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Qi Rong's worst fear was having no power at all. He was one of the Xianle princes after all, he had to have some authority over someone! With all his useless henchmen dead he had to think of an idea on how to get more.
Which is how he found himself roaming the smoking streets of what was once Xianle in hopes to find survivors to recruit. Since their belief to the now ex-god Xie Lian had vanished with his help, perhaps he could even manage his way into Heaven and become a god himself! If his trash cousin could, why not him? All he had to do was have a huge show of strength and power and whatever else was needed to get in and he was all set.
In the distance, he could spot several distinct shapes of people walking amidst the fog and smoke. Qi Rong grinned - now was his chance! If he recruited enough people, surely the Heavens could see how awesome he was and have him ascend! He stopped in his tracks and hid his hands behind his back. It was important for the lesser lives to not be scared of him and to show all of who he was - of course, they would have to be scared further along in his plan, but to recruit, he had to convince them that he was worth it with all the fake kindness in his heart. As the group came closer, Qi Rong's grin softened as he prepared his speech.
"Isn't it so sad to see our kingdom now in ruins?" he started, feigning sorrowness into his voice (was it truly feigning if deep down he was devastated?). "We were betrayed by who we thought we could trust the most... turns out he couldn't run a kingdom, let alone be a god! We have to find someone new to look up to, someone stronger, with a better plan for our next rule!"
The features of the group could still not be seen, but he heard a dialect he did not recognize - were these not people from Xianle? "Doesn't he look sort of familiar?" he vaguely heard one of them mumble to another.
He grimaced, clenching his fist. "Do you not recognize me? I am one of the princes of Xianle!" he barked, then immediately cleared his throat and waved a hand out. "I-I mean.."
"Princes of Xianle?" the group blurted out, then whipped their heads around to glance in between them. This close, Qi Rong could hear their murmurs. "I told you he looked familiar, it's that brat! He was always stuck beside that god before the war!"
He grimaced. His behaviors toward Xie Lian were embarrassing to look back on. How did he not see how vile he really was? How little he cared about the kingdom and his family? He was the definition of scum, only dirt against Qi Rong's boot.
"That was in the past... I've changed my ways! From now on, I am not affiliated with him anymore! Xianle will benefit much more without him here," he declared, flicking his hand out as if wiping his relations to Xie Lian right there and then.
One of the group members, a man taller than Qi Rong looking to be in his thirties, stepped out from the smokescreen with a deadly glare on his face. He gripped onto a sword close to his body as he eyed the smaller one.
"Benefit... Xianle..." he spoke slowly. Qi Rong finally realized where he recognized the accent from and paled - these weren't people from Xianle, they were from Yong'an!
But before he could correct his mistake, the rest of the group followed, all with their respective swords. Qi Rong swallowed thickly, then burrowed his eyebrows and yelled. "So you're some fucks from Yong'an, huh? Here to gloat your victory? Or are you planning on killing the remainder of the Xianle people so you can wipe us out for good? I should've known you weren't from Xianle the moment I heard that noise from your mouth!"
The man grinned, keeping his cool after each insult thrown at him. "A bit of both. We aren't a huge fan of the royal family, so might as well start with you."
"You realize all of this was your own doing? You were the ones who turned to violence first!" Qi Rong retaliated, throwing out a finger to him. "We were just trying to move along as a kingdom, so what if you rats just all died out? Maybe it'd be for the better that way, survival of the fittest, and all that!"
"So, if you were to die here, that would make you a rat, too?"
Qi Rong froze. The group started to chuckle, causing him to take a step back. If only he had a weapon on him, he would've been able to take all of them on!
Was he going to die?
Absolutely not!
Just as fast as his attitude changed, he turned on his heels and ran the other direction. He was skilled at running away from conflict, dodging any sort of obstacle that came along his escape path. He could hear the others yell after him, but he knew he would be faster - after all, he knew Xianle like the back of his-!
A sudden piece of debris got stuck to Qi Rong's foot and he fell flat onto rubble. As he struggled to get up, he felt a blade press against the back of his neck.
"This was fun, but I've gotten bored of you."
Those were the last words Qi Rong heard before his vision turned black. He didn't know how long had passed before he awoke in an unfamiliar forest, eyes locked with an engraved stone in front of him. It was his own tombstone, albeit rough looking with the words scrabbled on. It took him a moment to process, but as soon as he realized his predicament, he started to laugh maniacally. He was a ghost! He reached for the heavens only to be sent to hell! Either way, he was still able to interact with the physical plane, which meant his mission was not over yet.
He would achieve great power one day and not stop for anything in his way.