Against the Gods

The storm brought forth by Yun Che’s frightening speed tore apart the trees below.

He had weathered countless dangerous and stormy situations and was always able to regain his composure within moments but this time around it was different. His heart was an utter mess and no matter how he tried, it couldn’t be stilled.

It was as if his soul was being tightly locked onto by an unknown entity as it trembled in a cycle of never ending pain.

Following the traces left, he continued eastward. Eventually, an aura belonging to a human appeared within his spirit perception and it wasn’t just one person. Yun Che focused, then expanded his spirit sense to its limit and found seventeen strong auras no more than five kilometers ahead of him

Including an additional weaker aura belonging to that of a wood spirit.

He Lin!?

Going at a pace which had still yet to slow, Yun Che concealed his presence as he descended into the jungle, gradually approaching the auras up front. Upon reaching the vicinity, Hidden Flowing Lightning had already been mobilized and not a single person detected him.

All seventeen of them were in black robes. A black serpent’s emblem could be seen at different but conspicuous spots on each of their clothing. Among these individuals, sixteen of them had auras at the Divine Soul Realm, while the one right at the front was in the Divine Tribulation Realm. However, the man in front should have just stepped into the Divine Tribulation Realm not too long ago; the strength of his aura was slightly inferior to the middle aged person in black that Yun Che had heavily injured the night before.

Yun Che’s eyes locked onto an individual right in the center of the group… he was tightly restraining a wood spirit boy within his grasp.

He Lin!

He Lin’s profound strength hadn’t been sealed and his body showed no signs of obvious wounds or injuries but in the hands of his captor, he was immobilized. Both of his eyes were open but they were missing that distinct green brilliance. Rather, they looked like an unseeing pair of grayish-white eyes belonging to the dead.

Instead of looking like someone who was alive, he looked more like an empty shell drained of its soul.

“He Lin…” Yun Che said in a low voice.

Ascertaining that He Lin wasn’t dead, Yun Che let out a sigh of relief but his heart became even heavier when he saw He Lin’s lifeless eyes.

“Hahaha.” Wild laughter roared from the black robed man who was holding onto He Lin. “Never would I have expected such a big and pleasant surprise. Hehe, not only will the Hall Master not erupt in wrath, he’ll definitely reward us generously.”

“It’s just a pity that that bunch of wood spirits were so goddamn stubborn, not hesitating to self-destruct their spirit orbs. There were so many of them yet we only obtained a few Wood Spirit Orbs.”

“Frankly, this is probably one of the biggest harvests we’ve had in all these years. Since a long time back, it’s as if these wood spirits came to an agreement. As soon as any of them fall into our hands, they immediately self-destruct their Wood Spirit Orbs. Hehe, as for this little wood spirit kid, boss… what is his background? Why did we have to capture him alive? Even the hall master flew into a rage because of him.”

The black robed man in the lead glanced backward coldly replying, “Some questions are best left unanswered. Just watch over him, if he escapes once more, let alone us, even hall master’s head will roll!”

This sudden turn in the conversation left everyone in shock. He Lin’s captor tightened his grip and exclaimed “This… What’s this all about? Are you saying that this wood spirit kid is something the sect master wants?”

“Hmph!” exclaimed their leader. “I’m afraid the situation is even more dire. When Sect Master brought away the individual that was injured at the Black Feather Merchant Guild, I vaguely heard a mention of the ‘Divine Martial Realm’.”

‘What!? Divine… Martial Realm!?”

“Shut up!” their leader gruffly shouted. “It’s enough as long as you understand in your hearts. Don’t talk about it and no more questions. If you don’t want to die, stay vigilant. Once we meet up with the hall master we’ll have to immediately return to the sect and hand this kid over to the Sect Master. There can be no slip ups. If we lose this kid, I can guarantee that none of us will be able to keep our lives.”

“Yes, boss!” everyone shouted in harried unison. He Lin’s captor looked at their leader. “Boss, you can relax. In all of the Darkya Realm, no one has either the ability or gall to dare….”

BOOM!!!

Before he could even finish speaking, a shadow appeared in midair just six meters away. Amidst the thunderous explosion of profound strength, that shadow flashed towards him like a streak of light.

Everything happened in an instant. Without realizing it, He Lin’s captor’s arms suddenly felt lighter.

Yun Che had snatched He Lin but didn’t try to escape. He broke out of the group and then stopped. Turning around, the previously stealthed Yun Che now released uproarious waves of profound energy that emanated from his body as if he were a murderous beast that had just awoken. Madness was in his eyes. His left arm held onto He Lin protectively while his right tightly gripped the Heaven Smiting Sword. The sword was covered in layers of profound energy, undulating an extremely shocking fiendish aura.

This sudden turn of events drained the color from the faces of the men in black. They were rooted to the ground in fear and before they could even utter half word, Yun Che’s profound strength surged explosively as he immediately opened the fourth gate—Rumbling Heaven. He sent his crimson colored profound energy toward these black clothed men who had slaughtered the wood spirits.

He could easily deal with these Divine Soul Realm experts by opening the Purgatory gate; there was simply no need for him to activate Rumbling Heaven. This release however, didn’t just contain profound energy, it contained all of his rage and fury. He was boiling with anger and it was time to vent!

Bang!!

Even though he was just utilizing a single hand, the might of the Heaven Smiting Sword under the power of Rumbling Heaven was still the stuff of nightmares.

BAM!

The sword struck like thunder. Before he could even catch a clear glimpse of his target, Yun Che had already obliterated the one closest to him.

BOOM!!

Yun Che flipped the sword, sending a bright flame quaking through the air toward the three leftmost men ahead. They were instantly smashed into pulp as blood and limbs rained down around the group. A putrid stench of blood then quickly filled the air.

The remaining men in black were so frightened that they felt as if their souls had left their bodies. They realized that in less than half a breath of time, Yun Che had seized the wood spirit and killed four of them in two swings of the sword.

Like a ghost, he came out of nowhere and without a word, ruthlessly made his move. They had never in all their lives experienced such a horrifying event.

“You…”

As a frightened shout barely began to leave his mouth, the vicious Heaven Smiting Sword which smelled of blood once again struck down towards one of them. The pupils of the black robed man enlarged as he raised his weapon in defense with the fastest speed he had ever achieved in his entire life…

BANG!!

The black soul spear instantly split in half and the Heaven Smiting Sword continued past it, ruthlessly piercing into the black robed man’s chest. This mighty Divine Soul Realm expert was nothing more than mere tofu in front the might of the Heavenly Smiting Sword. He instantly turned into a mist of blood and flesh.

Yun Che’s figure once again disappeared. He flashed behind another black robed man. Before that man even had a chance to turn around, his severed upper body was already falling from his waist.

Bang!!

Bang!!

Boom——

Moon Splitting Cascade activated, the Heaven Smiting Sword dancing in his hand, Yun Che was like an unstoppable, bloodthirsty devil. Each time he swung his sword, a thunderous explosion would shake the sky followed by a rain of blood. Not a sliver of hesitation or restraint could be seen. He channelled his abilities to their limits, which were far beyond what any ordinary Divine Soul expert could withstand.

As his ninth strike landed, sixteen black robed men had already been turned into puddles of blood and minced flesh. Not to mention an intact corpse, there weren’t even any recognizable human parts left behind. These men didn’t even have time to scream before their deaths.

Only four breaths of time had passed.

The pupils of the leader shrank, his body shaking like a sieve.

Just moments before they were so full of themselves, patting themselves on the back for a job well done. They didn’t only successfully complete their mission, they had also chanced upon a large windfall.

However in the blink of an eye, they suddenly fell from the heavens, straight into hell. The men behind him had all died without intact corpses. These men were all in the late stages of the Divine Soul Realm and were considered to be among the strongest in the Darkya Realm but in front of this monster, they were nothing but sixteen pitiful bugs that were easily squashed into bits.

When Yun Che’s gaze finally landed on him, he shuddered all over. His face turned completely white. This opponent’s profound energy was clearly at only the second level of the Divine Soul Realm, weaker than him by an entire great realm but he was near instantly scared witless beneath his stare and aura.

Using one hand and killing sixteen of his men within a few breaths… Even if he were an idiot, he wasn’t so naïve as to think that he could defeat this monster who was in the early stages of the Divine Soul Realm.

“Who… Who… Who are you?” The leader of these men slowly stepped back as he cried out in the most frightened voice of his entire life... Almost immediately, he suddenly recalled the description sent out of the perpetrator responsible for the incident of seizing the wood spirit the night before.

He screamed, “You’re Ling Yun!”

Yun Che wasn’t the least bit surprised when he heard the name Ling Yun being shouted out. Thick and raging anger still roiled in Yun Che’s chest as he wordlessly sent his sword out.

“Ahhh!”

Fear was plastered all over the face of the black robed man. Without any reservations he channelled all his profound energy and lifted his black soul spear. Pitch-black lightning surrounded it as he attempted to block the attack with all his might.

Clang!!

If Yun Che was only utilizing the Purgatory state, he probably could have just barely blocked it but under the might of Rumbling Heaven, even though it was a single handed strike, it was something the black robed man couldn’t handle. The sound of the clash rang out, followed by the sound of the black soul spear breaking. The black robed leader screamed as he was ruthlessly sent flying. He fell and rolled on the ground, completing dozens of revolutions, before finally coming to a stop.

Pfft...

The black leader spat out a few mouthfuls of blood. He desperately turned over and with a terrified and trembling voice, uttered, “Wait… Wait… We’re from the Black Soul Divine Sect. If…. If you offend us, you won’t have a good ending! And… and! Not only do we know that your name is Ling Yun, we also know that you come from the Pure Moon Realm! If… If you let me off and hand that little wood spirit to our sect leader… sect leader… sect leader will not only let this go, he’ll even give you a reward!”

The Black Feather Merchant Guild was an organization that dealt in the shadows and black market. Their information network was far reaching and both tightly controlled and secretive. When this man shouted the name “Ling Yun”, his face remained expressionless. If he had shouted the Flame God Realm, he wouldn’t have been surprised either...

However, what he shouted was... “Pure Moon Realm”?

Yun Che stayed silent. With the motionless He Lin in one hand and the other dragging along the Heaven Smiting Sword, he walked forward step by step.

Every step Yun Che took forward made the black robed man feel as if he was edging one step closer to death. He struggled to get on his feet as he said in horror, “Don’t… Don’t come any closer! Our Soul Sect has… has the protection of the Divine Martial Realm. Offending the Soul Sect is the same as offending the Divine Martial Realm! When… When that time comes, there’s no turning back. Even your star realm won’t be able to protect you… If… If… you stop right now, there’s still a cha…. Arrgghhhh!”

BOOM!!

Phoenix flames shot out from the body of the sword, tossing the black robed man into the air. Yun Che flashed and immediately pierced the Heaven Smiting Sword, which was now radiating a thick bloodthirsty aura, right through this man who was completely covered in flames.

Bang!

Sword energy exploded with a loud bang. The black robed leader’s body was entirely shattered and his splattered blood stretched across a few kilometers.

These cold blooded murderers who were responsible for the massacre of the wood spirits were now reduced to blood and ashes.

Phew...

As the crimson profound energy dissipated, Yun Che shook himself from side to side. He had forcefully entered into this state for a bit too long and finally managed to suppress the bloodlust in his body. He put He Lin down and placed both of his hands on He Lin’s shoulders, looking him in the eyes. “He Lin… Are you injured?”

He Lin shook his head. He was neither excited nor teary. There were even no visible injuries on him but his eyes held an emptiness within. A short moment later, he gave a faint smile and said “I’m fine. Thank you, Big Brother Yun Che, you’ve saved my life once again.”

“…” Yun Che looked blankly at He Lin. After saving him, he had expected He Lin to be distraught, to be filled with anguish and hurt. He expected him to cry his guts out, releasing all the sadness and pain. He was even prepared for him to pass out. However, not only did He Lin not shed a single tear, he could still smile and even thank him.

Yun Che tightened his grip on He Lin’s shoulders as a strong sense of unease filled him. “He Lin… I’m sorry… because of me your clansmen… if I didn’t…”

He Lin gently shook his head, “No, this is not Big Brother Yun Che’s fault. You’re my benefactor. You’re my savior and also the best person I’ve ever met.”

Yun Che was speechless.

He Lin turned around and looked into the distance... the secret place where the wood spirits resided.

“Big Brother Yun Che, can you please take me home one more time? I… would like to give them a proper burial.”

“...Alright.” Yun Che nodded his head somberly. He carried He Lin and started to fly westwards.

Although danger could descend at any time after killing these seventeen Soul Sect members, causing the situation to become even more dangerous to the point where he should have immediately left, he was unable to say no to He Lin.