Chapter 1: Even the gods may fall
Upon the peak of a towering mountain, overlooking the mist-veiled plains, lightning roared and black clouds twisted in fury. Amidst the furious storm, an old man stood alone—surrounded by an army of celestial beings.
One of them called out in a commanding voice,
"Old Elder, don't make this harder than it has to be!"
Another shouted,
"Heavenly Demon! Your era has ended! Surrender Black Demon Peak and leave this world in peace!"
But not all of them were so polite.
"You wretched fiend! You destroyed my sect! Today I'll avenge my fallen brothers and sisters!"
"Damned old man! You murdered my brother and hung his corpse from the mountain for a century! Even if the heavens fall, I'll burn the world down to erase you!"
The old man calmly raised his hand. His wide sleeve fluttered in the wind like a war banner.
Suddenly, laughter echoed across the storm, shaking both heaven and earth:
"Ha... Ha ha ha! So Heaven has chosen to test me with this calamity..."
His eyes gleamed like flames in the storm. Clenching his teeth, he roared,
"I am the Esteemed Heavenly Demon, Sovereign of Sorcery and Lord of Alchemy! And today, I challenge the Heavens themselves!"
His gaze swept across the ranks of his enemies.
"You arrogant youths... You think that just because you were born immortal, you have the right to stand against me? Today, you will pay for that foolishness—with your lives!"
With a wave of his hand, a sigil flared to life in the air, and a surge of immense power spiraled around him.
One of the warriors shouted in terror,
"H-He's going to use the Heaven-Slaying Palm! Brace yourselves!"
The Heavenly Demon let out a thunderous laugh. Raw energy twisted through the skies, forming into a colossal hand.
That hand—larger than any mountain—descended with a deafening roar, crashing into the battlefield. The explosion was apocalyptic, shrouding the world in dust and ash.
But before the smoke could settle, six glowing eyes emerged from within the haze.
Though caught off guard, the Heavenly Demon's face remained unchanged.
With a heavy and deliberate voice, he said,
"So... even the Sacred Kings of Heaven have declared war on me?"
Six divine beings floated between earth and sky. Their eyes blazed with sacred light, and their presence alone forced the heavens into silence.
One of them—the Sword God—spoke with a voice deep and metallic,
"Today, Black Demon Peak will be erased from the heavens forever. We will tolerate your crimes no more."
The Heavenly Devil's eyes burned with fury as he roared back,
"Don't speak nonsense! All of you only want the cultivation method I created after millennia of seclusion! I will never hand it over!"
A bolt of lightning split the heavens, its blinding light casting a sharp glow upon the resolute faces of the Sacred Kings.
The Sword God let out a bitter smile.
"Old Demon ... You may be the oldest of the Heavenly Kings, but while we burned in the fires of cultivation, you were obsessed only with immortality. Now, the gap between us has narrowed. Heaven no longer belongs to you! Hand over the technique… and perhaps you'll be granted a painless death."
The Heavenly Demon spread his arms wide, a maniacal laugh bursting from deep within his chest.
"Hahaha! Closed the gap? Even if you cultivate for another hundred thousand years, you'll never reach me! In the eyes of Heaven, I am the one and only Eternal Demon!"
In that moment, he prepared to unleash a deadly technique…
But suddenly, his body trembled. His face twisted in pain, and blood surged from his mouth.
"This… This is impossible! How…?!"
Before he could react, a venom-coated dagger pierced his chest and tore through his heart.
Pain, like a sacred fire, raced through his body. His eyes widened in fury and disbelief. Slowly, with great effort, he turned his head—only to face the unthinkable.
His disciple, tears glistening in resolute eyes, gripped the dagger tighter.
"Y-You… Why?!"
The disciple's voice trembled with grief,
"Master… for the future of Black Demon Mountain… for the next generation to thrive… I had no choice. If one day you ascend… please punish only me!"
The Heavenly Demon coughed more blood, his breath ragged, seething with rage.
"So… you poisoned me… and now pierced my heart… Why?! Why did you side with the enemy?! Why are you such a fool?!"
He summoned the last of his power into his palm and, with blazing fury, slammed it into the disciple's chest.
BOOM!
The disciple was blown away like a straw in a storm. Blood gushed from his mouth as he crashed into a stone cliff.
"Foolish disciple!!! Did you think that once you became a puppet of the enemy, you still deserved to live?!"
The Heavenly Demon's eyes burned with fury. Caught between life and death, he roared,
"Why… Why does Heaven punish me with such treacherous offspring?!"
Then, with wrath unbound by reason, he turned back toward the Sword God.
"I did not cultivate for hundreds of thousands of years just to die here—like this!"
With all his might, he charged into battle.
And thus began a war that split the heavens and shattered the earth.
It was a battle grander than any the world had ever known. Their strikes decimated mountains for thousands of miles. Storms were ripped asunder. The land cracked open. Thunder boomed with such force, it made the very heavens tremble.
Seven nights and seven days passed.
At last, the Heavenly Demon—bloodied, broken, and barely alive—collapsed to the ground. Yet the Sacred Kings had paid a heavy price. Their bodies were torn and mangled; even the Sword God's right arm had been severed mid-battle and fallen into the mortal realm below.
From the once-mighty Black Demon Mountain, nothing remained but rubble and ash. The eye of the storm that had raged above since the battle's beginning was torn in two— as if the heavens themselves had been split apart.
The Heavenly Demon lay amidst the ruins, wheezing, trembling.
"I… still… haven't reached the peak… not yet…"
Cough… cough… Blood dripped from his mouth.
The Sword God, his robes tattered and his arm limp, picked up his sword with his left hand and limped forward.
"Old Demon… 'Esteemed' truly suits you."
He looked around—at the ruined mountain, the fury of the skies, the scorched and broken earth.
"Even poisoned, even with a torn heart… defeating you came at a dreadful price."
He fixed his gaze on the Demon's half-lidded, bloodshot eyes.
"But this is the end of the road. I want the forbidden art of reincarnation. Let's make a deal. This body of yours can no longer cultivate… let us both reincarnate. I swear—we'll never stand as enemies again in the next life."
The Heavenly Demon wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. His half-open crimson eyes curved into a bitter smile.
"Hahaha… You're something else… You sacrificed even your comrades… all for a single technique…"
His gaze drifted to the corpses, to the ruins.
"Take a good look… This is the result of your greed… and my disciples' betrayal."
Cough… The crackling of shattered lungs.
"But don't worry… In the next life… I will destroy you. I, the Heavenly Demon, swear upon the ruins of Black Demon Mountain… I will avenge this humiliation!"
His eyes gleamed—madness, fury, and a solemn oath blazing within them.
The Sword God shouted in rage and raised his sword high.
"This ends now—once and for all!"
"Hahahaha!!! Too late!"
The blade fell.
But in that final moment…
The Heavenly Demon's soul vanished—slipping into the darkness of reincarnation before the sword could strike.