Re-birth: The Beginning after the End

Chapter 83 NOT STRONG ENOUGH

The shadows came from everywhere at once. Dark silhouettes filled the sky like a storm of locusts, their forms distorting the morning light as they descended. On the ground, hundreds of shadows slithered across the frost-covered earth, warping and stretching in ways that defied natural law. The very air seemed to thicken with malevolent intent, making each breath feel heavy and tainted.

Through the growing haze, Li Hua's trained senses picked out the approaching army from the eastern plains—five hundred cultivation signatures pulsed like a symphony of heartbeats in the fog, each one maintaining that suspicious Martial Rank 2 facade. They moved across the open fields with eerie coordination, their dark silhouettes spreading across the grasslands like an advancing tide.

But it was the twelve figures at their head that drew her attention. These men led the march with measured steps, their spiritual essence deeper and more controlled than their subordinates, carrying themselves with the unmistakable authority of leaders. The morning mist seemed to part before them as they approached, as if even nature itself recognized their power.

The frost tiger let out a low, rumbling growl that made the ice beneath its paws crack in spiraling patterns. The thunder rabbits' fur stood on end, static electricity arcing between their ears in brilliant blue flashes. Even the wind fox's usually playful demeanor had transformed into something ancient and deadly, its eyes glowing with otherworldly light as it tracked the encroaching threats.

From among the twelve central figures, still a hundred paces away across the morning-hazed plains, one man stepped forward. His robes were rich with embroidered patterns that seemed to shift in the morning light, and his face carried the weight of years yet showed no signs of age—a testament to his cultivation level.

A smile spread across his features, but it didn't reach his eyes. When he spoke, his voice carried unnaturally across the distance, each word empowered by spiritual essence to reach them with perfect clarity.

"Li Ming, it's so good to see you again." The artificial warmth in his tone barely masked something colder beneath.

Her father stepped out of the gate, his farmer's simple clothing standing in stark contrast to the other man's elaborate robes. Yet somehow, he carried himself with an authority that made his worn attire seem like a chosen disguise rather than a true representation of his status. When he responded, his voice carried just as far, though Li Hua noticed he used less spiritual essence to achieve the same effect. "Wang Da, I can't say the feelings are mutual."

"H-how?" Wang Da stuttered, his previous arrogance crumbling as he took an unconscious step backward. "How did you break through to Deity Phase Rank 1? So-sovereigns..." The last word escaped him in a whisper of mingled fear and awe. Li Hua watched as the color drained from his face, his elaborate robes suddenly seeming gaudy rather than impressive.

But before her parents could respond, another figure stepped forward from the twelve. His movement was casual, almost lazy, yet the spiritual pressure that rolled off him made Li Hua's breath catch in her throat. This was no low-tier Deity—his power radiated with the depth and intensity of a high-tier practitioner, exceeding her parents' current strength.

The pressure emanating from him was stifling. Though her father's array held back most of the energy, she and her brothers were now slightly sweating from its intensity. Even within their protected sanctuary, the weight of his power pressed against them like an invisible tide.

"What an asshole," Li Hao muttered under his breath, his fists clenched at his sides. "He hid until Māmā and Bàba exposed their strengths. Only now, knowing he's stronger, does he step up."

Li Hua noticed too and the realization made her blood run cold.

The man let out a low, chilling laugh that rolled across the plain, the sound making the air itself tremble. His presence alone seemed to dim the morning light, his every movement warping the spiritual essence in the air. The frost beneath his feet blackened and crackled as if recoiling from his touch, and even the wind seemed to still, as if nature itself held its breath in his presence. "You both are quite impressive indeed," he continued, amusement dancing in his cold eyes, "but still not strong enough."

Wang Da's demeanor changed instantly, his previous shock transforming into oily deference. "Master Qian," he simpered, bowing deeply. "As expected, you saw through their façade immediately. Their cultivation, while impressive for ones who've hidden so long, is nothing before your might."

The man called Master Qian merely smiled, the expression never reaching his eyes. The pressure of his power continued to build, making it clear that her parents' revelation, while shocking to most, was far from the most formidable force on the field.