Death? Not Yet!

Celestial moonlit realm, dragon enclave.

The moon hung high in the sky, casting a pale glow over the sea and the man surrounding it. A lone man stood up high, his clothes swayed with the breeze. His shadow danced among them. His eyes create an otherworldly atmosphere. It intended hatred and fear in the eyes of others at once.

But his cold eyes were only filled with resentment and hatred. That one person was Yun Seok. His clothes were stained with blood, half of the amount of his wound would have killed a person a hundred times already. But he stood tall with his unwavering gaze.

"........ you are already on the verge of death. Give us the orb and we will let you have an easy death." easy death! The words made him laugh. 

His laughter was enough for them to shudder in fear. Their grip on their sword tightening instinctively. 

"You will give me an easy death? Are you even qualified for it?" he titled his gaze, his eyes falling over the bodies that had covered the land completely, even staining the sea red. They were their brothers, their friends, the members of their sect who they have trained together.

All of them had betrayed him at once. 

Without a word, Zhang Lei moved. His katana sliced through the air with the precision of a hawk diving for its prey. But one swayed from …Yun Seok's hands and he disappeared from there only to reappear at the other side of the sea.

"It is not because I can't fight you brother. I want to know the reason first? Why have you gone against me?" he asked in a low and profound voice but a hint of resentment there could be felt. The other person laughed, as if he had heard a joke of the lifetime. 

"You knew that I was their leader from the start when you joined the sect …. Yet you tried to take the position of the leaders. Have you thought that they would accept you in my place?" a look of disdain full of contempt mocked his face as he looked at Yun Seok.

Yun Seok's eyes hardened and his hands clenched into a fist.

"You think I was taking your place when I trained them? You want to kill me for this orb and that foolish reason?" he mocked only to get a hiss from the Zhang Lei. 

His whole life passed through his life as if the wheel of time had been broken and even it wanted to mock him for his foolish brotherhood.

He remembered how he was once in his youth. He had been living on the earth. But a strange passage of time and a nearly death experience had brought him to this world. Here he had met a master who had helped him in learning about the martial arts. Not only that, he had learnt that he had a strong structure that helped him in absorbing qi easily.

Day and night he had trained to become stronger. His master's teachings and his sheer will had brought him in the eyes of everyone. But then, he accidentally met a Zhang Lei. 

He was invited to the dragon sect. There, he had met the love of his life, he had made friends and slowly he had adopted this place as his family. How he had devoted himself to one man believing that it was the new setting of the sun of his life. However his rapid development had earned the ire of the leader whom he treated no less than a brother. But this man, he did not attack him directly. Perhaps he was afraid that he would not be able to win against Yun Seok. So he showed love instead and the foolish man believed in it. 

Over the time, he killed the love of his life with his own hands since she was a threat for his brother and for the sect. But now it has come to this.

"You have sent me for the war, not to win the relic but to weaken me so that you can win against me, right?" his slow voice echoed in the valley leaving the listeners trembling but the Zhang Lei ignored it. 

"I have been their leader from the start. I am still giving you a chance to submit and I will spare your life this time." he repeated to assure the comrades that he was fighting for the right cause. He was the righteous one among them.

Yun Seok smiled but his eyes filled with a welter of emotions but his dead face did not show a hint of the storm he was bearing. 

"It is not because of the brotherhood have you stopped. You are scared that you would never be able to win against me." he pointed as he flicked his fingers and they all took a step back instantly calling for the strongest spell they knew. But Yun Seok had no intention to kill them so easily. How would his anguish be lessened if that happened. 

"You say that you are the rightful leader of the sect. But do you even remember the condition of the sect when I joined?" 

"I spearheaded the quelling of the rebellion within the empire, ensuring the best resources were allocated to expedite our growth."

"I shared all my knowledge with you which I have learnt from my master. I trained all of you personally thinking we share a brotherly bond."

"Remember the azure serpent province? The name that used to be the most dangerous one. How they have accepted us as their leader because I challenged their leader and forced him to bow down in front of you?" 

"Or the Grand half of wisdom? How their arrogant faces had mocked you for the lifetime but now they seek your advice after my contribution. Do you think you could have achieved all this without me as you being the leader?" 

"I eliminated the leaders of top-tier magic organizations, and the rest of the world capitulated willingly, their resources became yours."

"I ventured into the heart of the Central Empire and carved out a foothold for you."

"What luxuries did I hoard for myself, aside from these purple robes, this spear and a handful of potions?"

"I severed my ties with the only master I have known for you. You all accumulated the weapons I have won in the war. You accumulated the wealth I have created with my sheer will and power." 

"I did not rest often because I wanted to make sure that you all were face to face. I plundered the land and sea for you so that you could grow without a worry and yet you are here to remind me of your power and position when I did not want to give up on my strength and power. What right do you have when all you could do is trick me and betray me?" The man around him looked at the blood flowing from his body instead, looking for a chance to attack him and get rid of him at once.

But except disappointment he felt nothing more. His emotions went numb once again from the pain he had suffered again and again.

"Do you have any proof of your dedication brother?" he asked with his voice going lower, "except being the leader, the position you have achieved by your blood. Do you have anything else to prove that you are worthier than me?" he roared, "do you have scars like i have? My whole body was decorated by them. swords, arrows, sabres, spears - all endured for your sake, for your glory, and your empire." but his challenge and truth fell into deaf ears for they all have been only influenced by the lies the Zhang Lei had fed them.

He could not blame them. For once, he was like them. Ready to sacrifice his life on one signal of the Zhang Lei.

They all attacked at him at once With a shrill cry, he unleashed a flurry of attacks. His robes moved for one last time and a thousand golden orbs covered the sky. The sky burnt with their power and let out a cry. The ones moving with a speed and ferocity that took by surprise. 

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