Chapter 266 – Jezarslak
Suddenly, Jezarslak turned his head. His piercing gaze locked onto the Red Dragon’s manifestation, cold and depthless, as if carved from the heart of an eternal ice cavern.
“What are you staring at?”
The howling winds of chaos roared through the void, and the mists of entropy surged like a violent current. Behind the gaunt figure, a vast, twisted, winged silhouette seemed to coalesce—something ancient, monstrous, and utterly alien.
“Destruction!”
“Chaos!”
“Revenge!”
The cries echoed in layered, resonant unison, rising from the abyss itself.
That gaze—so sharp, so deliberate—seemed to pierce through the form, traversing the Passage between the Prime Material Plane and the Stellar Realm. Kai Xiusu felt a chill like falling into an endless frozen cavern. It was the moment the False Veil was torn aside—revealing the true, terrifying strength of a Demon Lord from the past. Even a simple glance could drive a mortal entity mad.
Kai Xiusu clenched his jaw, reinforcing his mental barrier. “I’m merely observing your strength,” he said through gritted teeth. “To see if you’re truly worthy of collaboration with me.”
The swirling chaos energy around them vanished instantly. The demon’s expression shifted—smooth, composed, almost gentle. As if the previous terror had been nothing more than a hallucination conjured by Kai Xiusu’s own mind.
“My dear, beloved collaborator,” Jezarslak said, his voice velvet and warm, “I’d be honored to share everything with you. But only after the Pact is sealed. To pry into another’s secrets without permission—unforgivable, even in the Bottomless Abyss. I assume your kind from the Prime Material Plane wouldn’t be so crude.”
He tilted his head slightly, as if considering something. “I can tell… you’re hiding secrets too.”
“But time is long, and we have much to learn from one another. That, after all, is the foundation of any true collaboration, isn’t it?”
The floating Jezarslak gave a slight nod—either an apology for the earlier breach of manners, or a quiet provocation aimed at the Red Dragon’s form.
Far away, in the Prime Material Plane, Kai Xiusu’s true form shivered. His scales flared slightly, and white smoke hissed from the porous organs beneath his hide.
He hadn’t felt this kind of oppressive pressure in a long time.
The capricious nature of this “Lord of Vengeance” was unsettling—even for someone like him. Demons were like that. One moment, they’d toast to friendship over wine; the next, they’d slaughter your entire family over something as trivial as “not eating beef.”
And now, this demon was warning him—not to use the hidden strength behind his back to probe him.
Yet, at the same time, he was subtly forcing Kai Xiusu into submission, leveraging that overwhelming presence to seize control of the negotiation.
The past Kai Xiusu had loved using such tactics. Now, ironically, he was the one being subjected to them.
“Dealing with a Demon Lord… truly,”
“a pain in the neck.”
Kai Xiusu thought to himself.
Jezarslak spoke again, calm and inviting. “Well? Have you decided? Any questions? For a peer of equal status, I’ll answer anything.”
His tone was sincere—almost too sincere. His posture was even unnervingly humble.
To any ordinary mortal, such a shift from terrifying power to gentle intimacy would be overwhelming. They’d be flustered, dazzled, and easily ensnared in the demon’s linguistic trap.
But Kai Xiusu remained stone-cold.
After a long silence, he locked eyes with Jezarslak once more.
“Jezarslak,” he said, voice steady, “I’ve witnessed your might. But if you’re so powerful, why seek collaboration with me? Is it really just fate?”
“From what I know, you demons are the very embodiment of chaos—unbound, unstructured. You don’t bow to destiny.”
Jezarslak chuckled softly, shaking his head.
“Ah. The clichéd prejudice of Prime Material Plane mortals. Unlike the foolish legends, demons are actually the most aligned with the true course of the universe. In that regard, we’re more devoted to the inevitable than any human, dragon, or divine being.”
He lifted his gaze toward the void—but his eyes seemed to stare into the Abyss itself.
“Everything in existence… moves from Order into Chaos. That is the eternal fate of all things. When the Bottomless Abyss births demons, it imbues them with the traits most suited to spreading chaos and evil—passion, fury, unrelenting will.”
“Through the actions of demons—driven purely by chaos—Bottomless Abyss can finally achieve its long-sought goal: the annihilation of all things. Mortal and immortal alike. Then, a brand-new universe will rise—born anew from nothing, free from order, free from purpose.”
Kai Xiusu pressed further. “Then why should I help you destroy everything—even myself? I’m not some fool like Koman, consumed by revenge.”
Jezarslak smiled. “Because you can become the new king with me.”
Kai Xiusu found his loophole instantly. “Hah. Then why don’t you become the sole ruler of the new universe? Is it simply that you don’t want to?”
The demon let out a dry, mocking laugh.
“Still as sharp as ever. I do enjoy working with the clever ones. The dull ones are unbearable.”
“If you knew even a little of demon lore, you’d know: every time a demon dies outside the Bottomless Abyss, its essence returns to the Primordial Chaos of the Abyss.”
“Long ago—thousands of years past—I tore open the Abyssal Passage, seeking to invade this Prime Material Plane through the Stellar Realm. I was discovered by a Divine Being.”
“That being understood the nature of Deep Abyss demons. Rather than kill me outright, it shattered my body and imprisoned my essence within this Astral Void.”
“Even freed from the seal, I could find no vessel strong enough to contain my power. I drifted through endless emptiness—until you appeared, Kai Xiusu.”
Kai Xiusu finally noticed: the demon’s body was translucent, almost ethereal—formed not of flesh, but of raw, willful chaos energy. More spirit than meat.
Jezarslak continued, his voice now a solemn hymn, echoing through the void.
“So… what do you say? Will you carry my chaos strength? Let us become one—destroyers of all, founders of the new world?”
His words grew deeper, heavier—like the gaze of the Abyss itself. They pulled at the mind, tempting, intoxicating, dangerously hypnotic.
Yet Kai Xiusu stood firm.
One word, clear and cold:
“No. Not enough.”
“You haven’t offered a prize worthy of risking enmity with the gods. Not yet.”
The Kai Xiusu of the past had no Character Sheet. Yet, in just ten years, he had grown to over thirty meters in length—far beyond the strength of any mere Revenant Demon. That alone proved one thing: Jezarslak was hiding something deeper.
“HAHAHAHAHA!”
The demon in midair convulsed, erupting into a wild, maniacal laughter.
The sound echoed through the Astral Void, sending waves through the chaos mist—twisting it into grotesque, nightmarish visions from the Abyss.
Jezarslak lowered his head, whispering, voice dripping with dark amusement:
“Not bad… for a Red Dragon obsessed with greed.”
“But… you’re right.”
(End of Chapter)
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