Prologue
The scenery around me warped and sped past like it was melting. My lungs were so starved for air it felt like they might burst, but even then I pushed myself to run faster. Blood poured from the wound in my thigh with frightening force, but there was nothing to be done.
If I was caught, I’d die. No question about it. All those desperate years surviving in the Martial Arts World had taught me that much.
Could I even get away?
The moment that horrible doubt crept into my head—something I’d tried so hard not to think—I hastily pulled a throwing dagger from my robe and flung it backward. I wanted to live.
Slaaash.
The blade, infused with my inner force, sliced through the air. But there was no time to look back and see if it hit.
I crashed and tore through the underbrush, heedless of whether there was a trail or not. Sharp branches scraped my cheek, and I felt the warm trickle of blood.
“Haah, fuck! This is why—damn it, this is why, haah—this is why you can’t trust these demon sect bastards!”
These assholes didn’t have a shred of loyalty, even among themselves!
Of course, I’d lived like that too, as a member of the unorthodox sects. But being on the receiving end… it was downright filthy. It made my skin crawl.
I cursed under my breath as I shoved through a tangle of dark bushes—and suddenly blinding light burst before my eyes.
It was the very picture of despair.
“Ha… ha ha… hah…”
I skidded to a halt, bits of stone crumbling off the edge where my foot landed. I stood at the precipice of a sheer cliff, dizzyingly high. Slowly, I turned around. The man who had chased me all this way wasn’t even breathing hard, didn’t look remotely tired.
Hands casually clasped behind his back, he strolled closer and asked,
“Well, is that the end of your running?”
“…Looks like it.”
“Impressive skills. You cut down more than a hundred of my disciples all by yourself. Had we met sooner, I might have taken you under my wing. Truly a shame.”
“Hey, if I promise not to tell anyone what I saw, couldn’t you just let me live?”
The man—Heavenly Demon—merely smiled.
“Regrettably, that’s impossible. On the verge of a great undertaking, I can’t leave any loose ends alive. Let’s just call it bad luck on both our parts.”
“Damn it. One stray glance, and now I’m paying for it with my life.”
Shit. I gave a hollow laugh.
I was far too injured to put up a real fight. I’d cut down a hundred men and then fled. Of course I wasn’t unscathed. Even if this dragged on a little longer, I’d probably bleed out and die.
“If you’re dead set on killing me, then fine. Guess I’ll just die.”
I let the sword slip from my hand with a dull clatter.
“But you’re not getting a damn thing from me.”
Then I launched myself off the cliff. Better to feed the fish of the Yangtze than let him drain my inner power and life force with that vile Absorbing Star Technique!
Even as I plummeted, I mustered all my strength to throw him one last fist—screw you.
Far above, at the edge of the cliff, I could see him looking down at me. For a fleeting second, it seemed like he was smiling…
Splash!
That was the end. I hit the water unguarded, coughing up blood from every wound, and began to slowly sink.
My whole life—every desperate struggle just to keep breathing—flashed through my mind. If I’d known I’d die like this, maybe I would’ve just let go and lived a little easier.
If I’d pulled out when I learned the Sect Master was colluding with the demon sects… or better yet, if I’d never joined the unorthodox sects at all. If I’d never trained in martial arts. Would anything have been different? Could I have lived a real life?
Those impossible what-ifs receded, just like that fading light above me. I let my body go slack and gently closed my eyes.
This was death.
📝 Translator’s Notes:
- 천마 – literally “Heavenly Demon,” often a title for the leader of a powerful demonic sect.
