In the past there was once a benevolent kingdom known to be the kingdom of Fuli. A prosperous land where people were well fed, the slums were well polished, and people were well educated, living both with peace and harmony. This kingdom is led by a great ruler, Wei Guo. He led this kingdom with strength and humility, adored by his people and his family. For thirty years the kingdom was at peace, people laughed, children played, and the kingdom was as prosperous as before; however, those times at peace were fleeting. The calmness was finally broken by a grueling war. Soldiers cried, people fled, many were injured, and things were left unsaid.
Three years passed since the war ignited; both kingdoms worked together to kill one person. A person who was seen as a threat to both kingdoms, he was a man with great pride and honor. The power he had left great responsibilities; in the end, he paid the price for having that power.
Throughout his life he was seen as a threat, and people took him for granted. When an outbreak came in the northeast, he was first to help out the Kingdom of Meir. Unfortunately those good deeds were ignored, and things they remembered about him were tales believed to be untrue. A master strategist, commander, savior, and grim reaper, he was a legend to the people, and yet he was seen more as a threat than a hero to the kingdoms; he had too many loyal followers to be seen as a loyal citizen and far too many influential friends on the other side to be seen as a savior. Finally, both the Mier and Fuli kingdoms had had enough; a secret alliance was formed in the form of a war between the two. A lie, to cover up the real reason. To get rid of the Commander. Soon enough both kingdoms came for his head.
A few more months passed, and the winter season got closer; the war was yet to be settled. This fight left the country in a shortage, warriors tired, and people growing restless. Soon enough the war came to an end. Soldiers from both sides wailed as victory was announced and the Great Commander of the Kingdom of Fuli, Wei An, had died.
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"Finally! Let's drink and celebrate, everyone! Haha! Commander Wei An is dead! "
It hadn't been a day since the great war of Meir vs. Fuli ended, and the news had already spread across the great kingdoms. The speed was only comparable to how fast scandalous acts of prominent people started and spread back then, if not faster.
Suddenly everyone, whether they were prominent governors or rogue commoners, was discussing this vanquishment that had been led by the two great kingdoms and attended by thousands if not millions of people.
"Fantastic, it is great indeed! Who was the hero who killed that pathetic commander? "
"Wasn't it his apprentice? The guy who seemed to be Wei An's right-hand man? "
"Hah! You are fools! The man who killed Wei An was his very own brother! "
"That can't be true! Why would his brother, the king, make him the commander then? "
"I heard Wei An's own soldiers initiated the attack; they said he looked like he was beaten to death! They even destroyed his belongings and residences."
"I must say, the soldiers did a great job. Well done."
Someone from the crowd clapped their hands and exclaimed in agreement, "That's right, well done! If it wasn't for the king making him commander at a young age, Wei An would have never made it alive! It would have been better if he did nothing, yet he showed off! If only he had just stayed quiet, he wouldn't have had this ending."
"The military had too much control! Thank goodness that man is dead! " One of the governors from the fallen kingdom exclaimed.
"Right! I can't believe the king allowed that guy to run amok for so long! If it were me, I would have stabbed him the moment he started trying to control things, then he wouldn't be able to make all sorts of demands! Brotherhood doesn't matter when facing people like him! "
"That's not what I heard, though? Didn't Wei An's plan backfire, causing him to be ripped apart and devoured by monstrous beasts under his command? I heard he was chewed up into pieces alive! "
"HA HA HA HA! That's what you call karma! I've wanted to say this for so long, but those beasts he raised were like a pack of unleashed mad dogs, biting people everywhere. And in the end, he got bitten to death himself! Well deserved! "
"Well, if the King hadn't been the one to plan the war based on the Commander's weakness, then success would've been difficult to guarantee. Don't forget that Wei An had his clutches, or how over three thousand renowned soldiers were completely wiped out that day."
"Wasn't it five thousand? "
"Three thousand, five thousand, it's all the same. Ten thousand seems more believable, though. "
"He really is mad…Hah! The mad commander of Fuli! "
"He destroyed his sword and that crimson amulet that controlled his beast before he died, so he gets at least some credit for that. If that was left to cause harm in the world, his sins would only deepen."
The moment the crimson amulet was mentioned, there was suddenly silence, as if everyone was wary of something. A moment later, someone sighed.
"Speaking of Wei An, he's the king's brother. He was the heir to the throne, but he gave it up. He was a very influential and noble man back then. He gained great success in his youth. How glorious and unbridled he was…How did he end up on this path…? "
Just like that, the subject changed. Voices raised again in a heated discussion, each of them belittling Wei An.
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Years after Wei An's death, judgement of his character was no longer refutable, the discussions were mostly the same, and any small voice of dissent was immediately squashed.
However, fear still firmly enveloped everyone's minds. Although the previous commander, Wei An, had died in war, the remains of his soul couldn't be summoned. Perhaps his soul had been ripped apart and devoured by the monstrous beasts. Or perhaps, it escaped.
The former would naturally be a better occasion for the entire world. However, the previous commander had the power to reach the sun and topple the earth; he could move mountains and raise tides and seas—at least, that was what the legends said. It would be no great task for him to resist a mere spell like soul summoning if he so desired it. If his spirit returned in the future…If he took over a body and was reincarnated, then the Kingdom of Fuli—the entire world would be driven to chaos to face endless darkness and blood.
And so, each major city of the two continents conducted frequent soul summoning rituals to ensure Wei An's soul was truly gone. They sealed off the place of his death and strictly monitored for cases of possession; they sought far and wide to find anything that was abnormal and heightened their securities to the max.
In the first year, all was peaceful, as it was in the second and then the third. In the seventeenth year, it was still peaceful. Thus, more and more people finally came to believe that perhaps Wei An had not been amazing after all. Maybe he really had perished. Even though he once turned the world upside down, there had at least come a day when he was the one overturned. No one could be worshipped on the divine altar forever. Legends were merely legends after all.