— THE HOWL THAT SHATTERS QUIET
The Night Breaks
Midnight in Willowmist Village had always been a gentle thing—soft winds, chirping crickets, and the far-off rustle of the Whispering Pines.
Tonight… the night felt alive.
Heavy. Tense.
As if holding its breath.
Lei Wei sat by his window, unable to sleep. Spirit Seed Stage (Early) had awakened something in him—awareness sharpened like a blade. The faint hum from his chest, where Riyam's ancient fragment slept quietly, pulsed once…
thum.
Lei Wei looked up.
The air shifted.
A ripple, like the world inhaling.
Then—
A distant, echoing roar tore across the forest.
Not the Silverflame Dire Wolf.
Not any beast he had ever heard.
This howl was deeper. Older.
Like stone grinding against bone.
Lei Wei's blood ran cold.
"What is that…?"
Even the Silverflame Dire Wolf—lurking on the forest fringe these past nights—did not have such a monstrous voice.
Another roar answered. Trees shook. Birds burst into the sky in terrified flocks.
The village lanterns flickered.
Something was coming.
Something strong.
Something hungry.
---
The Village Stirs
Doors opened. Voices rose in panic.
Elder Yun stepped out, gripping his staff so tight his knuckles whitened. His old eyes trembled—not with fear, but recognition.
"No… not now… not here," the elder whispered.
Lei Wei approached him, heart pounding.
"Elder! What's happening?!"
Elder Yun stared into the forest, expression grim.
"A beast tide is forming… but this isn't normal. Something is driving the beasts outward. Something powerful."
Lei Wei swallowed hard, the weight of the moment sinking in.
"Should we evacuate?"
"No." Elder Yun shook his head. "There isn't time."
Another roar split the night—closer. Much closer.
Elder Yun looked at Lei Wei, eyes sharp.
"Stay behind me. Do nothing reckless."
Lei Wei nodded…
But his chest burned—hot, tense, alive.
Something inside him disagreed.
---
The First Beast Appears
The trees at the forest edge exploded outward.
A massive boar-like beast, covered in jagged stone plating, burst into the clearing.
Its tusks glowed red-hot. Its breath steamed like fire.
Rockspine Boar — spirit seed Stage (peak)
A creature no normal villager could fight.
Villagers screamed, stumbling back.
The beast lowered its head—charging straight for a group of children frozen in fear.
Lei Wei's heart seized.
Move.
Move!
His legs responded before thought.
He sprinted across the clearing, the world blurring around him.
Elder Yun yelled behind him—
"LEI WEI, STOP!"
But Lei Wei was already there.
---
A Clash of Flesh and Stone
The boar roared, tusks glowing like molten metal as it lunged.
Lei Wei planted his feet.
He raised his hands.
He had no techniques.
No martial arts.
No qi control.
Yet the fragment inside him stirred—
thum.
thum.
THUM.
His senses expanded.
Time slowed.
The beast was a wall of muscle and death, rushing toward him like an avalanche.
Lei Wei exhaled—
—and stepped just slightly to the right.
The world snapped back to speed.
WHOOSH!
The boar's tusk skimmed his ribs, slicing air instead of flesh.
Lei Wei felt the wind pressure slash across his torso.
A normal boy would've died.
But he wasn't normal anymore.
He pivoted, fingers brushing the beast's flank—
—and a pulse of faint white energy surged from his palm.
The boar was thrown sideways into a tree.
BOOM!
The villagers gasped.
Lei Wei froze.
"What… was that…?"
Elder Yun stared, stunned—eyes wide, staff shaking.
"That wasn't Spirit Seed energy… That was—"
He cut himself off, gaze trembling with an emotion close to fear.
Lei Wei didn't hear.
The boar was already rising.
---
The Beast Fights Back
It shook off bark and splinters, eyes burning hot.
Steam blasted from its nostrils.
It charged again—faster than before.
Lei Wei tried to dodge.
Too slow.
The beast slammed into him like a boulder.
CRASH!
He flew back, rolling through dirt before smashing into a haystack.
Pain erupted across his chest.
His breath stuttered.
He tasted blood.
But strangely…
his vision sharpened even more.
The fragment pulsed again—
thum.
His heartbeat synced with it.
Elder Yun rushed forward, trying to intercept the beast, but—
A second roar boomed from the forest.
Bigger. Deeper. Stronger.
The Rockspine Boar jerked its head in fear.
Even it didn't want to be here.
Something far worse was coming.
---
Lei Wei Stands Again
Lei Wei pushed himself up, groaning.
Villagers shouted for him to retreat.
But he didn't.
He couldn't.
A strange clarity washed over him—
a thin thread of instinct… of battle.
"Come on…" he whispered.
The boar scraped its hooves, earth cracking beneath it.
Lei Wei steadied his breath, lowering his stance like he'd seen traveling hunters do.
The beast lunged.
Lei Wei moved—not fast, but right.
A half-step back.
A slight tilt.
A shift of weight.
The tusk brushed past him again.
He grabbed the beast's snout with both hands.
Heat seared his palms.
Pain shot up his arms.
But he held on.
Energy swirled beneath his skin.
A pressure built in his chest.
And then—
BAAAM!
A pulse burst from his palms.
The boar's skull slammed into the ground, cracking earth beneath it.
The beast twitched once—
And went still.
Silence swallowed the clearing.
Only Lei Wei's heavy breathing could be heard.
---
The Real Threat Reveals Itself
Before anyone could react—
THUMP.
THUMP.
THUMP.
Trees shattered deeper in the forest.
Birds fled into the sky once more.
Elder Yun's face paled.
"No… no, this is impossible…"
Lei Wei turned, body shivering with exhaustion.
From the shadows…
a pair of blood-red eyes opened.
A monstrous silhouette stepped out, branches snapping under its weight.
A towering wolf covered in black, smoke-like fur…
…with a horn of cracked obsidian growing from its forehead.
Nightbane Dread Wolf — veinforge Stage (Peak).
A beast so powerful no one in the village—not even Elder Yun—could hope to fight it.
It lowered its head.
Its jaw opened.
A deep growl rumbled—
directly at Lei Wei.
The villagers screamed and ran.
Even Elder Yun trembled.
Lei Wei's body shook uncontrollably.
He couldn't fight this.
He couldn't even move.
But—
Something flickered behind the wolf.
Molten blue eyes.
A silver glow.
The Silverflame Dire Wolf stepped from the shadows, its aura igniting like ghostly fire.
It stood between Lei Wei and the Nightbane Dread Wolf.
Protecting him.
Elder Yun whispered in disbelief—
"T-two wolves… two apex beasts… fighting over one boy… What in the heavens is happening…?"
Lei Wei's heart hammered.
The Nightbane Dread Wolf (veinforge stage (peak) )snarled.
The Silverflame Dire Wolf (stage:??? suppression
(Vein forge (???)) bared its fangs.
And then—
The ground trembled as the two titans lunged at each other.
Lei Wei stood frozen…
Caught between monsters, destiny, and a power awakening far too fast.