Far away, in the deep region of a certain forest.
The forest was humble, gloomy, and prospering. Its canopy was overshadowed by sycamore, crab apple, and hickory, their leaves and branches allowed for just enough light to pass down for colorful mushrooms to monopolize the moist and fertile bottom layer below.
Thick tree limbs waved from many trees, and a medley of flowers, which grew all over the place, brightened up the otherwise monotone terrain.
A hodgepodge of animal noises, belonging mostly to bird songs, resonated through the air, and almost completely muffled the splashing of fish in a nearby lake.
In a ravine with a complex design.
The ravine was only wide enough for a human or a similarly sized demon beast to traverse. The cliffs were at least dozens of meters tall and had vines growing all over them. This place has been devoid of life for a long time now.
There's a gentle stream flowing into the deepest recess of the ravine. The stream fed into a lake. There's also a waterfall feeding into the lake.
This ravine has complex geography. If someone planted fruits here then this place can become a home to a settlement of a relatively small size given its isolation and water source.
This deep ravine was very isolated and this made it a very good place to set up a camp. There are no fruits or edible plants here so it's not good to stay here in the long term. But, this place had potential.
Alas, this ravine was already claimed.
On a stone outcrop outside the waterfall, a person was sitting here with crossed legs.
He wore tattered clothes. His expression was sickly pale, it's not hard to see that he has been badly hurt and he was still suffering from that weakness.
His right side had been decimated. He lost an arm and a leg. He only had most of his torso, an arm, a head, and a leg to hold himself together. Anyone crippled to this stage would surely consider suicide.
This man is someone Lilith beat within an inch of his life. A former member demon who escaped and Lilith had been chasing.
The man was still in a bad shape.
He gnawed on the bloody meat he was holding with his only hand.
He didn't cook or season the meat, it's completely raw. The meat had a resemblance to a human's ripped-out chest.
That meat was harvested from a human!
A closer inspection would reveal bones piled up around the Beast King's stone bed.
Human bones remain of the humans who fell to savage predation.
Fortunately, it seems the victim count is low.
The man could only restrain himself to one or two unlucky humans a day. If he did that then he can hide his actions. This Forest is the home of monsters and animals, humans could hunt here but they should always be ready to get hunted when the table turns on them. The man could hide his casualties as victims of other monsters.
The man continued absorbing the essence from the meat in his hand to heal his injuries. He was severely injured but as a powerful Demigod, he had incredible vitality and endurance.
As for whether or not he could restore his arm and leg. That was another case altogether.
Other than daily hunts, the man also searched the forest for treasures that might restore his lost limbs.
This was also the reason why he endured the ongoing manhunt while keeping a low profile. His pride would have driven him mad otherwise.
"Hmm?"
The man stopped his movements. He looked at the ravine passageway with a frown.
A few figures are drawing closer, judging from the shapes, the incoming intruders should be monsters.
The man was visibly angry.
He already sent out an aura only powerful monsters could detect earlier. He told them to stay away from this place. It seems they ignored his command and encroached upon his domicile.
The was outraged.
How dare they ignore his order.
Monsters are not meek animals. They abide by the rule of the jungle. The man treats them like his soldiers. Anyone who steps out of their line will be cut down.
He was about to move when he sensed something wrong with the monsters.
They were covered in black scales. They had disgusting tentacles for limbs and a large eye with many irises in it.
Are these things still considered monsters?!
The man became confused by what he was seeing.
"Why don't I know about these species? A new species? No, even a new species can't ignore my aura…"
"Something smells fishy here!"
The man waved his arm toward the twitching monsters.
Multiple Earth spikes pierced the bizarre monsters from below, skewering them from multiple angles.
The monsters didn't even see the visage of their killer before they drew their last breath. Their heads slumped to the side.
The man thought this was the end when black lights flew into the sky after the monsters died.
He manifested an earth claw to grab the black lights.
Then, something shocking happened.
The black lights seeped into his body through his skin. His invaded arm emitted a dark luster and a patch of black scales grew on his arm.
"This…"
The man's expression turned stern.
"I don't know what the hell you guys are but if you're thinking about rampaging in my body…"
The man closed his eyes and he started channeling his magic power.
After a long time, the sky darkened and the man opened his eyes which gleamed with a dark light.
"I see…"
The man started grinning with hatred, viciousness, and pure evil. His tyrannical aura got replaced with a demonic aura. His smile widened and he started laughing out loud.
"Hahaha! Good! This is great! What a great discovery.''
The man floated up and he started flying towards a certain direction of the forest.
In the deepest part of the Forest, a certain tall cliff.
The man arrived to see a scene straight out of hell.
Dark mist engulfed the cliff, black lights are flying around the cliff like wriggling worms inside a can. It was a frightening sight to behold.
A few monsters came after seeing this weird scene and the dark lights immediately transformed the monsters into grotesque beings.
The man stood there as a dark light flashed in his eyes. He flew into the dark mass.
The black lights shot into the man's body like they were about to have a buffet. The man didn't stop the dark lights. He landed on top of the cliff to see the platform oozing dark mist. He smashed the platform apart.
That revealed a dark hole filled with dark mist and chaotic lights.
The man started chuckling.
"Lilith… Althea, Alex… humans… Demons...''
"I will endure this for now, when I come out…"
The man then charged into the hole.
The black lights covering the cliff slowly decreased over time as they receded into the dark hole.
?????
Five hundred kilometers northwest existed a town.
The once jam-packed roads that led to Ship's Haven were still somewhat discernible despite the many cracks and holes given to it by the elements. The crisp and clean-looking town now looked more like a jungle as trees and gardens grew beyond their now unkempt boundaries.
Many doorways still stood tall and in some cases, it was one of the few things left of a home. But most doors were completely gone and only remnants of rotten wood were left behind. Many walls and balconies had collapsed. Without proper maintenance and cleaning it was easy for rot and water to do their damage.
Ship's Haven once home to thousands of families and counting had all but faded away from history. The creaking of wood and grinding of metal on metal was the only sounds in this town now. They were disturbing noises in a disturbing environment.
Noble men and women were once called upon from the fire station, ready to save whoever needed saving. Unfortunately, this town couldn't be saved. Funnily enough, it was mostly cats that had made this station their home.
Despite the many animals that inhabit this town it was still a very unsettling sight to behold. Nature had taken its toll on the vast majority of the town. But there was an awful feeling of hopelessness you couldn't escape from. Even if those who lived here returned too much had been lost already and it'd never be the same again.
In this ghost town, a beauty appeared, naturally it was none other than Lilith, the current empress of the reunited demon continent. She left her empire incognito, disguising herself as one of her personas, she was planning to slowly enjoy her adventure while chasing after the fugitive but was stopped by Alex coincidentally, a lot of things happened, the world is slowly changing so she decided to quickly take care of this.
She pursued a trace into this city, Lilith frowned while using her senses to scan the city when suddenly she got a bad feeling, an ominous premonition, and looked in a certain direction, it was the direction the man who jumped into the abyss was.
''I shall go.'' She decided before disappearing.
At the same time in another location, someone in a lab coat wearing goggles giggled.
''Huhuhu! Finally, someone discovered that place. Please don't disappoint me, stranger.'' The man in the lab coat said as a mad glint flashed through his eyes.
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