Chapter 4: The Demon (Vote for recommendations!)

Black Mountain.

Its entirety was pitch-black, with sparse forests and grotesque, rugged rocks assuming all manner of terrifying shapes.

In fact, this place was originally the Holy Land of Heisting County. The first Heisting Count was a pioneer knight from a certain Western kingdom who, after the fall of the Yan Han First Empire, advanced here to profit from the chaos, expanding territories and established an Earl Country.

Many of the Western kingdoms were natives of this world, with numerous small countries standing side by side. There was a time when they produced a behemoth that could stand against the Yan Han Empire, renowned for customs and ethnicities that were vastly different from those of Yan Han.

Su Daoshi was not very clear about this.

He didn't even know what the Western World beyond the territories looked like, something bizarre and varied, to be sure.

That's because between the East and the West, there wasn't just a vast distance, but also a fearsome barrier—the Black Fog!

The dreadful Black Fog seemed to be a unique product of this world and was said to be the aftermath of the fall of the First Yan Han Empire, enveloping the borders of the Second Yan Han Empire, hard to purify, slicing the borders of Yan Han into fragmented pieces.

Even occasionally, various dangerous and revolting monsters would emerge from within the Black Fog.

With more and more such monsters, every once in a while, a 'Demon Tide' would form!

The downfall of Heisting County was not only because it was far from the Western kingdoms and too close to the Second Yan Han Empire—that was just one reason.

Another reason was that it was too close to the Black Fog, constantly assaulted by waves of monsters, exhausting its cultivators and soldiers completely!

Zhong Shenxiu gazed at Black Mountain, reminiscing about certain pieces of information, and couldn't help but feel emotional.

"Woof!"

At his side, Quanrong Huang Xie stuck out his tongue, "There's no strange presence nearby; we can rest here... Just be careful not to get too close to that canyon crack over there. It's said to be the place where the earls of old would sacrifice to demons, and there's evil and horror lingering..."

As soon as this was mentioned, it was as if a valve in Zhong Shenxiu's mind had been opened.

Clutching his forehead, a layer of memories surfaced:

The double moons in the sky turned a crimson color, and before him lay a pitch-dark gorge.

The young man's arms trembled slightly, clinging to the edge of the cliff.

A rich darkness surged from the crevice that seemed to lead all the way to the underworld, and within it, something 'lurked,' restless and ready to stir.

'Heh heh... so this is your origin, is it?'

Zhong Shenxiu pressed his chest and murmured to himself.

The reason Heisting County was able to cling onto survival for such an extended period was that it relied on the worship of the demonic entities within Black Mountain!

It was said that the first Heisting Count, in order to gain power and immortality, signed a pact with some strange entity, and even his own form had undergone a transformation.

That strange entity... was known as a demon!

The 'demons' here were not the chaotic and foolish types from Zhong Shenxiu's memories but rather entities far more terrifying and evil!

Or rather, they could be considered as deities existing in a higher dimensional space!

'However, it actually makes sense... After all, in our Eastern hierarchy, don't ghosts that accumulate enough merit also have the chance for Divine Enthronement? Why should we discriminate against the vengeful spirits and demons of the West...' Zhong Shenxiu quietly ridiculed in his mind, 'It's just that they're slightly... a tiny bit more formidable...'

Up to this moment, he still had no idea what the entity within him truly was.

'This world sees a Double Moon Full Moon every fifteen days, and the Blood Moon appears unpredictably between three months to a year... Those are the moments it goes mad, and I might not be able to survive, and even on ordinary days... it gradually erodes this body, continuously wearing away my vitality...'

Zhong Shenxiu looked at his own palm, and it seemed to be an illusion, but the skin appeared a tad paler than the day before, as if losing warmth bit by bit, turning cold and stiff...

He knew, he was gradually dying...

What's more, that entity inside him was continuously affecting his spirit.

Becoming cold-blooded and cruel was merely the mildest symptom.

Even if I turn into some homicidal maniac next, Zhong Shenxiu wouldn't be too surprised... Yeah right!

"What kind of hellish start is this?"

Zhong Shenxiu kept complaining inwardly: "They're really forcing me, pushing me to show off!"

Compared to this crisis, being disliked and targeted by squad leader Tian Bufen seemed like child's play.

"It's time to show off my real skills."

Zhong Shenxiu sat silently and began to eat the dry rations he carried on him.

The rations provided by Black Mountain Castle were specialized 'brick rations', made from a variety of steamed crop powders under high pressure, claiming that one could knock out a mountain tiger with it, and that even the strongest teeth might break.

Even if you manage to boil them with hot water, the resulting paste has an unbearable gritty texture.

But Zhong Shenxiu didn't mind that; he was thinking about how to show off.

From experience in the last world, it wasn't easy to get Heavenly Show Points.

First, you must show off well, perform brilliantly, that's the premise.

Next, you must do it in front of an audience; the bigger, the better.

It seemed the more 'spectators' there were, the better the feedback.

Otherwise, why bother meddling in everything in his past life, always putting on a sanctimonious face?

Even then, a big, flashy show-off could end up garnering no Heavenly Show Points at all, but the good thing is that one could accumulate them over time.

Zhong Shenxiu thought about it and secretly scorned that silly spinning top system.

A series of data that only he could see appeared:

[Hundred Forge Martial Arts: Fifth Level]

[Music Art: Third Level]

[Chess Skill: Third Level]

[Calligraphy and Painting: Fourth Level]

[Primordial Qi Gong: Not Initiated]

[Profound Yin Soul Fragment: Not Initiated]

[Heavenly Show Points: 0 (0%)]

...

"Martial arts and various arts are the accumulation of my last world… but martial arts from the last world might not be so strong in this world… Unexpectedly, the created Primordial Qi Gong is still here, just need some Heavenly Show Points, and then I can step it up… This world even has cultivation; surely it can accommodate Innate Qi Refining…"

"What a pity, Heavenly Show Points are hard to come by, and upgrading some skills later on requires more than one Heavenly Show Point…"

"Based on experience, an outstanding act of showing off and face-slapping can probably get me one Heavenly Show Point, but it's very difficult. Most of the time, I can only get 20% to 70%…"

"This is just too sad. I'm finally ready to show off, lowering my face and all, and the rewards are so measly…"

Zhong Shenxiu had a face full of resentment, silently complaining to himself.

Huang Xie, who was sitting nearby, had already finished his dry rations and sidled over, saying, "Mr. Su, I will be done with my contract and leaving Black Mountain Castle soon... The squad leader seems to have it in for you, so take care…"

"Tian Bufen? Worry not..."

Zhong Shenxiu shook his head.

Patrolling Black Mountain was no easy task; one could easily encounter something sinister, his repeated assignments there were certainly targeted.

That's just how the world is, you never know when you'll come across malice.