Rise of the Demon God

After killing the thing, he waited for over ten minutes, but he heard no sound.

He wanted to see what that thing was, but he couldn't see anything. He could have touched the thing, but he didn't want to. Whatever it was, didn't matter. To him it was only a dead body now.

He didn't forget to place that thing in his storage ring without touching it. He would see it when he left.

He resumed his journey as he walked ahead carefully. The darkness was just as dark. No matter how much he tried, he still wasn't able to see anything. He had only walked for a few minutes before he heard the sound of footsteps.

It sounded like the human footsteps that were closer to him. He couldn't see them, but from their footsteps, he realized that there was at least more than one person.

'There are other humans here? Are they facing the same darkness or can they see? It would be quite problematic if they were able to see since they were most probably the enemies," he wondered.

He stopped and waited for the people to get closer since he had no other path to choose.

"Stop right there!" the voice sounded like it belonged to a man, and the footsteps stopped approximately 30 meters away from him.

"I'm already standing still. I'm not even walking," Long Chen said with a wry smile on his face.

"Who are you? And what are you doing here? Also, did you see a strange creature? We were following it." The person in the front said in his heavy tone.

"Sorry, I haven't seen anything. You can go back," Long Chen said.

"We can't go back. We'll see for ourselves if you're hiding it," they said.

"Sigh, can't say I wasn't expecting it," Long Chen said as he gripped both his swords in his hands. He was ready for the battle that was about to come.

He heard the footsteps of someone. The person was running towards him.

Since he could not see anything, Long Chen had already closed his eyes. He was trying to visualize his opponent through the sounds.

Even the sounds made by their weapons when it slashed through the air was audible to him.

He could sense a sword being swung towards his chest. He moved the Mountain Destroyer to block the sword while he used his King's sword to strike the person down.

"Aaaa!" a scream escaped the man's mouth as his chest was sliced open by Long Chen's sword.

"You killed one of us? You will die!" said someone loudly.

As the man was killed, all the remaining people ran to him together. Too many footsteps were making it difficult to properly visualize them, thus Long Chen didn't wait for them to get to him.

He got into a sword stance.

"Seven Forms of Saint Sword: Third Form-Destruction!" 

Long Chen slashed with his King's sword horizontally. The sword slashed even the wind apart. A bright arc of light left the sword and advanced ahead towards the people that were running towards Long Chen.

The footsteps suddenly stopped, but strangely enough, Long Chen didn't hear any screams this time. It was as if the people had disappeared into thin air as soon as his attack struck them.

He stepped to the front, where the first body fell, but even it wasn't there.

"What the heck is happening here?" he muttered with a perplexed look on his face. 

He waited for over ten minutes, but he didn't hear any sound.

"Looks like they were part of the test and with their death, their job was finished," He muttered.

He started walking ahead again. He didn't face anything for quite some time. He was already starting to wonder how long this silence will last.

After walking for 10 more minutes, he saw light. The darkness was beginning to disappear and there was a light source some distance away.

He walked towards the light source in the distance and after 5 more minutes, he was able to exit that tunnel-shaped cave. He stepped inside a brightly lit hall.

His eyes took a few seconds to adjust to the brightness. He saw a handsome man standing at some distance from him. The man was wearing beautiful crimson clothes. He had donned a blood-red robe on his back.

"You did well coming here without being defeated. You might have a chance to get ranked. But now your real challenge will begin. I wonder if you have the strength to do what it takes," the man said with a grin on his face.

He stepped aside and allowed Long Chen to see what was behind him.

A little 7-8-year-old girl was standing behind him. She had an innocent face and crystal clear eyes. Her hands were tied by ropes and there were tears in her eyes.

"This is where the last challenger failed. Do you know what's really important to be in the demon ranking? It's to be like a demon. You need to be cruel to your core. Slaughter everyone that stands between you and your goal. Don't differentiate between a bad person and an innocent one. You'll be a demon as long as you have the heart to slaughter them all. And that is what it will take for you to succeed," The man said with a slight smile on his face.

Long Chen heard his words and couldn't help but be surprised. This test was getting quite weird.

"Behind me is a real girl that was caught from the nearby empire. She's to be used in the tests for this year. As long as she survives for a year, she will be freed," The man further said. He placed his hands over the head of the girl.

"Also, as long as you kill her, you'll get your rank. Your rank will depend on how long you take to kill her. Let's see if you have the conviction to do it or not," the man said as he freed the hands of the girl and pushed her towards Long Chen.

The man stepped back and sat on his chair as he began watching the scene in front of him. 

A frown was already on Long Chen's face as he heard everything that man had to say.

"The test is to kill an innocent mortal? I need to kill a kid?" he asked as he looked at the man sitting on the throne.

"Yes. It's a simple test, but it's where most people fail. Not many people realize the true essence of being a demon. They can't do what they need to do. Let's see if you have the guts to go it. Do as I say and kill the girl," the man said with a smile. He didn't take his eyes off of Long Chen for even a second.

Long Chen made a determination as he gripped his sword and looked towards the little girl that was standing in front of him.

He wasn't sure if it was real or fake, but it looked real. The girl was shivering as tears kept falling from her eyes.

"Is that really what a demon is? A weapon of slaughter?" He muttered as he looked towards the girl.

'If I kill, will I gain what I need? The conviction, the strength, the determination. Is it really that simple? Kill an innocent?' he thought as he looked at the girl standing in front of him.

"I'm sorry little girl," He said as he stepped towards the girl.

He was just 1 step away from the little girl. He gripped his sword firmly in his hand as he gazed at the girl. Her tears never stopped for even a second.

"It's something I must do," he said as he raised his King's Sword high in the sky.