2 Chapter II: Fate of Two Lovers

"Honestly, Old Lady Meng chose a hell of a day to abandon her duties!" A tall, slender man draped in a radiant cyan robe complained to his beautiful best friend in a Cyan dress.

The woman laughed at the man as she sipped wine that released a fragrance that could ensnare the minds of mortals, condemning them to eternal intoxication.

" Lord Taylor, please. You know what this day means to her. It's the day her husband died. The sole reason that she became Meng Po was because of the grief that was introduced to her on this day." the woman explained.

Lord Taylor sneered. "Would you be struck with such grief if I was sent to oblivion?" He asked.

The woman smiled. "Of course. I wouldn't have survived Eons without you. My husband, on the other hand, I'm just counting the days." she sighed.

Lord Taylor laughed without reserve as the woman pouted. Lord Taylor then whipped the tears from his eyes.

"Is he still interfering with souls, giving them gifts?" Lord Taylor asked.

"Yes. And I begged him to stop. Do you know how many primordials have come for his head because some loser received his gifts before reincarnation? Ugh! How many Empreayen and Infernal children have to die before he realizes that his deeds affect us all?"

"I say we kill him." Lord Taylor spoke, "I'm serious. Do you know Helios? The Titan from the Praxis System. His son was traveling the realms, and one of your husband's gifted friends killed him and raped Helios' daughter-in-law before adding her to his harem. Helios destroyed nine planets in rage. The High Council is furious. If we kill your husband, they may reward us."

The woman sat up from her sofa and looked at her best friend with disbelief. "You're lying."

Lord Taylor shook his head. "No. These souls that I have been dealing with today are from Earth, your husband's favorite world. Two souls are responsible for saving billions. That's why Meng Po asked me to handle her duties, so your husband can't get to them. She knows I'll kick his ass. Sooner or later, he will be public enemy number one, and you, my dearest, will be guilty by association."

"No, I won't!" she declared, "I, Lilian Rex, will not fall from grace because of some insane fool. Let's kill my husband."

Suddenly a bell chimed, and the best friends became frivolous. "Sorry, Lilian. I have to get back to work. Break time over."

"I'll stay here. Just in case my husband comes," said Lilian. "Besides, I like the looks of sad humans."

"You are a human." Lord Taylor laughed

"So what? I like what I like." Lilian replied as she put the wine bottle to her lips again.

Meanwhile, in a small villa, deep in the Infernal Realm, Chen Suyin sat sipping wine with Old Lady Meng. On each side of the table were cups filled to the brim with wine for Meng Po's husband, Chen Suyin's lost love, and her parents.

"Little girl, I've been in your shoes. The grief of losing a lover is painful. But I advise you to drink my soup and forget him. If you encounter him in his next life, he will not remember you, and in every life, we have a fated one. Others have many ones. I don't wish to see your heartbreak, nor do I wish to see you stay with this old lady for eternity." Old Meng suddenly stopped speaking and waved her hand towards the west.

In an instant, Chen Bolin and Chen Meili appeared. The family was shocked. Meili ran to her daughter and embraced her, and Chen Bolin fell to knees before Old Lady Meng. Meng Po tittered.

"See, child, your parents have come for you. So take the soup together and move on as a family. What's meant to be will be. But if it's not to your liking, at least you will not be plagued by the memories of what was."

Chen Bolin and Chen Meili looked confused. Suyin looked at her parents for a moment before she nodded her head, silently accepting the soup of forgetfulness from Old Lady Meng. But she suddenly stopped Old Lady Meng and personally handed the bowls of soup to her parents.

Chen Bolin looked at his mother and daughter as they drank the soup. Then, after every drop was taken from the bowl, Chen Bolin put his bowl down.

"Why do you not drink?" Old Lady Meng asked.

"My son is sincere." Chen Bolin replied.

"That Jaxon fellow?" Old Lady Meng asked.

"Yes... I'll drink your soup, but where he goes, we go." Chen Bolin stood unwavering as he awaited Old Meng's reply.

"Why not? I'll tether your fates. Or, more so, the fate of Suyin and Jaxon. But be warned, fate is truly neutral. Whether it's good, evil, happy, or sad, it must be determined by you. Do you wish to set your daughter on the path the collides her with a man that may be a beggar, Holy Son, or Evil Incarnate?"

Chen Bolin sighed. "This little girl lived her life as a robot until that stubborn boy broke through to her. She may need that again in her next life. So yes." Chen Bolin then emptied his bowl.

As the Chen family were en route to their next life, I, Jaxon Xuan Smith, appeared before Lord Taylor and Lilian Rex.

Lord Taylor growled as Lilian looked at me with a confounded expression.

"Lilian, go find your husband. If he has taken the Chen girl and given her gifts, destroy her soul before she leaves here." Said Lord Taylor.

Lilian nodded before she vanished. Lord Talyor then woke me from my death sleep. It's a state of mind that wonders in. Nothing but peace until your fate is determined.

"Where am I?" I asked.

"Jaxon Xuan Smith, Old Lady Meng has taken a personal day. I will be handling your reincarnation." Lord Taylor handed me a bowl of soup, "Here, drink this."

"No, and don't call me Jaxon Xuan Smith. It's Jaxon Xuan or Jaxon Smith. My mother insisted that I keep her last name, and naturally, my father wanted me to have his. But I don't like how they sound together." I went through the same dialogue that I had repeated countless times throughout my life.

"So, I'm being reincarnated, and all I get is a bowl of soup? Why wake me if we're just going to have a shit encounter?" I complained at the time.

Lord Taylor sighed, "It's the rules. I wake you, I inform you, I force the soup of forgetfulness down your throat."

"No cheats? Overpowered system? Can't I just live in the nether world?"

I didn't want any of that stuff. I actually had no motivation to reincarnate. Why should I? To fail again?

"Nether world? Do you mean the Infernal Realm? Nope. You, damn humans, are so entitled. It's all that idiot's fault. I've been asked for blessings and curses all day." Lord Taylor complained.

I laughed as the Lord frustration. It was a nice laugh after a less than desirable ending. "Dxd? Against the Gods?" I asked.

"Naruto!" Lord Taylor shouted, and suddenly, a sparkle in his eye could be seen. I knew I had fucked up the moment I saw that glimmer. He relaxed, then continued, "All of these fictional worlds that people want to go to. But they have no idea that none of them exist. Honestly, it makes me want to destroy myself."

I chuckled. "I feel for you, man. But, honestly, after my failed life, I just want to wander a bit. That sleep that woke me from was actually peaceful."

"Sorry about that. You know, you're not a bad human. You shouldn't give up on life so easily." said Lord Taylor.

"If you give me a couple of wishes, I might not give up," I spoke with a teasing smirk.

"No." Lord Taylor replied with an expressionless face. "I like you, though."

In an instant, Lord Taylor flashed behind me. Before I knew what was happening, I was flung into the cycle of reincarnation without drinking Old Lady Meng's soup.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I like you, though," I mocked Lord Taylor.

"You have an odd way of showing it, Old Man!"I spoke to myself as I traveled through a world of white.

"And you didn't give me my soup!" I roared until my outburst subsided, then I muttered, "I don't want to remember her."

Time slowly passed, but to me, it felt like an instant. I may not have been granted wishes, but my karma was so vast that my tunnel of reincarnation had turned into a rainbow bridge. But with so much good, Evil tends to act out to keep the balance. The rainbow bridge slowly faded into a blinding light. The light melted into a plethora of colors that gradually formed images. Suddenly the sound of the world was perceived, and I found himself in the arms of a beautiful woman with copper skin, pointed ears, silver hair, and deep purple eyes.

"What the hell is she?!" I thought.

"Third Young Master, He's a healthy boy, but…." The woman holding me became anxious.

"But what?!" the Third Young Master's voice boomed.

Although the man was only fifteen, his physique was mighty, his voice firm, and he emitted a regal aura of maturity and tyrannical cultivation. I was perplexed about what was happening, and I cursed Lord Taylor for not giving him the soup of forgetfulness. Not only was Suyin in my heart, but I also had to get accustomed to a world that was drastically different from my previous world.

"H-he has the streaks of the Cursed Ancestor." The woman cried.

'Streaks of what?! I'm I going to die? Already?!' I shouted in my heart as a familiar sense of failure washed over me.

The third young master immediately snatched me with enough force to kill me. But I survived. I knew then my new life would interesting. Before I could get my wits, the man killed the woman.

"Mina, eat the Bodhi Pill and heal yourself. Then, you need to pack the courtyard and prepare to leave before father and grandfather return."

"Gellis…" Mina spoke with overwhelming fear, and suddenly a great aura washed over the clan.

I was shaking with fear. I couldn't even manage to cry. The people I assumed were my parents looked like they had been touched by death.

Gellis quickly put me in Mina's arms and popped the pill in her mouth. Gellis then threw a purple flame at the dead midwife, and her body and soul burned until nothing remained, not even ashes. He then rushed out of the room to greet his father, grandfather, Elder brother, and sister. He quickly bowed and welcomed them home.

His sister smiled sweetly at him and immediately asked about Mina.

"She's fine. The baby is a stubborn one. She's resting. Perhaps you can visit her tonight." My father lied.

His sister's face turned ugly. "I care about the baby, not Mina. I personally believe you should marry Daliah and not some branch scum that you spilled your seed in by accident."

Gellis frowned. "It wasn't an accident."

"Even worse…." His sister hissed. She then took a deep breath and smiled. "That aside, I've missed you, little brother."

"Enough!" The elder brother barked, " Wasted potential is all he is. He could be as strong as us if he wasn't so lazy. But alas, he's finally become a burden."

"Speak plain!" Gellis roared.

"The 12 Immortal Palaces are coming after us along with the Royal Family. Grandfather's desire to break through to the next stage of cultivation has finally destroyed us… He has stolen the Nine Suns Revolving Pellet from the hands of Beatrice Night." The elder brother explained.

"Night!? The Dark Phoenix young Miss?!" Gellis shouted in shock.

"Alright! Go and gather the forces. Prepare the ancestral array. We'll show those bastards our blood is just as ancient as theirs." Their grandfather ordered, and the elder siblings rushed off.

"Gellis, go be with Mina. Not even the Immortal Palaces can break our ancestral array." His father spoke.

Gellis quickly racked his brain then said, "No, I will go to the Armory and help prepare for war."

"I knew you wouldn't let us down." His father spoke with pride. Gellis knew that if his father saw me with streaks of the cursed ancestor, he would have no choice but to exterminate Gellis and his line.

"Son." the grandfather spoke, "I will attempt to breakthrough. It's our only hope."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sometime later, Gellis moved through the clan to the armory. The name armory was deceiving as the vault also held the clan treasures. Arriving at the Armory, Gellis received everyone's bows before moving to help two elders hand out weapons, armor, and one-time use battle scrolls.

Time passed as Gellis outfitted numerous clan members. When the last of the clan members received their weapons. Gellis took out two jade bottles. His heart was like a calm day as he opened the bottles and splashed the contents onto the back of the two elders' heads. He had no grievance with the two men, but he had to protect his family.

The thick, blue liquid ate through their heads and souls before they dropped dead. Gellis quickly took their spatial rings, then he walked to the middle of the grand armory where a pedestal was erected to hold a single Cosmic Grade Interspatial Ring. To save me, he needed to make sure that I grew big and strong.

With a single drop of blood, the ring recognized my father. Putting the ring on, my father pulled the entire armory into the Insterspatial Ring.

Rushing out of the armory, Gellis appeared in our courtyard shouting for Mina when his heart stopped. He had seen Mina clutching me in her arms as my aunt towered over us. But I wasn't fearful. My aunt had explained what was going to happen before my father even arrived.

"Silver hair with golden streaks. Eyes like the Golden Emperor Dragon, with flecks as green as the vitality of the Elven Sages' Sacred World Tree. He has all of the traits of the Cursed Ancestor." My aunt spoke.

Gellis sighed. "I'm not your match. So what are you going to do?"

His elder sister grunted before she infused a jade with her power. A moment later, Gellis' brother-in-law walked into the room with a little girl, barely a year old.

"I thought you would never make it out of the armory. So I was going to kill your family myself. That way, it would be painless." His elder sister spoke in a sad voice.

"You hate Mina."

"I hate her background. It brings us no benefits. I do what's best for the clan as we all should!" she growled, "But how could I not respect the woman that loves my little brother and labored his child, my nephew, my blood."

Gellis was taken aback. I was shocked too. Gellis had never seen such emotions from his sister since he announced that Mina was pregnant and his fiancé. And from the moment I met the woman, she came off as cold and callous.

"I love you. But I also love our brother and father. Grandfather is a fool, but I love him too. This clan is my life, and I won't abandon it. And if you had another choice, I know you'd stay as well. But this is a divine intervention of the heavens. Your son, born today, the way he is—my need to clear my conscience before I die and accidentally discovering your secret is moving me to help you. It also happens to be the best opportunity to ensure the clan's continued existence. All I ask is that you take my Nimue with you."

Gellis nodded at his sister. "But I have no idea where we're going, and we can never return at least…

"I know." his sister interrupted. "Hurry and go. The clan is focused on the enemy, and the enemy has their attention on breaking the barrier."

My aunt quickly pulled a purple jade hairpin from her hair, causing her silver locks to fall free. She handed it to Gellis, and he innately understood what his sister wanted him to do.

As my mother held me and Gellis held Nimue, the four of us fled the clan until we reached the barrier. The moment we arrived, Gellis held up the clan seal of the main house with a drop of blood on it. The blood shimmered with purple radiance.

A hole appeared in the barrier almost instantly, and we fled as the hole sealed itself behind us.

"Where do we go?" Gellis asked as we flew through the air.

"The mortal world. Far into the Deep South of the Southern Continent." Mina replied.

"We will never progress there," Gellis replied.

"But they will. That's what matters." Mina reasoned, and Gellis nodded as the couple changed directions and flew to Waystation - a platform with a grand transmission array that could transport people from the West Continent to the South Continent.

As the couple fled with two children in their arms with great haste, many people tried to secretly flee the clan as well. However, they only found death. The barrier incinerated them immediately on contact. Time passed slowly as the twelve Immortal Palaces chipped away at the barriers' strength. All the while, my great-grandfather just couldn't break through with his meager talent.

The clan watched as the barrier came down, and a slaughter commenced. That day, word spread across the West Continent that the Elven Sage Race had gone utterly extinct with the fall of the Eldunari Clan. Those that lived outside of the clan were hunted down and killed to ensure extinction.

Fortunately, before the clan's extinction was made public and the hunt began, the couple was wearing large black robes as they entered a shop near the Waystation, startling a clerk. The clerk was a young flaming haired woman with deep red eyes and jade skin.

The moment Mina took off her hood, the woman fell to her knees and greeted her mistress. The woman's name is Fei Rong. She was once my mother's maidservant until my father's family sent her away and assigned a maidservant of the main family to her.

"Rong Rong, stand up. We need to leave right now, but no one can discover our identity. And we have to go far." My mother explained.

"How far?" Fei Rong asked.

"The Deep South."

Fei Rong was shocked. It made me wonder how bad this Deep South was. My curiosity was promptly satiated when Fei Rong said, "My lady, that's the worst of the Mortal Worlds because the South Continent is the weakest Cultivation World. Why not the High North or the Far East. Even the Great Sand Lands of the Central Continent are better than the Deep South."

"Can you help or not?" Mina asked.

Fei Rong nodded before she quickly wrote a note and left it on the shop counter. She then pulled her lady out of the shop and led us through many allies before arriving at a small hole in the wall bar.

She quickly negotiated a price before a large burly man escorted them to a caravan. Paying our way, my parents climbed into a carriage before a smiling Fei Rong joined us. Mina looked at her with shock, but a deep warmth filled her heart. My mother and Fei Rong grew up together. My mother always felt sad about how the main family cast her aside.

Without a word, Mina nodded, silently thanking Fei Rong for joining us.