Against the Gods

“Wait… Wait a moment!”

As he saw Yun Che swiftly close the distance between them, Lu Bubai jerked his head upwards and said in an anxious voice, “I will give this girl from the clan of sinners to your honor and depart. In the future, I, Lu Bubai, will definitely stay away from any location the honorable one is residing in.”

Lu Bubai had lived close to ten millennia and he had weathered countless storms in his life, but he had never once been as panicked and afraid as he was today.

If it was the Yun Che in the past, he would definitely have merrily yelled "are you a bloody master in changing your attitude!?".

Even though he had lost the Hidden Heaven Sword and Beihan Chu, not only had Lu Bubai not entered a frenzied state, he even changed his stance at the fastest possible moment and decided to offer up the “girl from the clan of sinners” instead… One could call him either a coward or a rational person, but it also clearly showed just how great a shock Yun Che’s dreadful strength, a strength which overturned his knowledge and experience and exceeded his imagination time and again, had given him.

But it was a pity… that since Yun Che had already completely fallen out with the Nine Lights Heavenly Palace, he would naturally kill as many of them as he could to reduce their power in the future!

Also, Yun Che had trampled over Beihan Chu and “extorted” the Hidden Heaven Sword to cause trouble for Nanhuang Chanyi… But the moment the white-robed girl appeared, it had caused Yun Che’s attitude towards the Nine Lights Heavenly Palace to dramatically change.

At that point, even when Lu Bubai fearfully raised his hands in surrender, Yun Che’s speed did not dip at all. The black light on his body turned into golden flames and in an instant, the entire gloomy sky turned golden.

There were very few people in the Northern Divine Region who cultivated fire, so Lu Bubai had not come into contact with it very often. However, he had enough experience to recognize that Yun Che’s flames were definitely no ordinary flames.

Before the fiery might emitted by those golden flames exploded or even came close to him, they already caused his soul to feel a painful scorching sensation.

Lu Bubai grew even more shocked, but he no longer held onto any hope. His expression turned fierce and severe once more as killing intent started to radiate from his body yet again. This time, it was even more intense than before. “Yun Che! You have gone too far! Today, it will only end with either your death or mine!”

He no longer retreated. He crossed both his hands and two greenish-black swords appeared in them. He rushed toward Yun Che, a howling storm instantly coalescing into existence inside the Central Ruins Battlefield as the entire world changed color.

Using darkness profound energy as its foundation, the Nine Lights Heavenly Palace focused on cultivating the sword while also cultivating the power of the storm. Since Lu Bubai had already unleashed all of his profound energy as he retreated, the storm of swords that he unleashed instantly engulfed Yun Che’s body.

Bang, bang, bang, bang...

As his swords clashed with Yun Che’s palms, every collision shook the air and stirred the clouds. Lu Bubai was holding two swords in his hands while Yun Che was meeting those naked blades with his bare hands. However, it was Lu Bubai who was being beaten back amidst the howling storm and trembling space. Furthermore, every time there was an energy explosion, the blood vessels on his arms would rupture, spraying blood into the air.

With his face twisting up in pain, Lu Bubai gradually felt the bones in his arms start to fracture and the feeling in his arms were swiftly disappearing as they grew increasingly numb.

“Aaaaah!!” As he gave a loud yell, he found an opportunity to swiftly back away. Nine pitch-black wheel seals suddenly appeared behind him. This was the Nine Lights Power, the strongest move in the Nine Lights Heavenly Palace’s core profound art.

However, before the Nine Lights could form completely, his pupils quickly contracted as Yun Che suddenly drew near and a beam of fiery light flashed past him.

In that instant, all the hairs on his body stood up straight.

BOOOM————

An enormous conflagration of flames that spanned fifty kilometers exploded in the air, drowning out all sight and sound. Lu Bubai desperately tried to escape the sea of flames, his green clothes and the hair on his body having already been incinerated. The flesh on parts of his chest were burned through, exposing scorched and blackened bone.

Wildly struggling to suppress the flames raging on his body, he screamed hoarsely like a fierce ghost, “What are all of you waiting for!? Do all of you want to die!!?”

After a moment of silence, four figures from the east, west, and north soared into the air and rushed toward Yun Che.

The auras that exploded out from their bodies were all at the Divine Sovereign Realm!

The North Ruins Realm’s Northern Chill City Great Elder.

The West Ruins Realm’s great realm king, the West Ruins Divine Sovereign.

The East Ruins Realm’s great realm king and grand elder, the East Ruin Divine Sovereign and Dong Jiukui.

Two level three Divine Sovereigns and two level two Divine Sovereigns.

All of the Divine Sovereigns belonging to the three realms who were present here today attacked Yun Che… It was not because they desired to, it was because they had no choice but to!

If they did not, it would be impossible to imagine what sort of punishment the Nine Lights Heavenly Palace would inflict on them in the future.

Only the Southern Phoenix Divine Country did not make a move.

Because there existed a large amount of high-grade wind-element resources in the Central Ruins Realm, most of the sects in the Five Nether Ruins cultivated wind-element profound arts and that was also the case for the realm king sects. Thus, the powers of the four great Divine Sovereigns easily concentrated and merged together, forcefully suppressing Yun Che’s flames and pressed down on his body, allowing Lu Bubai, who had fled the fiery hell in a sorry state, to catch his breath.

Lu Bubai did his best to suppress his wounds as he let out a furious roar, “Southern Phoenix! If you still choose not to act… the Nine Lights Heavenly Palace will definitely slaughter your entire clan in the future!”

“...” The bodies of everyone belonging to the Southern Phoenix tensed up and cold sweat slicked their backs… Lu Bubai was roaring at them from above, but Qianye Ying’er, who had killed Beihan Chu and his father in mere instants, was standing beside them. They did not dare to move a single muscle. In fact, they did not even dare to make a single sound.

Today, two great Divine Sovereigns from the Southern Phoenix were present; the first was the Southern Phoenix Divine Sovereign himself, and the second was Nanhuang Mofeng.

“No one is to attack,” Nanhuang Chanyi said.

“Everybody retreat!” The Southern Phoenix Divine Sovereign’s own orders followed tightly after Nanhuang Chanyi’s orders.

As Lu Bubai saw the Southern Phoenix swiftly withdraw instead of attacking, he yelled in anger. After that, he looked toward the four great Divine Sovereigns who had been suppressing Yun Che for a short period of time. His eyes flashed but he did not join the battle formation. Instead, he abruptly changed direction and started to crazily flee into the distance. He even let out a hoarse yell as he fled, “Hold him back with all of your strength!!”

But...

Pfffboom!!

The storm of darkness that had been conjured up by the combined might of the four great Divine Sovereigns was violently ripped apart by the flames. The four Divine Sovereigns shot through the air as if hit by a heavenly hammer. They let out howls of misery as arrows of blood fiercely sprayed out from their mouths.

It was only when they had personally faced Yun Che that they truly understood just how dreadful his power was and why even someone like Lu Bubai would be so shocked and terrified by him.

Their combined might, the combined might of four Divine Sovereigns, two of whom were the great realm kings of the East Ruins Realm and West Ruins Realm respectively, was actually so insignificant and weak in front of Yun Che.

It was utterly ridiculous that they had actually viewed this level five Divine King with such scorn and disdain, and they had even tried to find fault with him and criticize… How utterly farcical.

What was even more ridiculous was that such a frightening person had actually come to participate in the Central Ruins Battle!?

Just what was he up to!?

Yun Che’s gaze flickered in Lu Bubai’s direction as the corner of his lips curved up slightly.

You want… to run?

The Golden Crow flames in his hands turned into heavenly law tribulation lightning. The boundless purple light resembled divine chains of heavenly law as the lightning shot toward Lu Bubai and the four Divine Sovereigns he had blasted aside in a single instant.

Lu Bubai had started to run quickly enough, but how could he possibly outrun the heavenly law tribulation lightning. He sensed danger suddenly drawing near, but before he could even turn his head, the heavenly law tribulation lightning had snaked around him like a python, firmly entwining him in its grasp.

It had just been fire, and now it was lightning… Lu Bubai did not even have the ability to be shocked any longer and he struggled to break free with all his might. But no matter how he struggled, he could not break free of the lightning python that twined around his body as he was dragged back toward Yun Che at an even faster speed than he had fled.

“Southern Phoenix!” Lu Bubai let out a great roar. But this time, there was clearly a plea for help contained within that demand.

But the two Divine Sovereigns belonging to the Southern Phoenix turned a deaf ear to him as they continued to retreat.

However, a Divine Sovereign was still a Divine Sovereign in the end. Even though Yun Che had been able to completely suppress the five great Divine Sovereigns by himself, it would definitely be no easy feat to kill them off.

If he focused all his power to kill one of them, he would surely give the other four ample opportunity to flee.

However, that was the case for normal situations and normal people.

And since when had Yun Che ever dwelled within the realms of logic and common sense?

He waved both his arms and the five great Divine Sovereigns were violently flung downwards by those chains of lightning.

Yun Che did not pursue them. Instead, he stood proudly in the air as the profound energy radiating from his body abruptly swelled.

“Hell… Monarch!”

Bloody light exploded from Yun Che’s body and his crimson-black profound energy turned into a dense bloody color. It was as though he had transformed into a bloody and fiendish devil god who had just emerged from a blood pool in Purgatory.

What accompanied that bloody profound light was a dreadful oppressive might that caused everyone’s expression to change again, an oppressive might which made them feel as if a devil god had descended in this place.

“Aaaaaaaaaaahhhhhh!” Lu Bubai and the other Divine Sovereigns who were hurtling downwards let out heart-rending wails.

Even though the Yun Che before had been frighteningly strong, he had not been so strong that it plunged them into the depths of despair. But at this moment… he clearly radiated the aura of death.

More than ninety percent of the profound practitioners present in the Central Ruins Battlefield were flattened to the ground by the oppressive might that descended from the sky. They were not able to stand up and their minds were filled with nothing but shock and fear.

“You’er.”

After he softly called that name, the pitch-black Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor sword appeared in his hand. Within the devil pearl, You’er, who had been sleeping for a long time, opened her four-colored eyes.

You’er and Hong’er shared the Heaven Smiting Sword, causing it to undergo a bizarre change. At that time, no matter whether it was the Heaven Smiting Devil Slayer Sword which used Hong’er as the dominant soul, or the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor Sword which used You’er as the dominant soul, he was unable to control either one of the swords.

However, after his profound strength had grown from the first level of the Divine King Realm to the fifth, he could finally forcefully control it if he opened the Hell Monarch gate… but he could only swing it about it five times.

This was You’er’s first battle, the first time that the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor Sword would display its might in the Northern Divine Region… and its might would be bestowed upon these Divine Sovereigns who had chosen to throw themselves into hell!

He raised both hands in the air, pointing his sword towards the heavens. In that moment, the skies instantly darkened and all light disappeared.

“Fallen… Heavenly… Wolf!!”

His voice sounded like a devilish chant and the Devil Emperor sword slowly descended along with the sky which had already been transformed into a devilish abyss of darkness, swallowing up the five great Divine Sovereigns… and everything beneath them in an instant.

Fallen Heavenly Wolf was the first move Yun Che had created after arriving in the Northern Divine Region. It was a technique that combined the Heretic God’s first technique, Falling Moon Sinking Star, and the technique from the Heavenly Wolf’s First Sword Style, Heavenly Wolf Slash.

Falling Moon Sinking Star was a move that the Heretic God and Jie Yuan had created together, while the Heavenly Wolf Slash was one of the Heavenly Wolf divine techniques recorded in the Heavenly Wolf Hell God’s Tome. Their final form had been the result of tens of thousands of years of painstaking effort and the level of these moves was so high that they were unmatched in the present age.

Yet Yun Che, who no longer had any attachments in his heart and only desired power for the sake of vengeance, had created this bizarre fusion in the short span of one month, creating a destructive power that far outstripped the power of the Falling Moon Sinking Star and Heavenly Wolf Slash.

Lu Bubai, the East Ruins Divine Sovereign, the West Ruins Divine Sovereign, the Northern Chill Great Elder, Dong Jiukui… In that instant, they could no longer hear any sound, see any light, or let out any more yells.

The only thing they could see was an enormous devilish wolf of darkness rushing towards them and swallowing them up in an eternal abyss of darkness.

BUZZZ————

The mouths of everyone in the Southern Phoenix’s battle formation gaped open, but they could not make a single sound. Profound energy crazily surged in all of their bodies to protect them, but their sense of hearing had been completely cut off. They could not hear anything and they could only see a swath of utter darkness in front of them.

This lasted for… an indeterminate amount of time, until the darkness finally dissipated.

The members of the Southern Phoenix loosened the hands which covered their heads protectively as they opened their eyes… When they looked at the world in front of them, all of them were frozen in place, as if their souls had flown out of their bodies.

The Central Ruins Battlefield had disappeared.

The five great Divine Sovereigns had also disappeared. They had vanished into thin air. No one from the Southern Phoenix could sense their auras and not even a single trace of them remained.

The East Ruin’s battle formation, the West Ruin’s battle formation, the Northern Chill’s battle formation… and the near ten million profound practitioners who had been in the audience, all of them had disappeared.

The entire Central Ruins Battlefield, that incomparably huge piece of land, had disappeared… Only pitch-black darkness remained, a boundless abyss that even their divine way empowered eyesight could not penetrate.

And… the small piece of land where the Southern Phoenix’s battle formation was standing.

“Ah… urk… Ssss…”

Sounds that did not sound human spilled from the throat of every survivor. They slowly lifted up their heads to look to the sky… A black-haired human clad in all black was silently floating there. There was no joy or sorrow on his face, only a cold indifference which caused one’s heart to shake in fear.

This time, Yun Che had listened to Qianye Ying’er and he had indeed been very thorough.

Besides the one hundred people who made up the Southern Phoenix’s battle formation, everyone else present had been killed!

He, someone who had never been willing to slaughter innocents in the past, had left behind a blood debt of ten million today without even blinking an eye.

Just to ensure that he would not leave behind any trouble for the future.