A lone cabin stood atop a mountain range shrouded in thick fog. It was the home of the third-ranked Transcendent, Wei Zhongqi. He read a book by the light of an oil lamp when he noticed someone approaching. He closed his book and stood up.
The door swung open to reveal an uninvited guest: Kiriel. Ranked sixth among the Transcendents, Kiriel often visited Wei Zhongqi whenever the opportunity arose. Although Wei Zhongqi found this troublesome, he had resigned himself to indulging Kiriel.
“Wei Zhongqi! I’ve got big news!” Kiriel’s voice was full of excitement.
However, Wei Zhongqi showed no interest. He reopened his book and continued reading.
“I said, big news!” Kiriel waved a hand in front of Wei Zhongqi, annoyed at being ignored.
“Your shoes,” Wei Zhongqi muttered.
Wei Zhongqi pointed out that Kiriel had entered the room with shoes on, dirtying the once-pristine wooden floor with dust. Kiriel scratched his head apologetically and waved a hand. A gust of wind blew the dust outside.
After taking off his shoes, Kiriel returned to the room.
“So, what is it this time?” Wei Zhongqi asked.
“Amon is dead. I checked the rankings, and his name is gone.”
Amon’s death was, indeed, big news. He was one of the demons who significantly influenced the Deep Realm. However, since Wei Zhongqi had little interest in the ongoing power struggles, he merely noted it as something to remember, without much personal concern.
“Rumor has it that Amon went to Earth!” Kiriel continued.
“Then it’s obvious who killed him. You’ve heard the recent rumors about anyone who goes to Earth dying, haven’t you?”
Amon was among the stronger demons in the Deep Realm. Could anyone on Earth be capable of killing such a being? It was impossible for a human, except one.
“The King of Earth!” Kiriel stated.
“He’s also known as the Heavenly Demon. That’s what I used to call him,” Wei Zhongqi said.
“Now that you mention it, did you really used to be under the King of Earth?”
Wei Zhongqi had once been a resident of the Central Plains before coming to the Core. It was said that he had been part of the organization led by the current King of Earth, Lee Do-Jun. If Kiriel remembered correctly, the group was called the Heavenly Demonism.
“Yes, I was part of the Shadowless Squad of the Heavenly Demonism,” Wei Zhongqi replied.
The Heavenly Demonism had five armed squads, with the Shadowless Squad specializing in covert operations and internal audits.
Originally, only the top graduates of the Black Assassins Academy could join, but Wei Zhongqi, who was set to graduate at the bottom of his class, had received a single lesson from Do-Jun. This lesson transformed his skills so drastically that he was asked to join the squad by none other than the head of the Shadowless Squad.
“Shadowless... whatever. Anyway, being with the King of Earth makes you an awesome guy,” Kiriel muttered, then smirked as if he suddenly had an idea.
He leaned in close to Wei Zhongqi and handed him something. It was a disposable artifact called the Rainbow Dip, which amplified one’s mana. While it wasn't a relic-level item, it was still quite rare.
“If you tell me the King of Earth’s weakness, I’ll give this to you,” he said.
Wei Zhongqi glanced at Kiriel’s foolish grin with a look of disdain. He sighed and brushed the Rainbow Dip aside.
“There’s no such thing as a weakness,” he replied.
“Everyone has at least one or two weaknesses. Maybe you just don’t know it.”
“From what I’ve seen, he had none.”
“Tsk.” Disappointed, Kiriel clicked his tongue.
He was about to stash the artifact away, but paused. “At least tell me what being with the King of Earth was like. I’m curious.”
Wei Zhongqi ignored him and continued to read his book. Finding it dull, Kiriel flopped onto the floor with a bored expression. The oil lamp’s flame flickered, and Wei Zhongqi unconsciously reminisced about his days in the Central Plains.
He recalled the time when he was a student at the Black Assassins Academy.
The comprehensive rankings of all Academy students were announced on the main bulletin board at Black Assassins Academy. Over two hundred students were evaluated for their combat skills, and the rankings were revealed right before graduation.
Wei Zhongqi discovered his name in 207th place—dead last. He had consistently ranked at the bottom for three years, earning the dubious distinction of being a genuine dullard among dullards.
Three grueling years at the academy, and he had nothing to show for it. Among his peers, Wei Zhongqi was the subject of ridicule. It wasn’t that he hadn’t tried; no matter how hard he worked, he never made any progress. Eventually, he stopped trying altogether.
Wei Zhongqi glanced at the top student standing before the bulletin board: Han Zhongping, a genius who had never relinquished the top spot. Rumor had it he was a candidate to become the next vice leader of the sect. The sight of the top and bottom-ranked students in the same space only deepened Wei Zhongqi’s sense of despair.
I heard the top graduate gets to meet the sect leader in person...
Seeing the Heavenly Demon was a dream for all academy students. Only the Division Heads and Guardians had ever seen him, let alone knew what he looked like.
The students chattered among themselves.
“All that’s left is the Covert Path trial.”
“It doesn’t count toward your grades, so let’s just breeze through it.”
“Yeah, but it’s still important to get an assignment later, isn’t it?”
“Not like anyone’s making it past the first floor, anyway.”
The Covert Path was the academy’s final trial before graduation, testing the ability to navigate a five-floor building dedicated to the formation arts. Its difficulty was notorious—most could hardly get past the first floor. The best record in the academy’s history was reaching the entrance to the second floor, and no one had ever advanced further.
Wei Zhongqi stood before the academy’s Chief Instructor, Zhang Yongji. He couldn’t believe what he had heard.
“Pardon me?” he said.
Zhang Yongji repeated himself. “Tomorrow, there will be a lesson in the Breathing Room. Don’t be late.”
What was he talking about? There weren't any classes left on the schedule, so why was there suddenly another lesson?
“Sir, as far as I know—” Wei Zhongqi tried to speak, but Zhang Yongji’s piercing gaze silenced him. For a mere student to speak back to the Chief Instructor was unthinkable.
Wei Zhongqi gulped nervously. Heavenly Demonism’s hierarchy was strict, and a student addressing the Chief Instructor directly was unheard of.
Wei Zhongqi couldn’t understand what was happening.
The following day, Wei Zhongqi went to the Breathing Room as instructed. A man who looked to be in his late twenties was waiting for him there, seated cross-legged on a chair. Was he an instructor? Though something about him felt off, Wei Zhongqi had never seen him before.
“Do you have an issue with your rank?” asked the man.
He rested his chin on his hand and stared at Wei Zhongqi. He seemed aware of Wei Zhongqi’s less-than-stellar graduation rank from the academy.
Wei Zhongqi smiled bitterly and shook his head, knowing that the result was entirely his responsibility.
During the three-year course at the Black Assassins Academy, there was Han Zhongping, who never once missed first place, and in stark contrast, Wei Zhongqi never managed to avoid finishing last.
The two were as incompatible as oil and water.
“When you were in your first year, you used to wake up two hours earlier than others to practice swordsmanship.”
The man brought up his first year in the academy’s three-stage curriculum. At that time, Wei Zhongqi would wake up at 2 AM and train alone in the old training grounds, where no one else would venture. It was his personal effort to catch up to the others, considering how far behind he was.
However, perhaps because of his extremely low talent, the gap never closed. If anything, it widened further, leading him to eventually give up on his efforts.
“Do you have any regrets?” the man asked.
“About my rank... sir?”
Wei Zhongqi sat across from the man. The man wasn’t particularly striking, yet his appearance was undeniably handsome. For some reason, Wei Zhongqi felt an inexplicable pressure emanating from him. The man wasn’t exuding any killing intent, yet just being face-to-face made it somewhat hard to breathe.
The past three years of academy life flashed through Wei Zhongqi’s mind.
“I...” Unable to say anymore, he bit down hard on his lower lip, blood seeping out as it split.
The man tossed a bundle of blank papers toward him—pure white sheets, devoid of any writing.
Wei Zhongqi looked up at the man, confused. Why was he giving him this?
“It’s for your reflection paper,” the man said.
“Write one.” The man smiled faintly as he spoke. “I’m giving you a chance.”
At first, Wei Zhongqi was furious. Why did he have to write and submit a reflection paper to this man? He couldn’t understand it at all.
He glanced around the empty dining hall. Suddenly, he recalled his ambitious vow when he first entered Black Assassins Academy. He had gritted his teeth and sworn to himself that he would survive and hold his head high. But what about now?
Look how pathetic I am.
It wasn’t just dissatisfaction with his rank. The burning frustration and stinging bitterness surging within him stemmed from comparing himself now to the person he had wanted to be three years ago, making him feel utterly insignificant.
I should’ve given it my all.
Even if the outcome had been the same, even if he had still finished in last place, at the very least, he could have held his head high before himself.
If only I could turn back time.
A hollow laugh escaped him. How? How could one possibly turn back time?
His gaze turned to the blank papers the man had given him, one for this Reflection Paper. Wei Zhongqi glanced out the window and saw other academy students wearing black martial uniforms moving about the dormitory grounds. They would soon officially join Heavenly Demonism, each finding their place in a martial organization.
Of course, there was no place for him among them.
“Dumbass,” he muttered to himself.
After berating himself for a while, Wei Zhongqi quietly ground an inkstone and began writing with a brush on the blank paper. Reflections on the past three years started to fill the page.
The man read Wei Zhongqi’s reflection paper thoroughly while Wei Zhongqi knelt with his back straight, waiting. Five hours had passed by the time the man finished reading the last line. Even the cicadas outside had fallen silent.
“Well done,” the man said.
“Now, for the next three years, do your best to keep up with me. If you give up midway again, I won’t let it slide.”
The man stood and left the dining hall.
“W-what... does that mean...?” Wei Zhongqi’s voice echoed faintly in the empty hall.
It wasn’t until Wei Zhongqi graduated for the second time that he realized who the man was: he was the Heavenly Demon himself.
“You graduated at the top of your class this time,” he had said to Wei Zhongqi.
The faint flicker of candlelight cast a solemn atmosphere in the thatched home. Lying on the floor while listening to the story, Kiriel suddenly sat upright and handed Wei Zhongqi the Rainbow Dip.
“Why are you giving this to me? Didn’t you say you’d only hand it over if I revealed a weakness?” Wei Zhongqi asked.
Regardless, there was no reason to refuse since it was being offered.
“You gave me his weakness,” Kiriel informed him.
The next time, when Wei Zhongqi scrolled through the Core Forum, his hand froze mid-scroll, reading a post titled: Looking for Reflection Paper Template.