It's hot.

The first sensation of becoming a demon was that—it was hot.

From head to toe, everything felt hot. But it wasn’t the heat from the fire energy (hwagong) within me.

Demonic energy (magi) was far more aggressive than the already violent energies of hwagi (fire energy) or tugi (battle aura).

When it infiltrates the body of a warrior, it blocks internal energy (naegi) and causes the body to decay because it detests any energy that isn’t its own. Just as the Heavenly Demon (Cheonma), the source of all demonic energy, feels the same.

The path to becoming the …