"Catch him!"
An angry roar echoed through the forest.
A thin twelve-year-old boy sprinted desperately through the dense woodland, his ragged clothes snagging on thorn-covered branches while his bare feet kicked up dirt and fallen leaves.
Despite his frail appearance, he ran with astonishing determination.
It wasn't the speed of someone gifted.
It was the speed of someone who understood that stopping meant death.
His chest rose and fell violently as he gasped for breath, yet he refused to slow down. His eyes darted left and right, desperately searching for any possible escape route.
Behind him...
The sound of hurried footsteps grew louder with every passing moment.
The boy's heart gradually sank.
"They're catching up..."
He gritted his teeth and forced his exhausted legs to move even faster.
Unfortunately...
His frantic escape had already carried him beyond the familiar forest paths.
The dense trees suddenly disappeared.
A cold wind rushed toward him.
Only then did he realize what lay ahead.
A cliff.
His pupils contracted violently.
With all the strength left in his body, he planted both feet into the ground.
Gravel scattered in every direction as he slid dangerously close to the edge.
Several loose stones tumbled into the abyss below before disappearing without a sound.
The boy's face immediately turned pale.
"I..."
"...I almost..."
Before he could finish speaking—
Laughter echoed from behind him.
"Hahaha!"
"So you finally stopped running."
Three youths slowly emerged from the forest.
None appeared much older than sixteen.
Each held a thick wooden plank in one hand, casually resting it against a shoulder as though they were merely enjoying a game.
The one standing in the middle smirked.
"What happened?"
"Didn't you have plenty of energy just now?"
He glanced toward the cliff behind the boy before clicking his tongue dramatically.
"Oh..."
"I forgot."
"You've got nowhere left to run."
The other two burst into loud laughter.
The boy said nothing.
He instinctively took several cautious steps backward.
Each time the three advanced...
He retreated.
Until...
His heel touched empty air.
He could retreat no further.
The laughter continued.
The boy slowly lowered his head.
His trembling shoulders betrayed the fear he desperately tried to suppress.
Then...
Without warning—
"WHY?!"
His voice exploded through the mountains.
The sudden outburst startled even the three youths.
The forest became silent.
The boy raised his head once more.
His eyes had already turned red.
"Why..."
"What did I ever do to you?!"
His voice cracked.
"I'm already an orphan!"
"My parents are dead!"
"I gave you the land deed!"
"I handed over the house!"
"So why..."
"Why won't you just leave me alone?!"
Every word carried years of grievance.
Years of helplessness.
The three youths merely exchanged glances.
Not one showed the slightest hint of guilt.
The youth in the middle lazily twirled the wooden plank in his hand.
"Because you're an orphan."
His tone remained indifferent.
"A mud-legged peasant like you should've considered it an honor to offer your house and land to the Wind Tiger Gang."
"You should've done it with both hands while kneeling."
The other two nodded in agreement.
"As for resisting..."
"That was your mistake."
The boy clenched his fists so tightly that blood began dripping from his palms.
Hatred.
Pure, uncontrollable hatred.
Yet...
He lacked the strength to act upon it.
Seeing his expression, the leading youth suddenly smiled.
"Oh."
"I almost forgot."
"Would you like to know what happened to that nosy neighbor of yours?"
The boy's breathing froze.
"...Uncle Wang?"
The smile on the youth's face widened.
"That's right."
"The old fool just couldn't mind his own business."
"He insisted on helping you."
"So..."
"We made sure he'd never walk again."
"He'll spend the rest of his life crawling."
The other two laughed once more.
"That should teach him to stay out of the Gang's affairs."
For a brief moment...
The boy stood motionless.
Then...
His entire body began trembling.
Not from fear.
From rage.
"You..."
His bloodshot eyes locked onto the speaker.
"What did you do to Uncle Wang?"
The three merely grinned.
One even shrugged.
"What does it matter?"
"If we feel like it..."
"We'll finish him and his family tonight."
The final thread holding the boy's reason together snapped.
"AAAHHH!"
With a furious roar, he threw himself forward like a cornered beast.
Instead of using his fists...
He bit directly into the leading youth's wrist.
"ARGH!"
The youth screamed in pain.
"Get him off!"
The remaining two immediately rushed forward.
Their wooden planks descended without mercy.
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
Each strike landed heavily against the boy's back, shoulders, and ribs.
Even after blood filled his mouth...
He refused to release his bite.
Only after another vicious blow struck the side of his head did his strength finally give out.
His body rolled across the ground.
Instinctively...
He curled into a fetal position, trying to protect his vital organs.
The bitten youth clutched his bleeding wrist.
His face twisted with rage.
"You little bastard!"
He grabbed the wooden plank with both hands before slowly walking toward the defenseless boy.
His eyes were filled with killing intent.
"When we're done beating you to death..."
"We'll go finish Uncle Wang and his entire family."
The words struck harder than the wooden planks ever could.
Lou Feng slowly opened his swollen eyes.
He understood.
No matter what happened today...
They had never intended to let him live.
Nor would they spare the only person who had ever shown him kindness.
A strange calm gradually settled over him.
His gaze slowly shifted toward the endless abyss behind him.
One path led to certain death beneath their hands.
The other...
Led into the unknown.
At least...
The unknown still held the faintest possibility.
Without another moment of hesitation—
Lou Feng turned...
And leaped from the cliff.
For several breaths...
The three youths stood frozen at the edge of the cliff.
None of them had expected Lou Feng to actually jump.
The sound of his body crashing through countless branches echoed upward before everything fell silent once more.
Only the cold mountain wind continued howling through the valley.
One of the youths swallowed nervously.
"...He's dead... right?"
The bitten youth glanced toward the endless darkness below before looking down at the deep bite mark still bleeding on his wrist.
His expression immediately became vicious.
"He'd better be."
"That little bastard actually made me bleed."
He clenched his injured hand tightly, his face twisting with resentment.
"He's lucky he jumped."
"Otherwise..."
"I would've made sure he begged for death every single day."
The third youth laughed.
"Enough."
"Our job's done."
"Let's hurry back and report to the steward."
"If he's satisfied..."
"We might each receive a few hundred wen."
The moment money was mentioned, the eyes of the other two immediately lit up.
"A few hundred wen?"
"Hahaha! Worth it!"
None of them spared another glance toward the abyss.
After all...
No ordinary person could possibly survive a fall from such a height.
Within moments, the three figures disappeared back into the forest.
---
Far below the cliff...
A broken branch suddenly creaked.
Hidden among countless enormous ancient trees, a frail figure hung limply between several thick branches.
Lou Feng.
His body was covered in cuts and bruises.
Blood stained his torn clothes while countless leaves surrounded him like a soft blanket.
His luck...
Could only be described as miraculous.
The enormous leaves covering the ancient trees had absorbed most of the impact before the countless branches gradually slowed his descent.
Even so...
Several bones throughout his body had still fractured from the tremendous force.
He couldn't move.
He couldn't even feel his legs properly.
Every breath sent waves of pain through his entire body.
His vision gradually darkened.
Unable to endure the exhaustion any longer...
He lost consciousness.
...
Time quietly passed.
When Lou Feng slowly regained awareness once more, the surrounding forest had already become completely dark.
The moonlight barely penetrated the dense canopy overhead.
He stared blankly into the darkness for several breaths before remembering everything.
"...I'm..."
"...still alive."
His dry lips slowly curved upward.
Then...
His stomach growled loudly.
An overwhelming sense of hunger instantly overwhelmed every other sensation.
Ever since his parents died several months ago, he had rarely eaten a proper meal.
Most days...
He survived on wild vegetables and whatever scraps kind villagers secretly handed him.
His already thin body had gradually become malnourished.
Now...
After enduring such severe injuries...
Even lifting a finger required tremendous effort.
His vision slowly wandered across the surrounding branches.
Then...
His pupils brightened.
Not far away...
Several strange fruits hung from one of the enormous branches.
Each fruit was roughly the size of a fist.
Its surface alternated between emerald green and crimson red stripes, appearing almost luminous beneath the moonlight.
Lou Feng instinctively reached toward it.
Unfortunately...
His arm stopped halfway.
He simply lacked the strength.
His fingers trembled violently before falling back.
He gritted his teeth.
"No..."
"I..."
"...can't die here."
His eyes gradually filled with determination.
The Wind Tiger Gang.
The steward.
The three youths.
Uncle Wang.
Every face appeared before him one after another.
Hatred once again became the fuel that pushed his exhausted body forward.
With a hoarse growl, Lou Feng forced his aching muscles to move.
Little by little...
His fingertips finally brushed against the nearest fruit.
Without even bothering to inspect it, he immediately stuffed it into his mouth.
Crunch.
Sweet juice instantly flowed across his tongue.
The next moment...
Warmth erupted throughout his body.
His eyes widened in disbelief.
The warmth continuously spread from his stomach into every part of his body.
His exhausted muscles rapidly recovered.
Even the fractured bones no longer throbbed as intensely.
The change wasn't dramatic...
Yet it was unmistakable.
"This..."
His breathing immediately quickened.
"A spirit fruit?"
His gaze instantly shifted toward the remaining fruits.
Without hesitation, he gathered every one within reach before devouring them one after another.
Crunch.
Crunch.
Crunch.
Although his stomach quickly became full...
The warm current continued flowing through his body without stopping.
His muscles gradually regained strength.
His breathing became smoother.
Even the countless bruises across his skin began producing an itchy sensation, as though they were healing.
Under the faint moonlight...
His skin briefly emitted an almost imperceptible jade-like sheen before quietly fading away.
Soon...
Another sensation emerged.
Sleepiness.
An overwhelming drowsiness surged through his mind.
His eyelids became incomparably heavy.
Lou Feng immediately bit the tip of his tongue.
The sharp pain barely kept him awake.
"No..."
"I can't sleep here..."
Only now did he notice it.
Pairs of faint green eyes silently watched him from the darkness beneath the trees.
One pair.
Then another.
Then dozens more.
Low growls gradually echoed throughout the forest.
Cold sweat instantly covered his back.
Those beasts were waiting.
Waiting for him to become weak enough.
Waiting for him to fall.
Lou Feng slowly raised his head.
Not far away...
A narrow waterfall descended from the cliff above.
Behind the flowing water...
A dark opening was barely visible.
A cave.
Hope immediately ignited within his heart.
Using the strength the strange fruits had just restored, Lou Feng slowly climbed down the enormous tree before staggering toward the waterfall.
Every movement remained painful.
Yet compared to before...
It was like heaven and earth.
Passing through the curtain of water, icy droplets soaked his clothes.
Behind it...
A hidden cave quietly revealed itself.
Lou Feng didn't hesitate.
He immediately stepped inside.
Only after the sound of rushing water isolated the outside world did he finally breathe a sigh of relief.
The beasts lingering beyond the waterfall no longer dared approach.
Supporting himself against the damp stone wall, he slowly walked deeper into the cave.
The further he advanced...
The more astonished he became.
From outside, the cave had appeared small.
Yet within...
It stretched far deeper into the mountain than he had ever imagined.