Li Wei landed with a bone-jarring thud in a thicket of pine trees far below. Miraculously, he was still alive, though barely. His body was a mangled mess, his bones shattered, his internal organs bruised.
He lay there, gasping for breath, his vision blurring in and out. He could feel the Shadow Sage stirring within him, furious but weakened.
"You insignificant worm! You think you can escape me so easily? I will rebuild your broken body, and you will serve me, whether you like it or not!"
Li Wei closed his eyes, accepting his fate. He was too weak to resist.
But then, something unexpected happened. A wave of pure, warm energy washed over him, emanating from the core of his being. It was the chi of the Hua Mountain Sect, the energy he had cultivated for years, fighting back against the demonic presence.
The battle raged within him, a clash between the pure and the corrupt, the righteous and the demonic. It was a battle that could determine not only his own fate, but the fate of the entire sect.
As the sun began to set, casting long shadows across the mountains, Li Wei lost consciousness.
He awoke days later in a small, dilapidated temple nestled in the foothills of Mount Hua. His body was wrapped in bandages, and he felt weak and drained, but alive. An old woman, her face weathered and lined, sat beside him, tending to a small fire.
"You are awake," she rasped, her voice surprisingly strong. "I found you broken and near death. The mountains saved you, child."
Li Wei tried to sit up, but a sharp pain shot through his body. "Where am I? What happened?"
"You are safe, for now," the old woman said. "But danger surrounds you. I can feel it. A darkness clings to your soul."
Li Wei knew what she meant. The Shadow Sage was still there, dormant but present. He could feel the chilling presence lurking in the back of his mind, waiting for an opportunity to seize control once more.
He was alive, but he was still trapped. He was still the Demon of Heaven, a prisoner in his own body, a pawn in a game far bigger than himself. And he knew, with a sinking heart, that his journey had just begun. He was now wanted by his sect, and the demonic cult at the same time. His only option was to grow stronger. He needed help to defeat the Shadow Sage, and he knew only one place to get that help.
The library of the Hua Mountain Sect… he would become a rogue cultivator and steal the techniques that would allow him to finally be free or embrace the dark.