*Content Warning: This chapter contains mature themes, violence, blood, and morally dark actions. Reader discretion advised.*
**Author's Message:**
Readers, a word from the author. This is my first novel. I've never read one before—writing is simply what calls to me. Be patient; I swear to improve with every chapter until this story earns your full enjoyment. Thank you for staying.
***
The System's voice cut through the silence without pause.
[Host, please tell me—what are you?]
Void turned his gaze toward the System's projection, his expression blank yet framed by a smile that was kind, almost gentle, but stretched just wide enough to unsettle.
"What do you think I am?"
The System hesitated, its digital tone betraying uncharacteristic uncertainty.
[Host, that's precisely what I wish to know. I cannot comprehend how this is possible. By any measure, you cannot be human—no, I don't even know what term to apply. Your existence defies every parameter in my database.]
Void said nothing at first. He simply sat there, staring at the System with eyes that seemed to pierce through code and into something deeper. The air grew heavier, as though the world itself held its breath. Then, after a deliberate moment, he spoke—his voice quiet, measured, carrying the weight of someone who had long since grown bored of such inquiries.
"I have no interest in your question," he said plainly. "To be honest, I don't care for it at all. Why should I answer? What gain is there in defining myself for you?"
The System fell silent, processing. Then:
[Yes, of course. I understand, Host. I apologize for asking something you dislike.]
Void's smile widened, revealing teeth that gleamed unnaturally white.
"No, no, no—it's perfectly fine," he said, waving a hand as if dismissing a child's mistake. "What are you apologizing for? It's nothing. I simply dislike questions like that. If you have others—practical ones, perhaps—feel free to ask."
The System paused again.
[I have no further questions, Host.]
Void nodded once, his expression shifting to mild impatience.
"Very well. If that's all..." He rose smoothly, brushing invisible dust from his robes. "I should hurry to the Heavenly Demon Cult. My little plan awaits."
***
Void walked on through the falling snow, his steps silent against the crunching white. He stared at the flakes as they drifted down, murmuring to himself with the casual certainty of a man reciting known truths.
"Hm. If my calculations hold, all the gods who view me as a threat will have already deployed their apostles by now. Followers too, no doubt—scattered like hounds across every realm."
He paused, tilting his head slightly upward, as though something invisible tugged at his attention from the gray sky. Snowflakes seemed to slow around him, caught in an unseen current.
"I cannot use Voidstep. It would draw their gaze like a beacon. No matter which world, universe, or omniverse I enter, I'll find apostles, followers, gods themselves lying in wait. Taking risks like that... I despise hiding."
Yet even as he spoke, his eyes gleamed with something sharper than resignation.
"But what I'm doing now isn't hiding," he continued, voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "It's preparation. I fear no god, no one. In truth, I've considered killing them all at once—but their strength remains unknown to me. Their abilities, their numbers, the limits of their power... I know too little."
His smile returned, thin and predatory.
"What I must do is gather information. And anyone who crosses my path? I'll simply eliminate them. One by one, until the board clears."
***
The silhouette of the Heavenly Demon Cult loomed ahead, jagged spires piercing the storm like broken teeth. Void stopped at the edge of the outer wards, his gaze sweeping the fortress with clinical detachment.
"So this is the Heavenly Demon Cult," he murmured, expression grave.
A pause.
"Hm. Not particularly impressive."
But then his eyes narrowed, sensing deeper.
"Though... I can feel it. An extraordinary aura. That must be the Heavenly Demon himself."
Guards patrolled the gates, their cultivation thick and oppressive, eyes sharp beneath heavy helmets. They spotted Void immediately—an outsider in pristine robes, approaching without fear or hesitation.
"Halt!" the lead guard barked, qi flaring as spears crossed his path. "State your business, stranger. No one enters without the Lord's permission."
Void didn't even glance at them. His steps never faltered, his gaze fixed ahead as if they were no more than drifting snow. The guards exchanged uneasy looks, then lunged—blades humming with killing intent.
In a blur too fast for mortal eyes, Void's hand flickered. Palms met temples with surgical precision. Two guards crumpled silently, unconscious before their spears hit the ground. The third managed a half-shout before a casual backhand silenced him.
Void paused over their bodies, looking down with open disappointment.
"How shallow," he said softly. "Their security is laughable. Child's play."
He stepped over them without a second glance.
"Time to meet that Heavenly Demon dog."
***
Deeper within the cult's labyrinthine halls, Void moved like a shadow, his presence fully concealed. No alarms rang. No patrols stirred. He followed the trail of that oppressive, gloomy aura, drawn inexorably toward its source.
It led him to a vast underground training ground, lit by flickering crimson torches. There, in the center, stood the Heavenly Demon himself—shirtless, muscles corded like iron cables, swinging a massive sword through forms that warped the air itself. Sweat gleamed on his skin; his breathing remained steady, focused. Relentless.
Void watched from the shadows, murmuring with genuine interest.
"How intriguing. Called the strongest in this world, yet he trains without slacking. No complacency, no wasted motion. Admirable... for a dog."
The Heavenly Demon reared back for a full-power strike, sword igniting with demonic flame—
—and Void appeared at his right side, materializing from nothing.
"Hello, my lord," he said, smiling pleasantly.
The Heavenly Demon flinched, sword freezing mid-swing. His eyes widened fractionally, scanning Void as qi exploded outward in instinctive defense.
Who is this? he thought, killing intent surging. I felt nothing. No presence, no killing aura. Righteousness Sect? Impossible.
"Oi, you brat," the Heavenly Demon growled aloud, voice like grinding stone. "Do you have any idea where you are? Who I am? And how the hell did you get here?"
Void said nothing. He simply stood there, smiling—that same wide, unreadable smile—as if the killing intent washing over him was a pleasant breeze.
The Heavenly Demon straightened suddenly, his gaze drifting upward to the shadowed ceiling as though hearing a voice no one else could perceive. Tension coiled in his frame. Whatever—or whoever—this stranger was, he had bypassed every ward, every guard, every sense honed by decades of slaughter.
And he was still smiling.
***
**Author's Note:**
Void doesn't answer questions—he owns them. The Heavenly Demon senses something wrong but can't place it yet. Drop "Dog meets true master" if you're hyped for their clash, or guess what Void's "little plan" really is. Your theories shape the chaos.