Chapter 1: Chapter 1 - Tian.
Somewhere in the infinite void of purgatory, a small white light was slowly floating. It had no goal, showed no signs of life, and just...existed in the void. No one knew how long it arrived nor how long it would remain.
This was just a random soul that was yet to be judged by the ruling God of this realm. Until then, the soul had to remain in purgatory, lifeless and aimless.
Time progressed slowly...dragging on and on until...
WHOOSH!
A large portal opened in front of the soul and an equally large hand adorned with jewelry appeared out of it while grabbing the soul in one swift motion.
The portal then closed and this section of purgatory was lightless once again as the void trembled, waiting in anticipation for the arrival of the next soul.
"Wake up, little light."
When the owner of the large hand uttered those words, the soul shined bright for a split second and a quiet voice escaped from its maws.
"Ugh...where am I? How long was I asleep?"
The soul groggily woke up and started looking around, trying to ascertain where it was.
"You are in a space between life and death, little one. A space where your destination for reincarnation is chosen."
The soul suddenly paused and looked at the large old man in front of it for several seconds. It was clear that the size of the man was shocking, to say the least.
"Um...so this might be a bit obvious, but I'm guessing I'm dead, yeah?"
"You are. Perished tragically in an explosion."
"Ahhh...that's kinda disappointing. I didn't even realize I died. Is my family, you know, my wife, my son...are they safe?"
The old man closed his eyes, raised his hand, and started twirling his incredibly long beard as he responded, " Ha. They were supposed to follow you in death, but, I decided that it was not their time. Your wife was slightly injured as she tried to protect your son, but otherwise, she's fine. They're all fine."
The soul brightened again for a split second when it heard this.
"Whew! Thank you! That's...good to know. So, you said something about reincarnation? Could I just go back to the world I came from?"
The old man raised an eyebrow and chuckled as he heard this.
"That's impossible. The world you came from is off-limits. You'll be sent to another world with one wish of your choosing."
The soul was confused. Why was his old world off-limits? Could it be because his family would recognize him? Would that change something in space-time?
Before the soul could ask the question, the old man continued, "I'm sure you're wondering why. Your soul has already been evicted by the reality of that world...that universe. Why? Because I willed it. Your death wasn't an accident. The truth...is quite amusing actually."
The soul gave no response as it continued facing the old man. This was a bit too sudden. Didn't the old man just claim that his death was a tragedy? Implying that it was not supposed to happen? Or did he misunderstand?
"Remember, you were a hired gun in life. You've killed many people in your life. More than one man should. Of course, I understand that it is for the sake of providing for your family, but that doesn't alleviate your sins. Well, someone hated you for killing them so much that for their one wish, they wanted you to die. They'd didn't care what happened to them after as long as your death was confirmed. Interesting, isn't it?"
The soul stayed quiet once again. It was going through a roller coaster of emotions trying to process what had just been said to it.
It was only after a few minutes passed did the soul regain its composure.
"I...see. Now that I gave it some thought, it's not surprising. I guess it doesn't even matter who did it huh? Tch. At least my family was safe."
The old man chuckled once again as he heard the soul's response. It was all within his expectations.
'Seems like I made the right choice.'
The old man opened the large book on his desk, cleared his throat, and said, "Now that you know that, let's get on to why I brought you here. As I said before, you'll be able to reincarnate into a world of my choosing. Don't worry, it'll be a world that matches your...personality quite well. All that's left is for you to make a wish. Word of advice, wish for something that can help you navigate that world."
The soul became quiet as it thought about what it should ask for.
'I wonder...could it be a world similar to my old one? Maybe it might be a place filled with aliens? Ahhh...this is hard. Maybe I should choose something random?'
The soul asked the old man if he had a list of recommended wishes to choose from. The old man calmly smiled and turned the large book on his desk towards him while placing his index finger at the top of it.
"These names, little light, are the names of men or women from mythology and fiction known to your world. You can choose to have the abilities of any of these people. But I should warn you, the stronger the ability, the stronger the curse you'll receive. Equivalent exchange, my good friend."
Curse?
The soul immediately puckered up when. he heard this. What was this curse about?
"Can you explain?"
The old man continued twisting his beard as he responded, "Let's say for instance you, hmm, well, let's say you wished for the power to eat planets. Well, in exchange, you will be born as a deformed being, lacking love, belonging, and kinship. You would live in eternal pain and suffering while being unable to die at any point in time. This curse cannot be removed. Understand?"
If the soul could take a deep breath or get a drink of vodka to calm its nerves at this point, it would. This was insane. Being born as an abomination was too much.
The soul gave it some more thought, took one glance at the old man, and then started reading through the list of names.
'Guess I have no choice.'
The soul noticed many important figures that he had heard the name of in life. Zeus, Odin, Thor, Goku, Lu Bu, Sun Wukong, and even Superman.
The list was almost endless!
The soul took its sweet time to slowly read through each name, their mythology, and their abilities. This process took many hours which the old man didn't seem to mind at all. It was like he knew this was going to happen.
After a long time of deliberation, the soul finally made a choice.
"I've decided. I want the abilities of Yhwach Bach. What curse is attached to this?"
The old man glanced at the name and looked at the ceiling of the humongous white room they were in before turning his eyes back to the soul.
"Well, having his abilities already applies a physical 'curse' to you. I'm sure you know what I mean. So instead of adding another physical curse, I'll add something conceptual instead."
The soul waited anxiously for the old man to reveal what he had on his mind. This would affect his entire life going forward after all.
"In exchange for these fantastic abilities, you will have nothing. Explanation? You will be born with nothing, you will never be given anything, and no matter what it is, even the air you breathe will have to be taken by force. Your very existence will be shunned by the world and every being in it. The concept of luck, you will never experience again. No matter if it's love, money, or even something as natural as sleep, it will all have to be taken by force."
The soul couldn't say anything after hearing this. The price was steep. Very steep. Especially in addition to the state that he was going to be born in as a result of having Yhwach's abilities. It was almost suicide.
But...
"That's what makes it fun! Send me in, old man! I'm ready to take on whatever you throw at me! Ah! One last thing, find some way to remind my family that I'll always love them yeah?"
The old man laughed heartily at the soul's response and looked at him with eyes of great approval. He indeed did make the right choice.
"No problem, little light. I'll remind them as soon as you leave. By the way, I'll grant you the last thing someone ever will in your life, a name. Choose one. Oh, by the way, you're going to a Chinese-inspired world so, choose a Chinese name. You...remember china right?"
The soul nodded in response to the old man's question and deliberated on a name for several seconds. He wished he could use the same English name he had before but, it seemed like that was impossible.
"I choose Buddh-"
"Don't."
The old man turned the page of the large book and revealed a list of Chinese names along with English translations. He didn't even bother addressing the foolishness the soul was about to say a few seconds before.
The soul followed suit and pretended like nothing happened as it read through each name.
This time, a conclusion was reached after only a few minutes.
"I'll name myself Tian! It means heaven. Sounds kind of cool and mysterious yeah?"
The old man shook his head with a smile and waved his hands, causing a small portal to open up next to the soul.
"Have a good life and take care, little light."
Before the soul could even respond, it disappeared into the portal without a trace at the old man's command.
Now that he was in the room by himself, he burst into laughter as a look of nostalgia entered his eyes.
"Ah, I remember when I was just a confused soul like him. Will he ever be able to reach my level? Or will he die before then? Sigh, if I only had company to bet with..."
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