Beneath the crimson sky

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PROLOGUE

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The air crackled with the raw energy of a thousand dying embers, the crimson glow illuminating the grotesque carvings that adorned the Temple of the Obsidian Empress. The very stones seemed to weep, slick with the blood of demons and demon hunters alike. Chi Yu, her breath ragged, stumbled back, her porcelain face streaked with grime and blood. She clutched a shattered piece of porcelain – a shard of her mother's finest work, now a grim reminder of her own fragility in this brutal battle.

Chi Yu sat, lamenting, trapped within a jian formation, the Obsidian Empress's cruel creation. The Empress, her power amplified by Chi Yu's blood, gloated. "If you think you can defeat me alone, you are wrong," she sneered, her laughter echoing through the temple. "You people can't do anything; you will just die, along with your companions and loved ones." She ascended her throne, her power surging as she began to close off Xinghua Mountain, sealing herself within to achieve immortality. This was to be her eternal domain, a fortress against all who dared challenge her reign as the Obsidian Empress, the last Empress of Xi'an.

The dark sky shifted, turning from crimson to a vibrant blue. Dead trees and plants sprung back to life, a stark contrast to the carnage within the temple. The Empress, seemingly calm, continued her ritual to seal the mountain. But a flicker of surprise crossed her face. "You made a mistake," Chi Yu's voice cut through the air. Despite her weakened state, she struggled, her will pushing her beyond her physical limitations. She broke free from the jian formation, her spirit unyielding. "I am not alone; they are still with me. We will not be separated, nor lose hope!"

The Empress, enraged, unleashed her power, aiming to crush Chi Yu. However, her focus was broken, the ritual disrupted. Simultaneously, demon hunters and benevolent demons stormed Xinghua Mountain, their arrival a tide against the Empress's power. Chi Yu was thrown back, but a swift demon hunter intervened, shielding her from the full force of the Empress's attack. She wasn't alone.

From the shadows, a figure emerged – Li Huan. Tall and imposing, he was clad in a midnight-blue changshan, embroidered with silver threads that pulsed with an inner light. He carried a dao, its curved blade gleaming faintly, a weapon as ancient and powerful as its wielder. His eyes, the color of a stormy sea, met Chi Yu's.

"Leave her to me," Li Huan declared, his voice low and dangerous, a tremor of warning in his tone. His eyes, usually cold and calculating, held a flicker of something else – concern? A spark of something unexpected.

The Obsidian Empress, now revealed as Xuanying, the Empress's true identity, laughed. "Oh, Li Huan, you came. But it's too late. I am immortal, beyond your reach." She transformed into red ash, carried away on the wind, her laughter a chilling farewell. "Chi Yu, she will die, not now, but soon," Xuanying's voice echoed, a final, cruel prophecy.

Li Huan, his face etched with intense anger, sadness, and tears, stood defiant. The merciless, skilled, and ruthless Li Huan was gone, replaced by a man consumed by love, ready to sacrifice everything for Chi Yu. "You have no right to hurt her," he whispered, his voice thick with emotion. "You are just like your father, willing to do anything for the one you love. He wouldn't let your mother get hurt. He took care of her with all his heart, which caused them to separate. Don't you want to know why?"

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The air seemed to hold its breath as Li Huan's words hung in the temple, heavy with meaning. Chi Yu, still struggling to steady her breath, locked eyes with him. She could feel the weight of his emotions, the depth of the pain and love that twisted within him like a coiled serpent. It was a truth she hadn't wanted to hear, one she hadn't known how to face.

Xuanying's voice echoed in the distance, a mockery of everything they had fought for. "You are weak. You are all weak," the Empress's voice reverberated, carried by the winds. "You will fall, just like your ancestors. Nothing will change."

But Chi Yu was done listening. She had no time for the Empress's empty threats. She had no time for regrets. She could feel the pulse of her own blood, the connection to her mother's legacy-a legacy of strength, even in the face of overwhelming odds.

"You're wrong," Chi Yu breathed, her voice a mix of defiance and strength. "You think you've won, but you haven't. You never will." She rose, shaking off the remnants of the jian formation that had bound her. Her eyes, once clouded with fear, now burned with an unwavering resolve. The blood of demons and hunters alike stained her hands, but in that moment, it no longer felt like weakness-it felt like power.

Li Huan's gaze softened as he watched her stand, her resilience stirring something deep within him. He had seen countless warriors fall in the face of such overwhelming darkness, but Chi Yu... she was different. She was not just a woman-she was the hope they all had been fighting for.

For the first time, Li Huan felt something he had long buried within himself stir to life. Not fear. Not duty. But something far more dangerous-love.

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