The forest did not welcome Jiang Chen. It tolerated him, like a large predator ignores a smaller, venomous scavenger.
He moved North, away from the blood-scented clearing. His movements were jerky, unnatural. The [Phantom Step] skill had left his meridians burning, a phantom ache that throbbed in rhythm with his pulse.
He found sanctuary two hours later—a fissure in a limestone cliff face, hidden behind a curtain of hanging moss and thorny vines. It was tight, damp, and smelled of bat guano, but it was defensible.
Jiang Chen squeezed inside, collapsing against the cold stone.
He didn't sleep. Sleep was dangerous. Instead, he activated [Serpent's Breath].
Thump... thump... thump...
His heartbeat slowed to four beats per minute. His body temperature dropped until it matched the cold stone floor. To any thermal vision or spirit sense, he was just another rock.
"Inventory," he whispered.
He emptied the pouches he had stolen onto the floor.
15 Low-Grade Spirit Stones. Grey, cloudy, poor quality. Two Ration Pills. Dry, tasteless compressed grain. The Map. A Heavy Iron Token.
Jiang Chen picked up the Spirit Stones first. To a normal cultivator, these were currency or batteries for slow absorption.
To him, they were crackers.
Crunch.
He bit into the stone. It shattered like hard candy. Raw, unrefined Qi exploded in his mouth, burning his gums. He swallowed the gravel, feeling the System break down the mineral structure instantly.
[Biomass Consumed. +15 EV.]
[Energy Reserves: Stabilizing.]
He ate them all. It wasn't enough to fill the void in his stomach, but it stopped the shaking.
Next, he unfolded the map.
It was a standard patrol map, but someone had drawn over it with red ink. Thick lines marked the perimeter of the forest. Crosses marked the exits.
"They've sealed the valley," Jiang Chen muttered, tracing the lines. "A net. They aren't trying to catch me; they're trying to flush me out."
His finger stopped at the center of the map. There was a circle drawn in black ink, labeled: Forbidden Zone - The Weeping Gorge.
"Why avoid the Gorge?" he wondered aloud.
[System Note: High concentration of necrotic Qi detected in that region. Hazardous to carbon-based life. Delicious.]
Jiang Chen ignored the System's commentary and picked up the last item—the heavy iron token found on the leader.
It wasn't an Iron Sword Sect token. It was cold to the touch, made of a dark, starless metal. On one side was a carving of a crying eye. On the back, a single command was etched in jagged calligraphy:
DO NOT KILL. HARVEST THE BLOOD. THE VESSEL MUST BE PRESERVED.
Jiang Chen stared at the words. A chill that had nothing to do with the damp cave crawled up his spine.
"Harvest the blood," he repeated. "Not capture the thief. Harvest the blood."
He touched his chest. Under the grime and the stolen robes, his heart beat slowly.
"System," Jiang Chen asked, his voice low. "Why does the mask hide my face, but not my blood? Why do they want it?"
The air in the cave grew heavy. The shadows seemed to lengthen, twisting toward him. The voice of Apeiron resonated not in his ears, but in the marrow of his bones.
[Because your blood is... loud, Host.]
Jiang Chen stiffened. "Speak clearly."
[You assumed you were trash because your clan crippled you? Because you had no talent?]
The System let out a sound that might have been a laugh, or the grinding of tectonic plates.
[Incorrect. They crippled you because they feared what would happen if you grew. Your bloodline carries the stench of an ancient failure. A 'Curse' to them. A beacon to me.]
Jiang Chen gripped the iron token until his knuckles turned white. "A Curse?"
[A story for another time. For now, know this: The Sect is not just hunting a thief. They are hunting a battery. If they catch you, they will not execute you. They will drain you, drop by drop, for fifty years.]
Jiang Chen looked at the token, then at his scarred hands.
The Iron Sword Sect wasn't just a home that had rejected him. It was a farm. And he was the livestock that had jumped the fence.
"They want my blood?" Jiang Chen snarled, his eyes flashing with a violet light.
He squeezed the iron token. [Void Claw] flared instinctively. The dark metal groaned, then crumpled like paper in his grip.
"Let them come take it."
He tossed the ruined metal aside and looked at the map again. Specifically, at the black circle.
The Weeping Gorge.
If the Sect was avoiding it, that meant no patrols. If it was full of necrotic Qi, normal life couldn't survive there.
But Jiang Chen wasn't normal life anymore. And Apeiron found necrotic Qi "delicious."
"We're not running to the exits," Jiang Chen decided. He pointed a clawed finger at the black circle. "We're going deeper. Into the dead zone."
[Directive Accepted.]
[Route plotted: The Weeping Gorge.]
[Warning: Local fauna in that region has evolved to consume Spirit Qi. Apex Predators detected.]
Jiang Chen stood up, dusting off his robes. He adjusted the [Mask of the Faceless], ensuring it was secure.
"Good," Jiang Chen said, stepping out of the cave and into the dark, rain-slicked forest. "I was getting tired of the appetizers."