12. The Weight of Life

The distance between Quan Yi and the Explosive Rhino had shrunk to just over 100 meters.

By now, the beast had fully sensed Quan Yi's presence.

It faced him head-on, its massive hooves repeatedly stamping the ground, a clear warning for him not to come any closer.

Yet, Quan Yi remained unfazed, continuing forward—steadily closing the gap to 50 meters.

Seeing that its warnings had no effect, the Explosive Rhino let out a deep, guttural roar.

Then, without hesitation, it charged.

Its enormous body thundered forward, its long horn aimed directly at Quan Yi's chest.

The Explosive Rhino's burst acceleration was terrifying—it was a spirit beast known for its devastating charge.

Yet, Quan Yi didn't panic.

No—he had been waiting for this moment.

As the beast's speed increased, Quan Yi's right hand tightened around his spear.

The red patterns on his Sun Gauntlet suddenly lit up, and a surge of flames erupted along the length of the spear, wrapping tightly around it.

With his left foot stepping forward, he twisted his torso, channeling power into his arm—

Then, with all his might, he hurled the flaming spear straight at the Explosive Rhino's face.

The beast flinched.

Startled by the sudden attack, it instinctively shut its eyes—but its charge did not slow down.

After all, the Explosive Rhino had absolute confidence in its impenetrable hide.

Indeed, its skin was exceptionally thick and highly resistant to fire.

Under normal circumstances, Quan Yi's strength alone wouldn't be enough to harm it.

But Quan Yi's true goal was never to pierce its hide.

The moment the spear struck its target—

BOOM!

A thunderous explosion echoed through the forest.

A scorching heat wave rippled outward as flames and smoke erupted around the beast's head.

For several seconds, its sense of hearing and smell were completely overwhelmed.

Blinded, disoriented, and unable to pinpoint Quan Yi's location, the Explosive Rhino faltered.

Taking advantage of the chaos, Quan Yi immediately moved left, shifting his position just as he threw the spear.

Now, he was in a new stance—his right foot forward, left hand raised—

And just as the Explosive Rhino was about to open its eyes, he struck again.

With a swift motion, he hurled his shield.

The circular flame shield spun violently in the air like a blazing frisbee, streaking straight toward the Explosive Rhino's eyes.

Even with its impenetrable skin, its eyes remained a weak point.

The Explosive Rhino had already fallen for this trick once—when it closed its eyes to block the spear's explosion.

But just as it reopened them—

A fiery disc came hurtling towards its face.

Caught off guard, the beast panicked, shutting its eyes once more—

But this time, it was too late.

BANG!

The shield slammed directly into the right eye socket, followed by a powerful explosion.

A sharp howl of agony tore through the air.

The Explosive Rhino's entire body stiffened, its steps faltering for the first time.

Pain and fury flooded its mind, and in a desperate rage, it forced its eyes open, determined to tear this human apart.

But the moment its eyes opened—

It saw a blurry figure standing right in front of its wounded right eye.

A figure who had been waiting all along.

Quan Yi.

His right hand clenched into a fist, his soul power surging and condensing at its peak.

His entire right arm transformed into a sharpened spear—

Then, in one swift motion, he drove it straight into the Explosive Rhino's eye socket.

Squelch!

The beast didn't even have time to react.

Quan Yi's entire forearm sank deep into its skull.

In that instant, he poured every ounce of soul power into its brain—

And detonated it.

BOOM!

The Explosive Rhino's body convulsed—

And then, it went completely still.

Its giant frame collapsed to the ground, the life in its eyes extinguished in an instant.

There was no final struggle.

No lingering pain.

Only the image of a blurry figure remained in the Explosive Rhino's fading consciousness—

Then, everything turned black.

Quan Yi pulled his arm free, stepping back as the beast's massive body crashed into the earth.

A moment of silence followed.

Then, from the Explosive Rhino's corpse, a faint yellow glow began to emerge.

The spirit ring.

Only now did Quan Yi finally let out a breath, his tense muscles relaxing slightly.

The entire confrontation had happened in mere moments—it looked effortless, almost too easy.

But in reality, it had been a battle of life and death, balanced on the edge of a knife.

The Explosive Rhino had almost no weaknesses. The only exploitable flaws were its poor eyesight and lack of agility.

Due to its impaired vision, it relied heavily on smell and hearing to detect enemies.

That was why Quan Yi's first attack—the flaming spear—was never meant to pierce its eyes.

Instead, its purpose was to disrupt the beast's senses, overwhelming its hearing and smell with explosions, heat waves, and scorching air, forcing it to rely solely on its vision.

That was when Quan Yi launched his second attack—the spinning shield—hoping to strike its eyeball directly.

Had his timing been perfect, he could have detonated the flames inside its skull, ending the fight immediately.

But at the last moment, the Explosive Rhino managed to react.

Yet, it didn't matter.

This was all within Quan Yi's calculations.

Though the second blow didn't kill it, it threw the beast into a state of disarray.

And now—it was already within striking distance.

At that moment, Quan Yi was at his most vulnerable.

With both his spear and shield gone, he was unarmed—in a seemingly passive and dangerous position.

The Explosive Rhino knew this too.

The moment it sensed Quan Yi had no weapons, its instincts screamed that this was its chance to kill him.

Fueled by rage and pain, it desperately tried to locate him and tear him apart.

But what it never expected—

Was that Quan Yi would willingly approach it.

Its rhino horn, a symbol of dominance and deterrence, had always kept enemies at bay.

In every battle before this, the Explosive Rhino was the one to close the distance, never the other way around.

Yet now, this human was approaching it.

It didn't understand.

What the Explosive Rhino didn't know was that Quan Yi possessed fire immunity—a rare trait that allowed him to ignore its most dangerous attacks.

Looking back, the entire battle had been incredibly risky.

One misstep, one miscalculation—and he could have been crushed instantly by the beast's sheer power.

But at that moment, Quan Yi's mind was consumed by a single thought.

To become stronger.

If he wanted to reach his goal, he couldn't afford to hesitate. He couldn't afford to fear.

He forced himself to face danger head-on, pushing past his limits, seeking strength even in the face of death.

And in doing so—

He overcame himself.

Quan Yi had not just defeated an Explosive Rhino—

He had broken through his own inner barriers.

Now, standing before the fallen Explosive Rhino, Quan Yi remained silent.

His heart was filled with complex emotions.

Slowly, he reached out his hand, gently placing it against the beast's still-warm cheek.

He could feel the lingering heat of life fading away.

Quan Yi had always known—this was the only way forward.

If he wanted to be a true soul master, he had to accept the weight of life and death.

Yet, knowing it and experiencing it were two different things.

At this moment, he truly felt the weight of his actions.

With a solemn expression, he reached out and gently closed the beast's lifeless eyes.

He did not try to forget this feeling.

Instead—

He engraved it into his heart.

Because in this world, becoming stronger means carrying countless lives on your back.

Behind him, Quan Yue and Su Ling'er emerged from their hidden position.

They said nothing.

They simply stood there, watching their son in silence.

There was no need for words.

Seeing Quan Yi's quiet yet determined figure, they understood—

He had truly changed.

Sensing their presence, Quan Yi turned around.

"Father. Mother. Please protect me—I'm going to begin absorbing the spirit ring."

Quan Yue nodded. "Alright. Don't worry."

With that, Quan Yi sat cross-legged on the ground, closing his eyes.

First, he focused on recovering his soul power, allowing his breathing to stabilize and his emotions to settle.

The volcanic environment nearby acted as a mimicry cultivation ground for fire-attribute soul masters, allowing his recovery speed to be exceptionally fast.

In just a quarter of an hour, Quan Yi's eyes snapped open.

He extended his hands, summoning the Sun Gauntlet.

The moment he brought them near the spirit ring, he felt a powerful pull.

Instantly, the yellow ring began to shrink, drawn towards his Martial Soul—

Then, in a flash, it wrapped firmly around the Sun Gauntlet.

A scorching wave of heat surged through his body, raging like a violent inferno, attempting to overwhelm him from within.

The sheer force of the soul power filled him in an instant, causing a painful swelling sensation inside his body.

It felt as if his entire being was about to burst.

But Quan Yi had prepared for this.

With unwavering willpower, he forcibly suppressed the chaotic energy, preventing it from running rampant.

Gritting his teeth, he focused all his attention on subduing the raging power, enduring the intense heat and pressure.

The struggle continued for two long hours—

Until finally—

The storm of energy began to calm.

Quan Yi opened his eyes.

To Be Continued…