The grotesque, alluring face was etched with magnificent and bizarre demonic markings. Yet, despite its symmetry, the eight-character eyebrows and eight-character eyes could not conceal its inherently sorrowful countenance.
Below its face, it was surrounded by countless tentacles covered in barbs and suction cups, resembling sesame seeds at the center of a bowl of mixed noodles.
It should not have been so conspicuous.
However, the aura it exuded caused the space of the eighth layer of the Demonic Abyss to continuously shatter and reform. This was accompanied by the terrifying phenomenon of black stars falling, giving the face an overwhelming presence that could not be ignored. Yet, it was too powerful to be directly observed.
The eighth layer of the Demonic Abyss was vast and boundless. Nearly half of its area was firmly controlled by the tentacles extending infinitely outwards from below the face. They burrowed deep into the ground, each suction cup inhaling and exhaling dense demonic energy, nurturing this demonic domain.
Upon the black earth above the tentacles, demonic creatures of varying ranks and sizes, all displaying ferocity, lived their lives. They either lay dormant or engaged in mutual combat. Although battles frequently erupted, a subtle balance existed.
But at this moment, with the eruption of the tentacles, this black earth completely boiled over. Countless demons were annihilated by the surging tentacles, and innumerable demonic beasts fled in terror. Ultimately, most were reduced to the most primal demonic energy with a scream.
As time flowed, after an unknown duration, the eruption of the tentacles finally subsided. The agitated tentacles retreated back into the earth, leaving behind a desolate landscape of ruins.
"Who am I?"
On the alluring face surrounded by tentacles, the ferocity receded, replaced by an expression of bewilderment.
Embedded in the face were a pair of eyes, like black holes with no whites, staring blankly at the blood moon in the sky, as if contemplating something.
After a long while, a flicker of realization flashed in its pitch-black eyes. It murmured to itself, "I remember now. My name is He Ku, one of the three great Demon Lords of the eighth layer of the Demonic Abyss..."
"But why is my name He Ku?" the alluring face once again became confused.
Just as it desperately tried to recall something, scenes suddenly flashed through its mind.
They were of two immortals, a male immortal clad in a dark celestial robe and a female immortal in a snow-white celestial skirt.
The faces of the male and female immortals were obscured by an inexplicable mist. They floated high beneath the blood-red sky, their backs reflecting magnificent celestial phenomena, utterly out of place in the demonic realm, yet like deities.
"Who are they?"
Demon Lord He Ku desperately tried to see the faces behind the mist of those two figures, but the more it looked, the more unfathomable they seemed. It felt as if its spirit was being drawn into a void, its will nearly extinguished.
As it felt fear and confusion, it suddenly heard the male immortal's voice reach its ears:
"This shouldn't be. Legend has it that the Samsara Creation Realm, which controls the reincarnation of true spirits, was seized by the strongest Demon Lord of the demonic realm, 'Bian Yu.' Now that Demon Lord Bian Yu has been vanquished, why can't we find it after searching every corner of the demonic realm?"
The female immortal's voice also carried a hint of confusion: "It is indeed a bit strange. Could it have been taken by an unknown entity?"
The male immortal shook his head: "That's impossible. Although the Heavenly Dao is incomplete now, the guidance it gives me should not be wrong."
"Ah, yes, yes, yes. Then husband, what do you suggest we do?"
"Allow me a moment to ponder... Got it!"
"Husband, speak quickly!"
The male immortal did not speak, his face hidden by the mist, yet he seemed to be smiling. He raised his right hand and pointed towards the blood moon hanging in the sky.
The female immortal gasped, "How is that possible? The blood moon of the demonic realm is the very foundation of demonic birth, and the embodiment of the demonic realm's will. It can be said that without the blood moon, there would be no demons. It gathers the destiny of billions of demons and is a target of close vigilance by the Heavenly Dao. How could it..."
The male immortal shook his head: "In ancient times, the Celestial Realm was able to suppress the Demonic Realm because the Celestial Realm had reincarnation. As long as a trace of true spirit remained, powerful beings could create new possibilities through continuous reincarnation. You say the will of the demonic realm could contaminate the Heavenly Dao, but it's because the Heavenly Dao has lost reincarnation?"
The male immortal nodded: "More or less. As I get closer to that realm, I can vaguely sense the great terror contained behind that unknown. Perhaps the opportunity to change everything is today."
The female immortal said, "But the blood moon can control the power of the entire demonic realm almost at will. Even without sentience... is it truly something we can offend?"
The male immortal laughed: "It's fine, the Heavenly Dao will act. My dear, just watch my performance!"
"Husband, we advance and retreat together. You can't leave me behind!"
"Very well. Many protagonists in novels are always defying the heavens. This blood moon, although not the Heavenly Dao of the Celestial Realm, is also the 'Heavenly Dao' of the Demonic Realm. Today, I shall try what it feels like to defy the heavens."
"Hehe, then let's defy the heavens together."
Demon Lord He Ku stared blankly as the two "immortals" in the memory footage transformed into two streams of light and charged towards the blood moon. Before long, a world-shattering, immense energy swept across the entire demonic realm.
The sky shattered, and the demonic realm's blood moon teetered. Countless demonic laws and celestial doctrines clashed, causing the demonic realm's land to crack and collapse, like the end of days, or like the creation of heaven and earth, reshaping the cosmic order.
Finally, when all the commotion ceased, the entire demonic realm was cast into the abyss of chaos and divided into nine layers...
Demon Lord He Ku let out a piercing scream, as if unable to bear the impact of this scene. Cracks like spiderwebs appeared on its magnificent face, and then... it shattered.
Starting from its face, its tentacles also rapidly turned from ink black to grayish white, showing signs of annihilation.
"No... I don't want to die..."
Demon Lord He Ku let out a silent roar. It didn't know what it had done wrong. Just for glimpsing the origin of the Demonic Abyss's formation, it had to die? This was too outrageous.
At the same time, it harbored fear and resentment towards the pair of immortal lovers whose faces were obscured by mist.
However, its continuously sinking will rendered all its roars futile. Just as it was about to be completely annihilated.
At that very moment, the scarlet blood moon in the sky emitted a gentle radiance, shining upon its vast and winding form.
Thus, its body, which was on the verge of extinction, stopped its annihilation and, as if time were reversing, rapidly returned to its peak state.
Sanity gradually returned, and its will grew stronger. Demon Lord He Ku was pleasantly surprised to find itself even stronger than in its prime.
"Blood Moon... the will of the demonic realm... the Blood Moon saved me!"
Demon Lord He Ku gazed at the blood moon in the sky, a trace of gratitude in its eyes, and hidden deep within... greed.
At this moment, it felt like the chosen one. Not only was it one step away from breaking through the shackles it had yearned for, but it could even vaguely control the power of the blood moon.
If it were to completely devour the entire blood moon... wouldn't it then become the co-lord of the demonic realm, capable of contending with the Heavenly Dao of the Celestial Realm?
Just as it was about to do something, the detestable voices of the male and female immortals suddenly echoed in its mind again:
"Husband, look quickly, it's so strange... Why has the entire demonic realm been shattered, and there's still a demon existing? It looks so pathetic! Like a wrinkled dog with tentacles."
The male immortal: "Something's not right! This is one of the demonic seeds left by the Blood Moon. It seems that completely eradicating the demonic race is not feasible."
The female immortal: "A遁去的一 (one that escaped)?"
"That's right. I didn't expect the Heavenly Dao's bad habit to remain unchanged. It's fine to leave a sliver of hope for everything, but to leave a sliver of hope even for the demonic realm. But thinking about it, it's normal. All things have yin and yang. Corresponding to the Celestial Realm's yang, isn't the demonic realm its yin? It's indeed not that simple to destroy it."
"Husband, what are you going to do?"
"Let's try to brainwash it. Our Xia Kingdom has nine years of compulsory education. This little demon, let's give it nine hundred years of compulsory education. It can't be killed, but it can be taught, right?"
"First, we need to give it a name to give it a sense of belonging. Looking at its sorrowful face, why not call it He Ku?"