Li Feng lay unconscious near the edge of the forest.
After some time, a soldier dressed entirely in black arrived at the scene. He paused, sensing the strange presence around the fallen youth.
"My lord, please come here," the soldier said respectfully.
"This boy looks like someone who has suffered greatly. But the aura surrounding him is unusually powerful. If you were to take him in, my lord, you would gain a remarkable talent."
As those words were spoken, a young man stepped forward.
He carried the unmistakable presence of a ruler. His sharp eyes radiated authority, and he was clad in black robes. Around him swirled a mixed aura of deep black and dark crimson.
He was none other than the Demon Lord.
Slowly, he walked toward Li Feng. Kneeling beside him, the Demon Lord placed a hand on Li Feng's head and began to probe his memories.
"…To endure this much suffering at such a young age," he murmured.
"How did this child survive it all?"
With a gentle motion, he released a surge of power into Li Feng's body.
Li Feng regained consciousness.
The moment his eyes opened and met the figure standing before him, realization struck instantly—
this man was the Demon Lord.
Yet, despite that knowledge, Li Feng felt no fear at all.
"Li Feng," the Demon Lord's voice was calm, yet carried the weight of centuries.
"I have watched your suffering. Your sect, your family, even those you loved… they have all abandoned you. Am I to understand you wish for revenge?"
Li Feng's eyes, bloodshot and burning with rage, met the Demon Lord's.
"Yes… I want it. I want them all to pay. My sect, my family, everyone who turned their backs on me…"
The Demon Lord extended a hand, dark energy swirling around him.
"Then join me. Embrace the path of the demon, and you shall have the power to make them regret every betrayal. But remember… this path is not for the weak. Only those who can bear the darkness may rise."
Li Feng hesitated for a moment. His pride and the remnants of his past life still clung to him. But as he looked back toward the sect he once called home, toward the family who rejected him, the anger consumed every shred of doubt.
"I will follow," he said finally, his voice steady. "I will walk the path you show me… and I will rise stronger than anyone."
The Demon Lord nodded, a rare approval in his gaze.
"Good. But first… you must learn the art of blood and shadow. You will harness the strength of souls, mastering what the heavens fear. Only then will you have the power to reclaim your destiny."
From that moment, Li Feng's journey into darkness began. The weak, the untrustworthy, the unjust… they would all pay. But for now, he had found a place where he was not rejected, not beaten, not betrayed—a place where his rage and ambition could grow.
The first step of his Demon Path was clear: embrace the power, master the forbidden arts, and become a shadow that even Heaven would tremble before.