Chapter Text
Beneath the red sun and grey skies of their home, was a tale as old as the earth by which they lived. A history passed down to each generation since before their Empire’s very inception.
About the deep expanses of Time, the unwavering cruelness of Fate, and the soul-wrenching hardships of Tragedy. Of an unyielding Will, sincere Kindness, and sacrificial Selflessness. A tapestry wrought with Loneliness, Betrayal, and Heartbreak.
A tale of an incomparable act Defiance against the highest order. A act followed by unimaginable Destruction, and mind-bending Creation. Which spoke of the painfulness of Solitude and the beauty of Companionship. And a lesson in lasting Rest.
An account of a demon whose beauty left even the Gods to envy, with hair so white it rivaled the Eternal Frost of the Heavenly Realm, yet so black it brought shame even to the Demon Realm’s Yin and Yang Sea. Who possessed a figure of artisan’s glass, indistinguishable between either gender, and skin of jade. With eyes of brilliant silver, shaming even the tapestry of the Immortal Realm’s Moon and Stars, yet bled a fierce ruby crimson rivaling the Ghost Realm’s Sea of Resentment.
It was an anecdote, a tale belonging to myth and legend, but it was also their history. The Tragedy of their beloved slumbering Emperor. A being that had been trapped in the endless expanses of the Paradox that is Time, forced to relive the tragedies demanded by his Fate. A being once but a mere human mortal, who defied the very Heavens’ and outsmarted Fate to create their home.
It was not a pleasant time tale by any means, fueled as it was by resentment, spite, and desperation, but they took pride in it nonetheless.
This tragedy, an act of defiance against the highest order, that brought tears into the eyes of the young, was their origin and a testament of their truth.
On the Border of the Immortal Burial Mounds.
Fire crackled swallowing a now nonexistent village, collecting the falling corpses of their killers. A pale figure wearing ragged black robes danced gracefully through the fire of battle. Their skin a sickly grey nearly matching the rotting blue-ish grey flesh of the corpses fighting at their command. Hellish screams of agony, fear, and anger echoing like a chorus to the eerily contradicting beautiful song of their flute.
Emotions ran rampant within them as their eyes glowed a striking red. Sadistic satisfaction flowing through their blood at the sight of what they were sure was the most beautiful thing in the Three Realms. Pleasure simmered in their long cold figure, as the world burned around them, the first step of their plan underway. Hidden from view their long frozen hearts warmed with happiness as the Cultivation World faced its retribution for its crimes against him.
They may have sought for this result, may have secretly wished for it day and night, yearned for it, even guided him towards it. But it was them, the Cultivation World, that had made it a reality. They were the ones that had made him out as a monster unprovoked. They were the ones that had pulled at his humanity, whittling away at it through time, until he finally snapped. They had wanted a monster so badly, he merely acceded to their wishes.
The Cultivation World finally faced its retribution. And this was just the beginning of their plan.
Chaos rained all around them, and they thrived in it. The sky darkened around the provinces of the Four Great Sects, the muddy red mist that was Resentful Energy pulsed as it joined together, charging through the carnage of battle at their command through him, attacking the thin barrier trapping them within. A spark of annoyance ran through them from him, as their onslaught against the thin yet strong outer layer of the barrier failed. Worry flooding them as he gained awareness from them.
Yet it was for naught. Their eyes turned to the darkened sky, the sun long covered by angry dark clouds. A tendril of an idea jolted through them from him, making them bristle in excitement. The mass of Resentful Energy swirled around him, dancing with praise as they guided him back to just within their prison walls, while preventing the Great Sects from approaching him. Glee spread through them as they watched the members of the Siege look on helplessly in despair as corpses pushed them back.
Only now did the mortals understand the truth. They had never had a chance of winning, they'd only have won if he had let them. Unfortunately for them, he no longer cared for any of them. And there was nothing holding him back from ripping apart those that wronged him constantly without reason. The thought sent tendrils of excitement through them as they looked forward to his revenge.
Like the ancient demonic god in their visions, they were sure it was an event to look forward to, as the once warm selflessly forgiving heart had tasted the bitter cup a few hundred times too many and had learned selfishness and cruelty. Anticipation rippled through their spirits, even as they felt regret at the loss of a sun, as they abruptly realized their vision was so close to reality. They had won him over, and all they needed now was time and they would make sure they had plenty of that.
Once silver eyes stared indifferent towards a sharp figure in familiar purple robes, whose appearance made them rear up with contempt, disdain, and resentment. The man, they recognized as Jiang Cheng, pointed at them—no, at him—arrogantly, a scowl on his face while rage, hurt, and contempt ran rampant in his sharp purple eyes. "Wei Wuxian! Go to hell!"
They felt a familiar spark run through them from him once more as the tendril of an idea from earlier became clearer. Silver eyes burned scarlet, a devilish smirk rising on thin pale lips, "Happily."
At their command, Resentful Energy burst out from the earth sending the cultivators surrounding him flying, before surging forward in a wave to swallow him. His smirk shifted to a frown as they felt him concentrating as the Resentful Energy they had cultivated for millennia, rushed into his being.
Overwhelming his awareness momentarily just as they heard a distant shout of a desperate heartbroken voice that made them cringe in disgust and contempt. "WEI YING!"
It was but a moment before the world seemed to freeze around him as they felt him force their Resentful Energy to condense into a blackish red core. His pain filled them as his body felt as though it was being ripped apart and black blood dripped from his lips. Within the distance of the sky above them, they heard the sound of a thunder clap.
Fear cowed them at the terribly familiar sight but his will did not even pause.
"It's a Heavenly Tribulation!" A cultivator screamed. "He's trying to ascend!"
"Quick! We need to kill him!"
"It's too late for that, RUN!"
Lifting his gaze to look at the gathering clouds, a smirk suddenly rose on his lips relaxing his furrowed brows. The tendril of an idea he had formed became abundantly clear. They weren't the only ones who wanted revenge on the Three Realms, and he suddenly thought of the perfect way to do it. The first bolt of lightning consumed him, just as the sound of glass shattering filled his ears and the ancient energy sealed within the Burial Mounds answered his calls and assaulted him with glee.
Screams echoed around the Burial Mounds as the first Heavenly Tribulation in a millennia occurred for the Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation, and Heaven's 'show of judgment' was used against them.
Deep Within the Immortal Burial Mounds.
For the second time in a millennia, excited whispers of disbelief echoed through the dreary mountain valley of the most ancient battleground of the Three Realms.
Spirits that were once Gods, Ghosts, and Immortals. They gathered amongst themselves. Any hatred for each other had vanished after centuries trapped inside these mounds by the very ones that they had fought for. Together, they had felt utterly helpless and resigned to an existence forever trapped in these dreary mountains.
Their resentment towards the realms simmered and grew with each passing century that they remained trapped. Growing even more as others were thrown into the Mounds whether for banishment, or punishment they were unsure.
Now however...
"Master Hei was right!" Disbelieving surprise echoed in the spirit's voice, many having not believed the words of one of those that had left them to rot here. Many had long given up on escaping their eternal prison and did not have the will to hold onto false hope, and yet...
"The others succeeded!" While they had all given up and were resigned to their fate of being trapped here for eternity, lazing away and ignoring the worlds outside their prison, their more 'active' companions had acted on the hope they had been provided and succeeded!
The passive spirits followed the flow of their resentment to their prison's border and watched in amazement the source of their brethren's hope ."He's defying the Heavens!"
A spirit laughed at his fellow's dumbfounded response, "It's not just the Heavens he's defying. He's defying all of the three realms."
A once revered Immortal General laughed boisterously at the one-sided battle before him and looked on at the charge he and the others had 'raised'. "Immortals, Ghosts, Gods! What does it matter if we had once been brothers and sisters, they trapped us in here!"
His words ignited the dead fire in the hearts of the now passive imprisoned soldiers.
"They blocked us from entering the cycle of Reincarnation!" A spirit shouted angrily. "They sealed us here to rot without a thought!"
"Quick, we must seize this opportunity to defy them together with him!"
"Yes! We shall separate from the three realms!"
"If the Heavens won't accept us as we are now!"
"If the Dead won't accept us as we are now!"
"If the Mortals won't accept us as we are now!"
"We shall follow the Yiling Patriarch!"
"We shall become an entirely new being!"
"Create our own Realm!"
"One where we will be free!"
"Where we will be accepted!"
"Yes!"
"We shall defy the Realms together with him!"
"Make them regret abandoning us!"
And as if they had become a single entity in full agreement, they thought collectively, "This boy will be the centerpiece in our rebellion!"
After an unimaginable amount of time, the barrier containing the ignored Dark Energy of the Immortal Burial Grounds heeding the call of a mortal shattered with a strike of lightning, sending a violent shockwave through each of the Three Realms. All due to a mortal defying the Three Realms to become an entirely new existence.
Unknown Location. Deep within the Ghost Realm.
An 'old' man sat shamelessly within a run down shed which clashed greatly with his refined features. A bottle of liquor in hand as he drank, utterly lacking in decorum. His cheeks, absent of any drunken flush despite the pile of empty jars before him, tickled by the bangs of his cascading black hair which framed sharp amber eyes. A dull grey sword thrown carelessly on the table.
Lazy and Shameless. Those were the only words that could be thought of him despite his outstanding appearance. Different from what one would think when they hear about one of the Shifu of the current Heavenly Emperor. Then again it wasn't really a well known fact that the Heavenly Emperor had not only exiled his own Shifu, but imprisoned him for a minor discretion, either.
Of course, the old man didn't care what others thought. He didn't want to be like the other stingy old men of his generation. Why? Because that would mean he'd have to go into seclusion for the rest of eternity, and if he did that he'd run out of alcohol at some point and then boredom would set in.
So no, he was okay with just being referred to as Old Man Hei.
He raised a bottle of liquor just above his open mouth when he paused. The world seemed to tremble violently, as there was a sudden displacement in the dormant Yin energy of the world. Amber eyes narrowed dangerously, making his whole person allude a cold terrifying presence, when suddenly his lips tilted upwards, his eyes following to widen in pleasant surprise, his presence once more becoming warm and carefree.
"That kid!" He laughed wildly, hand hitting the table causing the empty jars to bounce at the force as he tried to control himself. "He really likes to surprise me! Much better than that ungrateful brat I helped Luo raise."
Not moments afterward, the door to the shed was thrown open to reveal a scowling put together 'old' man with beautiful white hair as long as his own. The other growled at the sight of him screaming, "WHAT DID YOU DO!?"
No one could fault the man for his grin at the sight of his generally calm and collected friend screaming.
The Three Realms.
Across the realms, the earth trembled violently provoking fear and confusion in the hearts of all. A sudden unsettling chill, even to the dead, overcoming all.
Unseen to the naked eye, a mass of silvery energy mixed with deep reds and blacks was gathering outside the three Realms only shared Forbidden Zone, the Immortal Burial Mounds. An ancient battleground coming to life with a new goal as together the spirits within and the energy outside attacked at the barrier seal which trapped them.
The all too familiar clap of thunder as a Heavenly Tribulation formed into existence startling all, and for the first time, an unprecedented event occurred within all three realms at the same time.
The first clap of Thunder struck and the world erupted into confusion as shrill ear piercing screams of agony echoed in the air.
The second clap of Thunder struck and the world descended into chaos as fear set in as the screams continued and the earth quaked more violently than it ever had.
The third clap of Thunder struck and the world cowered as corpses rose from the earth as if heeding the call of the screams
The fourth clap of Thunder struck and the world trembled as it seemed to freeze despite the light of the sun, accompanying the screams.
The fifth clap of Thunder struck and the sky trembled as space and time seemed to bend and tear accompanying the sounds of flesh twisting and ripping coming from the agony induced screams.
The sixth clap of Thunder struck, and the Moon covered the Sun, engulfing the world in complete and utter terrifyingly empty darkness.
The seventh and final clap of Thunder struck and there was silence for a moment before a wave of horrifyingly cold energy swept the world carrying with it hoarse laughter and a nauseating feeling of time and space warping settled into all.
The earth and sky then calmed, and the light of the sun once more returned gracing the two Realms with warmth, revealing the multitude of figures that had collapsed. While the Realm of Ghosts entered a period of rest, fear hiding within the core of their being to the power they felt hidden in the depths of the Space between the Realms.
And then all was quiet.
The Imperial Capital of the Heavenly Realm.
The Heavenly Emperor Shen Yue trembled fiercely, sinking into his throne. Brows furrowed as his rare platinum blond bangs stuck to his face due to perspiration lining his forehead. His golden robes soaked thoroughly. Exhaustion overcame him as he thought back to the overwhelming resistance he suddenly felt from his realm. His mind swirling with questions as he looked down at the passed out figures of his Council.
A groan echoed from his side and his eyes followed towards its origin. A soft tired smile appeared on his thin lips at the sight of his best friend and general sleeping in the most undignified position the Emperor had ever seen.
Looking over to the rest of his Council a number of them seemed to have fallen into odd positions when they'd been attacked. He flinched once more as residue from the 'attack' acted up in his body. His eyelids failed him as he finally gave into unconsciousness, soft unfamiliar smug laughter ringing in his ears.
"My Apologies," He could almost envision the smug look on the offender's face, "looks like I exhausted Your Highness."
Unknown Location. Deep within the Ghost Realm.
The Ghost Realm trembled profusely around the small shack under the strain of an invisible force. The once thickly filled air of resentment, now thin. Ghosts fled into seclusion as they felt themselves being drained of their power, panic and fear overwhelming them.
Within the small liquor-filled shack of a shameless old man, chaotic power sizzled in the air clashing against a more orderly form. Old Man Hei grinned maliciously at his oldest 'enemy'. For the first time in centuries, he was overflowing with power as the balance tipped in his favor. Different from the disheveled look of his long lived companion of Order, his very being was glowing with youthful energy despite his age.
"What did you do?!" His companion seethed through gritted teeth, a hand gripping the doorway to stabilize his trembling form. Old Man Hei's malice grin grew at his struggle.
"What is it you're referring to Luo Binghe?" As if to prove a point he lifted another bottle of liquor to his lips.
"Hei. Yao. Yang." His name was spoken through clipped teeth, a glare digging into his being, "This is why you went down to the Mortal Realm! You destroyed the balance! The Realms are in utter chaos! You messed with something you should not have again!"
Hei YaoYang smirked, waving a finger together with his liquor bottle. "Ah but you're wrong! I fixed it!"
With a devilish grin, the old man took a swig of the wine in his palm, and with a wave of his hand an image appeared before them, "I'm pleased to introduce you to the one destined to be the Ruler of the newest Realm. Once called the Yiling Patriarch, Wei Ying courtesy name Wuxian, the Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation and the Future Ruler of the Demon Realm! The very first True Demon in existence."
Luo Binghe blinked in a rare moment of confusion. A ball of shadows appearing to the side of Hei YaoYang's hand. Within it one could see a sleeping child curled into a ball in an unfamiliar desolate cave. Hair whiter than snow spread around him, a red glow visible under pale eyelids, clutched between thin fingers was a black bamboo flute paired with a red tassel.
Old Man Hei looked on with pride.