Prologue

Henan province, China. On the summit of a secluded mountain.

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It was early in the morning. The sunlight flickered through the narrow splinters that dotted the Shaolin-temple's ceiling.

Inside the dimly lit hall, a group of people were present. They all had shaved heads and wore typical Buddhist robes. They all had their eyes fixated their eyes on what was before them.

Their master, the head priest of the Shaolin-temple, had lost in battle. The old man lay on his knees, in disbelief of what had just transpired. The monk raised his head to take another look at the man he had lost to and swore to remember his face for the rest of his life.

He was tall and had muscles like no other. In fact, his back looked more like a painting.

His dark hair was tied up into a bun and his hands clenched tightly. Although he couldn't see his face, the monk realized that he was looking up into the sky, as if god was witness to his actions.

Then, the man did something that the Chinese monks did not expect. He started yelling at the top of his lungs, facing the sky.

"KAMI-SAMA! I have lived a life of monotony! Not a single master has defeated me ever since I stepped on the path of martial arts! In fact, I have never even faced a real challenge..."

"Why must humans be so frail compared to me? Why have you made me so strong!? Answer me!"

His words trailed off, and the whole mountain remained silent. The monks dared not to even breathe.

After a minute of silence, the man started laughing. His laughter echoing throughout the area.

"Hahahaha!"

"I am foolish for seeking to communicate with god. Look at me, resorting to these blasphemous actions of all things... Have I really descended into lunacy, master?"

The man's expression remained calm. He raised his hand and inspected it. The monks just stared in confusion.

They didn't understand a word of what he was saying, since they were Chinese and he was Japanese. Even so, they felt tremendous fear when looking at him.

With all eyes on him, the mysterious man took a deep breath and stretched his arm before perforating his own chest.

Gasps could be heard from the monks. They all started sweating profusely as the man yanked out his own heart from his chest. They had lived in seclusion for their whole lives, eating, training and meditating. Never had they seen something so gruesome, and some even fainted from the shock.

The heart was still twitching in the man's hands as he fell on his face. His eyes slowly losing clarity.

"Kami-sama... You forced me to do this. If I am reborn, please take me to a place where I will enjoy myself a little more...."

With those last words, the man passed away and left the monks flabbergasted, not knowing how to react.

The mountain remained silent for the whole day after that, the animals not daring to make a single sound.