Volume One: The Nature of the Devil Does Not Change
Arc: The Great Gang War
Scarlet King cast a fleeting, icy glance at Liu Zai Hang,
then turned away without uttering a single word.
The jetpack roared.
His body shot forward like a streak of darkness,
moving at a speed that surpassed light itself—
estimated at nearly four hundred thousand kilometers per second—
heading straight toward the borders of the sect…
[Two Hours Later]
Scarlet King left the sect's boundaries and reached the outskirts of its floating island.
Below him lay a small village, while above him rose a mountain near the Screaming Death Forest—
a forest filled with beasts and countless dangers,
serving as a natural shield that protected the sect.
Scarlet King focused his perception
and soon locked onto a blue sea deer running through the forest.
Within seconds,
he stood before it,
and with a single strike, severed its neck.
Blood splattered across the ground…
and across Scarlet King's masked face.
The deer died instantly,
yet its final cry echoed briefly before fading,
and the heavy scent of blood spread through the area.
Strangely…
Scarlet King did not approach the corpse,
nor did he attempt to touch it.
He sat down calmly,
as if waiting for something very specific.
[Minutes Later]
Heavy footsteps echoed among the trees.
A few seconds later,
a group of black bears emerged,
slowly advancing toward the corpse.
But the moment they noticed Scarlet King…
they froze.
Their fur bristled slightly,
their instincts screaming a single warning:
This is not prey.
The bears began retreating cautiously.
Then—
Scarlet King casually tossed the deer's head toward the leader of the bears.
The leader bore deep scars across its face,
its fur denser,
its body far larger than the rest.
It was obvious:
the bears were eighth-rank beasts,
and the leader was of the seventh rank.
The leader stared at the deer's head,
still dripping with blood,
its tongue hanging limply from its mouth.
Then it lifted its gaze toward Scarlet King,
who stared back steadily, unblinking,
his face hidden behind cloth,
with only a faint violet glow where his eyes should have been.
After a brief moment…
the bear lowered its head
and began devouring the deer's head.
Scarlet King thought inwardly:
(Blind violence creates enemies…
but understanding creates tools.)
(Within the laws of the food chain,
sharing food creates temporary allies,
while selfish conflict over resources
creates temporary—but troublesome—enemies.)
He watched the bear leader finish eating,
its mouth stained with blood,
white saliva mixed with red.
(Quiet allies
are better than noisy enemies,
even if the gains are smaller.)
The bear approached Scarlet King,
sniffed him,
then rubbed its massive head gently against him.
Scarlet King extended his hand,
calmly patting the bear's head,
and spoke in an even, composed voice:
"Good boy…
you know who your new master is."
Then he thought to himself:
(Ninth-rank beasts
are barely even considered beasts—
they are closer to pets.)
(Eighth-rank beasts can form small packs.)
(Seventh-rank beasts can understand human language.)
(Sixth-rank beasts can speak.)
(Fifth-rank beasts gain near-human awareness.)
(Fourth-rank beasts can temporarily change form.)
(Third-rank beasts become more cunning than humans.)
(Second-rank beasts can transform into human form.)
(First-rank beasts begin to comprehend the Beast Core.)
(And beyond that…
come the Great Sacred Beasts—
entities that fully understand their essence
and can stand on equal footing with the Great Emperors
and the Demonic Ancestors.)
Scarlet King looked at the bear and said:
"Three days from now…
we'll meet here, at this same place.
Do you understand?"
The bear slowly nodded,
letting out low, warm breaths—
a quiet rumbling sound.
Scarlet King unfolded the jetpack's wings
and launched into the air,
leaving this universe behind…
and returning to the universe where Earth existed.
The story is fully free—Power Stones are the best way to support it.