A seven-year-old boy named Tang Ling was locked in battle with a serpentine beast in a forest, where countless beasts lurked, their roars shaking the forest.
It was surprising that such a young boy was alone in the forest, even fighting head-to-head with a beast that normal people feared. But in this world, nothing was impossible.
Tang Ling's sky-blue eyes radiated kindness and purity, while his long blue hair—striking like lightning—was tied with a small red knot. He was wearing a blue ring with a golden pattern that radiated a strange power. His milky-white skin was smooth and tender.
It was almost unbelievable that Tang Ling, a child with such a regal appearance, was dressed in simple, tattered clothing—a faded blue tunic, thin pants tied at the ankles, and a worn red sash around his waist. His garments were shredded and stained with splatters of blood, evidence of the fierce battles he had fought.
In his hands, he wielded a sturdy wooden stick—a thick tree branch with a single leaf still clinging to it. Though rough in appearance, it was surprisingly strong, capable of delivering sharp and precise blows.
Tang Ling's movements were fluid and precise—each dodge an effortless evasion, each leap perfectly timed as he maneuvered around the beast's relentless strikes. The serpent's fangs cut through the air, but Tang Ling was always one step ahead, his body flowing with an agility that belied his youth. As the beast lunged again, its massive tail crashed to the ground, but Tang Ling had already rolled beneath it, launching himself off the earth with a burst of speed, narrowly escaping the crushing blow.
He didn't stop to breathe. The beast was growing more erratic, but so was Tang Ling, now anticipating its next moves. With every strike, he learned, adapting quickly, narrowing the distance between him and his target, waiting for that perfect opening.
However, Tang Ling's attacks had little effect against the beast's tough scales. Its hide was so strong that a wooden stick's strikes barely made an impact, even though Tang Ling's attacks were swift and lethal. That was making the fight balanced.
"Clink!"
A sharp crack rang out as the stick snapped in two, its blow unable to penetrate the beast's tough scales.
"Ahhh! Not again! This makes it the fourth time this stick has broken because of this snake!" Tang Ling shouted in frustration, tossing the broken stick at the beast's face.
"No, I need to stay calm." And with a deep breath, Tang Ling picked up a stone from the ground. Just then, an idea flickered in his brain.
"I understand now—I just need to attack where its defenses are weak."
The beast lunged at Tang Ling with its jaws wide open, aiming to devour him. However, Tang Ling was quick, darting to the side and narrowly avoiding the strike. The beast, unprepared for his swift escape, crashed head-first into the tree where Tang Ling had just been standing, its momentum driving it into the trunk.
Tang Ling quickly used this opportunity and attacked the beast, making a good angle with a picked-up stone on the beast's eye.
The attack with the stone reached its target and hit the beast's eye. The beast erupted in pain and roared. The roar scared all nearby creatures to run away.
Seeing his attack succeed, Tang Ling grinned, his voice filled with triumph. "At last! After breaking four sticks, Iʼve figured out how to defeat it!"
But the situation quickly changed.
The beast shifted its gaze toward Tang Ling, rage burning in its remaining eye. With a guttural roar, it launched a barrage of purple, needle-like darts. Tang Ling sprang into action, sprinting just in time to avoid the deadly projectiles. The darts struck the earth and trees nearby, disintegrating everything in their path—but Tang Ling was too focused on the beast to notice the devastation.
"It seems it has become serious, now I need to finish it fast."
The battle grew more intense. Tang Ling kept his distance, attacking with stones while making sure he had room to dodge. The beast blocked the more dangerous strikes with its thick, scaled tail.
The fight dragged on for nearly half an hour. Though both were growing weaker, Tang Ling seemed to have an advantage currently over the beast because of the beast's missing eye and the pain it caused. But the main surprise was that Tang Ling still had no injuries on his body despite fighting this long.
Both Tang Ling and beast now showed weakness in their attacks compared to their previous moves. Tang Ling remained calm and tried to give the beast no chance at all.
But the battle wasn't over yet.
Losing an eye made the beast more reckless. Its attacks became wilder and more erratic.
Tang Ling saw an opening. Without thinking about the consequences, he attacked at this time, aiming for the spot where the beast's eye had once been.
Fueled by rage, the beast charged at Tang Ling with its tail raised, slashing at him with deadly force.
The beast's tail lashed against Tang Ling's arm, but instead of being torn apart, he only suffered a minor injury. His body was far tougher than a normal kid of his age should have been. However, the impact caused the stones he had gathered earlier to slip from his grasp, scattering onto the ground.
In a panic, Tang Ling abandoned the scattered stones near the beast, knowing it was too dangerous to retrieve them. Instead, he rushed toward another stone lying a short distance away, snatching it up before the beast could strike again.
However, the stones he managed to gather were too small to inflict any real damage. Frustration began to build, but he quickly turned to locate the beast, ensuring he kept a safe distance.
The beast, seeing an opportunity, began to prepare another attack.
It opened its mouth, and a dark purple energy began to gather in front of it. Within seconds, the energy expanded into a massive, swirling orb, the size of the beast's head. Once fully formed, the beast launched it toward Tang Ling, hoping to give him no time to react.
When Tang Ling looked back, his heart raced as he saw the beast's attack—a massive purple ball coming straight for him. It was too unreal for Tang Ling, who had thought the beast wouldn't strike so quickly. But he had been careless to underestimate it, for a creature that could survive in this forest was far from ordinary.
The forest was home to ruthless beasts. Here, only the strong thrived, while the weak were devoured, either for power or mere survival.
In a panic, Tang Ling jumped to the side, but the edge of the purple ball struck his left leg. The portion that missed splintered on the ground, while the other side of the ball exploded on impact.
A searing pain shot through his leg, followed by a cold numbness creeping up his veins. Tang Ling cried out in agony, "Ahhh!" The whole situation was changed in just a short time; Tang Ling, who had the upper hand in the fight, had now totally fallen behind despite his condition.
Tang Ling tried to ignore the pain, struggling to stand and attempting to run, but his left leg gave way, as if it no longer existed. He stumbled and glanced to the side where the other part of the purple ball had landed. What he saw shocked him—where the ball had struck, the grass had turned from green to a sickly grayish-black, and all the plants around it were dead.
"Damn this beast! It poisoned me!" Tang Ling cursed, realizing the extent of his injury. He quickly tore a piece of his tunic and tightly wrapped it around his leg, binding the wound and trying to contain the poison. With effort, he managed to stand again and attempted to distance himself from the beast—and this time, he succeeded.
Tang Ling noticed that the beast hadn't attacked him since he had jumped to its blind side. "Why didn't I notice this before?" he thought, realizing the opportunity he had overlooked.
Suddenly, Tang Ling spotted a rock—thin, sharp, and elongated. A spark of excitement flashed in his eyes, and a sly grin spread across his face. "Hehhe..." muttered under his breath. With renewed focus, he locked eyes on the beast and dashed toward the stone.
However, the beast noticed him. With its remaining eye fixed on Tang Ling, it launched a deadly barrage of poisonous darts—not toward him, but directly at the rock he was heading for.
"So you want to destroy it! I won't let that happen!" he shouted. Grabbing the thin, sharp, and long rock in time was a challenge, but with his speed, it was possible. In the end, he successfully seized it before the attack could reach.
Then—everything fell silent.
A terrifying presence stirred deep within the forest. The distant roars of other beasts faded, as if they, too, sensed something monstrous approaching.
But after a few moments, nothing happened.
Tang Ling felt a chill down his spine, an overwhelming sense of danger pressing on him. But as the presence faded midway through its approach, he dismissed it.
"Maybe it was just my imagination..."
Then, Tang Ling's safe distance from the beast was broken as he rushed toward it with his newly picked-up stone.
Just like before, he attacked the beast's tough scales with the sharp-edged stone. However, even though it was sharper than his previous weapons, it barely left a scratch, failing to inflict any real injury.
Tang Ling didn't flinch; he knew the stone's impact would be ineffective against the beast's scales. But he didn't hesitate, taking the opportunity to test its sharpness on the creature's armor-like hide.
"Just like always. It has a sharp edge and tip, but the beast's scales are far too tough. It's impossible for me to hurt it without using that thing," Tang Ling muttered while dodging the beast's relentless attacks."
The beast was relentless in its attacks on Tang Ling, seemingly knowing that with the stone Tang Ling was using, it could kill him. Because of this, Tang Ling had no choice but to keep moving.
Tang Ling, while trying to escape, was left with no defense. The beast swung its tail at him—the same attack that had injured him the first time and caused him to fall despite his condition. Though Tang Ling couldn't dodge in time, he managed to block the attack with the stone.
While blocking, Tang Ling shouted, "Same trick won't work on me twice, you beast!"
The brute force of the beast's tail was overwhelming. Tang Ling was pushed back, but he didn't take any injury, except for the stone he used to block. The edge parts of the stone chipped away. Another reason for this damage could also be the thinness of the stone—it wasn't as strong as the thicker ones he had used for defense.
Tang Ling didn't care about that. Instead, he said, "This seems bad. Night is falling."
Tang Ling showed clear concern.
Concern flickered across Tang Ling's face. As night fell, the forest grew darker, and powerful beasts began hunting. The battle with the monster could easily draw the attention of these dangerous creatures—and that, Tang Ling realized, was the real threat.
"I need to finish this fast!" he muttered.
With those words, Tang Ling rushed toward the beast. With all the strength he could muster, he leaped into the air and aimed the tip of his sharp stone at the beast's soft skin, targeting the spot where its eye had once been.
The beast, unprepared for Tang Ling's strike, was hit. The pain sent it into a frenzy, and it lashed out with its tail. The tail slammed into a nearby tree with a deafening crack before swinging toward the ground, sending shockwaves that rattled the very earth beneath them. The sound of the tail slamming into the earth was a thunderous boom—like a massive drum beating across the forest. The very ground trembled beneath the force of the beast's attack.
But the beast was still not dead.
"I don't believe that I can't kill it now!" Tang Ling shouted. With those words, he summoned all the strength he could muster, pouring it into his final strike. The intensity of the effort caused his hand to be cut and bleed, but thankfully, the wound wasn't deep—just a superficial cut that would heal in three or four weeks.
With this final attack, fueled by all of Tang Ling's strength, the beast collapsed to the ground with a deafening thud, causing the surrounding area to shake violently. The earth trembled beneath the weight of the creature as it fell, and the forest seemed to hold its breath in the aftermath.
With the beast motionless on the ground, Tang Ling couldn't help but feel a surge of relief and joy. He wiped the sweat from his forehead and let out a deep breath.
"It was the longest fight I've encountered," he said, a satisfied grin spreading across his face.
"But finally, it's over."
Tang Ling slumped against a tree, his breath ragged. Sweat dripped down his face as he stared at the lifeless body of the beast. His arms ached, his hands trembled, but a triumphant smile tugged at his lips. It was finally over.
But then—something changed.
A strange silver glow pulsed from the beast's body. The air around it twisted unnaturally, and an eerie silence fell over the forest. The scattered leaves around it began floating, caught in an invisible force.
Tang Ling's body tensed. His instincts screamed at him to move, but his exhausted limbs refused to obey.
The wounds on the beast's body shimmered. One by one, the gashes closed, sealing shut as if they had never existed. The cracked scales hardened, gleaming with a metallic sheen.
"No… that's impossible," Tang Ling muttered, his heart pounding.
The stone embedded in the beast's ruined eye dissolved into silver dust. In its place, a new eye formed—glowing with a molten silver hue. Veins of silver light crawled across its body, forming intricate patterns that pulsed with power.
Then, the beast moved.
Its muscles tensed as it slowly lifted itself from the ground, its body crackling with a newfound strength. A low, guttural growl rumbled from its throat, the sound reverberating through the air like distant thunder.
The air grew thick with killing intent.
And then—the beast roared.
The sound was deafening, shaking the very trees of the forest. The sheer force of it sent a shockwave rippling through the surroundings, rustling leaves and sending small creatures fleeing. The oppressive pressure of the beast's presence bore down on Tang Ling like a crushing weight.
He had fought with everything he had, yet now—he was facing something far beyond what he had just defeated.
And this time, he wasn't sure if he could survive.