On the cliff.
A Tai's eyes were somewhat bloodshot. In the image behind him, a middle-aged man was riddled with wounds, yet still struggled weakly to get up.
Unfortunately, what followed was a flash of cold steel and a spray of blood.
He collapsed helplessly to the ground.
A figure with their back to the image walked farther away, grabbed a child, and carried him off in one hand, gradually disappearing into the distance.
After that...
The child was casually tossed onto a truck.
And the truck was full of children.
The journey was long. Amid despair and fear, the truck stopped.
Figures with indistinct faces stood in a row. Each took a child and began climbing and weaving through the mountain forests.
They concealed themselves as best they could.
Some were caught by patrols.
Others managed to slip past the checkpoints and enter the Demon Domain.
The child whose perspective the image followed was brought into the Demon Domain just like that.
The scene changed. In a pitch-black cave, the children were immersed in a blood pool, crying out in agony.
Day after day, year after year.
In the end, some of these children could not withstand the modifications and died.
Some survived, growing stronger and stronger.
A Tai was one of the survivors.
He was muscular and enormous.
Demon beasts inspected him as though examining merchandise, constantly discussing something.
Only A Tai remained where he was, utterly bewildered.
At this point, the image could barely hold together.
His face contorted in pain, A Tai knelt on one knee on the stairway high in the air, veins bulging as he let out low growls.
"Forget it. Stop watching..."
"Jump down, and it'll all be over..."
Whispers rose amid the wind.
Panting heavily, A Tai braced himself against the Energy