“Grrrowwl!”

Scampering out from the shadows for but a split-second, Jian Cheng has still been spotted... Sort of... Attracted more by the crisp crunch of fallen leaves than by any dim movement it perceives, the iron-skin ice rhino turns its near-sighted eyes towards him and lets out a thrumming roar!

A white light is emitted and quickly encases the beast's body, as it's already armoured skin ices-over in preparation for battle.

Flee! Jian Cheng runs, jumps and dodges between thick-trunked trees, desperately trying to open up some distance between him and the fearsome beast behind.

“Grrrr!”

With thunderous intentions, the iron-skin ice rhino charges. Despite its massive bulk, and short thickset limbs, it is surprisingly quick and agile...

"Ahh, not good," Jian Cheng mumbles, as he stumbles over a curved tree root.

The demonic beast is rated at star five, he is also at tier five, they are technically at the same rank, but it sure doesn’t feel like it right now... He has been counting on his many years of arduous combat and stamina training, and also the guixigong effects, which boost not only strength but speed, to give him an edge.

He'd estimated his physical abilities to be mid-tier-six and foolishly thought that would be enough... Doing his sums, he assumed he would be a fair bit faster.... He was wrong! But hopefully, not dead wrong!

He should've known, after all, animals are almost all physically superior to humans. They have simply been designed better... The human's sole advantage is in the brain. And that's what the fleeing boy uses now...

He reasons that his best chance is to take advantage of the congested terrain... So, he begins slipping through small gaps between trees, forcing the rhino to go the longer route... Giving the beast the run around isn't enough though, as it simply ploughs through a lot of the smaller obstacles he places in its path...

At full sprint, all Jian Cheng's jumbled senses can make out is a blur of umber trunks, black shadows and ghostly grey leaves rushing by... Every so often, he'll burst blinking through a thin-screen of streaming sunlight and become blind for a perilous second... There is nought for it though, but to heedlessly plough ahead... It is run or be dead, so he runs... Away from the rip-snorting thrashing sound! A bellowing wall of noise that only adds another layer of confusion to his already scrambled senses...

“Grrroowl!”

Like almost all smaller adversaries, he had an advantage in agility and uses it, twisting and turning, ducking and weaving as he goes. Somehow the ice rhino stays hot on his heels though, leaving a chilly trail of destruction in its wake... Its frigid, rigid wake to be exact, because everywhere the ice rhino tramples, instantly becomes blanketed in a hoar frost. From above, it resembles some drunken snail trail, wending every which way... Every which way but loose!

Jian Cheng curses, a clearing is fast approaching, and at this very moment, he has an agoraphobic's fear of open spaces...

As expected, when he hits the clearing at full tilt, the beast gleefully accelerates, eating up the open space between predator and prey...

A huge ball of blazing-white light tore towards the jiggling black target that is Jian Cheng's back... He dodges hither and thither to shake off his irate tail, to no avail. In desperation, he sidesteps to his left, scrambling for a thick copse of solid oaks. In an instant of inspiration, he casts Thundercloud in front of him as he runs. He dives headlong into the drizzling cloud that appears, suppressing his aura with the guixigong as he does so. Essentially invisible, he tiptoes silently into the cage of oaks and hides out in the midst of a triangle of three sturdy trees...

As the ice rhino rumbles into the hazy mist, the air naturally freezes and becomes a thick fog... The beast's already blurry vision, soon worsens to make it almost fully blind... Frustration overcomes it almost instantly, and a beastly tantrum ensues...

"Such an unreasonable temper," Jian Chen can't help but think to himself. The excessively violent beast reminds him somewhat of Elder Wei... Even has the same bloodshot beady eyes...

A few seconds later, the iron-skin ice rhino crashes severely into a thin tree nearby, a mere three-chi to the side of Jian Cheng's hiding place. As the tall tree topples down, the boy stifles his heavy breathing, almost suffocating himself. He had no choice but to, there is absolutely nothing wrong with an ice rhino's hearing... Up close for the very first time, he marvels at the armoured skin that covered the rhino's rotund, almost cylindrical torso. The well-named iron-skin is practically impenetrable... And naturally impervious to ice... And conversely, fire resistant as well, if rumours are to be believed.. It is like a fearsome steel fortress... If this wasn't a life and death situation, Jian Cheng might have drooled. Such a precious treasure with so many precious benefits!

It should be known that the iron-skin ice rhino is an endangered species and nearly extinct! Thus, such a lucky chance to hunt, kill and skin one will seldom if ever present itself! Even a unicorn is a bit inferior... When it comes to the skin at least...

“Ahh, what a waste,” he sighs wistfully.... In the sudden silence...

And the ice rhino's triangular ears twitch, it has heard him!

Stupid boy! And just like that, Idiot Child Cheng is off to the races again.

This time, he uses his second wind to follow the natural curve of the valley. After another minute of precarious pursuit, he rounds a corner and skids to a halt. Stopping isn't Jian Cheng's first option, but he suddenly seems to be running out of options...

Up ahead, less than a hundred zhang away, is a sheer cliff-face. It is a dead end... Maybe his?!

He sucks in a ragged breath and glances behind him to where the rampaging rhino is closing-in menacingly. There is nothing for it, he sprints full tilt again, towards the solid cliff wall... The one with an almost invisible hairline fissure in the middle...

Arriving at the narrow cranny, Jian Cheng twists and turns his stocky frame sideways and attempts to squeeze and shove his way into the one-chi wide slot. His heaving chest made it difficult, but a rampaging rhino adds a desperate impetus. Beyond the slit-like crevice, the space widens up to make a small, murky and musty cavern. Jian Cheng doesn't care about its living conditions at all, they are the conditions of his living after all...

He collapses, slumping on his side on the slimy ground without a second thought. He has a random third thought though, "These are the also ideal conditions for cultivating mushrooms...”

Behind him, Beast Wei is having another of its hissy fits... Literally kicking up a fuss... And literally kicking rocks... So noisy!

When he's recovered enough energy to stand, Jian Cheng does so, then about faces.

"Are you ready?" he asks the darkness...