Whoooosh—

A gust of wind swept past, sending a shiver down my spine.

Sensing the chill, I slowly lifted my eyelids.

"...Hrk."

I staggered as I pushed myself upright, shaking off the hazy fog in my mind.

I tried to clear my head, but for some reason, it wasn’t easy.

I circulated my energy.

Bzzz—!

As the energy coursed through my body, my senses sharpened, and clarity returned almost instantly.

"Cough. Ptuh."

I let out a dry cough and wiped my lips with the back of my hand.

How had things ended up like this?

As I dug through my memories, the last thing I recalled surfaced.

"Oh—!"

The moment it hit me, I flinched violently, my gaze darting around.

I had been with Yarang.

When I opened my eyes, I had been on her back, being carried somewhere.

After that, we had arrived in an unfamiliar space.

And then—

‘The fruit.’

I had swallowed that damn fruit against my will.

I had no idea what it was, and I had panicked, but the real problem was—

‘I blacked out again.’

Whether it was because of the fruit or not, an unfamiliar energy had surged through my body, and I had lost consciousness.

And now, I was awake again.

Turning my head, I scanned my surroundings.

‘What the hell?’

I narrowed my eyes at the sight before me.

The place Yarang had taken me to had been entirely unfamiliar.

But now—

‘This is...’

This place was eerily familiar.

‘Isn’t this where I collapsed before?’

It was the exact spot where I had passed out after escaping from Yahwol Palace.

My mind was sharper than ever after my breakthrough, and I remembered everything clearly.

‘Why am I back here?’

The place Yarang had taken me to wasn’t here.

So why had I ended up back at the spot where I first collapsed?

‘...Was it just a dream?’

Had everything I experienced just been a dream?

No. I immediately dismissed the thought.

There was no way.

No dream could be that vivid.

That left only one possibility.

‘Did she bring me back here?’

Had Yarang carried me all the way back again?

That was the only logical explanation.

‘Why, though?’

If that were the case, what was her intent?

She had fed me that bizarre fruit, knocked me unconscious, and then dumped me back here.

Why?

‘...I don’t get it.’

The more I thought about Yarang, the less sense she made.

"Haaah..."

Letting out a long sigh, I focused on examining my body.

I had no idea what I had eaten, so I needed to check for any changes.

"Huh?"

The moment I assessed myself, my eyes widened.

"What the hell?"

I moved my body, twisting and flexing—

Only to find the same result.

"...What the hell is this?"

Why—

"...Why is my body completely fine?"

All my internal injuries had completely healed.

Even minor wounds that I barely noticed before were gone.

And my energy—

‘Not completely, but half of it has recovered?’

The energy that had been nearly depleted was now more than halfway replenished.

What the hell?

‘What... is this...?’

How had my body recovered to such a pristine state?

It was absurd.

Could it be—

‘Was it the fruit?’

Had that unknown fruit done this?

It was the only plausible explanation.

"Unbelievable..."

It wasn’t a bad thing.

If I had to factor in the time it would have taken to recover naturally, this was an incredible turn of events.

But why?

Why had this happened?

And more importantly, why had Yarang made it happen?

‘Why?’

Had Yarang known what the fruit would do?

Had she deliberately fed it to me, knowing it would restore me?

If so—

‘...Does she remember?’

Could she actually remember?

Could she still be the Divine Sword I once knew?

The thought clawed at my throat, nearly spilling out.

"Tch."

But I swallowed it back.

Clicking my tongue, I forced the thought out of my head.

‘Not yet.’

I couldn’t afford to get shaken up.

Regardless of Yarang’s intentions, there was something else I needed to check.

‘There could still be side effects.’

My injuries were healed, but there could be other consequences.

I needed to examine myself more thoroughly.

‘Did Noya make it back to Mount Hua?’

Had Shin Noya, who left ahead of me, returned safely?

I briefly pondered before stepping forward—

And the moment I did—

Fwoooosh—!!!

"...!!!"

I shot into the air.

"The fuck—?"

I had jumped, but I had launched twice as high as I expected.

The force of my leap—

The sheer speed of it—

It was completely different from before.

Of course, Mangye’s air was saturated with energy, which naturally amplified my strength.

But—

‘Not this much.’

It had never been this extreme.

My body had changed drastically.

I lost control of my trajectory and came crashing down.

BOOM—!!!

Dirt exploded into the air as I slammed into the ground.

"Ptuh."

I spat out a mouthful of dirt and clenched my fists.

"Hah..."

What the hell was this?

My body felt like it was overflowing with strength.

Compared to before—

It felt nearly twice as powerful.

‘What the hell is going on?’

It didn’t feel like my cultivation had advanced.

Nor did it feel like my vessel had expanded.

It was simply—

As if my raw power had increased.

‘Is that even possible?’

Could I become this much stronger without actually reaching a new realm?

The question burned in my mind.

No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t find an answer.

Which meant—

‘...I need to find someone who does know.’

Someone had to have the answers.

And I already knew exactly who to ask.

*******

Fwoooosh—!

Boom—!

I pierced through the air, landing hard on the ground.

Sparks scattered from the impact, flickering before fading into the night.

From within the lingering haze, I pushed myself upright.

"Ugh..."

My legs were tingling.

With my increased speed, controlling my body had become a struggle.

Because of that, I hadn’t even managed to land properly—

I had absorbed the impact with my body instead.

"My bones are screaming..."

The shock was strong enough that my legs hurt.

Suppressing a groan, I forced myself to move forward.

As I walked, I reached into my robes and pulled out a small bottle.

A shell # Nоvеlight # fragment from a tortoise.

I sprinkled the fine powder onto my body.

Buzz—!

A sensation like something piercing through me followed, and the space around me shifted.

The barrier parted, and I stepped through into the Mount Hua Sect’s territory.

I was familiar with this sensation by now.

The air changed the moment I entered.

Unlike the overwhelming energy outside, this place felt much more like Zhongyuan.

The magenta aurora that had covered the sky was gone, replaced by an ordinary night sky.

I silently observed the moon hanging overhead as I walked.

‘I need to find Noya first...’

I was about to leap toward where Shin Noya should be—

Then—

Shffft—

"...!"

I sensed something approaching.

Swish—!

CRAAASH—!

A deadly force swept past me.

The violent shockwave that followed tore through the air, slicing down dozens of trees.

‘What the hell—?!’

An ambush?

Cold sweat trickled down my back.

If I had reacted a second later, I wouldn’t have been able to dodge in time.

Who the hell had attacked me like this?

I was about to raise my energy and prepare for a counterattack when—

"Huh? What the hell?"

A familiar voice rang out.

A figure stepped into view—

Shin Noya.

"...Why are you here?"

"...Noya?"

Shin Noya stood before me, sword in hand.

The energy still flickering along his blade made my brow furrow.

"Did you just swing that at me?"

No wonder the attack had felt lethal.

It was his sword.

"Noya, have you lost your mind? I could’ve died if I had reacted even a second slower."

A joke was a joke, but that had been way too close.

If I had hesitated, I would have lost a limb—or worse.

The sheer recklessness of it left me glaring at him in disbelief.

But—

"What are you talking about?"

Noya actually looked offended.

"I sensed something strange entering the sect and rushed over... So why the hell are you here?"

"...Strange? What do you mean?"

I narrowed my eyes.

The way he phrased it rubbed me the wrong way.

I glared at him, and he furrowed his brows in return.

"Brat, do you even realize what you look like right now?"

"What are you talking about?"

"You mean to tell me you haven’t noticed? You’re practically exploding with presence right now."

"...?"

His words made me tilt my head in confusion.

Exploding with presence? That made no sense.

‘I’ve been suppressing it just fine.’

Even with my expanded vessel and cultivation breakthroughs, I had been controlling my presence carefully.

Especially here in Mount Hua, I had been extra cautious.

I had always kept it in check.

"So what the hell did you do this time? It hasn’t even been half a day, and you already look like this?"

Noya seemed convinced that I had completely lost control of my presence.

Was that why he had attacked me?

‘My body recovered, my energy surged, and now my presence has changed too...?’

Just how much had changed?

I quickly circulated my energy.

Just like adjusting my strength, suppressing my presence was a familiar exercise.

As I focused, I felt it—

The energy, which had been spilling out freely, started compressing back into my body.

‘Now that I look at it, he might be right...’

Before, there had always been a limit to how much I could suppress my presence.

But now, there was no resistance.

It just kept shrinking.

As I controlled it—

"Forget your presence. What the hell happened to your face?"

Noya suddenly asked.

"My face?"

What now?

What was wrong with me now?

I turned to look at him, confused.

He raised his sword, angling the blade so I could see my reflection.

It had been polished to a shine, turning it into a perfect mirror.

And when I saw my own face—

"...What the fuck?"

My eyes widened.

"What the hell is this...?"

My reflection looked different.

My irises still gleamed with their usual blue light—

But my pupils...

They were slitted.

More pronounced.

And my fangs—

They were far sharper than before.

Even my nails—

They looked like claws, as if someone had deliberately filed them into points.

The image staring back at me—

It wasn’t just beast-like.

No.

It was—

"...Moonlit Night Tribe?"

I looked exactly like the beastkin from this land.

The ones known as the Moonlit Night Tribe.