The Fallen Boundary pulsed with a life of its own. Wu crouched atop a jagged rock formation, his black hair fluttering in the distorted wind, eyes scanning the twisted landscape below. Each fissure, each warped stone seemed to hum with latent energy, whispering secrets from a forgotten era. He had come to understand something crucial in these past days: this place was not merely dangerous—it was a teacher.
Three Chaos creatures prowled beneath him, their grotesque forms shifting unpredictably. Wu studied them carefully. Unlike the first creatures he encountered, these were intelligent, almost cunning in their coordination. They paused intermittently, scanning, calculating, and adjusting their movements. Even without a system, Wu could sense the patterns hidden in their chaos.
"This is a game," he muttered under his breath, "and I am both player and board."
He crouched lower, observing a fissure in the ground. It was unstable, radiating a subtle, twisted energy. A perfect trap. Wu lured the nearest creature toward it, using a fragment of fallen rock to catch its attention. The creature lunged—and the fissure collapsed, swallowing it whole. The other two froze, confused by the sudden disappearance of their companion.
Wu seized the opportunity. Rolling through another patch of chaotic energy, he struck with precision, targeting weak points in their distorted forms. The second creature shrieked as the energy of the Boundary seemed to twist and coil around it, constricting its motion until it could move no more.
Finally, the last one hesitated, eyeing him warily. Wu's gray eyes gleamed faintly. He feinted left, drawing the creature into a jagged channel between rocks. A swift, precise strike and it too collapsed, the chaotic energy dissipating into the air.
Wu wiped his hands clean, exhaling slowly. "In Honghuang, even the forgotten have teeth. Yet every creature has a flaw. You just need to find it."
He settled atop his perch, listening. The whispers of the Fallen Boundary grew softer, almost approving, as if acknowledging his growing understanding. Every fissure, every residual pulse of chaotic energy was a lesson, a map of survival for those clever enough to read it.
As the sun dipped below warped horizons, Wu's mind drifted toward the human elements of this realm. Saints, scouts, and sect cultivators would be far more dangerous than even the most cunning Chaos creatures. He allowed himself a faint smile—this was only the beginning.