Every breath pulled shards of glass in. Vera's throat tensed in pain, thousands of shards ripping through it.
His once cold body pulsed with the heat of the living. Eyes clamped down tight, his hands pressed against his temple. Each sensation ran through his body with the sharp burns of thunder, rampaging through his nerves.
Trembling hands pressed against his neck. His carotid, which was ripped open by the Bixie's claws, was barely intact. Tendrils of raw flesh crimped around his carotid, holding back each pulse.
His blood beaded through the patches that held his veins together. A heavy groan escaped him. Its raspy texture mirrored that of the thousand shards that engulfed his throat.
The clamping of his eyelids slowly wore off.
Innumerable stars of night suffocated the moon. The painting of the celestials flooded his mind.
"So... I won..."
A pained smile crept onto his face. A battle where he fought to his truest extent. An opponent that let him bring out his everything.
The state of his body became proof of his battle.
Vast Heavens stifled his every movement before they could even come to his mind. Against the Bixie, he was able to put everything he'd learnt out.
The elation of true battle that he'd forgotten throbbed within the ruins of his marrow.
The pressure that engulfed his soul morphed into momentary excitement.
"Zhuyan."
His quiet smile split into a jagged grin. The dried blood that painted his face crunched into powder.
Sand crunched under his feet. Each step veering off course. His body disappeared into the dark of night, the remains of his body carrying a silent veracity.
***
While the shadow of battle flooded Vera's veins, he didn't recognise the trauma he'd sustained in his battle with the Bixie.
But as travel went on, he realised he wasn't fit to survive, let alone challenge the next guardian.
The crimping around his veins restricted the very act of eating. His throat clamped shut as he swallowed food.
Every time he swallowed food, an intense hissing ran through his ears; eating itself started to feel like a chore.
As the weeks went by, the crimped flesh that bound his carotid thinned. Layers of veins encroached on the patching. Leaving a burning itch across his throat.
Slowly but surely he was recovering.
About two weeks into his travel, Vera was able to hunt third-grade beasts again. Just enough to eat for a day.
Endless desert returned to lush forests.
The flickering flame of the camp roasted skewers of beef. Vera's eyes were latched onto the glistening fat that dripped from the skewers.
"Fuck... I should've packed seasonings."
His eyes despaired over the fatty skewers that lay unseasoned.
A weak qi seemed to be approaching.
His neck snapped back; the presence of a demon grabbed his attention.
Vera took the skewers off the fire and laid them against a rock.
The situation confused him. He'd scattered wildebeest blood around the camp. None should've approached the camp, let alone have gotten this close.
Leaves rustled as branches creaked.
Whatever was approaching didn't seem to have any killing intent.
However, the confusion Vera felt from the encroaching beast was overshadowed by what came next.
The covers of the forest pushed open. A high-pitched voice drew Vera's attention.
"You, human over there."
"Would you be willing to trade a few waterskins of your wildebeest blood?"
A face covered in fur, its features resembling that of a human. Its eyes were shaped like coins; it spoke as it hung from a branch.
A beast that could barely be called a demon beast, not even a third-grade one.
Vera's words caught in his throat.
"How can you speak?..."
"How can you speak?..." The chimpanzee shot back at Vera, its head lying slanted as it spoke.
Its mischievous grin revealed a row of yellowed teeth.
"You seem to be injured; I can give you some ointment. Specially made in my village. You won't find anything like this on the continent."
The chimp continued speaking; from his calloused dark finger dangled packs of salve wrapped in leaves.
"Umm..." Vera stared at the talking chimp, creases forming over his forehead. The situation left him dumbfounded.
"Ughh... Aren't you humans supposed to be smart? Tell me, are you up for a trade or not?"
"And don't tell me you don't have enough. I saw the wildebeest massacre; if you stole their blood, you would certainly have a few bags."
At this point the chimp's intelligence couldn't be attributed to poor mimicry.
"Well, I'd be willing to trade a few waterskins. But how much salve do you have on hand?"
Vera spoke, the creases above his eyebrows smoothing. No amount of thinking could resolve it at this very moment.
"I have five packs on me right now."
"I'd be willing to trade two waterskins for that."
The grin on the chimp's face faltered.
"That much won't be enough. I need at least five to cover the village. The blood from the scene has long dried out."
Teeth gritted, the chimp tried to bargain with Vera.
"Well... It's not like I could trade at a loss? I'm in no condition to fight every beast in this forest."
While Vera was confounded by the speaking chimp, its novelty wasn't enough to trade the wildebeest blood at a loss.
In his current state he couldn't afford to engage in constant battle.
"Hmmm..."
The chimp's dull grin turned to a contemplative expression. The contrast of the chimp's face and its expression almost made Vera laugh.
"I got it!" The chimp exclaimed.
"Why don't you come to our village? You could stay with us while you recover. But I'd need more than five waterskins for that."
"You look somewhat like us as well. Not as handsome, but acceptable. I'm sure the elders would let you stay."
And so Vera's travel with the talkative chimp began.
Night and day passed as always. The chimp's incessant chattering reminded Vera of Elem.
The chimp's grin dripped with saliva as he stared at Vera's skewers every time dinner came around.
After a week or so of travel, Vera arrived at the edge of the forest. As he pushed away the foliage that hid the village.
Bewilderment struck. Hundreds of chimps walked across the land. Their hustle and bustle was indistinguishable from that of a human village.
Stalls selling food and vegetables lined the streets.
Artisan chimps, using bones to shape satchels made of leather.
Guards walking the streets with stone spears and leather armour, their gazes firmly locked on all things suspicious.
The light of day shone through the land of the chimps. In all the Demon Continent's erraticness, this wasn't something Vera thought he'd ever see.