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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“Chief Grandpa, is that senior really that amazing?” Yun Shang asked.

Yun Shang was very smart, but she was also too young and inexperienced. She knew that Yun Che was amazing, but she didn’t really understand that what he did to her was out of this world. Naturally, she was surprised by Yun Ting’s reaction.

“Of course,” Yun Ting replied.

“Is he more amazing than you when you were stronger?” Yun Shang continued to ask.

Yun Ting shook his head while smiling. He said, “I may have been a Divine Master, but it’s nothing compared to this senior’s achievements. Shang’er, you may not realize this, but the blessing bestowed upon you during this half-year is something others cannot obtain even in a million lifetimes.”

Yun Shang’s lips parted. The chief’s words had further increased the already huge image of Yun Che in her heart and painted a layer of mystique over it.

“Shang’er, can you really not to say that senior’s name? He… he must like you a lot to bless you so. Did he mention if he’s going to visit you anytime soon?” Yun Xiang asked in an urgent tone.

“Stop.” Yun Ting stopped him with a wave of his hand. He understood why Yun Xiang had sounded so urgent. The “deadline” that would decide the fate of the Heavenly Handle Yun Clan was close, and this mysterious benefactor might just be able to help them survive it. “The gifts he bestowed Yun Shang are already beyond our ability to repay, so how can we ask him to help us more than he already has? Right now, the only way we can repay his favor is to not disturb his peace… Unless the master shows up on his own, no one is to ask Shang’er about him.”

Yun Xiang fell silent after that.

Yun Ting rose to his feet and sucked in a deep breath. Then, he said, “Xiang’er, we’ll hold a clan meeting in ten days. Relay this order to everyone immediately… Cough, cough cough…”

He coughed softly for a time after giving the order, but no one looked surprised by it. It was clear that they were used to it by now.

If Yun Ting hadn’t wanted to cling to life until the day of the “deadline”, he might’ve left the world already. His condition was that bad.

“Clan meeting?” At first, everyone was surprised by his decision. Then, they looked and Yun Shang and realized something. “Could it be…”

“That’s right,” Yun Ting slowly looked back up and declared in a loud voice, “Shang’er will be appointed as the young chief!”

“The Heavenly Handle Yun Clan has suffered for tens of thousands of years, and we’re almost at the ultimate deadline. However, the heavens have chosen to gift us a priceless treasure in our most difficult time. Shang’er has a purple heavenly handle, and the level of her talent is unprecedented thanks to the blessing of a master… We may not be able to escape our annihilation, but the Heavenly Handle Yun Clan will rise again as long as Shang’er is safe!”

Yun Ting’s powerful declaration quickly infected everyone else with high spirits. Yun Shang was the only one who looked at a loss as she subconsciously looked in Yun Che’s direction for help.

“Xiang’er… are you okay with this?” Yun Ting asked because Yun Xiang was the current young chief of the Heavenly Handle Yun Clan and his direct descendant, whereas Yun Shang wasn’t.

His eyes growing determined, Yun Xiang declared without any hesitation, “Shang’er may be young, but there’s no one in the entire clan who’s more fit to bear the hope and future of our entire clan than her. I will do my best to support Shang’er after I’ve surrendered my position to her… I swear to do this even if it costs my own life!”

“The young chief is truly wise,” the clan elders all praised him.

“Very good,” Yun Ting said while nodding slowly, “this is the kind of determination and willpower I would expect from a descendant of the Yun Clan!”

“Please, stay with us for a while so we may thank you for saving Shang’er.” Despite the excitement, Yun Ting hadn’t forgotten about Yun Che or Qianye Ying’er. Yun Che didn’t reject his goodwill.

“Thank you for your hospitality.”

    ……

Yun Che and Qianye Ying’er were treated very well because they saved Yun Shang. The fact that their room was located at the center of the clan also showed the clan’s appreciation for them.

Excited noises kept entering the room from outside. Yun Shang’s return was like the light before the darkness of the apocalypse.

Yun Che slowly walked around the room, looking at the decorations and sensing the auras around him… So, he was the descendant of a devil person from the start, and this was where the Yun Family came from.

“How much time do you plan to waste here?” Qianye Ying’er asked suddenly.

Yun Che closed his eyes before replying, “I wasn’t with my family or my parents since I was young. When we were finally reunited, I wasn’t able to perform my filial duties for long before that terrible disaster struck… so finding their ancestors' home and allowing their spirits to bask in their roots maybe the only thing left I can do for them besides taking revenge.”

“And of course…” Black light flashed across his eyes when he reopened them. “This ‘deadline’ gives us the perfect excuse to nab what we need.”

“That is the answer I wanted to hear,” Qianye Ying’er said before walking up to him. “But don’t take too long, you hear me? Otherwise, I may… take matters into my own hands.”

Yun Che shot her a look before saying, “You’re overthinking this!”

“I better be.” Qianye Ying’er’s eyes twirled before she continued, “If I’m correct, the other reason you didn’t embed a slave imprint in me is because you’re worried that you’re not hard enough. You want me to give you the push you need in case it becomes necessary… don’t worry, I promise I won’t disappoint you in this regard!”

“...” Yun Che frowned, but didn’t refute her words.

Dong dong dong...

A series of knocks suddenly came from the door. Then, Yun Shang’s gentle voice entered the room, “are you in there, senior?”

“Come in.” Yun Che replied while turning around. His cold, dark eyes turned gentle without him realizing it.

Yun Shang opened the door and rushed in. She had changed out of her previous clothes for a new white dress. She stopped in front of Yun Che with reddened cheeks and stared at him with even greater admiration than before, saying, “Senior, I didn’t know you were… that amazing, heehee.”

Before today, Chief Yun Ting was the most powerful person in her world. But when she saw the look of reverence on Yun Ting’s face when he spoke of “the master”, not even her inexperience could stop her from realizing just how amazing Yun Che really was.

Yun Che gave her a smile and said, “Why are you here? I’m sure you have a lot of things to do after all the commotion you caused right after you returned to the clan.”

“I just felt like seeing you, that’s all.” Yun Shang smiled right back. “I guess I got used to staying with you during this half a year, Senior. I feel strangely unsafe while you’re not by my side. That’s why I snuck away and came here.”

“...” Yun Che’s eyes glazed over for a moment before he recovered himself. “Yun Shang, exactly when is the day of the deadline?”

Yun Shang’s smile immediately turned to gloom when she heard the question, but she quickly smiled again and answered, “A month from now. But Chief Grandpa and everyone said there’s nothing to worry about. We’re on very good terms with the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect, so they probably won’t do anything really bad toward us when the time comes.”

Of course, by “very good terms”, she really meant that the Heavenly Handle Yun Clan was doing everything in their power to curry favor with the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect...

After all, they were the Burning Moon King Realm’s chosen sanctioner.

If the Sinful Yun Clan couldn’t recover the “sacred artifact” after the ten thousand-year deadline had passed, then the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect was free to punish them however they liked… including wiping them from the face of the earth. Naturally, the Sinful Yun Clan must’ve stooped to unimaginable depths to curry favor with the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect.

“I see. Then you probably don’t have too much to worry about,” Yun Che said. Then, he asked casually, “Oh right, what will the Burning Moon Realm do if the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect doesn’t punish you after the deadline?”

“They won’t do anything.” Yun Shang shook her head without hesitation. “Daddy once told me that the Burning Moon Realm said this: if the Heavenly Handle Yun Clan can avoid their destruction or even claim the upper hand over the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect, then it must mean that fate still has plans in store for the Yun Clan. In that case, in the name of the king realm, they will not interfere or punish us further.”

Yun Che and Qianye Ying’er frowned at once.

Although it sounded like the Burning Moon Realm was giving Heavenly Handle Yun Clan a sliver of hope, in reality they were hammering in the nails into their coffins.

It was because their declaration of “mercy” ensured that the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect would do everything in their power to kill off the Heavenly Handle Yun Clan. There was no way in hell they would ever give the Heavenly Handle Yun Clan the chance to “claim the upper hand” over them.

This so-called “sinful region” was probably a device of the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect as well.

As a result, the Heavenly Handle Yun Clan had declined to their current state. Only six hundred thousand people were left in the clan, and their population was smaller than a sect of a lower star realm. The way they were now, they posed absolutely no threat to the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect.

The Thousand Desolation Divine Sect wouldn’t annihilate the Sinful Yun Clan now because the latter still had to “retrieve” the sacred artifact. But the moment the day of the deadline arrived, the Sinful Yun Clan’s fate would hinge in the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect's decision.

Neither Yun Che nor Qianye Ying’er believed that the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect would show the Sinful Yun Clan mercy.

It was because they had offended a king realm!

The reason the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect could replace the Heavenly Handle Yun Clan in the first place was due to the Burning Moon Realm. Naturally, they had no reason to disobey their superiors… the only reason they showed an ambiguous attitude and gave the Sinful Yun Clan hope was to bleed them as much as possible.

A short conversation later, he asked yet another seemingly unimportant question, “Why is the Nine Lights Heavenly Palace targeting your clan?”

Yun Shang thought for a moment before replying, “Big Brother Xiang once told me that the Chief Palace Master of Nine Lights Heavenly Palace has a young son.  Apparently, he is incredibly talented in the profound way. However, he has been stuck at peak Divine King Realm for over three hundred years. A year ago, Nine Lights Heavenly Palace somehow caught wind that we have an ‘ancient pellet’ that might help the chief palace master’s son achieve a breakthrough, and since then they’ve been trying to take it from us.”

“At first, they just wanted to trade it for something. After we turned them down, they started using a lot of despicable methods,” Yun Shang said angrily, “but we’ll never surrender the ancient pellet to them. Chief Grandpa once said that the ancient pellet can be used as a final gift to the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect if we’ve no plans to use it on ourselves… Whatever happens, there’s no way we’re surrendering it to those villains!”

“Is that ancient pellet really that amazing?” Yun Che asked, but he really wasn’t interested in it. No matter how good the pellet was, it couldn’t possibly compare to Shen Xi’s Divine Water of Life and the Dragon Dawn Jade Nectar.

“Of course it’s amazing! It’s an inheritance from our forefather!” Yun Shang said without hesitation, “However, the forefather said that only a genius who has attracted a four stage lightning tribulation at minimum during Divine Spirit Realm is qualified to consume the pellet… so far, there hasn’t been anyone like this in the clan. Even Big Brother Xiang has only attracted a three stage lightning tribulation when he was a Divine Spirit.”

Yun Che smiled at her and patted her on the shoulder. He said, “I’ll stay here until the day of the deadline. You may come to me if you have any problems you wish to ask about.”

“Mm!” Yun Che’s promise immediately improved Yun Shang’s mood. Even the light in her eyes seemed much brighter.

It was at this moment Yun Xiang came through the door and said, “Shang’er! So this is where you are. The chief wants to take you to the forefather’s altar himself to pray. Quickly.”

“Ah… okay,” Yun Shang nodded before bidding Yun Che goodbye, “I’ll come look for you tomorrow, Senior.”

“Go.”

Yun Xiang gave Yun Che a nod before leaving with Yun Shang.

“Are you going to save them?” Qianye Ying’er suddenly broke her long silence and asked.

“No,” Yun Che answered, “The Yun Family I was part of gave up on their roots of darkness completely many generations ago. Today, we are barely related to this Yun Clan by blood. This is their fate to fight. I’ve already afforded them my greatest benevolence when I gave them one last hope to cling to.”

“But you will keep that girl alive no matter what, am I right?”

“Yes,” Yun Che answered without hesitation.

Qianye Ying’er stopped talking and closed her eyes. Only she knew what she was thinking about.

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