Against the Gods

The strange light of the abyssal crystal was rapidly approaching the black-robed man’s face. At the same time, the excitement in his eyes became so dense it was practically tangible.

It was at this moment the scene before his eyes suddenly distorted. The next thing he knew, a powerful, irresistible force was dragging him toward the left.

The black-robed man was stunned, but he was unable to respond to the sudden force at all. Before he knew it, his head had smashed into the ground, and his arm was stomped to the ground less than a meter away from the abyssal crystal.

At the same time, he heard his companion crying out in surprise. His broadsword was flying through the air as if it had been smacked away by someone, and a powerful force was pulling him over to him. An instant later, both men discovered that one of their arms was twisted around each other like noodles and stomped to the ground by the same foot.

To say they were stunned would be an understatement. They channeled their profound qi with all their might, but an unstoppable force resembling a million mountains stomped their raised arm right back to the ground. Even their heads were half buried in the ground, unable to move an inch.

It was with great difficulty the two men twisted their heads until their eyes finally pointed upward. Their gazes ran up the leg that was stepping on their arms and barely made contact with Yun Che’s cold, reptilian eyes.

“How…” both men’s pupils dilated to the max. They just could not believe what was happening. Their senses declared loud and clear that the young man before them was just a level three Divine Master, and yet…

“Tell me your names and origins,” Yun Che ordered coldly and emotionlessly.

Neither man answered. It was impossible to say if it was because they were unwilling to submit, or because they hadn’t yet recovered from their shock.

Their screams failed to elicit even the slightest reaction from Yun Che whatsoever. He simply said, “You have one more chance to answer my question, or else.”

Overwhelming fear and pain quickly dismantled whatever resistance they still had. The man to Yun Che’s right hurriedly spoke up, “My… My name is Han Quan, and my junior brother is Liu Jing… We hail from the Tyrant Sword Sect… please…”

“Good.” An indifferent voice interrupted his painful stammer. “Since you were obedient, I’ll grant you two a swift death.”

Chiang!

The broadsword that was sent flying was drawn back to Yun Che’s palm. Then, he brought it down on the two men’s heads with vicious bloodthirst.

“Me… Mercy, brother!” Han Quan screamed at the top of his lungs. “We were foolish for allowing our greed to overtake our good senses! We beseech that you show mercy and allow these two lowly ones to survive! Please!!!”

Suffocating under the shadow of death, his scream was such that it nearly ripped his own throat apart. Even the killing intent that seemed to fill his marrows to the brim had slowed to a temporary stop.

The sword did not fall on their heads.

Yun Che looked behind his back and asked Hua Caili, “How should I handle these two, Sister Qu?”

At first, Han Quan and Liu Jing were caught off guard. Then, they realized that Yun Che was looking to the girl for instructions. Knowing that every second counted, Han Quan twisted his neck with all his might while shouting, “Forgive us, fairy! We hail from the Tyrant Sword Sect, one of the three guardian sects of the Crouching Smoke Realm! We are anything but villains, so please—!”

“Anything but villains?” Yun Che scoffed. “It looks like someone needs my help in recalling their ugly faces when they were trying to rob us earlier.”

“N-No!” Han Quan hurriedly defended himself, “We are members of the Tyrant Sword Sect, and we normally would never succumb to wanton slaughter in the Endless Fog. It’s just that… we’ve never seen such an incredible abyssal crystal in our lives, so we were unable to suppress our greed. W-We were never planning on killing you! We, we, we were just hoping to scare you into submission!”

The girl didn’t say anything. Feeling a lot more hopeful than before, Han Quan continued, “You look divine like something out of a great tale, fairy. You cannot possibly stain yourself with our blood. If you allow us to leave, we promise… we promise that the entire Tyrant Sword Sect will remember you and senior’s favor. We promise to repay your mercy a thousand fold.”

Yun Che did not act. He simply watched Hua Caili and waited for her answer.

Hua Caili’s gaze shifted a little, but she quickly withdrew her gaze and whispered, “Whatever their intentions may be, they ultimately haven’t hurt a hair on our persons. Let them leave.”

“But…” Yun Che frowned but let out a small sigh. Then, he withdrew his foot, relinquished his bloodthirst, and turned away, declaring, “Get lost.”

The two men hurriedly climbed to their feet, expressions dazed and disbelieving. They could hardly believe that the young man had actually let them go.

“If I was alone, then you would be smears on the ground already. Do not forget who’s the one who saved your dog’s lives.”

Like an alarm bell, his voice jolted them out of their daydream. Han Quan immediately stammered, “Yes… yes! We will not forget that fairy’s the one who saved our lives! Should you ever need us, we will give our all to repay this favor!”

The two men stepped away from Yun Che and Hua Caili tentatively even as they spoke. It was only after they were ten steps away that they finally turned tail and escaped while clutching their broken arms.

Hua Caili finally opened her eyes. She looked at Yun Che like she wanted to say something.

She was starting to understand what Yun Che was trying to do.

“Maintain this posture,” Yun Che said. “I promise you they won’t keep us waiting.”

Hua Caili opened her mouth, but in the end, she did not say anything.

He was right. Less than fifteen minutes later, a vicious, tremendous shockwave rapidly approached Yun Che.

Rumble!

Three men descended from above and landed on the ground where a long crevice split open. The growing crack just barely came to a stop right before it would touch Yun Che’s feet.

Inside the barrier, Hua Caili’s eyelashes fluttered slightly as she thought disappointedly to herself: I thought so.

Two of the three men were of course, Han Quan and Liu Jing. They were flanking the man at the center, and despite their broken arms and bleeding stumps, they were no longer wearing humble and fearful expressions on their faces. No, those emotions had been completely replaced by vicious savagery.

Standing at the center was a middle-aged man clad in black robes. He was carrying a massive sword that was over two meters tall. The blade looked dull and mundane, but the suffocating pressure it gave off was anything but.

Half-Step Divine Extinction… Yun Che glanced at the middle-aged man.

“It’s them, senior uncle!”

“Look at that abyssal crystal! We didn’t exaggerate, did we?”

The middle-aged man was a Half-Step Divine Extinction Realm profound practitioner and undoubtedly stood at the pinnacle of his realm. Even so, he could not help but stare at the abyssal crystal for several breaths straight. Greed was stirring like a waking serpent inside his soul sea, hungry and desperate for nourishment.

He asked with a cold, indifferent expression, “A level three Divine Master? You’re telling me that a level three Divine Master destroyed you two?”

“Senior uncle, something is very wrong with his cultivation,” Han Quan said while panting, “He is clearly a level three Divine Master in every way, but his power… for whatever reason, his power is comparable to a level eight… or even level nine Divine Master. You must be careful, senior uncle.”

“Are you kidding me?” The middle-aged man burst out laughing. “Are you even listening to yourself? A level three Divine Master whose power is equal to a level eight Divine Master? Just admit that you were careless and caught by surprise already.”

Han Quan and Liu Jing wanted to deny this, but Yun Che interrupted them before they could speak, “Is this how the Tyrant Sword Sect repays mercy?”

“Mercy? Hehahahahaha!” Han Quan shifted his attention to Yun Che and let out an ugly laugh. “I’ve never met fools like you my whole life! I cannot believe you actually let us live.”

“Today, I’ll teach you a lesson.” He removed his palm from his bleeding stump and snarled at Yun Che, “You broke my arm, so I’m going to rip you to pieces with my remaining arm! Do not forget to thank me for my lesson when you’re in the underworld!”

The middle-aged man raised his arm and silenced Han Quan. Then, he looked at Hua Caili and asked, “Who are you two? Where do you hail from?”

It was only a glance, and Hua Caili’s face was still covered. Even so, he could tell that she was far more noble than even the noblest realm king daughter or imperial princess he had ever met. Anyone who wasn’t blind could tell that her background was extraordinary at first glance.

“Actually, never mind.”

He did not wait for an answer—or maybe he was afraid that he would freeze in terror if Hua Caili gave him an answer. His tone changed, and his eyes narrowed in sharp bloodthirst. “Since you found out about our background, you must die. You only have your own foolishness to blame.”

He knew that the girl and the young man’s backgrounds must be extraordinary. That was precisely why they must die.

There might be rules outside the Endless Fog, but not inside.

In the Endless Fog, you either stayed your hand, or made sure that you eliminated the danger at the roots. Otherwise, the consequences were severe to say the least. It wasn’t the reputation loss that was worrying, it was the possibility of vengeance from a faction they could not possibly survive against.

The middle-aged man did not drag out the battle. The second he finished speaking, he curled his hand into talons and made a grab for Yun Che. Where his fingers traveled, black lines stretched through the air and rippled the surrounding space.

A biting wind blew, and Yun Che raised his arms defensively and arced backward. He looked like he was being suppressed to the point where he was unable to move even a muscle.

When the middle-aged man’s hand was about one-sixth of a meter away from Yun Che’s chest…

Bang!!

There was a deafening boom that blew out Han Quan and Liu Jing’s eardrums instantly. For a long time, they could only hear a piercing, incessant ringing that refused to fade away.

At the same time, their vicious, bloodthirsty eyes quickly widened into cold, horrified shock.

Their senior uncle abruptly bent backward as if he was hit by a mountain. At the same time, a massive hole burst through his back and scattered blood, bone and gore everywhere.

The middle-aged man’s eyes lost all color. Even as his world abruptly turned grayish white, he could still catch what looked like a cold, indifferent smile on Yun Che’s face.

Yun Che turned his palm, and the huge sword the middle-aged man was carrying fell into his hand. Azure blue icy light exploded from the sword and plunged deep into his body. The next moment, a powerful explosion knocked the middle-aged man far, far away, finally nailing him to the ground.

In just the blink of an eye, the chief elder of the Tyrant Sword Sect and a Half-Step Divine Extinction Realm expert was nailed to the ground like a dying cur by his favorite sword.

His shivering eyes were rapidly losing focus. A raspy voice escaped his lips, “Half… God…”

With his cultivation, he could not have fallen to the brink of death in an instant even if he was facing a Half God.

Why would a Half-Step Divine Extinction Realm profound practitioner be on his guard against a level three Divine Master?

The fact that he even channeled three-fifths of his power was proof that he did not underestimate Yun Che.

Yun Che’s cultivation was as deceptive as it was explosive, however. More importantly, he went all out from the start. Caught completely off guard, what could the middle-aged man do except die?

High, high up in the sky, Hua Qingying’s eyes flickered with astonishment.

To go from zero to a hundred in an instant…

To wield his profound energy to this extent…

Could it be…

Did he possess eighty percent divine essence or higher?

Then again, having seen all that she had seen from Yun Che, Hua Qingying found herself unsurprised by this discovery at all.

“Se… se… senior uncle…”

Han Quan and Liu Jing were shaking like leaves. They looked so weak they might collapse on the ground at any moment.

Step!

There was a blur, and Yun Che was standing next to them. His face was completely blank—not even a shred of ridicule could be spotted on his face.

In an instant, the two men let out strange cries as if a viper had bitten their hearts. Then, they fell on their backs in almost the exact same manner. Their complexions were as pale as death, and their mouths were opening and closing rapidly as if they were trying to say something. They couldn’t though. All that could be heard was the sound of their teeth chattering.

Yun Che shot Hua Caili a glance, but this time, he did not ask for her permission. With one wave of his hand, he turned the two terrified Divine Masters into ice sculptures. The next moment, they dissolved into white dust and scattered into the surroundings, leaving not even a single trace behind.

With that done, Yun Che casually retrieved the abyssal crystal and asked, “Have you found your answer now?”

Hua Caili rose to her feet and thought carefully. In the end, she answered uncertainly, “Is it… kindness?”

Yun Che smiled. “It’s a good answer, just not fully correct.”

He stopped keeping her in the dark and declared, “What is the cheapest and most valuable thing in this world? The answer to your father’s question is this: bonds.”

“Bonds…” Hua Caili whispered the word. It was a simple, easy-to-understand word, but right here and now, it confounded her to no end.

Yun Che slowly explained, “Kindness is a type of bond. Some people viewed it as big as the heavens and desired nothing more than to repay those who gave them kindness a thousand fold. On the other hand, there are people who… well, you’ve just experienced it. You showed them mercy and saved their lives, and yet they laughed at your stupidity and tried to kill you.”

Hua Caili: “…”

“Family love is a type of bond. Some people viewed it more important than their own lives and would not hesitate to sacrifice their lives for family, but some… only view their flesh and blood as tools to be used and discarded as they pleased. Should jealousy take hold, they could be removed as easily as grass.”

“Trust is also a type of bond. Some people are willing to repay one’s trust with their all, unwilling to betray even if it costs them their lives. But some would use it as a blade that causes harm.”

“Master-disciple relationship is also a type of bond. Some people respect their master deeply and place them on a pedestal their whole lives, while some slay their own masters to prove themselves.”

“Friendship, camaraderie, love… they are all bonds.”

Hua Caili listened seriously and carefully. A long time later, she finally said, “To tell you the truth, I understand what you’re saying. It’s just—”

“This isn’t the first time you encountered such an incident, is it?” Yun Che asked suddenly.

Hua Caili looked startled and drooped her head lower. “No, it’s not…”

Yun Che continued, “If today you set them free, and they returned with someone neither you nor I could handle, what do you think would have happened to us? Do you think they would have shown you the mercy you afforded them?”

“I know.” Hua Caili closed her eyes and grew even quieter. “But no matter how terrible they were, they weren’t abyssal beasts. They were living, breathing people. They all had friends and families, and they all overcame countless cruel trials and tribulations to come this far… every time I run into such people, I can’t help but wonder if they were only possessed by greed or desire for a moment… I can’t help but wonder if there was a chance they could’ve turned back… that is why I cannot bring myself to kill them.”

She whispered, “Aunt always told me that foolish goodness is not good, simply foolish. But I…”

She let out a long sigh and opened her eyes. Then, she said seemingly to herself, “It’s fine. I’m just at the start of my journey. I will grow up… step by step.”

Staring at her with sharp eyes, Yun Che shook his head very seriously and said, “I agree that no one can turn from a kind person who viewed saving lives as one’s glory and responsibility to a heartless being who can bury millions without batting an eyelid without growth. However… this process is quite painful… quite possibly painful beyond your greatest imagination.”

“But you don’t need to go through such a growth.”

“I am certain that both your father and your aunt simply wished to enlighten you to the true face of humanity. I don’t believe they wish for you to ‘grow’ into a cold, heartless being like me. I am sure they would rather that you preserve your goodness and pure heart… forever.”

Hua Caili looked up at him in astonishment, and he said in a mysterious tone, “Growth is the thorns and brambles all mortals must go through whether they like it or not. But you, you merely need to walk up to the tall tower that has already been built for you and look down on the mortals with clearer, unclouded eyes.”

Hua Qingying: “…”

In the sky, Hua Qingying couldn’t help but be astonished yet again. She could hardly believe that this was something a man in his thirties could say.