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Soul Edge
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Soul Edge
After the death of the great Eirakutei, the Ming Dynasty suffered plundering by Southern Japanese pirates called the "Wakou." The emperor finally took action and sent Li Long to assassinate the leader of the pirates. The secret mission also included an order to retrieve the valiant sword, "Soul Edge."
However, the assassin, Li Long, did not care about "Soul Edge." Taking advantage of war-torn Japan, he decided to not only target the Wakou leader, but also the Daimyo feudal lords. This action was, of course, outside the limits of his mission, but he had no doubts as to his success. His iron will would see him through.
However, man is not made of iron. His attack on the head of a powerful family in Honshu went awry, leaving him badly wounded. Fortunately for him, he was rescued by a beautiful girl named Chie.
Chie was a daughter of the innkeeper Yahei. As a child, she was traumatized by her mother's death and lost her ability to speak. Even without words, Chie is capable of understanding people's sorrow. She devoted herself to the care of the wounded man.
Li Long gradually opened his heart to Chie and the two began to love each other. Li Long stayed with Chie even after his injuries healed.
But, destiny did not treat him kindly.
While he was away, a fight broke out at the inn. In the confusion, his lover was thought to have been killed. "Who! Who did this? Why?" The wounded Yahei told grief-stricken Li Long that a wandering swordsman had started it, then fled.
Eyewitnesses thought it might be the lone swordsman, Heishiro Mitsurugi. However, Mitsurugi was not the only swordsman wandering the land.
"When I find who did this, I will show no mercy!"
Remorse filled Li Long until he had a revelation. "I will not rest until I have hunted down every single swordsman."
Li Long discovered that Heishiro Mitsurugi was searching for Soul Edge, and decided to follow him.
"If I find Soul Edge, first, Mitsurugi will come to me and his death. If Mitsurugi is not Chie's murderer, I'll just continue hunting criminal swordsmen. I will also have the sword for Eirakutei."
Li Long started to pack up for a journey to trace Mitsurugi, hoping to take revenge for his dead lover Chie.
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Soul Calibur 3
It was supposed to be just another ordinary day of "warrior hunting" for Li Long. But the fate that awaited him in the devastated Spanish harbor was on of despair. After disposing the jet black hawk that suddenly attacked, a man who appeared to be a pirate captain stood before him with a sword in each hand, radiating a cursed aura. Li Long fought with all his might and power...and lost.
Li Long desperately ran, barely clinging to his life. He thought the man would hunt him down for the finishing blow, but for whatever reason the man left him alone and wandered off. On the verge of losing consciousness, he looked back and witnessed, with one eye remaining, the single column of light soar high into the heavens...
As Li Long gradually regained consciousness, he realized his body was devastated. His wounds were deep and it would take him time to heal. But the psychological damage was far greater the the physical. A sense of worthlessness overwhelmed him. His hands trembled from an unknown fear. His unflappable confidence was suddenly shaken.
Were his past deeds righteous? Did he, unknowingly, repeat terrible atrocities against those warriors that he "hunted"? And maybe even towards Chie?
As a piece of his confidence fell, the rest crumbled with it. All in this world seemed to condemn him and drag him to the depths of hell. Guilt, real or imagined, haunted his mind. In time he came to the point where he could not even hold his weapon straight. Something essential within his being had been "consumed".
His life was changed completely. Until now, he could effortlessly thwart any danger that came his way...the so-called "shinobi" from Japan, the hunters from his motherland sent to assassinate him. The suddenly, all that seemed an insurmountable threat, haunting him like a shadow. Li Long eventually felt more and more concerned, fleeing like a fallen warrior. He now traveled under an alias, constantly changing his guise and never walking in daylight. He was supposed to be avenging Chie, but the predator had suddenly become the prey.
For how long he continued like this, he was not sure. He had lost his sense of time. He came upon a town by the straits, hoping to seek anonymity within its vibrant population. But his pursuers would not relent and their powers eventually reached that town. Just as he was resigned to death, he was unexpectedly saved by a girl. He would normally walk away without a thought. But something stopped him, and it was not the girl's kindness--it was the faint gestures that hinted she too had lost something. Normally, he wouldn't think twice about using a false name. For some reason though, he gave her his real name, something he had not done in a while.
He accepted her offer and stayed, knowing that peace would only last so long. His pursuers were ruthless and relentless. Furthermore, looking upon the girl would often remind him of Chie, stirring his guilty conscience.
But why was he finding it so hard to leave?
The girl faithfully took care of this foreigner, he would sometimes stare at her with deeply sad eyes. It may have been that this girl, who had lived all her life weak and powerless, simply could not turn her back on Li Long, who looked like he had lost everything.
One day, when the heavens were covered by grey clouds, they finally appeared. The men said something to the girl in the entrance. The girl was trying to tell him something with her gaze, but he intentionally ignored it and stood in front of his pursuers with his weapon in hand. He fought while trying to control his trembling hands. In the past, it was unheard of for Li Long to be slow to react, even if it was of the slightest margin.
He barely defeated his foes. But the experience registered something inside him--he remembered what it was like to fight for something. As the commotion subsided, the girl stood froze in silence, staring at the scene. No matter. He was planning to leave anyway. He had nothing more to say to her. But she quietly hurried to his side, and gently touched his back, communicating her feelings more clearly than words could possible express.
Li Long left town that day. Now he knew. Having revenge would not save him. There was something he had to do, for those that urged him to live...it was still there. He had left half of himself with that dreaded blade. Now was the time to regain it. But he did not yet know. The woman he loved was searching for him, and the proof of their love was taking breath inside her.
Will the day ever come, when he will discover the truth? Will he ever regain what was lost, and finally find the peace that he yearned for?
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