Pain wracked Zhang Yan's body, but within it lay power. A rush of dark qi coursed through his veins, sharp and intoxicating. Deep within his Dantian, the Demon Seed pulsed—a grotesque, blood-colored mass resembling a fleshy walnut, its surface writhing as it absorbed the corrupted qi permeating the surroundings. It was as if the darkness itself had found a home within him, feeding, growing, becoming one with his essence.
The Bone-Eating Wraith lunged again, but this time, Zhang Yan saw it—not just its body, but the flow of its corrupted qi, the ebb and pulse of its tainted energy.
He sidestepped, his movements suddenly sharper, more refined, as though the world had slowed around him.
Then, he struck.
His dagger pierced the wraith's skull, sinking into its festering flesh. The beast convulsed, its body trembling as if in recognition of something greater. Then, with a final, shuddering gasp, it collapsed.
And Zhang Yan felt it.
The corrupted qi that had once filled the wraith rushed toward him, drawn to his Demon Seed like iron to a lodestone. His breath came in ragged gulps as the dark energy surged into his core, the fleshy seed throbbing as it devoured the remnants of the wraith's power. His blood boiled, his senses burned, but he felt stronger.
His body slowly changed, he knew now that he had stepped out from the mundane, and his path of ascension had truly begun.
Shi Lihua enviously stared. "That was… not normal."
Zhang Yan clenched his fist, feeling the corrupt qi still churning inside him. It was raw, untamed, but undeniably his.
He turned to Shi Lihua. "We need to move. The other disciples will have heard the battle."
She hesitated, then nodded. "Right. You've just painted a target on your back."
As they ran deeper into the forest, Zhang Yan couldn't help but wonder.
Had he truly awakened his power…
Or had something even darker awakened inside him?