Volume One: "The Nature of the Devil Does Not Change"
Arc: "The Devil Finally Leaves Earth"
Yao Yan laughed mockingly, arrogance and disgust plain on her face.
"Hah, a man? Disgusting. Fine—at least you seem stronger than the rest of these pathetic wretches."
Scarlet King didn't react. Not long after, Ikalat and Lin Yuan finally woke from their unconsciousness. Scarlet King, meanwhile, fired up his jetpack and headed for the birds he had killed to extract the primordial stones.
Yao Yan's expression twisted when he ignored her. She bit her lip, then flew after him. By the time she arrived, he was already pulling primordial stones from the bodies of the Charred Lava Birds. Yao Yan strode closer, her heavy footsteps ringing across the scorched ground, and spoke with obvious rage:
"All right, you ridiculous, disgusting man… you're ignoring me? Don't forget I'm stronger than you! If not for my beautiful little sister, I'd kill you right now."
Scarlet King walked past her. Ten primordial stones rested in his hand—two blue, the rest light green. His voice stayed flat and indifferent.
"If you're strong, prove your usefulness instead of screaming like a child whose pacifier got taken."
After lives beyond counting, Scarlet King had understood that this world ran on one principle: benefit. If the world was heartless and life unfair, why should he have a heart—or chase fairness? That was his view of existence: benefit… then benefit again.
He flew back to where the others waited. Yu Ru Ming was explaining to Ikalat and Lin Yuan what had happened.
"And then that giant appeared and killed many of the birds. He was about to fight my sister, but I saved the situation—and now we're allies."
When Scarlet King arrived, Ikalat looked at him with curiosity and disbelief.
"You really don't have a problem allying with someone who was about to kill you—and kill us?"
Scarlet King remained expressionless. He tossed them the eight green stones and kept the two blue ones for himself.
"If allying with my enemy—or betraying my ally—will be useful… what's the problem? Fighting just because someone insulted me, or killed someone dear to me, without any clear benefit, is stupidity. There are no permanent enemies or permanent allies—only eternal interests that never die in this world. That's why the Concept of Benefit is one of the Twenty-Two Great Concepts: it's one of the world's foundational laws, and the thing every being uses. My benefit comes before everything."
Yao Yan appeared behind him and jabbed a finger into his chest in anger.
"Don't think you won! I'm the one who always wins!!"
As she stepped away, Yao Yan cursed inwardly.
(This ridiculous bastard is insulting me? Me—the Demonic Princess—being insulted by a mere weak, pathetic human? Hah… little sister, what were you thinking, trying to ally with them? But we have no choice. If I kill them, we'll stay trapped here. Still… maybe there's a chance to get out with the help of that one-armed person.)
Yao Yan walked over to Yu Ru Ming and started talking with her, while Scarlet King spoke with the other two a short distance away.
"What are you planning, Scarlet King?" Ikalat asked.
"I want to take the purple primordial stone from the Central Region and sell it once we reach the center of the First Dimension. We'll get roughly ten thousand green primordial stones—or five hundred blue ones. That will raise our level much higher."
Lin Yuan asked,
"So how much will it raise the three of us?"
Scarlet King answered,
"Five levels… or a whole stage, with those stones."
At that moment, Scarlet King's shadow shifted, and the Hybrid appeared. A small, thin, rubbery hand extended from its body and latched onto Scarlet King's arm. That arm detached—and immediately, it was fed with qi. Inside the rubbery arm that had emerged from the Hybrid, bone formed first, then flesh, then skin—rapidly.
A brand-new arm appeared, white as snow. Black clothing and gloves re-formed and covered it. But not everything white inside is good, and not everything black inside is evil.
Scarlet King looked at his new arm and moved it, flexing his fingers to confirm it was usable.