1 Curse of Eternity

In the days before my world was shattered, life was simple yet fulfilling. I was Mu Chen, a young man who reveled in the embrace of my family's love, and the tranquil beauty of the village of Moonbright.

Here, my heart finds solace in the tender rhythm of simple joys. A small family, bound by laughter and shared dreams, graces my days—parents whose smiles radiate warmth, a sister whose laughter weaves enchantment. Amidst the village's beauty, routines are a cherished melody—the sun's rise, tending to gardens, hunting for food.

Our days were filled with laughter, chores, and dreams that reached as far as the horizon. But then, the darkness descended.

***

I remember returning home to a scene of horror that seemed lifted from a nightmare. The warmth that had once embraced our modest home had been replaced by an eerie stillness, punctuated by the lifeless bodies of my family. Grief and rage collided within me as my eyes locked onto the cursed pendant, a malevolent jewel that seemed to throb with the echoes of their final moments.

In a frenzy, I grasped my sword, the weapon that had once symbolized protection now transformed into a tool of vengeance. My heart pounded with a mix of determination and desperation as I slashed at the cursed pendant, my strikes fueled by a consuming rage. I lost track of time as the days bled into nights, and the nights into days. My body ached, but my resolve remained unyielding.

Each cut was a declaration of my unending fury, each swing an embodiment of the torment that had taken root in my heart. The demon within the pendant seemed to taunt me, laughing at my futile attempts. Yet, I was undeterred. I refused to let the demon's laughter become my dirge.

Days turned into weeks, weeks into months, and months into years. My once calloused hands now bore the marks of countless battles, the scars a testament to my relentless pursuit of vengeance. The pendant glowed with an ominous light, an almost mocking reminder of the bond that connected me to the demon. I couldn't tear my gaze away from it, as if my very identity had become intertwined with the malevolent force it harbored.

Then, one fateful strike shattered the pendant, releasing a blinding light that consumed me. For a fleeting moment, I believed I had triumphed. But fate had other plans. Cruel, twisted plans that snatched away any semblance of my satisfaction.

"Mortal, you dream of my demise, yet you are the one who shall suffer. Cursed for your audacity, you shall know an eternity of torment. Shackled to the realm of the living, inherit my [Curse of Eternity]."

The demon's laughter echoed in my mind, reverberating through my very soul.

Right then, agony surged through me, a pain that transcended any I had known before. It was as if my body, mind, and soul were being torn apart and reassembled anew, each moment a symphony of excruciating torment. I wanted to scream, to beg for mercy, but only the echoes of my agony were released.

"Welcome to an eternity of suffering, mortal. My burden is now yours to bear."

The demon chuckled, and disappeared from the world, relieved from the burden it has abandoned.

***

Countless months passed by, or perhaps it was all an endless instant. Time ceased to hold any meaning as my existence became an unending cycle of pain and suffering. My body was a canvas painted with torment, my mind a battlefield where the demon reveled in my agony. Yet amidst it all, a flicker of my former self remained. A stubborn ember of defiance that refused to be extinguished.

My memories became a double-edged sword, a source of both solace and torment. I clung to the laughter of my family, the touch of their hands, and the love we had shared. But with every recollection, the pain intensified, as though the memories themselves had been tainted by the demon's curse.

And so, in the midst of the relentless torment, I yearned for the release of death. The very thought of an end became a lifeline, a glimmer of hope in a sea of despair. I knew not what lay beyond, but anything had to be better than the ceaseless suffering that had become my existence. As I endured the unending nightmare, my heart burned with a desperate plea for freedom, for peace, for an end to the curse that had forever bound my soul in chains of torment.