Chapter 3: Assassination and Reversion
After my transfer to the world of Niveish, Mi Min explained to me the reason for my selection and about magic. And then… one hundred thousand years passed. A lot happened in that incredibly long time. Currently, I—Sayru—have become the Sacred Demon Emperor, and it has been 10,000 years since I stepped into the realm of the Sacred Emperor, ruling over ten different dimensions.
As for why a human rules over demons? The answer lies in a tragic incident in the past. Out of the despair caused by those twisted emotions, the fourth technique of the Art of Ten Moons manifested. It caused my mana to go berserk and replaced my pure mana with a dark, demonic mana I named Black Mana.
Thus, I am now a demon in a human body—or perhaps I was, for that technique sealed all of my emotions.
...
"My body's gone stiff from that damned throne... haaah."
Sayru sighed as he suddenly appeared in his chamber.
His appearance had changed drastically since the first time he arrived in Niveish.
Sayru's hair had turned white, and his eyes gleamed golden. His body had grown stronger, though his face still retained its youthful look.
"After all those cursed years of research, I still haven't found the true reason behind the War of the Gods... How I miss the time when Mi Min was with me."
Sayru said as he sifted through jade-green scrolls resting on his bed—clearly crafted from pure jade.
*Knock knock knock.
A knock echoed ominously through the massive door of Sayru's chamber.
"Come in, my disciple." Sayru already knew who stood outside.
Since becoming what he is now, Sayru never trusted anyone—despite his origins. But there was one person close to him—his disciple.
He could recognize her aura from thousands of miles away.
"Your Majesty... I mean, Master... I hope I haven't disturbed you." Said his disciple with a soft voice, sounding like a different person from the one in the grand hall.
"Oh... it's fine. What do you want, Kana?"
Sayru replied calmly, though his tone carried strength. Apparently, his disciple's name was Li Kana.
"Master! You were searching for the Fate Stone, right? Look what I found!"
Kana held out something in her hand. It was a dagger—but not just any dagger. It was an ancient blade made entirely of stone.
"Master... save me!!"
Kana threw herself onto Sayru, tears on her face, sadness pouring out.
"Y-you dare stab me!!"
Shock. Kana—the only person Sayru ever trusted—had stabbed him. With that stone dagger.
"Master... I didn't want to. But... someone is controlling my soul. I'm sorry, Master... I deserve death!"
Kana cried endlessly. Soul Domination was no ordinary technique; it allowed someone to control the soul of a weaker target.
"Who could be... cough cough... powerful enough to control you?!" Sayru coughed blood as he spoke.
A being strong enough to destroy a world... brought to this state by a stone dagger? Just what was this dagger?
"It was the Hall of Heavenly Origin!"
"Them! Again!! How long will they torment me?! Damn them!! Cough cough!"
The moment Sayru heard the name, his aura flared explosively before settling again. But he couldn't release his rage. All he could do was resist the dagger with every ounce of strength he had left. The Emotion Seal played a part too.
"Master, I'll pay for what I've done! Please forgive me!"
Kana pulled the dagger from Sayru's chest and stabbed herself. Sayru lacked the strength to stop her. All he could do… was watch.
"This dagger is...!!"
Sayru's eyes widened as he saw the true nature of the dagger that pierced the aura of a Sacred Emperor as if it were nothing.
But his consciousness faded.
For the second time, Sayru faced that sensation— The void. The darkness.
...
"Ugh... I can't move my body! And this smell... blood. But so much—no single wound could've caused this much."
Sayru awoke… in another place. Rain poured heavily. Blood and corpses lay scattered everywhere.
It was a battlefield in the middle of a forest.
"Hmmm... I remember something like this happened before... Um... Oh! Right. I was a 5-Star Mage—a 'Royal Mage'—on the day I fought for a treasure atop this mountain."
At that time, Sayru had been over 133 years old. Due to his lacking talent, he had only reached 5 stars through sheer effort.
Sayru's body was that of a youth that grew and evolved, but never aged. So now too, his appearance was youthful, though his hair had grown longer. Its color was back to purple—not white. His eyes, however, remained golden.
"What's going on? I was just stabbed in my palace, and now I'm covered in wounds, surrounded by corpses… and my appearance is like it was in the past? Hmm… this tattoo… where did it come from?"
As Sayru stood and examined himself, he noticed a strange tattoo on his body.
"A red lotus… a blue serpent… what is this odd mark?"
He touched it— and suddenly, a strange consciousness flooded his mind. Sayru was shocked at first… then calm.
It was the consciousness of the Fate Stone—the dagger from before. It had now become a tattoo.
The Fate Stone was the most mysterious artifact in existence. When Sayru had sought the truth of the world and the War of the Gods, all answers had pointed—indirectly—to the Fate Stone.
Through the Fate Stone's consciousness, Sayru learned: Because the dagger had absorbed his blood, the two became bound. Thus, the stone activated… and reversed time nearly 100,000 years. That's one of its bizarre powers—but not the only one. Sayru still doesn't know its full potential.
"I see… Hah… hahahaha! Who would've thought I'd get a chance like this? I'll fix my mistakes. I'll have my revenge on you, Hall of Heavenly Origin! Hahahaha!"
Sayru laughed—maniacally, then joyfully. Then suddenly stopped. The Emotion Seal had returned. It acted on the soul. And while time was reversed, Sayru's soul remained unchanged.
"You lunatic… ugh, my head hurts. Why are you laughing like that?"
A familiar voice. Soft. Childlike. A voice Sayru hadn't heard in so long.
"M… Mi Min, you're alive… You have no idea how much I missed you." He said sadly. But his face didn't show it—because of the seal.
"What's happening… I thought I vanished protecting you during your breakthrough to Sacred Emperor… Why am I still alive?"
Mi Min cried, confused, overwhelmed.
"It's because…"
Sayru told her everything. From becoming a Sacred Emperor… to the reversal of time. And about the Fate Stone, which had made it all possible.
"I always knew you were lucky… but this level of luck is absurd. I'm happy we're together again, Sayru."
She smiled, and Sayru smiled too—though a bit awkwardly.
"Ahem… Forget that. If I want to become stronger faster, I need to fix my weak talent. I'll use the Art of Ten Worlds as my first step."
"What's that? Another technique?" Mi Min asked curiously.
"It's a magical art I developed from the original Art of Ten Moons."
The Art of Ten Moons was a magical martial system of four core techniques. But the Art of Ten Worlds was Sayru's evolved version, developed from centuries of experience.
It held many magical combat techniques.
This time, Sayru would use the Heart Creation Technique—to destroy his flawed spiritual core and replace it with a high-quality one.
But the process was dangerous. He could die instantly. Or become crippled—unable to absorb mana ever again.
"And where will you get this high-grade core? You realize replacing your core means losing all your cultivation years."
Mi Min warned him.
"Of course I know… It took me over a hundred years just to reach 5 stars. That wasn't talent—it was pure effort. But I have no choice. As for the core… you remember what lies atop this mountain."
He pointed.
"Oh… the cave where we found a spiritual treasure."
"Yes. Along with that treasure, there's a spiritual core guarded by a level 4 beast—the Shadow Wolf."
Sayru smirked.
"Well then, what are you waiting for? Heal your internal wounds—I'll scout ahead."
Mi Min vanished into the distance while Sayru sat down, meditating to heal.
"There are no enemies within a 50-mile radius… Let's go."
Mi Min gave her report.
"Alright… let's begin!"