*Content Warning: This chapter contains mature themes, violence, blood, and morally dark actions. Reader discretion advised.*
"As I said," Void murmured, reaching for a bottle on a broken shelf, "this will be the day Violet vanished."
He uncorked it, took a slow drink, then smashed the bottle against the table. Shards glittered in his hand as he walked toward her.
Violet lowered her head. *No matter what happens,* she thought, *I won't answer. Even if it means dying.*
Void's lips curled. "Yeah, yeah. You're a tough little nutshell, right? Hard to crack?"
He stopped in front of her and, smiling pleasantly, pressed a jagged piece of glass into her flesh.
She barely flinched.
Violet had already burned her life force dry. Her nerves were numb, body hanging at the edge of collapse. Compared to the hollow ache chewing through her insides, this kind of pain was nothing.
"My, my," Void said, eyes lighting up. "You really are impressive. I thought you'd burst into tears by now. Guess I misjudged you."
Violet's face remained blank. "Just like I said… cough… this kind of pain is nothing."
Void studied her quietly, amusement flickering across his features. *Judging by those scars… she's the youngest of the family. Some kind of disease blocking her qi, tormented by older siblings who could cultivate when she couldn't…*
*And that disease… isn't ordinary. Born with it? Or did someone make sure she'd never rise at all?*
He chuckled. *Either way, this level of torture is nothing to her. Let's raise the bar, then.*
Void pulled the glass from her flesh. Violet's eyes closed on instinct, as if sensing where he would strike next.
He proved her right.
Cold, jagged glass pressed against her eyelid—then pushed in.
Agony like she had never known exploded through her skull. Violet screamed, a raw, animal sound that tore at what remained of her throat.
"AGHHHHHHHHHHH!"
Void laughed over her cries, twisting the shard deeper. "Kekekekekeke… hahahahahaha. Now then, will you still say nothing about what I'm going to ask?"
Violet's jaw worked, but no words came out—only choked gasps and sobs.
Void's eyes gleamed. *If I can squeeze everything about this Draven family—no, this family of Demon Dogs—out of her, I can make good use of them. The gods haven't interfered with them even after seeing how dangerous these dogs are.*
*Which means the Heavenly Demon Dog has already become a very important god.*
He let his smile fade. "Tell me everything about your family," Void said, voice flat. "Start with this: does your father have any personal servants?"
Silence.
Void sighed, disappointed. He yanked the glass from her ruined eye, then grabbed her wrist and pulled with a touch more force than necessary.
Her arm tore free.
Violet's scream was broken and hoarse, ripped from a throat that should have stopped working long ago. "I‑I'll tell you!" she gasped. "Please… please, wait—"
"Now that's our Violet." Void's tone turned almost gentle. "I'm sorry about the arm. But tell me—don't you want that damned father of yours to fall? If you tell me everything, who knows? I might help you."
She hesitated, then spoke in a trembling voice. "Father has no servants. Not even one. There was… never anyone worthy. Everyone who tried either died… or failed."
"That's it?" Void clicked his tongue. "As expected of a disgrace. Still, you were entertaining, Violet Draven."
He stepped behind her.
"Thanks for cooperating," he said softly. "Good‑bye."
His hand closed around her head. With a single, casual motion, he separated it from her body.
The headless corpse slumped in the chair. Blood spread slowly across the ruined tavern floor.
Void stared at the scene, expression empty. "So it's over," he murmured. "I should head to that Heavenly Demon Cult… or whatever they call themselves."
He walked out of the tavern. No witnesses remained. The world outside was quiet, as if nothing had happened.
Void looked up at the sky.
"The heavens shine with borrowed light," he said, voice calm, "yet even the brightest star trembles before nightfall. What is glory, what is sorrow? Both vanish in silence. Only the endless dark bears witness to eternity."
The system window slid into existence before his eyes.
System: Host, what was that supposed to mean?
Void smirked. "It means everything you cling to is temporary. Power, pride, happiness, suffering—they all fade. The heavens only look bright because darkness allows them to shine. In the end, that same darkness swallows everything."
He turned away from the sky. "I simply accept what the rest of you fear. Is that explanation good enough for you?"
System: Even after hearing the meaning, this unit still does not understand.
Void chuckled. "Then forget it. I wonder how that Leon brat is doing."
***
While Void prepared to visit the Heavenly Demon Cult, Leon stood in another world of cultivation—on a battlefield that had just witnessed a god fall.
After his clash with the God of Lightning, silence blanketed the shattered plain. Craters smoked, the air still buzzing faintly with the last traces of divinity. Every cultivator present trembled, not from the fading thunder, but from what they had just seen.
None of the so‑called swordmasters or elite assassins dared move.
Leon leaned against the cracked earth, chest heaving. His body was a map of burns and cuts, every breath a razor. Yet a wild grin tugged at his lips.
"So this… is the Limitless Mimic Physique," he muttered. "It's so damn good…"
Then he coughed blood and winced. "But my injuries are past recovery. And those damn swordmasters are probably already thinking about killing me. What should I do…?"
Up above, no one moved.
The emperor of the Astral Myriad Kingdom—Zephyrion Starbon—watched Leon with bloodshot eyes. His hands shook so violently he had to clench them into fists.
"If… if that brat can defeat a god," he whispered, "then there's no doubt about it. That thing was real… and that demon escaped as well. Both of them are monsters beyond comprehension…"
He dug his nails into his own face, then suddenly gouged at his eyes as if trying to erase the sight. "If that brat keeps rising… there's no doubt he'll one day earn the title of *The Destroyer*."
His gaze sharpened with vicious resolve.
"If we don't attack now, we'll die in the future. Because of his battle with a god, he must be exhausted—exhausted enough that he can't even move. If we strike now, we can kill him, and all the glory will belong to the Astral Myriad Kingdom."
He straightened his robes and roared, voice echoing across the battlefield. "What are you all doing, you idiots? Kill that brat! He's exhausted from the battle. If we don't kill him now, he'll surely kill us later. Once he recovers, he'll slaughter us without hesitation. Kill him—I order you all!"
Leon heard every word.
"That damn old geezer…" he muttered, irritation cutting through his pain. "He's really pissing me off. And Master… where the hell are you, anyway?"
***
**Author's Note:**
If you reached this point, you're a real one.
Tell me what you think about Void and Leon in this chapter (even a short line or emoji is fine). Your comments help a lot and keep me motivated to write the next chapter faster.
If you're enjoying Throne Beyond the Veil, please add it to your library and drop a power stone / review so more readers can find Void's story.