The Return of the Bronze Oil Lamp

The raging fire burned intensely, rising like a towering pillar of flame in a secluded corner of the city.

Above, flame puppets of varying sizes hovered in chaotic patterns. Their unstable forms crackled, occasionally bursting into fiery explosions.

Byron stood within the inferno, merging with the flames. His human form began to fade, replaced by a figure made entirely of fire.

A being born of flame.

The fire consumed every inch of his skin, tearing his body apart before piecing it back together.

Byron's form dissolved as his face burned away, leaving his bones charred and blackened by the flames.

He remained standing in the inferno, muttering to himself.

"Mother!"

"The fire is burning me, scorching me."

"Mother, I feel it."

"It really hurts!"

"It really... it hurts!"

He was digesting the Seed of Wrath while also being devoured by Wrath itself.

Byron saw the world through the lens of fire and monstrosity. Flames flickered before his eyes, and the entire world felt as though it was twisting and warping around him.

"Dark Moon!"

The image of this person appeared before him. He understood that from the very beginning, he had never truly seen this person clearly.

No.

From the very start, he had never seen the true face of this world.

He looked at the flame puppets circling in the sky. He could feel the anger in each of their hearts.

Before they became monsters and puppets, they were all survivors of that disaster.

They chose this path to realize the new country Dark Moon envisioned and to seek answers from their enemies.

They had firmly believed Dark Moon was a savior, the one who would save this country and everyone in it.

They had firmly believed Dark Moon could punish their enemies.

But when the truth was revealed, Byron discovered that Dark Moon was a participant in that disaster years ago.

Byron stared at each puppet, remembering his comrades.

He remembered their faces, how they had believed in him and in the Dark Moon General.

They were all so young, so firm in their belief in good and evil. Each one had rushed forward without hesitation, choosing death and transformation into these monsters.

"Worthless!"

"Our sacrifices, everything we have done..."

"All worthless!"

"This world has no justice and no good or evil, only deception and ruthlessness."

"Everyone deceives each other. Everyone betrays each other. Everyone is a sacrifice."

"Sacrifice others to achieve goals."

"Sacrifice others to gain benefits."

"Sacrifice others to prove faith."

"In this world, everyone is consumed by others."

At this moment, a blood river descended from the sky, and the prince of Suinhor called out Byron's name.

"Byron, the fallen one!"

"Divine punishment is upon you!"

His form was tall and majestic, his voice powerful and resonant.

He represented the divine beings. He represented justice.

And below stood a monster who had forsaken his identity as a snake person, a being consumed by his fall.

The terrifying fire monster raised its head. It looked toward the prince of Suinhor, this generation's Blood Kin.

"Me?"

"A fallen one?"

Byron heard the title and wanted to laugh madly. He found it utterly ironic.

"I am the fallen one?"

"I am the fallen one?!"

"Hahahahahahaha! Am I the fallen one?!"

Byron's roar echoed between heaven and the clouds. The entire city and the prince in the sky could feel his wild fury.

"The fallen and the mad!"

"That is all of you!"

"You, and these high and mighty divine beings..."

"No one cares about us. Everyone only cares about their own purposes, never about anyone else."

"Beasts are like this, snake people are like this, and the divine beings are like this too!"

Byron no longer looked at the prince but gazed above the clouds, as if glaring angrily at those high and mighty deities.

"Divine punishment?"

"What divine punishment?"

"I do not accept your judgment!"

"You have no right to judge me. You cannot represent justice, and you cannot represent this world!"

"You are nothing but heartless monsters with powerful strength. If you want to kill me, then come directly. Do not pretend to be righteous!"

Amid his roaring, his power surged forward as he began to break through, following the principles of the Art of Purgatory's Divine Grace.

Many flame puppets had already formed a ritual array. Within the flames, God's Grace Stones emerged, rapidly shaping Byron's mythological organ.

Byron's mythological organ was strange, however. It was clearly a heart, leaping within the flames.

Variant flames poured from the heart, forming Byron's body.

This was a somewhat crude and slightly modified Divine Grace technique. It had its origins in Yafuan's work.

Yafuan had acquired the Anhofus Bone Demon Transformation Secret and the Art of God's Grace, which had been compiled by Lan, the second-generation Sage of Truth, long before God Asai awakened.

The prince of Suinhor immediately sensed something was wrong.

"Hmm?"

"Actually Fourth-Rank?" All of Suinhor's people had thought Byron was only Third-Rank.

"No, he is breaking through to Fourth-Rank." But immediately, he discovered the other's little trick.

He had not expected that when he found the other, it would be just as he was breaking through.

No longer hesitating, he attacked.

From the blood river, flesh condensed. It formed what appeared to be a living land dragon beneath the prince of Suinhor.

Under the infusion of the blood river's power, the land dragon and the prince's form continuously expanded. The prince's armor and cape also expanded with them.

Eventually, they merged into a single entity, a towering giant astride an enormous land dragon. Their combined form reached over a hundred meters in height.

Their terrifying shadow loomed over Wing Demon City, leaving an overwhelming sense of shock in its wake.

It was no surprise that when Suinhor's Proof of Blood Kinship was unleashed, it was called divine punishment. Confronting such overwhelming power, few could endure the impact it had on their hearts.

Not only that, but as the blood river surged, figures began to emerge one after another.

A legion formed behind him, their presence growing more imposing with each passing moment.

Many individuals in this legion seemed out of place in this era. Some appeared as though they belonged to a distant, primitive time.

They were all people who had died under the Proof of Blood Kinship.

This Life Artifact had been passed down for over a thousand years. Who knew how many figures had died under this weapon.

At this moment, the death legion advanced with the Blood Kin of this generation, descending along the path of the blood river.

The Son of Wrath, Byron, also charged toward the sky. He continuously gathered flames in his palm, throwing them out to explode.

Boom!

The flames exploded to form shock waves, spreading layer by layer across the sky of Wing Demon City.

The shock waves rippled outward, forcing many people to the ground. It was evident this was merely a probing attack.

However, it was not long before the other emerged from the blazing inferno in the sky, leading the death legion forward.

The blood river surged and descended toward Byron.

The other remained unharmed. Byron realized this was an entity possessing undeniable apostle-level power, a power form that had been refined and utilized for over a thousand years.

Finally, the leaping fire giant clashed with the surging blood river in a violent collision.

Boom!

An endless amount of the blood river was evaporated, but more surged forward, seemingly wanting to submerge the fire giant completely.

Byron shouted, "Let us see how much of that blood river you have. I will burn it all dry!"

The Blood Kin looked disdainfully at Byron. "Heretic, you are but a dying flame, yet you dare challenge the power granted by the divine beings."

Byron manipulated the flames as various explosions continuously appeared.

Fire burned the sky. Flame puppets rushed toward Suinhor's Blood Kin.

The Blood Kin's cape connected to the blood river behind him, occasionally transforming into a massive blood shield that blocked Byron's power.

Through battle, the Blood Kin discovered something.

The Blood Kin's gaze grew intense. "Your mythological organ is your heart. Fallen one Byron, I have found your weakness."

His armbands shifted shape, turning into an array of weapons that relentlessly struck toward Byron's heart. This was clearly a technique passed down through generations.

He immediately recognized that Byron's heart was his fatal point.

Byron constantly avoided the other's unpredictable weapons, no longer daring to rush recklessly toward him.

After only a brief exchange, Byron found himself struggling to keep up.

However, despite both possessing Fourth-Rank power, the other was unable to overpower him for the moment.

After realizing the other's formidable strength, Byron decided he no longer wanted to engage with Suinhor's Blood Kin and prince.

His chest burned with fury.

All he wanted now was to find that person.

However, Suinhor's Blood Kin was not so easily shaken off. Byron's flame puppets were destroyed one after another, overwhelmed by the relentless blood river.

As the battle raged on, Byron began to formulate a strategy.

At this moment, Byron's heart leapt in his chest, emitting sounds like a great drum. His power released unrestrained, seemingly able to contend with the other.

But both Byron and the other understood that this state would not last much longer.

Byron began to mock his opponent with a sharp tone.

"Hmm?"

"So this is divine punishment?"

"It does not seem very impressive, does it?"

The Blood Kin could not endure Byron's blasphemous words against his deity, especially when faced with a heretic of the Abyss who had just committed sacrilege.

He stepped back, clearly about to make a big move.

"Not impressive?"

The gaze beneath the helmet was like a blade, wanting to tear the Byron before him to shreds.

"You who abandoned human dignity, choosing to fall into the abyss."

"Today, let me show you what true power is!"

When Suinhor's Blood Kin raised his spear, the sky darkened.

A red moon shadow appeared behind the Blood Kin.

Byron let out a shout, "Now!"

Byron seemed to have seized an opportunity, using this gap to cast some powerful divine technique.

The fire monster's heart pounded, flames pouring out.

Ten fire giants emerged from the ground, forming a circle around Suinhor's Blood Kin. They moved in unison, as if preparing to cast a powerful divine technique or create a seal.

Suinhor's Blood Kin shouted two syllables in the Trilobite Man language.

"Scarlet!"

The blood moon shadow and the Blood Kin became one. Terrifying power spread out with the sweep of the spear.

The ten fire giants were instantly cut in half, and Byron, positioned in the center, was directly pierced through the chest.

But after piercing through, the Blood Kin revealed a confused expression.

"Something is not right."

He withdrew his spear, only to see each fire giant suddenly explode and collapse.

The Blood Kin's cape quickly recoiled, shielding him against the force of the explosion.

Terrifying flames engulfed the Blood Kin, yet could not harm him at all.

The flames dispersed into countless streams of fire, cascading gently from above.

This was not a killing move, just a means to confuse the Blood Kin.

The flowing fire ignited the city, forcing the Blood Kin to make a choice: either pursue Byron or save the people.

At this moment, the real Byron, with his mythological organ in tow, had already disappeared into the distance.

This was not a strategy the former Byron could have devised, but years of military training had tempered him significantly.

The Life Ability User's strength was fully displayed in this battle, but the Wisdom Ability User's flexibility and elusiveness were also embodied in Byron.

The Blood Kin watched as flowing fire fell from the sky, engulfing Wing Demon City.

The city was consumed by flames, transforming into an endless sea of fire.

Two apostle-level beings had simultaneously released their full power here.

This was a natural disaster.

How could he still have the heart to search for Byron after causing such a disaster and turning a blind eye to it?

He would likely lose his divine favor right away. Even as a Trilobite Symbiote, returning to the Blood Kingdom would probably result in punishment.

He immediately plunged into the sea of fire.

As the flames consumed everything in sight, thousands upon thousands of people were engulfed, their cries of anguish echoing through the inferno.

Born in the City of Fire Protection and accustomed to peace, the prince had never witnessed such a scene.

He understood Byron's intention clearly, but knowing it only made him more furious and filled with disbelief.

"How dare you?"

"You truly are a fallen one, a heretic of the Abyss."

"These are people of the Royal Court of Ten Thousand Serpents. These are your compatriots, your kin."

"Not mine!"

The people in the city had abandoned their faith in the Mother of All Snakes long ago. Their devotion now rests with the Scarlet Goddess, the divine being the prince reveres.

At the edge of the horizon, Byron stood as a transparent, ghostly figure. He lingered on a hillside, his gaze fixed on Wing Demon City in the distance.

He gazed at the city consumed by the sea of fire.

The scene mirrored the disaster at Fort Pence years ago, only it was even more brutal.

How many people like Byron would this disaster create?

How much hatred would it spawn?

But Byron no longer cared. He stood silently, watching the raging sea of fire consume everything in its path.

At last, he turned away and walked into the distance.

"Dark Moon!"

"I am coming for you!"

Mooneclipse City

When news arrived that the Silver Serpent Legion had broken through the Southern City-State Alliance's Wing Demon City and executed its traitors, the message spread like wildfire.

The new capital of the Royal Court of Ten Thousand Serpents erupted in an unprecedented celebration.

There were no longer prohibitions on alcohol and no longer a curfew. The Dark Moon General announced three days of celebration for the entire city.

Everyone was free to drink and indulge until they were completely drunk.

Street corners filled with performers and shops packed with people. The entire city burst with a vitality far beyond the ordinary.

And indeed, after the restructuring, the Royal Court of Ten Thousand Serpents had transformed into something entirely different from what it once was.

This corrupt dynasty, this old machine, began to move again.

They learned from the Land of Sunrise, imitated Suinhor, and also explored their own path.

This country underwent changes with each passing day.

Administrative Hall

As night fell, the building slowly emptied. However, Dark Moon, the highest commander of this country, remained behind.

He and his deputy stood by the window, gazing out at the country they had rebuilt and the new order they had worked so hard to create.

Today, the Dark Moon General appeared as if he had something on his mind, yet he said nothing.

The deputy stayed quiet as well, patiently waiting.

Watching the sun set completely, the Dark Moon General finally asked his deputy a question.

"Do you remember when we first joined the army?"

The deputy answered, "I remember. There were several consecutive rebellions at the time, and we were the newly trained troops sent to suppress them."

"We fought one battle after another. That is how we climbed up."

"So many of our brothers lost their lives."

The Dark Moon General also spoke, his tone flat but more desolate.

"Yes, so many people have died."

"Our families are gone. Our brothers are gone."

"Then we took our knives and destroyed the families of others, taking away their brothers."

"It never ended."

Before his deputy, he truly revealed his thoughts, no longer maintaining a righteous appearance.

"We are not afraid to kill, nor do we care if those killed are innocent. Men, women, the elderly, children, we have killed them all."

"Because of a single command, we lost our humanity and became nothing more than tools for killing."

"But in the end, we killers only managed to scare ourselves."

"Is that not ridiculous?"

"Because we know that one day, we will meet the same fate, killed by others in their madness."

"And what is even more absurd is this."

"After so much killing and so many deaths, not a single one of them holds any meaning."

"Animals kill each other for food, but our killing seems only to kill one another."

The Dark Moon General's gaze shifted slightly. "At that time, I wondered, what kind of country is this? What kind of world?"

"Is this the world created by the divine beings?"

"Are we, created by the divine beings, such foolish creatures?"

The Dark Moon General turned his head, looking at the deputy who had always followed him.

"I do not understand."

"I do not understand why it is this way."

"I thought that with power, everything could be changed."

"But after victory upon victory, what followed was endless war."

"Everyone went mad."

"Kill, kill, kill. Everyone is killing, all destroying themselves in the process."

"The children of the King of Ten Thousand Serpents are locked in a deadly struggle for power. Blood flows like rivers in the palace as they fight for the throne. Those who ascend to kingship sit trembling, haunted by the fear that someone below will rise up with a knife."

"The lords and nobles of various territories are locked in deadly conflicts. Heads roll as they fear being killed if they hesitate to act."

"Commoners who struggle to survive are turning on each other, leaving behind mountains of corpses and seas of blood. They believe that only by taking the lives of others can they ensure their own survival."

The deputy remained silent. He had once been among those who were lost, one of the killers consumed by madness.

In such an environment, no one could maintain their sanity.

He had encountered countless perverts and madmen. Deep within his own heart, he knew there was a twisted and insane side he could not deny.

Even the Dark Moon General standing before him was no exception. He knew exactly how this general, who now appeared as a refined and composed executive officer, looked when consumed by madness and stripped of his sanity.

The Dark Moon General continued speaking to himself.

"Finally, I realized something."

"Power alone cannot solve everything. The issue does not lie with individuals, but with the structure of this world and this kingdom."

"It is the order and the rules."

The Dark Moon General clenched his fist tightly, his emotions suddenly surging with excitement.

"If killing rebels does not solve the problem, then war and destroying countries will not solve it either, and neither will slaughtering nobles."

He slammed the windowsill hard, the look in his eyes suddenly changing.

This moment served as a stark reminder that this was a general forged through countless battles, rising from the carnage of countless corpses and rivers of blood.

He uttered words that made one's heart tremble, his killing intent boiling to its peak.

"So we will destroy this country!"

"Destroy this broken order."

With a ferocious expression, his throat hoarse, he said, "I want to break the rules of this world."

"Break the current order."

The deputy had been observing the Dark Moon General closely. He could sense the heavy burden weighing on Dark Moon's heart, and in that moment, it seemed as though a small part of that burden had been unintentionally released.

Looking at the current general, the deputy also felt fear.

He spoke without hesitation.

"General, you have succeeded."

"The provincial system has already been implemented. Next, we will divide the southern five territories into five provinces. Step by step, we can transform all the territories of the royal court into provinces. We have already dismantled the system that has been in place for over a thousand years, significantly limiting the powers of the noble lords."

"The high executive officer system and constitution you established also place limits on the powers of the King of Ten Thousand Serpents and nobles. The royal family is no longer able to act without restraint."

"And Sukob, the leader of the witch spirits, has also replied. This time, he seems to have been persuaded and is willing to bring the faith of the God of Knowledge and Truth into the Royal Court of Ten Thousand Serpents. With this, we can issue decrees of freedom of faith, allowing everyone to freely choose to believe in other deities. This will help restrict the power of temples and reduce the control of clergy over the royal court."

"Then everyone will be constrained within the new system of this kingdom."

The deputy finally said, "General, the old order has been broken, and a new order has been born."

Dark Moon unclenched his fist, his face finally calming.

"Now, what I need to do is ensure that the order and rules we have established are passed down."

"We must thoroughly destroy this country and the old order."

"Let those who should perish..."

"Perish completely in history."

At this moment, Dark Moon took a document from the desk. At the same time, he removed the ring from his hand, placed it on the paper, and handed it to the deputy.

"Tomorrow, during the meeting, you will officially assume the position of High Executive Officer of the Royal Court of Ten Thousand Serpents, following the established rules and procedures."

The deputy was suddenly stunned, not responding for a long time.

Dark Moon asked the deputy, "I have told you so much, and you have followed me for so long."

"You know what to do next, do you not?"

The deputy asked Dark Moon, "What do you plan to do?"

Dark Moon said nothing. He placed the document on the desk and quietly left the administrative hall.

He made his way back to his mansion in silence.

Even after all these years, Dark Moon remained alone, with no family by his side.

He closed the door, sitting alone in the study.

His gaze could directly see a mirror placed in the corner of the desk, with a Bronze Oil Lamp on its right side.

The mirror appeared to be an ordinary mirror, yet the Bronze Oil Lamp carried a remarkable history.

Several years ago, during his visit to the Land of Sunrise, he acquired this lamp while studying the system and transformations of the White Tower Alchemy Alliance.

But Dark Moon later understood that nothing was coincidental. Many events were interconnected, their outcomes seemingly predetermined from the very beginning.

This was a remarkably powerful supernatural artifact. However, Dark Moon had never used it because doing so would demand an unimaginable price.

Dark Moon extended his hand, gently rubbing the Bronze Oil Lamp as if lost in thought.

In the corner mirror, his face appeared, reflecting his quiet contemplation.

Suddenly, the Dark Moon in the mirror began to move, making gestures that did not match Dark Moon's actions at all.

The Dark Moon in the mirror stared at the Dark Moon outside and began to laugh.

The laughter was unsettling, carrying an unnatural tone that no human voice could produce.

"So, how is it?"

"Can you resist the urge to use it?"

"You only have one chance. Have you decided yet?"

The Dark Moon in the mirror appeared to know the Dark Moon outside quite well, as if they had encountered each other before.

Dark Moon ran his fingers over the Bronze Oil Lamp, avoiding the gaze of his reflection.

"I have heard," Dark Moon said quietly, "that when a mortal's heart is consumed by darkness and emptiness, they are drawn to evil."

"Is that why you found me?"

The form in the mirror began to writhe, gradually becoming a ceramic doll.

The doll was exquisite, with vibrant colors.

This was a peculiar doll, an unusual being clad in bone armor, its life form exuding an indescribable sense of ancientness.

Its very existence exuded a sense of primal and ancient origins.

"When you gaze into the abyss, the abyss also gazes into you."

The ceramic doll's face lit up with anticipation, as if it believed a grand drama was about to unfold. It eagerly studied Dark Moon's face, hoping to catch the reaction it desired.

"Mortal, your time is running out. Byron knows everything, and he is about to return!"

"He has been completely consumed by wrath."

"He not only wants to kill you. The out-of-control Byron will also destroy everything you have built."

"And everyone will learn of your wicked actions and understand what you did in the past. You will be known as a fallen one who conspired with the abyss."

"The divine beings will not spare you. They will never allow someone connected to the abyss, someone who created the Son of Wrath, to control a country on Ruhe Beast Island."

The ceramic doll's painted expression twisted into an exaggerated and unnatural grin.

"Dark Moon, you are finished!"

Then, the ceramic doll in the mirror transformed into Byron's likeness, mimicking his voice.

Amid the raging fire, Byron locked his gaze on Dark Moon with unwavering intensity.

"Dark Moon!"

"I am coming for you!"

Even though it was just an imitation, Dark Moon could feel the boundless hatred and rage in those words.

Dark Moon said nothing, just silently watching the ceramic doll's performance.

The ceramic doll felt bored. Its form gradually disappeared from the mirror, as if walking away on rippling light.

"Dark Moon, you toyed with the Abyss Cult, manipulated the Son of Wrath Byron, and used this country for your own ends."

"But in the end, you are nothing more than a toy in the hands of the divine beings, a pawn controlled by the gods."

Everything returned to calm.

There was no small figure in the mirror. Everything that had just happened felt like a fleeting illusion.

Yet, Dark Moon understood that the time to make a decision had come.

Dark Moon lowered his head. After a long while, he softly said, "I do not care."

"Kill others, or be killed by others."

"I do not care."

He paused and said, "I just want to destroy that once absurd world and bring an end to that broken old order."

In the Abyss

The ceramic doll climbed up the high skeletal table along the table leg, arriving before the divine throne.

The Evil God of Original Sin sat idly, toying with a skull that once belonged to a fallen one.

Flames flickered within the hollow eye sockets of the skull. Though reduced to just a bone, this skeletal creature had not truly perished.

The ceramic doll flattered the deity before it, sycophantically exclaiming, "Great God of Original Sin!"

"Everything is within your will and decision."

Xiao spoke with indifference, "Everyone has weaknesses. Everyone has something they cannot abandon."

"When you understand the choice someone will make, you simply place what they desire in front of them."

"Even if it is a cliff, they will still leap."

"There is nothing to look forward to. It is just like this."

Flames surged outward from the skull Xiao was holding, spreading rapidly.

They projected one vivid scene after another.

The owner of this skull appeared to have been a soldier, as the scenes that emerged depicted a battlefield.

However, as the skull owner's vision turned, a very young Dark Moon appeared on the battlefield.

Dark Moon was originally the son of a noble in Mooneclipse City. Their family had a territory outside the city, passed down through generations.

In his youth, he received a traditional education at home, and when he was older, he went to Mooneclipse City to study.

During this period, a rebellion swept through the area. Dark Moon's family territory was hit the hardest, bearing the brunt of the chaos and destruction.

When Dark Moon returned from Mooneclipse City, he no longer saw any living person at home.

His father was killed during what was claimed to be a rebellion, but in truth, it was the act of another noble using the rebellion as a pretext.

This noble also used the so-called laws to take away their family's ancestral territory in a manner that appeared both legal and reasonable.

Young Dark Moon lacked the strength to seek revenge. He escaped his hometown during the time when the royal court was recruiting for new troops.

Years later, he returned with an army.

Claiming to suppress a rebellion, he annihilated his enemies entirely.

He personally took the lives of every man, woman, elderly person, and child in his enemy's family without sparing a single soul.

At first, the story seemed like a straightforward tale of revenge.

But then, he led his army across countless battlefields, earning a reputation as a ruthless butcher.

His duty was to suppress the enemies of the kingdom, facing endless rebellions and continuously unleashing the violence and hatred buried deep within his heart.

He was nothing more than a killing machine, a butcher drenched in blood.

Killing.

Endlessly killing.

Until one day, he suddenly realized that even the endless killing and constant war could not ease the violence or fill the emptiness in his heart.

It could not fill the emptiness in his heart or replace what he had lost.

On the Flesh and Blood Star of the Abyss, the skull of Dark Moon's former personal guard reflected scenes of war.

The battlefield was filled with the relentless sounds of killing, one wave after another. Dark Moon, drenched in blood, drove his sword through the throat of a snake person who radiated supernatural light.

The other's hot blood spurted out, covering Dark Moon's ferocious face in a deep crimson.

"Die!"

"Die for me!"

"Beast!"

Dark Moon's face showed none of his later refinement.

There was only violence, only boundless killing intent, and the desire to destroy.

Dark Moon leaned against a mountain of land dragon corpses, like a monster crawling out from the abyss.

Huff...

Huff...

He breathed heavily, his terrifying gaze scanning the battlefield, searching for any remaining enemies to strike down.

Dark Moon turned his head and saw the owner of the skull pounce on the snake person he had just killed. Without hesitation, the man began to drink the other's blood.

More terrifyingly, others joined him, competing to drink the blood.

"Leave some for me!"

"Mine, get out of my way!"

"Are you looking to die?"

Dark Moon stood up and called out to them, "Hey, what are you doing?"

His personal guard turned back, looking at Dark Moon with a mouth full of fresh blood.

"General!" one of the soldiers called out, his voice filled with excitement. "They say drinking his blood can make you stronger. I wanted to try it!"

Several people eagerly fought over the blood, drinking it with fervor. The sight was both horrifying and revolting.

Yet these few people seemed content, completely oblivious.

"Really, I feel like I am getting stronger."

"Would eating some of his flesh be more effective?"

"I have eaten ordinary flesh, but I have never eaten the flesh of an Ability User."

Dark Moon had killed an Ability User, the rebel leader.

Among the soldiers, there was a belief that drinking the blood of an Ability User might grant them similar powers. However, this was nothing more than a legend.

If Mythical Blood could be extracted and used so easily, Ability Users would not be considered so valuable.

Dark Moon gazed at the madmen under his command and the lifeless bodies scattered across the battlefield.

In that moment, he felt himself pulled out of his violent rage and the madness that had consumed him.

Here there were no people, only madmen, a group of beasts that had lost their humanity.

Everyone had gone mad.

He had gone mad. His soldiers had gone mad.

Dark Moon suddenly began to laugh, starting with brief laughter that then became continuous.

Haha!

Hahahahahaha!

"Madmen... madmen... all madmen..."

After laughing, his expression shifted abruptly, and he erupted in a fit of rage.

Enough!

Enough!

ENOUGH!

He suddenly stood, gripping his sword tightly, and struck down the blood-drinkers one by one. In that moment, he appeared even more deranged than those who were feasting on human flesh and drinking human blood.

After killing them all, Dark Moon covered his face, standing on the battlefield laughing wildly.

His laughter was filled with madness, echoing across the battlefield.

Finally, he lowered his hand, his eyes becoming extremely terrifying.

After everything ended, no one dared approach him. Even his comrades kept their distance.

On this day, Dark Moon finally realized what he truly hated. It was not the people, not the endless rebellion, and not even his own weakness or powerlessness.

What he truly detested and deeply hated was this world.

It was this world that had driven him and everyone else to madness.

Dark Moon raised his head. The fresh blood on his face had formed scabs.

"Father!"

"You said that becoming strong enough allows one to set the rules?"

"Then..."

"How strong must one become to set the rules of this world?"

"How strong must one become..."

"To destroy this world of despair?"

No one answered Dark Moon.

When he asked this question in his youth, he thought only of resting a little longer.

But when Dark Moon asked this question again, he was no longer the same.

The scene froze here, then gradually blurred.

In the image, Dark Moon's pupils reflected an infinite fire, burning with a hatred that seemed to consume everything in its path.

That was not fire directed at any individual, nor was it fire fueled by revenge against someone specific.

It was fire directed at the old order, fire intended to consume this world.

It was fire turned against the divine beings.

Xiao stared at these eyes, suddenly letting out a light laugh.

"Look at those eyes filled with hatred!"

Xiao looked toward the ceramic doll. "He hates this world. He hates the divine beings."

"And… he hates himself."