[ Bloodshade Hunting Grounds - Red Zone ]
Victor's back pressed against cold stone as the silence of the ridge weighed down on him like a boulder.
Four moons had passed, and now, only two remained until the grand 200th birthday of the City Lord's daughter.
His body ached and his legs felt stiff from staying here for so long.
Although he had logged out of the ga several tis to check on his mom, do chores around the house and eat, he would always respawn here whenever he returned.
The energy in his dantian was down to barely 11%.
Every breath he took seed to co with a weight. The oppressive pressure of the red zone clung to his skin, threading itself into his bones, making each mont a battle in itself.
But he had waited too long to give up now.
Even as other cultivators left—those who couldn't take the pressure, those who lost hope after days of failed sightings—Victor remained crouched low in the craggy shadows near the upper edge of the ridge.
Every movent he made was calculated, minimal. Every bit of qi he had left needed to count.
He couldn't afford to waste even a single breath.
He had told himself that this night would be the last.
And so when the moon rose again, its pale silver glow trickled over the rough walls of the ridge like water pouring over a glass rim.
Victor's eyes snapped open. His senses had grown sharper after all this ti in the red zone—even without his full qi capacity, he could detect even the smallest fluctuations in energy.
Sothing moved...
A quiet rustling sound echoed out from deep within one of the burrows carved into the ridge's belly. Dust tumbled from the rocks. Slithering sounds. Slow. Fluid. Controlled.
Then it appeared.
The mythical Shadow-Eyed Moon Serpent.
Majestic was an understatent.
The serpent's scales were a cascading gradient of midnight indigo and moonlit silver. Each one glittered faintly with a mystical glow.
Twin horns spiraled back from its head and along its spine were silver glowing patterns shaped like crescent moons.
Its most notable feature—two crescent-shaped eyes that burned with pale silver fire, locked onto the moon like it was in a trance.
The mont it erged, all other serpentine beasts slithered away, retreating back into the ridge's deeper hollows.
It had finally reappeared...
The creature was performing that sa ritual Victor had seen days ago—its long sinuous body coiling gently atop a flat elevated platform, absorbing the moonlight.
Victor tightened the grip on his palm while biting down on his lower lip.
He didn't have ti. Or energy. But he had one chance.
He reached into his robe and pulled out one of the moonlight reflecting orbs he had bought just in case—
He knew the qi talismans wouldn't work this ti since the beast wasn't like the regular unintelligent ones he had co into contact with.
This item was specifically used to absorb moonlight essence. He was sure it would lure the beast when the mythical Shadow-Eyed Moon Serpent noticed it wasn't getting enough to absorb for itself.
Victor tossed the orb into the open air, letting it roll down the slope.
The orb soon began drawing the moon's essence towards itself.
The beast noticed.
It slowly lifted its long, narrow head and slithered upwards, drawn by the orb's glow.
The exact opportunity Victor had been waiting for.
He shot forward.
His movents were swift, but not too aggressive—every step asured to avoid triggering the surrounding serpents who still lurked within the ridge.
The mythical serpent rose higher.
Victor dashed in, swerving past boulders and coiled tails, and as he reached the orb, the serpent reared its head above him.
"SIIIIIHH~" It let out a disgruntled hiss.
He waited for it to dip lower—just enough.
Then he leapt upward.
"Frost Bloom Palm!"
A white mist exploded from Victor's palm as he slamd it into the side of the serpent's neck.
Instantly, the silver glow in its eyes dimd slightly, and its movents slowed. The frost qi worked to suppress the beast's energy flow.
Victor wasted no ti—he pulled out more chains and began wrapping them around its slithering body.
But then—
"HEY! That beast's ours!"
Three cultivators shot out from behind a rock face—clearly they had been waiting for soone to do the hard work first.
Victor thought all the cultivators were gone by now but unfortunately he was wrong.
Each of them bore matching cloaks, likely from the sa faction. One of them held up a binding talisman, charging straight for the weakened serpent.
Victor cursed under his breath.
"No, no—!"
He unsheathed Phantom's Dusk.
In an instant, he dashed to intercept, slashing toward the nearest cultivator with a flurry of quick, sharp cuts.
Phantom's Dusk let out ~thwooshes~ as it sliced through the air. It's edge grazed the enemy's arm and drawing blood.
The others retaliated imdiately.
One launched a storm of qi darts, while the other tried to grapple Victor from behind.
It beca a chaotic battle right in the narrow space of the ridge's upper ledge.
Every clash and burst of qi shook the rocks loose.
Victor activated Frost Bloom Palm against, ready to use it on one of the assailants when a shriek tore through the air.
The serpent suddenly whipped its body violently.
Its massive tail swung like a whip, slamming into all four of them.
Victor was the only one quick enough to regain footing—but barely.
Before he could recover, the beast lunged...
Not at the attackers but at him.
It wrapped around his torso with blinding speed, coiling tight as if instinctively trying to trap the one who had used that frost palm against it.
"No no no—!"
Victor grunted while trying to pry its scales off his body—but it was too late.
In the next mont, the serpent launched itself downward—diving into the depths of the ridge and dragging Victor with it.
He crashed through layers of coiling serpents, slamming against stone outcrops as his vision spun.
Hundreds of serpents hissed and slithered around him, coiled up in the darkness like a writhing sea of black ropes.
Victor knew his qi reserves were incredibly low at this mont but he had to get out of the encirclent.
Qi gathered around him causing the pressure in his surroundings to intensify as he let out a burst of wind from his being.
The slithering bodies coiled around him pushed back a bit, giving him enough space to slip out and fall further to the bottom.
Victor imdiately began to flee but it looked like there was nowhere to flee to.
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