This is My Soul

Chapter 1-1

Chapter 1

Today was a joyous day because it marks the year of the creation of the Heilong Kingdom located on the Wulin continent. It was also the day of the Stellar Alignment that only happens once every 1000 years. The Heilong Kingdom had been established since the end of the great war between humanity and the Black Soul Eating Dragon, also known as Heilong. In honor of defeating the dragon, the kingdom was named after it.

The Heilong Kingdom wasn’t the only kingdom, nor was it the largest kingdom, it was actually the weakest kingdom and definitely the one with the least history. However, it was made up of people from different kingdoms that had been wiped out during the war.

Festivals and parties were at a full swing today, especially for one family, the Zhou clan.

The Zhou clan lived in a small city that could be categorized as a big town, that went by the name of Blue Tear City. Despite not being a large city, it had all the necessities of one due to its location at the very border of Heilong Kingdom.

Lots of merchants and people would pass Blue Tear City, thus allowing a large amount of money to flow into the city and made the residents wealthy.

Blue Tear City was run by three clans, the Zhou, Wu, and Liu. Each clan having control over a different aspect of the city.

The Zhou controlled the regulation of trade, making it the wealthiest of the three clans. While the Wu controlled a small army stationed to protect the town, thus making them the law enforcers of the city. And finally, the Liu who neither had the most wealth or power but control most of the land in the city. They alone own basically half of the city’s farmlands and possess the longest history in the city, being able to trace their lineage back to the founders of Heilong Kingdom.

The Zhou and Wu clan had a friendship spanning over many generations and were in league with one another. Whereas the Liu clan remained secluded by themselves, believing they were above the other clans and residents of the city because of their lineage.

Today the Zhou clan would be welcoming the newest addition to their family. The wife of Zhou Cheng the leader of the Zhou clan, had just given birth to his first son named Zhou Zhang.

Zhang’s birth was just like any other baby, but the midwife panicked when he came out, he was a particularly odd baby, unlike most babies he did not cry when he was born. She had thought that he was possibly stillborn.

But as soon as he opened his eyes, a ray of blood-red moonlight from the stellar alignment shone on his tiny body which attracted the attention of everyone in the room.

Zhang’s mother picked him up and cradled him gently in her arms, as he stared at her and everyone in the room intently.

“What a precious looking child you are.” She said as she cradled him in her arms.

Their mansion was filled with activity, maids and servants were running left and right in preparation for the big party that was going to be thrown tomorrow to celebrate Zhang’s birth. Invitations were being sent out to the other clans, and to just about everyone in the city, anyone who had considerable status would be at the party.

The next day, the Zhou mansion was filled with people, servants were outside keeping an eye on horses and carriages while their masters were congratulating Zhou Cheng.

Gifts of gold, jade, and other expensive things were stacked into a small mountain. Every guest was seated to a table filled with various food that would make anyone’s mouth water. Beautiful maids were pouring wine and dancing to add to the festivities.

Zhou Cheng was so happy that he had ordered his servants to allow everyone who wished to join the festivities to enter the mansion. People that usually would not be at such a social gathering soon flooded into the mansion and seated nonetheless.

Everyone was enjoying the food and the dancing until an old man dressed in rags walked in the front door. The man’s clothes were so tattered he was practically half-naked, and his body gave off a foul smell that made everyone take a few steps back as he walked in their direction.

“Is this the place that’s giving out free food?” The old man said cheerfully.

Zhou Cheng’s servants assisted the man to his seat as ordered to by their master.

“This way sir.” A maid said as she led him to a table.

“Oh, my so much food, and all of it looks so good.” The old man said as he stuffed food into his mouth with his hands, paying no mind to anyone else at his table. As soon as he finished a dish, he would move on to the next and then the next until there was no more. Servants would bring more food, but the man’s appetite was enormous, everything they brought soon disappeared into his stomach.

Not so long after the man had entered the mansion, Zhang’s mother, Zhen Jin, who was known as the prettiest woman in the city walked out of her room carrying Zhang in her arms.

Soon she was surrounded by a sea of people hoping to see the newborn and offer their blessings. But then a foul odor flew into her nostrils, which make her almost gag. Then she noticed standing in front of her was a man dressed in rags.

The man proceeded to thank her and husband for the food and offered to give them his greatest treasure, and a few words to the baby.

Zhen Jin thought to herself, “what could this man possibly have that her family did not already have?” Nonetheless, the treasure of someone of his status was probably worth nothing to her. But she kept quiet and simply smiled.

The man pulled out from his pocket a pitch black jade pendant, with an exquisite dragon carved onto it. The man said, “This has been in my family's possession for hundreds of year and is carved out of the crystallized heart of a dragon.”

The pendant had a strange glow to it, although it was pitch black there was a somewhat blue sheen to it, which mesmerized everyone who looked at it.

Stunned by the appearance of the pendant, Zhen Jin did not say a word except for “thank you” and received the pendant from the man.

The man then proceeded to say, “Your child’s future will be riddled with tragedy but also filled with greatness. He will experience the most terrible ordeals and enjoy the best world has to offer. He will stand on top of millions with power that can bring down the heavens or he will be like me, penniless, homeless, and alone. Being born during the Stellar Alignment and blessed by the Blood Moon could be viewed as a blessing, but it can also be viewed as a curse.”

Everyone was left speechless to what the man had just said, they did not know whether to laugh or cry at what he said.

Zhen Jin however was furious, she had not heard anything the man had said after he had told her that her child’s life would be filled with tragedy. She was certain that this man was a lunatic and then ordered her servants to kick the man out of the mansion. And in a fit of rage, she tossed the pendant the man had given Zhang into the pond in her garden on her way back to her room.

In the morning, when the servants came to nurse Zhang, they found that the pendant which was thrown into the pond by her mother somehow ended up around his neck. And when they tried to take it off, there was a strange force that kept them from touching it. No matter who tried to touch it they weren’t able to, and the only one who seemed to be able to touch the pendant was Zhang.

Eventually, the people in the mansion gave up trying to take the pendant off Zhang’s neck.

A few months had passed since Zhang was born, and the city was once against filled joy, the leader of the Wu clan’s wife had given birth to a daughter, named Wu Ling.

Zhou Cheng and his wife Zhen Jin brought their son to the Wu clan’s mansion to celebrate Wu Ling’s birth.

In no way did Wu Ling’s party fall shorts of Zhang Zhou’s, esteemed guests filled the Wu mansion and to everyone’s surprise Wu Tong who was the leader of the Wu clan had engaged his daughter Ling Wu to Zhou Zhang.

This was to change the long-lasting friendship among the two clans into family ties. And thus two destinies were tied together, Zhang and Ling were to be married when they both reached the age of sixteen.

“Brother Zhou, don’t you think our two kids are meant for each other?” Wu Tong said as he and Zhou Cheng watch their wives cradling the two newborns.

“How am I supposed to know? All we can do it hope they get along or else we might end up being terrible parents for doing this.” Zhou Cheng said with a chuckle.

As a baby Zhang was very well looked after. Teams of maids and servants helped his mother him take care of him around the clock.

He was given the finest clothes and the best things that could be bought. From silk woven blankets to gorgeous tiny articles of clothing that were made especially for him.

One could say that besides Ling no other baby was treated as wonderfully as Zhang in Blue Tear City. Being the first and only child of the richest and more influential man in the city had it’s perks.

Zhang was like any other baby who was showered with love and care grew very quickly. By the age of eight months, he had started waddling all around the Zhou clan’s mansion. Sometimes he even managed to waddle away from the watchful eyes of the maids assigned to watch over him.

Some of the maids often said “ if you take your eyes off the young master for a second then he might disappear right before your eyes.”

By the time Zhang was around two he was reintroduced to Ling. The two toddlers quickly became playmates as their parents often left them together. They would mumble baby talk and giggle about with each other when together. They became so attached that one of them would start crying if they were separated.

As Zhang’s father and Ling’s father watched the two children play they felt at ease about their decision to engage the two.

“See I told you it was a good decision.” Ling’s father Wu Tong would often say to Zhang’s father Zhou Cheng.

Thier attachment grew as the months and years went by and the two toddlers became small children. The two playmates became the best of friends who were inseparable from each other. Without a worry or care in the world the two of the spent every waking minute playing with each other.

Besides each other they didn’t really have any friends that were the same age. This of course is because there were no other clans besides the Liu clan who were equal to the Zhou and Wu clan. Meaning that no other children were fit to be their friends status wise. If given the chance there were many people who wanted to kidnap these two children and demand a ransom from the two families. Thus, they only had each other as friends, well not that they minded only having each other.

When Zhang was not playing with Ling, he was exploring the clan’s large garden. Zhang could be described as a very curious and adventurous child who could run about for hours on end and not become bored. Zhang often spent his time sitting under a large apple tree that was on top of a hill that overlooked a part of the city. He and Ling would often play under the cool shade of the apple tree on hot summer days.

All this being said Zhang’s time was not all spent playing once he reached the age of four his father arranged for a private tutor to come to their home and teach him. Zhou Cheng wished to groom his son and provide him with the best tool needed in life. Thus, Zhang was taught all kinds of things by the many private tutors the clan employed.

He learned art, literature, basic etiquette, and other general knowledge that one should know. Zhang was about to learn everything taught to him at an astounding speed that made his tutors all awestruck. As the eventually ran out of things to teach him, they soon left one after another ashamed of their lack of knowledge. In the end, only one tutor stayed behind to teach the young boy.