Yuki knew she needed to get out of this place, but she also knew she could not leave things that could help her behind. With a thought, she sucked all the unopened porcelain bottles into her mind space before turning to leave. But as she did, she caught sight of a tattered book on the only unturned table in the room. With another thought, she sucked it into her mind space as well before exiting the room she was in. The door to the room seemed to have been embedded into the rock and really did not match the natural archway that had been created.

She stood in the rocky tunnel with her body slightly hunched over, ready to attack anything that might come near her. Her expression was devoid of emotion as she looked back and forth. She still twitched after any sound she heard, thinking it was the old man.

She sniffed the air, and when she smelt a faint scent of grass coming from her right, she began making her way through the tunnel. Her boots were no longer able to fit her feet, so she had no choice but to walk around barefooted. The rocks of the cave floor stabbed into her feet, but she did not even wince at the pain. She did not even notice that they were bleeding, leaving behind bloody footprints.

The path was completely straight but inclined as if walking up a hill. After about an hour of walking, Yuki finally heard the sound of rushing water, and seconds later, a bright light could be seen as she climbed up over a small ledge. Yuki felt tired. Very tired. With how weak she felt, she just wanted to escape the place she was in and find a place to rest.

She dragged her malnourished body to the entrance and covered her eyes as the bright light, and lush greenery of the forest came into view. Not too far off, she could hear a river of some kind which she decided would be her first destination.

Yuki did not speak a word as she slowly turned and walked towards the river. She walked through the thorns and thickets as if they were not there. Even as they tore into her skin, she did not feel the pain. Pain was something she no longer felt. Right now, she could only thank the heavens that she was still alive. Her only goal was to grow stronger, find out where her people were being held, and rescue them. If she could not rescue them, she would kill the people who took her life away from her. Her parents. Her only best friend. And the elder who was like a grandfather.

In her previous life, she laid in a bed for eighteen years. In this life, she thought she would have a chance to truly enjoy life but now…. She felt nothing. Pain, sadness, joy, nothing at all. It was taken from her down deep in the cave she had just escaped from.

Yuki did not know how long it took for her to reach the river, nor did she care. She walked straight into the water that was flowing by at a steady pace and dunked her entire body underwater. She did not know if the water was cold or hot. She did not feel the movement of the water. She could feel nothing at all...

Water dripped down from her hair as she resurfaced. She looked at her reflection and saw her sunken cheeks and how her face seemed to have matured quite a bit. She then closed her eyes, dipped her face into the water, and opened her mouth, taking a big gulp. It seemed as if this one drink had flipped a switch in her body as she gulped mouth full after mouth full of water. She drank for almost ten minutes before she finally felt satisfied. Her dried out skin slowly began to rehydrate at an incredible speed.

She could not tell if the water was cold or hot. She had no taste, but yet she could smell, see and hear…. Her expressionless face turned and looked towards the shore when she heard rustling in the bushes not too far off. She quickly took her sword out and moved towards the sound. The smell she was smelling was slightly familiar. Sure enough, seconds later, a tri horned dear stepped out of the tree line but stopped when it saw Yuki and lowered its head in an aggressive stance.

Yuki's cold gaze swept over the dear as a bit of drool slowly dripped from her mouth. No matter how broken her emotions were at this time, her bodily functions would not lie. She was very hungry. She dug into the rocky river bank, cutting the soles of her feet as she darted forward. The tri horned deer was an aggressive rank one demonic beast. So it did not hesitate to charge at Yuki. But sadly for it, Yuki had hunted such demonic beasts many times. With a small leap in the air to the side, she spun her body around and slashed down at the tri horned deer that was charging past her, slicing into its neck and lopping its head off its body. Blood spurted in the air and covered the green foliage nearby.

The tri horned deer’s body took a few more steps before falling down. Yuki did not hesitate to slice one of its legs off and sit down on top of its body before biting into its flesh. Her teeth tore through the hide and bit off a huge chunk of meat. Hunger prevailed over cooking. She couldn’t taste anything even though she had a strong scent of blood in her nose. But it was a scent she had long gotten used to.

After eating quite a bit, Yuki noticed that her body, for some reason, was slowly regaining a plumper form. Her body did not look as if it had not eaten for years on end. She also felt her energy coming back to her. She did not know why this was, but she definitely noticed the changes. After eating what she could and storing the rest away in her mind space, Yuki washed up, ignoring the fact that her clothes were drenched in blood. She washed the blood on her face and washed her hands before grabbing her sword and looking towards the forest. She had not smelled anyone besides some demonic beasts. She did not know what happened to the old man, but at this time, it seemed she was safe from any pursuers.

She decided on a direction and began walking that way. Where she was going to go from here, she did not know. She only knew that she would need to find a place for the night and begin her cultivation once more. Her path had only just begun.