Gate of God

“Indeed, there will be more day of peace. However, he did spare us,” said one of the elders who turned around to look at the injured disciples.

“Perhaps…,” said another elder. He wanted to say something more but he quickly swallowed his words.

The other two elders were silent. They knew what he had wanted to say. They also knew the implications of these words.

However, there was no point in saying all these now. They had lost utterly and completely.

“Perhaps, he doesn’t like to kill. Perhaps, he’s the real Chosen One!” At this moment, a voice rang out from the door of the Nine Pinnacles Mountain.

“Who goes there?!” The four elders were all stunned. They looked in the direction of the voice anxiously.

After all, the Nine Pinnacles Mountain was in their sorriest state right now. They were not ready to receive any more ‘guest’. After all, if someone could say these words, they surely were no guest!

“Without the Nine Cauldrons, what’s the point of the Nine Pinnacles Mountain?” The plain voice rang out once more. At the same time, dozens of shadows walked out from a thick fog.

“Assume your positions and prepare to engage!” When the four elders saw the dozens of shadows, their faces all changed. Unhesitatingly, they issued these orders.

“Whoosh!”

“Whoosh! Whoosh!”

Swords aimed at the shadows. Many severely-injured disciples crawled up from the ground in agony as they stood, trembling.

“Right now, can the Nine Pinnacles Mountain still fight?” The shadow at the very front stopped. It did not seem to be in a rush as it waited there quietly.

“Rubbish! Tell me your name. If not, the Nine Pinnacles Mountain won’t mind detaining you!” The four elders swiftly walked to the front of these disciples. At the same time, they tried to wipe the blood away from their mouths.

The bodies of the four elders were trembling and for the one whose arm was broken, his face was green. However, they all looked on extremely resolutely.

“Yun Qingwu.” The shadow at the front slowly raised her hand and took off her hood. Her long hair cascaded down her back and her face was pale.

“Yun Qingwu?”

“The Demon Race!”

“The Demon Young Lord, Yun Qingwu!”

The four elders trembled after they looked at each other. Their faces were all ugly because they knew that the demons were no friends of theirs.

However, they stood upright as they looked at Yun Qingwu. Then, they looked at the dozens of shadows behind her.

“The Holy Region is forbidden ground for the Demon Race. I think you, as the Demon Young Lord, should now this?” One of the elders at the front said coldly.

“Yes, I do,” said Yun Qingwu with a nod.

“So, why don’t you scram?” When another elder heard that, he asked furiously.

“According to that agreement, the entry of any demon into the Holy Region is tantamount to an act of war and shall be killed indiscriminately. Now that I’m here, do you think I can leave?” Yun Qingwu was not enraged despite being shouted at by the elder. Instead, she posed this question back to him.

“Yun Qingwu. We know that you are the Demon Young Lord and hence, we decide to be merciful. Do you really want to die here?” The faces of the four elders turned dark.

“What’s wrong with that?” Yun Qingwu asked.

“How dare you! The Demon Race has less than 100 000 soldiers. Including your father, Emperor Yun, you have fewer than eight demons who are equivalent to a human Sage. We could not care less…”

“That’s right. If the five sects work together, how can the demons live until today? I believe that the demon race would have gone extinct in that big fight 100 years ago, right?” Yun Qingwu interrupted the four elders. Then, she looked up at the rising sun and said, “However, it’s a shame that the nature of the five sects will never change. Even if the Sagely Battle God, Meng Tian, could not avoid your tricks!”

“What nonsense are you saying?” The four elders said angrily.

“That’s right. At that time, you have yet to enter the five sects. Then, do you remember the battle of the Ten Mile Lake outside the Flame Capital City of Great Xia?” Yun Qingwu said after she suddenly realized something.

“Since you know of the Ten Mile Lake Battle, you should know the results of your actions! Do you really want to provoke another fight between humans and demons?”

“No, I don’t want to provoke another fight between humans and demons,” said Yun Qingwu as she shook her head. Then, a light flashed across her eyes as she said, “I want to start a fight among the humans, demons, and monsters!”

“What?!”

“A fight among the three races. Do you want to…”

“That’s impossible. The Monster Race will never help you. You are seeking your own destruction!”

When the four elders heard this, they instantly felt that something was terribly amiss. They could not believe it. Perhaps they did not want to do so.

“Roar!” Suddenly, a beastly roar could be heard.

At the same time, the five shadows which stood behind Yun Qingwu rushed toward the four elders. The wind blew off their hoods and revealed five pairs of eyes, all of which were in different colors. However, they were all dark and murderous.

“The Monster Race!”

“Monster Kings! Five Monster Kings!”

“How dare you, Yun Qingwu!”

The eyeballs of the four elders rolled. They were enraged. However, when they saw these eye, their hearts sank.

They felt utterly hopeless!

Not only were they helpless, but they were also deeply unwilling!

As one of the five sects of the Holy Region, the elders of the Nine Pinnacles Mountain did not fear Monster Kings. Had it been any other place and time, these five Monster Kings could not do anything to them.

However, the situation now was different…

Right now, the appearance of these five Monster Kings was not just a simple threat. They were all butchers, bloodthirsty butchers.

“Quick, tell the other four sects. The Monster Race…”

“Slicck!” The sound of a body being torn apart could be heard right afterward. Then, a pair of demonic and murderous eyes swept the surroundings as it licked its lips.

It was a bloodbath. It was a bloody and cruel carnage. Blood flew everywhere in the sky, turning the ground of the Nine Pinnacles Mountain even redder. Like the Ten Mile Lake outside the Flame Capital City, every single piece of rock was stained with red blood, which shone like the sun.

As the massacre took place, Yun Qingwu stood where she was. She looked into the sky at where a figure had previously disappeared as she mumbled quietly.

“Perhaps, you don’t like killing and you’re the real Chosen One.”

“I think… you will hate me after you hear of this. You may even want to kill me.”

“Yes, I used you, but I also delivered vengeance.”

“The war between you and I can never be avoided…”

“It’s not because you are a human and I’m a demon…. but it’s because you will never know the reason why this world exists!”

…

Ten days later.

The dusky sky seemed slightly dark. it was summer and by right, a red setting sun should hang over the dusky sky.

However, large clouds obstructed this sliver of sunlight. A rain, neither heavy nor light, fell amidst the grass and flowers. At the same time, it washed away the summer heat.

In this otherworldly paradise, flowers bloomed everywhere and all four seasons was spring. In the cruel Holy Region, the Ling Yun Tower appeared to have transcended the mortal realm. While it was not a Shangri-La, its natural atmosphere created a relaxing atmosphere for everyone here.

The Ling Yun Tower was actually a tower.

However, this tower was divided into nine floors. The bottommost floor was divided into nine parts and every single one of them was tiled with green bricks. Together, they formed a circle.

From bottom up, the second and third floors were the same. By the time one reached the fourth floor, the green tiles turned snowy-white, which were as dazzling as jade.

By the time one reached the seventh floor…

The white tiles turned golden, which resembled the light of the sun. Rainwater fell from the sky and clinked against the tiles. They then slowly slid off the golden tiles and formed a curtain of beads.

Unlike the other sects, the Ling Yun Tower did not have many disciples. In its thousand years long history, it always had exactly 200 disciples.

These disciples all lived in the Ling Yun Tower.

Other than them, the Ling Yun Tower comprised other members too. They were never known as disciples but instead, as servants or guests.

200 disciples and a few servants may not seem to be a force to reckon with. Indeed, the Ling Yun Tower could not compete against the other four sects.

However, the fact remained…

The Ling Yun Tower was the only exception among the five sects of the Holy Region.

It stayed aloof from them all. The Heaven Dao Pavilion was an ally with the Fu Xi Valley. The Yin Yang Hall was an ally of the Nine Pinnacles Mountain. The Ling Yun Tower remained solitary. It was its choice to remain distant.

Of course, the territory of the Ling Yun Tower was vast. It was even bigger than the territories of the other four sects. Its climate was pleasant and a flowery fragrance permeated the air.

This kind of place would naturally arouse jealousy.

However, since the establishment of the five sects, none of them tried to encroach onto the Ling Yun Tower’s territory. None of them showed any desire to occupy it.

This was the Ling Yun Tower!

Capped with golden tiles, it looked down in all directions.

Underneath it, countless gazes looked back up at it. Some were hopeful, some were anticipating, some brimmed with a fiery respect.

Of course, there were exceptions to these gazes to, just like how the Ling Yun Tower was an exception among the five sects. One gaze stood out.

It was neither passionate nor anticipating.

The eyes were as clear as water and as pure as it could possibly be. In this pair of eyes, there used to be arrogance and recklessness.

However, today…

There were only resilience and determination.

As rain fell from the sky, this pair of eyes remained open. It seemed to ignore the drops of rain as it allowed the rainwater to wash them away. As this pair of eyes stared intently at the high tower, they did not close. Above the tower, there were dark clouds which obstructed the setting sun.

Half a year!

For half a year, this pair of eyes would look at the same direction. Day after day, it would look at the rising sun and setting sun.

Today, dusk had come and as the sky dimmed, the setting sun was mercilessly obstructed.

No matter how much she opened her eyes, she could not see it.

Teeth bit down a powdery lip. Then, the fog started to seep out from this pair of eyes. The fog seemed slightly blurry, or perhaps the eyes stared for too long.

However, the fog disappeared as if it had never existed.

Resolution and determination appeared in the eyes once more. It was still dusk.

There was rain…

However, it was normal to rain in summer.

Perhaps the clouds in the horizon would disappear. Perhaps this pair of eyes could see the last setting sun for this half of the year. Perhaps it could see the twinkling stars under the moon.

After a long while, a voice rang out in its brain.

“He’s dead. A life for a life. Will you really wait for a dead man in this ice prison where you cannot see any hope?”

“I will wait.”

“What if he passes the promise of half a year?”

“I’ll continue waiting!”

“What if he never comes? Will you continue waiting?”

“Yes!”

“…”

The clear eyes slowly closed. This was because a drop of rain landed in the center of these eyes, forcing them to shut.

Then, this pair of eyes opened once more as it looked at the tower in the distance and the clouds in the sky.

Until…

A third item appeared in its field of vision. It was a blurry figure which walked from the dusky sky holding an umbrella.

An ordinary umbrella!

It was made from oil paper and slightly yellow.

However, the figure underneath the umbrella wore long blue robes. In the rain, the wind gently blew at it. As the figure walked, its robes fluttered in the wind.

This figure walked firmly and stably. Even though its robes were being blown by the wind, it did not step on any flower as it walked across the grass.

Every step treaded on one’s soul.

At long last, this umbrella appeared above the pair of eyes. It blocked the high tower the eyes were looking at as well as the setting sun, the clouds, and the rainwater.

However, this time, the pair of eyes did not mind as it allowed the umbrella to stop over its head.

Rain fell on top of the umbrella.

Pitter-patter.

The two figures were extremely close. They stood unmoving underneath the umbrella. Blue robes and a scarlet dress fluttered in the air because of the wind.