Near the base of a tall mountain two youngsters were tearing through the hardened shrubbery, trying to make their way deeper into the forest.
The one in the front was fourteen years old but he looked much older because of his thick bushy brows, wide shoulders and cheekbones.
The brows were furrowed tightly and his teeth gritted as he cut apart a small tree with some effort. The dull blade in his hand felt heavier with every swing but that did little to hinder his progress.
"Naim, stop! Listen to me for once in your life!" the one in the back shouted, trying to catch up.
He looked much younger and appropriate for his age. A pale young man with a skinny build. He had shoulder-length black hair that with his rather delicate features made him look quite sickly.
The boy in front who was referred to as Naim actually increased his speed instead of slowing down. He turned his head halfway, "Tao, go back. This has nothing to do with you," he replied coldly.
'Tao' was already running out of breath but he still pushed himself and tried to catch up.
"Naim, please, the village chief already sent a message to one of the nearby cities. They should be sending a cultivator to help any day now!"
Naim was about to cut another branch blocking his way when he heard that and stopped. He still didn't turn around to face Tao but his helpless expression was easy to imagine from his quivering voice.
"You know…she can't wait a few more days. If I don't bring back that monster's blood, she will die before anyone can come help."
If given another choice, why would he ever put himself in danger like this? This was the only way left. He had to do something.
Naim had one older sister, Yvain. Both their parents passed away when they were young and they didn't have any other living family members. It was Yvain that had cared for him and didn't even get married because of him.
A few days ago she accidentally wandered too far away from the village in search of a mushroom that grew in hot and dark places. This mushroom was Naim's favorite food but it was really hard to come by. But since it was his birthday in a few days, she decided to find one for him as a present.
Unfortunately, she lost track of her surroundings and accidentally wandered into the lair of a beast that was referred to as a 'Magma Dragon' by the villagers.
It was the king of this entire area and the strongest beast within a hundred miles.
The Magma Dragon passively excreted an acidic liquid that was extremely poisonous to normal human beings and could dissolves entire beasts. By the time she realized where she was, it was already too late.
She had inhaled too much of the fumes from this excretion and had poisoned herself. She was going to die soon unless something was done about it.
The village healer said the antidote was within the blood of the beast. If Naim could get a little bit, he could cure her. So with his trusty sword, he set out to get the blood himself.
"But still, it's a dragon you know! How can you possibly kill it?" Tao retorted, trying to make him see how ludicrous this endeavor was. He was Naim's best friend and like most of the other youngsters in the village, secretly in love with Yvain. He wanted to help her as well but they were just normal humans!
Naim shook his head and continued walking, "I don't need to kill it. Just a little bit of blood will do…just a few drops.." he mumbled the last few words to himself.
He was clear on the situation. Killing is impossible, but a scratch or two wouldn't be an issue, right?
"Naim! Don't be stupi-"
Tao had just started speaking when a hand fell over his mouth and stopped him. It was Naim. His expression grim.
"Do you feel it?" Naim whispered.
Tao was about to shake his head but then he felt the faint tremors. The ground was pounding. It sounded like extremely far away yet heavy footsteps.
"W-What is it?" he stuttered. Were they already at the beast's lair
"I don't know. We are still a valley away from it," Naim replied while crouching. He felt the ground shake over and over again but it didn't feel like it was getting any closer.
"Let's go take a look," he said in a low voice and started making his way towards the source of all the commotion.
Tao wanted to turn around and go back but his curiosity was peaked. Was another beast fighting with the dragon?
They crawled through the bushes and trees as slowly as possible until there was no more ground. They were on top of a small cliff that overlooked a valley.
This was the source of all the noise and shaking but when they actually saw what was going on, their mouths fell open.
"Wh..at…" Tao murmured.
"Ho…w…is this….possible…?" Naim was a bit better in the sense that he spit out a full sentence.
*BAAANG*
*BAAANG*
*BAAANG*
In the valley was a monster. A giant lizard-like beast at over fifty meters long and five meters tall. It spewed molten lava with every roar and its thick hide was covered with razor-sharp blades that looked like it could block any attacks.
Yet right now, a half-naked man was fighting it alone, barehanded.
And it wasn't that there was no one else to help him because there four other individuals sitting on the other side of the valley across from them. But all of them were as relaxed as they could be and were laughing and watching like it was a show.
The magma dragon opened its toothy maw and spat out a ball of lava that exploded as soon as it came into contact with the naked man.
*BOOM*
"Oh no!" Tao yelled out accidentally but no one paid attention to him.
The dust settled and the half-naked man could be seen standing at his original spot. Everything else around him was gone but there was barely a scratch on him.
He smiled, "Fire resistance is good. Added with the physique's own ability, it barely stings," he said out loud while examining his body. Then he looked back at the dragon with a wicked smile.
"Switch to offense. 20% power to all limbs."
Tao and Naim had no idea who he was talking to, but right now they couldn't look away. As soon as he finished talking, his muscles tightened and visibly expanded by a small margin. The veins on his arms and legs looked like snakes under his skin, pumping blood with such vigor that should not be possible for a human.
He bent his knees and whistled, getting the attention of the magma dragon.
"Come on puppy, show me what you got."
"ROAAAAR"
It looked like the dragon could understand him to an extent as its eyes turned red and steam came out from its nostrils.
The man's smile brightened even more.
"He's…crazy…" Tao mumbled absentmindedly. Naim wanted to comment but there was no time. The ground shook and the man disappeared.
*BOOOM*
The next thing they say was the over fifty-meter long beast being sent flying straight up into the air. Below it was the man with a frown on his face.
"Increase power to 50%."
The entire valley shook as soon as he said the words and the area within 10 meters of him turned to dust and as he disappeared once again, reappearing above the magma dragon that had only just begun its descent.
He raised his right foot and brought it down on the dragons head, creating a shockwave and sending it crashing into the ground.
*BOOOM*
He landed a few dozen meters from the twitching dragon and spoke up again.
"Increase power to 100%. Heavenly…Blare!"
*BOOOOOOM*
The very sky exploded as he turned into a bolt of black lightning and reappeared on the other side with such a loud sound that it disoriented Tao and Naim who were more than 500 meters away.
It looked like even his companions weren't expecting that and all of them stood up with complicated expressions on their faces.
The dragon was…everywhere. It had turned to mush, spilling guts and searing hot blood everywhere.
The now bloodied man wiped his face with a satisfied expression, "Not bad."
