25 Confronting the beast.
Hours ticked on as Li Jun cultivated his spiritual energy well into the night. The moon shone high above the clouds and beamed down upon him as he absorbed the power from the spirit stone.
He felt a warm sensation run through his chest as the spiritual energy spiraled around his entire body, entering his spirit core as he rotated it. His body felt hot, but a layer of frost settled on the ground beside him.
As the incredible heat and freezing cold reached their climax, a loud boom echoed from his spirit core.
A gigantic wave of energy shot out from his body as he opened his eyes. He had reached the second stage of body refining, and yet it felt as though he hadn't made a dent in the spiritual energy of the spirit stone.
He grinned widely as he looked around the dark courtyard. His eyesight had improved once again. Although it was pitch black, with only light from the moon beaming down, he could make out the faint movement of a spider spinning a web in the old apple tree.
'I didn't expect to make such great progress. These spirit stones are amazing.' He thought as he stood up and regretted giving one to Master Shen. But as he thought about how important the information he had gotten in return was and also the immunity from being punished by the guards the other night, he felt that it was worth it.
He got up from the floor and quickly ran into the distance with his newfound strength. His body felt lighter, his muscles firmer as he ran through the city in the dead of night. The streets were empty and dark as he rushed through them like a phantom.
He didn't make a sound as he rushed passed the two guards that chatted away under a lantern beside the city gates.
Li Jun arrived at the dark forest in the dead of night. The thick trees blocked out all light from the stars above leaving him in total darkness, yet he could see the veins on leaves over thirty meters away.
'This is incredible,' He thought as the energy seemed to pulse through him. If breaking through one minor stage in his cultivation meant that he could experience this much power, he wondered what would happen once he reached the peak of body refining.
He carefully strode through the forest, making sure not to make any loud noises. His eyes came to rest on an opening in the forest where trees had been felled. A trail of blood led into the distance that he previously didn't notice. He seemed more aware of small details than he was before.
Li Jun hovered his hand over his universe bag and pulled out the dark bladed sword. Beneath the shadows of the trees it shimmered slightly as if it absorbed the darkness around it.
'You won't escape again.' He thought as he followed the bloody trail deeper into the forest.
He walked for hours until he reached a stream. It took him a moment, but he soon spotted droplets of blood on the other side, and he remained on track. After what felt like hours, he arrived at a stone cliff face that climbed high above the tops of the trees. It seemed this was the end of the forest.
The trail of blood led further towards the rocky surface and then vanished behind a large stone.
'Is this its den?' He thought, creeping closer with his sword gripped firmly, he was ready to strike at a moments notice.
He stepped into the large opening of the cave and felt a gust of wind flutter past him. A deep growl emerged from within. Had it noticed him? He had thought that, with his breakthrough, he would be able to sneak up on it.
Li Jun froze, ready to dodge if the beast came charging towards him. Another deep growl ran through the cave. Beads of sweat began to form on his head as he readied himself. And then another growl emerged.
'Is it snoring?' A sudden realization came to mind.
Li Jun almost sighed with relief, but he knew that if he made even the slightest sound, it would awaken the mutated bear, and he would have to fight for his life.
He slipped through the darkness of the cave before it opened up into a large cavity. Bones littered the floor for as far as the eye could see. It looked as if the bear had eaten every animal in the entire forest.
Deer, boar, rabbit, and fish bones drew his attention, but as his eyes ran along the floor, he noticed the half-chewed corpses of two bears that were much larger than they should have been. It had even eaten its own species.
It was then that he noticed the tip of a kitchen knife stuck into the shoulder of one of the bear corpses.
Another deep growl shot through the cave as cold air blew from the stone wall in front of him. He looked at the wall again. There was no trace of any living beast within the cave.
Li Jun's eyes darted around before they settled on two large holes in the stone wall. Another gust of wind shot out from the two holes.
"This is!" He screamed with a muffle as a large yellow eye shot open from the stone wall in front of him.
A long red tongue slivered out from the wall and flickered in the air. The growling stopped and turned into a gentle hiss as the tongue returned to the stone wall. Another yellow eye shot open as they narrowed their gaze towards him.
It lunged forward, its mouth wide, as two sharp fangs slammed against the wall behind him.
Li Jun's life flashed before his eyes as every instinct compelled him to move. His newly acquired beast ability made him jump to the side before he even knew what had happened.
The head of a gigantic snake recoiled from the stone wall and snapped towards him again.
He had actually mistaken its gray scales for a jagged rocky wall. He stared at it for a moment as he used phantom steps to take five steps to the right, narrowly avoiding its vicious strike once more.
His eyes grew wide as he looked at the aura of spiritual energy surrounding the beast. It was more powerful than the bear he had seen yesterday. At least twice as powerful. But with his advancement to the second level of body refining, so was he. A grin formed across his lips as his body relaxed a little.
The snake lunged towards him again. Li Jun stepped to the side, his sword raised.
"I've got you." He muttered as his arm flicked out with incredible speed.
