The battlefield fell silent.
The broken ground still trembled from the violent clash. Cracks spread like spiderwebs beneath Seo Joon's feet, black energy slowly fading around his body. The cold aura of the Abyssal Heart pulsed within his chest like a living thing.
His breathing was heavy.
Not from exhaustion — but from the struggle inside him.
The Abyss whispered.
It urged him to destroy, to consume, to erase everything before him.
Seo Joon clenched his fists.
"No… I control you."
The darkness within his veins slowly retreated, though the pain remained. His eyes returned to their normal color, but the chilling pressure around him did not fully disappear.
All around him, the surviving warriors of the Choi Clan stared in fear.
They had seen monsters before.
But not something like this.
Kang Hyuk wiped blood from the corner of his mouth and forced himself to stand. His pride burned stronger than his injuries.
"That power…" he said coldly. "You truly carry the Abyss."
Seo Joon said nothing.
He simply looked at him — calm, silent, dangerous.
Kang Hyuk felt a strange chill. For the first time in years, he sensed death standing before him.
But instead of fear, his eyes filled with killing intent.
"You cannot be allowed to live."
He raised his hand.
The remaining clan warriors immediately surrounded Seo Joon. Formation markings glowed beneath their feet, forming a sealing array. Chains of spiritual light shot from the ground, binding the space itself.
The air grew heavy.
Seo Joon felt his movements slow.
A suppression formation.
The Choi Clan had come prepared.
"You think raw power alone makes you strong?" Kang Hyuk sneered. "You lack control. You lack technique. You are nothing but a beast with a dangerous core."
The sealing chains tightened.
Pain spread through Seo Joon's body as the Abyssal Heart reacted violently against the suppression. The power inside him raged like a storm trying to break free.
His mind shook.
Memories surfaced — loneliness, betrayal, humiliation, the endless darkness of the Abyss where he nearly died.
Rage rose.
The chains trembled.
But then—
A gentle voice echoed in his memory.
A promise.
A reason to remain human.
Seo Joon's expression steadied.
Instead of releasing more power, he slowly calmed his breathing. The violent aura around him stabilized, becoming denser and more controlled.
The Abyssal Heart responded.
Its chaotic energy condensed into a single flowing current inside his body.
Kang Hyuk's eyes widened slightly.
"He's… stabilizing it?"
The sealing chains suddenly cracked.
Not from explosive force.
From pressure.
A calm, terrifying pressure.
Black energy flowed along Seo Joon's arms like liquid shadows. With one step forward, the chains shattered like fragile glass.
The formation collapsed.
Shock spread across the battlefield.
"That's impossible!" one elder shouted.
Seo Joon moved.
No flashy technique. No wasted motion.
Just pure speed.
He appeared before a clan warrior and struck once. The man flew backward, unconscious before he hit the ground. Another rushed forward — the same result.
Clean.
Efficient.
Controlled.
Even Kang Hyuk felt his heart tighten.
This was no longer unstable power.
This was mastery beginning to take form.
"You…" Kang Hyuk gritted his teeth and unleashed his full cultivation. Blazing energy erupted around him as he charged forward with a killing strike.
The two forces collided.
A shockwave exploded outward.
Dust covered the battlefield.
When the smoke cleared, Kang Hyuk stood frozen.
Seo Joon's hand had stopped his blade.
Barehanded.
Black energy slowly devoured the weapon's aura, cracking its surface.
Fear finally appeared in Kang Hyuk's eyes.
"This monster…"
Seo Joon looked at him quietly.
"I warned you."
The blade shattered.
Kang Hyuk was thrown backward, crashing into the ruins. He coughed blood, unable to stand again.
The remaining Choi Clan warriors retreated in terror.
But Seo Joon did not pursue.
He simply stood there, feeling the Abyssal Heart beat steadily within him.
For the first time, he had not been consumed by it.
He had controlled it.
Yet deep inside, he sensed something else awakening — something far deeper than the power he had used.
The Abyss was only beginning to reveal itself.
Far away, beyond mountains and kingdoms, several ancient presences suddenly opened their eyes.
A forbidden aura had appeared in the world.
And they had noticed.
Seo Joon looked toward the distant horizon, unaware that his path forward would soon draw the attention of forces far more terrifying than the Choi Clan.
His journey had truly begun.