I shouted loudly, but there was no response from the surroundings—only the cries of wild beasts. Above, the sun was blood-red, as if the end of the world had come. The whole forest felt eerily strange, something was moving below, causing a faint tremor, while shadows kept flashing across the sky.
Everything was moving—the beasts here were all heading west. I suddenly remembered: Yuki once said that when the sun turns blood-red, the King of the Isle awakens.
But those others had vanished. I didn't know what had happened, only that they were gone. My Specter Web could barely extend two or three meters before it stopped—I started to worry.
Something was terribly wrong. Large numbers of beasts rushed this way, driven by terror. The air was thick with a deep, penetrating fear—so strong it seeped through my skin, making my spine tingle and my courage falter.
Everything was so strange, but I had to find them. On the yellow cabin in front of me, I saw a clear black claw mark—left by Kane. Instantly, I thought of the Nightshade’s massive clawed hand. The mark was huge.
I kept walking toward another cabin across the way, which bore the same claw marks. Perhaps I’d disappeared, so they couldn’t find me and could only move forward, leaving these marks behind.
Following the claw marks left by the Nightshade, I pressed on. There were already dozens of marks on the giant trees. The beasts’ movements grew louder—I saw many rare, exotic creatures, most of which I’d never seen before. All of them were fleeing west, as if escaping disaster.
Suddenly, a fierce, icy wind swept through. I gripped a branch tightly and saw countless animals swept up by the gale—some slammed into trunks, others were sucked through gaps between the trees, deeper into the forest.
I was stunned. After the gale, even the green, pus-like growths on the trees were blown away, and the puddles on the ground had vanished.
Then, a thunderous roar echoed from deep in the woods. It sounded like countless animals howling at once. I quickened my pace—there was no time to wait. The claw marks continued ahead, so I started to run. Without me, they couldn’t use ghost energy to fight. Kane was the only one left who could battle, but his strength had long since faded.
With a thunderous crash, another fierce roar erupted, accompanied by flying branches, wood chips, dust—and something black. Blood. Splattering in great swaths toward us, the noise coming closer and closer.
I heard a series of thuds, as if something was pounding violently against the bark—sharp and clear.
I swallowed hard. Corpses of beasts littered the ground, slain with brutal force. Some of the larger ones bore claw and bite marks—not Kane’s doing.
Suddenly, I understood. With a deafening crash, I stared wide-eyed—Kane’s wings were missing a huge chunk, and his body was covered in triple-slash claw marks.
"What happened, Kane?"
I shouted. Rounding a bridge, I finally saw them all—their faces pale and grim.
"Hey, Fang, where did you run off to?"
Black Moon complained, and I hurried over to them.
"Worried."
Kane roared. His damaged wing regenerated, and he rushed over, grabbing me in a hug. A flash of yellow—something furry—whirled past my eyes. I couldn’t see it clearly, but a huge force slammed both me and Kane into a tree.
"What is that?"
The thing before us was bizarre—cat-like, but with three upright tails. Its head bore a single vertical eye, and its body was dotted with leopard spots, all in earthy yellow. Each of its three tails stood tall. It was as big as a horse, with powerful limbs and sharp, three-toed claws. When it roared, a fierce gust of wind rushed toward us.
"That creature is a Tri-tailed Lynx." (Note: The Tri-tailed Lynx is a mythological beast from the Classic of Mountains and Seas, a Chinese compendium of legendary creatures.)
Ghost Painting Book Immortal muttered. Instantly, Kane hurled me toward the others, ghost energy spilling from his hands as his wings beat. He dove at the beast—the Tri-tailed Lynx.
Ray Lin and Deathcurse caught me; Isabelle Frost shot me a glare.
"We'll talk later. First, let's deal with this thing. Who's up?"
As I spoke, I released my Specter Web. I’d considered using my gun on the beast, but its speed astonished me. It darted through the air, leaping from trunk to trunk like a ricocheting bullet. What surprised me even more—Kane managed to keep up, dodging every blow without getting hit.
"Hold on, Fang. Kane’s battle instincts have awakened here. Best not to interrupt him."
Ghost Painting Book Immortal spoke as I asked questions. He stroked his beard and smiled.
"This monster comes from the Classic of Mountains and Seas. It’s called the Tri-tailed Lynx. In the legend, atop Mount Yi Wang, there is a beast shaped like a lynx, with one eye and three tails. Its roar sounds like a hundred beasts and can subdue evil spirits if tamed."
I let out a cry, and then Ray Lin and Cao Wanzhi nodded, Deathcurse and Isabelle Frost nodded too, while Victor Duan just laughed.
"Wow, I didn’t expect you all to know the Classic of Mountains and Seas so well. I never cared for it—back in school, just seeing it annoyed me."
The battle raged on. The Tri-tailed Lynx was incredibly agile, fighting with varied tactics—using its front claws, and its three tails weren’t just for show. When they whipped against the trees, trunks more than ten meters thick split apart. I swallowed hard; Kane kept dodging desperately, but he was being completely overwhelmed by the lynx.
"Why would a monster from the Classic of Mountains and Seas appear here?"
"It’s strange. The monsters in that book have always been imagined by people—maybe someone bored just made up a bunch of things and wrote a fun book, with pictures. Modern scholars say it was written between the Warring States and Han periods, by people from Chu or Bashu. But back in the Shang dynasty, I’d seen these things before—though they weren’t called the Classic of Mountains and Seas."
Ghost Painting Book Immortal was visibly excited, and Isabelle Frost too—her face lit with childlike joy, as if seeing something she’d heard about for years but never witnessed, the feeling welling up from deep within.
"Little Yi is so happy, haha. After all, when I first met her, the first thing I told her about was the monsters from the Classic of Mountains and Seas. Back then, she pestered me every day to take her to see them... But I’d never seen them myself. Eventually, I couldn’t refuse her anymore, but I was too embarrassed, so I said, ‘When you get married, I’ll take you.’"
For a moment, I saw Isabelle Frost’s cheeks flush red. She glared fiercely at Ghost Painting Book Immortal, and I couldn’t help but laugh.
"Alright, alright, let’s not dwell on old stories. Kane looks like he’s at his limit. Who’s willing to step in? This creature is tough—maybe it’s just playing around now, but if it gets serious, none of us might be a match. We’re limited in how much ghost energy we can use."
I looked awkwardly at Ghost Painting Book Immortal. In other words, even if I used up all my ghost energy, I might not be able to defeat the Tri-tailed Lynx.
Kane slowed down for a moment, and three deep claw marks split open across his ribs. Black blood dripped down as he crashed into a tree with a thunderous bang, then fell to the ground.
"Tri-tailed Lynx, wait—he’s already lost. Next, you can pick your opponent. How about it? You’re having fun, aren’t you?"
Ghost Painting Book Immortal spoke. The Tri-tailed Lynx, about to attack Kane, stopped and landed lightly on a tree trunk, staring at us. Its reddish-brown eye rotated, mouth open, exposing sharp fangs. Only now did I notice—it had four ears: small ones below, and large, folded ones pressed against its mane.
The Tri-tailed Lynx slowly raised its front paw, then pointed a finger at us. Deathcurse stood beside me, cracking his knuckles and stepping forward. But the lynx shook its head, and Ray Lin laughed. The lynx shook its head again, and then everyone looked at me. I pointed to myself.
The Tri-tailed Lynx nodded. Isabelle Frost glared at me from not far away.
"Fang, give it a try—even though your movements are seriously limited now, you should still be able to surprise that thing."
A killing aura began to condense along my spine, transforming into a pair of Vermilion Bird wings. As soon as the Tri-tailed Lynx saw them, its eyes widened. My wings were different from the Nightshades’—they were born with theirs, which sprout from a small bulge on their backs and unfold like a butterfly from a cocoon, retracting when not in use. (Note: Vermilion Bird is a mythological creature from Chinese folklore, symbolizing fire and the south.)
I flapped my wings and took off, but I hadn’t used them in ages and felt clumsy. With a snap, the Tri-tailed Lynx tensed like a drawn bowstring, ready to spring.
"Wait a second, okay? I haven’t fought like this in ages—let me adjust first."
I spoke, and the Tri-tailed Lynx nodded. I began to weave through the forest, flying—not very fast, even stumbling a bit. I had to figure out an effective way to defeat the lynx. Besides, Ghost Painting Book Immortal said it hadn’t even shown its true power yet.