Volume One: The Nature of the Devil Does Not Change
Arc: The Great Gang War
The blood tentacles—octopus-like in form—lashed toward Scarlet King.
He moved with precision, slicing through them with his Ming Hao daggers.
Blood splattered across the crimson sea.
But new tendrils surged forth instantly.
One coiled around his leg—
yanked him upward—
then slammed him violently into the sea of blood.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Scarlet King reacted immediately, firing a concentrated laser beam from his eye toward the tendrils.
The blood vaporized beneath the intense heat.
(Good thing that serum we obtained on Earth granted me additional abilities.)
He retrieved both Ming Hao daggers, ready to strike again.
Suddenly—
A volcanic eruption of blood exploded beneath him, launching him high into the air.
His body burned.
Blisters erupted across his back and knee.
His clothing was scorched away, revealing his true form.
More tentacles shot upward—
They seized him instantly.
One wrapped around his neck.
One around his left arm.
Another around his right arm.
Two more coiled tightly around his legs.
They began pulling in opposite directions.
A faint groan escaped him.
He heard the creaking of bone.
The tearing of flesh.
He coughed blood.
"Ming Hao!"
One dagger slipped from his grasp and pierced the tentacle gripping his left arm.
It dissolved into liquid blood and fell back into the sea.
He slashed the one at his neck before it could snap it,
shattered the grip on his right arm,
then severed the coils binding his legs.
A tremendous heat surged from below.
He looked down.
"Oh… how foolish."
Blood-lava erupted upward, engulfing him entirely.
When it settled—
His body was mangled.
Skin charred and peeling.
And yet—
His expression remained unchanged.
A demonic smile curved across his lips.
He fixed his gaze on a precise point in the distance.
"Found you."
He lunged forward and drove Ming Hao into that exact location.
A flash of white light appeared—
Then fled.
Scarlet King roared:
"Foolish Pearl Will!
Do you think an incomplete weapon can kill me?
What a farce!"
The sea of blood began to recede—
until it vanished completely.
He glanced toward Tian Sha Gongzhu, still cultivating, encased in a protective qi barrier shielding her from the bloodstorm.
(What is the Pearl's Will trying to do?)
Suddenly—
A colossal shadow loomed overhead.
He turned.
A blood dragon spiraled through the sky, its crimson scales twisting along its serpentine body. It opened its jaws.
A tyrannical pressure burst outward, forcing Scarlet King backward as heat scorched his skin.
The dragon inhaled—
Then unleashed a torrent of blood-breath.
A searing storm of liquid fury rushed toward him.
Scarlet King dashed forward, cleaving through the blast.
He leapt onto the dragon's head and drove his dagger into its skull.
The dragon convulsed violently and hurled him downward.
He crashed into the earth, shattering it beneath him.
The Ming Hao dagger slipped from his grasp.
The dragon lunged to swallow him whole.
He tightened his grip on the remaining dagger—
—but suddenly found himself inside the dragon's maw.
Its jaws snapped shut.
He was swallowed.
Inside—
Scarlet King braced himself and stabbed upward into the dragon's throat.
He hung suspended from the embedded dagger.
The stench of scalding blood flooded his senses.
He glanced downward—
The dragon was preparing another breath attack.
He carved through more flesh, burst outward through its neck—
And at that exact moment, the blood-breath discharged violently through the wound instead of its mouth.
Scarlet King raised his hand and shouted:
"Blood Absorption!"
His palm distorted into something resembling a miniature black hole.
The dragon's blood was dragged violently toward him.
It attempted to flee—
But the suction was absolute.
(Good… this will strengthen my bloodline.)
The dragon disintegrated under the force of absorption.
Silence followed.
Scarlet King sat upon the ground, staring at his burned and disfigured body.
"Hah… I will need time to recover."
Then—
A voice behind him.
"My dear?"
Without hesitation, he hurled his dagger toward the sound at terrifying speed.
The blade halted midair—
Stopped by nothing more than her gaze.
It was Chu Xiao.
Scarlet King spoke coldly:
"The Pearl's Will in the form of Chu Xiao? What a poor imitation."
She laughed softly, covering her lips.
"Oh… it seems you uncovered me quickly."
She sat beside him.
"That was merely a test—to determine whether you possess the potential to refine me. And you performed very well. Very well indeed."
"So I have no choice but to acknowledge you as my new master."
He asked calmly:
"This is the internal world of the pearl, correct?"
She nodded.
"Yes. It is divided into five regions:
The Red Grass Region.
The Sovereign Sea Region.
The Great Central Region.
The Heavenly Mountain Region.
The Great Desert Region."
"Each region has its own dominion. In the Heavenly Mountains, I control stone. In the Red Grass, I control blood."
She continued:
"The Cosmic Poison Pearl contains an entire world within it. That is why it stands among the most powerful heavenly weapons—its toxic potential is extraordinary."
"But I am weakened. I have not absorbed poison in many years."
Scarlet King looked at her without emotion.
"So… you are the Pearl's Will itself?"
"Yes."
"It is both a tool of healing and poison," she explained.
"It can absorb poison and convert it into medicine—
or absorb medicine and transform it into poison."
"It is also an ideal sanctuary for concealment… or residence."
Scarlet King rose to his feet.
"Then… heal me."
She smiled faintly.
"As you wish, my master."
A cool, luminous energy gathered in her palm and flowed into his body.
He felt a chilling sensation spread through him.
His skin began to regenerate.
The burns faded.
But she suddenly stopped.
"Forgive me, my master… I am weakened. I cannot restore you completely."
He clenched his fist, unconcerned.
Then—
An overwhelming aura erupted from Tian Sha Gongzhu.
Scarlet King was blasted backward violently.
The Pearl's Will vanished instantly.
He struggled to steady himself.
In a low voice, he murmured:
"She's… breaking through."