Chapter I

As his eyes slowly flickered open all he could see was darkness. 

There he was in a pitch-black void unable to distinguish anything around him as he stared out into its haunting depths. For a few moments he humoured the idea, as laughable as it was that there was something wrong with him and so, he closed and opened his eyes a few times. 

Like he expected; there was nothing wrong with him. 

Instead, each time he was faced with the darkness that surrounded him on all sides, a sight that was intimately familiar to him. Chuckling lowly to himself, he slowly got into a seated position and raised his hand to run through his hair, propping it up on his knee as he pondered where he was. 

He had no answer. 

But all he could remember was ingesting the poison his enemies had struck him with. It had been a critical moment just as he was about to breakthrough into the next realm yet it seemed that had been precisely what had saved his life. 

He could tell that his cultivation had dropped all the way down to the Foundation Establishment Realm and not just that but at the Inept Stage. He was the lowest of the low, a mere Third Rate Warrior.

Truly he had fallen low. 

However, he was alive. 

That poison had been vicious and powerful, greater than anything he had encountered before. Not even the Tang Clan or the Poison Pavillion of the Heavenly Demon Cult had ever produced such a dangerous poison. How the Orthodox Path had been able to get their hands on such a thing was beyond his knowledge.

If it had not been for him breaking through at the exact moment the poison spread out of control, then there was no doubt he would be lying dead and defeated. Though he may have lost all of his cultivation he knew exactly how to get to where he once was and do so not only with greater speed but to a higher standard. 

His understanding of the Dao was vast after decades of learning and growing and even though his senses were reduced, he could feel the rich Qi within the world around him. 

It was far greater than the world in which he had been before, even in its richest and densest areas, none came close to the richness here. There was no doubt that he had achieved what had once been deemed impossible, ascending from the Lower Realm to an Upper one. 

Resting his hand against the ground, he slowly allowed his mind to relax as he let himself be engulfed by the void of nothingness around him. Thoughts and memories drifted through him and he found himself relieving the moment it all began.

The moment his journey on the path of the Dao began. 

It was the moment he awoke, much like he had now surrounded by darkness and yet, he had been powerless. He tried to move his limbs but they did not so much as twitch they just lay limply by his side. He wanted to move, to get up and search his surroundings, find the answers to the questions in his mind and yet, his body refused to move. 

The only thing he could do was remain still, looking out into the darkness. There was no light anywhere, nothing to give him an indication of his surroundings. 

'Am I underground?' He wondered to himself considering the possibility. 'Why am I here?'

Who was he?

Where was he? 

What was he doing here?

Was he crippled?

Would he be trapped here forever?

A panic almost set in and consumed him but it seemed to be the very thing that kicked his mind into overdrive and suddenly a rush of information flooded him. 

Ziyang Shen. 

An orphan. 

His only roots being loyalty to the Cult. 

His only purpose being to serve the Divine Demon. 

He was here, in the Cave of Latent Demons for that purpose. 

To learn. 

To grow. 

To become stronger and surpass all his limits. 

So that was precisely what he would do. 

Surpass his limits. 

No matter how hard he tried, his body still refused to answer his calls and so he was stuck there, in the darkness. He didn't know how much time had passed and whether he was losing his mind or maintaining it, the lines were blurring the longer he felt himself trapped and unable to move. 

Suddenly a sigh escaped his lips and he felt his heartbeat quicken. 

When he had first awoken he had been unable to even breathe heavily and so this was a clear sign that his body functions were returning. Perhaps it was an illusion, some false hope he was giving to himself as a means to think positively. 

But it was terrifying to be alone in the dark. 

It was making him think a lot and the tidal wave of thoughts that flooded through his mind when alone were enough to almost drive him crazy. The sense of isolation corroded away at his mind and if it continued like this then he knew it would only be a matter of time before he did in fact go crazy. 

So he latched onto that slim hope. 

He didn't know how much time had passed. 

A minute?

An hour?

A day?

A week?

It was impossible to comprehend the flow of time in this space and his whole body was paralysed. He could barely breathe and nearly all of his bodily functions were at a standstill, he was unable to even tell if they were recovering or not. 

He couldn't even feel hunger. 

It was like he was slowly dying and unable to even tell how much longer he had left. This was the most terrifying moment in his life and yet, he didn't blink or falter. 

Even though he could see nothing, his gaze was resolute and steadfast as he stared out into the darkness around him. He refused to close them and hide away from the unending void that surrounded him. 

He refused to hide and cower away in fear. 

Fingers slowly twitched and moved. 

Life was returning to him once more. 

He would conquer this darkness around him just like he was beginning to conquer his paralysed body. Then he would set his sights beyond wherever he was trapped and outward across the world.