Prologue In the Depths of Darkness

"People fear the darkness, dread the unknown, and are terrified of death. The Demon Lord embodies all their fears, as a ruler of darkness, the master of the Demon Palace, he must make everyone understand how to fear and respect him, finding a perfect balance between coercion and sweet talk—just like forcing a human in front of you to bite into a piece of bread and then smilingly telling them it had half a cockroach inside.

The three hundred and thirty-third Demon Lord, Sepulras."

The flickering candlelight gently illuminated the dim study, revealing a young man huddled in front of the desk, flipping through a thick book by the light.

He appeared to be about sixteen or seventeen years old, his handsome face pale and thin from lack of sunlight, wearing a black mage's robe that dragged on the floor. At first glance, he seemed no different from an ordinary person, but the faintly visible horns emerging from his forehead and his bright red eyes betrayed his true identity.

A demon.

"Sigh..."

After a moment, Zane finally closed the book in front of him, took off his glasses, and rubbed his sore eyes. Unlike writing magic books, the standard of historical records among demons was painfully low, essentially a dry chronicle of events, as if concocted by a child trying to complete holiday homework.

In some ways, the web novels Zane had read were a thousand times more interesting.

"Maybe when I become the Demon Lord, the first thing I'll do is find a reliable scribe."

Muttering to himself, Zane stood up and stretched.

The small study looked clean yet somewhat dilapidated, which was unsurprising in a space less than twenty square meters located in an underground cave. Besides the damp and dark cavern, the presence of monsters lurking in the dark, and death itself, there was nothing else.

But for Zane, this was his only home.

"Time really flies..."

He couldn't help but reminisce about his first arrival in this world.

He was once a well-known hacker in the online world on Earth, capable of breaching any firewall unless it was completely isolated physically. But Zane had never anticipated stumbling one day.

Merely to save some trouble, he had written a script for a game he frequently played, only to be banned by the official servers. Unwilling to accept this, Zane naturally hacked into the official server to clear his name. Engrossed in his modifications, he failed to heed the storm warning... Well, as it turns out, there's a reason why you shouldn't use electrical appliances during a thunderstorm.

Not only did Zane's computer fry, but he also didn't escape unscathed. When he regained consciousness, he had become a demon freshly hatched from an eggshell—and one of the heirs to the Demon Lord, no less.

After spending over a decade in that chaotic, demonic place, just as Zane was finally getting used to life in the demon world, his stepfather summoned him for the so-called Demon Lord succession ceremony, throwing him into this godforsaken place.

But it's no wonder, among his five siblings, only Zane was the least capable. His eldest brother, Klein, was the most powerful contender for the Demon Lord, and his sister, Lillisia's name was enough to silence crying children in the demon world. Even his two younger sisters were feared entities in the demon realm.

Only Zane, cough, the third brother, cough, the third sibling, had little reputation in the demon world, spending his days reading in the library and never seen doing anything substantial. Not only was his power as weak as a demon patrol guard, but compared to his siblings who commanded vast armies, Zane's forces were pitifully small.

He had but two people.

No wonder he was thrown into this desolate place; otherwise, Zane might have become nourishment for the darkness beneath the earth and another enduring joke among demons.

The so-called Demon Lord succession ceremony was actually quite simple. In essence, it involved the five children of the Demon Lord each choosing a region to construct their "Dark Castle," expanding their influence until one emerged victorious among the siblings to become the next Demon Lord.

Simple and straightforward, without the complex formalities of the human world, no need for elections, alliances, or behind-the-scenes manipulation, and certainly no need to appear on television to present political views. The biggest fist is the boss; the demon world could be said to take this concept to the extreme, elevating it to the level of truth.

"But... I'm finally free."

Gazing into the void, Zane pushed up his glasses, a glint flashing in his bright red eyes. For at that moment, rows of data appeared before him.

[Dungeon Construction System]

[Lord: Zane]

[Level: 1]

[Development Progress: 355/1200]

[Resources: Ore (50) Mercury (20) Gems (15) Crystals (70) Money (1520)]

[Followers: 6]

[Buildings: Heart of the Dungeon (you can feel your heart beating fiercely, a testament to your life and a countdown to your death, all depending on how you choose to die) —— Life Limit +100]

[Building: Study (hidden here are the secrets of history, the laws of the world, and the explosive issues of Playboy magazine, it's up to you to grasp the essence) —— Magic Amplification +3, Magic Recovery +10]

[Building: Bedroom (when lying in the soft bed to relieve fatigue, don't forget it's not just for sleeping, it's also intimately linked to the secrets of reproduction in this world) —— Life Recovery +10, Energy Limit +10]

[Building: Lair (even slaves need human rights, only by letting them taste the guaranteed life of social security will they serve their employer more wholeheartedly) —— Loyalty +1]

[Magic Research (LV1): No research target]

[Building Blueprints (LV1): No blueprints]

"I've finally made it through..."

Looking at the floating panel before him, Zane sighed deeply with emotion.

Indeed, after crossing over, Zane inexplicably gained this system. He was familiar with it, as it was a setting from the online game he used to play, but for some reason, it merged with his soul and crossed over with him.

Unfortunately, although he had such a system, it was completely useless to Zane initially. He discovered, to his dismay, that his system was entirely sealed until the dungeon was fully operational. Therefore, no matter how much knowledge he acquired, he couldn't convert it into his power. Even if he perfected the magic spells to the utmost, he still couldn't cast powerful magic.

Moreover, while his siblings were advancing by leaps and bounds, seemingly filled with cheat codes and leveling up non-stop, Zane could only spend his time in the library with his unexpandable level 1 dungeon system. That's why Zane's power was always laughably weak, to the point where even demons couldn't stand it.

Simply put, a character who has been level 1 from birth, with neither HP nor MP ever increasing, is just wasting time even with a hundred legendary spells if they can't be used.

But now, after all the hardships, being thrown into this desolate place, Zane was finally starting his own dungeon and gaining the power he deserved.

It's undeniable, this newly started dungeon was very weak. Besides Zane, the nominal dungeon lord, there was only his loyal adjutant and the five goblins summoned after arriving here. Such a dungeon could probably be easily wiped out by any adventuring party.

Fortunately, this was a lawless wasteland, and Zane's dungeon was located hundreds of meters below the surface. There wouldn't be any adventurers bored enough to make three visits a day. But for Zane, this was not a completely safe place.

"Boom!"

Just then, a dull sound came from afar, followed by the ground shaking, and dust falling from the ceiling. Almost at the same time, there was a knock on the door.

"I'm sorry to disturb you, master."

At that moment, the door to the study slowly opened, and a small, slender figure walked into the room like a ghost. She was about fourteen or fifteen years old, with soft golden hair and delicate features always wearing an elegant and gentle smile. She wore a black, luxurious dress, looking like a noble lady. But her equally red eyes, triangular ears, and pale skin indicated her extraordinary identity.

"What's the matter now?"

Looking at his adjutant, Zane closed the book in his hand with a sigh and asked.

"It's like this, the southern passage was collapsed by those goblins again, this time damaging about one-third of the dungeon. How should we solve this?"

"..."

It seems a competent architect is indeed the most important component of a dungeon.