Against the Gods (Web Novel)

Chapter 864 - Gloom

“Big Brother Yun, what happened to you?” Startled, Feng Xue’er worriedly said. At this moment, she suddenly saw a layer of black aura slowly surging from Yun Che’s body.

This layer of black aura was very thin in the beginning but it was gradually becoming thicker and it clearly carried an extremely ominous presence.

“Caiyi… Xue’er…” Yun Che’s palm was tightly clutching his own chest, as he painfully said. “Hurry and bring me back… to Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley…”

The space in front of Yun Che speedily distorted, revealing the Primordial Profound Ark. Evidently, Yun Che knew for certain that with his present condition, forcing himself to make his way back to Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley was impossible and there was a need to use the Primordial Profound Ark.

“Hurry and go!” The Little Demon Empress hurriedly reached out her hands to grab Yun Che and Feng Xue’er, entering the Primordial Profound Ark in a flash of white light. Then, they disappeared along with the Primordial Profound Ark.

“Sss…” Greatest Ambition Under Heaven’s palm was in bone-piercing pain and this form of pain was different from all the injuries he had ever suffered in his entire lifetime. It was an extremely strange… ice-cold scorching sensation.

Even with his powerful cultivation of a mid-level Monarch and the protection formed by nature energy, he could only slightly suppress that pain after a few dozen breaths.

“What in the world… Just what in the world is…” Cold sweat constantly dripped down from Greatest Ambition Under Heaven’s forehead. He took in a long breath and glanced at Yun Qinghong. After hesitating for a short moment he said, “The black aura earlier… seems to slightly resemble the one on Xuanyuan Wentian’s body.”

“...” Yun Qinghong did not speak for a long while and then, he lightly sighed. As if he was speaking to himself, he said, “We can ask Che’er about it after he gets back.”

The Primordial Profound Ark instantly transferred to the entrance of Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley. Carrying Yun Che, the Little Demon Empress and Feng Xue’er quickly flew into Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley… From the time they left until their return, the difference was not even two hours.

Passing through the land of tumbling flames, they once again arrived at the end of Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley. Before they even stopped their bodies, Feng Xue’er had already anxiously shouted out, “Golden Crow Divine Spirit, please save Big Brother Yun!”

Seemingly at the instant Feng Xue’er’s voice fell, that pair of golden eyes that carried boundless flames and might, had already appeared high in the sky, shooting a searing golden light upon the entire Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley.

“You three came back at the right time. This noble one has something to ask of you three.” The voice of the Golden Crow’s soul carried a deep sense of heaviness. “The individual who fought the three of you earlier, just who is he? And what’s with the profound arts he’s using?”

The Little Demon Empress anxiously said, “Regarding the Golden Crow Divine God’s questions, we will definitely inform you everything we know. However, I plead for the Golden Crow Divine God to first heal Yun Che, he’s currently…”

Yun Che curled up on the ground, the black aura entangling his body was occasionally thin and sometimes thick. His entire body was drenched in cold sweat and his facial features were all cramming together. Evidently, he was suffering immense pain but he was enduring with all his might, unwilling to leak out a sound.

“Save him?” The Golden Crow Soul’s voice sounded quite disdainful. “Could he have once again been injured by the Heavenly Poison Star God… Hmm?”

Before she even finished her words, the Golden Crow Soul’s tone suddenly changed. “This aura…”

Clang!!

A ray of golden light shot down from its mouth, enveloping Yun Che.

When the golden light came into contact with Yun Che’s body, it stopped for a short while… Immediately after, the streak of light in Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley fiercely changed, the golden eyes in the sky suddenly widened. Behind them, the several hundred kilometers of sea of flames and volcanoes were as if they had encountered a disaster, as they billowed with overflowing flames.

“Golden Crow Divine God!?” Little Demon Empress raised her head in shock. She was unable to imagine just what reason could make it lose control in such a manner… As the almighty divine spirit of Illusory Demon Realm, it actually looked as if it had suddenly suffered some sort of immense shock.

“Leave Yun Che here, you two immediately leave this place,” Golden Crow’s Soul commanded. “For twenty four hours, no one is allowed to enter this place, including you two!”

It’s voice was especially heavy and sullen, it did not have the slightest intention to explain, nor did it pursue the matter regarding Xuanyuan Wentian either. Seeing its reaction, the Little Demon Empress’ and Feng Xue’er’s hearts raced. Feng Xue’er anxiously said, “Golden Crow Divine Spirit, Big Brother Yun, he… Just what…”

“No need for further words, go on then!”

The golden eyes shone with a bright light and two rays of golden flames descended from the skies. They landed on the Little Demon Empress and Feng Xue’er, instantly expelling them out of Golden Crow Lightning Flame Valley.

Sensing that the two girls had left, Yun Che slowly raised his head and said with difficulty. “Golden Crow Divine Spirit, please… With my individual strength alone… I’m basically unable to suppress…”

“There’s no need to talk! There will come a time for you to explain!” Golden Crow’s soul coldly said. When she spoke, a golden halo of flames had already gathered in Yun Che’s surroundings and then, she muttered to itself, “It seems like this noble one wanting to continue existing in this world for ten years, is already an impossible task.”

“...” Yun Che gratefully and agonizingly forced out a smile. Then, he closed his eyes as he focused on taking in the energy coming from the Golden Crow’s soul.

Four months ago, the devil origin orb which Moon Slaughter Devil Sovereign shot into his profound veins right before perishing had become a devil’s nightmare that was buried in his body. Even with Jasmine’s strength, she was unable to drive it out. It would one day relapse and this was a point which Yun Che was clearly aware of.

However, he never expected that it would come this quickly.

And never did he actually expect that the relapse would be this intense.

Back then, Jasmine’s power was what sealed the devil origin orb. Because she was afraid that it would harm his profound veins, Jasmine merely dared to use a measly amount of energy to seal the devil origin orb. However, she had clearly said that it would be sealed for at least six months.

Furthermore, before she left, she had said that even if the energy she used to seal the devil origin orb disappeared, Yun Che could still use his own energy to seal it.

Not to mention that Yun Che’s strength back then was a far cry from now.

However, presently not only did the relapse happen way earlier than expected, the devil aura being emitted out was enormous to the point where he was basically unable to suppress it. If we were to compare the former devil origin orb as just a devil seed that was planted in his body, then now… it was as if a violent devil god had suddenly awakened.

After the Golden Crow’s soul bestowed its soul origin to Yun Che, its own power had declined by a huge extent. However, it was after all, a soul fragment of the primordial divine beast, the Golden Crow. When Yun Che was immersed in the blazing golden flames, surging energy poured into his body like huge waves and they charged right into his profound veins.

In an instant, the black aura on Yun Che’s body slowly receded and his complexion looked much better than before. He took an upright sitting posture and focused his mind. The Great Way of the Buddha revolved with all its might, as it suppressed the rampaging devil origin orb along with the energy from the Golden Crow’s soul.

Under the immense divine energy of the Golden Crow’s soul, the energy of the devil origin orb finally began to be suppressed little by little. Streams of golden light swirled towards the pitch-black devil origin pearl and wrapped around it layer by layer, gradually sealing its energy completely, until not a single strand of dark devil energy was being emitted out.

Yun Che opened his eyes and his complexion had already been completely restored to normal.

A total of six hours had passed.

Had he not possessed the physique of a Dragon God along with the Great Way of the Buddha, like anyone else he would have been devoured by the dark devil aura that filled his body, long before the six hours passed and devil origin pearl could be completely sealed.

“Thank you, Golden Crow Divine Spirit, you saved me again. The various graces you have given me, can never be repaid in this lifetime of mine,” Yun Che said from the depths of his heart.

“No need for the unnecessary empty pleasantries.”

The voice of the Golden Crow’s soul was evidently several times frailer than usual and even the golden glow in its eyes dimmed. Without its soul origin, its energy could no longer be restored and every bit of energy used would be energy lost. In these six hours it used to aid Yun Che in sealing the devil origin orb, the remaining ten years of existence it initially had, had been shortened by exactly two years.

“Now, you should give this noble one a proper explanation,” The eyes of the Golden Crow’s Soul fiercely widened. “Why do you have the devil origin orb in your body!?”

“That is clearly something that should have long since been annihilated from this world!”

“Explaining this matter, might be a little troublesome,” Yun Che said. There was no need for him to conceal anything in the face of the Golden Crow’s soul. Not to mention that it had even saved his life.

“In that case, how about you let this noble one investigate your memories?”

Anyone, no matter if he was the most normal of mortals, would definitely be unwilling to have his memories looked through by someone else. This time, however, Yun Che actually nodded without the least bit of hesitation. “Alright.”

The Golden Crow’s soul was evidently caught off guard by his straightforwardness. It no longer spoke further as a golden light spilled down and penetrated into Yun Che’s unresisting soul. In an instant, the memories from the time he left Illusory Demon Realm poured into the mind of the Golden Crow’s soul like a flood.

Reading around a year’s worth of memories was a considerably short process. However, after the Golden Crow’s soul retracted the golden light, it sank into a long period of silence.

Its constantly flashing golden eyes, highlighted the immense shock it had in its mind.

After a long while, the Golden Crow’s Soul finally said, “Regarding the person called Xuanyuan Wentian who exchanged blows with you three today, this noble one was able to sense a very faint devil aura from his body, along with the aura of the Illusory Devil Tome of Eternal Night. This noble one had suspected it was just my imagination, because devils have long been extinct.”

“Never did I expect that it was truly the aura of the Illusory Devil Tome of Eternal Night!”

“This noble one inherited the will of the Golden Crow and has existed in this world for such a long time, yet I have never sensed it this entire time. In the faraway continent in the north, there actually hid a True Devil that had survived since the Primordial Era!”

It had looked into Yun Che’s memories, so naturally, it knew about the existence of the Moon Slaughter Devil Sovereign.

“Fortunately, he was unintentionally discovered by you and has been exterminated, otherwise, if his soul imprint recovered, with his instincts as a devil along with the hatred accumulated from being sealed for millions of years, this world definitely would have faced an incomparably terrifying tribulation. It is a feat comparable to saving this seemingly peaceful world with just your strength alone.”

Yun Che lightly smiled as he shook his head. “I killed him simply to protect my own life. Because if he did not die, I would die instead. That’s all there is to it. As for saving the world, I don’t think I have such determination nor that kind of saintly heart. Furthermore, so what if I have killed the Moon Slaughter Devil Sovereign? Compared to him, Xuanyuan Wentian is a hundred times more terrifying.”

“You’re wrong. How can there possibly be a comparison to speak of between a devil god and a mortal? Though Xuanyuan Wentian of today seems to far surpass the Moon Slaughter Devil Sovereign you exterminated, the Moon Slaughter Devil Sovereign was a True Devil. The moment it truly recovered, its strength would basically be something you are incapable of imagining. Even with the physique of a dragon god, if it wished to destroy you, it would just take the time it takes to form a thought.

“As for Xuanyuan Wentian, he had but just received a thin amount of devil blood and a slightly frail devil soul. Even if he’s capable of achieving perfect compatibility with all of his power, it would be impossible for him to truly step into the divine way.”

“But though my strength has improved by leaps and bounds in these three months, I’m still far from being Xuanyuan Wentian’s match. Today, if not because there were still remnants of Fen Juechen’s soul that had yet to be destroyed, I would have already lost my life.

“Furthermore, Xuanyuan Wentian personally told me today that his devil blood has yet to awaken completely. Three months from now, it will reach the state of perfection. When that time comes, his strength will definitely far surpass the strength he had today. Haah… I really can’t figure out how I’m supposed to go against him.”

Yun Che raised his head and muttered to himself with a low voice. “If only Jasmine was here. Even if she was still unable to make use of her own power like before, she’d still able to teach me what I should do.”

“...” From Yun Che’s body, the Golden Crow’s Soul could sense a heavy gloom.

About a year ago, when they first met, Yun Che respected yet did not fear it; even when facing its pressure, he still carried a brilliant demeanor. When it wanted to forcefully strip away his Phoenix bloodline, he stubbornly rejected it and even lashed out at it with furious curses.

Back then, when facing his curses, not only was it not angered, it instead felt that he was even more pleasing to the eye. Because as the soul of the Golden Crow, its personality was extremely prideful and violent in the first place.

But today, it sensed gloom coming from Yun Che’s body.

It was uncertain if the reason behind this gloom was because of the despair brought about by Xuanyuan Wentian’s strength or Jasmine’s departure.

Perhaps it was the latter.

“Golden Crow Divine Spirit, with your power, are you able to defeat Xuanyuan Wentian?” Yun Che asked. However, from his tone, he evidently did not carry much hope.

“If it was a year ago, I might be able to do it,” Golden Crow’s Soul bluntly said. “But now, even if I go against the will of the Golden Crow and forcefully leave this place, I’m definitely unable to exterminate Xuanyuan Wentian.”

“...” Yun Che closed his eyes, his two hands slightly clenched.

Jasmine’s departure, Moonflower’s scheme, the mutated Xuanyuan Wentian and the devil origin orb break-out… While he was still submerged in loss due to Jasmine’s departure and had yet to regain his senses from it, everything suddenly came flooding in.

In the past, no matter how terrifying of a crisis he faced, his willpower had never dimmed. However, now that Jasmine was not by his side, he felt that half of his soul had been forcefully sliced away, depressed and powerless.

After losing her, he then truly understood his reliance on Jasmine had far surpassed his imagination.

“Don’t you want to know why the devil origin orb in your profound veins suddenly escaped from its seal and acted up?” Golden Crow’s Soul suddenly said.

“I have doubts about this problem as well.” The light in Yun Che’s eyes stirred. “Golden Crow Divine Spirit, could it be that you know the answer?”

“That devil origin orb that came from the Moon Slaughter Devil Sovereign initially possessed a very weak power. If not because you were heavily injured after the horrendous battle with the Moon Slaughter Devil Sovereign, you could have even sealed it yourself.” The Golden Crow’s Soul slowly explained, its voice still carried an evident frailty. “It merged into your profound veins, so it will naturally absorb the profound energy in your profound meridians.”

“It is like a darkness seed which should have been close to death. Though it relies on your profound energy to awaken, it’s still something that belongs to the realm of the devil gods. The power it gradually gives birth to, will one day far surpass your own degree and realm of strength. If you wish to live, either you destroy your own profound veins or constantly seal it completely, preventing its ever-increasing devil aura from leaking out.”

“Initially, the awakened power of this devil origin orb would have required quite a considerable amount of time before it could reach the extent of harming your life. With the profound strength you had three months ago, you could have sealed it over and over again by relying on your own strength for at least several dozens of years.”

“However, in these three months, due to your dragon phoenix dual cultivation with Feng Xue’er, your vitality and profound energy were both in extremely active states in every single moment. The realm of your profound strength has even risen explosively within these three short months… However, due to a terrible coincidence, the sustained active and stimulated states sped up the growth of the devil origin orb’s power, finally leading to it breaking out of the seal your master placed and releasing a dark devil aura that you’re unable to endure.”

Yun Che: “...”

“This is negligence on this noble one’s part. If this noble one had discovered the existence of the devil origin orb in your body three months ago, it would not have led to the result today.” The Golden Crow’s Soul let out a short sigh… It did not reveal just how terrifying the devil origin orb in Yun Che’s body had become in a straightforward manner. Though it was sealed with great difficulty...

Yun Che instead laughed and shook his head. “This is not your mistake. If you have not guided Xue’er to conduct dual cultivation with me, I would have been dead three months ago.”

“The devil origin orb is within my profound veins so I have long had the expectation that it would end this way… Though, it has arrived a little too soon.” Yun Che’s voice paused for a moment, before he suddenly said, “Regarding the devil origin orb, I have a very heavy doubt. Why was it able to merge with my profound veins so easily? The profound veins of a profound practitioner are the locations where profound energy is condensed in and they will expel all foreign substances, let alone the fact that my profound veins are even the profound veins of a profound god. Why did they directly merge with the devil origin orb that belonged to a devil, without the slightest rejection?”

“This noble one is similarly unable to comprehend this matter either,” the Golden Crow’s Soul slowly said. “The devil origin orb is the orb of origin energy of a devil god. The birth of a devil god begins with the devil origin orb itself. It bears the origin energy of a devil god and is the core of a devil’s profound veins. The moment a devil loses it or its devil origin orb is destroyed, the devil will lose all of its powers and might even die there and then.”

“If the devil origin orb of a devil god is destroyed, the devil god can take over another devil god’s devil origin orb and then assimilate it into its own profound veins through a certain unique method, regaining its power from then on… Though it sounds bizarre and its possibility is unproven, in the Era of Gods, there were indeed such related rumors. However, with the profound veins of a true god or a mortal, wanting to merge them with a devil god’s orb of origin energy is basically an impossible matter. Unless…”

“...”

The Golden Crow’s Soul evidently had thought of something but its voice had suddenly ground to a halt. Even its golden eyes had shrunk several times over.

“Unless what?” Yun Che urged.

“... This noble one can’t answer you, because this is merely an extremely ludicrous conjecture. There’s no need to ask any further.”

Yun Che could hear the abnormal change in the tone of the Golden Crow’s soul. It must have thought of something, yet was unwilling to tell him… Furthermore, it was unwilling to speak about it in an extremely firm manner.