Jade was running.
Fast.
Very fast.
His feet tore across the forest floor while his essence surged through his legs.
Branches whipped past his face.
Leaves scattered behind him.
His breathing had already become uneven.
But Jade didn't dare slow down.
Because behind him—
An entire pack of Shadow Wolves was chasing him.
Dozens of them.
No.
Hundreds.
Their dark bodies moved through the forest like shadows given physical form.
Their eyes glowed crimson.
Their claws tore through the ground as they ran.
Some leaped from tree to tree.
Others sprinted directly across the ground.
And all of them were focused on one target.
Jade.
Or rather—
The little black cat sitting comfortably on Jade's shoulder.
Little Black.
Jade gritted his teeth.
"What on earth did you steal?!"
Little Black simply licked one paw.
Jade nearly lost his mind.
"Don't act innocent!"
A wolf behind them suddenly opened its mouth.
A sphere of dark-blue lightning condensed between its jaws.
Jade's eyes widened.
"Oh, come on!"
BOOM!
The lightning ball exploded beside him.
Jade twisted his body.
The blast missed him by inches.
Electricity crawled across his shoulder.
His muscles spasmed.
"AGAIN?!"
He had been hit by lightning several times already.
His hair was beginning to stand up.
His body even smelled slightly burned.
Jade glanced backward.
The wolves were still coming.
Some of them released wind blades.
Others launched lightning spheres.
A few even combined their attacks.
Jade's expression became complicated.
"I thought you were Shadow Wolves!"
A wind blade sliced through a tree beside him.
CRACK!
The tree collapsed.
Jade jumped over the falling trunk.
"You're supposed to deal with shadow powers!"
Another lightning ball flew toward him.
"Not use every element imaginable!"
BOOM!
Jade ducked.
The lightning exploded above his head.
His hair stood up even more.
Little Black continued sitting on his shoulder.
Completely relaxed.
Jade's eye twitched.
"You!"
Little Black turned toward him.
"What?"
"What did you steal?"
Little Black blinked innocently.
"Nothing."
Jade stared at him.
Behind them—
ROOOOOAR!
The entire forest shook.
Jade looked back.
A massive Shadow Wolf opened its jaws.
A gigantic wind blade formed.
Jade's pupils contracted.
"That's definitely not nothing!"
He immediately poured more essence into his legs.
His speed increased.
The forest blurred around him.
He jumped over another fallen tree.
Then slid beneath a massive branch.
Then twisted sideways as another wind blade passed inches from his head.
Little Black remained perfectly balanced.
Jade gritted his teeth.
"You better have stolen something worth dying for!"
Little Black thought about it.
Then smiled.
"I did."
Jade's expression darkened.
"WHAT DID YOU STEAL?!"
Little Black simply stuck out his tongue.
"Bleh."
Jade stared.
"...You're insulting them?"
Little Black nodded proudly.
"Yes."
Jade's face went blank.
"Why?"
"Because they're ugly."
Behind them—
The wolves roared louder.
Jade immediately understood.
"You are making them angrier!"
Little Black stuck out his tongue again.
"Bleh."
Jade almost screamed.
"You little idiot!"
Another lightning ball flew toward them.
Jade twisted sideways.
The lightning exploded behind them.
BOOM!
Trees collapsed.
Jade didn't even look back.
He couldn't afford to.
He was only an Initiate.
The wolves behind him were Awakened creatures.
One or two might have been manageable.
A whole pack?
Impossible.
If he stopped running and fought them directly, he would be torn apart.
So Jade had already formed a plan.
He wasn't going to defeat them.
He was going to lose them.
Somewhere ahead—
Ant Demon and Titan Devourer were hunting.
Jade could already sense their presence.
"Just a little farther."
He increased his speed again.
Then—
A massive wolf lunged from the side.
Jade barely noticed it in time.
He threw himself backward.
The wolf's claws passed directly over his chest.
Jade's expression changed.
Too close.
He landed awkwardly and immediately continued running.
"No more surprises!"
He raised one hand.
Crimson essence erupted from his palm.
Blood Flames.
Not the gentle healing flames.
The destructive ones.
Jade turned around while still running.
His palm faced the approaching pack.
"Take this!"
BOOM!
A wave of crimson fire erupted through the forest.
Trees caught fire.
Branches collapsed.
The wolves were forced to slow down.
Several were engulfed by the flames and thrown backward.
Jade grinned.
"It worked!"
For approximately three seconds.
Then the wolves emerged.
Burned.
Angry.
Still running.
Jade's smile disappeared.
"...Of course."
He immediately continued sprinting.
He sent another wave of destructive flames behind him.
BOOM!
More trees collapsed.
Smoke filled the forest.
Jade used the burning trees as obstacles.
Every few seconds—
another tree fell.
Another patch of fire spread.
Another cloud of smoke covered the wolves' vision.
But they were simply too fast.
Even through the smoke...
Jade could hear them.
Closer.
Closer.
Closer.
"Damn it."
He looked ahead.
A gigantic tree stood before him.
Its trunk was enormous.
Its branches stretched high above the forest.
Jade's eyes brightened.
"Perfect."
He immediately summoned Obsidian Vine Shadow.
A black vine shot from his body.
It wrapped around one of the higher branches.
Jade pulled himself upward.
Another vine followed.
Then another.
Within seconds, he had climbed several dozen meters.
Little Black remained on his shoulder.
Jade carefully pulled himself onto a thick branch.
He crouched.
Held his breath.
The wolves rushed beneath them.
One.
Five.
Ten.
Dozens.
The entire pack raced past the tree.
None noticed Jade.
Jade slowly exhaled.
"Finally..."
He wiped the sweat from his forehead.
Little Black looked down.
Then looked at Jade.
Then back at the wolves.
A mischievous smile appeared on his face.
Jade immediately became suspicious.
"Don't."
Little Black opened his mouth.
"Dumb wolves!"
Jade's eyes widened.
He instantly covered Little Black's mouth.
"Shut up!"
Little Black struggled against his hand.
"Mmph!"
Jade whispered angrily.
"They have sharp hearing!"
Little Black removed Jade's hand.
Then proudly shouted—
"Dumb wolf!"
Jade's face went pale.
One of the wolves stopped.
Its ears twitched.
Another stopped.
Then another.
Jade slowly looked down.
Every wolf was turning around.
"...Little Black."
The cat smiled.
"What?"
"You just ruined everything."
The wolves began growling.
Then—
BOOM!
Several wolves slammed into the giant tree.
The entire trunk shook.
Jade grabbed the branch.
"WHOA!"
Little Black rolled across the branch.
"Fun!"
"This isn't fun!"
Another impact.
BOOM!
The tree shook even harder.
Jade looked downward.
The wolves were surrounding the tree.
Some began climbing.
Others prepared wind blades.
One charged directly into the trunk.
CRACK!
The tree trembled.
Jade's expression became serious.
Then a memory suddenly flashed through his mind.
The Trial.
The Snow Wolves.
The first time he had faced creatures like this.
The fear.
The cold.
The endless snow.
And—
Little Black's egg.
Little Gold's egg.
The moment everything had begun.
Jade's eyes narrowed.
"Not again..."
The tree shook violently.
A huge wolf began climbing toward him.
Jade immediately summoned Obsidian Vine Shadow.
He had planned to transform into a bird and escape from above.
But now—
He couldn't.
Not while the wolves were climbing.
Jade raised his hand.
Crimson flames gathered around his palm.
"Get down!"
BOOM!
A concentrated blast of destructive Blood Flame struck the climbing wolf.
The creature was blasted from the tree.
It crashed into the ground.
Jade immediately turned toward Little Black.
The cat's mouth was opening.
Jade's eyes widened.
"No."
He grabbed Little Black's mouth again.
"Don't."
Little Black's eyes narrowed.
Jade sighed.
"Damn it..."
"I think I should just let them beat you up."
Little Black stared at him.
Jade smiled.
Then—
He pushed him.
Little Black dropped from the branch.
"HEY!"
Jade immediately jumped toward another tree.
Little Black fell directly into the middle of the wolf pack.
"BETRAYER!"
Jade laughed despite himself.
"I'm sorry!"
He landed on another branch.
Then jumped down.
And ran.
He didn't make it far.
Because a familiar presence suddenly appeared beside him.
Jade's eyes widened.
Little Black was sitting comfortably on his shoulder.
Licking his paw.
Jade nearly stumbled.
"WHAT?!"
Little Black continued grooming himself.
Jade stared.
"How on earth are you on my shoulder?!"
Little Black looked at him.
"I can travel through minds."
Jade's expression froze.
"I entered your mind..."
"...and appeared on your shoulder."
Jade's face slowly went blank.
He suddenly regretted learning that information.
"I wish I never knew that."
Little Black smiled.
Jade pointed behind him.
"Go hide on someone else's shoulder."
Little Black shook his head.
"Yours is the best."
"Why?"
"Because you're warm."
Jade's face twitched.
"I am not a bed!"
Little Black ignored him.
Jade suddenly sensed something else.
A familiar presence.
Ant Demon.
He smiled.
"Finally."
He turned toward the distant trees.
"Now."
A second later—
SWOOSH!
Ten arrows flew through the forest.
BOOM!
BOOM!
BOOM!
Trees collapsed.
Several wolves were struck simultaneously.
Others were crushed beneath falling branches.
The pack finally began to break apart.
Jade continued running toward Ant Demon's location.
Then—
One wolf remained.
It stood among the fallen trees.
Its crimson eyes locked onto Jade.
Jade froze.
The wolf opened its mouth.
A compressed wind projectile formed.
Jade's pupils contracted.
"Wait—"
WHOOSH!
The wind blade shot forward.
Jade tried moving.
Too late.
The blade pierced through his body.
Blood exploded across his chest.
Jade's eyes widened.
His body was thrown backward.
He crashed into the ground.
BOOM!
Pain exploded through his entire body.
His vision blurred.
For a moment...
He couldn't breathe.
The world became distant.
The forest became silent.
Jade looked down.
The wind blade had pierced deeply into his body.
"...Damn..."
He had almost died.
Little Black slowly stepped off his shoulder.
The cat looked at the blood covering his paws.
Then looked at the dirt.
Then at the blood again.
His expression became offended.
He slowly dusted his paws.
"Trying to kill my master is one thing..."
He looked toward the surviving wolf.
"...but trying to make me dirty is another."
The atmosphere changed.
Jade's eyes widened.
A strange pressure suddenly erupted from Little Black.
The little cat's body began expanding.
His fur darkened.
Silver stripes appeared across his body.
His limbs grew longer.
His claws became enormous.
His body continued growing.
Larger.
Larger.
Larger.
Until—
A gigantic tiger stood where Little Black had been.
Silver stripes covered his black body.
His eyes glowed with terrifying intelligence.
A strange aura swept across the entire forest.
Everything became silent.
Ant Demon froze.
Even Titan Devourer stopped moving.
The surrounding creatures became motionless.
The surviving Shadow Wolf lowered its body.
It wanted to run.
But its legs refused to move.
The pressure coming from Little Black was simply too overwhelming.
Titan Devourer took one slow step backward.
For the first time...
Even he looked afraid.
The giant tiger walked forward.
One step.
Then another.
Every movement carried absolute authority.
The wolves surrounding the area lowered their heads.
Not because they wanted to.
Because their instincts forced them to.
Jade stared.
He couldn't believe what he was seeing.
"This..."
"...was inside that little cat?"
The giant tiger finally stopped.
Its enormous eyes swept across the forest.
Then—
Little Black's aura suddenly became even stronger.
The wolves trembled.
None dared move.
Jade immediately understood.
This wasn't ordinary intimidation.
It was domination.
Absolute domination.
After several seconds...
Little Black slowly reduced his aura.
The moment the pressure disappeared—
The Shadow Wolves immediately fled.
They ran in every direction.
None dared look back.
Silence returned.
Little Black's gigantic body slowly shrank.
The silver stripes disappeared.
His limbs became smaller.
His fur returned to normal.
Within moments...
The giant tiger had become a small black cat again.
Little Black calmly sat down.
He licked one paw.
Then another.
As though nothing had happened.
Jade stared at him.
His body was still being repaired by the gentle Blood Flame.
His chest continued burning with pain.
Yet somehow...
The pain wasn't the thing bothering him anymore.
Jade slowly stood.
He looked at Little Black.
Then rubbed his forehead.
"So..."
"You had that ability..."
"And you made them chase us all the way here?"
Little Black looked away.
Jade's eye twitched.
"You let me get struck by lightning..."
"You let me run through half the forest..."
"You let me burn down trees..."
"And you could have transformed at any time?"
Little Black smiled innocently.
Jade facepalmed.
"Damn it."
He pointed toward the cat.
"Now show me what you stole."
Little Black blinked.
Jade's voice became dangerously calm.
"Or else..."
"I might get very angry."
Little Black's smile widened.
Then he slowly reached beneath his fur.
Jade stared.
"What the hell did you steal?"
Little Black pulled something out.
Jade's expression immediately changed.
Whatever it was...
It radiated an aura that made even his Beast Sense react.
Jade stared at the mysterious object.
Little Black smiled proudly.
"I told you..."
"It was worth it."
Jade's face became serious.
He had a very bad feeling about this.