In a distant realm, there live powerful beings that govern many different worlds. Humans may call them gods, celestials, immortals, deities, and sometimes, devils. These existences know neither good nor bad, acting purely on whim and desire. However, there is one particular god who stands out from the masses of these omnipotent beings.
Fang Jie who is known for his good temperament has long straight hair as dark as charcoal; skin as smooth and clear as the purest jade; eyes like the color of universe, pitch black with smatterings of white, gold, and azure. Clad in white-layered robes with gold lining and with a slight upturn of his soft lips, Fang Jie makes for a good painting.
(My image of Fang Jie.)
This god can not be considered the most handsome nor the loveliest; neither the most powerful nor the weakest. However, he has one of the most unique ability among the gods. While other gods can summon lightning and thunder, can control the undead, Fang Jie has the Infinite Heart.
Infinite Heart, as the name implies, is the ability of the bearer to have an unlimited number of heart. Take one heart out and another grows back. Sounds weird? Yes. But this comes in very handy, especially among immortals. Feeling bored having to live a thousand years? Alright, remove the heart; thus, removing any emotions and memories accumulated in those years. And you get a heart that has completely reset. This ability is also referred to as Infinite Life.
Let's go back to Fang Jie. He does not freely uses his power. Just because of boredom, who would claw out their heart? Not him. However, there comes a day when he witnesses his lover being intimate with another immortal. His lover is cheating on him and he has no idea since when. This pain, this betrayal, this is his first time feeling them all. His heart feels like it's being trampled by a horde of three-horned bulls. When he loves, ah, how deeply he loves.
Days become weeks; weeks turn to months. A year, a decade, and a century passes by. Fang Jie has secluded himself in his glorious mountain peak, Xiao-ping Guo. For a long time the pain in his heart doesn't go away; instead, it worsens and has already touched the essence of his soul. If he doesn't do anything about it, this can give birth to an inner demon and consume him.
One day, Fang Jie's friend comes over. They have not seen each other in hundreds of years and he is quite surprised to see his friend's condition. Fang Jie welcomes him with a small smile. "So you still remember this little one, huh, brother."
This friend of him, when Fang Jie met him for the first time, had asked him to address him as brother. And this brother of his, to this day, has never given out his name.
"Ah Jie, what has happened to you?" intones the brother, worry and concern evident in his voice. He looks closely at this godling. The once bright and twinkling eyes are now dim; the usually rosy and puffy cheeks are now deathly pale and hollow. Ah who could possibly bully his little brother? Come, come, I won't kill you quickly. Just slowly and painfully.
"It's nothing to fuss over. Just," Fang Jie hesitates. He subconsciously kneads his left chest. "My heart, it's hurting."
"AH! What nothing! Your heart is the source of your power! If it's feeling painful, then something is definitely wrong!" explodes the brother.
"Oh."
The brother almost strangles his pitiful younger brother because of his lackluster response. He breathes in and out for a few passing moments. "Ah Jie, Ah Jie. Your power is called Infinite Heart," he begins. "Under normal circumstances you feel emotions in moderation. However, once you suffer a shock, your feelings intensify. Sadness becomes depression. Anger to madness. Happiness to lunacy. Do you get me?" Fang Jie nods. "Now, are you going to tell me what happened? Or do I have to go out and investigate on my own?"
Fang Jie stills for a second before he opens up. As expexted, his brother reveals an ominous expression. He stands and is about to disappear in a flash when Fang Jie stops him. "It's not worth it, brother." Yes, at that time he found his lover cheating, he was upset, devastated, and overall, heartbroken. He had wanted to wipe out the slag ex-lover and his partner in that instant; wanted to lash out; wanted to scream; wanted to ... claw out his heart. And then what?
The brother purses his lips before sighing. "You..." are too soft-hearted.
They stare at each other for a long time. Neither one of them wanting to yield over the other. Finally, the brother can no longer keep up his stern posture and is the first to look away. Fang Jie smiles briefly. "Brother, why have you come this time?"
The aforementioned brother pouts, completely disregarding his high and mighty status. "What, I can't come when I don't have a reason? Ah Jie, you don't even miss me in the time you don't see me?"
"Nope," smiles Fang Jie.
"You rascal!"
They bicker for a while and talk about the happenings in their realm and the different worlds. They have not seen each other for hundreds of years so the topics of their conversation are endless. Fang Jie convinces his brother to stay in one of the caves in Xiao-ping Guo.
After some time Fang Jie slowly recovers his vitality by consuming soul-nurturing herbs given by his brother. However, the root of his problem comes from the heart. As long as it is not eradicated, no amount of heaven-defying treasure can save him. One day, his brother proposes, "Fang Jie, have you ever considered removing your heart?"
The small god stiffens. "I have." A lot of times.
"What's stopping you?"
Fang Jie directly stares at his brother's eyes, as if wanting to see through him. Satisfied, he reveals more about his ability. "One heart, one life. It is equivalent to dying and gaining another life, bypassing reincarnation. If I remove this heart, I will lose every memory I have on this lifetime. Everything I have experienced, I will forget them - the places I have gone to, the people I have met, and the feelings and emotions I have felt. The only thing that remains is my godhood." Fang Jie hears the person next to him inhale sharply. "Every time I think about the consequences of using my power, I feel a cold sensation. As if..." once I start, I'll never be able to stop.
They share a period of silence, only the rustling of the cherry blossoms can be heard on the background. Two beautiful immortals sit under the magnificent blooming trees, creating a very picturesque scene.
"What if I give you a spell that can keep your memories?" his brother opens.
Fang Jie swivels his head to the other god. His pitch black eyes widen from the news. "Brother, you know such omnipotent spell?" his voice slightly excited.
The high god is a bit hesitant. This spell is something he has created on a whim while making a trip in the Underworld. There he met Old Meng and her famous soup. He took one bowl and studied the content for some time. The soup is not exactly the soup that mortals are familiar with, rather, they are a cluster of spell formations. But don't underestimate this seemingly harmless soup. One sip and a memory of a lifetime is gone. Even gods are no exception to this. This shows how powerful the spell is. But this high god only smirks before completely developing a total opposite of the spell, which is to retain or recover memories.
While he has complete trust that his spell works, he has only experimented with mortals and never with other higher form of life. He doesn't understand why he even tells him about this spell but when he sees his little brother's hopeful expression, he can't and never will disappoint him. Thus, he points his index finger to Fang Jie's glabella and imparts the spell to him.
Fang Jie learns the spell and carves it in his soul. He prepares to go to close-door cultivation but his brother stops him beforehand. He gives Fang Jie a cold crystalline object. "Once you remove your heart, store it in this crystal." A part of you is still you - is the hidden message.
Fang Jie thanks him and promises to make it up to him once he finishes his business. His brother just waves it away, saying it's the older brother's job to take care of the younger brother. A sweet smile slowly blooms Fang Jie's face. "Brother is the best!"
Thus, Fang Jie goes to a close-door cultivation. For the first time he is going to use his power. When he wills his heart to come out of his body, he only feels pain - excruciating, mind-numbing pain. Ah is this how it feels to die? Beads of sweat appear on his whole body and pool on the ground. He doesn't know how long he has endured but finally, the heart that has tormented him for years is finally carved out. He looks at the red orb on his hand with eyes that bear no emotion. He takes out the crystal his brother has given him and directly place his heart inside. The crystal glows for a moment before returning to normal. But if one looks closely, they will notice that the crystal appears a little cloudy.
Fang Jie sits in a medidated position and observes his internal body. A new heart is slowly forming. Maybe because this is his first time utilizing his ability that the process takes a long time. When he comes out of his seclusion, years have passed and his brother is nowhere to be seen as expected.
Fang Jie breathes in the sweet air of Xiao-ping Guo and he can't help but laugh. This feels wonderful! Is this what a phoenix feels when it is reborn from its own ashes? Fang Jie feels like he has obtained a new body that is more powerful.
No longer feeling any heart ache and pain, Fang Jie sets out to visit some old friends. He has hauled up in his peak for more than a century and he misses them. Besides, he also wants to get something for his dearest brother.
Hundreds of millenia pass by. The Fang Jie of before is long gone. While he has become more powerful, he has gotten violent and ruthless too. Those who dare to offend him meet a bad ending. Those who betray him suffer torture worse than death. A large number of gods has died in his hands.
He has lost count how many times he has discarded his heart. But every time, he becomes stronger. The spell that he learned from his brother slowly eroded with time, thus, only retaining a small part of his memory. That memory, however, is all about the addictive feeling of gaining more power.
"Ah Jie," a soft voice from behind calls him.
Fang Jie slowly smirks, turning around to meet the other god. "Brother." His tone is flat, not carrying any emotion.
"Does it still hurt?"
Fang Jie narrows his eyes. This brother of his, he now understands, is probably one of the highest existence in this plane. However, he still doesn't know what kind of power he has to be able to stand at the top. But none of that matters for now. Given time, Fang Jie's intuition tells him he can get there too. He only has to remove one heart at a time.
Fang Jie lets out a smile that isn't a smile. "What is brother talking about? As you can-"
Before he can continue, the other god has disappeared from where he's standing and suddenly has his index finger pointed to Fang Jie's glabella. His eyes close briefly then open, looking tenderly straight at those once bright and almost naive eyes. "Ah Jie, it's my fault."
Fang Jie, at that moment, suddenly feels his dormant heart stirs. This god before him, why does he look sad? But this feeling doesn't last long as another different emotion emerges. Indignation. Who does this god think he is? He is Fang Jie. He is one of the most powerful beings in this realm and he can do as he pleases. Why is this brother of his suddenly butting in his business? He doesn't have the right.
Fang Jie casts a spell and teleports miles away from the other person. "Brother, I have other matters to atttend to. We can catch up another time." He knows his power doesn't compare to the other god right now so it is better to retreat. But before he can flash away, he is trapped in a formation array. His epression darkens. "Brother, what is the meaning of this?"
The other god does not respond. In a blink of an eye, he arrives before the array. "Ah Jie, are you still gonna use your ability?"
"Brother, what nonsense are you sprouting?" yells an agitated Fang Jie. "If I don't fully utilize this gift I have, then I am an idiot." Fang Jie continues his struggle in vain, exerting most of his effort in trying to escape. He draws his power from within and finally notices an anomaly. The spell that can retain his memory is eroding at an alarmingly fast rate. What is happening? If this continues, the spell will be completely wiped away. And if he uses Infinite Heart, he will forget. Everything will be reset.
He can not forget, must not forget. What is it he must never forget?
He ignores the pain coming from his soul as the spell is deeply connected to it. He must do something to stop the erosion, but what? He looks at his brother standing resolutely outside the formation. He grits his teeth and silently fishes out a red crystal. Once upon a time, this red crystal used to be clear and transparent. Now it is as red as blood and very solid looking. Fang Jie has discovered ages ago that every time he stores his heart in this object, the power from his heart is retained inside the crystal. And after hundreds of millenia, one can imagine how powerful and dangerous this crystal has transformed to.
Fang Jie plans to release a small amount of power from the crystal to disrupt the formation array. Never has he imagined that uncontrollable power to come flooding out. There's a flash of blinding light, then pain. And finally, nothing.
- END OF PROLOGUE -
(This is how I picture the brother would look like.)