Against the Gods

NEW NOVEL: First and foremost, I'm delighted to announce that our long-time veteran translator littleshanks has finally launched his new novel, Rise!  Rise is a novel about the esports scene in Shanghai, the competitive gaming capital of China. It follows the story of Lin Feng, a boy who has just moved to the city for his last year of high school. He's a passionate gamer and dreams of being the best professional League of Legends player in the world. The twist? He almost achieved his dream, but failed at the...

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“The Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor is indeed the strongest protective talisman you have right now.” Xia Qingyue did not deny Yun Che’s words, “Her existence has created an incomparably peerless threat to the universe. But besides that deterrence, what else does she have? And is her power something that you can use?”

Yun Che, “...”

“There’s no need for you to answer.” Without waiting for Yun Che to reply, Xia Qingyue had already continued in a calm voice that could not be called into question, “I am convinced that you can’t. As a primordial Devil Emperor, how could she be freely controlled by a human being! Other than that, as the one who has inherited the Heretic God divine power, if you had to rely on the strength of others to flaunt your might, she would only feel disappointment, contempt, and even fury.”

Every single word that Xia Qingyue had said had been right on the mark… In fact, not too long ago, Jie Yuan had given him the same warning, telling him that he should forget about ever thinking of borrowing her power.

“If I am so convinced, then it will be the same for other people as well.” Xia Qingyue continued, “Furthermore, this point is entirely secondary. Did you ever think of what would happen if the talisman that is the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor disappeared one day?”

“She’s the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor, who can make her disappear?” Yun Che asked.

“When I said disappear, I did not mean that she would disappear. I meant that the ‘special favor’ that she shows you would disappear. Because in the end, you are only the person who inherited the Heretic God divine power. You’re still basically a mortal, and not the Heretic God himself.”

“...” Yun Che did not respond, yet he still did not quite agree with her in his heart. Because outside of the Heretic God divine power, he still had Hong’er and You’er, so Xia Qingyue’s worries would not actually come to pass.

Xia Qingyue seemed to have sensed Yun Che’s disagreement as she gave a soft sigh in her heart and said, “There might even come a day when the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor truly does disappear or leave this world in some way or form.”

“I know that you definitely want to say that it’s impossible, then, let me ask you a few questions…”

Xia Qingyue raised her delicate eyebrows slightly as she said in an unhurried manner, “When you died in the Star God Realm that year, did you think that you would somehow still survive?”

Yun Che, “...”

“Back then, when you had just arrived in the God Realm and understood what a king realm truly meant, if someone told you that I would become the Moon God Realm’s god emperor in a few years, would you have thought that it was possible?”

Yun Che, “...”

“When you lived in Floating Cloud City all those years ago, did you ever imagine that there would come a day when it was your destiny to save the entire Primal Chaos?”

Yun Che, “...”

“In this world, there are many things that can happen even if you think they’re impossible. This is especially… true in regards to what the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor wants to do. Whether she wants to do good or evil, whether she wants to treat you well or not, everything is completely up to her and not you. The initiative will always belong to her!”

“So, right now she is indeed your protective talisman, but she is a talisman that can disappear at any time. If this talisman truly does disappear, what will come after that are the incomparably enormous side effects.”

Xia Qingyue’s voice sank slightly, each of her words solemn and grave, “The moment you do not have this talisman called the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor, you will only be Yun Che then. But who are the people who came to the Snow Song Realm to see you, and bowed and scraped before you today? There were the realm kings of upper star realms, god emperors of king realms! If there comes a day where you become just Yun Che, then the bowing and scraping they did to curry favor with a junior profound practitioner, who was born in the lower realms, would become the shame of their lives!”

“...” Yun Che could clearly remember Jasmine saying similar words to him back then. He replied, “So this is what you meant when you said that my situation is very dangerous?”

“It’s far more than this,” Xia Qingyue’s beautiful eyes unconsciously glanced to the west as she gloomily said, “you need to understand, it is indeed very difficult for anyone in your generation to reach your level of cultivation, but the plane you have come in contact with is truly far too high. If someone who hated you stretched out their hands against you without thinking of the consequences… then nobody will be able to preserve your life in time.”

“It shouldn’t be as bad as this right?” Yun Che’s brows furrowed as he said, “If we were to talk about the person who hates me the most in the God Realm, it would be that madwoman Luo Guxie, but no matter what, she would not risk Senior Jie Yuan’s wrath to come and kill me right?”

“Once a person’s nature is warped by some sort of extreme reason, it will become unimaginably frightening at times,” Xia Qingyue said in a gentle voice. “Furthermore, the scariest ones are not the ones who always bare their fangs, instead, they are the ones who are normally the most gentle and kind, the ones who never cause people to put up their guard.”

“I’ve always understood this point and when it comes to being cautious and guarded, I believe that I’ve always been far sharper than anyone else.” Yun Che mumbled to himself as he folded his hands behind his head, “Qingyue, we are people born in the same year and month! So why does it feel like you’re instructing a junior?”

“You can choose not to listen or not to believe, but you must listen to what I’m going to say next,” Xia Qingyue said. “You don’t need to worry, if it fails, no harm will come to you, but if it succeeds, then you will have gained another... true protective talisman."

“Eh?”

Xia Qingyue’s eyes focused slightly and it looked as if a cold moon was flashing in the depths of her eyes, “It will be a talisman that will be under your complete control, a talisman that can protect you even if someone as strong as a god emperor wants to kill you!”

Yun Che was left completely stunned. What Xia Qingyue had just said would definitely have left anyone in the God Realm completely bewildered.

Did such a protective talisman still exist in this world!?

“What are you saying exactly?” Yun Che asked.

“I can’t tell you right now, because doing so might expose the plan,” Xia Qingyue said as she looked towards the south and sensed an aura that was growing ever closer, “You’ll find out soon enough.”

“Fine,” Yun Che did not pursue the matter any further. Instead, he suddenly broke out into a smile and said, “Even if you’ve become the Moon God Emperor, you haven’t forgotten to be exceedingly concerned for your husband. You are indeed worthy of being called my first officially wedded wife.”

“You’re thinking too much,” Xia Qingyue said indifferently, “I merely want to use your unique abilities to accomplish something that I myself am unable to do. As for that ‘protective talisman’, consider it payment for using you to achieve my goals, that’s all.”

“Fine, fine, fine,” Yun Che rolled his eyes, a helpless expression on his face.

    ————

Eastern Divine Region, Brahma Monarch God Realm.

Qianye Fantian, who had departed from the Snow Song Realm, had a lot on his mind. As a result, he was not traveling at a very fast speed as he made his way back to the Brahma Monarch God Realm. But just as he entered his central star region, he sensed an aura that should not have been here.

As his brows furrowed, he slowly descended and walked towards the Brahma Heaven Temple in an unhurried manner. Once he entered the temple, his brows relaxed and a bland smile appeared on his face.

“Hahaha,” a peal of loud laughter rang out in the confines of the temple. This was the most sacred and central part of the Brahma Heaven Temple, yet there was someone inside it. He turned around and smiled cheerily at the entering Qianye Fantian as he said, “Brahma Heaven God Emperor, you really made this king wait.”

This man was dressed in silver, his face handsome and fair. He looked slightly shallow, as if he was a young master of a noble family who excessively indulged in debauchery, but the smile on his face was exceptionally wicked, and when one came into contact with his eyes, a chill would involuntarily run down their spine.

Astonishingly enough, it was the number one god emperor in the Southern Divine Region… the Southern Sea God Emperor, Nan Wansheng!

Qianye Fantian was all smiles, his pace quickened as he raised a hand and said, “Oh so an honored guest has come to visit. This Qianye left for a short period of time to attend to some matters, yet I let our honored guest wait for so long. This Qianye is truly ashamed.”

“Did the Southern Sea God Emperor personally come all the way to the Eastern Divine Region this time to ask Yun Che about the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor?” Qianye Fantian asked.

“No, no, your Eastern Divine Region is best suited to deal with that matter, Southern Sea will merely follow your lead.” There was a bland smile on the Southern Sea God Emperor’s face and he did not ask about Yun Che and Jie Yuan either. It seemed as if he was actually completely unconcerned about the fate or future of the Primal Chaos as he continued, “This Southern Sea has naturally come for the sake of Ying’er. But it’s simply a pity that Ying’er does not seem to be in the realm right now. This Southern Sea is simply overcome with sadness.”

“Heh heh,” Qianye Fantian chuckled as he said, “Ying’er has always been traveling abroad and she very rarely returns to the realm. Even I rarely get to see her. If the Southern Sea God Emperor wants to see Ying’er, I’m afraid you’re going to go through a lot of trouble again.”

“No, no, this Southern Sea has indeed come for Ying’er, but I have not come to see her. I have come for another more important matter.”

Qianye Fantian said, “Oh?”

The smile vanished from the Southern Sea God Emperor’s face as he released a formless majestic might, “This Southern Sea has already been god emperor for twenty thousand years, but I have yet to crown an empress. I had originally thought that none of the women under this heaven would be worthy enough to become the empress of this Southern Sea. At least until I saw Ying’er that year, and it was then that I knew that no one besides Ying’er could be my empress.”

Qianye Fantian’s brows twitched slightly and his smile remained fixed in place.

“Now that the Devil Emperor has returned to the world, the Primal Chaos has undergone strange changes and everyone is living in fear and unease. If this Southern Sea continues to hesitate and dither, a calamity might suddenly descend upon us one day and I won’t have this opportunity any longer. Wouldn’t that be the greatest regret of my life? So…” The Southern Sea God Emperor’s smile reappeared as he bowed respectfully to Qianye Fantian and said, “This Southern Sea has come here today to talk to the Brahma Heaven God Emperor about this marriage that will connect both of our realms. I am requesting that the Brahma Heaven God Emperor marry Ying’er to this Southern Sea, thus fulfilling the greatest wish of my life.”

“Hehe,” Qianye Fantian’s expression did not change, “The Southern Sea God Emperor is joking again.”

“I am not joking this time.” The Southern Sea God Emperor straightened his back, the smile on his face gradually growing somewhat glaring as he said, “In the past, both of our realms stood on equal footing, so if you, the Brahma Heaven God Emperor, were not willing, then this king would not be able to do anything about it either. But now that the Brahma Monarch God Realm no longer has the Three Brahma Gods, this king does indeed have enough strength and confidence to bring this up again.”

In one breath, he had been respectful and courteous and they had been smiling and chatting, but in the next breath, he had suddenly turned hostile… and it was a side of him that he had never shown to Qianye Fantian before. Qianye Fantian’s eyebrows sank dramatically but after that, he spoke with a faint smile, “Southern Sea God Emperor, this king doesn’t really understand what you mean. Without the Three Brahma Gods, our Brahma Monarch Realm is still the Brahma Monarch Realm, and no one can change that fact. So what does that have to do with your confidence or strength?”

“The Brahma Heaven God Emperor is surely joking,” the Southern Sea God Emperor said with a cheery smile. “If you had simply lost three Brahma Kings, then it’d be fine. But all Three Brahma Gods were killed, tsk tsk, even if your Brahma Monarch God Realm had three heads and six limbs, that isn’t simply a loss that you can eat. The Brahma Monarch God Realm which has suddenly lost three of its arms no longer has the qualifications to be on equal footing with my Southern Sea God Realm. At the very least, that’s how it will be for this era. What does the Brahma Heaven God Emperor think?”

Qianye Fantian, “...”

“Oh, that’s right,” the Southern Sea God Emperor continued, “I heard that the new emperor of the Moon God Realm has an old grievance against Ying’er, and she doesn’t view your Brahma Monarch God Realm kindly either, and as for Yun Che, who has obtained the special favor of the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor… this Southern Sea has heard that the Brahma Monarch God Realm had something to do with why he was unable to enter the Eternal Heaven Divine Realm and even had to escape to the Dragon God Realm that year… With all of these things added together, I can’t help but worry for all of you.”

“Furthermore, at a time like this, if there were people who tried to cause some problems for you due to their unhappiness,” the Southern Sea God Emperor said as he shook his head, as if he were concerned for the Brahma Monarch God Realm, “I’m afraid that it will become harder and harder for this number one king realm in the Eastern Region from now on. And if things go wrong, you might not even have the chance to produce another Brahma God.”

Qianye Fantian’s eyes suddenly narrowed as he said, “Southern Sea God Emperor, are you threatening me?”

The Southern Sea God Emperor did not deny those words. Instead, he let out a great laugh instead, “Hahaha, as long as I can take Ying’er as my empress, this Southern Sea will not hesitate to pay any price or use any method. If I have angered the Brahma Heaven God Emperor, then after I marry Ying’er, the Brahma Heaven God Emperor will be this Southern Sea’s father-in-law, and no matter what punishments or rebukes my Lord Father-in-law wants to hand out, this Southern Sea will naturally take them all and I definitely won’t dare to resist in any way.”

“Hmph!” Qianye Fantian gave a heavy snort as he said, “You should understand better than anyone what Ying’er’s temperament is like. If she wants to marry someone, no one will be able to stop her but if she does not want to marry someone, then no one can force her to do so.”

“No, it’s precisely because this Southern Sea understands Ying’er very well, that I presume that the Brahma Heaven God Emperor will definitely be able to persuade Ying’er,” the Southern Sea God Emperor said as he gave a hearty laugh. “Perhaps it would not have been possible in the past, but right now, hmmm, as long as the Brahma Heaven God Emperor is willing, then you’ll definitely be able to get it done.”

“Brahma Heaven God Emperor, please don’t be in a rush to reject me.” Without waiting for Qianye Fantian’s response, the Southern Sea God Emperor had already raised his hand and said, “If our two realms were to become connected by marriage, Ying’er would be the empress of my Southern Sea God Realm. Our two realms would naturally be kin to one another and we would not even need to fear the Dragon God Realm. And I trust that there is one more point that the Brahma Heaven God Emperor will definitely be able to understand…”

“Given the current situation, if my Southern Sea is unwilling, it will be extremely hard for another Brahma God to appear in the Brahma Monarch God Realm. But if my Southern Sea is willing and we devote our strength to helping you, it will not be long before the next Brahma God descends to this earth.”

The Southern Sea God Emperor’s words were gentle and elegant, yet each and every word was laced with deadly poison. A huge carrot and a huge stick were currently being dangled in front of him.

What was even more frightening was that the stick was real but one could not tell which part of the carrot was real and which part was fake.

“This Southern Sea has already said everything that he wanted to say, I believe that the Brahma Heaven God Emperor has been dreadfully busy of late, so I won’t disturb you any longer. I’ll simply return to the Southern Region and quietly wait for the good news.”

The Southern Sea God Emperor gave a bland laugh before he started walking away. Qianye Fantian did not try to stop him or say anything, but his hands had silently curled into fists.

“Oh, that’s right,” the Southern Sea God Emperor halted as he turned his pale-white face a little, “the Brahma Heaven God Emperor should understand very well that this Southern Sea’s patience has always been extremely bad, and the moment I lose my patience, I get angry. When that time comes, even I become very afraid of myself.” 

As the corner of his mouth slightly crooked up, the Southern Sea God Emperor started to walk again and he sauntered out of the Brahma Heaven Temple. After that, his aura swiftly shot into the distance, quickly disappearing from Qianye Fantian’s spiritual perception.

BANG!!!

Qianye Fantian smashed his fist down, creating a crack in the great hall that spanned hundreds of meters. 

“That bastard!” Qianye Fantian gnashed his teeth together, his entire body trembling.

The Brahma Monarch God Realm’s Three Brahma Gods had been killed by a flick of Jie Yuan’s finger. Despite that, the Brahma Heaven God Emperor had looked very calm and composed in front of everyone and the faint smile on his face had not even faltered. In fact, no one could even see any signs of lament on his face, as if he had only lost three unimportant henchmen.

But over the past month, Qianye Fantian had secretly swallowed countless mouthfuls of blood.

The Southern Sea God Emperor had been completely spot-on, losing the Three Brahma Gods was equivalent to chopping off three of the Brahma Monarch God Realm’s arms! 

Even though they had only been three people, they were three tenth level Divine Masters, three powerhouses at the level of a god emperor! The result of losing them was that it instantly created a difference in strength between the Brahma Monarch God Realm and the Southern Sea God Realm!

Originally, in the God Realm, after the Dragon God Realm, it was the Southern Sea God Realm and the Brahma Monarch God Realm that were the two strongest god realms. Neither of them could shake the other and neither of them was able to truly suppress the other either.

But now that the Brahma Monarch God Realm had suddenly lost the Three Brahma Gods, the Southern Sea God Realm absolutely had the power to suppress them. In fact, as long as they were willing to do so, the Southern Sea God Realm could suppress the Brahma Monarch God Realm to the point where it would be difficult for them to raise their heads again for a long time.

Even though this would be an absolutely pyrrhic victory for the Southern Sea God Realm, Qianye Fantian knew all too well that the frightening lunatic that was the Southern Sea God Emperor was definitely capable of doing such a thing!

This was the consequence of losing the Three Brahma Gods, which caused their core strength to plummet… Furthermore, Qianye Fantian understood that this was only the beginning! The God Realm’s cruel laws of survival had always been this way, and the higher one climbed, the more cruel they got.

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