"They… they're coming…"
Tohru's voice trembled uncontrollably.
His massive body swayed like a candle flickering in a violent storm.
Almost instinctively, he staggered backward—like a frightened nocturnal beast retreating from a predator—while an overwhelming aura surged forward, crashing down like a ruptured dam.
From the Ten Oni Generals of the Shadowking, waves of terrifying energy poured forth without restraint.
That presence was like a roaring torrent, slamming mercilessly into Tohru's body.
Under such crushing pressure—
His legs gave out completely, as if all strength had been drained from his muscles and bones.
Every hair on his body stood on end.
In the end, unable to endure it any longer, he collapsed heavily onto the ground.
It was fear born of instinct—etched into blood and soul alike—clinging to him like a shadow and burrowing deep into his very bones.
Shendu's gaze locked onto the shadow warriors.
He immediately attempted to summon them through his spell.
Again.
And again.
Yet no matter how he tried, it was like casting a stone into the ocean—no response, no ripple, nothing at all.
This abnormal situation left Shendu both shocked and deeply unsettled.
He had clearly absorbed the power of the Oni Mask.
So why… could he not command the Shadowking?
At that moment—
A calm, unfamiliar voice softly echoed through the air.
"The Book of Time records every passage of history in this world. It is an artifact capable of altering the past… and rewriting the future."
The voice was not loud.
Yet it rang like a tolling bell.
Every word entered their ears with absolute clarity, striking their hearts like a heavy hammer.
When Shendu heard this, his expression instantly darkened—so dark it was as if black ink might drip from his face.
"You are neither a demon… nor a being of this world," he said coldly.
"How can you know about the Book of Time?"
His tone was filled with anger—and suspicion.
"I know as many things as there are stars in the sky," the voice replied indifferently.
"There is no need to explain them to you."
Yami Tsukishiro looked at Shendu without the slightest change in expression.
"You possess the power of a dragon… and you are sustained by spell magic. Yet something about you is wrong."
Shendu's pupils contracted sharply.
He was an ancient evil dragon—a Fire Demon Sorcerer who ruled over flame. No one understood those powers better than him.
The spells were fragments of the magic once divided from his own body.
And yet—
At this moment, Shendu felt something unprecedented emanating from Yami Tsukishiro.
It was a restrained yet overwhelmingly dominant dragon's majesty.
A presence that stood above him.
One that felt impossibly familiar—so familiar it sent a chill through his core.
Spell power flowed through Yami Tsukishiro like a raging undercurrent, vast and unfathomable.
"…Who are you?" Shendu demanded.
"And what is your true purpose?"
For the first time since his return, fear crept into the Demon Sorcerer's heart.
"Haha… purpose…"
Yami Tsukishiro's lips curved into a faint smile.
As if everything unfolding before him was beneath explanation.
"I came to conquer.
I came to devour.
And this world… will eventually belong to me."
His calm yet absolute declaration thundered through the air.
Ella, Shion, and Kaen stepped forward simultaneously, their expressions solemn as they spoke in unison:
"Master, we will give everything to secure this victory for you."
"King! We offer you the entire world—shrouded in endless darkness!"
When Tarakudo and the other Oni Generals heard these words, their faces lit up with fanatic devotion.
They dropped to one knee without hesitation.
Behind them, a vast legion of monsters followed suit—kneeling in perfect unison.
They were willing to offer everything they had.
Even their existence.
"..."
Witnessing this overwhelming scene—
Jackie Chan, the humans beside him, and the adventurers hidden throughout the ruins were all frozen in terror, cold sweat soaking their bodies.
How could anyone possibly resist such an army?
An absolute legion of monsters…
And a Shadowking force that obeyed without question.
"Shendu," Yami Tsukishiro said calmly,
"I permit you to use the Book of Time."
He understood its power better than anyone.
Yet he made no attempt to restrict it.
That arrogance—absolute and unrestrained—was like fuel poured onto the fire raging in Shendu's heart.
"You will pay dearly for this conceit," Shendu snarled.
Slowly, he lifted the feathered quill—
As though grasping the very authority to rewrite fate itself.
With complete focus, he began to write upon the blank pages of the Book of Time.
Each stroke was heavy.
Each word carried the weight of his will.
[The dark army that invaded this world was completely wiped out.]
As the final word settled onto the page—
Silence.
The world remained unchanged.
Nothing happened.
Shendu had already anticipated this result.
This attempt was nothing more than a formality.
The Book of Time could only rewrite events that belonged to this world.
Anything recorded within its pages was bound by the laws of this reality.
And yet—
These monsters…
This legion…
They did not originate from this world.
Naturally, they were not constrained by the Book of Time.
The experiment had failed.
Shendu calmly lifted the feathered quill once more.
This time, his movements were far more violent—
His strokes sharp, unrestrained, filled with demonic will.
[The Eight Demon Sorcerers have all returned and regained their former peak power!]
The moment the final word settled—
The world responded.
Walong, who had been standing rigidly moments ago, suddenly convulsed.
As if struck by an invisible hammer, his body slammed into the ground.
"Hahahahaha—!!!"
Shendu's laughter erupted like rolling thunder, echoing endlessly through the air.
He wanted the entire world to hear it.
To witness it.
The demons… were returning.
"BOOM—!!!"
The sky darkened in an instant.
Black clouds churned violently, piling atop one another like raging tides.
Lightning tore through the heavens.
Thunder roared as if the sky itself were being ripped apart.
Ferocious winds howled across the land, ravaging everything in their path.
The earth trembled.
Mountains quaked.
A shadow of absolute calamity descended upon the world.
"Hahahaha! I am finally free!"
A booming, exhilarated voice rang out from within the storm clouds.
A massive blue figure, wreathed in crackling lightning, descended from the sky.
Thousands of years of suppressed power exploded outward at once.
The Thunder Demon — Dai Gui!
A being revered as the embodiment of thunder itself.
He corresponded to "Zhen", the Thunder Trigram of the Bagua.
Dai Gui's skin resembled deep sapphire, shimmering with electrical light.
His massive form was reminiscent of a rhinoceros or hippopotamus, crowned by sharp, protruding horns that resembled a king's diadem.
Heavy, Roman-style armor encased his body, making him look like a war god marching out of the storm clouds.
"Hehehehe… I, Hsi Wu, have returned as well."
A chilling laugh drifted through the skies.
Another figure emerged from the clouds.
The Sky Demon — Hsi Wu!
Ruler of the endless heavens.
He corresponded to "Qian", the Sky Trigram.
Master of atmospheric chaos, Hsi Wu could twist weather at will and unleash disasters upon the world.
His massive bat wings beat violently, producing gale-force winds.
His gray-blue skin contrasted with his ferocious expression, and his sharp claws glinted like blades.
Though the smallest among the Eight Demons, Hsi Wu was infamous for his cruelty and cunning.
"EAT… I WANT TO EAT EVERYTHING!!!"
A thunderous roar shook the land.
A colossal green figure, as massive as a mountain itself, slammed down onto the earth.
The Mountain Demon — Po Kong!
She represented mountains, earth, and endless appetite.
Corresponding to "Gen", the Mountain Trigram of the Bagua.
Po Kong possessed the horrifying ability to devour everything—
Stone, cities, life itself.
Her gluttony was bottomless.
Her hunger… unstoppable.
"GUAAAAA——!!!"
A deafening croak echoed across the skies.
In the next instant, a monstrous tornado surged forward, powerful enough to tear boulders apart.
The Wind Demon — Xiao Fung!
He embodied violent, raging storms and endless hurricanes.
Corresponding to "Xun", the Wind Trigram.
Ranked third among the Eight Demon Sorcerers, Xiao Fung's presence alone turned the world into a natural disaster.
The sky darkened.
The land screamed.
His light-purple skin glowed faintly as his massive, toad-like body hovered within the storm.
He was the undisputed King of Tempests—
A demon capable of commanding hurricanes and swallowing the world in endless wind.
"Damn this seal…!
Today, I will completely overturn this land!"
A furious roar erupted from beneath the earth itself.
The ground shook violently.
In the next instant, a massive brown figure burst forth from the cracked terrain, endless dust and debris spewing from his maw as the land split apart.
The Earth Demon — Di Kui!
He embodied the vast, boundless power of the earth.
Corresponding to "Kun", the Earth Trigram of the Bagua.
Among the Eight Demon Sorcerers, Di Kui ranked seventh.
He possessed absolute dominion over soil, stone, and land itself—
Mountains could collapse at his command.
The ground would tremble at his fury.
His colossal body resembled an indestructible fortress, formed entirely of hardened earth, boulders, and dense soil.
Brown-red skin covered his frame, and he wore dark green trousers that looked insignificant compared to his sheer bulk.
His towering form resembled a mighty tauren, crowned with two massive green horns—sharp and imposing like blades carved from stone.
Di Kui stood unmoving.
Like a mountain that could never be shaken.
"…This is the earth.
Not the moon."
A cold, detached voice drifted into the battlefield.
A strange figure slowly came into view.
He possessed four thick arms, his entire body covered in pale blue skin.
A long tongue occasionally slipped from his mouth as he gazed upward, seemingly searching for the moon hidden behind the clouds.
He wore flowing robes of deep red and violet, fluttering unnaturally despite the lack of wind.
The Moon Demon — Tso Lan!
Like the cold moon hanging high above the heavens.
He radiated an eerie, mysterious brilliance—
As though he grasped the most obscure secrets of the universe.
Tso Lan symbolized the distant stars, the void, and the silent dominion of the moon.
In the Bagua system, he corresponded to "Kan", representing depth, danger, and volatility.
A perfect match for his terrifying ability to manipulate gravity at will.
As the eldest of the Eight Demon Sorcerers, Tso Lan exuded unquestionable authority.
His long hair flowed like black ink, tinged faintly with purple light at the edges, lending him an otherworldly aura.
Tall and slender, he stood calmly—
Yet the cold arrogance in his eyes revealed utter disdain for all things beneath the sky.
Just as the crowd reeled from Tso Lan's overwhelming presence—
A thunderous crash echoed across the battlefield.
The sound of roaring waves filled the air.
From nowhere, surging seawater burst forth, raging like a furious tide before converging into a flowing blue silhouette.
The Water Demon — Bai Tza!
She was like the untamed ocean itself—
Endlessly powerful.
Unpredictable.
Relentless.
Bai Tza corresponded to the "Dui" Trigram of the Bagua.
She wielded absolute control over water.
With a mere thought, she could summon towering waves and drown anything that dared block her path.
Among the Eight Demons, Bai Tza ranked fifth.
Her vivid blue skin blended seamlessly with the surrounding waters, her body twisted and fluid, lacking any fixed shape.
Octopus-like tentacles writhed atop her head, constantly shifting and squirming, radiating a suffocating, oppressive presence.
The sea itself seemed to breathe with her movements.
Author's Note: Yoho, Arthorain here!
I'll keep it simple and won't babble. I've started a new novel, and honestly, I could use some help with it. Since it's still new, every bit of support matters.
Naruto: Dracule Mihawk Template is now live—packed with aura farming, elegant disrespect, and an MC who handles problems the Mihawk way: stare first, slash second, explain absolutely nothing.
A Power Stone or even adding it to library would help more than you'd think. Doing both is, of course, highly encouraged. Tagged below 👇