Against the Gods

“I was just worried that Duke Ming and Duke Huai had gotten to you already," Yun Che said with an innocent face.

The Little Demon Empress said angrily, “If you already knew it was Duke Ming… why did you still barge in! With your ability, not to mention Duke Ming, even in front of Duke Huai, you are no different than an ant… Do you really not cherish your own life one bit?!”

“...” If Yun Che was yelled at like this normally, he would have already returned it several times harder already, but at this moment, he couldn’t get angry at all. Each one of the Little Demon Empress’ words was filled with hatred, but none of that hatred was against him. Inside the Little Demon Empress’ voice that was yelling at him, what he heard more was unwillingness and self-blame.

“If you die today because of me… after I die, how will I still have the face to see the Demon King… ugh!!” the Little Demon Empress said as her body violently shook, and she spat out another large mouthful of blood, her already pale face becoming even paler. She clutched her chest, and her body slowly swayed, almost falling.

At this moment, she was like a young, weak girl who was seriously ill and on the verge of dying. Even her eyes, that were normally cold as an ice lake, that people couldn’t dare to even look into directly, had already darkened, continuously revealing a sense of absent-mindedness… Anyone seeing her at this moment couldn’t feel the majestic-feeling that belonged to the Little Demon Empress; they could only be deeply sympathetic.

“Are… are you okay?” Yun Che stepped forward a little in a probing manner, and asked worriedly.

“Her lifeline has been cut, she doesn’t have much longer to live,” Jasmine said softly.

“What!?” Yun Che was shocked in his heart, “How is that possible! She only suffered an attack from Duke Ming… Even though Duke Ming is strong, the Little Demon Empress also has mid-stage Monarch’s profound strength, how could it be possible…”

“Hmph, what did you think?” Jasmine scoffed in disdain, “When you reach the Sovereign Profound Realm, a small realm would mean all the difference in the world. That Duke Ming is an entire half a large realm stronger than the Little Demon Empress! On top of that, that Duke Ming’s attack was harsh, and even if that strike wasn’t a hundred percent of his strength, it was at least ninety percent! Also, the Little Demon Empress placed herself in front of you in a rush; not only did she not have the chance to defend with all of her strength, it hit her vitals… forget about being able to breathe and live for a little more, even if she died on the spot, it wouldn’t be strange!”

“...” Yun Che clenched his fists tightly, his heart and soul trembled uncontrollably.

Duke Ming’s ability was so terrifying to this extent. Even the powerful Little Demon Empress was seriously injured like this in one strike… Even the Little Demon Empress was like this, if it wasn’t for the Little Demon Empress taking the hit from Duke Ming, he would have already died!

Whoosh… Yun Che’s heart was twitching violently, somewhere deep inside his heart and soul, it was even touched harshly, and couldn’t stop under the violent trembling… Why block that strike for me… Yeah, you didn’t know that the one thing I, Yun Che, couldn’t stand in my whole life, is owing my life to a woman…

Because that was how Ling’er died in my arms… my promise to her, and my promise to my own soul…

If the Little Demon Empress died, and I was able to escape by myself in the end, then, in my heart and soul, there would be another layer of chains that I could never resolve in this lifetime… How would I be able to face Ling’er…

“What are you preparing to do after this? Wait for your death?”

“...I never knew what ‘waiting for my death’ meant.” Yun Che said with gritted teeth, “My Great Way of the Buddha is at the fourth stage… If we can escape from here, even if her lifeline has already been cut off, if she could hold on for ten days, I am sixty percent certain that I can save her life!”

“Yun Che, I ask you!” The Little Demon Empress suddenly spoken up. Her voice was already very weakened, but she still tried her best to support her deep vocal tone and the prestige of the Little Demon Empress, “Back then, when the Demon King and the Yun Family’s ten seniors died in Profound Sky Continent, was it also because of what Duke Ming had done?!”

“Yes." Yun Che nodded in reply, “Back then, when my grandfather and the others left, the location of where the spatial tunnel pointed to and the timing of their arrival, were all clearly taught to the Profound Sky Continent’s side… As soon as they arrived in Profound Sky Continent, they directly fell into the Heaven’s Might Soul Suppressing Formation that was prepared beforehand… Or else, with the strength of my grandfather and the ten seniors of the Yun Family, how could they have all been completely annihilated?”

The Little Demon Empress’ body was releasing an extremely deep hatred, “What else did Mighty Heavenly Sword Region tell you? What else did Duke Ming do!”

“This…” Yun Che took a breath, and said, “All those things about Duke Ming weren’t actually heard from Mighty Heavenly Sword Region.”

“...Then how did you find out?” The Little Demon Empress locked her eyebrows.

“It was a guess… and these guesses have all become reality,” Yun Che sighed and said.

“Three months ago, when I first came to Illusory Demon Realm, based on: what I had seen and heard, the situation of Demon Imperial City, the reason and process of how Profound Sky Continent invaded, the illogical actions of the Little Demon Emperor, combined with everything my grandfather had told me about how once he entered the Profound Sky Continent, he walked into a trap, I logically thought that there must have been someone colluding with the Profound Sky Continent within Demon Imperial City, and it was most likely Duke Huai Palace.”

“After I told this to my father and grandfather, Father brought up that if these were all true, then Duke Huai Palace’s ambition didn’t grow after the previous Demon Emperor was killed, but before… and then, Father mentioned the name ‘Duke Ming.’ After thinning it out, everything suspicious pointed to him… When Illusory Demon Realm was in commotion all these years, and he had completely disappeared for all this time, it already made that an enormous suspicious point. And the truth was as so! Duke Huai’s ambition and some of his actions were only for show. The real conspiracy was ten thousand times scarier than what the people of Demon Imperial City had seen.”

What Demon Imperial City’s citizens had seen was that after the Demon Emperor’s bloodline was cut off by Profound Sky Continent, the Little Demon Empress, as a woman, was unable to awaken her bloodline, and there couldn’t be any more successors. As a result, Duke Huai emerged with his ambitions, pulled forces to his side, and wanted to replace her. Even though the nature of it was conspiring a treacherous act, in the eyes of the people, it didn’t count as something that “angered both human and god,” many strong practitioners had even agreed to Duke Huai’s actions ——The Demon Emperor’s bloodline had gone extinct, with only the Little Demon Empress left. For another clan to become the emperor was something that would happen sooner or later. Duke Huai had enough ambition and ability, and even enough forces. If he became emperor, it would be more acceptable than a woman being the emperor.

After the Little Demon Empress abdicates from the throne, the only force qualified to control Illusory Demon Realm would only be Duke Huai Palace… So Duke Huai’s actions, from another angle, was only an act with undue haste.

It was also because of this that more than half the Guardian Families and Duke Palaces which had been loyal to the Demon Emperor’s clan for ten thousand of years favored Duke Huai.

But the truth was that Duke Huai Palace colluded with an outer force and murdered the Demon Emperor, murdered the Little Demon Emperor, cut off the united Illusory Demon Realm, and the Demon Emperor’s clan that had let the world be peaceful for ten thousand years! This was an action that was devoid of humanity, troubled the world, and angered both human and god!

If the truth were known by the world, then, even if the Guardian Families and Duke Palaces had ten thousand guts, they wouldn’t dare to fall on Duke Huai Palace’s side.

Duke Huai Palace, would become the target of public criticism, the enemy of everyone under heaven, being despised and punished by everyone.

But now, even if the Little Demon Empress and Yun Che knew the horrible truth, and even if they escaped from Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley today, they couldn’t expose the truth to the world. Because Duke Ming’s measurements were incredibly brilliant, a series of conspiracy and murder didn’t leave a trace of mark. The Demon Emperor died in Profound Sky Continent, the Little Demon Emperor died in Profound Sky Continent, and the Demon King also died in Profound Sky Continent… Every single thing, all pointed to the Profound Sky Continent, and none of them pointed towards Duke Ming.

If the truth were exposed to the world like this now, they would instead be incriminated by Duke Huai Palace.

Duke Ming, was truly an extremely horrifying person.

If it weren’t for Yun Che meeting Yun Canghai under the coincidence of fate and the arrangement of the heavens, and found out about his grandfather being plotted against as he stepped into Profound Sky Continent, then until now, perhaps they wouldn’t have known the whole truth… and they would still have ignored this “Duke Ming” person’s existence.

The Little Demon Empress gazed at Yun Che as a peculiar light shone from deep within her eyes, “Then how did you know that Duke Ming, who was behind all of this, would appear here? Did you also guess that?”

“Mn, I guessed it.” Yun Che raised his head, “When you were at your best state, you suddenly cut the Grand Ceremony short after receiving the Demon Emperor’s Seal. The most reasonable explanation that I could think of was that after you received the Demon Emperor’s Seal, you would awaken your bloodline at the first moment. Subsequently, I thought that you might have had a way to force open Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley’s seal, so I was worried that if Duke Huai Palace’s people also knew, and they would seize this extremely good chance of killing you.

I told all of this to my father and grandfather, but they weren’t worried, because even if this all became true, once you entered the Golden Crow’s Ancestral Land, even if Duke Ming attacked you personally, they couldn’t harm you… but I wasn’t able to relieve myself from the guesses and worries, so I came to Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley to confirm for myself. At the entrance, I didn’t see the seal, but I saw Hui Ran from Duke Huai Palace, so I knew that all of my worries had became true!”

“I confirmed from Hui Ran that Duke Huai and the Duke Ming that my father had spoken of had both entered Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley, and at the same time, I found out that even if you entered the Golden Crow’s Ancestral Land, you were doomed to not be able to awaken your bloodline… Today’s actions were only giving Duke Huai Palace a chance to kill you. Thus, I couldn’t wait for Father and the others to arrive, and came in here myself first.”

Yun Che lied a little bit, because he couldn’t say that he found out that the Little Demon Empress wouldn’t be able to awaken her bloodline from Jasmine.

“I didn’t know that your father was stabbed in the back by Duke Ming before. As for the Little Demon Emperor getting schemed upon by Duke Ming, I only thought of that after I entered Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley.” Yun Che said with a steady face, “You were able to force yourself into Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley. My father and grandfather didn’t know about it, and so it means that it is a secret of the Demon Emperor’s clan, but Duke Ming was very clear about it. Even you didn’t know that women could not bear the Golden Crow’s ancestral blood, but Duke Ming obviously knew.”

“The people in the world that knew your Demon Emperor’s clan’s secret better than you are possibly only the previous Demon Emperor and the Little Demon Emperor. So I thought of the only possibility; that a hundred years ago, when the Little Demon Emperor was attacked by Duke Ming, on the verge of dying, and his consciousness was unfocused, Duke Ming searched his soul, and seized all of his memories… and what Duke Ming said before, proved it to be the truth without question.”

The Little Demon Empress’ heart trembled violently in her heart once again.

Today, Duke Ming seemed to clearly know about her coming to Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley, and that she would gain nothing as a result. Also, he even knew clearly that the Demon Emperor’s Seal could launch the “blood escape” at a crucial moment…

This kind of savior trump card, was a secret that absolutely couldn’t be known by anybody of any race…

But Duke Ming knew clearly.

Yun Che’s words… the Little Demon Emperor back then was plotted against by Duke Ming and even his soul was searched… This guess pained her heart so much that it almost suffocated her… but it was the only explanation and possibility!

And once a person’s soul had been searched, the person would directly become a soulless shell… become a pitiful, living dead…

“Ugh…” A strain of almost black-colored blood flowed out from the corner of the Little Demon Empress’ mouth. That wasn’t the blood from her internal injuries, but the blood under her suffering and extreme anger… All these years, she was vigilant against Duke Huai Palace, but the extreme hatred in her heart, was always towards the Profound Sky Continent, and she even swore that for as long as she lived, when the time came, even if it would kill her, she had bathe the Profound Sky in a bloodbath, and get her absolutely irreconcilable vengeance.

Today she just found out, that all these years, she was hating the wrong person.

Her father was a worldly Demon Emperor who controlled Illusory Demon Realm in his palms, and the whole world bowed to him. But the real culprit that killed him wasn’t the Profound Sky Continent; he was plotted against by one of the people that he trusted the most! Her royal brother, who was also her husband, didn’t die tragically because he was trying to save their father, but was also plotted against… and died so tragically…

All these years, what she saw was all an illusion. What the whole Illusory Demon Realm thought of was also an illusion. Everyone, including her, the Little Demon Empress, were played in Duke Ming’s palms; even the Profound Sky Continent’s Four Great Sacred Grounds were still mere tools used by Duke Ming.

“Duke… Ming…” The Little Demon Empress’ hatred filled up her heart and soul. She grabbed tightly onto the grey clothes before her chest, and her trembling ten fingers were pale without any color of blood, “Duke… Ming… Duke… Ming… Even… if… I… become a ghost… I… will not… let… you… get… away… with… this…”

This Chapter’s Teaser