"Stop… Please, stop this!"
A fragile cry pierced through the center of the battlefield, where murderous roars and shockwaves collided. It was Lucifella. She threw herself between the clashing transcendents, her body staggering under the weight of her own exhaustion.
Without her protective barrier, her form was a harrowing sight, ravaged by the miasma of the Demon Realm. Black veins writhed like parasitic vines across her pale arms, constricting her, yet she desperately reached out to block the clashing spirits of the two men.
"We didn't come here to fight! We only came to… find what was lost!"
An angel's tears, shed for a broken world she wished to reclaim and a fallen destiny she sought to redeem. Her mournful eyes, shimmering with a fluorescent light amidst the turbid air, met the gaze of the War God.
In that instant, Guan Yu's pupils trembled. His heart, hardened by centuries of slaughter, suffered a crack from that single phrase.
'What was lost...'
Over her desperate gaze, the faces of his brothers—with whom he had sworn an oath in the Peach Garden before being tainted by this demonic land—overlapped like a haunting vision.
Liu Bei and Zhang Fei. He knew not if they were dead or alive.
Deep within his chest, where he had remained the lone 'War God' and the blade of Wei, a long-dormant solitude resonated with Lucifella's sorrow. It was not mere pity; it was a visceral vibration shared between those who endure the same void.
Rumble!
The Green Dragon Crescent Blade, surging toward Wukong's neck, came to a sudden halt in mid-air. Guan Yu had suppressed the strike by his own will.
As he forcibly checked the immense momentum of the massive blade, the reaction force crushed the earth beneath him, gouging a massive crater. The surrounding undead soldiers were pulverized into dust by the mere shockwave. The vacuum that had gripped the battlefield dissipated, replaced by a chilling silence.
"…In your eyes, I see not bloodlust, but sorrow," Guan Yu muttered low, plunging the Crescent Blade into the ground. The crimson aura that had been blaring subsided, and the demonic energy enveloping him cooled into a still mist.
Turning his back, he continued in a voice so low it was almost a whisper to the wind.
"My Lord is gathering the fragments of the Scripture. He intends to fuse them to open the 'Heart of Chaos,' the source of the Demon Realm. If you head toward Xuchang, beware of his ambition."
This was not a judgment made as a general of Wei, but a warning delivered by Guan Yu, the War God.
Wukong, who hadn't even blinked with the razor-sharp edge of the blade inches from his nose, let out a deflated sigh and casually swung his Golden Staff over his shoulder.
"Well, that's a buzzkill. Hey, Beardy, it looks like you and that Cao Cao guy don't really mix well either, do you?"
Wukong sneered with a chuckle, but Guan Yu met the sarcasm with a heavy, stoic silence. Beside them, Lucifella, still gasping for breath, grabbed Wukong's arm with a trembling hand.
"Wukong, did you hear what Lord Guan Yu said? If Cao Cao opens the 'Heart of Chaos'… it's not just about ruling the Demon Realm. The very order of this world could completely collapse."
Wukong shrugged, tucking the staff back behind his ear.
"I couldn't care less about 'order,' but if that 'Heart' thing opens, maybe a hole back to my home will open with it. Besides, if he's preparing something that big, it'd be rude not to drop by and see it."
Though Wukong yawned nonchalantly, his Fiery Golden Eyes already harbored a cold glint, as if piercing through the distance to the very center of Xuchang.
Toward the heart of Wei, where Cao Cao's ambitions swirled, the Great Sage and the Fallen Angel began to move once more.
* * *
The Forest of the Dead was no longer the sanctuary Guan Yu remembered. The trees were charred black as if frozen in a perpetual scream, and the air reeked of foul decay.
Guan Yu stood at the entrance, unable to move for a long time. What soaked the tips of his boots was not dew, but the thick blood and filth of the fallen.
"...Ah."
The refuge of the lower-class demon refugees, whom he had risked his life to protect. The humble shacks he had built with his own hands were brutally trampled. From the ruins came the eerie cries of distorted beasts. Guan Yu instinctively gripped the Green Dragon Crescent Blade. Those he had loved were no longer the sentient beings he knew.
Driven by unbearable hunger, the refugees had consumed the 'Flesh of the Demon Buddha'—fragments of the Scripture buried in the soil. They had lost their souls, becoming 'Demon Beasts' driven only by appetite, tearing into one another's flesh. As they drooled at the sight of Guan Yu, not a single spark of the gratitude or respect they once held for him remained in their eyes.
This was no accident. Cao Cao's promise to care for the refugees had been a lie; they were merely biological experiments to observe the rejection symptoms of the Scripture. While Guan Yu was pushed to the front lines as the Shield of Wei, Cao Cao had treated his most precious people like lab rats.
The faith Guan Yu had built over the years crumbled in a single heartbeat.
"Cao Cao…! Do you not fear Heaven's wrath? I swear upon this blade, I will carve out your heart!"
His rage erupted in a crimson storm, uprooting the surrounding trees. He cut through the Wei sentries blocking his path without even looking at them. With every swing, their armor and flesh were torn like paper, staining the earth a deep red. Guan Yu's steps marched relentlessly toward the heart of the capital, the Palace of Xuchang.
*
The massive walls of Xuchang were shrouded in black demonic energy and necromantic barriers that sounded like the wailing of vengeful spirits. A phalanx of heavily armored undead knights stood before the gates, but Guan Yu advanced, pulverizing them with his overwhelming might.
Suddenly, a heavy shockwave erupted before the gate along with a familiar golden radiance.
Clang!
The Golden Staff and the Crescent Blade collided in mid-air, shaking the very atmosphere of Xuchang. It was Sun Wukong.
"Hey, Beardy. Don't throw a tantrum here. The inside is a much nastier soul-trap than you think. You go in there, you're never coming out."
"Move, Great Sage! I must take the head of that deceiver Cao Cao to avenge this grudge! If you block my path, I will cut you down as well!"
Guan Yu's voice was like the roar of a beast that had lost its reason. At that moment, Lucifella staggered out from behind Wukong's back. As a 'Compass of the Scripture,' she perceived a faint resonance at the tip of Guan Yu's blade. She reached out with a trembling hand to touch the cold spine of the weapon.
"Put down this blade… just for a moment. Beneath your rage, I can feel a desperate, cooling vibration that strikes my heart."
"What are you talking about, Angel?"
"The energy within this blade… it perfectly matches the Scripture resonance of the man named 'Liu Bei' whom I met at the edge of the Demon Realm. Isn't finding him more urgent than revenge? This blade proves his existence."
Guan Yu's entire body turned to stone. The blood drained from his bloodshot eyes, replaced by a look of sheer, disbelieving shock.
"My Lord… Is my brother truly alive? In this demonic land?"
"Yes. Going to Cao Cao to die is exactly the scenario he wants. Returning to your brother to fulfill your great cause is the only way to end this tragedy and save your people."
Lucifella's voice poured over Guan Yu's burning mind like ice water. He slowly lowered his blade and bowed his head. If he was alive—if his brother was alive—now was not the time for a hollow death. However, Xuchang was already under martial law; the gates were sealed, and tens of thousands of undead archers aimed poisoned arrows from the walls.
"There's one way. In the courtyard of Lu Bu's villa, there's a legendary horse with a hell of a temper."
Wukong pointed toward a massive demonic stable swirling with red mist. There stood the Red Hare—a horse that allowed no one but Lu Bu to approach and was rumored to devour the souls of those who tried to mount it.
*
Guan Yu moved stealthily through the thick veil of demonic energy surrounding Lu Bu's villa. Taking advantage of the chaotic laughter and clinking of wine cups from the banquet hall, he leaped over the outer wall like a shadow. The soldiers of Wei, intimidated by Lu Bu's presence, didn't dare linger near the stable, making the security surprisingly thin.
Guan Yu held the hilt of his blade short and stepped boldly into the predator's mist exhaled by the Red Hare. As he broke the heavy bolt of the stable door, two blood-red eyes flashed in the darkness.
Sensing an intruder, the Red Hare reared up and let out a piercing shriek that shook the entire palace. It was not a warning; it was a beast's declaration of war to tear the throat of any who were not its master.
The Red Hare's eyes mirrored the endless destructive desire of Lu Bu, a thirst fueled by his mad spirit, and a wildness born from the fatigue of being driven by such overwhelming power. Though it boasted the perfect synergy with Lu Bu, its soul had never known a moment of peace.
Guan Yu did not flinch. Instead, he radiated an aura as calm and heavy as the eye of a storm, slowly reaching out his hand toward the reins.
"Come with me. Do you not also wish to escape this hellish bondage and run across the vast plains? Your sorrow is the same as mine."
Guan Yu's sincere spirit gently brushed against the horse's neck. The legendary steed ceased its ragged breathing, sensing a noble and warm righteousness—a stark contrast to Lu Bu, who had only subjugated and whipped it. As if meeting the master it had awaited for centuries, the Red Hare quietly lowered its head and offered its back to Guan Yu.
As Guan Yu mounted and prepared to charge toward the walls, Sun Wukong leaned his staff on his shoulder and muttered low.
"Hey, Beardy. That compass girl's life is hanging by a thread right now, so I can't go all out here. Let's finish our business properly outside the barrier later. Taking those guys' heads is my job, so don't you dare die."
Guan Yu understood the intention behind Wukong's crooked words. Looking down from the horse, he gave a slow, solemn nod. The veins on the back of his hand bulged as he gripped the Red Hare's mane.
"...I shall not forget this debt, Great Sage. If my life were to fall so easily, I would never have made the Oath of the Peach Garden."
Guan Yu's beard fluttered in the wind, and a sharp glint returned to his eyes.
"When we meet again outside Xuchang, I look forward to seeing if that staff of yours can handle my blade. Stay alive until then."
It was a warrior's farewell and a promise for the battlefields to come. As Wukong smirked and turned away, Guan Yu kicked the Red Hare's sides hard.
Flash!
The moment Guan Yu pulled the reins, red lightning exploded from the horse's mane, tearing through Xuchang's darkness. The Red Hare leaped from the wall, soaring dozens of meters into the air.
"Let's go, my great steed! To our true battlefield!"
The Red Hare galloped through the air, cutting through the wind. Guan Yu analyzed the terrain with cold precision. If he headed straight west toward Liu Bei, he wouldn't be able to shake off Cao Cao's elite pursuers. He yanked the reins, turning the Red Hare southeast, toward the border of Wu.
'Make a sound in the east, strike in the west. I must draw Cao Cao's gaze toward Wu to buy time to reach my brother. Cao Cao, your arrogance shall blind you.'
The red lightning carrying the War God galloped toward the horizon. Looking back at the flashy but hideous lights of Xuchang, Guan Yu made a vow. He would shatter this deceptive peace and return with his brothers to tear down those very walls.
The sound of the Red Hare's hooves echoed across the desolate plains of the Demon Realm, signaling the start of a new destiny.