The night reeks of blood.
The screams won't stop echoing in Soul Ming's head, even though the world around him has already gone silent.
He kneels on the cold ground, hands trembling as he clutches the small, lifeless fingers of his sister. Her eyes—once full of light—stare blankly into nothing.
Behind her, his parents lie motionless.
And standing just a few steps away… the one person he trusted most.
His girlfriend.
Her hands shake, her knuckles white around the knife—his knife.
Not stained from protecting him.
But from killing everything he loved.
> "I never loved you, Ming," she says, though her voice cracks with fear.
"The gods promised me freedom, riches… power—if I betrayed you."
Her smile is empty. No warmth, no guilt. Just the hollow grin of someone who sold her soul for survival.
She lunges forward.
The blade sinks into his chest.
Ming's breath catches. Pain explodes through his body, white-hot and merciless.
Above her, the divine system hums like a radiant sphere, symbols shifting in its light. Its whispers curl around her like a lover's voice.
The system mocks him.
> [You have failed.]
[Your existence ends here.]
He collapses. Blood seeps into the dirt beneath him, warm at first—then cold.
His vision flickers.
Her face blurs.
Even the stars fade.
> Is this how it ends…?
Darkness closes in.
The silence is heavy, endless—until a new voice cuts through it.
Low. Ancient. Wrong.
> [Tell me, do you not crave vengeance?]
Ming's soul stirs. The hatred inside him pulses, black and alive.
He can't speak—but his heart answers.
"…Yes," he breathes. "I'll make them all pay."
The voice laughs—a sound like chains breaking in the abyss.
> [Good. Rise, Soul Ming. I grant you a second chance. Not for redemption… but for vengeance. Slay those who brought you pain.]
Light bursts around him. Chains shatter. The void trembles.
Something wraps around his soul—a warmth that feels alive, and yet… wrongly divine.
A system not forged by gods, but by something that defies them.
His eyes snap open.
Black. Cold. Burning.
A new system pulses in his vision.
> [System Installation Complete.]
[Designation: The Reaper of Souls.]
[Objective: Eradicate the Divine Order.]
Soul Ming rises from the ground, blood still dripping from his hands.
He doesn't look at the bodies. He doesn't cry.
Only one thought remains.
Not for redemption.
For revenge.