[Original Novel] Demon King [Part One]

A gust of wild wind blew past, making the boy's black hair dance wildly. Bits of leaves, mixed with dirt, struck his face painfully. He was disheveled in the wind, unsure of what to do.\ In the oncoming wind, faint hints of cold blood surged, seeming almost like spirits wailing near his ears. In the boundless darkness, it seemed as if he were utterly alone. Upon realizing this, fear rapidly enclosed him. Like the darkness before dawn, his heart was filled with extreme sadness.\ The boy cautiously swallowed, a cold trickle sliding down his throat like a slimy worm crawling into his windpipe.\ 'Cough! Cough!!' He coughed violently, with all his strength, as if he could cough away his fear. The intense coughing forced a hot tear out of him, clinging to his face, instantly steaming away its warmth. That tear was perhaps half from excitement, half from fear.\ 'I even choked just swallowing...' The boy wiped the remaining liquid from his mouth and laughed at himself. 'I'm so weak…'\ 'But... as long as I release that… then... hehe...' The boy smiled coldly. In front of him, the wide-open black iron door looked like a huge beast with its blood-red mouth ajar, baring its teeth in the darkness, glaring ahead. The boy stepped forward with stiff legs, slowly entering.\ In the narrow corridor, dim lights flickered, casting ghostly shadows trailing far behind him. The surroundings were empty and silent, only the boy's heavy breathing echoed. His temples throbbed anxiously, and his boiling blood seemed about to erupt at any moment. His body grew numb, driven only by instinct to walk.\ Ahead, it was pitch black. The boy felt as if he were stepping toward death.\ Time seemed frozen. Every breath seared his lungs with pain. An inexplicable sadness suddenly surged in his heart, mixed with fear, intertwining with his soul.\ Unknowingly, he had reached the end of the corridor. His heart suddenly tightened, pounding faster and faster in his chest.\ Closer and closer...\ He must let it out!\ When the last bit of darkness was revealed before his eyes, his body... was no longer capable of bearing his fear!\ At the end of the corridor stood a gigantic stone coffin, as tall as a mountain, ablaze with flames flaring wildly in the wind. The searing heat rushing toward him made it impossible to open his eyes.\ Slowly, the fiery coffin opened.\ Inside, astonishingly!\ Inside the fiery coffin was, shockingly, an ice coffin!Covered with pure, sparkling ice crystals, it continuously emitted bone-chilling cold.\ The young man trembled as he stepped forward, ignoring the torment of ice and fire, and placed a copper skull onto the ice coffin.\ Instantly, the skull was covered in frost, then shattered and exploded. The powerful impact turned the ice layer into a mist of frost.\ Amid the ice mist, the ice coffin slowly opened.\ A tall figure appeared before the young man. Knees, disobedient to his will, went down.\ The air seemed to freeze. The young man trembled as he raised his head and saw a person standing in front of him!\ A magnificent dragon-patterned snow silk robe highlighted his tall and slender figure perfectly. On his right arm, a huge ice claw radiated the aura of a ruler. His cold and handsome face was furrowed in concentration, and a pair of clear orange eyes reflected the beastly pupils flickering like cracks!\ Heat and bone-chilling aura continuously emanated, penetrating into the young man's soul.\ He trembled and said:\ 'Welcome back…'\ 'Your Majesty, the Demon King.'