I Really Am A Villain

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“Greetings… my Lord,” the man in black robes said respectfully as he knelt.

“Rise,” Xu Zimo replied with a nod.

“The Demon Master, the current patriarch of the Ancient Demon Realm.”

The Demon Master stood, neither confirming nor denying it, but his gaze remained fixed on Xu Zimo. “What is it that you truly want?” he asked.

“What I want, you can’t guess?” Xu Zimo countered.

“Hellfire Asura sent you here,” he added.

“Yes,” said the Demon Master. “The Ancient Ancestor said the Ancient Demon Realm needs peace. Whatever conditions you have, state them. We will do what we can to meet them.”

“Why doesn’t Hellfire Asura meet me himself?” Xu Zimo asked coldly. “What, does he not dare face me?”

“The Ancient Ancestor has his own reasons. We do not dare speculate,” replied the Demon Master.

“And you? What do you think?” Xu Zimo asked.

“I am the patriarch of the Ancient Demon Realm. I place the welfare of the Ancient Demon Race above all else,” said the Demon Master, shaking his head.

His personal opinion didn’t matter; whatever benefitted the Ancient Demon Race, he would do.

“Go tell the Ancient Demon Race that I am waiting here, on this mountain,” Xu Zimo said calmly.

“If there are any who still wish to follow me to battle, let them come. If they do not, in three days’ time I will leave on my own. I will not disturb the peace of the Ancient Demon Realm. No matter what, they once rendered great service. I will give them the chance for an honorable end.”

“This…” The Demon Master hesitated, looking troubled.

He knew that if he spread this message, chaos would sweep through the Ancient Demon Race.

But truthfully, the Ancient Demon Race was already in turmoil. Xu Zimo’s reappearance in the Victory Tower had already spread throughout the realm, the Infernal Lord had returned.

“If you do not spread the word, others will,” Xu Zimo said indifferently. “It does not have to be you.”

“I’ll do it,” the Demon Master said after a long pause, meeting Xu Zimo’s gaze. “But I hope you will keep your word.”

As he left, Xu Zimo merely smiled faintly, unmoved.

Now he had four Saint Sovereigns by his side, along with dozens of Ancient Demons freed from the Sky Prison.

If it came to war, Hellfire Asura could do nothing to stop him, and would have to worry about the safety of the Ancient Demon Realm itself.

Xu Zimo believed that Hellfire Asura didn’t have the courage to face him head-on.

And even if he did, Xu Zimo did not fear him.

“Have you heard? The Infernal Lord has returned, he’s on Dragon Mountain!”

“Really? Are you sure that’s true?”

“The patriarch himself spread the word, do you think that could be false?”

“Should we go to Dragon Mountain and see for ourselves?”

“Of course! Not just us, many elders, even old ancestors who rarely appear, have already gone there.”

Within the Ancient Demon Realm, as expected, the news caused an uproar.

Everywhere, Ancient Demons whispered and argued, but most of them, all but a few, were heading toward Dragon Mountain.

“Dream Demon Emperor, what do you think?”

At the foot of the mountain, the first to arrive were naturally the high-ranking members of the Ancient Demon Race.

“And you, Sunset Emperor?”

“Hard to say, blessing or disaster, who can tell? But since he’s here, we must pay our respects.”

“I heard the Sky Prison fell from the heavens.”

“Yes, but Hellfire Asura hasn’t reacted. It seems he tacitly allows it.”

Xu Zimo looked up as the sound of countless footsteps echoed from halfway down the mountain.

He rose to his feet and looked down from the summit.

A vast crowd had gathered, nearly ten trillion Ancient Demons filled the slopes, densely packed, covering Dragon Mountain from base to peak as far as the eyes could see.

They climbed slowly, not daring to fly in his presence.

“I greet the Infernal Lord!” cried a million high-ranking Ancient Demons at the front as they reached the summit, falling to their knees.

Behind them, the sea of Ancient Demons followed suit.

Trillions bowed together, their unified shout shaking heaven and earth.

“I greet the Infernal Lord!” the chorus thundered again, the sheer power of it echoing through the realm.

Xu Zimo lifted a hand. “Rise,” he said calmly.

Then he turned, and among the crowd, he saw a familiar face.

The elder he had once met at the Academy, who called himself the Demon Sage and had playfully told Xu Zimo to call him “Little Zhe.”

“You knew my identity long ago,” Xu Zimo said.

“I did not dare presume, only guessed,” the Demon Sage replied quickly.

Xu Zimo gave a faint nod, then turned his gaze to the countless Ancient Demons below. His voice carried immense demonic power, rolling across the entire Ancient Demon Realm and stirring the black clouds above.

“I believe you all know why I have come, and who I am!”

His voice was like thunder splitting the heavens.

“I wish to wage war against Heaven once more, and all that I have done is in preparation for that war. Among you, some knew me once. Others belong to the new generation, who may only have heard my name. It doesn’t matter.”

He paused briefly, then continued, his tone solemn.

“Since the dawn of the Demon Race, our people have shared one goal. To defy Heaven, to destroy the Heavenly Dao, and to build a world where Ancient Demons can live in fairness and freedom.”

“But why must we defy Heaven?” a demon suddenly asked from below. “We live peacefully now in the Ancient Demon Realm. We rule the Godfiend Abyss Heaven. Who dares look down on us? What meaning is there in waging war on Heaven, my Lord?”

“The reason the Ancient Demon Realm seems peaceful now,” Xu Zimo explained, “is because I still live, and because the Ancient Demons trapped in the Primordial Demon Caves still strive to return. Heaven seeks to divide us from within. If the Ancient Demon Race truly joins the war on Heaven, it would be branded a sin beyond forgiveness. Do you really think peace would last? Would we still rule the Godfiend Abyss Heaven?”

“You may be the Infernal Lord,” another voice spoke up, “but I do not know you. I’ve lived a thousand years, and I’ve never owed you anything. You claim Heaven plots against our race, why should I believe you?”

“You need not believe me,” Xu Zimo said evenly. “Just answer me one question. Since the Ancient Demon Race came to dwell in this Godfiend Abyss Heaven, aside from the two Saint Sovereigns, Celestial Devourer and Hellfire Asura, has there ever been a third Saint Sovereign? And even if there were others, did any of them live long?”

His words sent a chill through the crowd.

Celestial Devourer and Hellfire Asura had both attained sainthood during the Heavenly War, so they did not count.

The Ancient Demon Realm had endured for millions of years in relative peace, long enough to amass vast power.

Its disciples and warriors were countless, like the stars in the sky.

Yet the cruel truth was this… in all that time, only two Saint Sovereigns had ever existed.

Even in the Godfiend Abyss Heaven, the Vast Heaven God Realm possessed three Saint Sovereigns.

Of course, not all Saint Sovereigns were equal in power.

Xu Zimo suspected that Celestial Devourer and Hellfire Asura had already reached the level of Sage Monarchs.