The sky dawned covered by thick clouds. Mist rose from the rocks along the coast of Nagan like silent specters, foretelling what was to come. Jin woke before sunrise, as always. But that morning, his body carried a different tension. The sea breeze whispered like an ancient song of warning.
Baekho gathered the group beside the carts, now reinforced with closed compartments and extra protection from talismans pasted onto the wood.
— The return mission won't follow the same route we came from — he announced. — Secondary route, through the Five Claws Trail. Shorter, but more dangerous. There were recent landslides. And bandits are taking advantage of the chaos.
Glances were exchanged among the escorts. Jin, now officially one of them, did not avert his gaze. The name of the trail was enough to put veterans on alert. But he only adjusted the sword at his waist.
Chi, beside him, watched silently, arms crossed and expression more serious than usual.
— The forest will test you — he said finally. — The silence in there isn't the same as in the city. Or the road. It's a silence that swallows men without leaving a trace.
Jin said nothing. But his heart was racing.
The Five Claws Trail was like a scar cutting through the spine of the mountainous forest. Trees too tall cast the ground in perpetual shadow. The ground was uneven, covered by thick roots and loose stones. The air was humid, heavy. And there was silence. A silence that made the sounds of the world seem wrong when they arose — as if the forest disapproved of any noise.
Jin followed at the rear, attentive to every change in the wind. The techniques he had trained now guided his senses. He felt more than he saw — a distant snap, a distorted Qi flow, an inexplicable chill crawling up his neck.
During rest stops, when the horses rested, Jin would discreetly step away to train. He repeated movements with the short sword, simulated dodges between trees, practiced the Sliding Wind technique among treacherous roots.
Chi observed him, occasionally correcting with brief remarks:
— Your left foot is always half a second late. And you still hesitate on the counterattack. That's going to cost you one day.
— I'm evolving — Jin responded, panting, wiping the sweat with his sleeve.
— And that's the minimum acceptable. — Chi smirked. — But you're right. You are evolving.
On the second day of travel along the trail, the caravan found an abandoned village. The houses were half-destroyed, doors ripped off, dried bloodstains on the walls.
Mu Hwan, the oldest escort, commented in a low voice:
— This wasn't a band of thieves. It was something... worse.
Baekho ordered silence and doubled the guard. They camped outside the village, in open ground.
That night, the sky fell. Thunder rumbled over the mountains, and rain poured down as if it intended to drown the world. Jin stayed awake throughout his watch, eyes scanning the shadows between lightning strikes.
Chi, drenched for the first time, hovered with a sour expression.
— This is humiliating. Not even I escape the rain out here.
Jin smirked slightly.
— Maybe you should get used to it. You'll see a lot more mud.
Chi raised an eyebrow.
— You're getting sarcastic. I'm proud. The void is bearing good fruit.
But the smile soon faded.
In the distance, between two thunderclaps, Jin felt it. He didn't hear it. He didn't see it. He just... felt it. A presence. Dense. Sharp. It wasn't like the bandits. Not even like common cultivators. It was something... different.
Chi felt it too. His eyes narrowed.
— Something is coming. And it's coming from the forest. Slowly. But it's not alone.
Jin stood up. His hand on the sword. His gaze locked onto the darkness of the forest. The silence swallowed everything again. And at the center of that void, something was moving.