Madness

I stared at the gun in my hand, its cold, metallic weight pressing against my palm like a promise—or a curse. The moonlight glinted off its barrel, casting sharp, jagged reflections that danced across the forest floor. My eyes flicked to the tree, its trunk now marred by a gaping hole, the edges splintered and raw. The power was insane. Even a Qi Condensation level four cultivator couldn't punch with that kind of force. And this was just the beginning.

In this world, cultivators were divided into realms, each one a mountain to climb, each one a chasm to cross. The first realm was Qi Condensation, the foundation upon which all power was built. Then came Spirit Condensation, Core Formation, and the Deacon Realm. Beyond that, I didn't know—and didn't care. For now, Qi Condensation was my battlefield. Each realm was further divided into nine stages, each stage a wall of fire to pass through. To enter the Black Elephant Sect, you needed to be at least Qi Condensation level five. To be in the top three of Red Blood City, you needed level seven. And me? I was nothing. A spiritless runt. Or so they thought.

I swallowed hard, my throat dry as dust, and stared at the hole in the tree again. The Desert Eagle's power was undeniable. At just level one, it packed the punch of a Qi Condensation level four cultivator. But what if it got stronger? What if this was just the tip of the iceberg? My heart raced at the thought, a mix of excitement and dread twisting in my gut.

As if sensing my thoughts, the gun seemed to hum in my hand, a low, resonant vibration that traveled up my arm and settled deep in my chest. I blinked, and suddenly, a transparent screen appeared in front of me, glowing faintly in the dark. Words materialized, sharp and clear, as if etched into the air itself.

Desert Eagle (Basic):

- A powerful handgun capable of delivering devastating force.

- Ammo: 6/7 rounds

- Reload Time: 3 seconds

- Unlocked at Level 1

- Kill to upgrade the power.

My breath hitched. The last line burned into my vision, the words sharp and unyielding. 'Kill to upgrade the power.' My stomach churned, a cold sweat breaking out on my brow. Kill? I had to 'kill' to make this thing stronger? My mind raced, images flashing before my eyes—blood, screams, lifeless bodies. I wasn't a killer. I wasn't a monster.

But then I remembered. The ceremony. The laughter. The humiliation. Xue Xiaoqing's sneer, Gong Weiyuan's smirk, my father's cold indifference. The way they had looked at me, like I was nothing. Like I was trash. The memory burned, a fire that seared away my hesitation. Something inside me shifted, hardened. A voice, low and dark, whispered in the back of my mind.

'You want power? Then take it. No matter the cost.'

My hands tightened around the gun, the metal biting into my skin. "I have to get strong," I murmured, my voice trembling but resolute. "No matter what."

The forest seemed to hold its breath, the shadows deepening around me. The Desert Eagle pulsed in my hand, its hum growing louder, more insistent. It was hungry. And so was I.

The forest was a cathedral of shadows, its ancient trees stretching toward the heavens like crooked fingers clawing at the moon. The air hummed with the whispers of unseen things, and the ground beneath my boots felt alive, shifting faintly with every step as if the earth itself recoiled from the weapon in my hand. The Desert Eagle pulsed against my palm, its cold metal seeping into my veins like a drug. Power. Raw, unfiltered power. It thrummed in my blood, sharpening my senses, tightening my grip. I could feel its hunger—a gnawing, insistent void that demanded to be fed.

I moved deeper into the woods, my breath fogging in the chill night air. My father's monthly purges had turned this place into a graveyard for anything dangerous, leaving only the meek and the fragile. Rabbits bolted at the crunch of a twig. Owls hooted from distant branches, their calls mournful and hollow. But I wasn't hunting prey. I was hunting a 'target'. Something to bleed. Something to break.

A rustle above made me freeze. Slowly, I tilted my head back. There, perched on a skeletal branch, was a red-tailed raven. Its feathers gleamed like polished obsidian, and its eyes glinted with a feral intelligence. These birds were scavengers, pack hunters, but alone they were weak—Qi Condensation level one, barely a threat to a child. Harmless. Expendable.

Perfect.

I raised the gun, the motion fluid, instinctive, as if the spirit inside it guided my hand. The raven cocked its head, unaware, its beak clicking softly as it preened its wings. My finger brushed the trigger, and for a heartbeat, I hesitated. The forest seemed to hold its breath. Then—

Bang.

The shot tore through the night, a deafening roar that sent birds exploding from the trees in a panicked frenzy. The raven's head disintegrated in a spray of black feathers and crimson mist. Its body twisted midair, spiraling down to land at my feet with a wet thud. I stared at it, my pulse roaring in my ears, my breath coming in jagged gasps. The power was 'obscene'. Even a Qi Condensation level four cultivator couldn't strike with such brutal, surgical force.

But it wasn't just the power. It was the 'ease'. The way the gun had sung in my hand, the way my aim had been flawless, as if the spirit had imprinted its knowledge into my muscles, my bones. The kill was clean. Effortless.

And then the forest 'shifted'.

A screen materialized in the air before me, glowing with an unnatural blue light that cast jagged shadows across the trees. The text burned into my retinas, sharp and merciless:

[Congratulations on your first kill. You have gained one upgrade point. Open the menu to see the use.]

The words hung there, cold and clinical, as if the universe itself was tallying my sins. My hands trembled as I navigated the interface, the glowing menu responding to my thoughts with eerie precision.

Menu:

- Guns

- Upgrades

I selected 'Upgrades', and the screen flickered, rearranging itself into a grid of stark, blood-red text:

Desert Eagle (Basic) (10 UP to upgrade to Intermediate):

- A powerful handgun capable of delivering devastating force.

- Ammo: 5/7 rounds

- Reload Time: 3 seconds

- Unlocked at Level 1

"Ten points," I muttered, my voice barely audible over the distant hoot of an owl. Ten kills. Ten lives. The raven's corpse lay at my feet, its blood seeping into the soil like ink. The first kill had been easy. A bird. A thing. But the next? And the next? Would it be animals? Or would the hunger grow, demanding more?

The Desert Eagle hummed in my hand, its vibration deepening, as if it sensed my turmoil. I could almost hear it whispering, a voice like grinding gears and static: *Feed me. Feed me, and I'll make you strong.*

I knelt beside the raven, its remaining eye staring blankly at the sky. The forest around me felt darker now, the shadows thicker, the silence heavier. The gun's hunger was contagious, seeping into my thoughts, twisting them into something jagged and desperate. I thought of Xue Xiaoqing's sneer, Gong Weiyuan's laugh, my father's icy dismissal. The humiliation burned fresh, a wound that refused to scab.

'Ten points.'

I stood abruptly, the gun's weight a comfort and a curse. The trees seemed to lean in, their branches creaking like old bones. Somewhere in the distance, a twig snapped. The forest was waking up. Watching.

The Desert Eagle pulsed again, its hum syncing with my heartbeat. I didn't know what lay ahead—the moral abyss, the bloodshed, the slow erosion of whatever remained of my humanity. But I knew one thing:

I would survive.

Even if it meant becoming the monster they already believed me to be.

The forest stretched before me, a labyrinth of shadows and secrets, its depths swallowing the moonlight whole. I stood at the edge, the boundary between safety and the unknown, and stared into the abyss. My father's men never ventured this far. They cleared the outskirts, the easy parts, but the heart of the forest? That was left to the beasts—the things that prowled in the dark, the things that didn't care about borders or boundaries. Carnivorous plants that whispered as they fed, predators with eyes like smoldering coals, and worse. Much worse.

I knew I shouldn't go deeper. Every rational part of my brain screamed at me to turn back, to retreat to the safety of the city, to the cold, empty room that waited for me like a tomb. But rationality was a fragile thing, and it shattered under the weight of the thrill coursing through my veins. It wasn't fear. No, fear was familiar, a constant companion since the ceremony. This was something else. Something darker. Something 'hungry'.

My feet moved on their own, carrying me forward, deeper into the forest. The air grew thicker, heavier, the scent of damp earth and rotting leaves filling my lungs. The trees loomed taller here, their gnarled branches twisting into grotesque shapes that seemed to reach for me, to beckon me closer. The ground beneath my boots was soft, yielding, as if the earth itself was alive and watching.

I wasn't scared. That was the strangest part. I should have been terrified. I should have been running in the opposite direction. But I wasn't. There was a thrill in my chest, a wild, reckless energy that made my heart race and my breath come in shallow gasps. It was excitement—bloody, primal, and intoxicating. The kind of excitement that comes before a storm, before a fight, before the world tilts on its axis and nothing is ever the same again.

A smile crept onto my face, unbidden, unnatural. It felt wrong, like a crack in a mask I didn't know I was wearing. But I couldn't stop it. The deeper I went, the wider it grew, until my cheeks ached and my teeth gleamed in the moonlight like fangs. The forest seemed to respond, the shadows deepening, the silence growing heavier, as if it recognized me. As if it had been waiting.

Somewhere in the distance, something moved. A low, guttural growl rumbled through the trees, vibrating in my chest. My hand tightened around the Desert Eagle, its cold metal a reassuring weight against my palm. The gun hummed softly, its vibration syncing with my heartbeat, a steady, insistent rhythm that drowned out the voice of reason screaming in my head.

'This is dangerous,' the voice whispered. 'This is madness.'

But madness felt good. It felt 'right'.

I took another step, then another, the forest closing in around me like a living thing. The thrill was uncontrollable now, a wildfire spreading through my veins, consuming everything in its path. I didn't know what lay ahead—monsters, death, or something worse. But I didn't care.

The forest had called, and I had answered.

And I wasn't turning back.