Free Web NovelChapter 12: Why Are You Running (1)
**Chapter ELEVEN**
A deafening boom resounded at the center of the forest, causing the birds around the area to flee in panic, but that was merely the opening act because following it came several more. Boom! Boom! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Most beasts hearing the disturbance would have judged it to be two powerful monsters facing off against each other, but the current reality was far from that. The howling wind swept through the area, clearing away the dust and revealing a scene horrifying enough to chill both humans and beasts to their bones.
Scattered everywhere across the shattered clearing were the corpses of large apes. They looked far more gruesome and far more powerful than their counterparts from Earth, but that was expected because these were not ordinary beasts, just as this world itself was far from ordinary.
The dead creatures were known as Spiked Gorillas, one of the stronger and more superior beasts within this region of the Beast Forest. They possessed monstrous physical strength, terrifying agility, and abnormal endurance. The worst part about them was the fact that they moved in groups, making them nightmares for hunters and cultivators alike.
Because of their strength, the Spiked Gorillas carried themselves with immense pride, almost like nobles among beasts. They viewed other creatures as inferior and acted with arrogance befitting kings of the forest.
Yet right now, inside the large clearing where several of those same Spiked Gorillas stood, there was no aura of pride or superiority. Only fear.
A young human with long black hair wearing tattered black clothes sat atop the corpse of one of the dead gorillas. A small silver chain carrying a mirror-like pearl hung around his neck while his chin rested lazily against one hand.
Liyu.
He looked at the two remaining gorillas with a seemingly bored expression. The two beasts trembled violently on their feet as they stared at him like they had just seen the devil himself.
Just like the corpses scattered around the area, the surviving gorillas possessed large black spikes protruding upward from the area behind their necks. One of the gorillas slowly turned toward the other, its terrified face practically screaming: "Are we really dying like this?"
The second gorilla’s expression twitched in horror before it silently replied back through facial gestures. "I don’t know! Did you not see how he killed the others?! One punch here, another there, and they just died! There’s no hope!"
The first gorilla’s face scrunched up even further in fear before it silently asked again. "Do you think if we run we can escape?"
The second gorilla immediately raised a finger toward its face, its expression changing several times rapidly.
"Are you crazy?! Did you not see him appearing and disappearing like a ghost?! We can’t outrun that monster!"
"Then what should we do?!"
"I don’t know! We’re probably dead!"
The two Spiked Gorillas looked like they were about to cry as they stared fearfully at Liyu, who was still calmly watching their entire silent conversation unfold.
"Are you two done conversing?" Liyu asked with a small curl on his lips. Although it resembled a smile, to the two terrified beasts it looked as though the devil himself had smiled at them personally.
The two gorillas shivered violently. Liyu finally stood up, the faint smile disappearing from his face as he looked at them calmly.
"You are disappointing," he said simply.
And he truly meant it.
Over the past few days since gaining his newfound strength and abilities, Liyu had found it nearly impossible to encounter an actual challenge within this part of the forest. The beasts that once forced him into desperate struggles now seemed unbelievably weak. Too weak.
A properly placed punch was often enough to shatter their skulls instantly. As promised, Liyu had spent the last four days rampaging through the Beast Forest, terrorizing beasts without restraint.
He invaded territories casually, slaughtered beasts one after another, collected their cores, roasted their bodies for snacks, then calmly walked into another territory to repeat the process all over again.
Through those actions, his name and the destruction that followed him spread rapidly throughout this part of the forest. Any beast unlucky enough to catch a glimpse of him immediately fled in terror.
Liyu had even witnessed a massive Bison Beast throw itself headfirst off a mountain cliff after seeing his "friendly" smile from afar. So yes, he was absolutely terrorizing the forest exactly as he promised. Almost every beast had learned to fear him.
All except the Spiked Gorillas. They were strong. Extremely strong. And coupled with their overwhelming pride, they refused to flee when they saw the young human approaching them with a harmless smile on his face. frёeωebɳovel.com
There were twelve of them originally, and every single one stood at the peak of Level One Beast Rank, equivalent to peak Body Refinement cultivators among humans. Meanwhile, the human walking toward them was only at the seventh stage of Body Refinement. The disparity should have been obvious.
Yet the human continued walking toward them calmly with that predatory smile plastered across his face. Seeing his confidence and complete lack of fear, one of the Spiked Gorillas immediately charged forward to teach the arrogant human his place.
Unfortunately, that gorilla survived only a few seconds longer. Liyu moved so quickly it felt as though the distance between them had shortened instantly. To the gorilla, it looked almost like teleportation. Before the beast could even understand what was happening, Liyu’s punch connected cleanly with its face.
PAH!
A loud explosive sound echoed throughout the clearing as the gorilla’s head was blown clean off its body. Its corpse dropped lifelessly to the ground the next second. That was the moment the remaining gorillas finally became wary.
Yet even then, they still refused to believe that Liyu could truly kill them all. To them, he must have simply landed a lucky attack. So the remaining gorillas attacked together. And immediately, the delusion they had desperately forced themselves to believe shattered like fragile glass. Reality dawned upon them in the cruelest way possible.
The human moved like a ghost. His movements were swift, calm, almost lazily relaxed as he dodged attacks and blocked blows effortlessly, his face still carrying that same calm smile while he dismantled them one after another. One by one, the gorilla beasts dropped dead.
One had his beast core ripped straight out from his upper abdomen, his massive body collapsing lifelessly the moment it was removed. For spirit beasts, losing a beast core was no different from having their very existence severed.
Another had his skull smashed brutally into the ground. He never rose again. His head caved inward from the impact, blood and shattered bone spreading across the earth.
As time passed, the gorilla beasts slowly realized one horrifying truth. They were dying. So they fought harder.
They roared in rage, slammed their fists into the earth, and attacked with everything they had. Muscles bulged, veins swelled, and their attacks became more savage with every passing second.
Yet no matter how desperately they fought, no matter how much strength they forced out of themselves, nothing changed. They could not even scratch the human standing before them.
Liyu moved through their attacks calmly, almost lazily. His face remained relaxed, that same unnerving smile still resting on his lips as he dismantled them one after another like a bored predator playing with weak prey.
Soon, only five remained. At that moment, true fear finally settled into the hearts of the spiked gorillas. They tried to flee. Unfortunately for them, Liyu had no intention of allowing that. Within moments, another three died.
The remaining two froze completely, their minds nearly collapsing from terror. A single horrifying thought echoed inside their heads: "Was he playing with them this entire time?"
If that was true, then could the thing standing before them still even be called human? No. Humans did not smile like that while slaughtering monsters stronger than themselves. This thing before them was a beast. No, something worse. A monster.
Li Yu took a single step forward. The two gorillas instantly took two steps backward in perfect synchronization. Li Yu raised an eyebrow slightly before taking another casual step forward. Again, the two beasts retreated together. freēwēbnovel.com
"This pair really is trying to run," Li Yu muttered amusedly. Then he smiled gently. "Why are you running?"
The two spiked gorillas stiffened violently. A moment later, both massive beasts suddenly dropped to their knees, raising their hands into the air in surrender.
Their entire bodies trembled uncontrollably as they begged silently for mercy. Li Yu chuckled softly at the sight.
"These gorillas really are funny."
Honestly, if he did not possess the memories of the old Liyu, he might have actually spared them. Their actions almost looked human. But he knew better. The spiked gorillas were savage beasts through and through.
They slaughtered any humans unlucky enough to wander into their territory. The old Liyu had nearly died to them multiple times. Well, that was the old Liyu. The current Liyu was obviously a genius beyond compare. Naturally, creatures like these could only kneel beneath his overwhelming brilliance.
Li Yu smiled warmly as he patted one of the gorillas on the head, completely unconcerned by the fact that the beast towered over him several times over.
"You two are honestly adorable," he said lightly. "Sadly, that’s just a disguise. So I’ll be ending your lives now." He tilted his head slightly. "Any last words? Maybe a final prayer?"
The two gorillas widened their eyes in absolute horror. Their mouths opened slightly, but not a single sound came out. Fear had already strangled their voices. Li Yu sighed.
The fear he created was honestly becoming a bit excessive. He genuinely wanted to hear what kind of last words spirit beasts would say before death.
"Well, guess I’ll never know," he muttered regretfully. Then he clenched his fist. "Rip."
BOOOOOOOOM!
A violent explosion erupted. Li Yu’s eyes narrowed as his body was blasted several meters backward. He slid across the ground before stabilizing himself, lightly rubbing his chest where a faint sting lingered.
A small frown appeared on his face as he looked upward. Standing protectively before the two terrified gorillas was another spiked gorilla. Unlike the others, this one possessed two massive black spikes protruding from its back, darker and sharper than obsidian. Its crimson eyes gleamed with fury and madness as it stared directly at Li Yu.
"Oh?" Li Yu said calmly, as if discussing the weather. "A new enemy. System, scan this new friend of ours."
