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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“...” Of course Yun Che, whose soul had been seized, did not make any response.

Zhou Xuzi’s eyebrows violently twitched. He had long heard that the Northern Region’s Devil Queen was so beautiful and alluring she seemed like a succubus in the flesh. Her bewitching seductiveness seemed ingrained in her very bones and her ability to manipulate men was unrivaled under the heavens. However, he was still left completely flustered when he witnessed this scene.

If she dared to behave in such a flagrant manner towards a junior whose soul she had seized in public, then one could well imagine just how debauched her behaviour normally was.

It was this shallow and simple action of hers which made the mouth of the Eternal Heaven God Emperor, who had been buffeted by thousands of life’s storms, go dry. He started to feel a burning sensation that had died out long ago rise up in his body. But this feeling soon turned intense as it swiftly spread throughout his body, dying it in an abnormal blush.

His heart was violently shaken… but at the same time, to his incredulous shock, a burning lust had been birthed inside of it. It was the sort of lust that a person wanted to simply sink into, a lust which made you want to abandon everything and drown in its pleasures forever.

Bzzz!

Zhou Xuzi fiercely bit down on his tongue as profound energy circulated throughout his entire body and swiftly suppressed that terrifying agitation. His expression did not change at all and his voice remained low and imperious. “Devil Queen, a mere bewitching technique like that isn’t enough to shake this old one’s heart. There’s no need for you to waste any energy.”

“The longer we drag this out, the more likely it is for something unforeseen to happen. You’ve made such a long journey here, so I don’t think you want to return empty-handed, right!?”

Chi Wuyao seemed to pay no mind to his words and her gaze no longer flickered towards the Untamed Divine Marrow in Zhou Xuzi’s hands. “Oh my! Are you starting to feel anxious? It is of no matter, this queen has lots of time. Even if I return home empty-handed, I’ll just take it that I went out for a breath of fresh air. It’s not like I’m losing anything.”

She calmly turned her head and looked towards the blank-faced Yun Che. Her voice grew softer and gentler as she said, “Isn’t that right, my good Che’er~?”

The Eternal Heaven God Emperor’s brow deeply furrowed but he did not say anything.

The moment he had taken out the Untamed Divine Marrow, he had clearly sensed Chi Wuyao’s rapacious greed ooze out of her.

He had suffered a complete loss in their duel of words and the pressure exerted by their soul.

Many things had changed over the last ten millennia. He had grown old while the Devil Queen had only grown more terrifying.

However, no matter how much of a disadvantage he was at, even if his heart was so anxious that it had burned to cinders, he definitely could not back down here.

He was convinced that Chi Wuyao’s anxiety was no less than his. Because if this meeting dragged and the other two king realms managed to sniff it out, she could forget about keeping this Untamed Divine Marrow for herself.

Zhou Xuzi remained silent, while Chi Wuyao did not even spare him a single glance. She had even moved her aura away from his body. Underneath that hazy black mist, her body seemed to be tightly pressed against the enthralled Yun Che’s body.

There were several female god emperors in the other three divine regions. Even the grand ancestor of his Eternal Heaven God Realm was a woman. If he had not witnessed it personally, he would truly find it hard to believe that any woman who had ascended to the seat of god emperor would actually behave so scandalously in front of other people.

“Che’er.” Her voice was both gentle and alluring as she called his name. It sounded so seductive that it nearly melted half of Zhou Xuzi’s bones in that very instant. “Answer this queen. Who was your very first woman?”

Yun Che moved his lips. “Ling… er…”

“Oh hoh~” Chi Wuyao said as a look of realization flashed across her head. Her smile grew even more seductive. “Then, who do you think is the most beautiful woman that you’ve ever come across?”

“Shen… Xi…” He replied with the exact same blank and guileless expression

When Chi Wuyao asked Yun Che, whose soul had been seized, these questions, they ignored his will and directly drew those answers out from his soul.

“Aiyah.” Chi Wuyao let out a small but exaggerated cry before she started giggling. “To think that you’d still think of the ‘Dragon Queen’ even though you already have the ‘Goddess’ by your side. Ah, how truly greedy you are.”

“~！@#￥%...” For a moment, the Eternal Heaven God Emperor found it hard to breathe and his vision had even started to go black.

Every occasion he had ever been a part of in his life was either grand, solemn or dignified. As long as he was there, no one had ever dared to overstep their bounds or behave in an undignified manner.

But this Northern Region Devil Queen… Her behavior was simply far too frivolous and debauched. This should have been a meeting filled with mutual hostility, where both sides stood across from each other with swords drawn. Yet, she was actually whispering seductively to a person whose soul she had dominated!

Such corrupt and scandalous behavior!

What frivolous and humiliating behavior!

“I heard that your master’s name was Mu Xuanyin.” It was as if Chi Wuyao had completely forgotten about Zhou Xuzi’s existence. In fact, she continued to ask Yun Che those questions in an utterly disgraceful manner, “Did you ever do that…”

“That’s enough!” Zhou Xuzi could not take it any longer. He let out a low roar and he extended the hand that held the Untamed Divine Marrow. “Devil Queen, hand Yun Che over to me. Before you give him the order, this old one will even pass the Untamed Divine Marrow to you. This is the last concession I will make!”

“Concession?” Chi Wuyao finally turned to look at him. “What a great concession. If the Eternal Heaven God Emperor pulls a muscle because of this, this queen won’t be able to answer for it.”

Zhou Xuzi pushed down his anger as he said, “Even if Yun Che is in this old one’s hands, if you, the Devil Queen, do not give the command, he will not purge the darkness from my son’s body. However, once you have the Untamed Divine Marrow in your hands, you will already have gained the absolute advantage.”

“This old one is not your equal when it comes to a duel of words but both you and I have come to this place because we want something from each other. Since this old one has already made so many concessions, you should also know when to quit!”

“The absolute advantage?” Chi Wuyao said with a dry chuckle. “Is there anyone in this universe who is unaware that Yun Che is the one you want to kill the most? If I hand him over to you first, you can kill him with a single strike of your palm. At that point, wouldn’t this queen be left with nothing!?”

“In fact, this queen even suspects that this whole deal about wanting to save your son is a sham. And that your true goal is to use this excuse to kill Yun Che.”

“...” A dark light that no one sensed flashed in the depths of Zhou Xuzi’s eyes. His brows heavily sank as he said, “The deal is taking place in your Northern Region and you even have your two strongest Witches by your side. But this old one has come by himself.

“If all of you attack me together, it wouldn’t be too hard for any of you to kill this old one’s son.”

“With such a threat hanging over this old one’s head, how would I dare to have any funny ideas!?”

“Aiya,” Chi Wuyao cried in a bewitching voice. “Not only is your son handsome, he’s even become one of us devils. This queen has truly taken a fancy to him, so how could I bear to kill him?”

Just as she finished speaking, the already dim sky turned even darker.

Both Chi Wuyao and Zhou Xuzi raised their heads at the same time.

This was the southernmost part of the Northern Divine Region, so one could see the blurry figure of a dusky gray moon.

When the moon moved into the middle of the sky, it would signify that this day had ended.

Chi Wuyao’s aura subtly changed and when she opened her mouth again, her voice had lost all of its previous indolence and seductiveness. It was now shockingly cold and calm. “Forget it. Since it’s already this late, this queen no longer has the inclination to drag this out any further.”

She suddenly pushed her hand out and Yun Che, who had been standing beside her, flew toward Zhou Xuzi like a wooden stump.

Zhou Xuzi casually waved his arm in the air and Yun Che simply floated down gently in front of him.

Yun Che was right in front of him and his eyes were devoid of light… As he stared at him from such a close distance, Zhou Xuzi started recalling things of the past. He recalled Yun Che’s stubborn pride during the Profound God Convention, the incredible respect Yun Che had shown him when they had spoken with each other, the kindness and compassion Yun Che showed him when he had helped him get rid of the devilish poison, and his eyes, which seemed to contain all of the stars in the universe, as he faced the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor alone...

All of these things seemed to have happened just yesterday, yet everything had drastically changed.

After he let out a sigh, Zhou Xuzi unconsciously averted his eyes from Yun Che’s lifeless gaze. As he grabbed Yun Che’s shoulder with one hand, he gently pushed the other one forward.

Purple light flashed through the air and the precious treasure that the Eternal Heaven God Realm had hidden for dozens of millennia, what was very likely the last remaining Untamed Divine Marrow in the entire Primal Chaos Dimension, flew toward the Devil Queen of the North.

Chi Wuyao extended a hand to grab it. She spared it a brief glance before she stored it away. A faint smile appeared on her face. “Very good. It looks like you have lived up to your word this once.”

Even though he had made this decision long ago, for him to so easily hand over the precious treasure left behind by his grand ancestor… to the devils of the north was something that pierced him to the core.

But, he would not regret his decision.

“Devil Queen, give the order.” Zhou Xuzi stared straight ahead, his voice solemn and steady… But his heart was still filled with extreme anxiety.

Before today, he had only ever had one interaction with Chi Wuyao and it had left behind a dark shadow in his heart that had lasted a full ten millennia.

To him, Chi Wuyao was absolutely the most dreadful and cunning woman in the entire universe. Every second he spent facing off against her was fraught with tension and all of his nerves were stretched taut.

Because Chi Wuyao had been the one who had suggested this method of trade, he certainly would not simply agree to it, no matter how fair it sounded. He definitely had to change it or have the final say.

Even now, when Yun Che had already fallen into his hands, Zhou Xuzi, who had already passed the Untamed Divine Marrow over to Chi Wuyao, was still on his guard and vigilantly looking out for any possible accidents… He was especially afraid that Chi Wuyao would simply flee with the Untamed Divine Marrow at this point.

After all, she had definitely pried all of Yun Che’s secrets out of his body and if she could steal the Heretic God’s legacy or the Sky Poison Pearl, she would have done so long ago… It was definitely possible that Chi Wuyao would throw the already useless Yun Che away at this point.

However, he had been forced all the way back from his initial position by Chi Wuyao’s repeated blows and constant pressure, so he had been left with no other choice.

“Yun Che.” The thing that Zhou Xuzi was most worried about did not come to pass as Chi Wuyao calmly started to speak. “This queen commands you. Immediately purge the darkness that you planted in Zhou Qingchen from his body.”

Zhou Xuzi felt some tension bleed out of him.

Furthermore, after he had received the command, Yun Che started to woodenly move forward. He came to a stop in front of Zhou Qingchen before he slowly raised a hand towards him.

He still could not feel any vitality or soul energy coming from Yun Che’s body.

Whether it was his power or his soul, all of it had been completely suppressed and seized by Chi Wuyao. This was something that Zhou Xuzi had been convinced of from the start and he did not find anything abnormal about it.

But even so, even up to this point, his energy was still connected to Zhou Qingchen and the protective barrier that surrounded him. He had not withdrawn it for even a fraction of a second.

An imperceptible ripple appeared in Chi Wuyao's eyes for a single instant...

Back then, outside the destroyed Blue Pole Star, Mu Xuanyin had used most of her power to protect Yun Che even when she faced off against a gaggle of god emperors by herself.

Now, Zhou Xuzi, who was facing off against the Devil Queen and her two Great Witches in a dark and dangerous place, had also used most of his energy to protect Zhou Qingchen. If anything unexpected happened, he would not hesitate to sacrifice his own life to see Zhou Qingchen to safety.

Heh… Chi Wuyao gave a soft chuckle, but it was a rather cold one.

Yun Che’s hand was being blocked by the barrier so there was no way for him to touch Zhou Qingchen.

Zhou Xuzi moved and made a gesture with his hand. The energy of the barrier instantly started flowing like running water as it covered Yun Che’s hand and brought half of his arm inside of it. But at the same time, it also stuck to Yun Che’s body and power.

As such, if there was any abnormality in Yun Che’s actions or aura, he would be the first to know.

“Aiyah, the Eternal Heaven God Emperor is truly being cautious. But Yun Che happens to be the most obedient child by this queen’s side, he won’t eat your son," Chi Wuyao said with a seductive laugh.

Zhou Xuzi stared at Yun Che’s palm as he said in a low voice, “I’ll have to trouble the Devil Queen to release the shackles on his power.”

Chi Wuyao tapped a finger gently in the air. The black mist curling around Yun Che instantly started to dissipate, clearly allowing the aura of Yun Che’s power to leak through.

When a person was released from someone else’s suppression, it would take a rather long time for them to wake up and recover, no matter whether it was their power or soul that had been suppressed.

This was especially true when it came to the suppression of one’s soul. It would make that person feel like they had suddenly woken up from a nightmare. It would take a very long time for their mind to clear up once they had been completely released from the other person’s control.

However… even before the black mist had fully dissipated from Yun Che’s body, a bizarre, blood-red light suddenly flashed in his originally dull and blank eyes.

This bizarre scene that did not conform to any of the usual rules was instantly noticed by Zhou Xuzi, whose nerves were already stretched taut. Yet before he could even do anything, a pair of dark dragon eyes suddenly appeared in front of him. The furious roar of a dragon instantly exploded within his heart and soul. It sounded like it was simultaneously coming from the farthest reaches of the universe and the deepest abyss of despair.

ROAAAAAAARRR——————

Countless blood vessels instantly popped out in Zhou Xuzi’s eyes. He felt as if the world in front of him had explosively shattered into tiny fragments, turning into a chaotic blend of inky darkness and blinding light.

Chi Wuyao’s arm also shot out in that same instant. An energy star that was as black as dusk blazed through the air, leaving a trail of darkness in its wake. It instantly punched through the energy tether connecting Zhou Xuzi to Zhou Qingchen.

Bang!!

The barrier shattered.

Zhou Xuzi’s body violently swayed, but he forced himself to stay on his feet. Dozens of millennia of wisdom and his enormous will allowed him to recover at an unfathomable speed as his murky eyes quickly regained their focus.

He felt a splitting pain in his head, feeling as if thousands of waves were crashing about in his brain… But this pain was a tiny fraction of the shock he was feeling right now.

Because he saw a pair of blood-red eyes glaring at him through his blurred vision. The very first thought that occured to his disoriented brain was that he had seen a real devil.

As for Zhou Qingchen… That devil’s hand was wrapped around his neck.

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