I stepped outside the little cabin I lived in. The forest around me was silent as the grave, which was rather unusual. However, as I sat there, listening, I eventually noticed a presence near me. Turning to face it, a large shadow leapt out from the tree line. The creature landed in front of me, snarling loudly.

"Oh, a dire wolf, huh? I suppose that explains why the forest is so quiet right now," I thought aloud, looking at the van-sized wolf in front of me. It growled before pouncing once again. The wolf slammed into me, but I barely shifted even when its full weight impacted me. Gritting my teeth, I grabbed hold of the beast and lifted it into the air. My muscles bulging, I tossed the predator aside.

It rose to its feet, but it seemed a little more wary now. The dire wolf eyed me carefully, its intelligence clearly showing in its eyes. Clenching my small hands into fists, I raised my arms into a fighting stance. However, I wasn't expecting what happened next.

The dire wolf opened its mouth and I could see energy begin condensing inside its gaping maw. The energy became a ball larger than my head. My eyes widening, I dodged to the side right as a beam of energy tore through the air where I had just been standing. Looking back, I saw that the beam had cleaved through several of the trees.

"To be honest...I really didn't expect that to happen," I muttered. "Guess that means you're not not just an ordinary dire wolf. You must've learned how to harness Ki, which means you're an official Spirit Beast now. That means, I've really gotta kill ya now."

The wolf seemed to shiver when it saw the greedy glimmer in my eyes. Licking my lips, I charged froward. Dodging another Ki wave, I approached the beast and punched it full-on in the head. The Spirit Beast's head reeled backwards, its skull looking to be slightly caved in. 

"You know, I've never been able to learn how to harness Ki myself, but I still benefit from eating the Spirit Core of a Spirit Beast such as yourself. My father told me that I must be similar to a Spirit Beast myself to be able to absorb the Ki inside without any kind of cultivation technique," I told the wolf. I knew it most likely couldn't understand me, but talking to the wolf was better than just talking to myself. However, my thoughts were scattered by another Ki wave blasting towards me.

Putting up my hands, I took the attack head-on. Shouting in pain, I held strong against the energy pushing against me. Once the wave had ended, I looked at my hands. There was no skin on my palms, revealing the muscle and bone underneath. Luckily, the Ki wave cauterized the wounds, so blood wasn't streaming out of my hands.

"That. Hurt," I stated. Glaring at the wolf, I picked a rock up off the ground. Rearing my arm back, I threw the rock at the Spirit Beast with all my strength. The rock struck and exploded the wolf's eye, blood streaming out of the wound. It roared and glared at me with its single eye, but it was clearly in pain and ready to run. However, it knew that the moment it turned its back, that was the moment it died.

So instead, it once again condensed energy into its mouth. However, instead of firing a single beam, it raised its head up and fire the energy into the air. The beam split into several thinner beams, striking the ground all around me. I dodged most of the attacks, but the last one came hurtling directly towards me.

"Hap!" I exclaimed, punching the oncoming Ki wave. The beam halted and shuddered before dissipating. Grinning, I blew the smoke off of my fist as I looked directly into the wolf's eye. It whined before turning around and sprinting away, willing to take a chance on outrunning me. "Wrong choice."

Shifting into a runner's stance, I took off. Sprinting as fast as I could, I quickly outpaced the wolf and crossed in front of it. Picking up a fallen tree, I smacked it into the wolf. The canine flew into a tree with a thud, before collapsing onto the ground. It tried to stand back up, but I walked over to it and crushed its head into paste.

Pulling out the knife I always kept with me, I began cutting open the Spirit Beast's corpse. Digging around inside its ribcage, I eventually found its Spirit Core. Pulling out my prize, I held it up triumphantly before heading back to the cabin.

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Once I was back inside the safety and comfort of my own home, I tossed the blue, golfball-sized orb into my mouth. Biting down on it, the crystal-like outer layer cracked and shattered, releasing the Ki into my body. Like always, my body began naturally absorbing the energy, strengthening and toughening my entire body. Inhaling deeply, I grinned and stood back up.

"I could get addicted to that feeling," I thought aloud. Walking back outside, I decided to go and hunt for breakfast. "I would've eaten the dire wolf I killed, except its meat is too tough and gamey. I just don't like it. Also, I'm talking to myself again. Really need to stop doing that."

Sprinting into the forest, I began hunting. Sniffing around, I caught the scent of a wild boar. Salivating, I immediately began following the scent. However, I could tell that the scent was a bit stale, meaning that it'd been a while since the boar was around. Luckily, I had the speed and sense of smell to track it down wherever it was.

* * *

Several hours later, I found a small cave in the side of one of the mountains surrounding the forest. Approaching slowly, I took a deep whiff of the scent around the cave. I grinned, knowing that I was at the right place. Pulling out my knife, I began stalking into the cave, watching every shadow that shifted.

After a few moments, I reached the end of the cave. The boar lay on the cold, stone floor asleep. However, as soon as I got close, its nose twitched and its eyes snapped open. Turning towards me, it squealed in rage and charged at me. Unexpectedly, though, as it charged, a blue aura of energy surrounded its body.

"What is it with me running into Spirit Beasts today?" I muttered. However, I didn't have long to think. The boar slammed into me, the impact sending me skidding backward. However, I didn't lost my footing and stood firm. That didn't mean that I didn't feel it, however.

I spat a little blood, my body aching from the hit. Gritting my teeth, I flipped the knife around in my hand, now holding it in a reverse grip. The boar snorted and pawed the ground in response, getting ready to charge again. However, this time, as soon as the Spirit Beast was about to hit me, I leapt over it.

Thrusting my knife downwards, the blade struck the blue aura surrounding the boar. The blade cracked and shattered, clearly unable to pierce the layer of Ki surrounding the animal's body. Landing on the ground behind the boar, I tossed aside the fragmented remains of the knife.

"Guess I'll have to use it after all," I muttered. Holding my right hand out, there was a strange distortion that appeared. After a moment, the distortion was replaced with a shimmering glow. When the glow faded, I was holding a beautifully made katana.

Raising the weapon into a combat pose, I waited for the boar to make the next move. It spun around and charged once again, but this time I was ready. Swinging my sword, the blade clashed against the boar's tusks. I pressed against it with all my strength, but the Spirit Beast was slowly pushing me back. Eventually, I found my back pressed against one of the cave walls.

Gritting my teeth, I focused on the blade of the sword. It began glowing with a blue aura. The sword's aura clashed against the boar's aura, causing blue sparks of energy to fly out. Pushing forward, I began pushing the boar back.

"I may not be able to harness Ki myself, but this sword can do it for me," I said through gritted teeth. However, the boar didn't seem to appreciate my words. It just grunted and kept trying to force me backwards. Luckily, the sword gave me enough of an edge to win out against the furious Spirit Beast.

Pouring more of my Ki into the katana, its blue aura increased in brightness and intensity. The sword Ki began to overwhelm the boar's Ki charge, its aura sputtering before finally going out. My sword then cleaved into the boar, splitting the beast in half. Breathing deeply, I pulled my Ki back out of the sword before sending it away.

"Well, that was more difficult than I was expecting," I said, frowning. Grabbing hold of the halves of the boar's body, I began dragging them behind me. Despite the boar's size and weight, it was easy enough for me to drag it back to my cabin. Grabbing a knife from inside, I began cutting the boar into pieces before bringing the meat inside.

However, before I ate the boar meat, I picked up the boar's Spirit Core and consumed it as well. Once again, I felt its Ki rush through me, my body feeling stronger and tougher. However, as soon as the rush was over, I began cooking and eating my breakfast.

It tasted pretty good if I say so myself, though it was lacking...something. Shrugging my shoulders, I stood up and began cleaning the dishes. However, as I was doing this, a strange sensation I'd never felt before passed through my body. I fell to my knees, coughing up blood.

"W-what's happening to me?!" I screamed. I then passed out.