DEMON CASTLE - Chapter 96

In the world of cultivation, countless tales follow righteous protagonists, fated heroes blessed by destiny, or those chosen by heaven to walk the path of immortality.But what of those who stand in their way?What of the villains? The so-called obstacles to the hero’s journey—do they not bleed, dream, and struggle as well?Xiao Ning was never meant to succeed.From the very beginning, the Grand Dao wove him as a stepping stone—a necessary sacrifice to elevate another. His path, like that of all designated ‘villains,’ was doomed to failure by design.But what happens when that design is defied?After death, Xiao Ning awakens—not in the cycle of reincarnation, but in the cold silence beyond it. There, he is offered the Eternal Paradox Codex—a forbidden artifact containing the hidden truths of the Grand Dao System itself.Rules. Loopholes. Vulnerabilities.Knowledge not meant for those like him.With this power, Xiao Ning is granted a single, impossible choice: accept oblivion, or step outside the Grand Dao entirely—to abandon fate, sever karma, and cultivate a path unbound by heaven or law.It is Xiao Ning’s journey, from ashes to something beyond comprehension.Not to become an Immortal among men.But something even the heavens dare not bind.If fate is a chain…Then let him forge his own path in the void beyond.Welcome to this humble tale.The cultivation world is vast and unkind.Let us begin again—on our terms.

The abyss descended, the world fell and dreadful horrors roamed the shadows of that that remained.Akaris found himself trapped on the other side in a city now overran and ruled by eldritch horrors of the abyss, he alone with his bow stood tall against creatures only told in nightmares and stories.He became the hunter of those who thought him prey, he became the nightmare of creatures that ruled the darkness.A ruthless killer who knew not mercy, who feared neither demon nor God, the lonely hunter who rules time.Until he was alone no more, he found others who were lost and abandoned like him, together they sought to shatter the chains that bound them and destroy the source of the apocalypse.Forced to dive into the endless abyss and compete with other races for dominance and the chance for survival. Akaris was forced to fight with all he had even if it meant leaving a trail of red in his wake.

I gave them my everything.My time… my strength… my heart.I trained while they slept.I smiled when they laughed.I stayed… even when it hurt.And what did I get?Nothing.They looked at me like I was pathetic.Like, I didn’t belong.Like I was… less.But I... the naive person I am, continued trusting them.They told me to act like trash, fine—I became trash.They told me to act like a scumbag, fine—I played the role.However...One mistake, one single moment...That’s all it took.And they threw me away.But now…Someone else woke up in my body.A stranger, a man who doesn’t know the pain I suffered, but wears my face.Let’s see what he does with it.Because me?I’m done with this life, so to the soul who took over my body...This is your mess now…'Gray'.

As a naive teenager, he was unaware of his own superiority.Shang Xiaojie realized the violent man who had tricked him into a hotel was actually his brother-in-law.He struggled and tears streamed down his face as he pleaded, “Let me go, you idiotic beast!”“I may be foolish, but a beast? Can’t you at least admit to that?” he asked.After drugging Shang Xiaojie, he callously taunted, “You’re just a male prostitute who comes running whenever I snap my fingers. You’re nothing, Shang Xiaojie.”Devastated, Shang Xiaojie swore, “Mussaf, I hate you and I’ll make you regret this.”Upon his return five years later, he was accompanied by a young boy.Shang Mingming asked, “Is that man my father?”Shang Xiaojie responded coldly, “No, I don’t know someone like him.”Furious, Mussaf demanded, “Where are you taking my son?”Shang Xiaojie grinned and replied nonchalantly, “I’m getting married to another man. There’s nothing you can do about it.”