3 Shadow Woods

Upon leaving the Captain's hut, Anselm returned to his own residence. He was greeted with a sight that he was all too familiar with: a bare room with nothing but a log fire and a lonely bed in the corner, sitting atop a compacted earth floor. Ever since he was young, he had always lived alone in this room with nothing to keep him company but himself and the thoughts of his parents.

Instructor Dylin had told Anselm that they found him by the entrance to the Shadow Woods when he was a baby. There was nothing around him or anything left that could give any clues about his identity, other than a black ring he wore on his finger. This ring was the only item he had that connected him to his parents - or whoever had left him there.

After discovering him, Dylin decided to bring him back to the village and raise him as one of their own, naming him Anselm - in hopes that he would be protected and guided by Heaven.

Behind his house, there was a large sakura tree that he had planted when he was younger. Under the tree's branches was where he would usually train - to him, the branches were his parents' spirits reaching out to protect him.

Full of anticipation, Anselm began reading the manual that he was gifted by Captain Alder.

"So this is a cultivation technique for building the Aura Meridians within the body. Heaven's Anvil… what an odd name. To use your body as an anvil and forge the Aura Meridians within yourself.'

Anselm slowly became engrossed in the manual and by the time he next looked up, the moon's soft shimmering glow beamed down on him as his only companion under the blanket of darkness.

'I only understand a small part of it now, but that should be enough for me to enter the early stages.'

He walked over to the sakura tree and sat down beneath its branches, and closing his eyes, he began circulating the Heaven's Anvil technique. Gradually, he felt a soothing force permeate throughout his body as the pores on his skin opened up, forming a connection with the aura surrounding him.

Time slowly passed and after a few hours, he felt something forming in his body. At the center of his brows, a small Aura Meridian started to form. Soon after that, it fully manifested. Opening his eyes, Anselm sensed the changes in his body - he felt as if he was reborn and a new strength flowed through him.

'According to the manual, after I form the Central Meridian, then I know that I've entered the early stage of Vitalisation. I've finally become an Aura Immortal, albeit the very weakest. If I had to fight Hunter Blake again, then with my powerful physical constitution and newfound enhancement from Vitalisation, I wouldn't be on the losing side. I'll have to duel him again tomorrow to test my strength.'

Just as he was rejoicing about his first breakthrough into becoming an Aura Immortal, Anselm heard the faint clanking of metal in the distance. Intrigued, he dashed forward and headed towards the source of the noise, without even realising how he could hear sounds from so far away.

Landing behind a bush, Anselm arrived at the noise source. To his surprise, it was actually the entrance to the forbidden Shadow Woods - an area that even experienced hunters could fall in, not to mention ordinary villagers.

Shifting his gaze to survey the area, he noticed five men clad in green, ragged clothing. Leading them was a face he recognised all but too well.

'Instructor Dylin… so the rest of them must be hunters from the village as well. But what are they doing here?'

Ensuring that he couldn't be seen, Anselm ducked even lower behind the bush and continued to observe. He saw what seemed to be Dylin giving a speech to the others.

'It looks like they're going to hunt in the Shadow Woods…'

As he thought to that point, an idea surfaced in Anselm's mind.

'Maybe I should follow them. I might be able to learn something if they battle, and I could test my strength against a demonic beast. '

"Follow me!" Anselm heard Dylin's voice as the hunters entered the Shadow Woods.

Immediately after, Anselm sprinted after them. With his breakthrough into early Vitalisation, he felt that his body was much lighter than before, allowing him to move considerably faster.

However, the moment he entered the Shadow Woods, his vision was overwhelmed by darkness. Squinting through his eyes, he struggled to see where he was going.

'Why is it so dark in here?

As Anselm trudged through the Shadow Woods, he had to slow down, lest he tripped or encountered a demonic beast. He could feel the wind howling and blowing a bitter chill. The floor was damp and assaulted his senses with the stagnant odour of something decomposing, though he couldn't tell what.

'This was a bad idea; I've already lost track of Dylin and the other hunters. I need to find a way out.'

Anselm slowly continued through the forest, yet it seemed to never end. Looking over his back, he felt as if there was someone - or something - watching him.

After what seemed like hours, Anselm finally spotted a light up ahead, illuminating a path out of this inky darkness.

'Looks like the exit is over there.'

He increased his speed and dashed towards the exit ahead of him. Upon reaching it, he managed to walk out of the forest; however, what greeted his eyes was not the entrance to the Shadow Woods, but rather a large cave. Looking around, he was still surrounded by the army of trees, with the exception of the cave ahead.

'This isn't an exit out of the forest; the only thing here is a cave. For now, I'll rest in it and recover my strength before heading out. Maybe I can try to call out to Dylin and the other hunters.'

Anselm approached the cave whilst inspecting his body for any changes.

'I don't seem to have any injuries on my body. What was that eerie feeling when I entered the forest then? I wonder if Dylin's group is okay.'

Before he could move any nearer to the cave, a loud growl echoed from within, followed by the sound of heavy footsteps.

Hastily retreating, Anselm unsheathed his sword and tightly gripped its hilt.

'A cave in the Shadow Woods…'

Realisation dawned on him.

'Could this be the dwelling of a demonic beast?'

A mix of emotions, from worry to excitement flashed through his eyes.

The sound of footsteps grew increasingly louder and heavier. It was clear that they belonged to a large figure - a demonic beast. Drawing nearer, Anselm could make out the silhouette of an ape-like figure. Composing himself, he flexed his fingers around the hilt of his sword and adopted an offensive stance - preparing to fight against whatever emerged from the cave.

As the footsteps stopped, the demonic beast's figure was completely revealed.

'An ape-like figure, a white coat of fur, and a twisted face… This fits the description of a Ghost Ape. Such a powerful beast is my first opponent. Even if I can't defeat it, then I'll try to retreat back into the forest.'

Ghost Ape. It was said that this demonic beast could fight evenly with Bronze Hunters - Meridian Opening warriors. Its physical strength could match even the strongest Meridian Opening warriors.

'For a Ghost Ape to appear here… that must mean I'm no longer in the periphery of the Shadow Woods. I've unknowingly travelled to the middle section then. Only Meridian Opening beasts and higher would appear here. If any more are attracted over, then I'll be in serious trouble - especially if a Spiritual Pond beast appeared. I need to end this quickly.'

Anselm dashed forward, and harnessing the strength of early Vitalisation, he lifted his sword and attacked the Ghost Ape with full force.