Li Wei’s gaze, complex and unreadable, lingered on the petite figure before him.

By human or demon standards alike, this Primordial Blood Empress was undeniably breathtaking.

Even Li Wei had to admit: among all the women he’d ever met, Tsukika’s beauty remained peerless.

Her doll-like face carried an elegance and allure almost too refined for her delicate charm—yet beneath that primal, heart-pounding beauty lurked a chilling, blood-soaked power.

But how had she breached humanity’s blockade?

Slipped past the Sacred Defense Line without a trace… and reached deep into human territory?

Just moments ago, he thought humanity was thriving—now this colossal failure?

And perhaps the mistake wasn’t limited to this… what about his newly retired life?

“My dear Chosen Hero,” Tsukika murmured, sensing his turmoil. She brushed a speck from her crimson gown and rose gracefully. “Speechless with surprise?”

Her crimson eyes twinkled with amusement, fixed on the once-greatest hero whose youth remained untouched by time.

“If words fail you, a simple ‘thank you’ would do. I *did* just save you.”

“You never thanked me either,” Li Wei replied calmly, watching the Demon Lord.

That familiar, doll-like face—unchanged after years apart.

“True,” Tsukika mused. “So… are we even now?”

With effortless familiarity, she stepped inside, surveying the room as if inspecting her own home. Her gaze paused on the worn sofa, settled on a specific cushion, and she sat slowly.

Compared to the previous brute, this Demon Lord—who could unleash chaos behind enemy lines—seemed almost *too* polite.

Had others seen their ease, jaws would’ve dropped.

“No tea for your guest?” Tsukika patted the sofa, crimson eyes teasing.

“You’ll leave right after?” Li Wei remained unmoved.

“Of course not.”

“Then I’ll pass.”

“So stingy?”

“Did you come just for tea?” Li Wei sighed.

“When did the great Chosen Hero’s patience grow so thin? Missing me already?” Tsukika rubbed her white-stockinged legs together. A faint blush tinged her cheeks—but mischief still danced in her crimson eyes.

She’d never had this chance to toy with humanity’s strongest before.

“In the past, you looked ready to kill me on sight. Now the chance is here… and you hold back?” Li Wei said evenly.

“Well… after all, my legs *were* spread by the Chosen Hero himself. Maybe I’ve… moved on?” Tsukika tilted her head, smile faint, dropping the bombshell lightly.

Li Wei’s breath hitched.

Sealed memories surfaced like bubbles from the abyss—

That absurd night, seven years ago. Impossible to forget.

And so he knew why she’d come. Exhaustion had nearly made him forget their unspoken pact.

“Reminiscing about your *heroic* violation of the Demon Lord?” Tsukika asked.

A muscle twitched at Li Wei’s eye.

“No.”

“But it’s stiff.” She pointed.

“???”

Li Wei glanced down—then realized he’d been teased.

He looked up. Tsukika sat on the sofa, petite feet propped up. Her black Mary Janes dangled loosely between white stockings and fair skin, swaying gently. A lazy smile graced her rosy lips.

“Oh, I meant your *fist* is clenched tight from tension.”

“The Chosen Hero’s wit has dulled. You used to leave *others* speechless,” she remarked.

“Or you’ve simply grown too sharp,” Li Wei sighed.

Memories flooded back.

What the world never knew:

In the final step against the Annihilation Demon Lord—cursed, abandoned, power fading—the Chosen Hero was found and saved by *another* Demon Lord. Together, they shattered Annihilation’s hidden “heart,” granting others the chance to strike the killing blow.

Trapped in the Demon King Citadel, they triggered an aphrodisiac trap in the final chamber.

The accident happened.

Li Wei watched the broken-looking Demon Lord, left in quiet disarray, leaving only one promise:

*“When humanity no longer needs me… I’ll return this life to you.”*

Reflecting now, Li Wei wondered—had his resolve begun to waver from that day?

On that journey, he’d seen another side of the Demon Lord… of Tsukika.

Tsukika, seemingly oblivious to his turmoil, studied him. “No struggle? I expected fiercer resistance. Ending like this is dull.”

“You crossed the Sacred Defense Line to ambush a powerless wreck like me. Fully prepared. What’s the point?” Li Wei replied.

“Truly powerless?” She eyed him.

“You saw it. I lost my status panel.”

“Yet you showed zero fear when threatened.”

“A powerless man keeping *trivial* tricks for safety is only natural.”

“Just ‘trivial’?” Tsukika chuckled. *Graves of demons who fell to those “tricks” are overgrown by now.*

“At least for you.” Li Wei’s voice softened. “This was always the agreement. Timing wasn’t right before.”

“So now it is? Those humans truly broke your heart?”

“‘Liberation’ fits better than ‘heartbreak.’”

He was exhausted.

He’d walked that lonely path too long—especially after losing power.

Only today did the weight truly lift.

“Liberation… so that’s your resigned attitude?” Tsukika pouted, then smiled. “I came for revenge—but I offer another path.”

Li Wei blinked. “What path?”

“Join the demon race.”

Tsukika cleared her throat. “After all these years, you see clearly. That ‘trusted’ comrade? Only wanted to humiliate you, steal your treasures. Even the fool you trained—jealous over a first kill? Hah. Did they think slaying Annihilation was *easy* without you? *You* shattered his defenses. *You* bore the curse. Yet when you needed help, they abandoned you—then painted you a glory-thief. Isn’t it absurd? They flocked in your light, scavenged when you fell. Why not embrace us?”

“If you become my sword… I’ll help you take revenge.”

Li Wei smiled softly. His gaze clear as a mirror, heart steadfast.

“That’s a separate matter.”

“Honor means nothing to me. Fighting demons, saving this world—*was* my mission. The path I chose.”

“The filth you mention? A tiny fragment of this world. Their shortsightedness… unsurprising. My actions were never for *them*.”

He smiled calmly. “So I must disappoint you.”

He bore the mission for past bonds—not for betrayal. Laying it down was closure, not surrender.

Darkness had weighed on him for years… yet never broke his spine. The light in his eyes never dimmed—not from slander, not from lost power.

Tsukika’s thoughts drifted. Their first clash: fiery, radiant. An indescribable magnetism. *He was Dawn itself*—tearing open that suffocating era of despair before her eyes.

Who in this world stood closer to the light?

A teasing smile curved her lips.

*How adorable~ the strongest Chosen Hero, like this.*

*Which is why… I crave to see your other face even more.*

Hands clasped behind her back, she sighed lightly.

“Such nobility… so your choice is to perish with these rotten humans? Even *I*, your fated rival, pity this end.”

Li Wei paused deeply. “A fated rival means equals—exchanging blows.”

“Not someone nearly captured *seven times* by me.”

Tsukika fell silent. Crimson eyes flickered, then smiled. “Provocation?”

“Merely returning the favor.” Li Wei stayed calm.

Tsukika sighed. “What a pity.”

“Indeed. A pity.”

*My peaceful retirement… slipping away. Was it ever meant for me? No. These hands are stained.*

“If revenge is the path… then so be it.” Tsukika rose.

“If you may choose your death… how would the Chosen Hero wish to die?”

“You know my answer.”

Li Wei: “Of old age.”

“Impossible. So… make it quick?” Li Wei sighed. Waiting for death was never easy.

“Quick?” Tsukika tilted her head. “Depends how long you endure. Lie down first.”

“Why?”

“Planning to resist, Chosen Hero?”

She offered only a smile.

Li Wei studied her… and nodded.

*An engulfing ability? To bury me alive?*

*Given what I did to her… torment is only natural.*

A suffocating pressure washed over him—

“???”

Li Wei couldn’t believe his eyes. Tsukika, smiling sweetly, slipped off her shoe and pressed her delicate little foot—still clad in a white stocking—firmly against his face, covering his nose and mouth as if deliberately humiliating him.

After several long seconds, she finally withdrew the soft, faintly fragrant foot.

“Stepping on the Chosen Hero… feels surprisingly good,” she murmured.

“Is this your reply to how I once humiliated you?” Li Wei muttered, his head spinning.

“Oh~ Just an appetizer,” Tsukika chirped.

“The start of my revenge, you know.”

She stepped back, that sudden smile blooming on her face—warm, yet chilling.

“Chosen Hero, I never said my revenge meant killing you.”

Li Wei froze for a moment.

“If I only wanted you dead,” she continued, “I wouldn’t have gone through so much trouble. After all the cruel things you did… how could I let you die so easily?”

A mischievous grin deepened on her delicate features.

A cold foreboding tightened in Li Wei’s chest.

*What is she planning?*

“Returning the favor in kind—that was your own words once, wasn’t it, my Chosen Hero?” Tsukika smiled.

Li Wei’s gaze faltered.

Then pink mist began seeping from her body, striking him like lightning.

“Do you still remember… how many times your sword pierced me?”

“Killing you outright? Impossible. Never underestimate a Demon Lord’s revenge, my Chosen Hero.”

Before his eyes, she slowly lifted her toes and peeled off one white stocking.

Leaning close with a cold, mocking sweetness, she wrapped the stocking around his neck and lifted him.

The pink mist swirled around them, pouring relentlessly into Li Wei.

Its intoxicating aura eroded his will, shaking him to the core.

“What I want isn’t your death. I want you… to forever submit beneath me and atone.”

“If you won’t join me willingly, I’ll make you fall in love with me. Isn’t it far sweeter for the Chosen Hero to become my sword—*willingly*?”

She let out a low laugh, stroking his cheek before biting his lip hard.

Through the sting, dazed, Li Wei watched her slip off the crimson gown—like a wedding dress.

Her lips, stained with blood, gleamed like rouge.

He felt the long-forgotten intimacy of her petite form—a surreal softness that overwhelmed him, stirring resistance and surrender alike.

“Wait…”

His fading consciousness struggled, but the stocking tightened around his throat, pinning him down.

Tsukika’s face glowed with sweetness, mockery, and delight—like a rider reining a wild stallion.

“The more you resist… the more excited I get, my~ strongest~ ♥.”

And so, in another sense, Li Wei was buried alive.