The inner zone was not lawless.
It was ruled.
Xu Yuan understood this the moment he crossed deeper into the region beyond the hollow. The air itself felt different here—not merely heavier, but claimed. Each breath carried a faint pressure, subtle yet unmistakable, as though the land recognized a master and tolerated intruders only at its discretion.
Territory.
In Hell Worlds, territory was not marked by borders or banners.
It was marked by blood.
Xu Yuan moved carefully, senses stretched to their limit. The terrain rose gradually, forming uneven ridges and narrow valleys that funneled movement into predictable paths. Bones littered the ground—some shattered, some arranged deliberately, others half-melted into the obsidian soil.
Warnings.
"This area belongs to something stronger," Xu Yuan murmured.
[Assessment: Accurate.]
[Territorial imprint detected.]
He slowed his pace but did not turn back.
Avoidance could only take him so far.
If he wished to grow, he would eventually have to challenge territory—not recklessly, but deliberately.
The pressure intensified as he advanced.
Not enough to crush him, but enough to test him.
Xu Yuan's body responded instinctively. Muscles tightened. His breathing adjusted. The reinforced density of his flesh and bones allowed him to endure the ambient suppression where his former self would have collapsed outright.
Still, sweat beaded along his brow.
This was not a place meant for humans.
A low, resonant sound rolled across the land.
Not a roar.
A vibration.
Xu Yuan stopped.
The ground beneath his feet pulsed faintly, crimson veins lighting up in slow rhythm. The sound repeated, deeper this time, resonating through stone and bone alike.
[Warning: Territory ruler response detected.]
Xu Yuan's grip tightened on the broken sword.
"So you noticed," he said quietly.
The pressure sharpened.
From the far end of the valley, something emerged.
It was massive—but unlike the brute monsters he had faced earlier, this being moved with deliberate, measured steps. Its body was a fusion of hardened flesh and crystallized bone, layered in overlapping plates that reflected the hellish light like dark mirrors.
Its head was elongated, crowned with curved horns etched with natural grooves that faintly resembled runes. Its eyes burned with a steady, crimson intelligence.
A Territory Lord.
Not a true demon lord—not yet—but far beyond ordinary Grade-Two monsters.
Xu Yuan felt it clearly.
This being could kill him.
Not instantly.
But decisively.
[Threat assessment:]
[Entity: Proto-Lord class Hell Beast.]
[Estimated survival probability: 9%.]
Xu Yuan exhaled slowly.
"So this is the cost of crossing lines," he murmured.
The Territory Lord stopped several dozen meters away and lowered its massive head slightly, eyes fixed on Xu Yuan. It did not attack immediately.
It was evaluating him.
Xu Yuan met its gaze without flinching.
He did not release his aura.
He did not provoke.
He simply stood.
Seconds passed.
The pressure intensified.
Xu Yuan felt it probing him—not physically, but existentially. The Territory Lord was testing whether he was prey… or a threat.
Xu Yuan let his body respond naturally.
No Sword Law.
No aura release.
Only the weight of his existence as it currently was.
The Territory Lord's eyes narrowed.
It took a step forward.
Then another.
The ground trembled.
Xu Yuan adjusted his stance.
"This isn't a fight I can win cleanly," he thought calmly. "But that doesn't mean I can't survive it."
The Territory Lord moved.
Not with a roar, but with terrifying speed.
Its massive body blurred forward, crossing the distance in an instant. Xu Yuan reacted immediately, diving sideways as a claw the size of his torso slammed into the ground, shattering stone and sending shockwaves through the valley.
Xu Yuan rolled, came up on one knee, and sprinted.
Not away.
Toward the ridges.
He forced the fight into narrow terrain, where the Territory Lord's size would become a disadvantage. Stone shattered behind him as the creature pursued relentlessly, its movements far faster than its bulk suggested.
Xu Yuan leapt onto a slanted rock face, pushing his body beyond comfort. Pain flared as his muscles strained, but he climbed upward, boots scraping desperately against stone.
The Territory Lord slammed into the ridge, claws digging deep as it followed.
Xu Yuan reached the top and turned.
Now.
He allowed a thread of Sword Law to surface.
Just enough.
The backlash was instant.
Blood burst from his nose as pain exploded through his arms.
But the edge appeared.
Xu Yuan swung.
The strike carved a thin line across the Territory Lord's horn, chipping off a fragment of crystalized bone. The creature recoiled slightly, more surprised than injured.
That was all Xu Yuan needed.
He jumped.
Not backward.
Downward.
He plunged off the ridge, letting gravity take him.
The Territory Lord lunged instinctively to finish him.
Xu Yuan twisted midair and drove the broken sword downward, plunging it into the creature's shoulder joint—the narrowest gap between plates.
The blade did not pierce deeply.
But it stuck.
The Territory Lord roared, pain and rage shaking the valley.
Xu Yuan did not hold on.
He released the sword and landed hard, rolling as the impact jarred his entire body. Pain flared everywhere, but he forced himself to his feet and ran.
He did not look back.
Behind him, the Territory Lord tore the sword free and let out a furious roar that echoed for kilometers. The pressure spiked violently, then stabilized.
It did not pursue.
Not because it could not.
But because it had been injured.
Territory rulers valued dominance—but they avoided unnecessary risk.
Xu Yuan ran until his lungs burned and his vision blurred. Only when the pressure finally eased did he slow, collapsing behind a cluster of stone spires.
He lay there, chest heaving, body trembling uncontrollably.
[Emergency status: Critical exhaustion.]
Xu Yuan laughed weakly.
"So that's the difference," he whispered. "I crossed its line… but I didn't stay."
[Assessment: Survival successful.]
[Territory recognition updated.]
Xu Yuan frowned.
"What do you mean?"
[Host registered as anomaly.]
[Territory hostility downgraded to conditional.]
Xu Yuan's eyes flickered.
"So even it knows," he murmured. "I'm not normal prey."
He pushed himself upright slowly.
He had lost the broken sword.
But he had gained something else.
Understanding.
Territory was not just about strength.
It was about presence.
Xu Yuan clenched his fist.
"I won't challenge you again yet," he said quietly, as if the Territory Lord could hear him. "But one day…"
He turned and moved away, deeper into the inner zone—but on a different path now.
Not reckless.
Not submissive.
Strategic.
Behind him, far across the valley, the Territory Lord stood atop its ridge, crimson eyes fixed on the direction Xu Yuan had gone.
For the first time in a long while…
It did not feel contempt.
It felt caution.
Xu Yuan moved for a long time after escaping the Territory Lord's domain.
He did not rush. He did not linger. Every step was calculated, his path weaving between lesser territorial imprints while avoiding the heavy pressure radiated by true rulers. The inner zone was layered like a living map—overlapping domains, invisible boundaries, and unspoken rules enforced through violence.
He learned them quickly.
Where the air thinned, danger receded.
Where the ground darkened and pulsed faintly, something strong had claimed it.
Where silence grew absolute, death waited patiently.
Xu Yuan adapted.
Hours passed.
The crimson glow dimmed further, and the world entered a state that resembled night only in name. Shadows thickened. Sounds became sharper—scraping claws, distant roars, the low, ever-present hum of the Hell World itself.
Xu Yuan found a narrow fissure between two stone ridges and slipped inside. The space was tight but defensible, the ceiling low enough to prevent larger creatures from entering easily.
He leaned against the stone and finally allowed himself to rest.
Only then did the pain truly arrive.
His legs shook uncontrollably. His arms felt hollow, as if the strength had been wrung from them. The loss of the broken sword left a faint ache—not emotional, but practical. It had been crude, weak, and dangerous to wield, yet it had been his.
He exhaled slowly.
"I'll get another," he said calmly.
[Assessment: Weapon loss acceptable.]
[System shop access available when conditions are met.]
Xu Yuan's eyes flickered.
"So I've crossed that threshold too."
[Affirmative.]
He closed his eyes and let the system interface surface fully.
[System Summary:]
Body Cultivation: Hellforged Path – Early Phase]
Flesh Tempering: Fourth refinement complete]
Killing Aura: Dormant (Mid), sealed]
System Points: 482]
Xu Yuan absorbed the information without excitement.
"Not enough," he murmured.
[Correct.]
He reached to the ring on his finger, brushing it lightly.
"Status."
[Ring of Originless Silence:]
Functionality stable.]
Concealment integrity: Absolute.]
Good.
Xu Yuan opened his eyes and stared into the darkness of the fissure.
He had crossed a line today.
Not in strength.
In recognition.
The Territory Lord had not chased him—not out of mercy, but out of calculation. That meant something fundamental had shifted. He was no longer merely prey.
But he was far from being a predator.
"That was a warning," Xu Yuan said quietly. "And a lesson."
He leaned his head back against the stone and allowed his breathing to steady.
"In this world," he continued softly, "I don't need to dominate territory yet."
He clenched his fist.
"I need to survive long enough to choose when I do."
The Hell World answered with silence.
Deep within the inner zone, the Territory Lord moved once more, its massive body shifting atop its ridge. It stared into the distance where the anomaly had escaped.
It did not roar.
It did not pursue.
It remembered.
Elsewhere, in places far beyond this low-level Hell World, faint ripples spread through layered realities—so subtle that even ancient beings would not notice unless they were already looking.
Xu Yuan opened his eyes.
Tomorrow, he would hunt again.
But differently.
He would target isolated packs. Lesser demons. Transitional zones where territory overlapped and rulers hesitated to intervene.
He would grow steadily.
Deliberately.
The Hell World had tested him.
He had paid the price.
And he was still standing.
Xu Yuan rose slowly, pain etched into every movement, and stepped back out into the crimson-lit land.
"This territory of blood," he murmured, "will remember me."
He vanished into the haze, leaving behind nothing but footprints already fading into ash.
________________________
Author Note
Chapter 5 establishes the reality of territorial power in the Hell World and marks the moment Xu Yuan stops being viewed as mere prey.
From here on, growth becomes calculated rather than desperate, and the consequences of every action will deepen.
Thank you for reading and supporting the journey