"Has Silver been training you?" asked Patriarch Kiu Hanbe. His eyes faced outside the opened window, carefully studying the lake nearby.
"Yes, Patriarch," answered Kiu Thao as she bowed slightly without a wink of an expression.
"I hope you're learning well. He's quite mysterious, as well as his background. There is a high chance he's a hidden ancestor."
"Hidden ancestor?"
"Yes, as of late, many clans' hidden ancestors are awakening. He could be one of them, but most likely touring the continents to perceive the new changes in our world. It could be said its fate for you to meet Silver. There may be an unfathomable journey waiting for you, opening your eyes to something far more than our small city."
"Why are you telling me all of this?"
Kiu Thao watched her father stay quiet for a long period of time, anxiety overtaking her mind as she stood there waiting. Finally, after a moment of time, her father turned around her with swollen, red eyes. A faint feeling of sadness, a burden that she could feel yet couldn't place within her heart brought an overflowing river of complex emotions.
"Kiu Thao, my daughter, I'm sorry for treating you so coldly for the last decade. As a patriarch, I must oversee every clan member, but I could not express myself as much as I wanted to."
"Father… What are you going on about?"
"A calamity will be upon us. The seal is loosening, our ancestors had already passed on but his enemy… it is sealed under us. It is readying itself, hoping to exact its revenge. Our Kiu Clan's elders are doing their best to slow down the seal, including your mother, but the seal is close to shattering. You have to live."
"What do you m--"
Kiu Thao suddenly fainted, slumping down onto a young boy who held her unconscious body over his shoulder. His azure gave a subtle glow as his emotionless eyes stared at Kiu Hanbe.
"I'm sorry we could only do this much for you," spoke a soft, female voice from within the large room.
"We cannot interfere with others' fate besides our younger brother as he was born into this world."
"It's fine, the younger generation of our Kiu Clan needs a leader. My … daughter... she will find and lead them, they must live. She must live!" exclaimed Kiu Hanbe tightening his fist, tears sliding down his cheek, uncontrollably.
"Thank you… Please give her the letter and the clan token once she wakes up."
"En. I hope you'll be able to get through this."
"I hope so too…"
The young boy took a step forward, disappearing, leaving traces of azure sparks of lightning in the air while the female softly sighed, leaving the despondent Kiu Hanbe alone.
**BOOM
**BOOM
Kiu Hanbe turned his head towards the sound, the lake across the building he was at had begun to churn violently. Soon, the lake spouted up into the air like a large geyser. As the lake water fell back into its place in forms of rain drops, a single person could be seen within the falling drops.
This individual appeared as a child with long black hair wearing a simple black dress hovering above the now subtle lake. Their pale face and wicked blood-red eyes stared at Kiu Hanbe as a sinister smile appeared on their face showing two rows of sharp white teeth.
"Hehehe. I'm free!!!" exploded the sinister looking child in laughter.
"Sinister monster! Our Kiu Clan will never let you live!" shouted Kiu Hanbe as he appeared in front of the black hair child.
"Begone!"
"Weak! Every single one of you Kiu Clan members of this generation are weak," insulted the long-hair child, staring down at Kiu Hanbe in disdain.
Using a flick of his left index finger, the sinister black hair child gave a chilling smile. Kiu Hanbe felt something was off but he suddenly dodged to the side. However, his left arm became riddled with bloody holes the size of a rice grain.
"It can't be? How are you still this strong after being sealed for so long?"
"Back then, your ancestors were more fearsome. It took three of your top experts to have me sealed, but as the years went by the seal began to weaken. Although minuscule amounts of qi were able to leak in, I took this chance to recuperate."
Without another word, the sinister black hair child used the same move once more against Kiu Hanbe. Although it appeared the same as before, they added a little more qi to the attack.
"Our main clan will get their revenge on you!" roared Kiu Hanbe dropping to his knees, coughing up blood from his severe injuries. He felt shocked. Even though Che Myoga had been sealed for a very long time, they still had this type of power. This type of power he could only dream of having despite inheriting the Diva of the White Flames bloodline.
"Main Clan? So, this is a branch clan. No wonder everyone here is weak. No matter, they will pay for such arrogance to seal me and build a trifling branch clan to keep an eye on me! It does explain why a weakling like you is unable to bring out the full potential of the White Flame's bloodline!"
Kiu Hanbe was at a loss for words while slumping into depression. The only hope left was his daughter, Kiu Thao. Luckily, she was being sent to the Main Kiu Clan where she can obtain the best resources. After considering her future, Kiu Hanbe clenched his fists and gritted his teeth.
Riddled with injuries and a strong intent to fight back, Kiu Hanbe's White Flame bloodline showed a sliver of awakening. His eyes gave a subtle white glow as he stared at the black hair child with fiery rage. If one carefully inspected the injured Kiu Hanbe's, his body was wrapped with a subtle white light that emitted a barely noticeable but growing heat.
Their Kiu Clan, although a branch of the main, had been keeping track of the seal on Che Myoga for thousands of years. However, due to the world awakening and the Great Ice and Flame War, it made a crack in the sealing formation. Thus, allowing the asura to absorb an astonishing amount of nether world qi like a hungry ghost, breaking free from his prison.
Only such nether world qi could only be formed from countless deaths or areas that contained such qi.
"Tch. The main clan could probably give me more excitement with your useless staring. I'll make your death quick," scoffed the black hair child as he pointed his left index finger at Kiu Hanbe.
"Die."
'I'm sorry, I wish I could have been a better father for you, Kiu Thao. And a better husband to you, Bing Bing …' thought Kiu Hanbe staring at Che Myoga, releasing his will to fight.
"I WILL NOT DIE A COWARD! DIVA WHITE FIST!"
With a great leap, using all of his strength, Kiu Hanbe thrusted his right fist with an amazing force while being surrounded by flames of white. Every part of his body began breaking apart, putting his all into his attack. Despite the sliver of awakening of his bloodline, increasing his Diva White Fist, his meridians still ruptured within his body.
His blazing white flame became larger, emitting waves of unbearable heat as he roared like an enraged Diva in the heat of battle.
"Ahahaha, that's the type of stubbornness I like to see from the inheritor of the Diva bloodline!" cackled the black hair child extending his left index finger out to the fist flying towards him.
"Too bad you've barely awakened your bloodline. Break for me!"
"I'm a little too late," sighed a mysterious voice as a spatial hole formed between Kiu Hanbe and Che Myoga, instantly disrupting their attacks. Despite the interference, a tiny amount nether qi got into Kiu Hanbe. Even with this little bit of nether qi, it was already corroding Kiu Hanbe's body showing how potent the nether qi was.
"How dare you kill my fun!?" screamed the Che Myoga as he raged at the mysterious person. It was throwing a tantrum like a child who got their steam bun stolen.
"I'll kill you!"
*** Snap (fingers snapping)
"Where am I? GET ME OUT! WHO ARE YOU?" shrilled Che Myoga. Before he could attack, he found himself in a space filled with everlasting darkness. Uneasiness struck his heart as he screamed and attack within the dark world in a frenzy.
"I'll deal with you later," echoed the mysterious voice.
"Sir . . . Silver?" asked Kiu Hanbe, trying to stay conscious. His eyes laid on a familiar but blurry figure. Without much thought, Kiu Hanbe brought out a vial with a drop of blood in it and handed it to Silver.
"His nether qi is already corroding me from the inside, I don't have much time. Please give this to my daughter. You will be able to find her at the Main Kiu Clan. Please tell her... I'm sorry."
After Kiu Hanbe finished speaking, his body deteriorated into dust leaving a wisp of his soul as a ghost-like being tried to swallow it whole. Silver grabbed Kiu Hanbe's soul while flicking his void qi at the ghost, instantly killing it.
Staring at the floating wisp, gently wrapping his chaos qi around it while another glowing orb flew to his left palm from the broken seal, wrapping it too, sending both away.
"This should protect both of you . . . you two shall be able to be reborn without a problem," whispered Silver, staring at the souls falling into the Earth, returning them to the River of Souls.
Taking a step forward, opening a spatial hole, Silver walked into the rift to see Che Myoga exhausted and floating in the dark world with a miserable expression. Left with little to no nether qi once again, they felt resigned as they cursed their bad fate. They finally became free but instead, an expert stopped his fun and trapped him in a weird world full of mysterious energy. Through its life, they had never been through a weird experience like this before.
For now, it was waiting for the mysterious person to reappear.
"What's your name?" asked Silver, staring at the exhausted long-haired child quietly sealing them.
"Why did you save this small branch of the Kiu Clan? An old fruit like you should be dwelling and cultivating silently in a cave!" sneered Che Myoga. Their blazing red eyes gazed at Silver with indignation.
"They shall all die! Every Kiu Clan and those enemies of mine who have sealed my fun! MY SLAUGHTER! I AM THE GHOST ASURA CHE MYOGA!"
"It seems after becoming a Ghost Asura, you've been deranged by meaningless slaughter, thus allowing your nether qi to warp your train of thought. It's rather saddening."
"I can tell you're powerful enough to wipe this city with a flick of your finger hehehe! So why don't you KILL ME!"
"I would like to kill you seeing that you've harmed an interest of mine, but I will need you as a grinding stone for my sworn brother. It'll be more useful to let you live than a swift, painless death."
"NEVER!" screamed Che Myoga attempting to commit suicide. Sadly, his body wouldn't listen to him.
Not only that, this world restricted his cultivation to the point it felt like he was truly a mortal again. Thinking fast, he bit his tongue with an indescribable desire to die but it didn't do anything to him. Now he had to bear the pain of nearly biting off his tongue.
As a Ghost Asura, dying wasn't bad, he could possess a new individual after discarding his current body and work from there. This was one of the abilities the ghost asura bloodline possessed. Once the bloodline awakened, they would be able to live without a body as a spirit. No matter how many times they died, they could always escape and possess a new body.
The only downside about their bloodlines was the change of personality. If you are kind, the awakening of the bloodline will begin turning your personality into of wickedness.
"What did you do to me!!??"
"I just sealed you so you wouldn't resort to suicide so easily. I already know of your bloodline's cheap tricks."
"Impossible. Impossible. IMPOSSIBLE! I would have felt my nether qi resisting your qi! "
"Nothing is impossible, especially to those who are stronger than you."
"AHAHAHAAH! WELL SAID! AHAHAHAHA!"
Silver shook his head, unwilling to speak to a person who lost their sanity and exited the closed space. Hovering above the ruined Kiu Clan, with a swipe of his right hand, the entire area vanished into a vast plain, untouched by civilization.
"I should set up an illusi--"
**DING!
**DING!
**DING!
(Bell tower being runged)
"BEAST TIDE! PREPARE YOURSELF!" someone announced from the central of Blue Dream City.