Volume One: The Nature of the Devil Never Changes
Arc: The Great Guerrilla War
One of the laboratory doors opened, and the girl suddenly appeared. She ran toward him, shouting:
"You! How are you still not dead?!"
He looked at her coldly and said:
"Call me… Master."
She furrowed her brows and hugged herself stubbornly.
"I won't call you that."
Silence.
He did not repeat himself.
He only—
looked at the guards, who were still digging into the wall, and said:
"Take her."
She froze.
One step back.
"No—wait!"
She clenched her teeth hard and let out a tense breath.
"Hah… is there another way?"
Scarlet King glanced at the guards again, but the little girl interrupted before he could speak.
"…Fine, stop, stop—I'll call you Master!"
A moment of silence passed.
Then she whispered in embarrassment, her face turning red… even to the tips of her ears:
"…Master."
"…Is that enough for you?"
Scarlet King smiled…
But his eyes—
did not.
He knelt beside her.
He patted her head.
But—
there was no warmth in the touch. Only… coldness.
"Of course."
"That… is enough."
He thought with a sinister chuckle:
(Especially… when your talent is worth investing in.)
The System Engineer moved closer to the Yin and Yang Guards and asked them in a low voice:
"Is Master really happy?"
Yang Guard answered:
"…Look at his eyes."
"That is not satisfaction… or happiness. It is the gaze of a devil."
The System Engineer looked into Scarlet King's eyes, and the sight made his mechanical body shudder. They were white eyes without end… and that white void was looking back at him.
The System Engineer spoke again:
"…Then what is it?"
Yin Guard replied:
"He isn't happy… he simply found something he wants."
Scarlet King spoke again as he rose from the ground:
"What is your name?"
The girl answered, clenching her hands together:
"My name is Cai Yun."
Silence.
The name repeated in his mind—
Cai Yun.
Then—
he thought:
(A fitting name… for her fate.)
Scarlet King moved and grabbed Cai Yun, making the little girl cry out:
"What are you doing—?!"
She never finished.
He lifted her onto his shoulder.
"I'm going out now to meet Liu Zai Hang."
The System Engineer asked curiously:
"Sir, how did you fail to notice Wei Xia Mo tracking you until he entered the laboratory?"
Scarlet King let out a devilish laugh as he turned and walked away.
"Sometimes… you need to look like a fool."
"So you can drag the smartest one… into the trap. In the end, no one escapes my perception. And now, no one will defend Long Wei."
He moved, opened the shelter gate, and stepped out.
Cai Yun spoke innocently:
"Where are we going, M… Master?"
Scarlet King replied as the jetpack emerged from his back and prepared to launch into the evening sky:
"We're going to assess your talent and your roots."
[After a short flight through the sky—after some time]
Scarlet King landed in front of Liu Zai Hang's palace, but the girl shouted excitedly:
"Ooooh! This house is so huge!!"
Scarlet King lightly tapped her on the head, then entered Liu Zai Hang's palace. Inside, he found Ikalath already treated, lying unconscious on the couch. Liu Zai Hang appeared from behind Scarlet King, startling the girl so badly that she jumped into Scarlet King's arms. Scarlet King looked at Liu Zai Hang coldly and asked:
"So… did you heal Ikalath?"
Liu Zai Hang winked as he replied:
"Yes. And now, let's go assess the girl's talent and roots."
Scarlet King shrugged.
"It doesn't matter."
Liu Zai Hang said as he moved toward one of the rooms:
"Follow me."
Scarlet King moved behind Liu Zai Hang. They climbed stairs, descended others, passed from room to room, and at that moment Scarlet King thought:
(Hah… far too small. When I was the leader of the righteous path, the size of my bedroom alone was greater than this entire multi-dimensional space. And also… this place is needlessly complicated.)
At last, after half an hour of continuous walking, Scarlet King and Liu Zai Hang descended one final staircase, where there was a room with a sealed door. Before opening it, Liu Zai Hang turned and looked at Scarlet King with a smile.
"I have a tool for measuring talent and roots, and I know you want to use a special device, not the one the sect owns, because the sect monitors that one. If an upper-grade talent appears, they'll take the girl from you. So I have my own."
They entered the room. The device was shaped like a black platform, with green circles and red-white markings and inscriptions across it.
Scarlet King lowered the girl from his shoulder, and Liu Zai Hang said:
"Sit on the platform in a meditative posture, girl. Clear your mind and close your eyes."
The girl did as Liu Zai Hang instructed.
A few minutes later—
Light emerged…
It was not normal.
White—and black.
They did not mix.
And they did not separate.
Silence.
Liu Zai Hang said nothing.
He only… stared.
Then—
his eyes narrowed.
"…Impossible."
He shouted in shock:
"By the heavens… it's a white-black talent, with existential roots of the eleventh elevation—it's an era-defining talent!"