Macabre

Xiaowen had felt a certain tingle within his chest and his stomach groin in unexpected proportions. The palace grounds were truly an significant epicenter of the Empire as intended by the farm lords and peasant lords of the past that eventually grew themselves into the imperials.

Xiaowen could almost imagine the castle grounds converted into acres of farming land and where the original kings face lied upon the single farmer that forged his destiny by the gentle hand he fed to those who surrounded his territory.

"How a kingdom has fallen to epic proportions." Xiaowen muttered.

The palace guards greeted him with an insignificant head nod. Their eyes glued onto the blood curiously mantled to the side of his face and dripped from his hair. Xiaowen hadn't even considered the possibly of how people would react to the blood that dripped from his head as he entered the palace.

However, strangely enough most cared not to ask or they ducked their heads inbetween their shoulders and breasts and quickly hurried away with their ant-like behavior shuffling themselves away.

The palace hallways were luxurious. Xiaowen saw them many times within the clouds that had hazed his brain. However, seeing the real deal was upon different scales of grandiose skill and talent of an architectural masterpiece that had relinquished itself into the hands of the imperial dynasty but backed away from the outer city.

Xiaowen carried onward and Du Yun had abandoned him halfway into the palace. Leaving him alone to walk to his own quarters miles away from the main centerpiece of the palace where his brothers and concubines of the kings lived.

He was reminded callously by his now fathers great deeds as he walked the hallways. Conqueror of dozens, killers of mothers, so far powerful that his shadow could extend from the peaks of mountains and overturn the selfishness of demons.

That was the man that lined the wall in paintings, character picture statues that were so few chosen selectively to line the castle walls along with the ancestors. Xiaowen smiled and could well imagine what talks with this idiot was going to appear as.

Should he sever his head from his shoulder? Perhaps, strangle them to death– No No! It would be too far easy for him to die a regular death with the life he has lived. Xiaowen thought about the possibilities endless though it may seem but all of them resulting in few rugged answers, Death.

Perhaps a few would peek their heads through the mindless skeletons that wandered Xiaowen's life and suggest an alluring proposition of life. Yet, mindless angels and mindless skeletons were one in the same. Being drowned in a pit of hatred that Xiaowen had made within his own mind.

A few guardsmen were around the corners which Xiaowen made. He hadn't heard a single guardsmen stop him or halt him ever since he came inside they all just game his a sidelong glance as if they expected him to come.

He didn't hear anything about his fathers summons either. It seemed like this matter would've been quietly swept under the rug and things will carry onward without a second thought as if nothing happened in the first place.

Xiaowen the prior had already made a few plans upon reaching his estate. It was doing the same things previous Xiaowen had done before. A failed bow had resulted in a whip, A bad talk had resulted in challenges. A successful murder should result in perhaps more work than before.

His section of the palace was disconnected by a little walkway and he was there before he knew it only after a twenty minute walk. His eyes were glued onto a servant that came around a corner and shrieked as he appeared in front of them.

The sudden reaction provoked a chain reaction of servants and guardsmen flooding into the area. They looked at the servant then upon the prince who had just come back home.

Xiaowen didn't have much staff around. There were about four servants and butlers that were hired by Xiaowen before his death. The rest were mysterious to him. He guessed perhaps from his first, fourth or third brother's standings.

They all gazed upon the servant before immediately locking eyes with the 2nd prince whose eyes had danced upon each of their bodies and gave a locking glare with the maid that had shrieked.

"I know. I look like shit. You don't have to scream." Xiaowen spoke arrogantly, "Few of you servants come here. I need to take a bath to wash away all of this filth!"

Their eyes widened each and every single one of them as their eyes rested on the second prince who had not taken their confusion and surprise for an answer marshalled himself through them and roughly shoving a butler that had gotten in his way at some point.

The second prince had returned and he seemed to have not known a single thing that had happened to him. They all had looked at each other their eyes catching the others, the servants not belonging to the prince nodded to each other. While the few servants the belonged to the prince shivered and their eyes turned downturned.

Especially the maid that had shrieked upon his arrival. The same one that he had abused for nearly a decade and for a stupid reason at that. Yet, now he has a reason to abuse her or even kill her… she nearly broke down right there. A thin thread holding her together from losing her composure.

…

Xiaowen had a procession of people enter his room butlers and maids who carried soap and a tub in their hands hefting it into the center of the room just for him

After a lengthy bath the blood had cleared from his face and he was standing in front of his window that overlooked a small garden side area of the palace that the previous Xiaowen had learnt to greatly enjoy.

Xiaowen already enjoyed it as he looked around he saw the vibrant colors of the rainbow above reflect their colors and grace the garden. His eyes thoughtfully closed and he began to organize the memories again.

He could only grasp memories as things carried onward his body seemed to be adjusting to the new soul changing. Core memories were remembered little things the host didn't care about were being slowly resurfaced as Xiaowen thought harder.

His eyes shifted toward the doorway and he looked around the room. He locked the room door and shifted himself back to his bed where he got into a lotus stance and began to cultivate once more.

"What should I cultivate…" He paused before he did so, "I've learned so much. I could only continue down the path I had learned whence I was a foundation establishment…"

Xiaowen had learned a harsh truth while he was cultivating the first time. Whatever you cultivated before was what you would most likely cultivate forever, switching styles was hard and in a world where death was round the corner and the more powerful someone was he knew the difficulties of what it was like to simply change a technique.

He had to choose a firm cultivation method. He brisked through his own memories which were richer and more clearer than the previous owner of the body.

His eyes lit up once he continued, "Oh… I could use this." He looked it over, "Fear can cripple even the strongest…How about a world where fear is king." He looked at the manual he had received. Long Long ago…

The Macabre Emperors Order of Few

He remembered the night he had sacked a temple. His hands shuddered the clouds, carving the end of times as rain poured and the ground shuttered with the strikes of thunder that snatched souls from their bodies.

A monk's religious hand trembled with uncertain disbelief upon the demonic tombs exercised faithful youth that were thrown into its hearts. Xiaowen had entered his eyes, mocked the demon's church and the monk that held the manual with such intensity as if it was their child.

He thrusted his hands onto the monk's neck and lifted him within a quick motion. He ripped the manual from their clutches and gave it a brisk read flipping through the papers before saying, "S–Such a B–boring read! Hu Ha HA!" He roared into the air with certainty to his insanity.

He threw the monk onto the wall and then dangled the book in front of him. "You want this– Hu– Don't you want this silent griever? It's a story of utmost importance to your church and self is it not?"

His calm eyes sent shivers through the monks back. The monk begged and then with a single lightning bolt he killed the monk and set ablaze the church of demons.

Xiaowen remembered it fondly. As proof he was above the demonic cultivators and himself a lesser demon than most believed him to be. However, the more he looked back into the past his actions felt more irrational and yet they made sense within twisted eyes.

He shook his head.

Perhaps, the body had affected him somehow.

He now had something that he was sure was something that he should practice. Although, he had only flipped through it when he was there. His mind was able to slowly examine the pieces of his old life. Therefore he could slowly examine and read the book in his mind.