Heavenly Demon Ascending [Dark Fantasy | Cultivation | Multiverse | Antihero]

[The_BestX]

My little hand didn't stop shaking, even after I plunged the knife into his throat.

"Ukhh… kkh" Blood seeped profusely from the man's neck, staining it a bright red as he looked at me with pleading eyes, his mouth trembling and he looked like he was trying to articulate words but couldn't.

It was the first time I'd seen a pleading look, a look of fear of death… and since that day, I've seen many, a number I can't even remember.

I still remember my father standing behind me, his eyes cold as ice without a trace of mercy, before he said without even blinking, giving the instructions I had grown up hearing, which gave me a constant sense of necessity to carry out what he said: "Kill him, Mo Bai, don't hesitate, one cannot become strong in this world without killing."

I was scared and hesitant, but I didn't cry. Not a single tear fell from my eye. I also remember feeling a strange feeling, completely different, even contradictory from all the other feelings. A feeling I didn't know what it was at the time, and I still don't know what it is now.

Maybe it was satisfaction? Or relief? I don't know, but that's what I felt as I stared at the flowing blood covering his clothes, his trembling hand falling as the sound of his choking echoed, a strange gurgling sound that suggested his end was near.

Why? Why didn't I cry? And I'm just a six year old kid and I killed, that's probably what anyone would ask or think.

Because I was saturated with my father's teachings, words repeated thousands, even millions of times, to teach me, in the middle of meals, during ordinary conversation, without my realizing it, or in direct lessons from him.

He was teaching me that weakness is forbidden, indeed, the greatest sin in this world.

He was teaching me that the strong rules, the strong imposes control, whatever the strong wants happens, whatever they desire, it comes to them on a golden platter. Why? Because they are strong.

But the most important thing about these teachings is that power comes through killing. If I want to become powerful, I must kill.

And amidst these daily teachings, a great, even immense, longing for power was instilled deep within me, a longing that grows day by day, and I still have it to this day.

That was the reason, at least I think so.

Or maybe not? Maybe not, I really don't know. I'm not sure, and it's not as if I really care. The reasons don't matter, what matters is that the outcome is beneficial to me.

This is what I learned after years of experience, and what I did not know at the time, as I was only six years old, just a child, even though this child learns about life and reality early, but in the end he remains a child.

Now, I know very well why my father did this cruel act, which I did not know at the time due to my limited thinking.

And I thank him for that now whenever I remember this, because it was precisely because of this harsh upbringing that I learned to see the reality of this dark world at an early age, and this helped me a lot.

I was only six years old at the time, but my dream was very big, it was a dream that required many things, many of which I did not have, I was dreaming of the top, of rising above everyone else, which was really impossible just by thinking about it.

But the strange thing? My father was the one who planted this dream in me, he was the one who helped and encouraged me to follow this impossible dream, and I still pursue it to this day. I pursue the freedom to control my destiny, and to control everyone's destiny as well.

But before I got to my current stage, I went through many, many obstacles and stages, let's continue to remember the first one, it seems as if I got lost in my dreams and took a turn while thinking huh.

I still remember the scene of me pulling the knife from his throat, smelling that metallic smell and feeling the stickiness on my face, not because I really remember him personally, but just because I got used to that smell and feeling over the years, I can imagine it simply by remembering pulling the knife, maybe this is an amazing ability? Haha, but rest assured that you can't develop it until you kill at least millions of people.

This murder was the foundation of my journey, my first step toward my dream, and I have never regretted it.

Through it, I began my journey into the Shadow Blade Clan, a clan like all other clans where only the strong are respected and cruelty reigns supreme, with no turning back.

 

[The_BestX]

Ch1: First Blood - Heavenly Demon Ascending [Dark Fantasy | Cultivation | Multiverse | Antihero]

My little hand didn't stop shaking, even after I plunged the knife into his throat. “Ughh…kkh” Blood seeped profusely from the man’s neck, staining it (...)

www.royalroad.com

 

[The_BestX]

Hope you enjoy reading it

 

[Dao_of_Bibliomania]

Thanks for the chapter!
It seems interesting so far!

 

[The_BestX]

Four years after that night, inside the Shadow Blade Clan.

More than 200 ten-year-old children stood in neat rows inside a huge hall, black columns spread out on all it sides, and carvings of coiled dragons adorn it completely.

What's striking is that the different rows have completely different people, with children in each row wearing different but similarly quality outfits, making the difference in social status apparent at a glance.

Children dressed in rich gold-embroidered clothes or the finest silk lined up together, while other children dressed in shabby or rough clothes, and some even had clothes with holes in them, also lined up together.

The difference in appearance between these children is simply vast, and it seems that these rows divide children according to their social status.

But what united all these children was their eyes, which seemed fixed on the stone platform in the front, where an elder wearing a dark purple robe stood beside it, creating an atmosphere of tension within the hall.

'Finally, it's time to awaken the seals. For four whole years, I've been training and preparing for the day I obtain my innate seal.'

Mo Bai's eyes gleamed with intense determination like many others in the hall right now, but towards a different goal, a goal that was incomparable to anything in their minds and against any shred of logic.

At this time, the elder standing beside the platform spoke loudly, expectation radiating from his gaze, but his wrinkled face showing no expression.

"Go Shen."

A small child, with brown hair, thin body, ragged clothes, and apparently malnourished, came forward.

He was trembling with fear, and stood for a few moments in front of the platform, sweat dripping from his forehead, before he bit his lips and climbed the stairs to the stone platform.

'Please show something, please give me a seal.'

Go Shen thought to himself repeatedly, feeling extremely nervous.

Despite his young age, he knows, like everyone else in the world, that this moment will determine the fate of an individual's life and his future. This is ingrained in everyone's mind from an early age. It's a simple logic and a rule that can only be broken very rarely.

The elder raised his arms and muttered in a low voice, "Activate."

Before a very complex symbol began to glow on the surface of the platform, directly beneath Go Shen's trembling feet.

Seconds passed: one second...

Two seconds...

Five seconds...

Nothing happened. No phenomenon occurred. No wind, no fire, nothing else appeared. Silence fell over the hall for a few seconds. Everyone's eyes remained on Go Shen, before he finally comprehended what had just happened.

"No... no... no, no, why?" Gu Shen whispered, his eyes wide and tears forming in the corners. His face was filled with despair as he stumbled backward, trembling.

Some sighed in pity, but looks of mockery and contempt filled the majority's faces as they watched what had happened. Meanwhile, the faces of the two elders and the clan leader, who were watching this test, turned slightly disappointed.

"There is no innate seal."

The purple-robed elder's voice echoed, his tone containing faint, undisguised contempt, as his eyes glazed over the small child as if he had become something less than human, a mere ant, not even worthy of a glance.

At that moment, two guards wordlessly moved in and grabbed the boy, who began to scream and cry.

"Please! Test me again! I'm...!"

But no one paid attention to his constant screaming and crying, the two guards continued dragging him toward a black iron table next to the platform after lowering him from it.

One of them forcefully placed his right hand on the table, before a short, muscular man mercilessly lowered the iron directly onto the back of his right hand.

The boy's voice was suddenly cut short by the sound of burning and cauterizing.

"Aaaah!"

A heartbreaking scream echoed through the hall as a brand was inscribed on the back of the child's right hand, a blazing red sun, the mark of a slave.

'Trash without a seal, that's what he deserves.' one of the children thought with deep disdain.

Whispers of disgust, contempt and mockery spread, the majority didn't care about the cruelty behind what had happened now, it was just something completely normal to them, an incompetent person becoming a slave, this was how the world had been for years, nothing strange.

Only a few looked at each other with silent sadness as they lowered their heads, a small number that could be counted on the fingers of one hand, and all of them had one thing in common: ragged clothes and thinness. They were the children of slaves, the ones who held out hope of changing the fate of their families from the current misery they were living.

Many also remained silent, their eyes shining with indifference, not caring about the suffering and cruelty of this act, not having any profit from mocking this fate, and Mo Bai was among them, as he was only thinking about this act.

'Hmm, that's cruel, making people slaves simply because they don't have a talent, but still... I like it.'

And amidst all this, a mixture of silence, whispers, and hidden sadness, in addition to the screams of the branded boy, there was a child among the crowd whispering to his friend standing in front of him in line: "Those who don't have an innate seal are supposed to be branded with the seal of slavery, but as you know, my cousin didn't have an innate seal and wasn't branded anyway. Why? I don't understand."

His friend replied with a puzzled look as if to say, (Are you stupid?) "Your cousin is from the Bai Faction just like us, you idiot, the Clan Leader Faction, how dare they brand him with the Slave Mark? and his father bought him a first-level Seal after that, so he's now a Seal Master too, don't mention such a thing again."

Meanwhile, the test continued as usual, with one child after another, each achieving a different result, but none of them achieve a very good result yet.

'This year's children have been average so far, with no outstanding talents emerging yet. But this year, all future heirs of the three factions will take the test, so we only have to wait a little longer before the good results come out. Today, the competition between the descendants of the three factions will be at its peak.'

The elder thought quietly, with anticipation in his eyes, before pointing to the next.

 

[Dao_of_Bibliomania]

Thanks for the chapter!

'Finally, it's time to awaken the seals. For four whole years, I've been training and preparing for the day I obtain my innate seal.'

Click to shrink...

I am gonna guess that his first challenge will be against some rich kid who also has a great amount of talent.

This is ingrained in everyone's mind from an early age. It's a simple logic and a rule that can only be broken very rarely.

Click to shrink...

Hmmmm, interesting, so there have been exceptions that have defied the norm. That makes sense since talent is not everything, even if a very large hurdle. It would require not just ambition but the will to seize the ambition as well as being able to make up for their lack of talent through other means to be able to defy the norm.
Exceptions are exceptions for a reason after all.

"There is no innate seal."

Click to shrink...

The concept of an innate seal makes me feel like there is the implied concept of seals being able to be artificially made. Which leaves me curious as to how that would all work but would probably be very resource intensive. With it being even more resource intensive to make the older and the higher the realm one is. Still, something interesting to think about.

But no one paid attention to his constant screaming and crying, the two guards continued dragging him toward a black iron table next to the platform after lowering him from it.

Click to shrink...

Hmmmm, never mind on the rich kid with talent thing. It seems that the next test will be whether they can kill the kid that would have been their fellow student. It makes sense, in a world where cultivation gives power, being unable to go down the path would make them irrelevant in their eyes. And talent is but one requirement in order to be successful, one's will is also another key component.

Only a few looked at each other with silent sadness as they lowered their heads, a small number that could be counted on the fingers of one hand, and all of them had one thing in common: ragged clothes and thinness. They were the children of slaves, the ones who held out hope of changing the fate of their families from the current misery they were living.

Click to shrink...

This leaves me wondering what the ratio between those with seals and without seals are. And seals, are they hereditary or not is another question. The word seals would leave one thinking that they are not, but they could be. But I get the feeling that there is a genetic/bloodline/whatever aspect to innate seals, even if it is not everything.

'Hmm, that's cruel, making people slaves simply because they don't have a talent, but still... I like it.'

Click to shrink...

Either he is a bit sadistic, since he values strength so much he looks down those without strength and or are weaker than him, or both where he looks down upon those without strength and holds contempt for those without strength and enjoys seeing them suffer a bit.

His friend replied with a puzzled look as if to say, (Are you stupid?) "Your cousin is from the Bai Faction just like us, you idiot, the Clan Leader Faction, how dare they brand him with the Slave Mark? and his father bought him a first-level Seal after that, so he's now a Seal Master too, don't mention such a thing again."

Click to shrink...

Interesting, so I was right, Seals can be artificially made. I am guessing that a first level seal is the lowest level of seals. Artificial Seals probably are lesser due to having flaws as not being natural in one's body and so does not work as smoothly as an innate seal that those born with them would. Still this is all very curious and fascinating.
And I remember how it is mentioned to be something unique to this continent. Which means that other continents and other worlds would have their own unique power system and that Seals could potentially have been artificially created. With some sort of magic ritual having been made so that those born on the continent have seals. This is all very interesting indeed.
Also it seems that cultivators in this world are called Seal Masters, which makes sense.

'This year's children have been average so far, with no outstanding talents emerging yet. But this year, all future heirs of the three factions will take the test, so we only have to wait a little longer before the good results come out. Today, the competition between the descendants of the three factions will be at its peak.'

Click to shrink...

And now we know a few of the first major hurdles Mo Bai will have to surpass if he wishes to reach the pinnacle.

 

[The_BestX]

"Next: Ye Kang."

Whispers spread among the children in the hall.

"He's Ye Kang, the heir to the Ye Faction."

"They say he's more favored as a successor than his older brother because his brother's talent isn't at the level of a faction leader, he only has a second-level seal."

Amidst all the whispers, a boy with an ordinary face, coarse brown hair, and the same-colored eyes stepped forward.

He moved with confidence, even arrogance, and a smile that showed he was completely unafraid of the outcome that awaited him before he stepped onto the platform.

As soon as Ye Kang stepped onto the stage, it didn't take even two seconds before the symbol glowed brightly again, but this time, the outcome would be distinctly different from the previous ones.

Everyone felt a gust of wind at first, before the wind grew stronger until everyone inside the hall felt a slight push as a large green storm appeared, covering the entire platform, with Ye Kang at its center.

It slowly disappeared as an intricate green seal pattern appeared on the back of Ye Kang's right hand.

"Third-level Innate Wind Seal, a rare talent."

The purple-robed elder loudly announced that the first third-level talent in the Ye Faction this generation had finally appeared, bringing a wide smile to the face of Elder Ye, the leader of the Ye Faction, who was sitting on the left side of the Clan Leader.

"Old Mo, I'm glad you've been worrying about my faction these past few years, but I have a suitable heir now, now you only need to worry about whether your faction will find a worthy successor as my grandson now, I wish you good luck from the bottom of my heart."

Elder Ye said with a grateful smile, but with a clearly sarcastic tone.

"Hmm, that's okay, Old Ye. We're old friends. I was definitely lend you a helping hand if your grandson couldn't also acquire a good enough talent."

Elder Mo responded with a gentle smile that concealed his annoyance, before continuing with a clear sarcasm.

"But don't worry about my faction, my grandson won't get anything less than a third-level seal, as usual. My faction isn't like some others who have begun to weaken over the years and only produce a single third-level talent with difficulty, almost as if it were a miracle. On the contrary, it still maintains its strength and talents, and may even have begun to become better than before, haha."

As soon as he heard what Elder Mo said, the smile on Elder Ye's face froze as veins protruded from his clenched fist in hidden anger, but he quickly returned his friendly smile to his face as if he hadn't understood what Elder Mo meant at all or been affected.

'Unfortunately, if Ye Kang hadn't also obtained a third-level seal, my faction would have been able to completely suppress the Ye faction and absorb it even after years.'

Elder Mu thought with slight annoyance, which quickly turned to planning for the future.

'But never mind, not having a third-level talent for nine consecutive years is a good sign that the Ye Faction's bloodline is getting weaker and weaker. After a few years, they might not even be able to produce a third-level talent at all, and then it will be our chance.'

While there was a hidden conflict between the two sheikhs, or at least hidden on the surface but in reality known to everyone, the person who had obtained this result and caused the spark to ignite between them had a bigger smile on his face, much more arrogant than before, and carried an enormous amount of self-confidence.


But this was entirely understandable and expected, because he was now backed by a true talent to feel this confidence, not just empty talk like before. He had managed to obtain an amazing talent that qualified him to be one of the strongest in the clan in the future, and this arrogance was completely natural.

How could it not be, when he could definitely see himself above everyone else in the future? Everyone's fate was already determined by his talent in this world.

'Great! I've obtained a third-level seal, and now my future leadership of the faction is assured. That poor brother of mine is still hoping for that position, his expression will be astonished when he knows of my level of talent, his last vestiges of hope will be completely shattered.'

Ye Kang thought, his smug smile still etched on his face, his thoughts filled with extreme malice.

At the same time, after the seal appeared, the hall was filled with voices of admiration and envy. Many of the children stared at Ye Kang with eyes filled with jealousy and envy. A thought crossed everyone's minds, or at least the majority, and it couldn't be helped.

'If only I had such a talent.'

But talent is determined by lineage, not randomly. So this is, of course, impossible, since neither their parents nor their grandparents possessed such talent.

These are merely false hopes.

Amidst all this, Ye Kang descended from the stage with his condescending smile still on his face, clearly enjoying the looks of envy and admiration from everyone.

'Ye Kang has obtained a third-level Innate Seal then. Well, that's fine, it won't affect the plan in any way whether he has obtained a second-level or third-level talent. Maybe it can even benefit me in some way. I'll see in the future. There's no need to think about something so distant and unimportant now.'

Mo Bai thought analytically as he tried to find the pros and cons and also if there was anything that would help him carry out his plan, his expression calm as he watched the rest of the test waiting for his turn.