Wet rot mixed with copper filled the air of Phantom Valley.

  Through the thick black water he waded, Adonis stepping slow where each foot pulled free with a wet gasp. Around him stood dead trees, stripped bare, reaching up like broken bones against the sky. Bodies floated close to the surface - some human-shaped, others animal, many beyond naming - caught in tangles of roots or stacked without care. A few still looked recently fallen. The rest? Time had softened them, swallowed by green fuzz sprouting from lips, pooling inside hollow skulls.

  Now the stink barely registered. Over time, plenty had started to slide right past him.

  A shimmer of pale light pulled his gaze forward.

  Here it stood, pushing up through the heart of the biggest pile of dead things - the Phantom's Bloom. Its petals looked like dark glass, rimmed with a sharp blue glow that flickered like live wire. A single slow throb ran through it, steady as a sleeping pulse. Over years, the corpses nearby had melted into each other: reptile legs knotted with fur-covered thighs, talons gripping bird-thin throats, forming a thick, reeking platform beneath the plant. It grew where a troll's ribcage used to be, deep inside what remained of its hollow chest.

  Low to the ground, Adonis waited by the heap's rim.

  A hand moved forward. The moment it touched, a grip formed on the stalk.

  A wet, pulling noise marked the bloom's release. For just an instant, the blue glow surged - then softened when he stowed it away.

  [Phantom Bloom Acquired]

  A flicker stayed in his sight - crimson words against dark, clear and meant for him alone. Anyone else glancing at their screen would see calm blue instead, flat and ordinary like all the rest. He was the only one who noticed what changed.

  Up he got, pivoting before the door even called his name.

  A sudden blast erupted from the water just behind him.

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  A roar split the swamp air - suddenly this thing heaved up, huge and twisted like something made of bad dreams. Its face half lion, fire in its throat, while fangs jutted sideways like a wild boar's. From behind, a snake spine coiled tight before snapping into a stinger tip, oozing thick poison. Arms, pale ones, too many fingers splayed wide, scraping upward as if trying to catch sky. Rot clung to chunks of meat slapped between splintered ribs, knotted with dark strands pulsing slow - not quite muscle, not quite rope. It stood there breathing heavy, a mess of parts never meant to move together. Known here as chimera ghoul. Hunted everything else on these flatlands.

  A shriek ripped through - sharp as fractured steel, raw as breath giving out.

  Adonis didn't hesitate.

  A small motion sent the watch spinning. The glass caught light as it turned.

  A hunk of corroded metal formed in his hand - summoned without delay from storage space. Though dented, scarred, struggling to stay sharp, it carried weight. It had been through years. He claimed it anyway.

  The ghoul lunged.

  Footsteps sliding sideways, Adonis hit the water hard. Up surged his blade without pause. Into thick fur it sank, just above the animal's front leg. Dark liquid burst out like ink. A growl ripped from its throat, loud enough to shake reeds. Its tail snapped round fast, needle tip catching skin. Cold fire spread down his arm - he sucked air sharply.

  They circled.

  Slipping past fallen bodies, Adonis flowed forward, each step finding balance on lopsided heaps. His blade cut through air and flesh, then pulled back just before another strike landed. Something sharp scraped along his ribs, opening fabric and skin beneath. Red seeped out slow and warm. Pain stayed in the background, unattended.

  Fight dragged on. Could have been minutes. Or more.

  Fires lit his muscles. Each gasp arrived broken, uneven.

  That old sword, worn down by one clash after another, just broke apart then.

  A crack split the air. Into the muck tumbled the upper part of the steel.

  A shadow twitched, sensing a break in strength. Up it rose, jaws parting like cracked earth.

  A fire sparked behind Adonis's ribs, sharp and fast. Heat rose without warning, filling his frame.

  He snarled.

  A chunk of metal flew through the air, thrown hard. Hitting the creature's pig-like eye, there was a soft crushing sound. Off balance now, the beast wobbled.

  Adonis didn't wait.

  Forward he pushed with both hands.

  A burst of fire leaped from his hands - fierce, ravenous, glowing deep red. It twisted upward like a living thing, devouring air.

  A wave of heat tore forward, fierce beyond reason. From its core, fire engulfed the chimera ghoul without pause. Skin darkened, split, curled away. Instead of yielding quietly, tendons broke sharply, one after another. Twisting wildly, the stitched-together creature shrieked midair. Only then did it plunge down, crashing into the river below. Fire clung beneath the surface, flickering through bubbles and ripples until at last it faded.

  A ring of blackened marshland - trunks turned brittle as ash, steam rising off cracked earth - showed the spot where the beast fell. Smoke curled upward long after the fire faded. The ground stayed split open there. Nothing green returned.

  A haze curled from his fingers as Adonis stayed fixed, breath loud and uneven. His arms trembled slightly under a thin trail of rising vapor.

  [Chimera Ghoul defeated]

  [EXP +780]

  Right now the experience sits at 1,240 out of a needed 1,850

  For just a second, he kept his eyes on the blackened remains. Then stillness took over again.

  Then he left, leaving the smoldering pit behind, red irises flickering under the valley's pale, never-ending dusk light.