The heavens trembled.
Mountains split, rivers boiled, and the sky itself seemed to mourn as countless divine swords rose from the ground, swirling around a single man — their master, their emperor.
Clad in flowing crimson robes woven with threads of golden light, Xiao Wang, the Sword Emperor, stood atop the broken remains of the Divine Sanctuary. His long brown hair fluttered in the wind, his red eyes glowing like embers forged from fury itself. Behind him, the sky burned — a thousand gods had fallen, and the world itself was silent.
He had once been the pride of both the Mortal Realm and the Gods' Domain. A man whose blade could split stars, whose heart had never once wavered before life or death.
And yet, tonight, he was surrounded.
"Surrender, Xiao Wang," a calm voice said — familiar, warm, once trusted.
The voice of his sworn brother — Mo Tian, the Heaven Slayer General.
Xiao Wang turned slowly, his lips forming a faint, bitter smile. "You…" His grip tightened around his sword hilt. "So, it's true. Even you."
Mo Tian's divine armor gleamed under the shattered moonlight. His gaze was steady, but a flicker of guilt passed through it. "You've grown too powerful, Brother. The gods fear you. Even Heaven fears you. If you don't die… none of us will ever live in peace."
Behind him, a woman in flowing silver robes stepped forward — her eyes, cold as ice, were the ones Xiao Wang once dreamed of every night.
Lan Xue'er.
His fiancée. His heart.
"Xue'er…" he whispered, disbelief cracking his voice. "You too?"
She looked away, tears glinting but unshed. "You were never meant to stand above the Heavens. If I must kill you to restore balance… then so be it."
Xiao Wang's laughter was quiet, hollow, filled with sorrow deeper than any wound.
"So this… is the balance you both seek. Betrayal."
His aura flared, crimson light spilling into the heavens. The divine swords floating behind him hummed like a symphony of grief.
Mo Tian raised his palm. "Don't resist, Brother. Your sword essence — I'll preserve it. Your legacy won't vanish."
Xiao Wang's reply was a whisper. "My legacy… was never yours to claim."
Then he moved.
One instant — silence.
The next — the world shattered.
Sword light tore across the heavens, splitting stars, ripping clouds into dust. Mo Tian and Lan Xue'er fought side by side, divine energy colliding with Xiao Wang's immortal sword intent. The battlefield screamed with lightning and fire.
"Heavenly Devourer Slash!"
"Sword Emperor's Judgment!"
The clash lit up the realms — gods fell from their thrones, mortals knelt instinctively as power beyond imagination exploded across creation.
And when the dust cleared, Xiao Wang was kneeling — his sword broken, his body pierced through by Mo Tian's spear.
Blood trickled from his lips. Still, his eyes burned bright, defiant even in ruin.
"You… will regret this."
Mo Tian's expression wavered. For a heartbeat, the brotherhood of a thousand years flashed across his eyes. But greed, darker than love, drowned it out.
He thrust his hand into Xiao Wang's chest — pulling out a fragment of golden energy.
"Your Celestial Sword Core," Mo Tian whispered, voice trembling. "The path to immortality."
Lan Xue'er turned her face away.
As Xiao Wang's blood soaked the heavens, a faint, flickering light escaped from his broken sword — a tiny sword-shaped energy, glowing with crimson and gold, slipping quietly into his dying heart.
And then came darkness — deep, endless, consuming.
Somewhere within that darkness, something ancient awakened.
A black orb, shaped like a miniature universe, pulsed within him — devouring the collapsing divine power, the hatred, the despair, and the very essence of his death.
"If the heavens destroy me… then I shall devour the heavens."
The black orb pulsed once — and Xiao Wang's body vanished without a trace.
A hundred years later…
A cry echoed across a small, snow-covered village on the edge of the mortal world.
A newborn baby, wrapped in tattered cloth, opened his eyes for the first time — crimson red, glowing faintly even in the dark.
A poor farmer smiled weakly. "My son… Xiao Wang. You'll be strong one day."
Beside him, a little girl peeked over the blanket, giggling. "Brother will protect me!"
No one knew that on that cold night, the heavens trembled once more — for the Sword Emperor had returned.
And deep within the baby's fragile heart…a tiny sword of light slept beside a black orb, waiting to awaken once more.