Survival is a primal instinct, a silent cry etched into every fiber of one's being. It's the craving to not perish, to not yield to the cold shadow of death. Run, fight, beg, kneel, devour one's own pride, or even eat shit... All of that is survival. The cost or degradation matters little; the mere act of breathing can devour the last fragment of dignity.
Life confronts the weak with unyielding adversities and the strong with trials that tear at the foundations of their strength. Everyone, without exception, seeks to survive calamities, but the real question is: why? What drives a soul to keep walking through the ruins of its hope? The desire to live… what fuels it? A purpose? An obsession?
For some, it is the pursuit of immortality, an endless ambition. For others, the fleeting pleasure of life, a moment stolen from the abyss. Still, others pursue a goal, a purpose that transcends their own existence. But then there are those who fear the void, who don't live out of desire, but because the thought of dying is unbearable.
So, what keeps Bai Xuebing clinging to life, to that flickering flame that fate relentlessly tries to extinguish? What drives him, obsesses him, consumes him?
The answer is neither hope nor ambition. It's something darker, more visceral: a pact etched deep into his soul. Bai Xuebing lives to kill. He lives to suffer. He lives for revenge. To return every wound inflicted upon him, to make those who took the only thing he had—life—pay.
The tall trees creaked under the wind, accompanying Bai Xuebing's ragged breaths. Before him, the demon watched him with disdain, like a glutton sizing up an insignificant insect.
—Ninth Fang: Bite and Tear.
Bai Xuebing leaned forward, his eyes fixed on his enemy. From his core of origin, blood flowed out, enveloping his arms and taking shape. Two curved blades, sharp as fangs, emerged from his hands, gleaming under the dim light of the forest.
The demon growled, not in anger, but amusement. Its eyes gleamed, savoring the spectacle like a predator playing with its prey before the final blow.
Boom!
Suddenly, a crimson mist exploded into the air, enveloping everything around. The forest fell silent, as if time had stopped, while the metallic stench of blood filled the atmosphere.
The crimson mist covered everything. The beast growled, irritated, turning its head from side to side. It couldn't see anything, and the scent of blood saturated the air, confusing it. Bai Xuebing, hidden in the shadows, hoped this would be enough to erase his trail.
From within the mist, a swift movement. A roar of pain echoed as a cut appeared on the demon's side, small, almost insignificant.
—Damn it…— murmured Bai Xuebing, his eyes fixed on his enemy. —Its scales are too tough.
The crimson mist undulated around, as if the forest itself were alive and breathing. The Abyssal Demon Serpent stood still for a moment, observing the small scratch on its side. Its crimson eyes gleamed mockingly, and a deep, twisted laughter-like sound emerged from its throat.
Bai Xuebing tensed. The curved blood blades enveloping his hands throbbed as if they were extensions of his own body. He knew he had no options. He couldn't escape, couldn't hope for help. It was all or nothing.
The beast moved its massive body, its black scales shimmering like obsidian under the faint light. Its tail lashed through the air, destroying a nearby tree with a casual strike, as if crushing its surroundings was mere amusement.
—Second Fang: Double Charge.
Bai Xuebing lunged forward with all his speed. The blood of his blades vibrated, extending like claws as he aimed for the beast's eyes. But just before reaching his target, the creature's enormous tail appeared out of nowhere.
Bang!
The impact was devastating. Bai was sent flying like a ragdoll, crashing into a tree that splintered in half. He coughed blood as he tried to get up, his chest burning from within.
The beast's deep laughter resonated through the air, a guttural sound that sent shivers down his spine.
"You, small insect. I, great devourer," though the beast did not speak, its twisted mind did.
At a certain level, or under specific conditions, a spiritual or demonic beast develops intelligence comparable to that of a human. The more it evolves, the more intelligent it becomes, like a human would.
Bai Xuebing spat blood, his eyes ablaze with fury. The blood from his core began to swirl around him. With a growl, he reshaped the blades into a sharp spear.
—Fang: Prison Shredder.
The spear shot forward with deadly precision towards the beast's neck, but it barely moved. Its black scales gleamed, and the spear stopped, shattering upon impact with its tough skin.
Before Bai could react, a massive claw descended from above, striking him with brutal force. He was slammed into the ground, leaving a crater beneath his body.
Pain, pure and intense, coursed through his entire being. He could barely breathe, and his vision blurred. But as his blood dripped onto the ground, it began to boil, responding to his desperation.
He staggered to his feet, his blood swirling around him like a chaotic whirlwind. A twisted smile appeared on the beast's face.
"Still standing. Great devourer like toys that don't break easily."
The beast lunged at Bai Xuebing with overwhelming speed, its jaws wide open as if to swallow him in a single bite. The air around it seemed to shatter under the pressure of its movement, and a deafening roar accompanied its attack, like a death sentence echoing through every corner of the forest.
Bai Xuebing remained motionless. His appearance was terrifying: his skin, usually white as snow, now bore the spectral pallor of a corpse. Blood dripped from a wound on his forehead, running in irregular lines to stain his neck. His once-vibrant, icy blue eyes were now empty, devoid of any trace of life or emotion.
His body trembled under the weight of extreme exhaustion. Rigid muscles, ragged breathing, a heart beating out of control... Everything about him screamed that he had already reached his limit.
Time seemed to slow as the beast's jaws closed in, black and glistening like blades of obsidian. Bai Xuebing could see them clearly, each sharp tooth, each drop of saliva falling from that monstrous mouth. It was as if fate were showing him, in cruel detail, how his end would come.
His breathing was uneven, gasping, as if every breath was a battle. His body, broken and exhausted, no longer responded.
"Is this how it ends?" he thought in the overwhelming silence that filled his mind. The echo of his own question reverberated within him, but he found no answer.
And yet, deep within his soul, something refused to yield. A tiny spark, barely visible, buried beneath layers of pain and fatigue. A spark that refused to be extinguished.
But at this moment, it wasn't enough.
Bai's body remained motionless, incapable of movement. Against the overwhelming fury of the Abyssal Demon Serpent, death seemed inevitable.
With titanic effort, his blood reacted to the call of his will. The crimson whirlwind around him intensified, spinning like a storm devouring everything in its path. It wasn't his blood that boiled; it was his hatred, his despair, his survival instinct turned into a weapon.
—Twelfth Fang: The Ruinous Bite.
In the final moment, just before the demon's jaws closed on him, Bai Xuebing raised both arms. The curved blood blades that had emerged earlier now transformed into a spectral jaw, a crimson fang rising as an extension of his being.
BOOM!
The crimson jaw clashed against the beast's fangs, blocking them at the last second. The explosion of energy was so intense that the ground trembled, and nearby trees snapped like dry twigs.
The beast staggered back with a roar, surprised by the attack. For the first time, a trace of black blood seeped from its mouth, dripping to the ground like acid, burning the earth.
Bai Xuebing panted, his vision blurring as the energy from the pills continued to tear him apart from within. He could barely stand, but the spark of his will burned brighter than ever.
—If you want my life...—he murmured through gritted teeth, a smile tinged with madness on his face, his arms open as if to say: here I am—You'll have to do more than that.
The Abyssal Demon Serpent straightened, its body undulating with rage. Its gaze hardened, and the air around it seemed to darken, heavy with a pressure that threatened to crush everything in its vicinity.
The demon beast lunged at Bai Xuebing with terrifying speed, its jaws open like a hungry abyss that promised to consume everything. The air was filled with suffocating pressure, and every movement of the monster echoed like the announcement of an inevitable death.
Bai Xuebing, suspended in the air like a broken puppet, seemed unable to move. His skin, as white as snow, now carried the sickly pallor of a corpse. Blood slid down his forehead, falling in thick drops that disappeared into the void. His icy blue eyes, once cold and calculating, were now empty, devoid of any trace of humanity.
The world seemed to slow down. The forest's landscape was a blur of dark colors and distant lights, the last thing his eyes would see before meeting their end. His body, exhausted to the bones, no longer responded, and his breath was barely a broken whisper.
—Do you want to devour me...? —he murmured as he fell.
Suddenly, a flash of white light crossed his vision. Xia Ruyen and her group had arrived at the clearing, and their leader held the A-rank stun grenade high.
—Bai! —Xia screamed, her voice laden with desperation.
Bai slowly turned his head towards her, barely aware. His icy blue eyes, once cold, now gleamed with an almost insane light.
—Leader...? —he whispered, as his body continued to fall.
The grenade left Xia Ruyen's hand, flying toward the beast with deadly precision. But before the sphere could reach its target, something unexpected happened.
From the air, Bai Xuebing extended his bloodied arm and grabbed the grenade between his fingers, his laugh now a maddened echo that resonated throughout the clearing.
—IDIOT, DROP THAT! —Xia screamed, her face frozen in a mix of panic and disbelief.
But Bai did not listen. His laughter grew louder, reverberating in the air like a twisted melody.
—Hehehe... Hahaha— Bai Xuebing started laughing maniacally before turning to the demon beast, not knowing what he was about to do. The only thing that was certain was that Bai Xuebing recognized the object in his hands and a rhetorical plan formed in his mind. —Lizard, grow big.
With an unexpected movement, Bai used what little energy he had left to propel himself, speeding up his fall toward the beast's open jaws.
—NO! —Xia screamed, unable to stop what was happening.
The group watched in horror as Bai Xuebing disappeared into the beast's mouth, swallowed in an instant.
—He... he ate him... —one of the mercenaries whispered, his voice trembling.
Xia Ruyen fell to her knees, her body shaking as her mind struggled to comprehend what had just happened.
—No... it can't be... —she murmured, her gaze lost on the creature roaring with delight.
But something was wrong.
The Abyssal Demon Snake, which had begun to celebrate its victory, suddenly stopped. Its massive body tensed, and a gut-wrenching roar of pain erupted from deep within.
Inside the beast's stomach, Bai Xuebing fought to stay conscious. The gastric juices burned his skin, but his smile remained etched on his face, a deranged expression radiating pure obstinacy.
—Did you think it would be easy? —he murmured, gripping the grenade in his trembling hand —Hehehe.
With one last scream of madness, he activated the grenade and let it go.
The flash of light that followed was blinding. From within the monster, the explosion shattered its internal organs, sending waves of energy that made it stagger. The beast roared with fury and pain, its body twisting as the ground beneath it trembled.
A moment Bai Xuebing would not waste.
The beast's natural armor was its greatest defense: black scales, impenetrable, able to resist attacks from cultivators of the sixth and seventh realms. But Bai Xuebing noticed something crucial: this creature only possessed one spiritual star, an unusual flaw for its species.
Additionally, the inside of the beast was not as resistant as its exterior. Its jaws revealed vulnerable flesh, protected only by the outer scales.
With the last of his energy, Bai made a decision. He lacked the level and power, but he didn't need perfection. He just needed to finish it from the inside.
—Ascending Dragon Style... —he murmured, his lips twisting into a broken smile —Third Form: Devour.
Soon, his blood gathered into a single point, swirling infernally, too fast. From it, he formed a sphere of blood resting in his palm before losing consciousness.
With one final scream, he hurled the sphere upward. The attack pierced through the beast's innards, rising up its throat until it exploded in its skull.
From the outside, the group watched in disbelief as the Abyssal Demon Snake's head was nearly torn off, hanging by only a piece of torn flesh.
The monster's body collapsed with a crash, sending a cloud of dust that covered the entire clearing.
Xia Ruyen reacted first, running toward the beast's carcass. Her heart raced as she desperately searched among the remains.
Finally, she found him.
Bai Xuebing lay in the creature's stomach, covered in blood and acid, his body broken and motionless.
—Bai, hang on.
The group gathered in silence, watching as their leader carried Bai on his shoulders. No one spoke; there were no words to describe what they had just witnessed.
The battle was over...