A Song for The Ages

The low murmur of voices filled the cavern as the children gradually settled into their new situation. Some were whispering introductions, others murmuring about food and water sources. Feiyin stood in the middle of the group, arms crossed, listening carefully as Yue spoke to some of the younger children, trying to comfort them while also discussing potential ways they could forage more consistently.

"We can't just rely on Feiyin to find food," Yue pointed out, her ears flicking as she glanced at the gathered group. "Right now, we're too many mouths and not enough hands hunting."

A few of the older kids nodded in agreement, but uncertainty clouded their expressions.

"How do we even hunt in a place like this?" One boy muttered. "We don't have weapons."

Ren scoffed, leaning against the cavern wall. "If you need a weapon to kill a rat, you're not eating."

Feiyin was about to respond when a subtle vibration rippled through the ground. His body stiffened. It was faint, but distinct, multiple footsteps, light but fast, moving in the distance.

Something was coming.

His eyes snapped to Ren and Yue. Ren had already stopped leaning, his muscles tensed, eyes narrowing into the darkness. Yue's nose wrinkled, and she took a step back, her tail stiffening.

"Something's coming," Feiyin murmured.

Yue inhaled sharply through her nose before her lips curled in disgust. "Rats."

Ren's expression darkened instantly. "Oh, those bastards."

Feiyin glanced at him in confusion.

Ren glared toward the direction of the vibrations. "They always tried to steal my food in the slums."

Feiyin almost rolled his eyes, but he was too focused on what was coming. He turned to Yue. "Stay with the group. Make sure none of them panic."

She nodded without argument, moving to position herself in front of the group.

Ren pushed off the wall, cracking his knuckles. "So, we scaring them off or killing them?"

Feiyin's expression hardened. "Depends on how many there are."

Without another word, the two of them slipped into the shadows, their steps soundless against the damp cavern floor. Feiyin led the way, his senses stretched outward.

As they moved closer to the disturbance, the oscillations became clearer, small, quick bodies skittering across the cavern floor in a coordinated movement.

Then, they saw them. A pack of rats, each roughly the size of a small dog, covered in matted, greasy fur. Their eyes glowed dimly in the darkness, their sharp teeth glinting as they sniffed the air, whiskers twitching. There were at least ten of them, and they were moving together, noses raised as if tracking something.

Feiyin frowned. "They're hunting."

Ren clicked his tongue. "Of course they are."

Feiyin shifted his stance slightly, lowering his center of gravity. "We can't let them get to the others."

Ren exhaled sharply, cracking his neck. "Right. We kill them."

Feiyin nodded. He could feel their movements now, the vibrations of their bodies shifting in tandem. These weren't ordinary rats, they moved with precision, coordinated, almost like a pack of wolves.

Ren leaned toward him slightly. "You think these are just normal beasts?"

Feiyin hesitated. "I'm not sure… but I don't think so."

In the world of cultivation, beasts were categorized based on their strength. Those within the Body Tempering Realm and below, small, mundane creatures, were considered unranked. But once a beast reached the Meridian Opening Realm, it was officially classified as a Class One Beast. Within that class, their strength was further divided into early, mid, late, and peak stages.

If these rats were still unranked, they were just pests.

But if they were Class One… this would be a real fight.

Ren exhaled through his nose. "Doesn't matter. I still hate rats."

Feiyin's eyes narrowed. "Stay sharp."

The moment he spoke, one of the rats suddenly stopped moving, its nose twitched, and its beady red eyes locked onto them.

Then, it screeched.

The rest of the pack immediately turned toward them, their bodies tensing.

Feiyin barely had time to react before the first one lunged.

He stepped aside smoothly, twisting his body to let the rat pass, then drove his elbow down onto its skull. The impact sent a sharp crack through the cavern as the rat's body hit the floor, twitching violently before going still.

Ren didn't even wait, he dashed forward, his fist snapping outward in a sharp strike that sent another rat flying into the cavern wall with a sickening crunch.

Then, the rest of the pack charged.

Feiyin's mind sharpened. His inner strength surged as he moved, his body flowing like water between the attacks. He stepped past one rat's snapping jaws, bringing his heel down onto its spine. Another lunged for his leg, but he twisted mid-air, slamming his knee into its skull.

Ren fought with pure aggression, every strike was precise, brutal. He wasn't just using raw strength, he was using skill, dodging, shifting his weight, using his entire body behind his attacks.

Feiyin had to admit, he was impressed.

But these things weren't backing down.

Even as they broke bones and crushed skulls, more kept coming.

Feiyin's gaze flickered toward the tunnel behind them.

There were more.

His chest tightened. "Ren, we need to fall back."

Ren gritted his teeth, slamming a rat into the ground with enough force to split it open. "Are you kidding me?! I've waited years for this!"

Feiyin caught his wrist before he could charge forward again. "We don't have time for revenge. There are too many."

Ren snarled, but Feiyin's grip was firm.

"Let's go."

For a second, Ren hesitated, then, with a frustrated growl, he jerked his arm free. "Fine."

They turned and sprinted back toward the others.

The rats didn't chase them immediately, likely wary after losing so many. But Feiyin knew that wouldn't last long.

As soon as they reached the group, Yue's ears perked, her expression tense. "What happened?"

Feiyin took a breath. "More rats. Too many."

A ripple of unease went through the group.

Ren wiped his bloody knuckles on his pants. "We're moving."

Yue nodded quickly, grabbing one of the younger children's hands.

Feiyin took a last glance at the dark tunnel.

He didn't know if those rats would spread out and start hunting, or if they were controlled by something deeper in the cavern.

But either way, they couldn't stay.

With a firm voice, he said, "Follow me."

And without hesitation, the group moved.

The moment they entered the cavern, an unbearable stench filled the air.

Feiyin immediately halted, his expression twisting as his senses were assaulted by the thick, putrid smell of decay. His inner sense flared instinctively, picking up the faint traces of oscillations that still lingered among the skeletal remains littering the cavern floor. Some were small, likely past prey, but others… others were larger. Humanoid.

Some of the younger children gagged, covering their noses with their sleeves.

"What is that smell?" one of them coughed.

Feiyin didn't answer immediately. Instead, he took in their surroundings. The cavern was wider than most of the tunnels they had passed through, with jagged rock formations that jutted from the ground like the ribs of some long-dead beast.

Scattered among the remains were small, faintly glowing mushrooms. Their soft blue light provided just enough visibility to see the outlines of their surroundings.

"Hey… those mushrooms look edible," one of the older boys muttered, stepping closer.

Before he could reach out, another voice called out sharply.

"Don't touch them!"

The boy froze, startled. Everyone turned toward the speaker, a lanky child with sharp eyes and an air of confidence, despite the fear lingering in his features.

Feiyin narrowed his eyes. 'This one… he doesn't seem as lost as the others.'

The boy stepped forward, glancing at the others before focusing on Feiyin. "Those are Last Light Mushrooms," he explained, his voice steady. "They grow in dark, damp places, usually near decomposing matter. They're incredibly toxic, paralysis sets in within minutes, and if you consume too much, your organs will shut down entirely."

The group collectively took a step back from the mushrooms, fear flashing across their faces.

Feiyin observed the boy carefully. "You seem to know a lot about them."

The boy nodded. "My father was an apothecary. He taught me about different herbs and poisons."

Feiyin's gaze lingered on him for a moment before he gave a small nod. "Good to know."

The tension in the air eased slightly as the others murmured in relief, grateful that someone had stopped them before they made a fatal mistake. Some of the children began discussing whether this cavern could be a good place to settle, considering its size and slight illumination.

Then, Feiyin felt it.

A tremor.

It was faint, just a subtle vibration in the ground at first. But then it came again, stronger this time. A heavy, rhythmic thudding. Feiyin's stomach twisted.

He wasn't the only one who noticed.

Ren's body stiffened, his demon-blooded eyes narrowing as he turned toward the cavern entrance. His expression darkened instantly. "Something's coming."

Yue, standing near the group, felt it too. Her ears flattened against her head, her tail bristling as fear entered her eyes. "This… this isn't good."

The thudding grew louder. Each impact sent a dull shockwave through the cavern, dislodging small rocks from the ceiling.

The other children froze, looking around in alarm.

Then, from the shadows of the entrance, it emerged.

A massive, scaled beast slithered into view, its thick, muscular limbs pressing against the cavern floor as its long, forked tongue flickered out, dripping something onto the rocks beneath it. The liquid sizzled upon contact, burning through the stone with a faint hiss.

The creature's dark, gleaming eyes surveyed the cavern, unblinking. Its body was covered in thick, rugged scales, a dull greenish-black, its tail lined with jagged spikes that looked sharp enough to cut through flesh.

Yue let out a trembling whisper. "W-What is that?"

Feiyin's mind raced. Then, he recognized it.

"A Venomfang."

The moment the name left his lips, a cold wave of terror rippled through the group.

Even those who weren't well-versed in beasts understood what it meant.

Ren clicked his tongue, his entire body tense. "First-Ranked Beast."

A chill ran down Feiyin's spine. The venomfang wasn't just any creature, it was a predator that had reached the Early Meridian Opening Realm equivalent in strength. Unlike the unranked rats they had fought earlier, this thing was a class above. This was no longer just a wild animal, this was a true beast, and it was staring right at them.