I Really Am A Villain
Ch. 378 - Trample The Heavens Underfoot

Thunder and lightning roared across the sky, storms stirred the heavens.

An immense aura gathered into one.

The man slowly raised the halberd in his hand and charged toward the masses.

"I have seen the origin of all things, And I have witnessed the end of it all. Beggars knowing their fate, nobles blessed by the heavens, scholars debating ink, warriors drinking wine, someone’s sword gleaming cold across the nine realms, purple aura stretching a hundred thousand miles, beasts howling at the moon, devouring half the sky, And the collapse of worlds before the end of an era. But in the end, none escape birth, aging, sickness, and death, the cycle of karma. People come into this world naked, and leave it just the same. My technique, Demon, is divided into ten forms. Watch carefully!"

As his words fell, the halberd in his hand stirred the heavens.

"First Form: Realm Demon. Those who glimpse illusions and see gods!"

His halberd burst forth with boundless demonic energy. The space around began to twist, layers folding over each other. The sound of cracking echoed around.

The great era shifted, and space bent in half.

The people at the base of the corpse mountain were horrified to see, an exact mirror image of themselves had appeared before them, as if their reflections stepped out of the water.

The space in front of them was split, and their counterparts stood on the other side, but disturbingly real.

When they attacked, the reflections attacked too.

Their strikes collided with deafening booms in the air.

It was impossible to tell who had the upper hand.

Xu Zimo could see it clearly, this Realm Demon form was a space-based technique. It used the very nature of space to its fullest. Illusions became real, and reality became illusion.

...

"Second Form: Plague Demon. Those afflicted by karmic disease!"

Blood energy surged from the halberd, turning into countless crimson threads. Each thread represented a form of karma.

The threads surrounded those at the base of the mountain. Birth, aging, sickness, and death, inescapable ends for all life.

In that moment, sickness overtook them, life drained away, death descended.

Xu Zimo was stunned, this Plague Demon form was even more ruthless. It ignored all defense and forcibly stripped away life.

"Third Form: Terrestrial Demon. Master of all disasters!"

With another sweep of the halberd, countless cracks appeared across the earth.

Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, hurricanes, landslides, mudslides, every natural disaster surged forth.

The man had become the embodiment of disaster itself. He controlled them all; with a wave, calamites followed.

Nature’s wrath roared across the land.

Xu Zimo knew this was the might of heaven and earth, no mortal could stop it. To wield nature’s fury, this was Earth Demon.

At this point, the allied forces below had fallen into chaos. The man fought alone, growing more wounded, but he didn’t care.

Demon had ten forms, and the man demonstrated each one. Xu Zimo watched without blinking.

"Fourth Form: Celestial Demon. One who challenges the heavens.”

“Fifth Form: Human Demon. One who silences all creation.”

“Sixth Form: Beast Demon. Essence of trees, stones, birds, and beasts.”

“Seventh Form: Spectral Demon. One who disrupts minds in dreams.”

“Eighth Form: Sun Demon. Loved ones who block the path.”

“Ninth Form: Ghost Demon. Spirits and vengeful souls.”

“Tenth Form: God Demon. One who brings the end of heaven and earth."

As these forms were unleashed, the world turned upside down. Storms swept in from all directions. The sky collapsed, the ground cracked open, and all life faded.

All beings were consumed, vanishing into nothingness.

Yet the man kept going, tireless. It was unclear how long had passed, maybe moments, maybe centuries.

Xu Zimo watched the man’s transformations. Blurry shadows formed before him.

The man’s figure shrank down, becoming a string of glowing characters. Those characters radiated intense murderous energy.

They joined together, forming chapters of a new scripture.

The scripture rushed into Xu Zimo’s mind, branding itself into his memory. It glowed with a power that reached the heavens.

Each form pointed directly to the truth of the Grand Dao, to the essence beyond.

Xu Zimo felt his consciousness sink into darkness. Within endless cycles, he practiced these techniques again and again, pursuing their true meaning to the very end.

No one knew how long had passed, maybe just a moment, maybe several lifetimes.

Xu Zimo felt he had experienced countless different realms. He drifted for ages through the void.

It seemed the man had passed his understanding to Xu Zimo, his realms, his journey.

Xu Zimo’s aura rose and fell, as if passing through endless cycles.

When he finally opened his eyes, he found himself floating in total darkness. Suspended in midair, without direction or destination.

He slowly stood up, his head heavy. Memories had been forcefully implanted in his mind.

Memories of the battle technique called Demon.

This technique didn’t rely on mastery, it relied on comprehension. The deeper your understanding of each form’s essence, the more powerful the result.

Xu Zimo looked up, setting the technique aside for now.

Ahead of him stood the man in the battle robe, waiting calmly.

"You’re awake, Infernal Lord," the man said quietly.

"Who are you really?" Xu Zimo asked with a frown.

"I am the Infernal Lord. And so are you," the man replied with a smile. "But strictly speaking, I am me, and you are you. Though we bear the same title and the same fate, we are two completely different people. I don’t want to become you. And I suppose you don’t want to become me, either."

"I don’t really get it," Xu Zimo said, shaking his head. "You’ve only confused me more."

"You don’t need to understand too much right now," the man said, shaking his head. "In time, you’ll see. There’s no malice between us.

You’ve received what I left behind for you. I only hope that your generation can truly overturn everything."

As his words faded, the man’s figure began to dissolve.

"Infernal Lord, your fate awaits not far ahead. Break it. A cage can’t imprison a bird whose every feather longs for freedom. The me from then. The you of now. We’ve all been striving, generation after generation. So... how about we trample the heavens underfoot?!"

The man burst into laughter.

His laugh echoed through the quiet darkness, sharp and piercing.