Chapter 31 - 31: Paradox

'Pain.'

All Xiao Yan could feel was pain. From his nerves to his very cells, he felt unimaginable pain.

He felt his skin slowly being peeled off.

His muscles and bones tearing themselves apart and melded afterwards and moments later, they would start tearing themselves apart once more, and repeat.

His meridians and blood vessels being popped and regenerated over and over again.

Thankfully, his only saving grace from this hell of his was that his mind would received the most mild punishment ever, headaches.

However, that was overdraft by the whole body pain experience. He wanted to scream. Thrash around, as he curled himself into a ball, and try to hold out his sanity for the pain inflicting his entire body was too much for his mind to handle.

But alas. Xiao Yan couldn't move. Nor see, hear and feel anything except for the coursing throughout his entire body.

'Shit. Now isn't this some strange déjà vu?' His mind couldn't help but wonder about the time of his body assimilating with the Green Lotus Core Flame.

Then the after events, of which, lead to him finding Xun Er. Battling her and befriending her, after months of sticking up with each other, then later on with his teacher, sworn siblings, childhood friend and grandfather.

A small gentle smile appeared on Xiao Yan's face. Reminiscing about the past, despite being in great pain, always brought him a smile on his face.

'Especially you...' The image of Xun Er smiling at him, brought a strange feeling in his heart.

Remembering all the moments he spent with them, the memories he created with them.

Xiao Yan felt that everything that he had done, was worth it. The pain and torment he gone through, all worth it.

The days, weeks, and years he spent with them was all worth.

However...

"This isn't the goddamn end me for me yet bitch." Xiao Yan said. The pain that was inflicting his entire body seemed to disappear as he opened his eyes.

He widened his eyes in shock.

As the sight in front of him was the very vast and great outer space.

Countless stars and planets, as far as his two eyes could see, all silent in their places of the universe.

'The galaxy, no, the universe? What the hell is going on here? D-Did I die again?!' Xiao Yan held his head, finally noticing that he could move, and panicked.

"NOOO! What the hell?! This is the second time I died young and as a freaking v.i.r.g.i.n!! This is not funny!" Xiao Yan complained at the vast universe. Stomping his feet on the empty space, somehow, and held his head again.

"My life and afterlife, sucks." He muttered as his eyes turned blank and started muttering incomprehensibly.

He let down his arms by his side and let out a long sigh. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

"So, when are you going to talk?"

Suddenly, as soon Xiao Yan asked that question, space started to distort in front of him. A huge flash of light appeared, no, a large pillar made out of white flames at where the area of the space distorted.

It was a terrifying sight. Worlds and stars turned into ashes, all existence of a part of the universe, gone. Quickly being swallowed up in the white flames that can burn everything.

Suddenly, the raging ocean of white flames soon vanished. And in the middle of where those terrifying flames came from, in front of Xiao Yan who strangely looked normal and without any harm on his body, and there, a being, by his body structure, Xiao Yan just guessed that it was a guy, wearing all black that covered his whole figure, stood silently.

The figure, wearing a cloak, with a hoodie covering his entire face, obscuring it, made out of pure darkness, didn't give off any sort of pressure. Not anything oppressive nor overbearing. It was like he was a normal person.

Yeah, no. There wasn't anything normal about a guy who could easily decimate a galaxy to cinders. A wry smile appeared on Xiao Yan's face.

"Oya? Are you done? Well that was fast." The being's voice, strangely soft and normal like a middle aged man's voice, travelled through the empty space and reached Xiao Yan's ears.

Xiao Yan rolled his eyes and said.

"Yeah, yeah, I had successfully came back from that hell, that would have made me lose my sanity, if it weren't for gaining the enlightenment of reminiscing my life."

"Ho? Really?" The being in black asked.

Xiao Yan nodded.

"Yup. So, really? Did you have to be so dramatic and create that kind of godlike scene in front of me to act cool?"

The man in black kinda looked sheepish as he rubbed the back of his head and replied.

"Sorry~ I just wanted to let loose is all, you know? This place is kinda boring and I decided that I wanted to welcome my first ever guest, in this vast empty space of mine, in a spectacular and grand way!"

The being spread his arms, that looked as black as the darkness cloak that shrouded the being, around him. Looking proud and asking for the praise for the work that he done.

Xiao Yan's mouth twitched.

"God, was I really that dramatic?"

"..."

Suddenly, the being in black went eerily still. As if he was frozen in ice before his arms slowly went down to his side and was covered by his cloak.

"... I shouldn't be surprised but I want to know, how?" The being asked with mild confusion and amus.e.m.e.nt.

Xiao Yan smiled.

"It wasn't really that hard to piece together."

"I think that it started when I used my spirit, my original spirit that is. Despite being a normal seventeen year old guy in my past life, I was good at using the heavy thing. So good, in fact, that when I first used it for combat against a student, I was able to maneuver my body naturally and defeated the student into submission. Something that boggled me until now."

"Then the next came when I started my training of creating pills. Despite a f.u.c.k.i.n.g noob of it, I was able to place the ingredients, mixed them and burned them all into a pill like a expert. Even though some might just take that as me being a genius but the feeling of when I controlled my flames, spirit power flame when I first started, and the way how I managed to create pills like they were just candy was just suspicious as f.u.c.k. I just dubbed my talent of alchemy as a gift by a higher being that sent me here until the next part."

"The tugging feeling when I met Xun Er. It wasn't my heart that's for sure, despite how I was an otaku in my past life, I wasn't into little girls."

"The feeling that she gave me wasn't that of a boy falling in love, but a man who had found his lost love."

"Then finally, that last bit before I arrived here. The sudden rush of unknown memories coming into my head. A life different from this and my past that I know."

"And so, from someone who had read and watched countless plots in his past life, I know what kind of f.u.c.k.i.n.g situation I'm in.

"This isn't my first reincarnation is it? But my second." Xiao Yan stared at the being, no, at his past before him.

Being able wield a great dull sword like a expert? It could either be explained that he was extremely gifted, or, he had already trained in this sort of weaponry before in his life.

Expertly controlling flames and easily creating pills like they were mere candy? Like his previous statement, either he was extremely gifted in that area, or, he had great experience of it that it could be said that such control and expertise was melded deep inside his soul.

And then after that, he met this strange person? Yup. Following the countless plots that he had read and watched in his past life, he was sure that the being in front of him was either closely connected to him, or, practically him himself.

"... Well, shit. I was f.u.c.k.i.n.g awesome in my life but in this? Shit. It's like what I'm seeing in front of me, isn't me, but a certain playboy billionaire." He shook his head in disbelief.

"The Batman? Really?"

"Hey! His a great superhero, if you didn't include his stupidity of not killing the really unredeemable criminals, to compare yourself to."(A/N: No one can change my mind on this. The whole Dark Knight: Dark Metal and some other reality of what if Bruce Wayne would finally crosses the line is kinda stupid. Especially if his reason to not kill the Joker was because he felt that if he did, then he would be like them criminals or the Joker would win or something. Seriously. Just for his pride, ego or dignity he doesn't want to kill the Joker? For a guy who wants to rid his city of evil, he sure as hell sucks at it if it took years and numerous underage sidekicks by his side.)

Xiao Yan nodded as he also felt the same way.

The figure shook his head.

"We're getting off track. Since you already know then I might as well reveal my face."

This made Xiao Yan's eyebrow to rise.

"Your not denying it?"

"What's there to deny? We're the same person, remember? Your taste in stories are the same as me. Guarding secrets from the Mc because they aren't ready, ha! What a load of bs. 30% of those stories had great excuses and the remaining 70%? Was just total bullshit." The figure, with his two hand on his hoodie, pulled it back and revealed what was the inside.

It shocked Xiao Yan to his very core and short circuited his entire mind frame.

After all...

"You expected yourself, but it was me, DIO!" The face of Dio was revealed.

Jk! This is what really happened.

The hoodie made out of pure darkness pulled down, revealing a very familiar face.

It was Xiao Yan himself but he looked more m.a.t.u.r.e, older and... tired looking.

"Hi. My name is Xiao Yan. I was one of the former three Great Rulers, or, to compare my stage of level with this world laws, God Kings of the great thousand world. I am known as the Flame God King or more commonly known as, the Flame Emperor."