Reon's vision blurred, edges darkening as his grip on consciousness slipped further with every second.
Pain clawed through his body with a fierce and unyielding bite, a sensation that ran deeper than any physical blow he had ever known.
"Ahh! It hurts... so much." he whispered through gritted teeth.
Even the brutal beating Yang Lie had once inflicted upon Xue Taiyang seed like a re aftershock compared to this.
Reon had only felt the echoes of that suffering.
But this? This was sothing else entirely.
Each shallow breath felt like it could be his last. The weight of it, of the impending darkness, threatened to pull him under.
"Where's Cloudia?"
His eyes scanned desperately, but his vision flickered, the shadows of the forest dancing in and out of focus.
Through the haze, he saw Cloudia—her figure flickering in the distance, bruised, battered, struggling to rise despite the heavy toll the battle had taken on her.
She had taken so of the force off the blow, but the pain was still evident in the way she moved.
"I have to help her... I can't leave her," Reon thought, his mind half-lost in the agony coursing through him.
Through the haze of his pain, he saw her determination—that fierce, unwavering resolve.
Her eyes burned with the will to keep fighting, even as her body was crushed by the weight of their suffering.
Reon gritted his teeth, summoning every ounce of strength from deep within his shattered body.
Blood coated his lips, the bitter, tallic taste of it seeping into his senses.
But he refused to surrender to the darkness that threatened to swallow him whole.
With a ragged breath, he pushed himself upright, swaying on his feet as if the ground itself had turned to mush beneath him.
GRAUG!
The Shadow Claw Bear's guttural growl rolled through the air, deep and threatening, like distant thunder rumbling before a storm.
Reon's heartbeat slowed, each thud echoing through his chest, reminding him just how thin the line was between life and death.
"I'm lucky," he thought bitterly. "I was prepared... I bought one High-Tier Grade-2 Healing Pill and so Superior-Tier Grade-1 Healing Pills with my remaining Sect Points."
With trembling fingers, he reached into his Spatial Ring and pulled out the Grade-2 Healing Pill.
The vial felt like it weighed a thousand pounds in his hand, but he didn't hesitate.
He swallowed the pill, its warmth spreading through him as it slowly began to heal the ravages of his injuries.
He focused his Qi, channeling it to accelerate the pill's effects, guiding the healing energy to flow through his body.
A small flicker of relief danced through his veins as the pain marginally lessened, but it was nowhere near enough to stand against the beast, let alone fight.
They were still cornered.
Still broken.
"Cloudia..." he rasped, his voice rough, but the determination was there. "This isn't over."
Her eyes locked onto his, fierce and unyielding through her own suffering.
In that silent exchange, sothing passed between them—a surge of compliance, a mutual understanding that no matter how bloodied and beaten they were, they would not bow to this beast.
THOMP!
THOMP!
The ground trembled with each step the bear took, a cruel reminder of how insignificant they were in its presence.
But the bear wasn't rushing.
No, it was toying with them.
Its steps were slow, deliberate, as if savoring the mont, enjoying the spectacle of their weakness.
It knew they were too damaged to resist. This was a ga—a cruel mockery of its power, an entertainnt before it consud them.
Reon's mind raced.
Reon knew that beasts grew stronger by devouring the Primal Cores of their own kind.
However, they also took great delight in increasing their strength by feeding on human cultivators—just as humans consud the at of powerful beasts to advance their cultivation.
"But I'm too weak to offer it any real improvent..." Reon thought bitterly. "That ans it's after Cloudia..."
"But she's also weaker than this beast."
"Then there must be sothing about her... sothing special that's drawing it in."
WHOOSH!
Suddenly, without warning, Cloudia surged forward, her body fueled by desperation.
She channeled the last of her strength into a flurry of desperate attacks.
SWOOSH!
SWOOSH!
Her silver claws blurred as they slashed at the bear, each strike faster than the last, each movent more desperate.
Her blows ca relentlessly, and for a mont, it seed like her fury might just overwhelm the creature.
Her strikes were precise, each one targeting the beast's thick hide. But they were insignificant.
The beast barely seed to notice, its massive fra hardly affected by her attacks.
It was as futile as a mosquito trying to bite a tiger, each slash only leaving shallow scratches that the bear didn't even acknowledge.
Then, without warning, the beast retaliated.
SWOOSH!
The bear's enormous claw rose, heavy and devastating. Reon's breath caught as it swung down with all its might.
Cloudia didn't have ti to dodge.
The blow landed with a sickening crack, hurling her backward like a rock. She slamd into a tree with a thunderous crash, the trunk splitting with the force of impact.
Boom!
Reon's heart stopped.
Cloudia crumpled to the ground, her body barely moving, blood staining the earth beneath her.
She coughed, the sickly sound of it ripping through the air. The blow had been brutal—maybe even fatal if she couldn't rise.
The beast, unperturbed, turned its rciless gaze on Reon.
Its eyes glead with savage amusent, a predator enjoying the final monts of its prey.
It was relishing their suffering. Reon could almost hear it mocking him as it stared at him, daring him to do sothing.
"What should I do?" Reon's mind scread. "Are we going to die here?"
"I shouldn't have been so selfish about the reward..." he thought bitterly, the weight of his decisions pressing down on him.
His thoughts blurred with the agony coursing through him, but he fought to stay clear.
He had to think, had to do sothing.
"The Sword Aura Comprehension Card..."
The idea flashed through his mind, desperate and dangerous.
It could unleash Sword Aura, though he had no idea at what stage.
Even if it was only the Awakened Stage, it might be enough to let them escape.
But at what cost?
The power would be wild, uncontrollable.
If he couldn't stabilize it properly, he could be crippled for life.
He had dreaded this risk, clung to the hope of awakening it in a safe, controlled environnt—where he could master it without consequence.
But with the beast drawing nearer, its thunderous steps vibrating through the earth, he knew he was out of ti.
"Damn it!" He spat, the taste of blood sharp on his tongue.
"I will do it," he whispered to himself. "I won't die here."
He wasn't going to die quietly.
If he fell, it wouldn't be as prey—it would be in battle, dragging the beast down with him.
If luck favored him, if he could control the wild energy, perhaps he would survive.
And if not...
His fists clenched with iron resolve.
"No more doubts. No more 'what-ifs.' I'm getting out of here—no matter what it takes."
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