My hand was wrapped around the neck of the thing that called itself a System, the strange white figure struggling helplessly in my grip. Its body twisted like a lump of steam given form. Veins bulged across my forehead as I tightened my hold.
I am the Demon King, not some hero.
I have met plenty of idiots in my life, but this is the first time I’ve encountered something this unbelievably stupid. How could something so powerful be so foolish? At least the idiots around me had excuses. This thing that called itself a System was the worst of them all.
I am no hero.
For three thousand years, I had been locked away from the world, sealed until my soul had nearly faded into nothingness. My body had been tortured even after my death, torn apart piece by piece. Every part of me had been hidden in different places because they knew they couldn’t destroy my body.
So they sealed my soul instead.
They imprisoned it within the Nirvana Forbidden Land.
I had believed that was my end. I never imagined I would awaken again, that my soul would finally be free. The chains that bound me were gone, all because of this strange entity—a floating white ball with the intelligence of someone suffering from a mental disorder—that had somehow rescued me.
"You’ve got the wrong person, young hero," it said. "You’ve got the wrong person. We’re partners. Teammates, you and I. If you’re going to punish someone, it should be the villains—the bad guys."
I chuckled at its words.
Yes, I had already confirmed it.
This thing was incredibly stupid.
It had saved me. Yes, it really had saved me. At the very least, that gave me one reason to spare its life.
Normally, I would be grateful to anyone who helped me.
But not this thing.
This was the very first thing I needed to destroy.
What if it had been sent by the Immortal Sects to eliminate me? What if this whole rescue was nothing more than a trap?
"Because you willingly used your power to revive me..." I grinned, my smile growing colder. "...I’ll give you a less painful death."
My fingers tightened around its neck, pouring more force into my grip, intending to crush it into nothingness.
The System immediately panicked.
"If you kill me, you’re going to die too! And besides, a System can’t die. If you destroy me and waste all my remaining energy, you’ll die as well."
It struggled desperately before continuing.
" hero, I understand. You’ve been imprisoned for three thousand years. Its voice softened.
"I understand your feelings. But even after being sealed away for so long, your soul is still pure. That’s why I was able to bind with you in the first place. Only someone with a pure soul can become my host."
I burst into laughter.
A pure soul?
What ridiculounsense.
I am the Demon King.
The Demon King who ruled over the demon race.
The Demon King who slaughtered every immortal foolish enough to invade my territory or lay a hand on my people.
The strongest existence among demons.
The ruler whom even the Heavens feared.
I stand above all ancient beings
...
Thirty minutes later, I finally released the System and sat down, deciding—for the moment—to listen to the annoying floating ball.
The only reason I hadn’t crushed it was because it had mentioned something that caught my interest.
Power.
Rewards.
I didn’t understand most of the strange terms it kept using, but I understood one word perfectly.
Energy.
"Go on," I said coldly. "Speak. My patience is limited."
"Young hero, you’re quite impatient," the System replied cheerfully. "That’s good! Young people should have spirit. With this kind of enthusiasm, you’ll deal with all the bad guys and become the greatest hero in the world. Your journey to becoming a successful hero will be very—"
"Shut up."
My voice cut it off before it could continue rambling.
"Get to the point."
The System floated up and down before speaking again.
"I am the Celestial Hero System, okay? Every three thousand years, I descend into a realm to find a chosen hero—someone destined to save the world and purify it of all evil."
"I come from a realm beyond the ones you know."
I frowned.
"Another realm?"
"Yes!" the System answered enthusiastically. "There are countless realms beyond this one. Right now, I’ve arrived in your realm."
It paused dramatically.
"And you are this realm’s chosen hero."
I nearly laughed.
The System, completely oblivious to my expression, continued.
"Your mission is to purify the world. Save people. Save spirit beasts. Eliminate evil. Protect the innocent."
"The more good deeds you perform, the greater your rewards."
"If you rescue people, you’ll receive rewards."
"If you purify evil, you’ll receive rewards."
"If you complete missions, you’ll receive energy, treasures, cultivation resources, pills, and many other valuable items."
I remained silent while it spoke.
My fists slowly clenched.
Fortunately...
This stupid thing couldn’t read my thoughts.
The moment I was resurrected, vengeance had already filled my heart. The hatred burning inside me was enough to turn an entire ocean into a sea of molten lava.
This System claimed it could give me power.
Weapons.
Energy.
If that was true...
Then I would use it.
I would play along.
I would complete its ridiculous missions.
I would become the "hero" it wanted me to be.
Then, once I had obtained everything it could offer me...
I would burn this entire world to ashes.
I would use the very power it had given me to destroy everything.
And after that...
I would get rid of this annoying System as well.
"Host, you’ve finally accepted your destiny!" the System exclaimed excitedly.
It didn’t even realize what I was thinking.
Suddenly, its voice became louder.
"First Mission Alert!"
"Host, there’s an endangered spirit beast inside a nearby cave. Rescue the beast, and you’ll receive a reward."
"A Nirvana Restoration Pill."
"This pill will repair all the injuries within your body, including your damaged cultivation core. Once your cultivation core is restored, gathering spiritual energy and cultivating will become much easier."
A cultivation pill...
If I rescued this so-called endangered beast, I would receive a pill capable of repairing my cultivation core.
My eyes narrowed.
My core was shattered.
Without it, I was little more than an easy target. In my current state, even those far weaker than I once was could threaten my life.
My cultivation core had to be restored.
And if completing this System’s foolish missions was the fastest way to achieve that...
Then so be it.
I had no interest whatsoever in saving some random beast.
But if rescuing it earned me a pill that restored my strength...
Then I could tolerate this little game for now.
Hello, world.
The Demon King...
Iael...
...has returned.
....
I flew toward the entrance of the cave using what little energy I had left.
The moment I landed, darkness greeted me.
The cave was silent, but it wasn’t empty.
A powerful demonic aura drifted from deep within, dense enough to make an ordinary cultivator flee in terror. I sensed several demonic beasts inside, but none of them posed any threat to me. Even in my weakened state, their auras were insignificant compared to mine.
Without hesitation, I walked deeper into the cave.
As my eyes adjusted to the darkness, the scene before me gradually became clear.
A massive black demonic python had coiled itself tightly around a baby black panther, squeezing the life out of it. Its jaws hung open, ready to swallow the cub whole and devour its flesh and demonic energy.
I folded my arms across my chest and watched.
The little panther bared its tiny fangs, snapping furiously at the python’s scales, but its attacks barely left a scratch. The serpent was simply too large.
Judging by its aura, the python had cultivated for nearly a thousand years.
How pathetic.
A thousand years of cultivation, yet it was only this strong.
The System’s voice suddenly echoed in my head.
"Host! You’re already here. Hurry and save the baby panther!"
I ignored it.
Instead, I continued watching the battle with mild interest.
For some reason, the fight entertained me far more than the System’s promised Nirvana Pill.
Who knew whether that pill was even as miraculous as it claimed?
Now that I had regained my body, I could simply hunt for treasures on my own. I could rob the great sects, plunder their vaults, or even invade them outright.
Why should I obediently follow the System’s orders?
Keeping my arms folded, I watched as the python tightened its coils before suddenly whipping its massive tail.
Bang!
The baby panther was sent flying across the cave, crashing heavily against the rocky ground.
It struggled to stand, growling stubbornly despite its injuries.
The python lunged again, its enormous jaws opening wide as it rushed in to finish its prey.
At that exact moment...
My stomach growled.
The veins on my forehead twitched.
Hunger?
I frowned.
Had I fallen so low that I could actually feel hunger again?
How many years had it been since I last experienced such a sensation?
For countless years, cultivation alone had sustained me.
Yet now...
I felt like an ordinary mortal.
The System had restored my body, but not my strength.
Most of my cultivation and energy had vanished long ago, scattered wherever the fragments of my body had been hidden.
Without that power, my body demanded food once more.
The hunger gnawed at me relentlessly.
It was unbearable.
It reminded me of a drunkard who had been denied wine for years.
My gaze slowly shifted from the baby panther...
...to the python.
The cub was nothing but skin and bones. It wouldn’t even be enough to fill the gaps between my teeth.
But that python...
That was another matter.
A grin spread across my face.
With my hunger growing stronger by the second, I finally decided.
I’d kill the snake...
...and satisfy my appetite.
....
I summoned a strand of my demonic flame and flicked it toward the python.
The instant the flame struck, the enormous serpent froze.
Its body convulsed violently as though it had been struck by heavenly lightning before collapsing to the ground with a heavy thud. Smoke rose from its scorched scales.
The baby panther lay nearby, barely able to move. It looked pitiful.
I walked over to the python, grabbed it by the tail, and lifted its massive body with one hand.
The System’s excited voice immediately echoed in my head.
"Host! Congratulations! You have successfully saved the baby panther."
"Mission complete."
"Reward issued."
"A Nirvana Restoration Pill has been granted."
A glowing pill materialized before me, floating quietly in the air.
I caught it and examined it carefully.
I had always suspected this System was a fraud. Perhaps it hadn’t been the one that rescued me at all. Maybe my true savior had already disappeared, and this thing had merely stolen the credit.
Even now, I wasn’t completely convinced it wasn’t trying to deceive me.
After inspecting the pill for a moment, I tossed it into my mouth.
The moment I swallowed it, warmth spread through my body.
A gentle current of energy surged toward my shattered cultivation core, surrounding it completely.
Then...
The cracks slowly began to mend.
Piece by piece, my cultivation core reconstructed itself, becoming whole again as though it had never been broken.
A roar suddenly echoed behind me.
"Rawr!"
I turned around.
The source of the noise was the baby panther.
"You."
I looked at it with open disgust.
"You’re a disgrace."
"As your Demon King, I’m embarrassed to even look at you."
"You’re a panther, yet you let a legless serpent beat you half to death."
"How old are you?"
"That snake wasn’t even stronger than you, yet it still managed to overpower you."
"Useless."
The little panther lowered its body until it was practically lying on the ground, looking as though it were bowing to me.
I narrowed my eyes.
While fighting the python, it had acted like a helpless fool.
Now it was trying to act obedient?
"What are you doing?"
The System answered before the cub could.
"Host, it’s showing you respect."
"It wants to become your companion."
"That’s perfectly normal. Heroes are rarely alone. Every great hero needs a trustworthy companion, even if it’s an animal."
"This panther is an extremely rare species. As it grows stronger, it’ll be able to fight alongside you against powerful villains."
I looked down at the little panther.
I wasn’t interested in taking a companion.
However...
The System had said it would eventually become powerful.
That caught my attention.
I reached out with my spiritual sense and examined the cub’s cultivation core.
As the ruler of all demonic beasts, I could easily perceive the bloodline hidden within any beast.
A moment later, realization dawned on me.
So that was it.
This wasn’t an ordinary panther.
It was a Mystic Beast.
One of the rarest bloodlines in the Heavenly Realms.
Countless cultivators would kill to obtain one.
Unlike most demonic beasts, which were hunted mercilessly for their hides, bones, and cores, Mystic Beasts were treasured everywhere they appeared.
Keeping it around wouldn’t be such a bad idea.
If it truly grew into a powerful beast, it could become useful.
Even if it looked just as foolish as that annoying System.
"From today onward," I said, "you’re my companion."
I stretched out my hand and pressed a finger against the center of its forehead.
A soft purple light bloomed from my fingertip before sinking into the cub’s body.
Its forehead glowed for a brief moment.
The companion pact was complete.
From this moment on...
The little panther belonged to me.
I let out a slow breath.
Now that everything was settled...
It was finally time to roast this python.
Hopefully, I hadn’t forgotten how to cook after being sealed away for three thousand years.
Roasting meat couldn’t be that difficult.
Besides...
Roasted meat had always tasted the best.
Just as I was about to start preparing my meal, my expression suddenly changed.
I sensed several unfamiliar auras approaching.
Humans.
Cultivators.
The disciples of the Immortal Sects.
A cold smile slowly spread across my face.
Even after three thousand years...
Their blood still carried that unmistakable scent.
How nostalgic.
I couldn’t wait...
They would become the first people upon whom I unleashed my long-awaited vengeance.