Against the Gods

UNedited chapter - Rubble

While speaking, Shenwu Yi did not forget to observe every fleeting change in Yun Che’s expression and gaze with her moon-like eyes. Yet from start to finish, she could not find a single trace of surprise on his face.

“That is precisely what puzzles me the most.”

Memories of past sorrow well up in his heart. Though long since faded, they still brought him a lingering ache. He softened his voice and said slowly, “Back then, upon learning that another world existed beneath the Abyss of Nothingness, besides fear and unease, I also felt a burst of sudden elation... After all, it meant that you had a chance of survival.

“However... that glimmer of hope was utterly extinguished the moment I plunged into the Abyss myself.

“When I leaped into the Abyss, I was fully prepared and in peak condition. In terms of protective energy, I was slightly superior to you at the time. And in terms of physical strength, I far surpassed you. Even so, the spatial turbulence of the Abyss remained a terrifying nightmare for me; it felt as though my body was being completely torn apart at every moment.

“At that moment, I was forced to recognize with despair that you, gravely wounded and utterly exhausted, could never have survived this spatial turbulence, one that lasted several days and nights no less. You likely wouldn’t even last a hundred breaths.

“After arriving in this world, I tried time and again to search for your name... but it was merely my refusal to accept the truth; a stubborn refusal to let go of my attachment.”

Shenwu Yi listened quietly, never once interrupting him.

“That is why, when I saw you on the Pure Land, you cannot imagine how utterly incredulous and overjoyed I was at the moment.”

A smile spread across his lips, as if he had returned to that unforgettable moment. “I mentioned our marriage contract in the Forbidden Zone of Slumbering Gods, hadn’t I? It occurred to me that, given your condition at the time, the only way you could have safely passed through the abyssal tunnel was if, during your fall, you had somehow completely avoided the spatial turbulence as if you had been blessed by the heavens. If that was the case, then the marriage contract you had hidden in your robes might have survived... perhaps even intact.”

“Heavenly blessing?”

Shenwu Yi finally spoke, though it was a faint, derisive chuckle. “You, a man who is risking everything—even certain death—to defy fate, actually believe in something like ‘heavenly blessing’?”

“I do.”

The two words left Yun Che’s lips without any hesitation whatsoever. His gentle voice carried a resolve bordering on faith as he declared, “I believe even more firmly that this heavenly blessing will always be with you, eternal and unending.”

It felt as though something had lightly seared her eyes, causing Shenwu Yi to unconsciously avert her gaze from Yun Che’s. For a fleeting moment, her thoughts seemed to freeze.

She was extremely calm and self-controlled, and she had never allowed her thoughts to be swayed by anything... Yet, in the world of her memories, she had never once been looked upon in this way, nor had she ever felt such tender affection....

It was too unfamiliar, too indescribable, and even a little unsettling.

“But I don’t believe it,” she replied. “I only believe in myself.”

It was an answer that came as no surprise... Even back when she knew she was the ‘Artifact of Fate’, Xia Qingyue had chosen to submit not to a predetermined fate, but her own choices... Her plunge into the Abyss was a complete break from and a resolute rebellion against the very concept of “fate”.

Yun Che’s toes twitched slightly. He wanted to draw closer to her. In the end, though, he restrained himself. As he had told her, he could think of no other explanation for how Xia Qingyue had survived her fall into the Abyss besides the utterly ephemeral notion of “heavenly blessing”.

Helpless, he could only say, “I know that my words are difficult to believe, and your skepticism is entirely understandable. But I have not exaggerated or deceived you in the slightest....”

“No need to explain. I believe you.”

The cold glint in her eyes slowly faded as she said calmly, “Deceive requires a reason, and carries the risk of being exposed. As shrewd as you are, there is no need for you to fabricate such a useless lie—one that can be easily debunked and is riddled with such glaring holes no less.

“All things considered, it is probably the truth.”

The corners of Yun Che’s mouth turned up slightly as he replied with boundless emotion, “As I thought, you’re still you.”

He knew full well that Shenwu Yi’s response was by no means a sign of trust in him, but rather a testament to her faith in her own intuition and judgment. She was Xia Qingyue, yet possessed no memories belonging to Xia Qingyue. To Shenwu Yi at this moment, he was merely a stranger—one she had only met a handful of times no less.

But it didn’t matter. The fact that she was still alive was already a blessing beyond his wildest dreams, and her choice to fight alongside him had painted the once-gray path ahead of him with colors that could only be described as too beautiful to be true.

“Still, even for you, being forced to become the Eternal Night Divine Daughter... the past twenty-odd years must have been exceptionally difficult for you.”

He voiced the question that had long weighed in his heart. “Speaking of which, I’ve always wondered—where were you during the twenty years before you became the Eternal Night Divine Daughter? Since returning from the Pure Land, I’ve been trying to uncover any information about you from twenty years ago to no avail. There was no trace of you in the Xuanji Hall either.

“Was it concealed by the Lightless Divine Regent, or... were you someplace else?”

Yun Che’s tone gradually shifted. It was because he suddenly noticed that, as he spoke, the corners of Shenwu Yi’s brows were slowly furrowing into a look of deepening astonishment and confusion.

“The twenty years before I became the Eternal Night Divine Daughter? What do you mean?” Her gaze was deep and probing.

Yun Che also furrowed his brow unconsciously and said solemnly, “You leaped into the Abyss four years before I did.

“Given the flow of the Black Tide of Time in the Abyss, four years in our world is equal to forty years in the Abyss. This means that when I arrived, you had already been in this world for forty years.

“Since you became the Eternal Night Divine Daughter twenty years ago, I wanted to know what you were doing... twenty years prior...”

He did not continue, for Shenwu YI’s emotional reaction was completely beyond his expectations... The confusion radiating from her was actually several times more intense than his own.

Her brows were tightly furrowed, and her gaze rippled with a faint light that grew increasingly deep with each of his words. It was like a mist that was blocking the view of a river of stars, hazy and indistinct.

After a long silence, she finally whispered, “The moment I opened my eyes and saw the first light of day in this world, the second I possessed the first thread of consciousness in this life, I was already in the Eternal Night Kingdom of God.

“Moreover, in the very first year after I awoke, I was already bestowed the title of Eternal Night Divine Daughter.

“In my understanding and memories at least, there is simply no such thing as the ‘twenty years prior’ you speak of.”

“... ?” Yun Che froze suddenly, his mind momentarily clouded, and his aura condensing for a few breaths.

Then, he shook his head slowly and declared in an unwavering voice, “Impossible.

“The image of you leaping into the Abyss had appeared in every dream I’ve had since then. No matter what, there is no way I could have misremembered such a simple, obvious span of time. I’ve also confirmed that the time flows ten times faster in the Abyss compared to the Eternal Pure Land due to the Black Tide of Time. This, too, cannot be a mistake.”

At the very least, Yun Xi’s age perfectly aligned with the Black Tide of Time.

“......” Shenwu Yi did not answer. She couldn’t. After all, her own consciousness and memories had truly spanned only twenty years. Her astonishment was no less than Yun Che’s.

In her perception and judgment, he did not appear to be lying or fabricating a story either.

At Eden’s Crown, after learning that Shenwu Yi was actually Xia Qingyue, Yun Che had once quietly voiced a question to Li Suo... Based on what he knew about Shenwu Yi at the time, when she first became the Eternal Night Divine Daughter—that was, twenty years ago—her cultivation level had merely been at the tenth level of the Divine Master Realm.

She had been at the same cultivation level when she fell into the Abyss as well.

At the time, he had been deeply puzzled: given Xia Qingyue’s innate talent and aptitude, just how was it possible that her cultivation had not progressed at all during the twenty years after she fell into the Abyss? Unchanged until the moment she became the Eternal Night Divine Daughter.

He had briefly considered many possibilities... and now, Shenwu Yi was telling him that those twenty years didn’t even exist to her!?

Just... What on earth was going on here??

“Where did the Lightless Divine Regent find you?” Yun Che suddenly asked, a thought striking him.

“In the Endless Fog, but it wasn’t she who had found me,” Shenwu Yi corrected him. “It was actually Shenwu Youluan who had rescued me from the Endless Fog while I was unconscious. At the time, I was unconscious, and the place I was found was deep within the Endless Fog—a place I, with my cultivation level back then, should never have been able to enter.”

The depths of the Endless Fog... was a place only those at the Divine Limit Realm would dare to venture into.

“Shenwu Youluan took pity on me and rescued me from the Endless Fog while I was unconscious. She brought me back to the Eternal Night Kingdom of God and healed my wounds. She had intended to safely send me away once I had recovered and awakened.

“But before I woke up, Shenwu Yanye detected that I possessed the Nine Profound Exquisite Body. Thus, I fell into her hands. She bestowed upon me the name, ‘Shenwu Yi’ and forced me to become her perfect God Bearer. Consequently, she publicly declared that she was the one who saved my life, not Shenwu Youluan.

“Even that marriage contract was something Shenwu Youluan had discovered by chance while saving me. Out of compassion, she had taken the risk of hiding it for me all this time, but under Shenwu Yanye’s overbearing pressure, she was unable to tell me the truth. Though, that did not prevent me from gradually seeing everything with my own eyes.”

Yun Che’s brows furrowed even deeper. He had once ventured briefly into the depths of the Endless Fog, only to retreat in disarray shortly after, never daring to venture inside carelessly again.

How could she have been sleeping there all those years ago?

And those twenty years of her unexplained disappearance—surely she couldn’t have spent them all slumbering in the depths of the Endless Fog, right... ?

The space fell silent once more. Shenwu Yi lifted her gaze from her contemplation and observed Yun Che’s expression. She noted how his face flickered between confusion and bewilderment from time to time while saying, “It would appear that you are no less confused than I am.”

“Confused doesn’t even begin to explain it....” Yun Che’s brow remained furrowed for a long time. The twenty years between Xia Qingyue’s leap into the Abyss and her transformation into Shenwu Yi seemed to have been forcibly erased, leaving not even the slightest trace of her existence behind... This wasn’t just a puzzling mystery; it was a bizarre phenomenon that defied all understanding.

And then there was the question of how she had managed to fall into the Abyss unscathed....

What on earth had happened? Or was there something being concealed....

Shenwu Yi said coolly, “Even the emotions of ordinary mortals are hard to fathom, let alone the secrets of the world involving space and time. Since these are unsolvable mysteries of the past, dwelling on them will only cause unnecessary distress. Perhaps one day, the truth will reveal itself unexpectedly.”

Hearing this, Yun Che decisively cast aside his jumbled thoughts and replied, “You’re right. Compared to how we can safely return to our homeland together, these fleeting matters are utterly insignificant. So, Qing... Wu Yi, what exactly does this ‘Coiling Dragon Seven Profound Crystal’ that does not actually exist signify?”

Shenwu Yi did not answer him directly. Instead, she stared at him with eyes that looked as deep as an unfathomable abyss, asking, “Why don’t you take a guess?”

Yun Che replied, “I think... it has something to do with the ‘Secret Canon’ Shenwu Yanye had screamed out that day she fell into a dream.”

Shenwu Yi tilted her head and looked at him intently. “Although you, possessor of the common-sense-defying ability to command abyssal dust, are the one most capable of seeing through this scheme, I must admit that I am very impressed by the accuracy of your deductions. I believe I am growing more interested in your scheme now.”

She said slowly, “In the Forbidden Zone of Slumbering Gods, you once said that you used underhanded means to make the Heaven Breaker Divine Daughter fall in love for you, all to sow the seeds of discord that will destroy the alliance between Dreamweaver, Heaven Breaker, and Boundless, and turn them against one another.

“At first, I found it absurd and laughable. For even if the enmity was magnified tenfold, it would still amount to nothing more than a broken heart and a betrayal of loyalty. So what if the tie between the three Divine Regents is permanently severed over this? So what if the three Kingdoms of God actually turned against one another? At worst, they would simply sever all diplomatic relations. Could the petty grievances among the younger generation truly spark a national crisis?

“But now, I have reason to believe that your methods are not that shallow.”

“Of course, all of this is merely a prelude and a setup.” Yun Che took a brief moment to gather his thoughts before explaining proactively, “The reason my identity as ‘Meng Jianyuan’ is so flawless is because the Dreamless Divine Regent, Meng Kongchan, firmly believes that I am him. And no matter what happens, he will never harbor the slightest doubt.”

“Oh?” Shenwu Yi’s eyes narrowed in surprise.

Yun Che continued to lay out the facts without reservation, “Simply put, I had exploited the Heart Painter Divine Regent’s extreme concern for his daughter and baited him into sending me to the Dreamweaver Kingdom of God. There, Meng Kongchan personally performed a Falling Dream technique on me to confirm that I harbor no ill will toward Hua Caili. While Meng Kongchan was channeling his soul power into me, and his soul domain was wide open and defenseless, I seized the opportunity to counterattack with a wisp of an ancient devil’s soul and embedded the belief that I am Meng Jianyuan.

“In addition, I have embedded three additional blank spaces that may be imprinted with ‘suggestions’ at any time.”

Every word Yun Che had spoken was nothing short of earth-shattering. Meng Kongchan possessed the strongest divine soul among the six Kingdoms of Gods—this was beyond dispute. To launch a counterattack against his soul and even embed suggestions into his consciousness that could be triggered at any moment... no one would ever believe such a thing even if it was the truth.

A faint ripple stirred in Shenwu Yi’s aura, though she offered neither skepticism nor derision. She said calmly, “Indeed, such a method could not be imagined even in one’s wildest dreams. It is so inconceivable that you could lay out the truth in its entirety, and I doubt that anyone would believe it.

“Since you’re bringing this up specifically—could it be that the core of your plan lies with Meng Kongchan?”

Yun Che did not answer directly, but he did declare with extraordinary certainty, “We do not have enough time for me to explain everything in detail. But I can promise you....

“That the Kingdoms of God will descend into chaos within five years!”

Shenwu Yi’s moon-like eyes narrowed, and her long lashes trembled ever so slightly as if in astonishment, yet also deep in thought.

“There is one more important matter,” Yun Che continued. “I originally intended to use the power of the Owl Butterfly Kingdom of God to destabilize the Eternal Night Kingdom of God. However, since that is now your home and the place where you’re making your plans, I shall alter that course.”

“Use the Owl Butterfly Kingdom of God?” A ripple of astonishment flashed across Shenwu Yi’s eyes. “Out of all the kingdoms, Owl Butterfly is the one most loyal to the Abyssal Monarch and the least inclined to quarrel with outsiders. I am truly curious what could possibly provoke them to—”

Her voice trailed off abruptly, and a chill seeped to sweep across her beautiful eyes. “Could it be... Pan Buwang?”

Yun Che smiled and nodded, savoring their mutual understanding. “That’s right.”

Shenwu Yi’s lips twitched slightly, a subtle expression flitting across her face. “Although I do not know how you intend to bring this about, there is... no need to alter your plans.”

“Huh?” Yun Che was slightly taken aback.

“It is the power of a Kingdom of God after all. If it can be utilized, why let it go to waste? If you truly can provoke a calamity, then I, too, have my own methods... to divert it elsewhere.”

“Very well!” Yun Che didn’t ask for further details; he merely nodded firmly.

Neither of them knew what the other person intended to do, yet they had placed their complete trust in one another... For Yun Che, this was an all-too-natural choice. For Shenwu Yi, she never looked back or hesitated once she had made her choice.

Shenwu Yi turned her gaze toward the barrier behind her.

Fifteen minutes was too short; before they knew it, the moment was drawing near all too quickly.

“Since I have chosen to walk this path to the end with you, I will not simply stand and wait. As for what I intend to do... you will find out soon enough.”

With that, she turned and walked away. For her, retrieving the Coiling Dragon Seven Profound Crystal and making her choice known was good enough. As for the future, she would take it one step at a time.

Even if she died, it would not be in vain.

“Wu Yi!” Yun Che instinctively raised his hand to call her back, but he slowly dropped it, fingertips trembling. His voice gentle and tinged with deep concern, he said, “Shenwu Yanye is far too terrifying and dangerous. Whatever you do, you must ensure your own safety first.”

Shenwu Yi’s footsteps never stopped. She replied darkly, “Madmen are terrifying, but they’re also the easiest people to deal with, aren’t they?

“The world says that becoming the Eternal Night Divine Daughter is a great tragedy. In truth, more often than not, I am immensely grateful that I ended up in the Eternal Night Kingdom of God.”

As her last word fell, her figure passed through the barrier. Her expression also returned to its usual cold detachment—showing neither joy nor sorrow, and untouched by mortal coil.