---
**Chapter 6**
*"In the face of death, the soul either shatters or sharpens, forged in the crucible of survival."*
The air in Jade Hollow trembled with the thunder of the approaching monster herd, a roar that shook the earth and drowned out the screams of the fleeing. Lin Zen stood behind the crumbling city wall, the rune-etched dagger in his hand feeling pitifully small against the storm on the horizon. The grizzled guard beside him, whose name he'd learned was Gao, gripped his spear, his knuckles white. The other guards—barely a dozen, their qi weak and flickering—braced themselves along the wall, their faces etched with dread. Jade Hollow was a forgotten speck in the cultivation world, its high-ranking cultivators long gone to chase power in grander cities. Now, it faced a monster herd, a tide of berserk beasts stronger than anything the city had seen in years.
Lin Zen's heart pounded, a mix of Elias's defiance and Lin Zen's terror. His body—frail, meridians blocked, unfit for cultivation—ached from the tavern's earlier abuse, his shin still throbbing where a drunken cultivator had kicked him. But he stood firm, the jade pendant around his neck warm against his skin, a faint anchor to a past he barely understood. He remembered Elias's final moments: Anna's hand, Lily's tears, the hospital's flatline. He'd died once. He wouldn't die again without a fight.
"They're here!" Gao shouted, his voice nearly lost in the growing cacophony. The horizon churned with dust and shadow, and then they saw it—a writhing mass of beasts, their eyes glowing red with qi-madness. Scaled wolves with claws like scythes, iron-horned boars the size of carts, shadow panthers that flickered like nightmares. The herd was a living avalanche, tearing through the outer fields, their roars shaking the city's fragile wards.
The guards unleashed their qi, feeble streams of energy that sparked against the wards, trying to reinforce them. But the first wave of beasts hit like a battering ram, and the wards cracked, runes flickering out. A scaled wolf leaped over the wall, its jaws snapping, and tore into a guard before he could raise his spear. Blood sprayed, and screams erupted as the herd breached the city.
Lin Zen stumbled back, the dagger trembling in his grip. The air was thick with the stench of blood and scorched earth, the beasts' qi so potent it pressed against his chest like a physical weight. People ran, their cries swallowed by the chaos—vendors abandoning stalls, mothers clutching children, low-tier cultivators fleeing only to be cut down. A shadow panther lunged at a fleeing woman, its claws rending her in half before it turned its glowing eyes on Lin Zen.
His body froze, Lin Zen's memories screaming to run, but Elias's will rooted him. He wasn't a cultivator, wasn't strong, but he'd faced death before. He dove to the side as the panther pounced, its claws gouging the earth where he'd stood. The dagger felt useless, but it was all he had. The panther turned, its growl a low rumble, and charged again.
Lin Zen's weak body protested, his lungs burning, his legs barely holding him up. But his mind—Elias's mind—raced. The panther was fast, but it moved predictably, driven by instinct. He scrambled toward a broken cart, its wooden slats splintered. As the panther leaped, he ducked behind the cart, thrusting the dagger upward with all his strength. The blade caught the beast's underbelly, slicing through tough hide. Black blood sprayed, and the panther howled, thrashing as it collapsed, its weight pinning Lin Zen to the ground.
Pain exploded through his body—ribs cracking, breath stolen, his vision swimming. The panther's claws had raked his side, leaving deep gashes that burned like fire. He pushed against the beast, its corpse heavy, its blood soaking his robe. With a desperate heave, he freed himself, crawling away, the dagger still clutched in his bloodied hand. He'd killed it. A weak, powerless boy had killed a monster. But the victory was hollow—his body was half-dead, each breath a knife in his chest, his vision darkening at the edges.
Around him, Jade Hollow was a slaughterhouse. The herd tore through the streets, boars smashing buildings, wolves ripping through guards. Gao fought on, his spear bloodied, but he was faltering, his qi nearly spent. The city's few cultivators were overwhelmed, their techniques too weak to stem the tide. Bodies littered the ground, and the air was thick with despair.
Lin Zen collapsed against a shattered wall, his blood pooling beneath him. He was dying again, he knew it. The irony was bitter—he'd escaped one death only to face another. Memories flooded in, unbidden: Lily's laughter as they built pillow forts, Anna's hand holding his through the pain, Richard's regret in those final moments. He'd promised to stay for them, and he'd failed. Now, he was failing Lin Zen, too, this boy whose life he'd stolen.
The jade pendant at his neck grew hot, searing against his skin. He gasped, clutching it, and it pulsed, glowing with a faint green light. Before he could react, it tore free from its cord, floating before his eyes. The world seemed to slow, the chaos fading to a distant hum. The pendant shimmered, then dissolved into a stream of light that shot into his forehead, a jolt like lightning coursing through his mind.
*Ding.*
A sound, clear and sharp, rang in his ears, not from the world but from within. A voice followed, cold and mechanical, yet impossibly alive: *[Death System Activated. Host: Lin Zen. Integration Complete.]*
Lin Zen's eyes widened, his pain momentarily forgotten. The voice echoed in his mind, accompanied by a flood of images—runes, energy flows, a vast interface like a scroll unfurling in his consciousness. Words appeared, etched in light: *Survive. Grow. Conquer Death.* A status screen flickered, showing his name, his pitiful stats—Strength: 3, Qi: 0, Vitality: 5—and a single directive: *Kill or be killed to earn Death Points.*
He blinked, the world snapping back. The herd's roars, the screams, the blood—all real again. His body was still broken, his side bleeding, his breath shallow. But something had shifted. The pendant's warmth lingered in his mind, a spark of possibility. Was this… a chance? A way to fight, to live, to become something more than a frail orphan in a world that crushed the weak?
Gao's shout broke his thoughts. "Boy! Move!" A boar charged, its iron horns glinting, aimed at Lin Zen's crumpled form. He rolled, agony screaming through his wounds, and the boar's horns smashed the wall where he'd been, sending stone flying. Gao lunged, his spear piercing the boar's flank, but it only enraged the beast. It turned, goring Gao's leg, and the guard fell with a cry.
Lin Zen's vision blurred, but the system's voice rang again: *[Kill to survive. Reward: 10 Death Points.]* He didn't understand, but he didn't need to. Elias's will surged, Lin Zen's desperation fueling it. He staggered to his feet, gripping the dagger, and charged. The boar didn't see him, too focused on Gao. Lin Zen leaped, driving the blade into the beast's eye, twisting with all his fading strength. The boar roared, thrashing, then collapsed, its massive body still.
Lin Zen fell beside it, his body screaming, blood pouring from his wounds. The system chimed: *[First Kill: Iron-Horned Boar. 10 Death Points Awarded.]* But he barely heard it. The world was fading, the herd's roars distant. He'd killed again, but at what cost? His vision darkened, his breath a faint rattle.
As he lay there, half-dead, the system's light pulsed in his mind, a promise of power in a world that demanded it. Jade Hollow burned, but Lin Zen—Elias—wasn't done fighting. Not yet.
---