"Did you hear that thunder last night? It scared me half to death!"
"How couldn't I? It sent a chill straight down my spine!"
As the sun rose, villagers' greetings intertwined with chatter about last night's thunderstorm.
Within the bustling crowd, a little Foxian followed closely behind an adult, her curious ears perked to eavesdrop on their conversations.
According to the villagers, such deafening thunder had to be an omen of calamity. Thunderstorms weren't unusual, but why was last night's thunder louder than ever?
Some even claimed they saw a platinum-colored meteor streaking through the sky, crashing onto the peak of the mountain behind the village. Clearly, the heavens had shattered!
The mountain behind the village? Isn't that where Father and I planned to gather herbs today?
The young Foxian's eyes gleamed with excitement. If the meteor truly fell there, she'd have to take a good look!
"Ahri, hurry up!"
Hearing her father's call, Ahri quickly scurried along on her tiny legs, catching up with him.
The pair soon entered the mountain, which resembled a shattered alchemical cauldron, and began their herb-gathering journey.
Her father, renowned as the village's finest herb gatherer, effortlessly plucked medicinal herbs thriving within the fractured mountain slopes.
Yet today, they still lacked one crucial herb, prompting them to venture deeper into the mountain.
"This area is safe enough. Ahri, you remember what the Cong fruit looks like, right? Let's split up to find it faster so we can head home sooner."
Ahri eagerly agreed and cheerfully dashed deeper into the forest.
Perhaps blessed by the gods, she quickly found traces of Cong fruit.
"Yes! Looks like we'll finish early today and get home sooner!"
Excitement bubbled in Ahri's voice, her desire to rest clearly evident.
She ran around enthusiastically, and soon, from afar, spotted the distinctive leaves of the Cong fruit tree.
Eagerly, she rushed forward, pushed aside the bushes—and froze at the sight before her.
The Cong fruit she sought hung neatly upon the branches, but right in front of the tree lay a large basin—no, a meteor crater!
This crater wasn't naturally formed; the broken trees and scorched earth clearly told its story.
Could this be the platinum meteor the adults mentioned?
Normally, she should have turned away immediately and informed the gods for handling.
But a little Foxian's curiosity couldn't be restrained. Quietly, she crept toward the crater's edge and peered inside.
There, she saw—a golden sword plunged upright into the ground.
Surrounding soil, scorched black as if seared by intense flame, framed the golden longsword whose hilt shimmered faintly.
The sight felt strangely compelling, as if the sword itself beckoned her to draw it!
As if possessed, Ahri slipped down into the crater and moved step by step toward the sword, an inexplicable calling echoing in her mind.
The sword seemed to whisper directly to her: Pull me out... pull me out…
Her small hands barely covered the sword's grip, and Ahri felt her heart pounding as though about to burst from her chest.
To become a guardian serving the gods—that was the ultimate dream of every living creature in the Azure Flame Domain.
And now, with this holy sword right before her, could this be her one and only chance?
"To restore Foxian glory, Ahri shall accept her fate!"
Determined, Ahri mustered all her strength and tugged fiercely at the celestial blade!
The atmosphere was perfect, emotions high, and the stage set. By all logic, Ahri should have pulled out the holy sword and ascended toward Foxian greatness.
Yet after tugging until her face flushed bright red, the sword didn't budge an inch!
"Th-this can't be right!" Ahri panted, wiping imaginary sweat from her forehead, staring in confusion at the stubborn sword.
What's happening? Why isn't it moving?
It must be my posture! Let me try again…
Ahri reached slowly this time, eyes fierce, utterly confident that she'd finally free the sword…
"Yiii—yiiii!!"
But reality shattered her fantasy cruelly. The sword stayed unmoved, no matter how many poses she tried.
What's wrong? Could I not be the rightful master of this celestial sword?!
As doubt filled Ahri's mind, a man's voice echoed clearly in her head:
"The moment I wake up, someone's already groping me. Just what kind of place is this?!"
Ahri spun around nervously but saw no one. Could it be…
Swallowing hard, she stared suspiciously at the golden sword before her.
"What are you staring at? Mind taking your hands off my body?"
The sword's guard flashed with every word spoken, confirming to Ahri exactly where the voice had come from!
"Waahh!"
Startled, Ahri fell backward painfully onto her bottom.
"T-the sword… it talks!"
"You country bumpkin! So what if a sword talks? Look how badly frightened you are."
Under Ahri's astonished gaze, countless particles of light surged forth from the blade, materializing into a man standing before her.
Sora returned to his human form, flexing slightly to test his condition.
"All that fighting and you still had to exhaust my power to catch me. You're garbage!" he grumbled, making a rude face toward the sky.
If not for being trapped in total darkness without any light to replenish his energy, victory would have been his long ago.
That bastard dared act arrogant just because Sora was the Kougouken Saikou. Had he been the Ankokuken Kurayami, there wouldn't even be room to boast!
He'd rip that guy's head clean off!
"Still… after capturing me, to toss me here of all places…"
Sora examined his surroundings: lush forests and distant mountains resembling shattered furnaces.
Puzzlement overtook him: "Just where the heck am I?"
Initially, he'd assumed his captor recognized him as a peerless treasure sword and intended to bend him to their will through all manner of torture—
Gold-filled temptations, lustful seductions, empty promises of bright futures—to test the resolve of an upright soul like himself.
Yet his captor simply abandoned him here, leaving him alone to absorb sunlight and recover his strength.
"What did that guy want? Just to watch me glow, thinking I'm some firefly?"
Truly bewildered, Sora decided to figure out his location first.
His attention shifted swiftly toward the little Foxian trying to sneak away from the crater.
"Hey! Why're you running? I need to ask you something!"
Ahri jolted, ears and tail instantly standing straight up.
Stumbling nervously, she slid back down into the crater bottom.
Turning around slowly, she found Sora already standing before her.
"Hehehe, little fox-girl, don't be scared. Big Brother here just wants to show you something cool…"
Oh no, this isn't a holy sword at all—this is clearly a—
...
"Woahhh! Sora-gege, you're really that amazing?!"
"Of course! I told you, that bastard and I battled it out for twenty thousand rounds!" Sora boasted enthusiastically, recounting his fierce battle against the enemy with platinum-flamed hands.
According to him, their battle shook the universe itself, fighting until the very Dao crumbled to dust.
"But that jerk cheated! Tricked me, ambushed me! A shameless sneak attacking a bodiless guy like me!"
"Exactly! Without that cheap shot, Sora-gege definitely would've crushed him already!" Ahri agreed passionately, defending Sora's honor.
Sora nodded approvingly, recalling the information Ahri provided earlier.
This land, known by Foxians as the Azure Flame Domain, housed familiar races:
Their current region, the Tushan Realm, was Foxian territory.
Adjacent was the Fangyuan Realm, home to the Vidyadhara.
And then there was the isolated Jiulan Realm, controlled by the Xianzhou humans.
Yet amidst familiar races, a baffling element existed—a being revered as the "Upper God," ruling over them all.
"They say the Upper God's magic is limitless—just waving a hand can make countless creatures weep. And when seriously angered by those werewolves, even heaven and earth could be remade in fire!" Ahri narrated solemnly, clearly awed by this Upper God, until she suddenly paused thoughtfully.
"Oh right! Sora-gege, with your incredible powers, are you perhaps also one of the Upper Gods?"
Someone who could transform from a sword to a human—such miraculous powers meant Sora might indeed be an Upper God himself!
"Upper God?"
Sora tilted his head, genuinely intrigued.
However, Sora stared blankly, thoroughly confused by the sudden mention of these "Upper Gods."
"Could they be the Heliobi?" he ventured a guess.
Heliobi were entities rarely found aboard the Xianzhou ships, mostly employed unseen in weapon forging.
If Sora recalled correctly, after the Luofu had been invaded by Phantylia, the Heliobus had caused some chaos aboard the ship.
Though he wasn't certain of this Xianzhou ship's identity, if it was already damaged, the Heliobi imprisoned onboard likely couldn't be contained anymore.
It was indeed plausible these Heliobi had united and declared themselves as Upper Gods. If that were truly the case…
"Then I'm far superior to these so-called Upper Gods!" Sora boasted modestly.
Insignificant Heliobi couldn't compare to him in the slightest!
But none of this was his real concern. Right now, he could sense the exact location of his own body.
Rising to his feet, Sora squinted into the distant horizon.
His body was within this Azure Flame Domain—and precisely in that direction.
"Ahri, which clan lives in that area?"
Ahri, surprised by Sora's sudden question, stood up and followed his gaze toward the distant horizon.
"That area…should belong to the Central Continent Upper Gods. But it could also be the Human-controlled Jiulan Realm."
Sora was somewhat startled at her words.
He'd anticipated encountering these Upper Gods eventually—but who knew he'd establish contact so quickly?
So right now, his body was either in the hands of these so-called Upper Gods or with the Xianzhou humans…
"I see. Thank you, Ahri."
He reached out and ruffled Ahri's fluffy head, thinking how wonderfully soft those fox ears felt!
Just as they were chatting, rustling abruptly came from the surrounding bushes!
Sensing danger, Sora quickly shielded Ahri behind him. Moments later, several Foxians emerged from the brush, wielding blades and spears.
"Ahri!" the Foxians shouted excitedly upon seeing Ahri behind Sora.
"Dad!" Ahri responded happily.
"Just wait, Ahri—we'll rescue you right away!"
They immediately aimed their weapons at Sora.
The atmosphere quickly turned tense. Ahri was completely bewildered.
Why would her father and neighbors suddenly attack Sora?
Only then did she realize—after chatting so long with Sora, she'd never informed her father.
Her father must have panicked when he couldn't find her, then hurried back to gather help!
"Wait, Dad! I can explain everything!"
Slipping from Sora's embrace, Ahri rushed directly toward her father's side.
The other Foxians quickly gathered around, thoroughly inspecting her to ensure no parts were missing.
As Ahri explained everything that happened, the Foxians visibly softened their attitudes toward Sora.
"This, uh…Upper God—Brother." A Foxian stepped forward, addressing Sora hesitantly.
His tone carried uncertainty—obviously skeptical about Sora's identity as an Upper God.
"Would you like to return with us to a safer place? It's dangerous here in the back mountains…"
After all, the back mountains were inhabited by the dreaded Borisin.
It was no place to linger!
"All right," Sora agreed, eager himself to learn more about these Upper Gods.
But fate had other plans. Just as the group prepared to leave, Sora noticed something strange.
"Did you bring another group surrounding us outside?"
Sora asked curiously.
"No—we've brought everyone from the village here. There couldn't possibly be—" The Foxian leader's face suddenly turned deathly pale mid-sentence.
"Could it be…"
"Awooo~~~!"
Pat-pat-pat!
The surrounding trees shook violently. The sound of countless paws pounding the earth echoed ominously, as if some enormous beasts were approaching!
"It's the Borisin! Those damned mutts have surrounded us!"
"Don't panic! Form ranks—they can't break through!"
Panicked cries filled the air as the Foxians quickly circled up back-to-back, weapons at the ready, watching their surroundings vigilantly.
"This is the Borisin's trampling tactic—they're using footsteps to pressure us! Stay focused—they'll attack anytime!"
The atmosphere intensified. The chaotic footsteps drew rapidly closer, terrifying the Foxians.
Unnoticed by everyone, Sora silently vanished from among the Foxians.
They gripped their weapons anxiously, until suddenly—the chaotic footsteps around them fell into disarray!
Yes, disarray!
This wasn't a good sign—were the Borisin about to launch an all-out attack?
As every Foxian tensed further, weapons gripped tightly, a massive shadow suddenly burst forth!
Covered in coarse fur, a prisoner's iron collar around its neck—this was a Borisin!
Just as the Foxians prepared to pierce the creature through, it leaped out spectacularly…and immediately slammed face-first into the ground, rolling several times before coming to a stop.
After tumbling a few rounds, it lay still before the stunned Foxians, unconscious.
Eh?!
The sudden turn of events left everyone baffled. What on earth was going on?
Fearing a trick, one Foxian cautiously poked the Borisin's body with a spear.
No reaction. It lay motionless, practically a corpse.
"This…did this Borisin drink itself senseless?!"
"Impossible! Even drunk, they'd never act like this!"
Foxians exchanged confused glances, unable to grasp what happened.
Meanwhile, they suddenly noticed—the surrounding noises had vanished.
Normally, the Borisin encircled prey, their relentless footsteps driving fear into victims, exhausting their mental defenses before delivering a surprise killing blow.
But their intimidation abruptly halted midway, puzzling the Foxians.
"Wait! Listen—there's still noise coming from over there!"
A Foxian pointed ahead, where sounds clearly continued.
After exchanging glances, the Foxians cautiously advanced.
Waiting passively would lead to certain death—why not proactively investigate?
Yet as they approached, the sounds became clearer.
Thud!
Bang!
"Doesn't this sound like flesh striking flesh? Is it…just my imagination?"
"Could reinforcements have come?"
"Impossible! Everyone in the village is already here—who could possibly be helping us…"
As the Foxians emerged from the brush, their words suddenly died on their tongues.
Trees ahead had been snapped cleanly, as if struck by some unstoppable force. Deep furrows carved the earth.
And what shocked them most—numerous Borisin lay sprawled chaotically across the ground.
Who…who did this?
Moving forward, the Foxians encountered a pile of unconscious Borisin stacked like a small hill.
'[SAIKOU HAKKOU]!'
Shiiiing—!
"No—impossible… What in the world are you…? You wiped us all out by yourself…"
Their eyes turned to the source of the commotion just as a massive Borisin clutched its chest, slowly toppling over.
As it fell, the figure facing it finally became clear:
A dark silhouette holding a golden blade stood calmly amidst the defeated enemies.
"Oh, you're here?" A familiar voice drifted over casually.
Foxians exchanged astonished looks, disbelief evident on their faces.
This voice—it was…
"Sora-gege!" Ahri joyously sprinted forward.
But as Ahri approached, the Borisin lying on the ground twitched. It suddenly surged upward, roaring desperately:
"Even if I fall, as the strongest warrior—I'll take one down with me!"
Its enormous body towered two or three meters tall, claws gleaming lethally—capable of slicing Ahri to pieces effortlessly!
Yet the golden brilliance that wiped them out arrived first, swiftly intercepting those deadly claws!
"You'd dare strike such an adorable fox-girl? You wolves truly have no sense of beauty!"
In an instant, dazzling radiance flashed through the Borisin's body.
It froze motionlessly. After a brief pause, its upper body cleanly slid off, landing heavily upon the ground.
At the severed torso, its body seemed unaware it was already split in two.
---
T/N: RIDER IS BACKKKKKKK!!!