The Dawn of the New World

Obviously Hao Xuan wasn't planning on actually going through with it but it was still a perfect excuse for buying some time.

Dai Zhi looked deep into his eyes trying to find anything that could dissuade him from agreeing but found none.

"You would be willing to put yourself through that?" his brow shot up doubtfully.

"Do I have any other choice?" Hao Xuan retorted with a straight face.

And as far as Dai Zhi knew, that was indeed the case. He was told Hao Xuan was a mortal with no backing and an extraordinarily ordinary background.

Dai Zhi went silent for a brief moment while thinking it over.

"More often than not, in our line of work death is a mercy. Are you aware of the kind of life you would be living if you even manage to pull off the soul transference, which is a miracle in and of itself? It-"

But Hao Xuan quickly cut him off and began listing everything he knew of the experience.

"Soul Transference Magic: Once initiated, the user will never be able to bond to any physical form for more than a few years. The only way for them to survive is to keep finding new bodies to take over every time, destroying the new body's soul and sacrificing it to strengthen their own."

"It is perhaps one of the most irregular magic paths in existence and one about which very little is known to this day. I know what I am getting into," Hao Xuan said without breaking eye contact.

"I will always have to keep moving every time I take over a new body, never being able to settle down, never staying in one place for too long. If someone found out I would be hunted to the edges of the universe because it is universally believed to be evil."

And while he was explaining all that his mind started replaying each of those memories, forcing him to relive them once more. He needed to make Dai Zhi believe without a shadow of a doubt that this was the future he had chosen for himself. And if he could do that to himself, then there was no telling what he would do if pushed too far.

Hao Xuan's gaze became unfocused and at some point, he even started speaking of it as if it had already happened.

"After a few decades I will lose all appetite for mortal pleasures. My soul will become numb and the senses so dull that not even the tastiest treat or the most beautiful woman will stir anything inside of me. If I am lucky and my mind is still intact at that point, I will end my miserable existence away from everyone else."

"But...if not, I will probably go on a killing spree because the only time I can feel something is when I hear the screams of innocent souls as they are snuffed out and assimilated into my own. Only extreme emotions like fear and pain will make my heart beat until...even that is not enough and I take that last step and discard what little remains of my humanity to become something entirely new."

Light returned to Hao Xuan's eyes as they fell upon Dai Zhi's appalled visage.

"So to answer your question, yes, I know very well what is waiting for me. But living a few more decades is still better than dying here on this backward ass planet. Of course, none of this will be free of charge and you will help me every step of the way."

Hao Xuan's lips cracked into a sly smile, "You will use your connections and wealth to make sure that I live a comfortable life for as long as possible. Make me a regent in some faraway world where I can do what I want without being disturbed. And in return, I will keep your secret."

At first, Dai Zhi was ecstatic because this meant that Hao Xuan had already given this enough thought and there was a very real chance that it was true. But-

"And why would I go through all that trouble? Why not just kill you myself once I have the physique and be done with it? You will be nothing more than a liability."

"True, you could do that," Hao Xuan nodded, "But then you will have to explain your connection to the man in the boat to the inquisitors and the agents of the republic. You see, I made a little stop outside of the academy before coming here. I recorded every little detail and sent it out to several individuals."

"If they do not hear from me when we return to the Beast World then they will pass that recording on to the right people and...well, you can imagine what happens after that."