203. Golden Dew

Li Wen sat cross-legged atop a stone slab on the hill, his body enveloped in a faint, pulsating aura. His dark green eyes slowly opened, sharp as blades, gazing toward the distant southern horizon. A deep, guttural roar echoed through the vast forest, shaking the mist-covered trees. 

A flicker of curiosity crossed his face. He could feel it—the presence of something powerful lurking behind that roar. Something far beyond the ordinary beasts that prowled these lands. 

Without hesitation, his body dissolved into streams of magical energy, merging with the surrounding mist. Like a phantom, he surged forward, his essence coalescing into a swirling purple cloud. It slithered through the dense forest, winding between towering trees and weaving through the green miasma that clung to the land. 

After covering a significant distance, he halted midair, the ominous feeling growing stronger. Then, a new sound reached his ears—footsteps, hurried and desperate, heading straight toward his position. 

Intrigued, Li Wen let his form solidify once more. His figure materialized atop a sturdy tree branch, his robe billowing gently in the night breeze. Silent as the shadows, he waited, his gaze fixed on the approaching figures, ready to uncover the reason behind this sudden disturbance in his domain.

Li Wen did not have to wait long. Within a minute, a frantic group burst through the green mist, their breaths ragged, eyes filled with urgency. He immediately recognized them—the human travelers he had encountered the previous day. However, accompanying them was another group, their skin smooth and stone-like, devoid of any hair. 

The name surfaced in his mind, drawn from the vast knowledge stored within his soul chip—' Stone Barbarians'. 

At the forefront stood a stone-barbarian woman, her gaze locking onto Li Wen the moment she spotted him. Without hesitation, she spoke, her voice carrying both authority and desperation. 

"Help us, a member of the Desire Protoss. If you can drive away the ferocious beast chasing us, our tribe will reward you handsomely." 

Li Wen's lips curled into a lazy smile. "What reward?" 

The woman did not flinch. "First, help us. Then I will show you the reward." 

Li Wen raised an eyebrow. "How can I be sure that the value of your reward matches the effort of my help?" 

"The value of the reward," she said with certainty, "is more than your help." 

Li Wen was about to respond when a deafening roar erupted from the jungle behind them. The oppressive aura of the approaching beast washed over them like a tidal wave. Li Wen narrowed his eyes, sensing the creature's energy level same as his. 

This made him try the beast coming to this world. He did not fight anyone with the full strength of his new body.

His smirk deepened. "Really? Then I cannot take on this cause and effect. I should let the ferocious beast slaughter all of you… and simply take the reward from your corpses." 

A flicker of alarm crossed the woman's face. "The reward is not with me. It is in a secret location only I know." 

Li Wen hummed in amusement. "Then let's hope your secret is worth my time." 

Without another word, his form shimmered, dissolving into raw magical energy. Before the terrified onlookers could fully grasp what had happened, he reappeared in a flash—his fist already colliding with the skull of a monstrous boar. 

The beast was enormous, its tusks wreathed in grey flames, its body surrounded by the same strange energy. Upon impact, a violent shockwave erupted, ripping through the jungle. 

The green mist was blasted away, revealing the battlefield in its entirety. The Stone Barbarians and humans stood frozen, staring in awe as the force of the blow sent ripples through the air, announcing the clash between two powerful beings.

Li Wen did not engage the boar in direct combat. Even with his confidence, he could sense that the beast's raw physical strength surpassed his own. Instead, he adapted. With a flick of his wrist, his demon energy surged, forming into a long, coiling whip that crackled with eerie purple-green flames—' Plague Fire', a recent development of his plague law. 

The whip ignited the air as Li Wen lashed out, striking at the boar's thick hide. Each hit left faint scorch marks, the flames seeping into the beast's flesh, though the outer damage seemed insignificant. The boar retaliated with terrifying force, its grey-flamed tusks slashing through the air, gouging deep trenches into the earth wherever it struck. 

Their battle raged, the intensity forcing the human and Stone Barbarian spectators to retreat. Each missed attack shattered trees, tore through the jungle, and carved a battlefield around them, stripping the land bare. 

Minutes turned to hours. Neither combatant showed signs of relenting, yet no significant external injuries marred their bodies. Li Wen's whip strikes burned the beast, but its thick hide resisted serious damage. Meanwhile, the boar's attacks came close several times, forcing Li Wen to rely on agility and precision to evade. 

Then, suddenly, something changed. 

The boar stumbled. 

Its massive form, so full of unrelenting strength moments before, swayed unsteadily. Its heavy breaths turned ragged, its movements sluggish. 

Li Wen's smirk widened. 'Finally.' 

The burns may have been minor, but his plague law had seeped in. Through every tiny wound, the infection had taken root, spreading insidiously through the beast's body. Its immune system, no matter how resilient, was no match for his curse-laced flames. The disease wormed its way through the creature's bloodstream, attacking its organs, and weakening it from within. 

The mighty beast let out one last, strained roar before its legs buckled. It crashed to the ground with a final, earth-shaking 'thud'. 

Silence followed. 

The spectators, who had kept their distance, stared at the fallen beast in stunned disbelief. From the outside, the boar bore only mild burn scars. But inside… it was a different story. 

Li Wen rolled his shoulders, stepping toward his fallen prey. His plague law had worked flawlessly, corrupting the beast's very essence, and shutting down its heart without leaving visible destruction. 

He chuckled. 'A clean death.'

Li Wen turned to face the gathered crowd, his expression unreadable. The woman who had negotiated with him stepped forward, her stone-like skin reflecting the dim light of the forest. 

Now fully aware of his identity, she bowed slightly. "Lord Li Wen, thank you. If you can follow us back to my tribe, I will give you your reward as promised." 

Li Wen regarded her for a moment before shaking his head. "You can return to your tribe. I will come later to claim my reward when I have free time." 

Before she could respond, he raised his hand, and dark tendrils of 'demon energy' shot forward, vanishing into the bodies of the barbarians. A barely perceptible shudder passed through the group as the energy settled inside them. 

The woman stiffened. "What did you do?" 

Li Wen smirked. "This will tell me where your tribe is." 

Her expression darkened, but she held her composure. "You did not need to do this. We could have simply told you the location of our tribe." 

Li Wen met her gaze calmly. "This is my way. A mere wisp of demon energy will not harm any of you." He glanced at the assembled group. "You may all leave now." 

The woman hesitated for a breath before bowing again. "Yes, Lord Li Wen." She then turned, leading her people away into the misty forest. 

Li Wen watched them go but soon noticed that the 'humans' had not moved. His sharp gaze flicked toward them, one brow raising in question. 

Wei Xuan hesitated, then took a step forward. "Lord, we wish to discuss something with you." 

Li Wen waved a dismissive hand. "Later. When I visit their tribe, you may speak to me then." 

The humans exchanged glances before nodding in understanding. Without another word, they turned and followed the barbarians into the night. 

Li Wen let out a slow breath, the jungle once again silent around him. The plague-infected corpse of the boar lay at his feet, the last remnant of the battle. 

Li Wen's eyes narrowed as he studied the corpse of the ferocious boar. The overwhelming energy of his plague law still lingered in the air, yet something else resisted his influence. 

He extended his hand, and demon energy surged outward, engulfing the massive corpse. But instead of seeping in, his energy was repelled. A faint pulse of grey energy continued to radiate from the dead boar's body, resisting any intrusion. 

Even in death, the beast's essence refused to be subdued. 

Li Wen's gaze sharpened. He could feel the nature of the grey energy—its presence gave off an aura of pure life destruction, similar to his plague law, yet fundamentally different. Where his plague law infected and withered life away, this energy seemed to be an inherent force of annihilation, erasing everything it touched. 

Fascinated, he pushed harder. His magic energy surged forward, battling against the grey energy, forcing it back from the boar's body little by little. The struggle intensified as the opposing energies clashed, but Li Wen had patience. He carefully pressed his energy in all directions, forcing the grey energy to retreat inward, compressing it within the boar's corpse. 

Slowly, the dead boar began to deflate, its once-massive form withering under the relentless force. The thick muscles and hide, which had remained unscathed even after their intense battle, shrunk and caved inward as the grey energy was slowly herded into one place—the beast's belly. 

Finally, all the remaining grey energy was trapped within a single concentrated point in the corpse. 

Satisfied, Li Wen extended his hand, attempting to pull it out. 

But it refused to budge. 

His magic energy latched onto the compressed core of grey energy, but no matter how much force he applied, it remained rooted inside the boar's body, as if it had fused completely with the remains. 

Li Wen narrowed his eyes. If he couldn't extract the grey energy, he would refine it instead. 

He channeled his demon energy, wrapping around the concentrated grey energy within the boar's corpse. Slowly, he began to refine it, guiding the foreign force into submission. As his energy seeped deeper, the boar's body started to rot at an accelerated pace. 

The once tough flesh decayed, turning into dark sludge, while the remaining organs shriveled into dust. A putrid stench filled the air, but Li Wen remained unmoved. The grey energy, unable to resist his refinement, began to dissipate into the world instead of transforming into his own power. 

His brows furrowed slightly. So, it couldn't be absorbed. 

Minutes passed, then hours. By the time he finished, only the bones of the ferocious boar remained— everything else had rotted away. 

Just as Li Wen was about to pull back his energy, a golden drop appeared where the grey energy had once been. 

His eyes flickered with interest. Before he could react, the golden drop merged into his energy. 

A strange sensation washed over him. His mind trembled slightly, and then— 

Understanding. 

The lingering confusion he had when comprehending his Plague Law—the small pieces of knowledge that had eluded him before—suddenly became clear. As if a veil had been lifted, his insights into the law deepened, his mastery increasing by 10% in an instant. 

Li Wen exhaled, a slow smirk creeping onto his lips. 

Li Wen's smirk deepened as he clenched his fist, feeling the lingering resonance of the golden drop within his energy. 

"If one drop could increase my comprehension of Plague Law by 10%… then with ten of these, I would step into the Intermediate Realm of a Demon Lord." 

A surge of ambition burned in his dark green eyes. If he wanted true authority, he couldn't remain confined to this human realm. To influence events on a larger scale, he had to return to the Demon Realm. 

But before that— Pian Ran. He has to solve her trouble.

A flicker of cold calculation crossed his face. If the trap against Pian Ran truly involved a God Lord or someone even stronger, then rushing in without advancing would be a fatal mistake. 

"I need to hunt ten ferocious beasts of my level before she makes her breakthrough." 

The decision was made. But first— 

"I should claim my reward." 

With a swirl of demon energy, his form vanished from the spot, leaving behind only the withered remains of the once-mighty boar.