The night was cold, the kind of cold that sank deep into your bones, the kind of cold that foretold of death and decay. The moon hung low in the sky, a pale, sickly orb that cast long, twisted shadows over the land. In the distance, the howling winds carried the faint scent of rot, a smell that seemed to come from the very earth itself.
In the heart of a forsaken forest, where even the bravest of beasts feared to tread, a lone figure knelt by a shallow grave. His hands, stained with soil and blood, trembled slightly as he dug deeper into the earth, uncovering the remnants of a life long forgotten.
His name was Lian Zhi, a man of twenty-five years, though his appearance spoke of far older years. His skin was pale, almost translucent, like that of a corpse, and his eyes, once filled with youthful vigor, now held the weight of countless souls—souls he had consumed in his relentless pursuit of power.
The air around him crackled with an unnatural energy as the final stone was removed, revealing a blackened, decayed body wrapped in tattered cloth. It was the body of an elder, once a master of forbidden arts, now reduced to nothing more than dust and bone.
Lian Zhi's lips curled into a cruel smile as he reached for the body, his fingers trembling with anticipation. This was the moment he had been waiting for. For years, he had searched for the remains of this ancient figure, the one who had once defied the very laws of nature and ascended to the pinnacle of power. And now, at long last, he had found it.
With a single motion, he tore the cloth from the body, revealing a small, obsidian-black crystal embedded within the chest of the corpse. The crystal pulsed with a faint, otherworldly glow, as though it were alive.
"Finally," Lian Zhi whispered, his voice barely a breath. "The key to true immortality."
The crystal had been the object of his obsession for years, the very reason he had forsaken his humanity and embarked on this dark path. It was said to contain the essence of the primordial forces of the universe, a force so powerful that it could grant eternal life to those who wielded it.
But such power came at a cost. The stories spoke of madness, of corruption, of a soul devoured by the very energy it sought to control. And yet, Lian Zhi had no fear. Fear was for the weak, and he was no longer weak.
He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, drawing in the foul air of the forest as if it were a sweet perfume. His mind began to race, the hunger for power gnawing at him from within. Slowly, he reached out, his fingers brushing against the crystal's surface.
The instant his skin made contact with the stone, a jolt of raw energy coursed through his body, tearing through him like wildfire. His vision blurred, and for a moment, he thought he might die, the power too great, too wild to contain. But then, it settled, and his body felt… different. Stronger. More alive than ever before.
The crystal pulsed again, and the world around him began to shift. The trees warped, their trunks bending and twisting like writhing serpents. The ground beneath him cracked open, revealing an endless abyss that seemed to stretch into eternity.
And then, he heard it. A voice, ancient and full of malice, speaking directly into his mind.
"You dare disturb the slumber of the forsaken?" the voice hissed, its tone cold and oppressive. "You are nothing but a defiler, a mortal who seeks to meddle with forces beyond his comprehension. You will pay the price for your arrogance."
Lian Zhi's smile only grew wider. "I have no fear of you, ancient one. I will embrace this power. I will surpass all who came before me."
The voice chuckled, a sound like the grinding of bones. "Then prepare yourself, defiler. You have awakened the curse that lies within the crystal. Your path is now sealed."
The ground trembled beneath him as the abyss below began to pull at his very soul. But Lian Zhi stood firm, his resolve unshaken. This was the beginning. His ascension was inevitable.
The earth split open fully now, and from the dark depths, monstrous tendrils of shadow shot upward, coiling around him like serpents. They hissed and writhed as they closed in, but Lian Zhi did not move. He did not flinch. He was no longer the man he once was.
The shadows reached his body and began to envelop him, their cold tendrils seeping into his flesh. Pain, unimaginable pain, coursed through him as his very being was torn apart. But he welcomed it. This was the price he had to pay, and he would endure it.
For in the depths of that pain, in the darkness that threatened to swallow him whole, he felt it. The power. The raw, unyielding power that surged through him, filling every fiber of his being.
He opened his eyes, and the world around him shifted again. No longer was he in the forest, no longer was he surrounded by the whispers of ancient gods. He stood in a vast, desolate landscape, a place where no light reached, where nothing existed except for the echoes of forgotten souls.
A towering figure appeared before him, its form shadowed and indistinct. It was the source of the voice, the one who had warned him. But now, it was too late. Lian Zhi had already become more than human.
"I am not afraid," he said, his voice echoing across the barren landscape. "I will rule over this abyss. I will take control of the power you have guarded for so long. And when I do, there will be no force in this world that can stand against me."
The figure's form began to solidify, revealing a face that was both familiar and alien, a face that seemed to be a reflection of his own, but twisted and distorted by the years of darkness that had consumed it.
"You have made your choice," the figure said, its voice both mournful and filled with hatred. "But know this: there is no escape from the path you have chosen. You are now bound to the curse of immortality, a prisoner of your own making."
Lian Zhi's heart thudded in his chest, but his resolve never wavered. "I do not seek escape. I seek power. I seek to become a god."
The figure's expression twisted into a grotesque mockery of a smile. "Very well. But know this, defiler: the price for power is never what you expect. You may have gained immortality, but you have also become a servant to the forces that govern it. You are now bound to the Abyss, and there is no turning back."
Lian Zhi laughed, a sound that echoed across the darkened world. "I do not fear the Abyss. I will master it."
And with that, he stepped forward, his body moving with an unnatural fluidity, as though the very laws of nature no longer applied to him. The figure before him melted into the darkness, and Lian Zhi was alone once more.
But he was no longer the man who had entered this world. He was something else now. Something more.
The Abyss was his to command.
And from this moment onward, all who dared to challenge him would feel the weight of his curse.