An archway appeared.
Light poured from its ancient stone like the light of stars. It spilt across the frozen ground, painting the snow in shades of silver and shadow, reaching toward the gathered humans and beasts like a living thing.
Shen Jiu stepped back into the beast formation, his serpent eyes still gleaming with amusement. He said something to those around him, and laughter rippled through their ranks. But their eyes remained fixed on the archway.
Bing Wenhai returned to the human camp without a word. His aura had settled, but the tension in his shoulders remained.
For one breathless moment, the archway became a window into somewhere else—a place of impossible colours and shifting shapes, of mountains that moved and skies that breathed. Then the window shattered into a thousand fragments, and where it had been, a gate stood.
A closed gate carved from mysterious stone, covered in runes that predated language, pulsing with the slow, steady rhythm of a heartbeat.
From the beast people, the old Ice Fox stepped forward. Her human form moved with the grace of centuries, each step radiating its own quiet authority. She halted before the gate and lifted her staff.
"The gate will remain open for one hour," she intoned.
A pause hung in the air.
"Those who do not emerge before the realm gate closes will be lost forever."
She struck the ground with her staff and chanted inaudible words, as a beam of radiant light arced from her staff to the gate, illuminating it.
The gate groaned.
Runes ignited across its surface, radiating a brilliance almost too intense to behold. The stone between them shimmered, and an ancient aura slowly seeped into the air as the gate began to open.
Beyond it, there was only darkness.
Those among the human elders who attempted to probe it with their consciousness were wounded by the mysterious force within.
The old Ice Fox chuckled at the sight and stepped aside.
"Enter, if you dare," she said.
For a long moment, no one moved.
Twenty humans. Twenty beasts. All staring into the same darkness, feeling the same weight pressing against their souls. Time seemed to pause.
Then Shen Jiu laughed.
He stepped forward without hesitation, his serpent eyes gleaming and his smile sharp as a blade. The other beasts parted for him, and he passed through the gate without looking back.
The darkness swallowed him whole.
One by one, the beasts followed.
The Frost Wolf youth, now healed, his expression murderous, passed through. The Boulder Bear shambled after, his massive form somehow fitting through the gate as if it welcomed him. The Shadow Panther dissolved into darkness before she even reached the threshold, becoming one with the void beyond.
They went in twos and threes, in groups and alone. By the time the last beast vanished, the human camp had still not moved.
Bing Wenhai watched them go, his expression unreadable.
Then he turned to the nineteen who remained.
Without a word, he marched toward the gate.
The eleven from distant powers followed: the crimson-robed woman with Phoenix blood, the young masters with their pristine auras. They entered in a wave, their fine robes disappearing into the darkness one by one.
The eight from Northwatch remained.
Lu Chenyi was the first to move. He walked forward without looking back. The Frostcloud girl followed. Then the border soldiers. Then the sharp-eyed clan heir. Then the young man with haunted eyes.
Miao Ying looked at Chu Feng.
"See you on the other side," she said.
She walked through.
Chu Feng stood alone before the gate.
Behind him, the frozen plains stretched endlessly, grey, cold, and familiar. The stronghold waited somewhere in the distance, now hidden by snow and sheer distance. The life he had built there, the patrols, the quiet comradeship of survivors, all of it lay behind him.
Before him, the darkness waited.
Chu Feng stepped forward.
The darkness swallowed him.
For one endless moment, there was nothing.
No ground beneath his feet. No sky above. No sensation of any kind—just the void pressing against his consciousness like the weight of deep water, like the pause between heartbeats when death and life hung in balance.
Then—
Light.
It exploded behind his eyes, before his eyes, everywhere and nowhere. The void split, and through the crack, he fell.
Landing on solid ground.
He carefully extended his consciousness, taking in the world around him.
The place was… breathtaking.
Mountains rose in the distance, their peaks swallowed by clouds that glowed with an inner fire. Forests stretched between them, trees impossibly tall, their leaves shimmering in colours without names. A river flowed nearby—rising against gravity, its waters a swirling mix of silver, gold, and something beyond description.
The sky held no sun, yet light came from everywhere: the clouds, the trees, the snow beneath his feet, even the air itself.
Chu Feng exhaled.
The qi here was thick, almost solid, making every cell in his body scream with joy. He sat down to meditate, drawing in the energy like a starving beast.
Minutes later, he rose, checked his body's condition, and whispered, "Anytime now… just need one more push."
"Crsssht… crsssht…"
Chu Feng moved before he could fully process the sound, his body reacting with the precision of seasoned training. He glided through the forest, his steps silent, consciousness probing ahead as he drew his sword.
He was surrounded by wild beasts.
Bloody eyes glinted from the shadows, all fixated on him, moving with predatory intent. He was encircled, dozens of forms closing in from all sides.
He counted ten clearly—enough to be dangerous.
As they stepped into the moonlight, their forms became visible: nine Tier 3 bloody wolves, muscles rippling and fangs bared, each radiating raw feral qi. At their centre, a larger, more imposing Tier 4 wolf commanded them, its crimson fur matted with past battles, eyes burning with intelligence and malice.
The forest seemed to hold its breath. Leaves whispered under claws, and a low, guttural growl rolled through the clearing like a warning drum. Chu Feng's grip tightened on his sword. The Tier 4 wolf stepped forward slightly, testing him, as the nine Tier 3 wolves fanned out, cutting off any thought of retreat.
A sense of danger heavier than iron pressed against him, but his body had already made the choice: fight. His sword hummed in response to his qi, ready to strike the first beast that lunged.
The circle tightened. Crsssht… crsssht…—leaves crushed under moving paws, the prelude to a storm of fangs and claws.
Chu Feng's senses sharpened to their limit. The Tier 4 wolf snarled, its intelligence clear in the way it directed the smaller wolves, each one shifting in perfect synchrony, herding him like prey.
He drew a deep breath, letting his qi pulse through his body. Every cell screamed for action, every muscle tuned for the fight. With a flick of his wrist, his sword glowed faintly, absorbing the ambient qi like a blade fed on the forest itself.
The Tier 4 wolf lunged first, a blur of crimson fur and sharp teeth. Instantly, Chu Feng stepped to the side, sliding between two trees, letting the beast's momentum carry it forward. One of the Tier 3 wolves tried to flank him from the right—crsssht… crsssht…—but he twisted, pivoting on his heel, his sword slashing a crescent through the air. Qi ignited along the blade, searing the wolf's flank, forcing it to yelp and recoil.
The remaining eight wolves surged, a tidal wave of claws and snarls. Chu Feng's body moved, weaving through the attacks. Each strike of his sword left trails of light, each step silent as a shadow.
The Tier 4 wolf circled, studying him, waiting for an opening. Chu Feng's consciousness spreads out fully, mapping the positions of each beast in the clearing, calculating the gaps, and predicting attacks before they come. With a sudden burst of speed, he darted forward, closing the distance to the Tier 4. His sword sliced diagonally, qi flaring in a blinding arc. The wolf barely dodged, but the force of the strike sent the surrounding Tier 3 wolves staggering.
Crsssht… crsssht…—the forest floor shook under the chaos of motion. Blood mixed with the scent of damp earth and leaves. Chu Feng's heart remained calm; his body was an extension of his mind. Every slash, every step, every pulse of qi was precise. The wolves were fast, but he was faster, sharper, and infinitely more precise.
The Tier 4 wolf let out a roar, a mix of fury and pain, signalling the escalation of the fight. Chu Feng's eyes narrowed. He inhaled deeply, gathering the qi in his dantian, letting it surge through his meridians. His body vibrated with energy, his veins glowing faintly as if the forest itself fueled him. With a sudden pivot, he launched forward—
A Tier 3 wolf lunged at him, jaws snapping. Chu Feng sidestepped, letting the beast collide with a tree. Before it could recover, his sword swept in a controlled arc, the qi along its edge igniting like a comet. The wolf yelped as the strike burned across its side, forcing it to retreat into the shadows.
The next wave of wolves came faster, but Chu Feng's movements were already preemptive. He leapt onto a fallen log, pivoted midair, and struck down two wolves simultaneously. His sword left trails of radiant qi, slicing cleanly and efficiently—no wasted motion, no unnecessary force.
The Tier 4 wolf, realising its pack was faltering, charged with a roar that shook the leaves from the trees. Chu Feng met its charge head-on, letting his qi surge like a blade of pure energy. The impact was thunderous, yet he flowed through it, riding the shockwave as if he were part of it. His sword found the wolf's shoulder in a precise strike, forcing it to howl in pain and stagger.
The remaining Tier 3 wolves, seeing their leader wounded, faltered. Chu Feng's eyes glinted as his aura spread out, his body moving with the rhythm of the qi around him, every strike timed perfectly.
One by one, the wolves were cut down or driven back, each motion of Chu Feng's sword leaving a faint trail of glowing qi in the air. The Tier 4 wolf, now limping, circled warily, its eyes burning with a mixture of rage and fear.
He drew a deep breath, focusing his qi into a single, decisive strike. The air seemed to hum as a rune materialised behind him, shimmering with radiant energy before streaming along the air and flowing into his sword, flashing like the brilliance of a rising sun. The Tier 4 wolf braced itself...
Slash! The forest fell silent for a heartbeat. The wolf let out a final, shuddering roar before collapsing, its pack scattered and broken. Chu Feng stood in the clearing, chest heaving, sword still glowing faintly with residual qi.
Chu Feng lowered his sword slowly, letting the residual qi along its edge fade back into his body. The forest was eerily quiet now, the echoes of snarls and rustling leaves replaced by the soft hum of ambient energy. Around him, the Tier 3 wolves lay scattered, wounded or unconscious, while the Tier 4 lay still, its crimson eyes dimmed.
He crouched briefly, scanning his own body. Minor scratches marred his arms, and a faint soreness ran along his ribs, but nothing severe. His qi trembled beneath his skin, a mix of exertion and the lingering energy from the battle. He inhaled deeply, letting it circulate fully, feeling it seep into every meridian, every fibre, every cell.