Chapter 2: The Ten Masters

Fang woke to the sound of an indistinct scream. He looked around, but there was no sky, no earth—only endless darkness.

**Wasn’t I hit by a meteorite… am I dead?**

**Is this… the world of the dead?**

He examined his body—or rather, the white light that he had become.

**Will I be stuck here forever, wandering until my soul fades into nothing?**

Confused and disoriented, Fang walked. For what felt like months, he wandered through the dark void. Then, in the distance, he spotted a speck of light—no, ten lights.

**Are there other people here?**

Relieved, Fang hurried toward the lights. The oppressive loneliness he had felt for so long finally began to lift.

“Hahaha, this is great! We’ve finally found someone who can hold our body!”

“Well, it’s a bit broken.”

“That doesn’t matter. Fixing it will be easy.”

“Yes, we should be grateful. We’ve met someone just before we disappear.”

“Our luck isn’t so bad after all!”

There were ten souls in total, and from their voices, they sounded old. One of the figures floated toward Fang.

“Boy, you’re lucky to have found us. From now on, you’re destined for greatness!”

Fang frowned. “Who the hell are you?”

“Who am I? Listen carefully and don’t be scared!” The figure glowed brighter. “I am Kaesar!”

**Kaesar?**

Fang thought for a moment, then replied, “Sorry, I’ve never heard of you.”

“What?! You’ve never heard of me, Kaesar?” A tinge of red seeped into the old man’s aura, his anger growing. “Boy, if you’re this ignorant, maybe I should kill you right now!”

“I’m already dead, aren’t I?”

“You…” The light surrounding Kaesar shook violently, expanding as though he intended to engulf Fang. A sharp voice came from another soul.

“Calm down! It’s been a long time; we can’t expect him to know us.”

“A long time?” Kaesar looked wretchedly at the others. “I—one of the legendary supreme masters—forgotten by history? Unthinkable!”

**Supreme master?**

Fang’s eyes widened. He hadn’t heard of Kaesar specifically, but he knew the title of a supreme master.

Supreme masters stood at the pinnacle of power, nearly godlike in their abilities. It was rumored that they could destroy nations with ease.

**Could this soul really be one of them?**

Fang didn’t know what to believe. He hadn’t expected to meet a supreme master, let alone in a place like this. He remained silent.

Kaesar saw the doubt in his eyes and shouted, “You don’t believe I’m a supreme master? I’ll prove it right now. Watch!”

A foreboding aura surrounded the blurry figure as he stretched out his arm. Cautious, Fang took a step back.

Kaesar gritted his teeth and concentrated for a few seconds before a small cluster of flames burst from his fingers.

“Hahaha, see this, you ignorant boy? Tremble before the power of the terrible flame!”

Fang wasn’t an expert on fire, but he knew that conjuring a flame was the simplest of tasks. The size of the flame reflected the user’s power. He had heard that true masters could evaporate entire lakes, but this… Kaesar only managed a small flame.

Speechless, Fang coughed. “Old man, do you use that to light your cigars?”

“Are you stupid?” Kaesar flew into a rage. “In this void world, fire is impossible, yet I created it before your very eyes! All of my companions here are also at the peak of their arts.”

“That’s right, look at me!” A gray figure floated up and down, moving slowly toward Fang and then back. “I am the supreme master of shadows!”

**That was... fast?** Fang thought, suppressing his disbelief. The soul moved at about five meters per second. Hardly impressive.

“Didn’t I move extremely fast?” the shadow master asked.

“Speed isn’t important! With my strength, I could destroy mountains with my fists!”

“Crushing mountains is nothing! The power of the wind can grind mountains into dust!”

“It takes you so long to grind a mountain! I could punch dozens in that time!”

Fang watched, embarrassed, as the old souls argued and bragged about their powers. **Did becoming a supreme master come with this much delusion?**

Or perhaps the endless darkness of the void had driven them mad.

He didn’t want to argue with these crazy souls. With a cough, he said, “If there’s nothing else, elders, I’ll be going now.”

He started to float away, but the souls quickly surrounded him.

“You can’t leave! We’ve found a suitable candidate,” one of the dead said.

“Candidate?”

“Yes,” another dead soul chimed in. “We’ll teach you the strongest techniques we know. You’re the luckiest person in the world!”

Fang was at a loss for words. **Why would I want to learn anything from a bunch of dead people?**

He sighed. “Thank you, masters, but no thanks. Goodbye!”

He tried to push past them, but the dead souls blocked his way. “You don’t understand! It’s everyone’s dream to be chosen by us! Don’t let him escape!”

One of the "masters" latched onto Fang, refusing to let go. Soon, all ten souls piled on top of him, holding him down.

“Boy, if it weren’t for this void, I could kill you with just a finger!”

“Do you really want to do this the hard way? Just say you’ll learn!”

Fang shook his head violently, shouting, “I don’t want to learn!”

A cold voice echoed in his ear, “Do you have any idea how many people would die to be our disciples? More than you’ve ever seen in your life!”

The so-called master of speed struggled to hold on to Fang. “You’d better listen! There’s one among us who… well, let’s just say he’s got some odd preferences, and you don’t want to find out the hard way…”

**These guys are insane!** Fang thought, panicking. The most important thing now was to keep his sanity—and his dignity.

“Fine! I’ll learn! I’ll learn whatever you teach me!”

The dead souls instantly released him, cheering as if they had won a great victory, while Fang stared at them, utterly depressed.

**Maybe these crazy souls will disappear soon. I’ll just hang in there…**