"Thank you...."
I couldn't help but sigh and look up to the moon again and think, 'Well, here we go...'
-Time Skipp and MC Pov-
As time passed, days became weeks, weeks became months, and months became years. I am currently 20 years old, and it has been 9 years since I came to this world.
This world, as they call it 'Murim', is a place where the weak become prey to those who are strong. It's been a difficult time for me at first, but I managed to survive because the next day after I got reincarnated here, I stumbled upon the so-called 'Opportunity.'
/FLASHBACK/
'Well,here we go...' I thought as I walked through the forest, hoping to find a civilization nearby.
A day passed and I still couldn't find a village or a town nearby. I cant go back to the demonic cult, as those young masters would definitely kill me if they found out that I was alive.
I've been resting on trees for 24 hours because I know from Cheon's memories that this is not a simple forest.
This forest is apparently a testing ground for the heirs of the demonic cult to prove themselves worthy of challenging the position of the young patriarch of the demonic cult.
That position is currently empty because, for the past 50 years, no one has come back alive from this damned forest!
Clans within the demonic cult have agreed to lock this forest and name it the Blood Forest, as many people have died and their blood has tainted the whole forest.
And I know the reason why those people died: because there are many demonic beasts scattered around the forest.
You may ask, "Why hasn't the cult killed them?" It's because those fucking lunatics cultivated them for the past thousand years; they intended for them to become their hidden weapon against the Murim, but now they have a taste of their own medicine.
And there is a legend within the cult that states that at the core of the forest lies an 'Imoogi,' a fallen or evil Imoogi, to be precise, that lived for a thousand years since the era of the 1st Heavenly Demon.
And here I am currently looking for a shelter because suddenly rain fell heavily and I couldn't see anything because the moon was covered by the dark clouds.
I don't know which part of the forest I am currently in, but I know I am safe for now.
"Rustle"
'!!!!' Shit,it looks like I jinxed myself.
I heard a growl, and I was panicking and wanted to run, but I couldn't move my body!
As I was trying to move my body, I saw it.
A white tiger as big as a car has weapon marks all over its body. The tiger sends shivers all over my body, and I'm sweating heavily.
As the tiger was about to pounch on me, suddenly I felt warm all over my body, and I could move!
As soon as I can move, I run immediately without looking back, but I can still hear the tiger growl and gaze all over my body.
I run, run, run, and I don't know how much time has passed since I started running, but I'm still running my legs off.
But since I can't see anything because it's dark and raining, I stumble upon a log and fall down.
I saw the tiger moving close to me as I thought, 'Am I about to die again?'
I close my eyes and wait for my fate.
But it never came. I slowly opened my eyes, and the tiger was still standing there, not moving an inch from his position.
The tiger stared at me intensely and growled angrily before he left.
I was confused, and while I tried to stand, I looked around, and my eyes locked into some kind of cave entrance.
It's not that big, but enough for a kid around my age to slip past the entrance.
Without further thought, I enter the cave, as I desperately need a place to rest, and I can't see anything because it's dark.
I walked further into the cave, but suddenly...
"Crumble"
I looked at my feet to find the cave floor was about to collapse. "Ah shi-"
Before I could say anything, the floor collapsed, and I screamed my lung out, "Aaaaaahhhh."
I opened my eyes to be welcomed by another cave with torches all around the walls, six pillars standing to support the cave, sword marks all over the walls,and lastly, a chamber that looks like a luxury room at the current time.
I looked up and sigh. 'It seemed like I couldn't come back the way I came before,' I thought as I walked to the chamber.
To my surprise, the chamber was not as I had thought.
Inside, I found hundreds of sacks and a stone table at the end of the chamber.
I opened one of the sacks, and inside were some pills with a brown color and a rough surface.
'Is this food?' I thought that as I took one and ate it,it tasted bland with no flavor at all,but I think this is enough for me to survive for years.
I look away from the sacks and lock my eyes on the stone table at the end of the chamber.
I approached it and widened my eyes. "!!!"
On the table, there are two books and a black ring with a red accent.
I read one of the book titles...
"Heavenly Demon Breathing Technique by Cheon Mok-Woon"
and another one...
"Sword Art of the Demon God by Cheon Mok-Woon"
"HA HA...HA HA HA...HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" I laughed loudly and excitedly.
Cough* cough* Ehemm, sorry about that. I got a little too excited.
I held the books in my hands and thought, 'Is this the so-called Heaven's Opportunity?'
I put them down and looked at the last item, 'The Ring.
I took the ring and inspected it first.
'Hmmmm...nothing special, it seems," Ithought.
'Is this a storage ring?' I decided to put it on my right middle finger and tried to store the books, but nothing happened.
Anyway, I decided to just put it on my finger and leave it be.
Before I read the books, I decided to sleep since this chamber felt warm.
I didn't notice it yesterday, but the whole cave felt warm. I feel so much energy flowing within me; maybe this cave was full of spiritual energy since this cave is special.
Well, I decided to read the breathing technique first since this is the most important aspect before you start cultivating.
A week had passed, and it looks like I was gifted. I had already mastered Volume 1 of the book, and man, my view of the world seemed so much different than before.
As I was cultivating, suddenly I felt my ring move a little. I decided to focus my energy on the ring, and suddenly there was a sword with a name on both sides of its blade in my hand.
I read the name and widened my eyes. '!!!'
"The Heavenly Demon Sword"
I was surprised, happy, and excited at the same time, since this is the sword that the first heavenly demon used in his prime.
"Finally, I can cultivate the sword art now," I said as I continued my cultivation.
-TIME SKIPP-
Time passed, and six years had passed since I began my cultivation in this cave. I am currently 17 years old.
The food pills already ran out, but I am stronger now, so I don't need food that much. I can even survive without food, and I'll just consume spiritual energy around me.
I decided to look for a way out, and I found one, just behind the chamber.
As I walked through the passage, I felt energy so big, full of hatred, evil, and suppression.
I kept my guard up and my sword ready in hand as I continued to walk through the passage.
And before long, I entered yet another cave, but this one is different; there are some kinds of snake skins scattered around the cave.
At the end of the cave, I saw a speck of light eminating through a small hole, and in front of the hole of light, there is a 'Throne'.
I walked to the throne, but before I could continue, I heard a voice.
"So the time has come," she said.
"Who are you?" I said as I gripped my sword tightly.
Suddenly, there are two eyes glowing in the dark, and slowly, the eyes come forward to reveal themselves.
'!!' He was surprised; it was none other than the Imoogi herself; her body was black with spiky scales all over the top of her body.
"So the myth is true; you are Imoogi," I said as I prepared myself to defend or attack.
"Indeed, and I am the last test for you to fully inherit the inheritance of the first heavenly demon," she said.
"Test?" I asked.
"Enough chitchat," she said, and suddenly she started attacking.
So the battle between Cheon Ma and Imoogi began. At first, both sides seemed equal in strength, but as time passed, the battle reached its climax.
"Demon God sword art: Demon God descent!" slash*
I perform my last attack as I look back to see the Imoogi cut in half.
My clothes were ripped, I had blood all over my body, cuts, and my hair was a mess.
I sat in a lotus position and recharged my energy.
After what I felt was like a couple of hours, I stood up and walked up to the throne.
After I reached the throne, I saw there were 4 items: a letter, a box of pills, a set of clothes, and lastly, the most eye-catching one, a robe black in color with some red accents over it, and 'The Heavenly Demon' calligraphy on the back.
But first, of course, I read the letter.
"By the time you read this, I expect you already defeated her (imoogi), my first encounter with her was when she was about to massacre a whole village but of course, I stopped her, sealed her, and put her as a test for those who came after my legacy, but dont be happy yet as this is only the beginning, you will understand what I said as you will experience it yourself, and for the items, the first one was the pill, its called body & soul reconstruction pill like I said it can reconstruct and strenghtened your body and soul, the second item was my set of clothes when I was still a teenager, I wore them when I explored the world, and lastly the third item, it is my robe, I craft it on my own, I advised that you dont take that robe outside since it is my and your identity as 'the true heavenly demon' unless you are confident you can defend and live up to the title of 'the heavenly demon', you can wear it where and whenever you want, and lastly "Enjoy your life" hahahaha. Cheon Mok-Woon."
Tch, I thought he was about to say something cool.
I sigh. I burn the letter, take the pill box, open it, and eat the pill inside. Suddenly, my eyes widen, and I feel pain all over my body. My mind is about to explode too.
After what felt like a day had passed, I woke up to find myself lying beneath the throne.
I felt my body was full of energy, and my mind seemed more clear too. The most important part was that I felt like my cultivation base had increased by leaps and bounds.
I decided that this cave will be my hidden base. About the previous cave, I'll just destroy it as I don't want anyone to discover the secret that lies beneath this forest.
It took me a whole week to clean, decorate, and move the throne, and I decided to just bury the Imoogi. As an act of respect for my first opponent and my first kill, I buried her under the throne.
And it is time for me to go outside and start my journey. At first, I planned to get revenge on those young masters, but I couldn't act rashly as those MFs had their families behind their backs.
I prepare myself and punch the hole twice as I hear a waterfall. I punch harder and...
*Boom*
I am finally out. I noticed that the entrance of the cave was behind a waterfall. I quickly covered the whole entrance with rocks, and I jumped out from behind the waterfall and fell to the bottom.
I took off my clothes and dried them up. After that, I realized that the waterfall was connected to a lake. I continued down the path and arrived at the lake.
"Beatiful," I couldn't help but mutter.
Anyway, I was dying to look at my current appearances, so I did that by the lake.
"Damn, not bad at all," I muttered again.
Well-defined muscles and not bulky like those bodybuilders, 190 cm tall, long black hair, and red eyes? Wait... maybe because I cultivate demonic arts? perhaps.
Overall, I can be said to be a heaven-defying person.
*Cough* I mean handsomer than most of the men out there.
Anyway, it is time to start my journey...
/FLASHBACK END/
It has been 3 years since I started my journey around the world. I am now 20 years old, and I have learned a lot of things.
Surprisingly, the world background is familiar because it is very similar to those novels I read before I was reincarnated, such as Murim Alliance, Northern Ice Palace, Poison Pavilion, Merchant Groups, etc.
I stumbled upon a heavenly treasure too; it is the so-called 'Storage Ring'. It has an infinite amount of storage and is a soul-binding type of artifact, so you can't lose it whatever the circumstances are.
I learned a lot of different martial arts you can think of, making friends, allies, and enemies, but surprisingly, I never fell in love with the girls I came across with; of course, I did 'that' too, even with the so-called 'jade beauties' and 'childhood friends'.
Maybe that's the reason I make a lot of enemies; well, I don't really care.
'I think it is time to get my revenge on those MFs.' I thought to myself.
Another reason why I decided to come back to the demonic cult is that, currently, in 2 months, the demonic cult is having a battle royale between heirs to choose the young patriarch of the demonic cult.
Why do I know this information, you may ask? It is because I got 'connections,' and the last reason is to find the culprit behind my mother's death.
I am strong enough to stand on my own. First, let me explain the cultivation stage. To keep it simple, I'd just divide it into 1–10 stages, with each stage divided into 3 levels: early, middle, and peak.
I'm currently at the peak of stage 6.
The current leader of the murim alliance is at the peak of stage 7.
And lastly, the strongest person in the world, the current leader of the demonic cult, is my father. I don't feel like calling him a father because he abandoned me; he is at the middle level of stage 8.
And now I am on my way to the demonic cult by walking. I could take a carriage and arrive in a month, but no, because I want to exercise a bit before the battle begins, as I know everyone will gang up on me.
"Just wait for me." I said while grinning widely.