The calm that Leo had found was a fragile, internal thing. Externally, his mere presence had become a seismic event in the ecosystem of the Dark Forest. The power he had absorbed wasn't just stored; it radiated from him, an invisible aura that saturated the air for hundreds of yards in every direction.
He stood up from the log, the obsidian staff feeling like a natural extension of his arm. He decided to continue his aimless walk, no longer driven by the compass, but by a simple desire to move. He took a single step.
And the forest recoiled.
It was not the fearful skittering he had caused before. This was deeper, more profound. A Shadow-Tail Panther, a creature of pure stealth that could melt into a single patch of shade, was mid-pounce on a glowing fungus-hare. As Leo's foot touched the ground, the panther froze in place, its predatory instinct utterly overridden by a primal, cellular-level command to cease. It didn't just stop; it flattened itself against the earth, every muscle locked, its golden eyes wide with a terror so absolute it was beyond panic. The hare, equally frozen, trembled in place. The hunt was forgotten. Survival, in the face of Leo's aura, meant absolute stillness.
Leo, oblivious, walked past them. He didn't see the petrified predators or prey. He was lost in his own thoughts, the memory of the Bone Sentinel now a soft, sad blur.
His aura was a chaotic symphony of the powers he had consumed, a layered tapestry of terror for any creature sensitive enough to feel it.
· The Gloom Bruin's Abyssal Energy formed the base note—a deep, chilling resonance of decay and despair that made the very plants wilt slightly as he passed.
· The Shadow Jackals' essence wove through it, a sharp, skittering paranoia that set nerves on edge and caused lesser insects to simply curl up and die.
· The Forest Titan's Terrestrial Power was the overwhelming weight of the aura, a crushing, geological pressure that felt like a mountain had learned to walk, making the air thick and hard to breathe.
· And now, the Bone Sentinel's Ancient Guardian Essence and the lingering concept from the Leviathan Bones added a new, terrifying dimension: a cold, ancient, and utterly final authority. It was the feeling of a tomb sealing shut, of epochs ending.
To the monsters of the Dark Forest, Leo was no longer just a powerful creature. He was a walking cataclysm. He was the abyss given form, the earth's wrath personified, and the silence of the grave, all rolled into one deceptively human-shaped package.
He came upon a small, bubbling creek of black water, home to a colony of Corrosive Fanged Eels. Normally, these eels would erupt from the water in a frenzy at the slightest disturbance. As Leo approached the bank, the bubbling stopped. The black water became as still as glass. Dozens of sinuous forms could be seen just beneath the surface, not moving, not breathing, playing dead in the hope that the apex predator above would ignore them.
Leo, seeing the water, felt a simple, human-like impulse. He was still in his bipedal form. He knelt down, willed his hand to become more solid, and cupped it to take a drink.
The moment his hand broke the surface, the eels directly beneath him dissolved. Not fleeing, but their bodies, unable to process the proximity of his aura, simply came apart, their energy adding another invisible, minuscule layer to his own. He didn't notice. He drank the water, which was pure and cold, untouched by the corruption his presence caused.
[The local fauna is exhibiting extreme avoidance behavior,] [Sage] noted, its tone observational. [Your accumulated energy signature has reached a threshold that registers as a non-biological natural disaster.]
[It's quiet today,] Leo thought back, completely misinterpreting the data. He found the silence peaceful, a welcome contrast to the loud, stomping Titan and the crumbling tomb. He saw the stillness as the forest finally accepting his presence, not surrendering to it.
He continued his walk, a king who did not know he wore a crown, leaving a wake of paralyzed life and silent terror. He was beginning to understand his own emotions, but he was utterly blind to the effect he had on the world. He sought peace, leaving a desert of fear in his path. The journey to understand his power was far from over; the first step was for him to simply perceive the shadow he cast.