Atop Black Blade Pavilion's Black Moon mountain, Xuan Moon and Mei were sitting within their pavilion at the center of the lake. "I wonder how Jin'er is doing." Mei wondered, clearly worried about their son.
"He'll be fine, Left Blade and Right Blade are two of the foremost experts of our Sect. Not to mention Jin isn't a pushover despite his young age." Xuan Moon chuckled.
Suddenly the Sect Master noticed a raven swooping down towards them. Immediately he extended his index finger, allowing the raven to perch itself atop his finger.
"Hmm, what's this?" He muttered before grabbing the scroll within the raven's beak. The man then opened it up and began to read the contents of the scroll. His eyes flickered through, and his expression darkened.
Immediately the raven flew away in fear, as if sensing Xuan Moon's impending rage. "ALL ELDERS ARE TO GATHER AT THE ELDER HALL IMMEDIATELY!" Xuan Moon declared, his voice booming across the Black Blade Pavilion.
He then disappeared, leaving his wife stunned with the scroll left on the table. 'What could've possibly happened?' Mei thought, as a possibility crossed her mind. She then grabbed the scroll and began to read through it.
"A calamity has descended upon the 10,000 Beast Forest, smoke billowed and flames blotted out the sky. The Demonic Beasts have gone into a frenzy, and a beast tide has now formed..." Mei muttered to herself, her face turning pale.
'Wasn't Jin'er's first destination the 10,000 Beast Forest...' As the thought crossed her mind, she immediately rushed towards the Elder Hall wanting to know their next course of action.
"RUMBLE! RUMBLE! RUMBLE!"
"BOOM!"
Before she could even enter the roof of the Elder Hall blew open and a black moon appeared in the sky. In an instant the previously bright blue sky, turned a dark abyss-like black.
A figure could be seen before the moon, blade in hand his gaze piercing out of the sect towards an unknown location. And then. In a flash the figure disappeared along with the black moon.
Almost immediately after the 7 Elders exited the hall, their expressions ashen. Upon noticing Mei their expressions, softened somewhat before turning somewhat sorrowful.
"Sect Mistress!" They greeted in unison. "Don't bother with the formalities I understand the general situation. I just need to know what my husband has decided." Mei replied.
"..The Sect Master has decided to go track down the Young Sect Master. On the other hand we must coordinate a defensive strategy to combat the incoming beast tide." An Elder explained.
They then dispersed leaving Mei to stand alone at the foot of the Elder Hall. "Please, please bring him back Moon." Mei pleaded, as a few tears ran down her face.
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"This is worse than I thought..." Xuan Moon muttered to himself. The forest looked like a hellscape and 10s of thousands of beasts could be seen fleeing their homes.
He then slashed out. The black moon which hung behind him began to suck all the light in the area, before a bright white slash at least 100 meters wide shot out.
"CREEE!"
"WHAAA!"
"ARGHH!"
Various Demonic Beasts wailed, but even this grand attack had barely dented their forces. 'Hopefully the Elders can deal with this, but I must go and save my son.' Xuan Moon thought as he gazed at the black pendant in his left hand. 'It still can't detect him.' He sighed before entering the 10,000 Beast Forest.
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"ARGH!"
Xuan Jin screamed out. Fortunately the pain had subsided greatly over these few days, or maybe he had just grown more and more used to it. He couldn't say for sure.
What he did know, was that his body had grown immensely stronger. While he naturally hadn't gotten a chance to test it just yet, the boy was sure once he was well rested he'd put his previous self to shame.
"Pop!"
An opening formed in the barrier, and Iris appeared. She then walked towards Jin and began helping him eat. Truthfully, Jin was now strong enough that he could feed himself after the forging process but the two had already become used to the routine.
"How are you feeling? Better?" Iris asked as Jin munched on his food. "I am fine, my body is getting stronger....I understand what your brother meant now. But are the creatures outside your tribe really as strong as he said." Jin replied curious at the world beyond the tribe.
"I've never been out there before, but from what my brother has told me even he's like an ant compared to some of the creatures out there." Iris replied before placing another beast leg near Jin's mouth.
"Then how do I compare to your brother." The boy asked before biting into the leg of meat. "You'd be about 20% as strong as him." Iris answered, hearing this Jin's eyes flashed in disappointment.
Seeing this Iris felt guilty, and immediately tried to comfort him. "Don't feel bad, my brother is the strongest in our tribe's younger generation. He's only 15 and has already formed his vital core. You're actually very strong considering you had no vitality 4 days ago." Iris explained, causing Jin to feel much better before another thought crossed his mind.
'When have I, Xuan Jin not been able to even beat someone within the younger generation.....' If before the boy was angry and hurt for being thrown in the Forging Altar, now he felt almost challenged in a sense.
He ate the meat even faster, ravenously devouring it. Naturally Iris was confused, but didn't think much of it and simply brought the meat to the boy's mouth faster and faster.
Once he was done eating, Iris then sat behind him and channeled her green energy into him. Jin had thought about asking what this energy was, but decided against it. Since Iris never brought it up herself, he imagined it was some sort of secret and knew better than to pry.
As the green energy entered his body, Jin began to circulate it throughout. After four days of constant agony this green energy, along with that of the beast meat and his Xuan Qi had formed a sort of equilibrium. Not only fueling his body but becoming a part of it.
A few minutes later Iris finished channeling the green energy into Jin and then left the altar in routine fashion. "Good luck Jin." She said before the barrier closed right up.
Some distance away, a middle-aged man stood atop a pillar overlooking the Forging Altar. His body was extremely muscular and defined, and he had a mane of long black hair. And unlike the other tribesmen a dark grey beast fur was tied around his waist seemingly an indication of his status.
"Father, don't you think we should let him go now. He's already stronger than most of the younger generation and he's suffered enough." Iris pleaded as she appeared behind the burly man.
This man was naturally Big Boar, the head of the Iron Body Tribe and an extremely honorable, dignified and exemplary warrior.
"Not yet. Extraordinary investment requires extraordinary results. You might not realise this, but the food we're giving him is already an absurd amount, and you're even channeling the Emerald Vitality into him. Not to mention even the Forging Altar and saving his life can't be considered a free service. In fact I didn't even factor in you carrying him from the river to the tribe." The man said in an attempt to sound wise.
".....Father you're just a penny pincher. The other tribesmen could've been convinced in a few days, and realistically he'd have just had to achieve Minor Success in Body Forging to convince them." Iris sighed, shaking her head at her father's antics.
"Well the boy's alive so everything worked out in the end. Also everyone knows of my kind heart, if he really was going to die in there I would've been the first to rush in and save him." Big Boar declared righteously much to his daughter's disappointment.
She then walked away, leaving her father to watch over the altar alone. 'Haizz, maybe one day she'll understand, everything I do I do for her and the tribe.' The man sighed before looking towards the Forging Altar in pity.
"Even I suffered under 10 times gravity when I was 7, poor boy."