Against the Gods

Chapter 871 – Resolute (1)

One whole month had passed since Xuanyuan Wentian had invaded Demon Imperial City but the gloomy and tense atmosphere which shrouded Demon Imperial City had yet to fade away. During this period, many experts from all parts of the Illusory Demon Realm had surged into the capital. At the same time, most of the citizens and sects had quietly fled the city… But the Little Demon Empress gave an order to not interfere with or obstruct anyone who chose to run away.

During the wee hours of the morning, Yun Che was returning to the Yun Family household from the Demon Imperial Palace. Just as he reached the gates of his house, he met Yun Qinghong, who was just about to return home as well.

“Father, were you preparing the Great City Barrier Formation together with Grandfather and the rest?”

Both father and son had stopped in the air above the family gates.

Yun Qinghong nodded his head, “The Great City Barrier Formation left behind by the first Demon Emperor is incredibly profound. When we hurriedly activated it the last time, it was even able to hold back Xuanyuan Wentian for a large amount of time. So before Xuanyuan Wentian returns, we are putting in all our effort to ensure that the Great City Barrier Formation will be able to perform to its fullest… As for the rest, that is up to the will of heaven.”

“…Father, forgive me for being direct. But if it’s merely a protection barrier which won’t allow Xuanyuan Wentian to enter Demon Imperial City, even if it can hold him off for more than a year, what’s the point of it all?” Yun Che said as he shook his head, “It will only result in us delaying our deaths for a while more. Furthermore, Xuanyuan Wentian can very well just ignore Demon Imperial City for the moment while he goes to ravage other parts of the Illusory Demon Realm.”

“Ah, how could I not be aware of this?” Yun Qinghong said with a long sigh. “But it’s not just the Little Demon Empress who isn’t his opponent, even the Golden Crow Divine God won’t be able to match him. So other than this, what else can we do? Struggling until our last breath is still a better option than helplessly waiting for death to come.”

“Father, if we have the option to flee the Illusory Demon Realm and guarantee that Xuanyuan Wentian won’t be able to find us… Would you and Mother be amenable to that?” Yun Che asked solemnly.

Yun Qinghong gave him a deep look before speaking, “Would the Little Demon Empress be willing to flee the Illusory Demon Realm together with you?”

“…” Yun Che was at a loss for words.

“Given my understanding of the Little Demon Empress, she definitely would not do so and I share the same sentiments as well.”

While he said this, a faint smile appeared on Yun Qinghong’s face and it was not the least bit forced or discontent, “In this world, there are many things that are far more important than one’s own life. That goes for me and the Little Demon Empress as well. If you forcefully take her away, this would be far worse than death for her… Your mother and I feel the same way.”

“We have all personally witnessed the terror of Xuanyuan Wentian and now we are still working hard to resist him and think of a plan to deal with him. But we have never once thought of fleeing.”

“But Che’er, it’s not the same for you!” Yun Qinghong said as his eyes grew stern, “You have to go. We are not choosing to stay because we are stupid or stubborn but it is because we have something that we need to protect. But in your case, if you choose not to leave, it will not only be an irrational decision, it will also be a very stupid one… I believe that the Little Demon Empress has already spoken to you about this and you should be very clear about it as well.”

“…” Yun Che remained silent for a very long time.

“Tomorrow, we will be holding holding a feast to celebrate Yongan’s first month,” Yun Qinghong said with a faint smile. “As his grandfather, it’s only natural that I arrange everything personally. So for the next two days, let’s set aside these important matters for now. Che’er, come over and help us out later.”

“Alright…” Yun Che said rather despondently/absent-mindedly.

Yun Qinghong left but Yun Che stayed standing in that spot for a very long time. Gradually, his eyes started to grow colder and colder and he quietly clenched both his hands.

“It looks like… I need to kill Xuanyuan Wentian… no matter what!!”

Need…

Yun Che sucked in a long breath as a blurry decision formed in his heart. He looked at the Yun Family household and just as he was about to land in the courtyard, he suddenly felt his entire body shake fiercely as a dark and sinister aura suddenly exploded within his profound veins. This caused an indescribable pain to instantly spread throughout his entire body…

Could… Could it be…

Xiao Lingxi strode out from the courtyard. Once she saw Yun Che, who was hovering in the air above her, her beautiful eyes twinkled as she crowed in delight, “Little Che, you’re back!”

“What about Sister Cang Yue and Xue’er? How come they didn’t come back with you?” Xiao Lingxi said as she scampered towards Yun Che. As she spoke, her nose turned up slightly as an adorable pout formed on her lips, displaying the jealousy in her heart.

But after she had finished speaking, she realized that Yun Che had not responded to her at all. Xiao Lingxi let out a soft cry but just as she was about to ask a question, she saw Yun Che suddenly tumble from the sky and hit the ground fiercely. He remained curled up on the ground, his entire body shivering as his face contorted in incredible agony.

“Li-Little Che!” Color drained from Xiao Lingxi’s pretty face as she threw aside the thing she was holding in her hand and panickedly ran over to Yun Che, “Little Che… You… what happened to you?”

As the voice of Xiao Lingxi grew ever closer, Yun Che’s remaining clarity allowed him to stretch out a quivering hand. After that, a soft and gentle profound energy pushed Xiao Lingxi far away as he croaked out in pain, “Do not… come over here… Ah!!”

Black energy that he was unable to suppress streamed out of Yun Che’s body before slowly rising into the air, causing Yun Che to experience even more pain.

“Little Che… Little Che!!” Xiao Lingxi had been scared completely witless and she shouted in a teary voice, “Somebody come quick… Somebody come quick… Come and save Little Che!!”

The entire Yun Family was instantly alerted to this commotion as the nearby Xiao Yun rushed over like a blustering gale. After he took one look at Yun Che’s state, his expression immediately and violently changed, “Big Brother, what’s happening to you!?!”

“Don’t touch him!”

Just as Xiao Yun was about to approach Yun Che, Yun Qinghong’s stern shout rang out from behind him, causing Xiao Yun to immediately freeze in place.

Yun Qinghong and Mu Yurou had rushed over and many of the Yun Family elders and most of the Yun Family disciples hurried along behind them after they had heard the news. They took one look at Yun Che’s condition and the black energy that was gushing out of his body, all of them being shocked in place.

With a single glance, Yun Qinghong could tell that Yun Che’s current condition was exactly the same as one month ago. After Yun Che had returned from Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley, he had not yet explained to him the reason behind this and Yun Qinghong had not pursued the matter either, he even believed that Yun Che had completely recovered from it. But he had never thought that Yun Che would suddenly find himself in the exact same situation again.

“Che’er… What’s wrong with Che’er?” Mu Yurou’s face had gone completely pale. If not for the fact that Yun Qinghong was holding her arm tightly, she would already have thrown caution to the wind and rushed to his side.

“No one is allowed to touch him… Yun’er, immediately go and inform the Little Demon Empress of the present situation!!” Yun Qinghong’s expression was rigid as he forced himself to speak calmly.

Just as his voice had finished, an energy explosion that sounded like thunder suddenly rang out in the air above them. The Little Demon Empress and Feng Xue’er had brought along Cang Yue as they approached at an alarming speed… They had taken their time at first but then they suddenly sensed a terrifying devilish energy—Furthermore, this devilish energy did not originate from Xuanyuan Wentian. Instead, it was exactly the same as the devilish energy Yun Che had released a month ago so they had hurried over at the greatest speed while shock and fear shook their hearts.

“Big Brother Yun!” Feng Xue’er was seized by panic as she rushed towards Yun Che side, supporting his body, which was entwined by black energy, off the ground.

The Little Demon Empress set Cang Yue down and spoke in a serious tone, “Yun Che, quickly focus your thoughts and summon out the Primordial Profound Ark… We will immediately head to the Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley!”

No one would be able to understand the kind of terrifying circumstance that Yun Che found himself in right now. Just having devil energy invade one’s body was already incredibly terrifying but this devil energy was erupting from within Yun Che’s body. If it was someone else, they would not even have the opportunity to struggle in agony, they would have lost their lives in practically one instant.

“…” Yun Che could barely make out any intelligible words but with his strong will, he managed to successfully summon forth the Primordial Profound Ark while correctly setting the coordinates to travel to the entrance of the Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley.

After it had instantly jumped through space, the Little Demon Empress picked up Yun Che and carried him into Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley once more.

The last time around, even though Yun Che did not explain, they had all naturally assumed that his condition had been due to the sudden flaring up of the devil energy that had infiltrated Yun Che’s body after his fight with Xuanyuan Wentian. So they definitely had not thought of the fact that this devilish energy was actually coming from inside Yun Che’s body… This time however, the both of them were struck by a profound feeling that something was not right.

After they entered Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley again after one month, the both of them clearly sensed that the fire aura in this place had once again weakened by a great amount. The volcanos in the original Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley were initially in a state of constant and violent eruption and one could see roiling lava and seas of fire everywhere. But today, nearly half of those volcanoes had gone dormant and the lava and the seas of fire seemed far more sluggish than before.

But right now, none of them were in the correct frame of mind to bother about these continuing bizarre changes. They brought Yun Che towards the end of Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley at the fastest speed possible.

“The Empress of the Illusory Demon Realm Huan Caiyi… begs to see the Golden Crow Divine God!” The Little Demon Empress cried towards the scarlet sky

“I beg that the Golden Crow Divine God appear before us!”

The Little Demon Empress continued to cry out but the only thing that answered her was heavy silence. It was only after she had cried out more than ten times that the sky finally rang with the Golden Crow Divine Spirit’s voice.

“Huan Caiyi, why do you disturb this noble one’s rest yet again!”

“Golden Crow Divine Spirit!” Feng Xue’er said anxiously, “It’s Big Brother Yun… the same devil energy that appeared on his body the last time has reappeared yet again, so I beg that you save him!

The Little Demon Empress and Feng Xue’er clearly could sense the space around them suddenly tightening up.

Clang!!

The eyes of the Golden Crow finally opened up in the air above, the dazzling light that came from its eyes caused the scarlet sky to turn a dull gold. The golden light that radiated from its eyes quickly fell upon Yun Che’s body and after a brief period of silence, a long and drawn-out sigh rang through Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley.

“The both of you may leave. Within ten days, no one is allowed to take a step into this place.”

“Ten days?” The Little Demon Empress said with an alarmed expression on her face, “Golden Crow Divine God, just what is wrong with Yun Che…”

Before her voice had even finished falling, a golden light had already enshrouded her before kicking both her and Feng Xue’er out of the world of Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley.

SCREEEEE——！

A long cry filled the air as those scarlet-golden eyes abruptly grew wide and scarlet golden fire fell from the sky like a storm of meteors, engulfing Yun Che in a sea of golden flames.

The black energy was slowly suppressed by the violent Golden Crow flames. The pressure on Yun Che’s body lessened as he managed to sit up straight with much difficulty and focus his mind. He started to absorb and guide the Golden Crow Divine Spirit’s boundless power into his body and gradually the black color on his face began to recede and his complexion returned to normal. His breathing also began growing steady.

“It has just been a short month, so how did the devil origin orb break out of its seal so quickly and flare up again?” The Golden Crow Divine Spirit’s voice rang in Yun Che’s ears.

Yun Che, “…”

“Hmph, this noble one has already found the cause,” the Golden Crow Divine Spirit said gravely, “There is another heavy emotional issue that plagues your heart, causing you to block up your heart and be in a state of sorrow all this time, while also accelerating the growth of the devil origin orb’s power!”

“…Even sorrow will influence the devil origin orb?” Yun Che asked in a low voice.

“Sorrow is the same thing as rage, greed and resentment. All of them are negative emotions. Furthermore, strong negative emotions will agitate and accelerate the revival of the devil origin orb’s power. Hmph, this noble one had never thought that such a gigantic emotional knot could form in your heart given your experiences and temperament.”

“…” Yun Che could only smile bitterly in response.

“It looks like you have already seen the memory fragment that your master left for you.” When the Golden Crow Divine Spirit had scanned Yun Che’s memories three months ago, it had also read the memory fragment that Jasmine had left for him. So it knew about the message Jasmine left for Yun Che before Yun Che himself found out about it.

Yun Che was not surprised at all, he merely muttered in a soft voice, “The reason human beings are humans beings is because all of their emotions and desires are fully intact. My mind knows that I should not be wallowing in sorrow but I am simply unable to accept that I’ve lost my Little Fairy… and our child as well… I also don’t know how long I will need before I am able to truly accept everything.”

“Hmph, this is precisely the aspect of humanity that is most ridiculous and feeble! If it was someone else, this noble one could forcefully seal away this memory. But given your present soul strength, even this noble one is unable to forcefully interfere with your memories anymore. That’s fine… The devil origin orb in your body not only broke its seal but it also behaved even more violently than it did the last time. Given this noble one’s remaining power, I can just barely suppress it by force. But if I want to seal it again, not only will I need a lot of time, I will also need to rely on the Sea of Death.”

“For the next ten days, you will need to remain inside the Sea of Death at all times. You’re not allowed to leave it for even an instant.”

A golden light fell from the sky and picked Yun Che up before instantly depositing him into the boundless Sea of Death.

“Since it has come to this, we regrettably have no other choice… So let’s give it our best shot,” the Golden Crow Divine Spirit said with a low sigh as it infused the last of its divine power into the Sea of Death.