Ten Thousand Cuts

There wasn't a speck of light.

Snap, you're dead.

Where is this? Gladius?

This is the endless darkness.

Why can't I hear your voice?

The darkness has swallowed everything, kid. We can only communicate through silent contemplation now; there's no core difference, really. After all, I'm in you, and you're in me.

Still, it feels strange. I can't see anything, can't hear anything...

That's normal. You've been dragged into a demon's personal concept.

This is the Dark Lord?

In hell, we call it the King of Darkness, one of the hellish monarchs, and my least favorite.

You hate it... why?

Because it's utterly run-of-the-mill. Who wants to be a "darkness" demon? It has no distinguishing features, no strengths or weaknesses, nothing praiseworthy. It doesn't inspire joy or hatred, just a plain "King of Darkness" wielding the concept of "darkness"—utterly ambitionless and faithless! I've always been determined to topple it from the monarchs' throne and ascend myself. Look at me, "King of Blades"! That's something truly fearsome. What's the King of Darkness compared to that?

But you can't do it, we're trapped here.

I could shatter this place with a snap of my fingers. But it's a good spot, darkness stagnates everything, it also conceals all. Look at this.

Why are we on a blade?

"Now it's much better." Gladius manifested in one of its forms, a circular creature bristling with exactly seven sharp blades, supported by several tentacle-like feet.

Noah looked down to see an invisible blade beneath them, propelling them swiftly through the darkness. Though surrounded by endless darkness in all directions, the blade relentlessly cut forward, never retreating.

"You look disgusting like that," Noah frowned.

"What! You fool, this is my invincible form in some ocean world, not only viscous but also sharp. My God, I managed to combine 'sticky' with 'sharpness'—the past me was a genius!"

"Turn human, now," Noah urged.

So Gladius changed form again, the tentacles and slimy skin vanished, and now it resembled a tall, muscular young man with bronzed skin—except for a giant blade protruding from the neck up, replacing the head, still looking bizarre.

"I did my best," Gladius complained. "What else do you want from me?"

Noah surveyed his surroundings—the darkness was boundless.

"So I stabbed that guy, and then I ended up here."

"Yes." The blade on the neck began to wobble. "That's right, the King of Darkness's trick. This place is called the Dark Realm, a domain of a demon lord... If it weren't for me, you'd have already merged with the darkness!"

"So, it's the 'King of Darkness,' this demon manipulating everything from behind, the source of all threats."

"It seems so, given it's the youngest and most ambitious among the hellish monarchs. It's normal for it to flaunt its power by conquering a world."

"I won't let it succeed. I'll take it down," Noah stated with conviction.

"Empty talk is meaningless; you need to become stronger," the blade-headed figure swung left and right. "Especially against a demon lord of the hellish monarchs."

"Will you help me?"

"No, how many times have I helped you, you ungrateful wretch," Gladius ranted.

"It just feels new."

"Everything has changed! Look at the dark lackeys we've encountered. That witch, chattering away, acting slowly, and she wants to sleep with you, how detestable."

"She wants to sleep with me?" Noah was startled. "I didn't notice."

"Stop interrupting. And then there's that bald high priest, so ugly, I don't like him either."

"You can't judge a person by their appearance."

"An oval bald head is an insult to sharpness. Only those with sharp head shapes can earn my approval," Gladius explained. "Next, there's that knight we met, all pretense and posturing, thinking he's something when he's nothing, always pointing fingers at others."

"I see."

"That's why I despise the King of Darkness. Look at the fools it's raised, just as lowly and annoying as itself, not a bit decisive! I'm furious, now the Blade Demon will raise its own worthy lackeys to take it down. Noah Granier from Berol Village, you've been chosen by the Blade Demon, you are the Chosen of the Demon Lord."

"Boring, give me power."

"In a place of such special nature, I might as well try something new..."

The blade-headed figure struck at Noah, who didn't dodge, allowing their forms to overlap.

Instantly, he felt everything around him change, shadows vanished, and colors, sounds, and scents emerged anew, overwhelming his senses.

He looked around, dazed, to see a street that didn't belong to his world. The pavements were dark gold, and the buildings on either side towered a thousand feet, their contours ethereal, like massive towers, their peaks interlocking, the structures complex, resembling honeycombs. They were less like buildings and more like works of art.

Noah felt the heat, radiance pouring down from above, warming his entire body, his sweat drenching his back, especially while still clad in heavy armor, holding an alloyed longsword. What's going on? He twirled the sword in his hand, finding it well-balanced.

Blade Demon was at the other end of the street, looking deadly with its simple rear legs supporting its body, moving with explosive speed, both arms were blades, plain in form but sufficiently terrifying, capable of severing any tangible entity.

"Where is this?" Noah shouted at Gladius.

"Years ago, we attacked here," Gladius sharpened its blades. "My minions encountered a strange opponent, extremely ferocious, who killed over a dozen of my vanguard... Now it's your turn to play his role."

It leaped swiftly, covering dozens of meters in a few bounds, then lunged at Noah.

Noah realized that his mind was filled with memories that weren't his own—birth, training, daily combat practice with his weapon, defeating one rival after another, accumulating glory, experiencing thousands of battles, countless duels, wars between nations, and standing out time and again, earning accolades and rewards.

But everything changed. He just wanted to pass on his life's ultimate skills to the next generation, then die alone. Suddenly, the world cracked open, immense fissures appeared from nowhere, spewing countless demons. They flooded the surface, and his city was no different. Everyone was dying, civilization was collapsing, but still, he had to pick up his weapon, still had to fight one last battle.

Blade Demon was fast! Noah watched it, it leaped downwards, all happening in less than two seconds. Noah was bisected instantly, his memory also breaking apart—

And then he was reborn in an instant, still standing in the same place, Gladius reset at the end of the street.

"I just want you to catch this one strike! Just one!" Gladius roared in fury.

"I'll catch it within ten tries," Noah relived the realistic pain as his body was cut open.

"Arrogant!" Blade Demon charged at Noah again.

The speed was too fast! Beyond human capability, Noah instinctively retreated, his gaze locked on Gladius's movements. From which direction would the blade come?

Countless instincts and memories flashed before Noah's eyes, the experience and techniques of wielding a blade. Years of practice had turned into muscle memory. A master of the blade needed only a slight shift in his weapon to deflect Blade Demon's blade, sending it crashing to the ground.

Only—he couldn't keep up. His hands couldn't follow his consciousness. As Noah struggled to absorb and react to this sudden influx of memory, he faced Gladius's swift strikes. The techniques of this otherworldly sword master were very special. Once understood, they could be translated into "Solemn Strike" or "Earnest Blow."

Blade Demon's attack... was the fastest, deadliest, and most bizarre Noah had ever faced.

"Too slow!"

"Wrong direction!"

"You lost!"

"You're still losing!"

"It's been more than ten times!"

Gladius reveled in his superiority, repeatedly bisecting Noah from various angles on this illusory foreign street, berating him mercilessly after each kill.

Swing, swing, swing—failure, failure, failure...

As Noah merged deeper with the blurry vision, the surrounding details became clearer. He saw more Blade Demons waiting at the end of the street, the sky splitting open with new demons pouring out. Imps fell from the heavens like a torrential downpour, screaming incessantly. The less fortunate ones hit the ground first, crushed instantly, forming a cushioning pile of corpses, while the later arrivals landed safely, then quickly bent to consume their comrades' remains. Then larger demons descended, imps, greater demons, demon warriors... vanguard...

Was this what demonic apocalypse looked like?

Noah was cut down by Gladius once more, then revived unharmed.

"Feel the despair!" Gladius taunted as he charged. "This is what your world's future looks like."

"At first, a bit of despair... But then, I realized something uplifting. Before a certain time on this street, there was someone—a warrior skilled with a blade, also struggling against your kind..."

"Which means, meaningless! Because he died!"

Noah worked hard to extract expertise and skills from this memory, transforming the raw recollections he witnessed into a combat consciousness he could wield.

"It's useless! Useless!" Gladius pierced Noah cleanly, lifting him, then tossing him back to the ground.

Instantly, they reset positions. As Gladius prepared to charge once more, aiming to cleave Noah in two, he saw Noah's form move rapidly, unexpectedly launching an attack on Blade Demon.

"You're suicidal!" Gladius swung his blade cruelly at Noah.

First block, then counterattack, maintaining a proper stance. The essence of Solemn Strike was in its proper form, leaving no room for error, reacting as swiftly as a... what was a 'Greyhide Beast'? Whose memory was this? Noah pushed forcefully with the sword, knocking aside Gladius's bladed arms, then thrust forward, piercing through its posture and into its chest.

"I won!" Noah felt exhilarated. "My efforts weren't in vain!"

In an instant, the Blade Demon before Noah vanished, replaced by a demon as tall as a house, covered in thick demonic armor, wielding a weapon broader than the street itself, having transformed from a common Blade Demon into a higher-ranking monster.

"The original owner of this memory," Gladius's voice grew colder. "He thought like you, wishing to fight off the entire demonic invasion alone. But as he faced stronger and stronger opponents, he defeated Blade Demons, Blade Vanguards, Blade Generals, Blade Champions, one powerful demon after another... But demons are endless, and he eventually died at the hands of one of my stronger lieutenants. His soul was harvested and brought before me... Even the top sword master of this world was just so. Noah, do you think you stand a chance?"

Noah looked up and took a deep breath.

Do I have a chance?

He leaped towards the gigantic Blade Demon, swinging his weapon with all his might.