Xiao sighed inwardly as he witnessed Xia Yunbai kneeling before him. Memories of his past flashed through his mind, although they were not as painful now as they had been before. Moreover, he had returned to the past, which essentially nullified the people he had killed. However, that didn't change the fact that he had slaughtered millions or maybe more to grow stronger.
At present, he felt nothing about it, as he had already processed his guilt and anger a long time ago, with the help of his master. He had moved forward and accepted the part of himself that had committed those acts. The reason he brought it up now was to make Xia Yunbai listen to him.
Those who follow the path of slaughter only respect and listen to someone with higher bloodlust than their own. Typically, individuals who walk this path lack talent and use the deaths of others to become stronger. However, there are rare cases of those who are suited for this path.
Xia Yunbai's situation was unique. With his inheritance and his unique bloodlust, he would surpass others. The reason was simple: unlike others who had to kill to become stronger, Xia Yunbai only had to continually push himself to the brink of death. In simpler terms, the more formidable his opponent, the stronger he would become.
The best part was that if he could instill fear in his enemies and get "killed" by them or even kill them, he would be able to inherit their understanding and even their skills. The previous individual who possessed this ability became known as the Demon of the Four Directions of the cosmos, striking fear into others and absorbing the skills and talents of those who "killed" him.
However, he was a deranged individual. Unsatisfied with his achievements, he had even dared to attack the Heavenly Tree, a true madman. In the end, he was incinerated, body and soul, with nothing remaining. It seemed that the weight of all those deaths had finally driven him mad.
Or there might be something else at play, after all, no one knows about how he died, not to forget the greater mystery of how he ended up in Quadralia's lowest heaven, passing his inheritance just through the passing rulers of the Rexion Empire as a punishment.
'I need to be cautious when dealing with Xia Yunbai,' Xiao thought as he looked at Xia Yunbai, who was now gazing back at him. Xia Yunbai's earlier insanity seemed to have subsided, and he appeared ready to talk. Standing up straight, Xia Yunbai regarded Xiao with a hint of respect. Regardless of age, someone with such bloodlust commanded respect. Xia Yunbai's eyes then shifted to Elder Fin as he asked, "What about that guy?"
Hearing Xia Yunbai's question, Xiao glanced toward Elder Fan, who was now unconscious on the floor. Xiao's bloodlust was not something that anyone in the lower realm could handle. Xiao wiped away some blood from his mouth and raised his hand, indicating that there was no need to worry.
The usage of his bloodlust did not come without consequences. His current body was unable to handle the stress of a mass release of his bloodlust. Xiao sighed inwardly as he regulated his body to facilitate faster healing. He then refocused his attention on Xia Yunbai and shrugged his shoulders, saying, "Leave him be. He will wake up after some time."
"Oh, okay then," Xia Yunbai simply nodded in response. His gaze shifted back to Xiao, and he focused seriously on him. After a few seconds, Xia Yunbai shook his head and spoke in a cold tone, "What did you mean earlier when you said my mother's death might have been planned?"
"It's exactly as you heard," Xiao replied. "Your mother's death may have been the result of someone's plan. In fact, some of the things you went through were part of someone's scheme."
"Who?" Xia Yunbai asked through gritted teeth, his eyes turning blood red once again. Observing this, Xiao sighed inwardly. Xia Yunbai had accepted his words without proof, but that was to be expected. Despite being fifteen years old, Xia Yunbai had spent most of his life within the illusion of death, leaving him as mature as a ten-year-old.
Although he was more mature than his peers, he was still just a child who had experienced death for five years. He possessed intelligence, but it didn't necessarily mean he knew how to utilize it. It was the main reason he had been manipulated like a toy by the Emperor. In his illusion, he had only learned about bloodlust, nothing more and nothing less.
'He's a blank slate,' Xiao thought as he looked at Xia Yunbai, who was grinding his teeth in anger. With focused eyes, he asked, "What makes you trust what I say?"
Xiao's question intrigued Xia Yunbai, who raised his eyebrows inquisitively before responding, "It's your bloodlust. I could partly see what kind of person you are. Moreover, what would you gain by lying to me? I don't think there's much I can offer you."
'So, he's not a complete idiot,' Xiao thought with a smirk before rising from the boulder where he had been sitting. Lightly stepping forward, he reached out his hand and patted Xia Yunbai's shoulder. Due to the height difference, Xiao had to look up at Xia Yunbai. With a renewed vigor in his eyes, Xiao spoke, "I see... Since you trust me, trust me until the end. I don't need your loyalty now. Right now, I will assist you in your revenge. And after that..."
As Xiao spoke, his eyes glowed with determination, and his voice resonated powerfully. "After that, become mine. Become my companion, fighting by my side. Let me be the reason for your existence after you achieve your goal."
With those words, Xiao explained a bit about how things had transpired. He discussed his unique ability to "see" the future, the Emperor's plan to manipulate him as a puppet, and dropped a hint about the Heavenly Opposers. As he finished speaking, he was met with a stunned Xia Yunbai.
"Hahaha... that's it, huh? So, they are my enemies, the enemies I have to defeat," Xia Yunbai laughed like a madman, contemplating the formidable adversaries he would face and how he would survive. Observing this, Xiao pulled Xia Yunbai down to the ground and gently patted his head.
"Uh?!" Xia Yunbai looked confused, gazing at Xiao, who wore a warm smile on his face. Xiao continued to pat Xia Yunbai's head affectionately as he said, "Don't worry. You are not alone in this. I will help you. Good job holding on until now."
No more words needed to be spoken. Xia Yunbai burst into tears, crying while resting his head on Xiao's shoulder. Xiao didn't say anything, but he continued to comfort Xia Yunbai, patting his back. It was an unusual scene, with a fifteen-year-old boy crying on the shoulder of an eleven-year-old boy. However, Xia Yunbai didn't seem to mind, finally receiving words of solace after a long time. His fragile ten-year-old mind could finally relax.
'Looks like the killing intent worked'
The only reason that Yunbai became so relaxed around him is due to the presence of his killing intent, Xiao didn't just madly release it, he had controlled it to slowly soothe the intent within Yunbai, helping him push down his madness for now, which now allowed the suffering mind to escape, helping Xiao take advantage of it.
Plus in the future, he would become an anchor for Yunbai to hold his dark thoughts in place, which in the future would grant him control over his life.
'In this regard, I am no different than the Emperor'
Xia Yunbai didn't suddenly change, the thing is Xiao subtly used his killing intent to take control over Yunbai for a moment, the thing is with his level of slaughter, Xiao is capable of taking an instant moment to take control of Yunbai's mind and in that second he changed Yunbai's perception for a moment, this happens due to the path they follow, where the one above in slaughter commands one in below, if not then there would be no way to keep control of any faction with members of slaughter.
Its something that Yunbai had done to Xiao in the past, the change being the fact that Yunbai used it to place control over Xiao such that he won't go above him, it was only at the end of Yunbai's life that Xiao was able to break free, paid some price for it too.