Tian Lei adjusted his cloak and started walking toward the city's outskirts, where the mist-covered mountains rose in the distance. The roads grew quieter the farther he went—fewer merchants, fewer guards, only the rustle of spirit leaves in the wind.
He was just about to leave the city's outer boundary when sudden noise reached his ears—screams and the roar of spirit beasts. His expression sharpened immediately.
Ahead, down a narrow forest path, he saw a young girl running. She looked about his age—maybe a little older—with long black hair tied loosely, her robe torn and blood-stained. Behind her, three spirit beasts charged through the brush, their fangs glinting with cold light.
But she wasn't alone.
Three men in black clothes followed behind the beasts, their auras faint but trained—beast tamers, low-level but dangerous in groups.
"Just kill her already!" one of them barked. "Finish it fast, and we'll be done!"
