Against the Gods

After a short but terrifying silence, the five great Venerable Withered Dragons slowly got to their feet. The dim underground space shook gently for an instant and it still seemed to be trembling even after the shaking had subsided.

“We only have seven days,” Long Yi said.

Long Bai raised his hands and performed a simple gesture of respect as the Dragon Monarch. “After these seven days have passed, the glorious feat of you five venerable ones destroying the devils will be carved into the annals of history.”

“Once you become a Withered Dragon, you no longer care for such transient things as fame,” Long Er rumbled.

The Dragon Gods who preserved the last of their life and strength to transform into the slumbering guardians of the Dragon God Realm had naturally abandoned all of their worldly desires a very long time ago.

They had all once been figures which had reigned over the universe, but they were also people that the world thought had been consigned to the pages of history.

“Where are the creatures of darkness right now?” Long San asked, his imperial majesty shaking the air.

Amongst the five great Venerable Withered Dragons, two of them were Dragon Monarchs of old. One was Long Wu, and the other was Long San.

Long Yi, Long Er, and Long Si were all previous Dragon Gods.

However, anyone who had the privilege to cultivate the Withered Dragon Divine Hibernation and become one of the sleeping guardians of the Dragon God Realm had reached the very limits of cultivation in the current era.

This was especially true for Long Er. He had been one of Long San’s Dragon Gods in “life”, but when he entered “divine hibernation”, his power had exceeded Long San.

The appearance of these five great Venerable Withered Dragons would undoubtedly shake the world.

“The Southern Divine Region, in the Ten Directions Deep Sea Realm,” Long Bai replied. “I have already given the order to mobilize our entire race, and I have also gathered the strength of the Qilin Realm, the Emperor Chi Realm, the Blue Dragon Realm, the Hui Dragon Realm, and the Myriad Manifestations Realm. Two days from now, we will descend upon the devil race.”

“Two days from now?” Long Wu raised his head to look at Long Bai, the cold might in his voice evident. “Why did you awaken us now then?”

As someone who had received Shen Xi’s blessing for his entire life, Long Bai was undoubtedly the strongest Dragon Monarch in the history of the Dragon God Realm, whether it came to his dragon body or his dragon soul.

As a result, he would not shrink even when faced with the might of his predecessors. He calmly replied, “I understand that all of you are only left with a short seven days after you awaken, so I suggest that the five venerable ones take a look at the new world around them while completely awakening the power slumbering within your bodies.”

“Once these two days have passed, it will only take us two hours to reach the Southern Region’s Ten Directions Deep Sea Realm.”

To travel from the Western Region’s Dragon God Realm to the Southern Region’s Ten Directions Deep Sea Realm… in two hours?

Anyone who heard those words would instantly dismiss them as complete hogwash.

However, these words had come from the Dragon Monarch’s own mouth.

Long Fei had already suspected something along those lines, so he didn’t look too shocked. However, all of his mental preparation still couldn’t stop his heart from shuddering violently at those words.

All of the Venerable Withered Dragons turned to look at Long Bai at the same time once they heard those words.

“The World Dragon City?” Long Si asked.

Long Bai replied, “That’s right.”

The five Venerable Withered Dragons fell silent at the same time. After a second had passed, Long Yi said, “Since we are now withered dragons, we are beholden to the current Dragon Monarch’s commands, but using the World Dragon City is highly unorthodox. Please reconsider, Dragon Monarch.”

Long Er said, “Back in the ancient Era of the Gods, the Heretic God built two profound ships and imbued them with the divine power of the World Piercer. The first was called the Spirit World of Heaven and Earth and the second was called the World Dragon City.”

“It is rumored that the Spirit World of Heaven and Earth contains a gigantic world within it. As long as it has enough resources, it can jump through space at will. It is recorded that the Heretic God gifted it to the Sword Spirit God Clan. Unfortunately, it has long since vanished into history.”

“The World Dragon City is the ship that the Heretic God gifted to the dragon god race. It can compress space and shrink the distance between two points. It doesn’t jump through space but it still transcends the concept of ‘speed’. So even if we are traveling from the Western Region to the Southern Region, it will only take two hours.”

“However, the energy source of the World Dragon City is extraordinary as well. The moment we use it, it might very well wither away forever. It is our dragon god race’s last trump card and method of escape. Our founding ancestor said that we are not to use it unless our race is in danger.”

Long San said, “The Dragon Monarch’s ardent desire to exterminate the devils is commendable, but you must reconsider this course of action.”

“I have already made up my mind.”

Long Bai didn’t waver one bit despite the Venerable Withered Dragons’ advice. “Our dragon god race reigns above all creation, we are destined to be the rulers of the universe. From the inception of the God Realm up to now, there has never been a race able to contend with us.”

“However, Yun Che, who has inherited the legacies of both the Heretic God and a Devil Emperor, has perfectly seized upon the hatred festering in the Northern Divine Region to become our sole threat, the sole wild card in this universe.”

“He will also be the last threat and wild card to exist in this universe!”

Long Bai’s eyes narrowed slightly, as a shocking majestic light shone from his eyes. “Once we eradicate this threat, there is nothing that will ever be able to threaten our race again.”

“However, if we allow the devils to flee back to the Northern Region, the three divine regions will be powerless to deal with them. If we want to pull this threat up by the roots, we need to catch them by surprise and make sure that they have no way of avoiding or escaping us. Once we cut off their escape routes, we will end this plague forever!”

“Hence, this is actually the most suitable time to use the World Dragon City! Rather than letting it slumber for all eternity, isn’t it better to use it during this most opportune time? Let us show the world a unique miracle that comes from ancient times.”

Five great Venerable Withered Dragons did not attempt to persuade him again. Long Yi said, “Since the Dragon Monarch is so determined, then we will simply obey. We will simply be fulfilling the duty we have long waited for, we care not whether your actions are misguided or not. However, we still hope that the Dragon Monarch will seriously consider this matter over the next couple of days.”

“Mmm.” The Dragon Monarch gave a slight nod of his head, but it was clear that he wasn’t moved in the slightest by their words.

After they walked out of the place where the Venerable Withered Dragons had been hibernating, the Crimson Destruction Dragon God finally said, “My lord Dragon Monarch, before you returned, I had been deathly worried that you would underestimate the devils of the north. But I never imagined that you would place such importance on them.”

“...” Long Bai did not reply.

The Crimson Destruction Dragon God asked another question. “My lord, there is something that I still do not understand. When I found you in the God Realm of Absolute Beginning, you sent me a sound transmission telling me that you still needed to stay in the God Realm of Absolute Beginning for another two months. Why did you…”

“Do not ask any unnecessary questions.”

“Yes.” The Crimson Destruction Dragon God looked away from the Dragon Monarch and did not pursue the matter any further.

He still did not know why the Dragon Monarch had gone to the God Realm of Absolute Beginning.

Why did you go there… That was the question that the Dragon Monarch would never be able to answer.

Five years ago, he had personally set up an isolating barrier around the Forbidden Land of Samsara while he frantically searched for any traces of Shen Xi in secret… He was sure that Shen Xi wasn’t dead, and he was definitely not able to accept her death either way.

Five fruitless years had gone by, but nothing had been accomplished. It was as if she had completely vanished from the world. There were no traces of her moving around in the universe nor were there any reports of her corpse being discovered. There wasn’t even a single trace of her to be found.

A few months ago, the Azure Dragon God told him that he had “discovered the aura of the Dragon Queen in the God Realm of Absolute Beginning”, and he hadn’t waited a single second before making his decision. He merely left the Azure Dragon God with a few stern commands before he rushed off to the God Realm of Absolute Beginning.

In the end, he had indeed sensed Shen Xi’s aura in the area that the Azure Dragon God had reported. Even though it was extremely weak, it had indeed contained her divine aura of light which no one in this universe could replicate.

He slowly followed this extremely faint aura deeper and deeper into the God Realm of the Absolute Beginning. Every time he was about to give up, another thread of her aura would arrive at the most convenient time and renew his determination to continue searching for her.

By the time the seventh day had passed, he had already realized that it might have been a ruse to lure him away.

However, he still chose to stay and continue searching for her even in spite of that.

Later, the Crimson Destruction Dragon God sought out his aura and sent him a sound transmission to inform him of the north’s invasion and the drastic changes to the Eastern Divine Region.

However, he had detected an exceptionally dense aura of light at that time, and he had also found a fragment of white cloth. [1]

He could tell with a single glance that it was a fragment of Shen Xi’s outer garments!

There were a bunch of faint red words radiating a slight aura of light written on that fragment of cloth… The words told him that she would return to this place sometime within the next two months.

When he received the Crimson Destruction Dragon God’s sound transmission, he became convinced that this had simply been a ruse to lure him away… A trap that couldn’t have been any more simple.

However, he still didn’t leave. He even told the Crimson Destruction Dragon God that he would stay in the God Realm of Absolute Beginning for another two months.

Even if it was almost certain to be a ruse, he would still hold on to the smallest fragment of hope.

Finally, half a month later, the last traces of her aura had disappeared from that piece of cloth and he closed his eyes and gave a long sigh. He knew that it was time for him to wake up from this fruitless and crazy dream.

At this time, countless strong auras started to approach the Dragon God Realm, it seemed as if all the power in the Western Divine Region was streaming toward it.

However, this huge movement of forces was not something that could be concealed. Very soon, everyone in the universe knew that the Dragon God Realm was about to make a move and it was going to be a grand move.

What was about to unfold was perhaps the largest and grandest battle the God Realm had ever seen. It was also undoubtedly going to be the most terrible battle that the God Realm had ever seen.

A battle that would be so dreadful that even Divine Sovereigns had no place in it!

The news swiftly spread through the entire Western Divine Region before it started spreading through the other regions.

Both the Eastern Divine Region and the Southern Divine Region grew quiet after they received the news. It was as if all the profound practitioners across the God Realm were collectively holding their breath as they waited for the battle to decide the fate of the God Realm.

The Xuanyuan Realm and Purple Micro Realm also became exceedingly obedient at that time. The two great god emperors turtled in their homes and refused to come out, they definitely would not dare to step foot in the Ten Directions Deep Sea Realm

These forty-eight hours passed by in a flash.

The Dragon Monarch’s strongly-worded command had forced the five god emperors of the Western Divine Region, who had all made their own little plans and contingencies at first, to rush over to the Dragon God Realm within those forty-eight hours. They had also obediently brought all of their best troops with them as they gathered in the Dragon God Domain.

At the very least, they did not dare reserve any part of their forces that were known to the world.

————

Within the Ten Direction Deep Sea Realm, Cang Shitian was currently delivering a report regarding the massive movements in the Western Divine Region to the Devil Queen.

“In the last four hours, the profound warships from the Qilin Realm, the Emperor Chi Realm, the Blue Dragon Realm, the Hui Dragon Realm, and the Myriad Manifestations Realm have arrived in the Dragon God Realm. All of them are their core profound warships, and the entire assemblage of these forces is astounding. Many of the Dragon Sovereigns and Master Dragons who were outside the Dragon God Realm are also rushing back at full speed… and it is very possible that all of them have been recalled.”

“However, the Dragon Monarch does not seem to have shown his face during the last two days.”

Cang Shitian looked up to observe Chi Wuyao’s reaction before he continued, “The Devil Master originally planned to launch a surprise assault on the Dragon God Realm so that he could catch them before the Dragon Monarch’s return, but the Dragon Monarch’s sudden return has spoiled that. Furthermore, it seems as if he is preparing for his own decisive move as well.”

“As such, there is no way for us to launch a surprise attack anymore, and we might want to consider whether we even want to launch the assault at all. Now that the entire Western Divine Region seems to have mobilized… I’m afraid that they will probably come knocking on our door before we even have a chance to attack.”

Cang Shitian did not pass up an opportunity to flatter Chi Wuyao as he said, “However, the Devil Queen’s excellent foresight led to Shitian preparing the Deep Sea Barrier. It seems as if the Devil Queen had already suspected that such a scenario might occur.”

“I understand. You may leave,” Chi Wuyao simply replied.

She actually didn’t need Cang Shitian to report to her at all. All of her attention had been focused on the Dragon God Realm over the last few days as she had used Zhou Xuzi’s eyes to spy on all the changes happening in the Dragon God Realm. As such, she was far more clear on the situation than even Cang Shitian.

Cang Shitian did not immediately leave. Instead he asked, “Devil Queen, this Shitian has a question. How much longer will the lord Devil Master be in seclusion? The Dragon God Realm might launch their attack at any moment and we will need the Devil Master to decide whether we should fight or flee.”

“There is no need for you to waste any energy on this matter. The Devil Master will naturally appear when it is time,” Chi Wuyao replied in a calm voice.

She naturally couldn’t let it be known that Yun Che had entered the Eternal Heaven Pearl, so the news that was released publicly had stated that Yun Che had suddenly found an opportunity to achieve a breakthrough in this cultivation, and that was the reason for his sudden seclusion in the Deep Sea Royal Hall. In fact, the news that the “Devil Master might achieve a breakthrough” had sent waves of excitement through all of the devils’ hearts.

“Understood… This Shitian will take his leave.”

Cang Shitian left and Chi Wuyao closed her eyes once more as she focused on the Dragon God Realm once again.

Qianye Ying’er could sense the deep worry in Chi Wuyao’s heart, so she didn’t say a single word to disturb her.

The Dragon Monarch’s sudden return had caused the situation to become extremely twisted.

At this time, Chi Wuyao suddenly rose up from her seat, the dark devilish aura around her trembling chaotically.

“Who are… those people…” She muttered in a dark and solemn voice.

The strange aura around Chi Wuyao caused Qianye Ying’er’s heart to sink and she swiftly stepped forward and said, “What happened?”

Chi Wuyao raised her head to look at her. After that she tapped a finger on her forehead and flicked it forward.

A strange image immediately floated into existence.

This image had come from what Zhou Xuzi’s eyes and Chi Wuyao had used her Nirvana Devil Soul to cast it into an image.

The Dragon Monarch’s figure was slowly descending from the skies high above them in Zhou Xuzi’s eyes.

The five god emperors of the Western Divine Region were all gathered and the forces that had assembled there were shocking to behold. However, Zhou Xuzi’s eyes were not focused on the Dragon Monarch or the five god emperors. Rather… he was looking at the five gray figures standing behind the Dragon Monarch.

These figures and the auras they radiated were completely alien to them. It seemed as if they were unwilling to be touched by the light of day and their entire bodies remained shrouded in those grey robes.

Accompanying them was the strongest Dragon God, Long Fei.

What had utterly shocked Zhou Xuzi… Chi Wuyao, Qianye Ying’er… the five god emperors of the west… and everyone present was that these five figures stood directly between the Dragon Monarch and the Crimson Destruction Dragon God!

Through the Nirvana Devil Soul, Chi Wuyao could clearly feel the changes in Zhou Xuzi’s emotions. When Zhou Xuzi’s spiritual senses and eyes came into contact with those five gray figures… he felt as if a thousand mountains had collapsed on him.

The hands that the five god emperors were raising all froze in midair… and they had even forgotten to greet the Dragon Monarch in their extreme shock.

“Who are… those people?” Chi Wuyao muttered again.

Qianye Ying’er shook her head with a grim look on her face, and Chi Wuyao’s next few words fell on them like meteors from heaven.

“The five figures are radiating the draconic energy that is unique to the dragon god race. Furthermore… their auras are not the least bit inferior to the Crimson Destruction Dragon God’s!!”

“...!!??” Qianye Ying’er swivelled around, the look on her jade face dramatically changed. She cried out in shock, “What did you just say!?”

Long Fei was the strongest Dragon God in the Dragon God Realm, the dreadful being that surpassed both Qianye Fantian and Nan Wansheng! He was the person second only to the Dragon Monarch in this universe!

However, those five foreign figures which seemed to appear out of thin air were actually… all at least his equal or better!?

1. This wasn’t something that the Dragon Monarch had blasted off Shen Xi in their brief but violent confrontation. It was actually part of the clothes that Yun Che tore apart on a regular basis. He Ling had quietly and dutifully gathered these ripped clothes and deposited them in a spot that wasn’t easily seen. Some mysterious person picked a strip of it up when they investigated the Forbidden Land of Samsara. (At this moment, I would like to make a proposal to deduct He Ling’s salary)