Arya had no idea how much time had passed when he finally woke up. His vision was blurry, and a strange numbness tingled in his eyes. As his thoughts slowly came back to him, he glanced around and spotted the little beast resting nearby. His body still felt incredibly weak, but upon closer inspection, he noticed something—his two rings, especially the First Blood Ring, were constantly supplying him with energy, gradually healing his body.

  Turning his focus inward, Arya looked at his spiritual core. The beast's image was still there, resting in the center of his chest, its bloody eyes shut. He frowned.

  Did it also suffer a backlash?

  Before he could think further, a voice echoed from the beast's image within the glowing orb inside him.

  "Can't you even let me rest for a little while?"

  Arya blinked. "Oh… so you're just sleeping? I thought you passed out like me from the backlash."

  "Hah! I'm not as weak as you," the beast scoffed. "How could I suffer a backlash from my own power? And that was only ten percent of my true strength."

  Arya recalled the colossal form he had seen before fainting. He had been genuinely terrified at first, but deep down, he had to admit—it was incredible.

  "Yeah… it was even more terrifying than I expected," Arya admitted, "but I liked it."

  The beast seemed surprised. "You liked it? Most people just look horrified and never want to see it again."

  "Of course they do," Arya chuckled. "No one wants to stare death in the face. If I were on the other side, facing a creature as deadly and massive as you, it'd be my worst nightmare."

  The beast smirked. "In my true form, how strong do you think I am?"

  Arya pondered for a moment. "I have no idea… how would you rank yourself compared to your own kind?"

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  "In my entire race, I am ranked 12th in strength," the beast replied. "I don't know how humans compare their power, but among Celestial Fangs, that's my standing."

  Arya raised an eyebrow. "Twelfth? So you're pretty strong, huh? I still can't fully gauge your strength, but it doesn't really matter. You're on my side, not against me—so I don't have to worry about how overwhelming you are."

  Stretching his stiff limbs, he got to his feet. "Now that I'm awake, we should keep moving. You wanted me to follow you somewhere, right?"

  "Yes," the beast said, its tone turning serious. "We shouldn't waste any more time. What I want to show you is still safe… but I don't know for how long."

  Arya noticed something—whenever the beast mentioned this topic, its mood would shift. There was a sadness in its voice, as if it was holding back emotions too deep to express.

  "Hey," Arya said carefully. "This thing you want to show me… is it something personal? Every time it comes up, you suddenly seem like you're about to cry."

  The beast fell silent for a moment. Then, in a low voice, it answered, "Yes… it is deeply connected to me. But I can't explain it. You'll have to see for yourself."

  With that, the beast shut its eyes and went completely still, refusing to say anything more.

  Arya exhaled. It must be something really important if it doesn't even want to talk about it.

  After gathering his things—his tent and supplies—he resumed his journey, heading toward the second cave's gate. As they moved forward, the beast took the lead. Though they were connected, they could move separately without issue, but Arya quickly learned that the farther they were apart, the more energy it consumed to maintain their link.

  Because of this, the beast usually just sat on Arya's right shoulder, conserving energy.

  After hours of walking, Arya sighed. "How much farther do we have to go?"

  They had already traveled through three caves, yet the beast kept pointing forward. Outside, the sun was setting—it was already the end of the third day inside the Dreadfall Forest.

  Half of his time here had already been spent inside these cave-like tunnels, yet he didn't feel like it was wasted. After all, he had gained something precious—his first and a rather unusual spirit. Whether it would be a blessing or a burden, he wasn't sure yet.

  "We have to reach the eighth cave," the beast finally replied. "We're still quite far."

  Arya nearly stumbled. "Eighth cave?! How long will it take to get there?"

  "At your current speed? Four to five more days."

  Arya groaned. "That means five more days wasted just like this? I'm trying to cultivate and save time, not waste it."

  "If that's your concern, I have a solution," the beast said. "If you want to cultivate while traveling, I can help you with that. It'll also prepare you for what's ahead."

  Arya frowned. "What exactly are we about to do? And what kind of training can I even do while walking?"

  The beast's voice carried a hint of amusement. "Simple. The aura protection I placed on you? I'll remove it. That way, you'll have to resist the natural pressure on your own while continuing our journey. In this way, you can train both your body and mind at the same time."

  Arya hesitated. "But… won't that slow me down?"

  "Yes," the beast admitted, "but isn't that good for you? A few extra days of training will toughen you up in ways no ordinary practice can."

  Arya took a deep breath. It made sense. He needed to get stronger, and this was an opportunity.

  "Alright," he said. "Let's do it."

  The moment he agreed—

  BOOM!

  The air around him shifted violently, as if recognizing him as an enemy. A crushing pressure slammed into him, far heavier than the second cave's.

  His legs wobbled, but he remained standing.

  I can still walk.

  But deep down, he knew—getting to the eighth cave like this wouldn't be easy.