Accepting The Legacy

"Have you internalized them?" asked a man in a deep voice seated on the throne belonging to the strongest in the world. His penetrating gaze stared down from the steps onto his newly inaugurated direct disciple, Duan Li, who was kneeling before him.

"I have, all of them," Duan Li replied simply, his tone respectful toward the seventh Heavenly Demon, who was also his master.

A feat no less difficult than scaling Mount Tai, where many had failed, Duan Li emerged victorious after enduring rigorous trials and arduous training. He acquired the full legacy of the Heavenly Demon of the First—the coveted manual of the Way of the Heavenly Ascension.

"Good. Then the next step is the last to complete the ritual. Are you ready?" the Heavenly Demon asked, but this time, his voice betrayed a hint of concern—rare for someone of his caliber and identity.

This was because the next process to completely accept the legacy involved releasing one's cultivation and drawing in the primordial Qi according to the steps written in the manual. It required opening up the host's spiritual sea in their dantian and soul, where a single mistake could shatter the person's entire cultivation and mental psyche.

The Heavenly Demon knew fully well the risks of this ritual, having once attempted it himself. Despite following everything to the letter, he was left with a permanent trauma to his cultivation. Yet, he survived and still became the strongest in his era. As Duan Li was his direct disciple—the future inheritor of the Demonic Sect and destined to replace him as the eighth Heavenly Demon—this was something Duan Li had to overcome.

There were two before him, similar in tenacity and known geniuses within the sect, yet they both failed.

Had it been in the past, the Heavenly Demon would have assisted Duan Li to cement his cultivation further to increase his chances of successfully accepting the legacy. However, time was something he no longer had. The Heavenly Demon could feel that his lifespan was coming to an end. He was, after all, more than a century old. He could even die tomorrow.

"I am ready. No matter what, I will see this through to the end!" Duan Li replied firmly.

With this, the Heavenly Demon said no more and nodded to the elders on the side as a sign to start the ritual.

"Young Lord, may you be successful!" Four elders of the Demonic Sect took their positions at the four cardinal directions and performed a series of hand seals.

Wong!

A formation barrier enclosed Duan Li, protecting him from external harm.

Wasting no time, Duan Li decided to get on with it. His mind was set.

'If I am destined to succeed, then good. If not, then so be it!' Duan Li said to himself.

Wong!

Opening up his spiritual sea in his dantian and exposing his soul, the natural Qi in his body rapidly evaporated via his acupoints. This process was extremely draining as the Qi is essentially a cultivator's strength. Also, what he was doing right now could be said to be throwing away twenty years of his hard-earned foundation!

However, this was necessary.

By ejecting the accumulated natural Qi in his body and following the breathing methods in the Way of the Heavenly Ascension manual, he would stimulate the acupoints in his body to receive primordial Qi, which was at least a hundred times purer than natural Qi.

The rewards far outweighed the risks.

"I finally emptied the Qi in my dantian, now to... huh?"

An eerie silence suddenly caught his attention.

"What the... what is going on here?" Duan Li found the entire area in the hall to be completely devoid of colors!

"Master?"

Even when looking directly at the Heavenly Demon, he found the latter to be frozen still!

CRACK!

Suddenly, the space around him began to crack and shatter as quickly as it had appeared. His surroundings turned completely pitch black as if he were standing inside a dark swamp.

"No!"

Not knowing what had just transpired, Duan Li subconsciously tried to protect himself. He forgot, however, that he currently had no Qi. To make matters worse, he was in the middle of the ritual to accept his legacy, and any attempt to use other techniques in such a state would no doubt result in the failure of the ritual.

In fact, he could already feel it the moment he thought about it.

"Damn it, is this how it ends..." Duan Li fell into the empty darkness as his eyelids closed.