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Chapter 202: The Lust Devil’s Past
Splurt!
The Lust Devil’s true body coughed up a mouthful of blood, his eyes losing focus. He fell to the side, feeling the severe damage to his soul. He had never imagined that, even inside Aldrian’s mindscape, Aldrian would be aware of his presence, remain in control, and possess such an uncommon mindscape. Usually, when he used the Devil Mind Curse, he would infiltrate the victim’s mindscape with his spiritual body, completely blocking the host’s control over it. In fact, the host wouldn’t even realize that he had entered their mindscape.
The process was so quick that by the time he saw the victim’s eyes, he could already infiltrate their mindscape, needing only a few seconds at most to act before recalling his spiritual body. However, for Aldrian to not only notice his intrusion but also shatter his spiritual body was beyond his imagination. This instantly inflicted severe damage on both his soul and body, as the spiritual body was an extension of the real body but created using a fragment of his soul.
This could be considered a significant drawback of the technique—if the spiritual body were somehow destroyed, it would directly harm the caster’s soul and body. He trembled as he recalled the sensation within Aldrian’s mindscape: a power unlike anything he had ever encountered. The overwhelming aura and presence made him feel an irresistible urge to prostrate under its pressure. It was as if he were utterly unworthy to exist in that place. No, it was presumptuous of him to have dared to intrude into Aldrian’s mindscape at all.
"You’ve got another interesting trick. Did you really think I wouldn’t know what was on your mind? I only let you proceed because I was curious about what other tricks you had. To be honest, I’m really surprised—but thanks to you, I’ve gained some new inspiration."
The Lust Devil heard Aldrian’s voice, but he continued to writhe in pain. Yet, as he recalled the overwhelming sensation within Aldrian’s mindscape, a long-forgotten emotion gripped him—fear.
"He’s not human!" That was the only conclusion he could draw from his "visit" to Aldrian’s mindscape. His presence, his abilities, his aura—everything about him was beyond comprehension, far out of the Lust Devil’s reach.
"Let’s end this, I have to return to her. Goodbye, Lust Devil—Rodwin Romano."
The Lust Devil was stunned when Aldrian called out his true name. A wave of nostalgia washed over him, as that name had been forgotten by almost everyone—he was known now only as the Lust Devil.
"Ah, when was the last time someone called me by my true name?" he wondered, his mind suddenly conjuring the faint silhouettes of people he had long forgotten.
With both his body and soul injured, he was in the worst possible situation for any cultivator. A wounded soul was especially dire, as it could destabilize the mind and even weaken the physical body. Healing such an injury was far more challenging and costly, requiring rare resources and the assistance of high-ranking physicians or alchemists to craft the necessary pills or elixirs.
Aldrian then grabbed the Lust Devil’s head. As he often did before killing devils, he prepared to read the Lust Devil’s memories. He wanted to uncover any secrets the devils or the Lust Devil himself might be hiding. Being one of the Seven Deadly Sins, the Lust Devil was bound to possess critical information. He examined the devil’s memories, and as was typical for high-ranking devils, a Devil Lord’s seal was present within his mindscape.
After destroying the seal, Aldrian was finally able to see part of the Lust Devil’s memories. However, he accidentally stumbled upon the Lust Devil’s past, before he had become a devil cultivator. Buried deep within the Lust Devil’s mind, Aldrian saw a young man—ordinary in every way. He had a normal face, average talent, and nothing about him stood out. He was like any other young cultivator, aspiring to become great, hailing from a humble family in the Doria Empire.
One day, a flower bloomed in his heart when he met a woman. He was smitten by her grace and kindness; she was from a noble lineage. However, he knew he was not worthy of her because of his humble background, and he lacked the confidence to approach her. Then, as if by divine intervention, she noticed him while he was training in a secluded spot. From that moment on, she began watching him, intrigued by his dedication. She continued to observe him as he trained, and gradually, they got to know each other. Their relationship grew closer and closer, and eventually, they developed romantic feelings for one another.
Their relationship was free from problems at first, but their happiness was short-lived when news of it spread. How could she, a noblewoman, have a relationship with an unknown man from an unknown family? Many sneered at them, especially at her. Among the nobles, they mocked both her and her family for allowing their daughter to be with someone of such humble origins. Her family also pressured her, but she remained steadfast, always standing by his side and never letting go of him.
As the man, he felt grateful that she had chosen him, but he also hated himself for being unable to do anything due to his humble background and lack of strength. Thankfully, his parents and the rest of his family always supported him. However, one day, after returning from training in a secluded spot, he heard news that left him in shock. He rushed home, only to find that his house had been destroyed and his family slaughtered. He stood there, as he saw his family’s bodies already hanged in front of their ruined home.
They claimed that his family had committed an unforgivable crime by scamming a noble family, but he knew that wasn’t true. There was no way his humble family would dare to scam a noble family—especially since they had no connections to any noble houses. Was it because he had a relationship with the noblewoman? Was that the reason they took his family from him?
He cried, consumed by a rage he had never felt before. But then, he also heard the devastating news that the woman he loved was going to marry the young master of another noble family. Shattered by these two pieces of news, he ran towards her, towards her mansion. But as expected, her family drove him away. They beat him up and told him to never see her again.
He was devastated and in despair over the situation. He didn’t know the woman’s condition or circumstances, but he believed she was still with him in heart. He continued to wait for her in the shadows, hoping for a chance to speak with her. A few days later, he finally saw her, but she was with the young master of the noble family who had claimed they wanted to marry her. Trembling in shock, he still clung to the hope that there was an explanation. He wanted to hear the truth from her.
One day, he met her alone and asked for the truth. However, the reality was cruel. It seemed she couldn’t do anything—after all, the young master had a higher rank and status than her family, and if she refused his proposal, her family would suffer. He felt devastated, as though he were falling into an abyss. He told her about his family’s fate, and she was shocked. She had no idea, and guilt consumed her, as she felt responsible for his suffering. But it was too late. She had already accepted the young master’s proposal, knowing it was for her family’s safety.
As he watched her figure left him alone, something snapped inside his mind. If I were stronger, could all of this have been avoided? If I had status, would things have turned out differently? If I had something to be proud of, would it have changed anything? These thoughts swirled in his mind, he had no choice but to carve his own way. In that moment, he found a single path to achieving the strength and status he desperately sought—the path to great power and success.
He went to the devil territory—the place all cultivators on the continent despised. But now, this place was the only one that gave him hope—hope for revenge against those who destroyed his family, hope to break the chains of his cursed fate. No challenge within the devil territory could stop him. And when he finally got his hands on the devil cultivation manual, it marked the beginning of his journey as a devil cultivator—the beginning of his journey as the Lust Devil.
He chose to cultivate the negative energy of lust because, to him, it was the right path—one that allowed him to fully embrace his lust: lust for power, lust for women. By succumbing to lust, he would no longer be underestimated. He would gain power, have any woman he desired, and avoid the fate of being trampled upon.
The devil cultivation was easy to comprehend, and it granted him immense power. He cultivated relentlessly, and soon, the higher-ups of the devils took notice of his talent, bringing him to the headquarters of the devil territory. There, for the first time, he met the Devil Lord—a figure feared across the continent, a being who had become a nightmare for any orthodox or unorthodox cultivators, someone beyond his reach.
He continued to demonstrate his talent to the higher-ups of the devils, and eventually, he was chosen as the successor to the Lust Devil and in the end, he became the Lust Devil himself.
