Kneeling Before the Devil

The scene was gruesome, blood and gore everywhere, like a scene from a hellish prison. Lou Fan sat in his wheelchair, frowning as he watched the scene unfolding hundreds of miles away. He saw Xiang Shaoyun, covered in wounds, blood pooling beneath him, his once sturdy frame now hunched over. Behind him, stood a stunning woman, her face pale, gazing softly at Xiang Shaoyun.

"So, it's 'love turning into devilry'. Even the mighty Overlord Xiang Shaoyun, who wouldn't kneel before gods or Buddhas, has a soft spot deep inside, willing to turn into a devil for love," Lou Fan mused, his gaze deep as he watched the scene, understanding what had happened.

Xiang Shaoyun had been ambushed. Obviously, news of his return had been leaked, prompting the prefect of his county to send troops to kill him. Five to six thousand soldiers, along with martial artists and second-rate generals. This was a death trap.

Lou Fan tapped his fingers lightly on the wheelchair's armrest. If it were just Xiang Shaoyun facing such a dire situation, perhaps the conditions for "turning into a devil" wouldn't have been met. After all, the Overlord of the West County wouldn't fear death. But because of the woman behind him...he was going to fight his way out, blocking all attacks for her.

"A heart full of love, turned into a devil...," Lou Fan shook his head, pondering deeply. In the Five Phoenix Continent, there was no concept of "devilry" like he had seen in novels in his past life, where different factions had sects like the Demon Sect. Here, there were only the Hundred Schools of Thought, with no distinction between righteousness and evil.

"Interesting...this might work."

"Devilry could be a new profession," Lou Fan chuckled with interest. "I choose...to create the 'Way of the Devil'!"

With a thought, Lou Fan made his choice. In that instant, a massive pulling force suddenly made his mind reach out over a hundred miles, materializing in front of Xiang Shaoyun.

In the silence of the world, there was only the sound of Xiang Shaoyun's low roar. He couldn't even muster the strength to wield his weapon. After killing nearly two thousand people, he was exhausted, his spiritual energy depleted, his body staggering.

However, he did not retreat, nor did he fall. Like a demon god, he slew all the soldiers surrounding Luo Mingsang, dragging her behind him, shielding her with his sturdy frame.

Luo Mingsang's face was pale, the sword in her hand hanging low. She looked at Xiang Shaoyun's sturdy back with infatuation. With bloodstained hands, she tremblingly took out a flute from her sleeve.

Luo Mingsang was skilled in playing the zither, something Xiang Shaoyun loved to hear. Today, without a zither, she used the flute instead, playing a tune. Perhaps, this would be the last tune she played for Xiang Shaoyun.

With bloodstained lips, lightly touching the flute's mouthpiece, Luo Mingsang looked at Xiang Shaoyun, and with a breath, she gently blew into the flute. The sound of the flute gradually rose, lingering amidst the bloodstained mountains.

Xiang Shaoyun's hair was soaked in blood, leaning on his long axe, exhausted from killing the soldiers. Upon hearing the flute behind him, his stiff face softened, a smile appearing.

The prefect of Pingyang County, Liu He, looked at this scene, his lips slightly curling upwards. "Even the Overlord has his twilight. The lady plays the flute, accompanying him to the underworld...truly moving."

He knew Xiang Shaoyun couldn't hold on any longer. In truth, even if thousands of people tried to stop the Overlord, they probably wouldn't be able to. But the Overlord, after all, was trapped by love. And this had become their only chance to get rid of him.

Liu He's face turned cold and stern. The power of the Overlord sent shivers down his spine, so he had to completely annihilate Xiang Shaoyun...to cut him into five parts so that he could rest assured!

"Kill!"

"Reward of a hundred thousand taels for whoever takes the Overlord's head!"

Liu He roared.

With this shout, the hesitant and fearful soldiers and generals suddenly turned red-eyed, brandishing their weapons and charging out crazily.

Xiang Shaoyun coughed up blood, feeling his body crumbling from the toll of reversing the *Spiritual Circulation Technique*. Yet, despite coughing blood, he continued to laugh heartily.

Swinging his weapon, dragging his exhausted body, he stood against hundreds!

Suddenly, Xiang Shaoyun's eyes narrowed.

A mighty force enveloped him.

He found everything around him disappeared, and he couldn't even hear the distant flute.

Darkness swallowed everything.

But between heaven and earth, a crimson light emerged, and a figure as if stepping on the crimson sunset slowly appeared.

Xiang Shaoyun stared intently.

"What is the devil? A single obsession is the devil."

"Now that the immortal has appeared, how can the devil stay dormant?"

"Your obsession awakened the devil. Is this what you seek?"

In the void, the figure of blood slowly spoke, its words resounding between heaven and earth.

Xiang Shaoyun staggered, staring at the blood-colored figure.

The devil had always been synonymous with evil.

"If I become a devil, can I save Ming Sang?" Xiang Shaoyun asked.

The blood-colored figure in the void smiled faintly, "Yes."

"Then I'm willing to become a devil!" Xiang Shaoyun raised his head, his eyes blazing.

However...

The blood-colored figure smiled.

"Why should I help you become a devil?"

Below.

Xiang Shaoyun took a deep breath.

Suddenly, he knelt down, kowtowing heavily three times toward the figure stepping on the crimson dawn.

Thud!

Thud! Thud!

Each sound echoed between heaven and earth.

In the void, Lou Fan, transformed into a devil, had a slightly complex expression.

The Overlord, who would not kneel before gods or Buddhas, knelt before the devil without the slightest hesitation for the sake of his beloved.

Kneeling before the devil for three thousand years, never becoming an immortal to look back at the mortal world.

"If you become a devil for your beloved, she will become your biggest weakness. Are you willing?" the devil asked.

"I am willing," Xiang Shaoyun kowtowed.

"Since you seek the devil, I will take away one of your souls. Are you willing?"

"I am willing," Xiang Shaoyun kowtowed again.

The devil laughed, and the crimson dawn surged, suddenly enveloping Xiang Shaoyun's body.

Strands of blood-colored energy descended, making Xiang Shaoyun's soul feel as if it were being torn apart.

Buzz...

Xiang Shaoyun opened his eyes, the sound of the flute still there, and the distant cries of killing remained.

But his body, which was on the verge of collapse, was now recovering. A powerful force continuously spread from his dantian to his limbs and bones.

"The power of the devil..." Xiang Shaoyun's gaze was complex.

He felt a vortex in his dantian, exerting a tremendous suction force, like a seed absorbing the bloodwater from the mountains.

The blood on the ground began to crawl up Xiang Shaoyun's body like small snakes. His skin turned red, with black lines covering his body.

The heat evaporated the blood, turning it into black mist, enveloping Xiang Shaoyun in a sinister and eerie aura.

Luo Mingsang's flute abruptly stopped, her beautiful eyes filled with shock as she looked at Xiang Shaoyun in the distance.

With restored strength, Xiang Shaoyun wielded his weapon, shrouded in the black mist, and charged out.

Wherever he went, it was like a giant beast wreaking havoc.

The soldiers were swept away by the long axe, flying off instantly. Three martial masters and seven or eight top-tier warriors rushed in. Xiang Shaoyun's eyes were bloodshot. He roared at these warriors, causing everyone to bleed from their mouths and noses from the shock. Then, with a sweep of his axe, he separated their heads from their bodies.

Everyone was stunned. 

Liu He's body, wrapped in silver armor, was shaking violently.

"Why... why is Xiang Shaoyun, who was clearly on the brink of collapse, still so strong?!"

"Quick, run!" Liu He's advisor exclaimed fearfully.

However, just as they were about to leave, they took a step and found the ground covered in blood. The blood gradually crawled up, as if turning into arms, grabbing onto their bodies. With the blood flowing, it pulled them towards Xiang Shaoyun.

Liu He threw away his helmet and armor, his face full of horror.

"No..."

Then, he felt himself being lifted by the neck.

As the blood mist dispersed, Xiang Shaoyun's face, terrifyingly cold and indifferent like a demon god, was revealed.

---

Lake Heart Island, Beiluo.

Lou Fan's mind returned, and he let out a long breath. 

In front of him, a system prompt appeared.

With a sweep of his eyes...

"Congratulations to the host for successfully 'cultivating the Devil's Path', nurturing the first practitioner of demonic cultivation, gaining 10 points of assignable attributes, and the remodeling reward [Immortal Devil Body (Entry Level)]..."