"..."
Time moved as time moved, consistent and without pause, and Wei Wuyin felt every passing second. Within a body he had no control over, he was forced to live as his younger, infant self with full awareness. From his first steps to his first absorption of ambient essence, thus embarking on the path of cultivation, he relived it all.
"This Tribulation isn't difficult. Not at all! Not at all!" Ori's voice could be heard from the depths of his soul. From time to time, Wei Wuyin would hear the voices of his Astral Souls. They kept giving positive cheers, suggesting that the tribulation they were facing was extremely easy on their end.
Kratos' roars were filled with triumph. Eden's was nonchalant, as if this was a walk in the park with no concern, merely the ease of sightseeing. King was silent, only eliciting a single domineering 'tch' throughout the years. Ori, however, was the extremely talkative one out of the bunch, constantly spouting all sorts of nonsense regarding the tribulation's difficulties.
The jig was up; Wei Wuyin knew that despite his True Dragon Void Bloodline and Kratos' innate mastery over the Void Dao, the tribulation was abnormally troublesome to deal with. They had to use the fullest extent of their powers to resist the surging time energies threatening to wash his life away, leaving him as a speck of nothingness within the world.
The frightening part was his inability to sense the danger, forced to live out his happiest days while his Astral Souls fought with all they had. It was frustrating to accept, but he had to remain mentally strong and focused.
If his innate powers had to resist an external threat, then it's unlikely that this portion of the tribulation was without its dangers. He refused to let his guard down as his mother carried him throughout their home, welcomed by sights he thought were long lost in the blazing flames and black smoke that reached the highest heavens that day.
A year in, Wei Wuyin found himself as an ignorant child completely innocent of thoughts and actions. He acted playfully, enjoying the new sights and sensations, blessing him with a feeling that he had never felt before. When he nearly tumbled down the stairs after he first walked, completely unaware that his little life nearly came to an end, only to be rescued by his big brother's warm arms and wry smile, Wei Wuyin had never felt so protected before.
…so safe.
He couldn't do anything at that moment despite having the urge to speak a thousand sentences in a thousand seconds. The 'him' of this tribulation smiled and played with his brother's nose as he heard that relieved chuckle and soft scolding.
Wei Wuyin wanted to shout: "I'll never do anything risky again…just don't leave." That mighty shout would've been spoken with the force of his entire soul. Alas, his wants went unanswered as his life continued.
"Take the Second Young Master." A tall, burly guard of the Wei Clan's estate handed him to a panicked maid that fumbled with worry in her eyes. She hastily approached, using a handkerchief to wipe away the blood stains on his face. It wasn't his.
Wei Wuyin was only three years old now, and he remembered these days with extreme accuracy. He was a little monster to the servants of the estate, and they stressed themselves dealing with his constant antics. Due to his father's obsession with curing his mother and his older brother's focus on cultivation at the Saber Wolf Sect, he was raised mostly by these guards and maids, but his tyranny was terrifying.
He escaped the grounds often, hunted beasts, and fought with the kids in Red Dove City. He was a vicious little young master, as rampant as a little devil. It was an understatement to say he wasn't feared by all he came across.
Moreover, he was frighteningly intelligent for his age. He played many for fouls, running afoul with all sorts of little schemes that left the city's youngsters running for the hills. In Red Dove City, the Wei Clan was the strongest force, led by their clan leader, who was at the highest cultivation in the city, the Third Stage of the Qi Condensation Realm, the Elemental Birth Phase. The Clan Lord was also an elder of the Saber Wolf Sect, a subordinate to the Scarlet Solaris Sect, and essentially made the Red Dove City his life's achievement.
The Saber Wolf Sect was notoriously vicious, so going against them meant having your entire family down to three generations wiped out. At the time, Wei Wuyin wasn't fully aware of the fear he invoked with each of his actions, only that no one dared to offend him.
Wei Wuyin's soul felt increasingly joyful. These were the times when he was developing his fierce streak with an eye for plans. It would later grow into the current him. After two years of this, his brother would return from the Saber Wolf Sect as a Qi Condensation Realm cultivator, and he would teach him an unforgiving lesson.
His haughtiness was beaten down, and he was instilled with stable principles, not of righteousness or fairness, but a sense of morality. This was geared towards his older brother's beliefs, but it still impacted his decisions to this day.
Days passed, and Wei Wuyin approached 'that' fateful day.
His parents left.
Afterward, his brother became his full-time guardian.
After reaching twelve, he ventured into the mountain known for housing 'demons'. He eventually met her—Dai Lyn. Her violet-skinned beauty enchanted him instantly, ensnaring his soul, and he fell so hard into her kind warmth that he ignored all warnings issued to him. After learning of the misunderstood legacy of demons, Wei Wuyin begged his brother to teach him the Way of the Saber.
To protect Dai Lyn…
To protect their unborn child…
Wei Wuyin refused to relive what happened next.
He refused!
Yet he was forced to. He was unable to close his eyes, his senses, or shut off any connection with this tribulation. The raging fires, vile shouts of hateful curses, and the scent of blood scattered in the air alongside that black, billowing smoke that filled the skies left his heart in shambles.
Watching as those of Red Dove City turned against him, even those once 'loyal' maids and guards turned their knives his way, slaughtering their way into the clan's estate, claiming life after life was horrifically scarring. He was only fourteen this year, still experiencing puberty, yet he watched as Dai Lyn was fatally wounded, clutching her bleeding stomach as those once gentle eyes were replaced with abject fear that originated from her soul.
Her cry still rang in his ears at night.
When an arrow pierced through her skull, her eyeball popping out in the most gruesome manner, and that cry merely lingered in the air, abruptly ended by malicious violence, Wei Wuyin's strained voice was revitalized with a roar of insanity.
The body was taken away by her clansmen and brought back to the mountains, while he was carried away by his older brother and Du Ling. They rushed and rushed for hours, chased by experts that his brother couldn't hope to rival.
Yet at the banks of the river, as it began to rain with the tint of blood, his brother's last smile as he was sent away in Du Ling's arms was unforgettable. With his saber in hand, he faced dozens of experts beyond his cultivation level, holding them all back with a demon's ferocious will.
Watching it again, Wei Wuyin's heart wasn't as bleeding and depressed as before. This event in his life cemented his life's mission, his pursuit of power, and his will to cultivate. Prior to this, he skirted by on his clan's power and reputation. But that was all ephemeral before the face of tangible benefits, and when those who disliked the Wei Clan seized their weakness—his sin—they pounced with the bloodthirstiness of starving piranhas.
It was clear that this moment was when his life truly began, as his first Karmic Luck usage was shortly after this, according to the Black Skeleton. Since he never had the will to capitalize on his Blessed status, the Heavenly Daos had never sought to bless him with its kindness.
As he thought of this, he instinctively thought of Blessed that perished with their Karmic Luck unused. What happened to those Blessed? Did they simply die tragic deaths, ignorant of the possible fortune that awaited them?