Gulp.

Li Xiaoguang swallowed the black fragment in his hand. He knew. If he consumed this, there would be no turning back. That was why he had always believed he would never swallow it.

That belief held true—until he met Seongshik.

As someone who had reached 7-Star, he thought no one could threaten him anymore. He was convinced that in this life, he would take everything he desired.

‘I should have… killed him back then.’

A massive power surged through his entire body. As his consciousness faded amidst the overwhelming energy, that thought resurfaced.

The first time he met Seongshik after regressing was at Baekdusan’s Heaven Lake, not long after he had reached 7-Star. Back then, Seongshik was merely a 2-Star superhuman. Li Xiaoguang had intended to toy with him, just like how he used to play with dragonflies as a child, tearing off their wings one by one as they struggled.

That was the privilege of the strong.

At that moment, in that place, he was the strong one, and Seongshik was nothing more than a weakling—like a dragonfly.

But because of that Imoogi, he lost Seongshik. It didn't matter, he thought. He would always be the strong one, and Seongshik the weak. Sooner or later, they would cross paths again. And when that time came, it wouldn’t be too late to finish him off.

‘Next time I see him, I’ll make him wish for death.’

Seongshik hadn’t done anything to him—at least, nothing that could be called a grave mistake. His only crime was daring to escape from Li Xiaoguang’s grasp and offending his pride.

And perhaps… the rift that had swallowed Seongshik back then—could it have been an entrance leading to the secluded grounds of the Heaven-Splitting Martial Arts?

The thought never left his mind.

So, he searched for him. A mere 2-Star superhuman—there was a high chance he belonged to an academy. But no matter where he looked, Seongshik was nowhere to be found in any of Korea’s academies.

‘I should have realized then. That bastard had a method of Regression.’

It was only today that he finally confirmed the truth—Seongshik had used a Regression item back then, right there at Baekdusan.

‘When I saw him at the academy… I should have done whatever it took to eliminate… him…’

Regret struck him once more as his consciousness continued to blur.

While investigating the academy, he had accidentally come across the Seoul Academy finals. The martial arts Seongshik used in that fight had left a deep impression on him. He instantly recognized that Seongshik’s techniques were of a higher dimension. That’s why he grew suspicious and began tracking him down.

At the time, Seongshik had seemed to be somewhere between late 4-Star and early 5-Star. Impressive for an academy cadet, but nothing more.

‘How does someone who was just a 2-Star a few months ago grow this much?’

That was his initial assessment. He had seen countless superhumans in his previous life who burned brightly until early 4-Star, only to fade away. Since Seongshik’s face was unfamiliar, he assumed he was just another one of those.

‘Tch, just another bug.’

Still, just in case, he decided to have him monitored. Even if this bug was the same one he had encountered at Baekdusan, there were too many eyes on them for him to make a move here.

Of course, as a 7-Star superhuman, no one in this tiny country could stop him. If he wanted, he could wipe out these bugs here and now.

‘But I can’t afford to draw too much attention anymore.’

He had already witnessed multiple butterfly effects caused by his actions after Regression. That was why he had resolved to minimize unnecessary disruptions.

Moreover, the pretty girl standing beside Seongshik—Kim Subin, the Priestess of the Moon—played a crucial role in the First Night’s Trial. There was no need to provoke someone so deeply tied to such an important event. It would be like burning down an entire house just to catch a single bug.

For the sake of his goal, events leading up to the First Night’s Trial needed to follow a similar trajectory.

Besides, he was already engaged in a struggle against Tidiane, the leader of Revolution, in his bid to take over Revolution Night. In his past life, such a thing would have been unthinkable. Once a mere subordinate, his Regression had propelled him to the point where he was now directly opposing Tidiane.

Unbeknownst to both Seongshik and Li Xiaoguang, he had actually regressed much earlier than Seongshik. Seongshik had only regressed a little over a year ago. But Li Xiaoguang had returned to a time shortly after the Great Cataclysm.

Whether this was because his One More Time trait had an older origin, or because he had died earlier in his previous life, he didn’t know.

What mattered was that he had returned earlier and was on the verge of seizing control of Revolutionary Knights. He had even taken his first step toward his ultimate goal—becoming the Demon God.

‘But… that goal… is being ruined… by a mere… bug…’

In truth, he could no longer call Seongshik a bug.

Seongshik had grown too much in such a short time. He was no longer a weak, helpless prey—he was a predator.

Seongshik was now a beast capable of ripping out his throat.

That was why Li Xiaoguang felt such bitter resentment. The one he had thought he could crush with a mere flick of his fingers was now devouring him instead.

Perhaps he should have confided in Tidiane about his Regression and sought his cooperation. Maybe his greed to hoard everything for himself had ultimately led to his downfall.

His final thought before his consciousness faded completely—regret.

The next time he opened his eyes, he would no longer be himself. The human Li Xiaoguang would be gone, leaving behind only the demon Li Xiaoguang.

But… he refused to let it end like this. His trait, his life—one clawed back from death—was far too precious to throw away.

“I… this time… will be different. I will never… fall again.”

Crunch—

With those last words, Li Xiaoguang was completely consumed by the dark energy surging from his body.

Seeing that scene, Sungshik inwardly clicked his tongue.

‘I didn’t expect this.’

He never imagined that Li Xiaoguang possessed that black fragment or that he would absorb it. He had only been thinking about how to extract more information from him. That moment of distraction caused a delayed reaction.

‘If I hadn't let my guard down, I could have stopped it.’

The distance between them was close. Moreover, as someone who had reached 7-Star, Sungshik’s acceleration was now far beyond what it had been before. If he had noticed anything suspicious, he could have blocked it immediately.

‘If he undergoes demonization, how strong will he become?’

Sungshik swallowed hard. There was a possibility that Li Xiaoguang would reach the wall of 8-Star. For a brief moment, he considered retreating. But he quickly shook his head.

‘I have to finish this now.’

Li Xiaoguang had already learned that Sungshik was a regressor. If he let him live, the repercussions would be severe. Moreover, if he fully transformed into a demon, he might become an opponent that Sungshik couldn’t even face.

‘Ah!’

At that moment, something came to mind—the flames of purification he had used against Tenril. When Tenril was being consumed by the black energy, Sungshik had burned it away using those flames.

As soon as the thought occurred, he acted immediately.

“Heaven-Splitting—Wind Scar.”

Whooosh!

The flames surged from the Heaven-Splitting Divine Sword, rushing toward the black energy that engulfed Li Xiaoguang like a cocoon.

Fwoooosh!

“Kuaaaah—!”

As the purifying flames enveloped the black energy, a scream echoed from within.

Fwoosh. Fwoosh.

At first, the flames seemed to be consuming the black energy, but soon, they reached a deadlock, evenly matched. It was different from the time with Tenril. Back then, Tenril’s own will and his aura of light had helped push back the black energy. It had been easily burned away, but now, things were different.

“Kraaaah—!”

Li Xiaoguang, who had been curled up, suddenly let out a piercing scream. At the same time, the black energy swirled violently around him, repelling the flames and then absorbing into his body.

‘I couldn’t stop it completely.’

Seeing that some level of demonization had still occurred, Sungshik felt a pang of regret. But when he used Insight to check Li Xiaoguang’s condition, that regret disappeared.

‘Insight.’

Name: Li Xiaoguang

Race: Half-Demon

Rank: 7-Star (★★★★★★★)

Traits: [SS Rank] Shadow Swamp, [EX Rank] One More Time

*Was in the process of being consumed by an unknown dark force but was interrupted by holy energy. Combat power has significantly decreased.

Li Xiaoguang had ultimately failed to complete his transformation into a full demon.

“Hah.”

In fact, even calling him a Half-Demon was questionable. His rank hadn’t changed, and from the description stating his combat power had significantly decreased, he might have actually become weaker.

—That guy… he seems even weaker now?

Even the Heaven-Splitter agreed. His aura had diminished. In this state, he wasn’t even a match for Sungshik. The only visible changes were his grayish skin, the horns protruding from his head, and his slightly demonic appearance.

‘This worked out well. If he had reached 7-Star+, it would have been troublesome.’

The gap between 7-Star and 8-Star was massive, but even within 7-Star, the difference between regular and 7-Star+ was significant. Even if Sungshik had the advantage in compatibility, if Li Xiaoguang had reached 7-Star+ through demonization, the fight would have been far more difficult.

“Krrgh… You… damn… bastard…”

Li Xiaoguang let out ragged breaths and glared with bloodshot eyes. Sungshik responded with a simple swing of his sword.

“You tried your best. Goodbye.”

Crunch!

A dark room. In the pitch-black space, several luminous orbs emitted a soft glow.

Pop.

Suddenly, the brightest of them flickered out.

“…Hmm.”

A presence observing this sight let out a quiet hum.

‘Li Xiaoguang is dead.’

Li Xiaoguang was no ordinary person. Though they had occasionally clashed, he had been an ultra-powerful being who had reached 7-Star.

‘He was still useful.’

His combat prowess had been valuable in many ways. While he had been expanding his influence within the organization, it was within predictable limits. He had been controllable.

‘And I never even uncovered his secret…’

Li Xiaoguang had harbored an unknown secret. It was as if he had the omniscience of a god, acting boldly in ways that even the observer couldn’t predict, and yet, his actions had always been correct.

‘I never expected him to be eliminated like this.’

It was a shame. Unlike himself, who was bound to this place, Li Xiaoguang had been free to move as he pleased.

Li Xiaoguang’s goals had been simple. On the surface, they had seemed to clash, but in reality, he had been easy to manipulate. To this observer, Li Xiaoguang was merely another piece on the board.

“Pthos.”

Rustle.

“You called?”

“Li Xiaoguang is dead.”

“…I see.”

The figure that emerged from the darkness flinched slightly at the words.

“Retrieve all the authority that had been granted to him immediately. Also, investigate the details of his death.”

“Understood.”

With that, the figure disappeared into the darkness.

Staring at the extinguished orb, Tidian’s eyes darkened further.

—Incredible. So this is Consumption?

“Yeah.”

Sungshik used [EX Rank] Consumption on Li Xiaoguang’s corpse. Watching for the first time, even the Heaven-Splitter found the process fascinating.

—This is an absurd ability.

That was the sword’s conclusion after witnessing the process. It could feel the complete absorption of power. To it, this defied common sense.

“Not really.”

Sungshik chuckled at its reaction and checked the message that appeared before him.

—…Consumption complete. Congratulations, you have obtained the [SS Rank] Shadow Swamp trait.

At that moment, Sungshik’s shadow began to stretch and distort.