The Celestial Demon and Wen were locked in a frenzied race through the sacred forest of Xintai. Thirty kilometers to cover, and on the young man's back, a massive boulder, over ten meters long, sealed with ancient runes.
Around them, the trees stretched toward the sky like jade pillars, inhabited by spirit beasts: nine-tailed lions, misty foxes resembling kitsune, and countless other creatures hostile to mortals.
But Wen had no luxury to admire this magical world. His legs were trembling. His breath was a fire in his chest. Unconsciousness brushed against him with every step.
— "Is this what today's youth has come to?!" scoffed Lu Bei, nonchalantly perched atop the boulder. "Can't even handle thirty kilometers in two hours?"
— "Hey… hey… you've got me dragging a boulder that weighs tons! This is inhuman, damn it!" Wen panted, his throat on fire. "And Yue, huh?! Why'd she get an easier training session?!"
— "If you can still talk, brat, it means you're not out of breath enough!"
Without warning, Lu Bei lashed out with a lightning-fast kick. Wen felt his ribs shatter. His body collapsed, crushed beneath the stone's weight. Blood trickled from his lips. Pain, black and absolute, consumed him.
— "You're giving up just like that?!" growled the Celestial Demon's rough voice. "After everything you've been through? That's your inner fire? Pathetic…"
At death's edge, as consciousness wavered, Alya's face appeared in the dark. Her poisonous smile whispered:
— "You'll end up proving me right, Wen…"
A silent roar erupted within him. A flame of hatred tore through the abyss.
Wen screamed. He lifted the boulder—with the demon still on it—his feet soaked in a pool of blood. His muscles shrieked, his skin cracked under the strain.
— "I REFUSE!" he bellowed. "Not until I've smashed your damn face in! Not until I've seen Yue smile again… TAO! ALYA! I'LL FIND YOU!"
In a rage-fueled gesture, he tore the sleeve off his tunic, clenched it between his teeth, and resumed his climb up the mountain stairs—his body broken, but his soul ablaze.
— "Impressive…" Lu Bei whispered with a smile. "Truly impressive."
Temple of the Celestial Demon.
Yue, the young woman with long midnight-blue hair, stood in the arena. Before her, a fearsome figure: a masked woman, tall and sculpted, wielding a Guan Dao engraved with life energy inscriptions. Her mask evoked a Grand Oni—a millennia-old war demon.
Yue took her stance. Right foot forward, left leg stretched behind, back straight, sword tightly gripped between her slender fingers.
— "I'm one of Lu Bei's disciples," declared the masked demoness. "Here's your exercise, Yue. Try to land a hit on me."
Yue let out a nervous scoff and leapt to attack. But in the blink of an eye, a crushing pressure slammed down on her neck.
— "Wh—?!"
Her body was hurled into the air like a ragdoll. She shot through the trees at incredible speed. Before she could even process what was happening, a new attack descended from above.
A spear strike exploded against her flank. Her body tore through tree trunks, her spine snapping with a dreadful crack.
Yue gasped, the world spinning. A freezing pain flooded her back.
— "HAHAHAHA!"
She heard the demoness's twisted laughter echo through the branches.
— "The real test, little one, isn't to hit me… It's simply to not die."