Against the Gods

Even though it only looked like a small icicle, it was evident from the reaction of Mu Yubai and the rest of them just how precious and powerful this ‘icicle’ was. Mu Feiyan disregarded the reactions of his three sons and he said with a full smile on his face, “This item is called the Frost Crystal of Absolute Heaven, and it is one of the inherited treasures of my Mu Clan. Even though it looks fairly unremarkable, when you encounter a crisis, break it apart. The released energy will instantly congeal into an incomparably hard crystal ice barrier which will persist for six hours. Once you are within that crystal ice barrier, no one should even think about trying to harm you because even if that terrific grandfather of yours was still alive, even he would not be able to break it.”

“There used to be three of these Frost Crystals of Absolute Heaven, but now there is only one left. The other two were used to save two of my predecessors’ lives,” Mu Feiyan said in a rather proud tone.

This item would form into a protective barrier that even a high-level Sovereign would not be able to break apart, and it would even last for six hours… Yun Che’s heart leaped! This was a genuine and proper life-preserving artifact! As long as he had it on his person, it was like having one more life to spare! If this was during a matter of life or death, even if no one came to help, given his current physique, a protective barrier that lasted for six hours was more than sufficient for him to help him recover both his health and his profound energy.

This was truly a treasure that he could not reject!

Mu Yubai practically stammered as he exclaimed, “My venerated Father, this Frost Crystal of Absolute Heaven, didn’t you say that you were… prepared… to give it to my eldest son?!”

But once these words left his mouth, Mu Yubai instantly regretted them… Sure enough, once those words had been spoken, Mu Feiyan’s eyes instantly narrowed as he glared at Mu Yubai, “Oh you still dare to mention the matter of grandsons to me! Where are my damn grandsons?! Where?! The frost wolf that this old man had reared one hundred years ago already has tens of offspring, but you three useless bums haven’t even produced a fart between the three of you in the same amount of time! Causing this old man to lose all face in front of that bunch of old fogeys for one hundred over years! This grandson of mine has now completely restored my dignity, so what objections do you have to me giving him a gift to celebrate our first meeting?!!”

Mu Yuqing and Mu Yukong panickedly threw their hands in the air, “Venerated Father, those words were spoken by Big Brother just now, we didn’t even say anything. In fact giving this Frost Crystal of Absolute Heaven to Elder Sister’s son is simply way too appropriate! Our Venerated Father is truly wise!!”

The corner of Mu Yubai’s eyes violently twitched and he didn’t dare to say anything for a good long while. He knew that his venerated father had so desperately desired a grandson that it drove him into a tizzy just thinking about it, and now that he had that desired grandson, he would definitely spoil him immensely… but the way he spoiled this grandson was simply outrageous. On the very first day, he had brought out all of the good stuff that he had hid in his chest… In comparison, as the eldest son, he practically had no position to speak of.

However, given Yun Che’s illustriousness, the treatment shown to him by his venerated father… was not something that was hard to accept.

Mu Yurou’s pair of phoenix eyes had long ago become a pair of slender crescent moons as her smile covered her face. She was extremely clear on just how precious this Frost Crystal of Absolute Heaven was, and if Mu Feiyan were to give it to her, she would reject him with a fair amount of terror. After all, this was one of the inherited treasures of the Mu Family. But since it was being given to her son and it would give her son yet another life-saving treasure, she did not have any intention of rejecting it at all. Instead, she smiled brightly and said, “Che’er, hurry up and thank your grandfather.”

“Thank you very much, Grandfather!” Naturally Yun Che would not reject it either, so he accepted the Frost Crystal of Absolute Heaven. At the same time, his heart pulsed with gratitude… he knew why Mu Feiyan unhesitantly passed a treasure as valuable as the Frost Crystal of Absolute Heaven to him. Today, he had thoroughly offended Duke Huai and the seven Guardian Families, sowing hatred and also giving them a motive to kill. Given the strength held by Duke Huai, even the Yun and Mu Family together would not be able to guarantee that they would be able protect Yun Che from harm… So this Frost Crystal of Absolute Heaven, could allow Yun Che to survive once he met any danger… An absolute protection for six whole hours, a simple sound transmission relaying his location would allow them to rush to his side and remove the danger.

“Hahaha!” Mu Feiyan guffawed loudly and did not looked pained in the least, “As long as you like it, that’s enough. We are amongst family here, you do not need to thank me.”

“However,” Mu Feiyan’s face grew somber and he said in a rather worried voice, “Che’er, there is something that Grandfather has to say. Today you were brave and you were smart. Your ability and charisma were undeniable. Not only did it revitalize the prestige of the Yun Family, it also handed a crushing defeat to Duke Huai whom even the Little Demon Empress was helpless against. But you pitted yourself against Duke Huai’s factions as well, and you even greatly rebuked and humiliated the Helian Family and the other six Guardian Families. Even though it was neatly done and felt extremely refreshing, it was also something you really shouldn’t have done.”

Once he mentioned today’s events, everyone’s faces grew grave. Mu Feiyan continued, “This man, Duke Huai, is someone who thinks deeply and has astonishing ability. The amount of power he has gathered is huge, far beyond what you have imagined. If not, given that the Little Demon Empress is well aware of his ambitions, why do you think she has never been able to expose him or tried to rush into things indiscriminately? Originally, you could have behaved in a tactful manner today, but instead you have thoroughly angered the other party. Right now, he must hate you from the bottom of his heart and also be filled with murderous intent towards you. Even though he might not go so far as to oppose you openly, he will definitely launch numerous attacks at you from the dark, sigh.”

Mu Yubai nodded his head sagely, “Che’er, your grandfather is right. Even though you covered yourself in greatness today, you attracted a huge amount of danger to yourself as well.”

Yun Che just blandly laughed instead and replied, “A blade hangs over the character of ‘tolerance'. It is only when you can tolerate what common man cannot, that the world can be at peace and that you can become a person above all other people… These are the words that the master who taught me my medical skills said to me often and it also used to be one of the creeds that guided my life. However, in the end, my master was killed by those that he had tolerated and accommodated all his life…."

Mu Feiyan, “...”

Yun Qinghong, “...”

“It was only then that I truly understood that the blade that hangs over the character of ‘tolerance’ was something that would not only cause me pain and suffering, but it might even cost me my life one day. So rather than being restrained by it, I’d rather force it onto my enemies!”

Even though Yun Che smiled, every person could hear from his voice an apathy and bitterness that could only come from one’s soul. They found it hard to believe that these words actually came from the mouth of someone who was merely a young man of twenty-two years. What they found even harder to fathom… was the amount of trials and tribulations that he had to undergo to have the mentality and the success that he had today.

For a period of time, everyone fell silent and not a single word was uttered in retort. Then Yun Che continued, “Duke Huai is extremely difficult to deal with, this is something that I understand. He is wild with ambition and he is definitely the man behind the present decline of our Yun Family. If it had been just the matter of whether he thought to kill me, I wouldn't have had any reason to hold back! On the contrary, he is a person that is exceedingly cautious and these kinds of people are often excessively prudent and prone to overthinking. Today, I have not only completely offended him and the other seven families, but I have even humiliated them for all to see, without even leaving a shred of dignity for them to cling onto. Besides provoking him to kill me, he will also be thinking about whether my attitude is due to ignorant recklessness, whether I am courting my own doom, or whether it is because I have something to rely on… Moreover, he suffered a crushing defeat at my hands today and every attack he launched against me was met with multiple counters from me. In this case, he would naturally eliminate the possibility of it being the former and he would think that the reason for my unbridled behavior is because I have someone strong enough to back me up… And that it is a support so strong, I would not fear his reprisal.”

“Coupled with the ability that I have shown, my profound arts which far surpass what anyone else knows and my ability to sneak into Illusory Demon Realm from Profound Sky Continent without raising a single alarm. This will boundlessly magnify that probability in Duke Huai’s heart and even now, he must suspect that I have an extremely powerful master supporting me, someone who might surpass the boundaries of the mortal world. Because of these misgivings, Duke Huai will not jump the gun, and until he has completely ascertained my entire background, it is unlikely that he will take any action against me.”

Mu Feiyan eyed Yun Che with an extremely astonished gaze. He had clearly only met Duke Huai for the first time today, but he was able to have near-flawless understanding of Duke Huai’s temperament. Duke Huai was indeed someone who was excessively cautious and prudent, so unless he was absolutely certain, he would not make any rash moves. He was filled with ambition and the strength that he gathered had long ago exceeded that of the Little Demon Empress, but he had waited instead of taking action, all for this day… Originally, he had absolute confidence in how today’s events would play out, but in the end he had met Yun Che, and it had ended in utter defeat.

“That was well said!” Mu Yuqing exclaimed, “Truth be told, even this uncle of yours is quite certain that you have an extraordinary saint as a teacher! If not, you wouldn’t be so absurdly strong and you would not be so cocky in front of Duke Huai.”

Yun Qinghong did not speak, he faintly nodded his head instead.

“Che’er’s words are indeed correct.” Mu Yurou said, “Duke Huai will definitely have the same suspicions, so that will restrain him to some extent. Moreover, the majority of the people today will also think the same thing as well. But today, Duke Huai was heavily rebuked by Yun Che and he has definitely never suffered such disgrace in his life before. A cornered beast will do something desperate, I’m just afraid of that… So I think that it is best that we be extremely careful regardless.”

“In regards to this, I am not the least bit worried.” Yun Che said as he smiled instead, “If it was anyone else, there would indeed be a large possibility that the other party might do something out of desperation, but this is Duke Huai we are talking about! If he was easily provoked, he would not have the power he holds today. So let’s just let him merrily bear that blade that hangs above the word ‘tolerance’. From now on, I will not only not hide within the house, I will even swagger about ostentatiously, I have ninety-nine percent confidence… that he will not make a move against me, at least not in the short-term.”

Yun Qinghong nodded his head, “I approve of what Che’er has just said. Given Duke Huai’s temperament, even though he will have an extremely strong urge to kill Che’er, he will not make any moves in the foreseeable future. Moreover, Yun Che now has the Frost Crystal of Absolute Heaven protecting him; even if he is attacked from the shadows and faces mortal danger, he will be able to safely escape his predicament.”

“Yes… I just hope that it is so.” Mu Feiyan brows furrowed slightly as he gave a brief nod of his head.

“I have actually made a terrifying deduction regarding Duke Huai,” Yun Che suddenly said in a serious tone.

“Terrifying deduction?”

Yun Che’s brows sank and his voice dropped to a low whisper, “I suspect that Duke Huai’s ambition was not born only after the previous Demon Emperor and the Little Demon Emperor met an untimely end, but it had been something that had been in the works for a long time, even during the reign of the previous Demon Emperor! Furthermore… it was a scheme hatched together with the Profound Sky Continent!!”

“Ah!!” Yun Che’s words was like a thunderclap that descended from the heavens and it caused Xiao Yun to involuntarily cry out.

“What?!!” The expression of Mu Yubai and his two brothers abruptly changed.

Yun Qinghong stood up swiftly and his arms moved as fast as lightning as he released roiling electricity which surged in the air. In a split second, the surrounding area was covered in an incomparably strong soundproof barrier. Even though they were inside the Mu Family household, and they were even in Mu Feiyan’s own courtyard, but the matter which Yun Che was discussing was far too serious, so these words definitely could not be heard by anyone else.

“Continue!” After he had set up the soundproof barrier, Yun Qinghong looked at Yun Che and said in a low voice.

Yun Che found that even though Yun Qinghong and Mu Feiyan wore grave expressions on their face, they were not overly shocked, so it was clear that they had long ago formed their own suspicions. He inhaled lightly and continued, “There are four reasons for my suspicions.”

“The first reason is that when Profound Sky Continent suddenly invaded Illusory Demon Realm all those years ago, their objective was to steal the Demon Emperor’s family treasure, the Mirror of Samsara! However, before this, Profound Sky Continent and Illusory Demon Realm had no dealings with each other; they merely knew about each other’s existence. So why would they suddenly know about the existence of the Mirror of Samsara? And what was even more strange is this. Even though the Mirror of Samsara was the inherited treasure of the Demon Emperor’s Clan, but no one knew what it could do. Since no one knew what it could do, it has been a ‘useless’ object for the last ten thousand years. Yet the people from Profound Sky Continent spared no expense in trying to steal it away! It’s as if… someone had told the people of the Profound Sky Continent of the existence of the Mirror of Samsara and then deliberately lied or exaggerated what it could do, for the purpose of inflaming their greed and ambition!”

“And this person can only be someone from Illusory Demon Realm!”

“The second reason is that this place is clearly the territory of Illusory Demon Realm, yet the invaders from the Profound Sky Continent could directly storm Demon Imperial City. Moreover, they could come and go as they pleased, even if Demon Imperial City had made abundant preparations, they were still able to escape with no casualties every single time. It was as if they knew the entire Demon Imperial City and even all the plans that had been laid out like the back of their hand! The greatest possibility is that they had a spy within Demon Imperial City!”

“And this spy not only lived in the Demon Imperial City, but was even someone who had an extremely extraordinary status!”

“The third reason. One hundred years ago, my grandfather brought ten grand elders of the Yun Family with him to rescue the previous Demon Emperor… Eleven high-level Sovereigns, this was a force that was sufficient to shake the entire world. Eleven high-level Sovereigns acting in concert, even if they were unable to rescue the previous Demon Emperor, they should still be able to retreat without a loss… Or at the very least, I do not believe that there is any power in this world that can detain eleven high-level Sovereigns acting in concert!”

“However… Grandfather told me that once they had entered Profound Sky Continent, they had immediately been entrapped in the Heaven’s Might Soul Suppressing Formation! And the Heaven’s Might Soul Suppressing Formation, which was powerful enough to seal the profound energy of eleven high-level Sovereigns, would definitely have a staggering rate of energy consumption, even if it was only set up for a single breath! So there was no way that it could have existed there all this while! Instead, they had already known where and when Grandfather and the others would arrive and so they simply set the formation up and idly waited… That is to say, that before Grandfather and the others had even left for Profound Sky Continent, someone used some sort of method to inform those people at what time and which location Grandfather would arrive at.”

“And only a power that is not inferior to that of the Yun Family would be able to know the precise movements of Grandfather and the rest and also be able to send a sound transmission that could cross such a vast amount of distance!!”

“The fourth reason is that the death of the Little Demon Emperor is simply too suspicious and fishy! During today’s grand ceremony, even though I claimed that he was extremely disappointed with the Guardian Families and so he personally left to save the previous Demon Emperor… But in fact, I definitely do not believe that the Little Demon Emperor would do something like losing control due to alcohol and personally rushing into the Profound Sky Continent! Even if he wanted to do so, he would have left behind a heir with the Little Demon Empress first. If not, he would personally destroy his own Demon Emperor’s bloodline! As the son of the Demon Emperor, how could he possibly do such a stupid thing?!”

“The Little Demon Emperor’s death… is very likely due to an assassination!”

Yun Che raised his head and enunciated each word slowly, “And all of this evidence points to only one place… Duke Huai Palace!”

alyschu: A blade (刀) hangs over the character of tolerance (忍).

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