chapter 7 “The Inheritance Part 1”
The Infernal Beast thrashed against the roots binding its legs, molten fury leaking from its cracked skin. The tendrils of destruction had torn deep wounds into its flesh, but it wasn't enough. Not yet.
Lu Yan's breath came in short gasps. His arms trembled from exertion, his energy reserves dangerously low. His level was too weak—he was only Level 3, standing against a Level 5 monster. A direct fight was suicide. He had to be smarter.
The beast's burning eyes locked onto him.
BOOM!
It exploded into motion.
A blur of flame and muscle, charging with the force of a meteor. The ground melted beneath its hooves. The air warped around its body, waves of heat distorting everything in sight.
Too fast. Too strong.
Lu Yan's instincts screamed—MOVE!
Phantom Step!
His body flickered out of existence an instant before the beast's claws tore through the spot where he had been standing. The shockwave alone sent him stumbling backward.
That was too close.
The Infernal Beast skidded to a halt, embers rising from its body. It let out a guttural growl, eyes narrowing.
It was learning.
Lu Yan clenched his fists. His summons could restrain it, but they couldn't kill it. He needed a way to finish this fight before he ran out of energy completely.
His mind worked rapidly. There has to be a way…
The battlefield. The terrain. The beast's patterns. Think!
Then—he saw it.
The Infernal Beast's hooves had left deep scorch marks in the ground… but only in a specific area. Everywhere else, the molten rock had cooled quickly, solidifying into hardened obsidian.
That was it.
He had a plan.
Now, he just had to survive long enough to execute it.
Phase One – Bait the Attack
Lu Yan shot forward, rushing straight at the Infernal Beast.
The creature roared in triumph, lunging to meet him. Claws wreathed in fire slashed through the air—unstoppable.
But Lu Yan wasn't planning to stop it.
Phantom Step!
The moment the attack was about to land, he vanished—reappearing directly behind the beast's hind legs.
His fingers moved instantly.
Forest Manifestation—BIND!
The ground shuddered full of Plants.
A split-second before the beast could turn, thick, serrated roots exploded upward, coiling around its legs like iron shackles.
The Infernal Beast bellowed in rage, but Lu Yan was already moving.
He sprinted towards the weaker terrain, the spot where the molten rock had cooled into brittle obsidian.
"Come on, you bastard… follow me."
The beast tore through the roots holding it in place, its body bursting into an inferno. The sheer force of its movement sent shockwaves across the battlefield, its tail whipping through the air like a flaming executioner's blade.
Lu Yan barely dodged, sweat dripping down his back from the scorching heat.
He reached the obsidian field—then stopped running.
The Infernal Beast charged.
Perfect.
Lu Yan slammed his hands onto the ground.
Vines of Earth's —OPEN!
A deafening CRACK split the air.
The obsidian beneath the Infernal Beast collapsed—revealing a hidden pit of magma beneath.
The creature had no time to react. Its front legs plunged straight into the molten pit, its momentum working against it. The beast screeched, struggling as the intense heat burned even its own flesh.
But Lu Yan wasn't finished.
His vision blurred from exhaustion. His energy was nearly gone. He had one last shot.
He raised his trembling hands.
Final Summon— Verdant Sovereignty!
A massive spear of reinforced vines and stone erupted from the ground, spiraling with raw power.
It pierced through the Infernal Beast's exposed chest—straight through its heart.
The creature let out a final, earth-shaking roar.
Then—
BOOM!
The Infernal Beast collapsed, flames sputtering out, its body reduced to embers.
Silence.
Lu Yan stood amidst the destruction, gasping for breath. His hands were still raised, shaking. He had won it.
| LEVEL UP |
A surge of energy coursed through his body, revitalizing him.
[Level 3 → Level 5]
XP: 0 / 2000
Stat Points Available: +3
Ability Points Available: +1
"System," he commanded, his voice steady. "Allocate 1 point to Strength and 2 points to Luck."
[Strength +1]
[Luck +2]
A faint warmth spread through his muscles, reinforcing his body. At the same time, something more subtle shifted—an intangible feeling, as if the very threads of fate had twisted ever so slightly in his favor.
Lu Yan's lips curled into a small smirk. He had always believed in careful planning, but a little extra luck never hurt.
Now, for the real upgrade.
"System, assign 1 Ability Point to Forest Manifestation."
[Forest Manifestation – Rank 1 → Rank 2]
A deep, resonant energy pulsed through him. His connection to the earth grew sharper, clearer. He could feel the hidden vitality within the scorched battlefield—the whispers of roots beneath the soil, the lingering echoes of the trees that once stood here.
But even as his body adjusted to the level-up, Lu Yan's mind remained sharp.
If this was just the first trial…
A voice—low, ancient, brimming with amusement—rippled through the air like a god watching an ant learn to crawl.
"What comes next?"
Lu Yan stilled.
The voice was old. Not in the way a dying man was old, but in the way a mountain was old. In the way an empire turned to dust.
It was time itself speaking.
"Hah." The voice chuckled again, like a blade scraping against stone. "Little one, you stand at the first step of a Plant roots paved with the beast corpse, and you ask—what comes next?"
Lu Yan's fingers curled.
The pressure in the air had changed. He wasn't alone.
He didn't need to see it to know—something was watching him.
"What comes next?" The voice repeated, dragging the words out like it was savoring them. "Next, you will crawl. You will bleed. You will kneel and wonder if your bones will ever carry you again."
The sky dimmed.
No—not the sky.
The world itself darkened, as if swallowed by the presence of something beyond mortal comprehension.
"You will watch as everything you have now—every ounce of strength, every trick, every ounce of that fleeting, pathetic confidence—fails."
Lu Yan inhaled through his nose. He wasn't a fool. He wasn't some arrogant novice who thought himself invincible because of a single victory.
He had lived another life before this. He had clawed his way to the peak of a world that no longer existed.
And he knew one absolute truth.
Power… was never given freely.
The pressure pressed down heavier. It wanted him to break, to falter—to show weakness.
But Lu Yan only exhaled.
Then, softly—he smiled.
"Good," he murmured. "Then I'll dine well."
A pause.
Then—
Laughter. Deep. Resonant. Endless.
It shook the very ground beneath him, a sound of delight and madness intertwined.
"Excellent." The voice rumbled. "Then let the feast begin."