LightReader

Chapter 8 - Chapter 5: Fears

3rd POV:

Samael was finally at the peak of the Chaotic Soul Refinement Realm, the 15th stage. It had only been a couple of years since his bloodline awakened while fighting that wolf, but to him it felt like just yesterday. Despite having grown so immensely powerful compared to back then, he still hadn't gone back to find any beasts to train himself against. He felt afraid. Afraid of what he would do. That he would lose control if he saw another Ice Wolf. Even though he had killed that wolf back then, it wasn't meant to be that way. The wolf was just an animal; it didn't know that what it was doing was a bad thing. Today was the day that changed. He needed to conquer his fears so he could be ready. Once he leaves the village, there wouldn't be anyone who would save him. It would just be him and Augustus. 

Samael began heading leisurely towards the clearing, intending to head far deeper into the woods. Though he had learned quite a bit about the surrounding geography while he was younger, there was still much he didn't know. The information in the village was just too limited, and there just weren't any people powerful enough to map the deeper, more dangerous sections of the surroundings. The base of the mountain on which the village was located was big, one of the biggest in the entire Akasha Mountain Range. The mountain range lies like a belt across the entire continent. A great divide splits it in two. Along the western side of the mountain range lies the Northern Divide Forest, the outermost section of which Samael was traveling through. The forest extends along one-third of the mountain range, extending out to the northwestern reaches of the continent. The forest is divided into several sections. The outermost section is called The Outer Reaches and comprises about one-sixth of the total forest. In The Outer Reaches, the danger level is generally low, as the beasts are between Low Tier 0 and Low Tier 1. At this level, they haven't begun developing their intelligence yet and are considered weak by the world's standards. Beyond The Outer Reaches lies the middle section, also called The Fool's Death Trap because of how many arrogant young cultivators die from the beasts inside. Roughly an hour later, Samael made it to the edge between The Outer Reaches and The Fool's Death Trap. Samael stops for a moment before continuing further inside. To conquer his fears, Samael is searching for a Mid Tier 1 beast. Because of his extreme fighting prowess relative to his cultivation, he needed something far stronger than himself to get the challenge needed for him to solidify his foundations and finally face his fears. 

The rustle of leaves followed Samael as he made his way through the tightly forested woods. The trees were hundreds of feet tall, and their leaves had begun shifting to their colorful fall shades. The sounds of small animals could be heard all around as Samael continued searching for his opponent. The occasional large beast was roaming, but nothing powerful enough to attack him. He continued searching, but for each hour that passed, Samael began to feel more and more unsettled. He felt like something was watching him. He couldn't tell where it was coming from; he couldn't even feel the strength of the presence. He thought he was just paranoid when a noise behind him made Samael quickly turn around. Standing there was a large, catlike creature. Surrounding it was a fog of black energy that seemed to spread out across the forest floor. In the fog were shimmers like stars in the night sky. Its steps were completely silent, almost as though if you looked away, it would disappear forever. The cat-like beast let out a low growl, moving around Samael, looking for an opening. The beast had a powerful aura of oppression. Its body was sleek and stealthy, covered in black fur, like it was a void in the background of the forest. Its eyes shone like gold in the light of the three moons in the sky. 

The beast lunged forward, aiming to get hold of Samael's spear with its jaws to disarm him. In response, Samael took a step to the side and thrust his weapon towards the beast's side. Samael's spear struck true, but the beast's Essence-reinforced hide and fur made it bounce off, doing no damage. The beast struck back, breaking the spear in half with a swipe of its paw. *Shit, what is this beast. It's way more powerful than a normal Low Tier 1 beast is. It's physical capabilities are higher than mine despite our similar cultivation level.* Samael grabbed the left from leg of the beast and pulled. The beast got dragged toward Samael, who then made a fist and punched the beasts head down into the ground. It soon became a brutal back and forth. Neither truly gaining the advantage. The wounds piled up on both of them as the fight continued. The two separated, their bodies riddled with wounds and covered in their own and each other's blood. A newfound respect shone in their eyes as they looked at each other. Suddenly, the Soul Essence of the beast began to rise. Samael, not knowing what it was trying to do raised his guard once more. His tired arms went up as he braced himself for an attack. But no attack came, instead he felt something click in his soul. Emotions that weren't his began flowing through him as a connection deeper than anything he had ever experienced formed. Still slightly wary, Samael looked toward the beast, only to see a small kitten lying where it had once stood. Not knowing whether this was a tactic to lure him to let his guard down, Samael approached cautiously. Then Samael felt a tug on his soul, followed by a reassuring feeling. He slowly let his guard down as he stopped right in front of the small kitten. 

It had a striking resemblance to the beast he had fought but it was far weaker. It seemed like a newborn version of it. The small kitten slowly opened its eyes and looked around, eventually locking eyes with Samael. "What are you, little fella? Are you it's child?" The small kitten tilted its head then slowly nodded. Though newborn it's intelligence was staggering. It was almost like he was communicating with a human child. The beast slowly stood up on its wobbly legs then jumped onto Samael's shoulder, where it then lied down, draping itself across the neck and shoulders of him. "I guess I should give you a name huh, lil guy. Can't be calling you that forever." Samuel thought for a moment then his eyes lit up. "How about …"

More Chapters