Against the Gods

Xing Mingzi had died, and just like those Star Guards who had died under Yun Che’s blade, he had died without leaving behind a whole corpse… In fact, his death had been even more miserable than most of the dead Star Guards before him.

But his death and the death of a Star Guard were completely different notions. His death was a huge event that could shake the entire Eastern Divine Region.

Because Xing Mingzi was a genuine Divine Master!

Divine Masters, the powerhouses who had reached the highest echelons of the Primal Chaos Dimension. In a world with no more True Gods, they were considered supreme and exalted divinities, they were existences that had been crowned with the title “World Rulers”.

As strong as the Star God Realm was, besides the unique Star God legacies, there were only thirty-seven Divine Masters in this generation and it would take an average of an entire millennia for a new one to appear.

In an upper star realm, it would take on average ten thousand years or even tens of thousands of years before a Divine Master would appear.

The Divine Master power that they possessed guaranteed that they would be the existences that would find it the hardest to die in this universe. Their ultimate conclusion was basically dying of old age. Even though Xing Mingzi was the least of the Star God Realm’s thirty-seven elders, he was a true and genuine Divine Master. His death was the same as the death of an upper realm king, it was an event that was enough to shake every piece of ground in every corner of the Eastern Divine Region.

Moreover, he had not died at the hands of another king realm or another Divine Master. He had been buried by Yun Che, had died at the hands of a junior who had just become a Divine King, a junior who had not even reached thirty years of age.

Even if he even died within his own Star God Realm, surrounded by all the gathered Star Guards...

Without a shadow of a doubt, if news of this matter were to spread outside, even if the Star God Emperor himself gave a personal recount of these events, it would definitely not be believed by a single person.

However, it was this peerlessly ridiculous and absurd event that had bloodily played out before their very eyes.

“My king… this…” The Star God Great Elder looked to the Star God Emperor but the latter did not respond to his words.

The Star God thirty-seven elders were now reduced to thirty-six people.

They were in the middle of the blood sacrifice ceremony and the ceremony had already started. In order to guarantee the highest success rate, they could not be distracted during the entire process of this ceremony...

But right now, this ceremony which the Star God Emperor himself regarded as incomparably important, the ceremony that they expected would very likely affect the future of the Star God Realm… seemed to have been completely forgotten by all of them.

Their eyes and their thoughts had been entirely filled with that human figure that was covered in blood.

The scattering flames still continued to burn violently and in the blink of an eye, Xing Mingzi’s body had completely burned up and not even a bit of ash remained. It was at this moment that flames on Yun Che’s body and sword finally began to gutter out. In the air above, the Golden Crow Manifest God began to fade out of existence. The Heaven Smiting Sword heavily slammed into the ground: and his body also sank to its knees as his head dipped… and there was no more movement from him.

A very light breeze blew across the area, but it was able to carry away most of the blood stench and malicious energy lingering in the air. That dreadful oppressive might had disappeared, and the only things that were left were an icy-coldness and dread that would sink into their bones for the rest of their lives, a coldness and dread that caused all the Star Guards to shake uncontrollably.

“Is he… dead?”

“……”

Yet another light breeze blew across the area, causing the malicious energy and blood stench to grow even milder. Yun Che still did not move even a single muscle. His right arm was a shattered stump, his entire body was covered in wounds, but no blood pooled below his body… Perhaps all the blood in his body had run dry a long time ago.

“Dead… He’s dead!!” An excited shout rang out in the air but the person’s voice was shaking as they said those words.

It was just that even though they faced a completely motionless Yun Che, a Yun Che whose aura and lifeforce seemed to have completely evaporated, a Yun Che who was very likely already dead, not a single one of these Star Guards made a move to advance towards him, even after a very long time had passed.

“What are you waiting for! Hurry up and finish him off!” Heavenly Origin Star God Tumi said in a deep voice as he looked at these Star Guards who had clearly been scared witless.

If the Star Guards had been so pathetic in any other situation, he would have been thoroughly disappointed with them and he would have felt a deep shame. But right now, however, he did not feel the least bit angry. Because even he and even the Star God Emperor himself felt an uncontrollable feeling of alarm and fear stir in their hearts, much less these Star Guards.

He once again rejoiced. He rejoiced with an incomparable intensity, he rejoiced that Yun Che was still young and full of youthful vigor, so much so that he was willing to stupidly rush to his death for Jasmine’s sake. If not… if not… if he could have endured it just a little longer, in the not too distant future, the Star God Realm would have been struck by a huge and incredibly dreadful catastrophe.

Moreover, if he had these thoughts and was filled with such rejoicing, then would the Star God Emperor and the other Star Gods be any different?

Despite the Heavenly Origin Star God’s orders, the world still remained quiet for several more breaths. Following that, the twelve Star Guards that were in the most advanced position finally rose up together as they rushed towards Yun Che in unison, the profound light on their bodies shone the brightest it could in the shortest amount of time.

Facing this “dead man” who no longer moved and whose aura and lifeforce had completely dissipated, all twelve of these Star Guards unleashed their full power and not a single one of them held back.

Hiw could have only been scared witless by Yun Che!

Yun Che still remained motionless and in the end, that managed to erase the deep and heavy fear and shadow in these Star Guards’ hearts… But, just as the power of these twelve Star Guards came into contact with Yun Che, the head which had sagged downwards for the longest time suddenly jerked up.

A gaze which seemed as solid as fresh blood fiercely pierced into the eyes of all twelve Star Guards. In the blink of an eye, the now easily frightened and already jittery Star Guards all felt as if their souls had flown straight to heaven and the Divine Sovereign power that neared Yun Che no longer pressed down fiercely. Instead, it was being retracted in panic and fear… It was a completely unconscious and involuntary attempt to retract their power.

Yun Che did not rise. Instead, he flung out his left arm as the howl of Heavenly Wolf pierced the sky.

This sword blow did not contain any fire because the Golden Crow divine blood and the Phoenix divine blood had been burned up at the same time, but the might contained within the blow was still peerlessly tyrannical. It forcefully dispersed the power of the twelve Star Guards, a power which had become extremely unstable due to their shock and fear. After that, the aftershock of that attack swept across their bodies, sending them flying into the distance.

All of the Star Guards who were in the back let out strange cries, it was as if they had personally witnessed a slumbering devil god being roused. Most of the Star Guards started to retreat in panic, their legs shaking as they did so.

BANG!

The Heaven Smiting Sword once again smashed into the ground as Yun Che also sank to his knees heavily and went motionless yet again. The twelve Star Guards who had been blasted away got to their feet as they trembled. Once they had regained some of their composure, they realized… that their bodies were entirely whole. The Star Guard Armor they were wearing was not even scratched and they had not sustained any injuries whatsoever!

The miserable states of those Star Guards… including the Star Guard commanders Xing Ling and Xing Lou when they had died were still vivid in their minds. Yet they had actually come out completely unscathed despite being hit by the might of Yun Che’s sword. Once they had recovered from their shock and fear, the wild joy of having survived crazily surged up in their hearts, and the fear and dread that also lay within were now greatly diminished.

“He’s done… He’s already done!” The Star Guards in the middle roared with excitement, “Advance… All of us, advance!”

Yun Che’s state, the fact that the twelve Star Guards had come out unscathed, and those roars had all undoubtedly greatly shaken the heart of every single Star Guard present. With that one command, many Star Guards pushed forward together, as if they could not wait to rip him apart with their bare hands, and avenge themselves and their previous humiliation in one fell swoop.

It was as if he could sense them surging forward as the Yun Che, who knelt on the ground, started to move once again. This time, he did not stand, he only raised the arm that was holding a sword. It was as if he found even handling the Heaven Smiting Sword exceptionally challenging with his remaining strength. His actions were incomparably slow, and it was only when most of the Star Guards had rushed to within three hundred meters of him that he finally raised his arm up and pointed his sword at the blue sky.

Crack!!

A clap of thunder exploded in the clear sky. The shock produced by this clap of thunder very nearly shocked all the Star Guards off their feet. Amidst this heaven-shaking thunderclap, a deep purple lightning bolt, that come out of nowhere, struck the sword in Yun Che’s hand. Following that, it coursed through the body of the sword and entered Yun Che’s body as violent flashes and crackles of lightning appeared around him.

The lightning that had engulfed Yun Che’s sword and body was so bizarrely bright that it colored the entire world a bright purple.

This sudden and bizarre change caused a feeling of unease to abruptly manifest in the hearts of the Star Guards who were drawing nearer to Yun Che. Their bodies also suddenly and fiercely froze as they stared straight at the Heaven Smiting Sword that was slowly falling after being pointed to the sky. The movement was very slow and every angle of its trajectory could be seen with incomparable clarity.

The instant the body of the sword touched the ground, a purple-colored curtain of lightning suddenly spread over the sky before their very eyes. This curtain of light explosively expanded at a speed which did not allow them to react at all, engulfing them within it. The sound of thunder was now belatedly exploding in their ears.

BOOOOM ——————

CRAACK——————

It was as if a thunder god had descended to the earth. Purple light filled the skies, and a purple-colored pillar of light soared to the heavens as it pierced through space and the blue dome of the sky, piercing through a distant and unknown star region.

A gigantic lightning domain had exploded outwards with Yun Che at its center, creating a roiling sea of lightning. Boundless heavenly tribulation lightning was devouring and rending everything amidst furious howls and crackles, mercilessly swallowing up most of the Star Guards who had rushed forward with all their might...

Sizzz——Szzzz——Sizzz————

It was as if Star God City had been struck by an explosive heavenly tribulation and calamity as the roar of thunder shook the heavens. Furthermore, every single strand of electricity, every single bolt of lightning was made up of the true and genuine power of the heavenly law. Within the roiling and seething sea of lightning, space had already become completely distorted as the very earth itself was being shattered, layer by layer. Moreover, the Star Guards who were buried within were being shredded apart. Their protective profound energy was being shredded, their Star Guard Armor was being shredded, their bodies and internal organs were being shredded, until the point where they were completely shredded into countless fragments which were getting tinier and more broken with each passing instant...

No matter whether it was the mournful groaning of the earth and space itself, or the miserable wails the Star Guards let out as they died, all of it was completely swallowed up by the roaring sounds of thunder.

“This… This is...”

“Heavenly law tribulation lightning!!”

Within the barrier, the purple light that filled the heavens was reflected in the eyes of all the Divine Masters, and all of them were so shocked that their spirits were on the brink of collapse.

The memory of the nine stage heavenly lightning smashing down on the Conferred God Stage and creating a world-shocking sea of lightning would definitely never fade from the minds of the people who had witnessed the Conferred God Battle. Moreover, the sea of lightning in front of them was clearly extremely similar to the one in their minds… It was as if Yun Che, with the body of a mortal, had forcefully summoned a heavenly law lightning tribulation!

“He can already… completely control the heavenly law lightning,” The voice of Heavenly Origin Star God Tumi was shaking even more intensely than it had been previously.

The Heavenly Law Lightning Emperor Formation…. The formation of destruction that Yun Che had created after merging the heavenly law tribulation lightning with his Yun Family Purple Cloud Art’s forbidden technique, the “Netherprison Lightning Emperor Formation”. Furthermore, this merging of techniques and powers had only been truly completed a few short days ago in the Forbidden Land of Samsara.

These Star Guards were the first living creatures fortunate enough to die because of this heavenly law lightning formation.

BAAANG————

In the center of the sea of lightning, the Heaven Smiting Sword fell from Yun Che’s powerless hand, heavily dropping onto the ground. Yun Che’s body, which had been kneeling on the ground for a long time, also started to slowly tilt forward before he collapsed onto the cold and icy ground.

Thunder continued to roar and snarl. The sea of lightning continued to seethe and rage, but Yun Che remained completely motionless, the last bit of his aura soundlessly evaporating like the last wisps of smoke or mist.

After an indeterminate amount of time had passed, after space itself had finally stopped trembling, that terrifying sea of lightning finally started to sink down and the purple light which spread to the horizons also started to swiftly fade away.

Szzzz… Sizzz…

The remaining lightning still continued to crackle and roar. But other than the remaining sound of lightning, there was not a single other sound that could be heard in this world… in fact, one could not even hear the sound of breathing or the sound of hearts beating.

Within that gigantic lightning domain, one could not even see a single living spirit or even a corpse, one could only see some remaining lightning… Even the ground which was overlaid with profound stones and strengthened by profound formations had sunk by three feet.

Eight hundred Star Guards had vanished without leaving behind a trace, not even a strand of hair was left.

Far in the back, the remaining Star Guards all seemed like every bit of their souls had been drawn out of their bodies as they dumbly stood in place.

There were only about half of the three thousand Star Guards left and the Star God elder they had left behind to settle matters had also been buried, not even his corpse and bones remained.

This was a nightmare that the Star God Realm would never ever be able to forget.