"Su Yan has disappeared. This Shadow Emperor is no ordinary opponent," the Sect Leader said grimly.
"We will dispatch another team. Tian Hao, you will join this mission as well. You are the future of this sect. If anyone can handle this task properly, it is you."
"Yes, Sect Leader," Tian Hao replied respectfully.
Soon after, the Heavenly Azure Sect mobilized their forces once more.
This time, they did not send ordinary disciples.
The group dispatched was far stronger than before—elite cultivators, each carrying killing intent and confidence.
Yet none of them knew that they were already stepping into the Shadow Emperor's domain…
and that this mission would mark the beginning of another catastrophe.
The battlefield was already drenched in demonic aura.
Black flames twisted through the air as demon soldiers clashed with righteous cultivators. Sword qi split the sky, formations shattered one after another, and screams echoed between collapsing mountains.
At the center of it all stood Mo Zhu, the Demon Lord—calm, cold, and absolute.
Beside him, cloaked in shadow and wearing a black mask, stood the man the righteous path had begun to fear.
Shadow Emperor.
Li Feng's blade moved like a living shadow, harvesting lives without hesitation. Every fallen cultivator fed his strength, his aura growing denser, darker, more terrifying with each breath.
Across the battlefield, Tian Hao stood among several Heavenly Sect elders, his eyes burning with ambition and hatred.
"So this is the Shadow Emperor…" Tian Hao muttered.
"A demon lord hiding behind a mask."
The elders raised their hands in unison.
"Heavenly Suppression Formation!"
Golden light erupted from the ground, sealing space itself. Demon soldiers were forced back, their movements slowed, their blood boiling.
Mo Zhu stepped forward.
One strike.
The formation cracked.
Another strike.
It shattered completely.
The elders coughed blood, shock filling their faces.
But then—
Li Feng's pupils shrank.
Behind Mo Zhu, space distorted.
A Heavenly Sect elder, one who had concealed his presence perfectly, appeared out of thin air. His palm glowed with condensed heavenly law—an attack meant not to wound, but to erase existence.
Mo Zhu hadn't noticed.
Or perhaps… he hadn't cared.
That was when Li Feng moved.
"NO!"
There was no time to think.
No time to calculate.
Li Feng threw himself forward.
The heavenly strike pierced straight through his body.
Blood exploded into the air.
The sound was dull. Final.
Mo Zhu froze.
The elder's eyes widened in disbelief.
Li Feng's body crashed to the ground, his mask shattering as blood flowed endlessly from his chest.
The battlefield went silent.
"Li… Feng…?"
Mo Zhu turned slowly.
For the first time since becoming Demon Lord—
His heart shook.
"WHY?!" Mo Zhu roared, his voice tearing through the heavens.
"WHY WOULD YOU DO THIS?!"
Li Feng smiled faintly, blood staining his lips.
"…Because… if you die…"
"…I have no reason to live."
The elder didn't even get time to scream.
Mo Zhu's hand closed.
Space collapsed.
The elder vanished—body, soul, karma—erased completely.
The righteous forces panicked.
"RETREAT!"
"Tian Hao, fall back!"
But Tian Hao stood frozen, staring at Li Feng's blood-soaked body.
So this… is the Shadow Emperor…
The demon army was forced to retreat.
Not because they were defeated—
But because Mo Zhu refused to let Li Feng die on that battlefield.
Mo Zhu lifted Li Feng into his arms.
"Hold on."
"I forbid you from dying."
Demon World – Ancient Palace
Blood soaked the obsidian floor.
Demon physicians knelt in terror.
"My Lord… his injuries are too severe…"
"His dantian is collapsing… even demonic energy cannot stabilize him…"
Mo Zhu stood silently.
Then he spoke.
"Leave."
Everyone froze.
"My Lord…?"
"LEAVE."
The hall emptied instantly.
Mo Zhu walked toward an ancient altar, his steps heavy.
There, sealed in countless formations, rested a single object.
A blackened bone.
The bone of the Late Demon Emperor.
The final treasure.
The final trump card.
A relic meant to be used only if the Demon World itself faced extinction.
Mo Zhu placed his hand on the seal.
Behind him, several demon kings fell to their knees.
"My Lord, NO!"
"That bone is your last safeguard!"
"Without it—"
Mo Zhu didn't turn.
"If I cannot protect my brother…"
"Then what use is ruling this world?"
The seal shattered.
The bone dissolved into pure demonic essence and entered Li Feng's body.
The entire Demon World trembled.
Li Feng's wounds closed instantly.
His aura exploded
Darkness swallowed the sky.
When his eyes opened—
They burned with sovereign authority.
Power.
Equal to Mo Zhu.
Li Feng slowly rose.
"…Brother?"
Mo Zhu smiled.
A real smile.
"Don't call me Demon Lord anymore."
"From today onward—"
"You are my brother."
Li Feng clenched his fists.
"…Brother."
That day, the Demon World gained not one ruler—
But two.
From that moment on, they ruled together.
Not as lord and subordinate.
But as brothers.
Aftermath
Li Feng trained relentlessly.
Treasures were devoured.
Ancient pills absorbed.
Forbidden techniques mastered.
His power surpassed limits.
Surpassed Mo Zhu.
The demon clan bowed willingly.
"Second Leader!"
"Shadow Emperor!"
Among humans, rumors spread like wildfire.
A masked demon lord.
A shadow that devoured cultivators.
A king who spared no enemy.
And in Li Feng's heart—
Revenge burned brighter than ever.
Mei Lan.
Tian Hao.
Heavenly Sect.
I'm coming.