steps into the cursed forest, the air changed. It was colder. Thicker. The branches overhead formed a black canopy, and the ground beneath his feet pulsed faintly—alive, hungry.
Then, he saw it.
A two-headed wolf crouched low between two gnarled roots. Its eyes gleamed crimson. Its breath steamed with heat. Its fur looked like it had been stitched from shadows.
Raiyo moved before the creature could react.
BANG!
A punch, overflowing with pure Yang, collided with the side of the beast.
CRACK—!
The sound of ribs snapping echoed like music. One of the heads let out a gurgled scream. Blood oozed from its snarling mouth.
Raiyo's eyes lit up.
Finally… pain. Finally… vengeance.
"Grrrrrrr…"
The wolf snarled and staggered back; eyes wild. Before it could retreat, Raiyo leapt again.
BOOM!
This time, an uppercut so powerful and fast that it shattered one of the heads. Skull and brain matter exploded like a crushed melon, blood raining across the forest floor.
The beast tried to flee with its remaining head, whimpering.
But mercy no longer existed in Raiyo's dictionary.
He chased.
And with a descending kick so violent it cracked the very earth—
THUD!
He crushed its spine. The wolf's body twitched… then stopped.
A strange energy flowed from the corpse into Raiyo's chest. Cold. Heavy.
It was Yin.
His body shivered for a moment. And then… he grinned.
"Is that how it works?"
But he had no time to revel in the kill.
The scent of blood had already drawn attention.
Dozens of glowing eyes began to appear in the forest's darkness.
Then hundreds.
Growls. Snarls. Cracking twigs.
He was surrounded.
Wolves, all bigger than the last, with more heads, longer fangs, darker fur. Dozens became a hundred. Then two hundred. Then more.
Raiyo clenched his fists, blood already drying on his skin.
"Come, then…"
They rushed him.
And the forest became a battlefield of shadows and blood.
He fought like a demon clothed in light.
Every punch exploded skulls. Every kick shattered spines. Bones cracked. Claws ripped through the air. Teeth sank into his flesh, but he did not stop.
A wolf clamped onto his arm—he twisted and ripped its jaw apart with raw force.
Another jumped from behind—he spun mid-air and crushed it with a heel to the neck.
But they never stopped coming.
He was faster. Stronger. But there were too many.
A claw slashed across his chest. Blood spurted. A fang tore into his thigh. Another bite sank into his shoulder. Still, he moved.
His golden core burned, but the fire began to flicker.
One wolf latched onto his leg. Another onto his back. A third bit into his side, ripping flesh.
He roared—not in pain, but in rage.
With a final surge of Yang, he slammed both fists into the ground—
BOOOOOOM!
A shockwave exploded outward, tearing dozens of wolves into pulp. Blood sprayed across the trees like a crimson mist.
But his vision was blurry now.
His skin had been torn open in a dozen places. Some of his bones were visible. His right eye was swollen shut. His body was soaked in red.
Still, they circled.
More wolves came.
He turned and fled.
He crashed through the forest, lungs burning, blood trailing behind him like a thread of fate.
Then he saw it—the lake, still and silver, like moonlight frozen in time.
He dove in without hesitation.
The water wrapped around him, and for the first time in hours… it was calm.
And then—
HIS WOUNDS BEGAN TO CLOSE.
Slowly. Painfully. But they closed.
The burning agony in his limbs dimmed. Torn flesh began to knit itself. The exposed bone vanished beneath new skin.
He gasped. His body shivered.
But what came next shocked him more.
The wolves had followed him.
But the moment their paws touched the lake—
SSSSSSSS!
They screamed.
Their flesh began to burn. Smoke rose from their bodies. They howled and thrashed, trying to flee. But some had already jumped in.
And those who did—
Died.
The Yin inside them reacted violently with the water. It was sacred. Cleansing.
To them, it was poison.
Raiyo's eyes widened.
He stood up in the lake, blood washing from his skin, new flesh forming beneath old scars.
The wolves still watched him from the shore.
But he was no longer prey.
Now… he was executioner.
For hours, he baited them. Jumping from the lake, attacking, then retreating.
Some followed. They died.
Some waited. He pulled them in. They burned.
One by one, two by two, ten by ten—
Until the water ran red.
Until the bodies piled high.
Until their howls stopped echoing.
When the last wolf fell, Raiyo stood knee-deep in water, surrounded by 300 corpses.
The lake that had been silver…
Was now crimson.
His chest rose and fell.
He had no words. No strength left.
His body, barely pieced together, stood against the wind like a broken statue.
And then—
He collapsed.
Still standing.
His eyes burned with rage. His lips were parted as if still cursing the world.
His aura overflowed.
Not golden.
But black.
A violent, pure Yin leaked from his pores. The opposite of what he had cultivated. Yet it pulsed with power.
Like the Abyss had answered.
He had crossed the line between light and dark.
And in that crimson lake, Raiyo passed out—face twisted in fury, body soaked in death, soul screaming into the void.
To be continued...