Prologue

Kill, kill, kill!

William Reynolds was filled with a towering rage. The longsword in his hand danced like a mad demon as he charged into the demon army, the sword light carrying a terrifying murderous aura, unleashing a tidal wave of attacks upon the demon horde.

With every sweeping arc of his majestic sword energy, three to five demon beasts would fall.

Hatred—hatred so deep that even the waters of three rivers and five seas could not wash it away!

Mother, brother—the dearest people in this world—were still alive just yesterday at dusk.

But overnight, the demon race launched a massive invasion, and a cataclysm erupted.

Now, his mother had already been torn apart by the demon army, ripped to shreds by those fiends.

His brother, bitten by the demons and beginning to mutate, chose to end his own life with a blade rather than endanger his loved ones.

The sudden disaster caused William Reynolds to lose the only two people closest to him in a single night! And all of this happened right before his eyes, yet he was powerless to stop it!

Cloudveil City, too, suffered a catastrophic calamity overnight. The age-old enmity between human cultivators and demon cultivators erupted into a tragedy beyond description in a single night.

The demon army surged more fiercely than a tidal wave, sweeping over Cloudveil City like a mountain collapsing or a tsunami. The city's defenses were torn apart as if they were made of paper.

Except for a few powerful nobles who managed to escape, nearly the entire city was wiped out!

The human cultivators did not fail to resist. But with so few human cultivators in Cloudveil City, facing millions of demon soldiers, they were like candles in the wind, snuffed out one by one...

William Reynolds could clearly feel that the true energy remaining in his body was running low. Looking around, all he could see was a dark, surging tide of demon cultivators. Every time he broke through a small gap, countless more would immediately fill it.

Everywhere he could see was filled with demons. There was not even a single opening, let alone a way out. The heavy encirclement had sealed off all escape routes—no matter how great his powers, it was useless.

Escape was impossible.

William Reynolds no longer harbored such extravagant hopes!

When the most capable nobles of Cloudveil City were the first to abandon the city and flee, allowing the demon army to surround the city in an instant, their fate was already sealed!

Moreover, when a person's faith and everything he wants to protect are utterly destroyed, how can he go on living?

But to die here and now—William Reynolds was not willing!

Especially when he saw, just thirty feet away, the demon leader laughing triumphantly, gnawing on a severed limb—William Reynolds's heart was torn apart, his mind filled with nothing but furious bloodlust.

He had only one thought: kill!

Kill the demon leader who tore apart his mother, kill the fiend still gnawing on her remains!

Thirty feet—just a short thirty feet. But those thirty feet felt as distant as ten thousand mountains.

Every step forward was a struggle.

William Reynolds could no longer remember how many times he had been attacked, nor how many wounds he had suffered—he didn't care.

All he wanted was to protect his vital points, to keep breathing until he could strike his final blow, to never let his vengeful steps stop!

Step by step, covered in blood, William Reynolds pressed forward with unwavering determination.

The demon leader seemed to realize that this stubborn human was coming for him. With a look of contempt, he gestured for the demon cultivators blocking William Reynolds's path to step aside.

"Foolish human, do you intend to attack me? Haha, I'm right here—come on. Before I send you on your way, I'll let you truly experience just how weak you humans are!"

William Reynolds's eyes burned like blazing flames. What kept him going was his last breath of rage, his final surge of hot blood.

Even if he couldn't kill the demon leader, he would at least make him drop the severed limb—

That was his mother's body!!

Suddenly, William Reynolds's arm moved, the sword tip flicked, and the sword light, dreamlike and illusory, stabbed straight at the leader's throat.

Clang!

Sparks flew as the demon leader caught William Reynolds's sword tip in his palm, shaking his head disdainfully. "Too weak. Laughable human."

Such contempt deeply stung William Reynolds's nerves.

Withdrawing his sword, he lunged at the demon leader, arms outstretched, and bit fiercely at the demon's throat.

Ah!

The demon leader's skin was thick and tough, but even he felt the pain of the bite! He let out a hoarse roar, his expression instantly becoming ferocious.