Against the Gods

As Yun Che walked side by side with the Dreamless Divine Regent, he could feel barely repressed excitement rolling off the man in waves.

“The other five Kingdoms of God found the Godbearers of this generation long ago. Even the Star and Moon Kingdom of God, who are infamous for their difficulty in locating suitable Godbearers, found the twins of their dreams.”

“The Dreamweaver Kingdom of God though… It has been ten thousand years since I inherited the throne, and I have sown far more descendants than that. However, I wasn’t able to produce a single Godbearer back then. Even my best descendant only possessed the capacity to inherit sixty percent divine essence.”

“It was a bleak and humiliating period. The heavens only know how much scorn and pity the Dreamweaver Kingdom of God has received for a thousand years, then several thousand years, then ten thousand years. Everyone in the realm was panicking, and the hidden gossip was never ending. It even got to the point where people began questioning the quality of my seed and claiming that I am incapable of producing outstanding descendants despite my divine capacity.”

“The Boundless Divine Regent of the Boundless Kingdom of God and the Heart Painter Divine Regent of the Heaven Breaker Kingdom of God are my best friends. However… Dian Rahu’s son, Dian Jiuzhi, is the indisputable strongest Divine Son of this generation, and Caili… I don’t need to tell you, do I? She's the perfect Godbearer who broke the record of the Heaven Breaker Kingdom of God.”

“Because of this, I rarely set foot outside the Dreamweaver Kingdom of God, much less meet up with them. I was just too ashamed to face them.”

“Every time I travel to the Pure Land to have an audience with the Abyssal Monarch, every time I stand in the presence of the other five Divine Regents… Regardless of what they actually think, I just can’t help but feel like they are casting me pitiful gazes. It was why I was always the first to leave after every audience.”

He shook his head. It was clear how anxious and bitter he felt back then.

“That lasted until a hundred years ago, when your mother gave birth to you… my Yuan’er, the Godbearer with a capacity of eighty percent divine essence.”

His tone changed drastically as he spoke of Meng Jianyuan. “You could not imagine how happy I was that day. It was ten thousand years of pent up frustration; ten thousand mountains of depression annihilated in a single instant. I don’t quite remember it myself, but they all say that I laughed like a madman for several days straight.”

Yun Che knew a little about this thanks to the memories he gathered from Meng Jianzhou’s mind.

Meng Jianyuan’s birth mother was Meng Kongchan’s youngest and most favored concubine at the time. Naturally, her giving birth to Meng Jianyuan, a Godbearer with eighty percent divine essence, posed an unignorable threat to the existing empress.

When Meng Jianyuan was born, the Dreamless Divine Regent’s mad laughter resounded throughout the Dreamweaver Kingdom of God for three days and nights. His pampering of Meng Jianyuan was such that Meng Jianzhou, the son that he previously valued the most, grew so jealous he could crush his own teeth.

In other words, Meng Jianzhou’s hatred and jealousy of Meng Jianyuan had been planted since the latter was born.

“I named you ‘Jianyuan’. Dream and reality are two opposite worlds. When you are dreaming, you have already ‘Seen The Abyss’ (Jianyuan). When you awake, you should tower above all.”

Meng Kongchan raised his head slightly with a smile on his lips, mind seemingly absorbed in old memories. “I have waited ten thousand years for your birth. At that moment, you weren’t just my son or the Divine Son of the Dreamweaver Kingdom of God anymore. You were god’s grace to me; a living miracle.”

“During that time, I only wish I could hold you in my arms twenty four hours a day. I did not let you go even when Dian Rahu and Hua Fuchen showed up in person to congratulate me… Your mother was the one and only person who could temporarily steal you from my grasp, and even then, I could barely wait more than an hour before rushing off to see you again.”

Tears appeared in the Dreamless Divine Regent once more. The way he was acting, you wouldn’t think that he was a man with almost thirty thousand children.

“When you grew up, you were closer to me than even your mother. A young child needs at least eight hours of sleep everyday, but you would refuse to sleep, or would wake up midway if I wasn’t there. So, I had no choice but to spend eight hours ‘napping’ and accompanying you everyday. Me, a Divine Regent! It was quite an amusing period, hahahaha!”

“...” Yun Che lowered his head. He could not help but share at least some of Meng Kongchan’s sentiment.

Meng Kongchan’s voice grew lower and slower then, “However, I failed to keep you safe. I named you Divine Son when you were ten years old. You were my Yuan’er after all. Why should you wait to enjoy your rightful status and identity? Well… it was a mistake. It may very well be the reason… disaster struck you.”

“Less than a year after your conferral… on the day I left to pray to your late grandfather… I returned home… to find that you were no longer there. You had disappeared from your mother’s bedroom so thoroughly that you didn't leave even a wisp of aura behind.”

“Despite my best efforts, all I could find was a wisp of fading spatial trace, and even then, so much time had passed it was impossible to identify what kind of spatial artifact had left behind such a spatial trace, much less track you down. It was proof, however. Proof that you were kidnapped by some sort of high level spatial artifact to heavens-know-where.”

Meng Kongchan let out a long, deep sigh. Even though it had been an entire century since the kidnapping, even though Meng Jianyuan had “returned”, his voice was still fraught with pain.

“I slapped myself dozens of times that day. I hated how I, a Divine Regent, had failed to protect my most precious son. Like headless flies, I dispatched countless people to search everywhere for you while praying for any news about you, any news at all from within my realm. Why? Because rather than believing the worst had happened, I would rather believe that my foe had kidnapped you for ransom. It was hardly a good scenario, but at least… it was a scenario where you would be alive.”

“Unfortunately, all I received was dead silence. Before I knew it, a century had passed.”

At this point, Yun Che finally understood why Meng Kongchan harbored such special feelings for Meng Jianyuan.

It was because Meng Jianyuan was his greatest source of joy, sorrow, and regret all at once.

That was why Meng Kongchan could never muster the same pure and passionate fatherly love again for Meng Jianxi even though the latter had awakened to his divine essence not long after Meng Jianyuan’s death, and even proved to be his better.

“We are here, Yuan’er.”

They passed through an invisible barrier and arrived at a residence spanning at least dozens of kilometers.

The main palace at the center of the residence was surrounded by dreamlike, exquisite and noble radiance. At first glance, it wasn’t inferior to even Hua Caili’s Divine Daughter Residence.

“This is the Divine Son Palace I ordered the men to build for you when you were seven. Even after you went missing, I never stopped its construction. Unfortunately, I heard nothing from you even after construction was complete.”

He lifted his arms as if to show Yun Che everything. “No one has ever lived in this Divine Son Palace since it was built. No one is allowed to even set foot inside it, because I had it built for you and you alone. Throughout the years, it has become the host of my undying obsession… the dream that you might suddenly return one day.”

He looked at Yun Che with an unspeakable expression on his face. “And what do you know? You really came back. Hahahaha.”

“I must profess his admiration for your undying love toward your son,” Yun Che said sincerely. “If I really am Meng Jianyuan, if I can really regain my memories, I am sure I will be beside myself.”

Meng Kongchan nodded. “That is all I need to hear. It’s a shame your mother didn’t…”

He abruptly cut himself off, and his smile became a lot more forced than before. “Since you have no memories right now, there is no sense to sour the mood. When the time is right, I’ll take you to her grave. May she finally be able to rest in peace under the nine springs.”

Although Meng Kongchan had chosen against speaking about Meng Jianyuan’s birth mother, Yun Che had witnessed her ending from Meng Jianzhou’s memories already.

During the fourth year Meng Jianyuan went missing, his birth mother became mentally ill and decided to leave the Kingdom of God to search for her son personally. In the end, she perished in the Endless Fog.

That was the official story, but Yun Che suspected that the truth was something else. It made far more sense if the truth was that the empress had killed off Meng Jianyuan’s birth mother in secret because she was someone who once seriously threatened her position.

Who was the empress now and then? It was none other than Meng Jianzhou and Meng Jianxi’s birth mother.

“This is the main palace… this is your bedroom… these are all guest palaces… as for this area, haha, how can my Dreamweaver Divine Son not have a place to accommodate his consort and concubines, am I right? These are…”

“... And this is your personal cultivation space.”

For the first time since the tour of the Divine Son Palace began, Yun Che stopped in his tracks. He stared at the inner palace surging with a thick profound aura.

Sensing his curiosity, Meng Kongchan immediately launched into a detailed explanation, “There is a fifty-kilometer-wide space inside this palace filled with dark cloud stones and dream crystals used to promote soul cultivation. It also has a seven-layer isolation barrier that allows you to train and experiment to your heart’s content. The great profound formations set up during the early days are still intact, and they could assist you in healing your wounds or refining abyssal crystals to the highest degree.”

Yun Che said, “You may already know this, senior divine regent, but the reason I came to the Dreamweaver Kingdom of God is to complete the trial the Heart Painter Divine Regent has set me. Therefore, I plan to spend most of my time cultivating for the next five years. However… My master is a hidden master, and the profound arts he taught me are all quite extraordinary. He warned me repeatedly not to reveal my secrets before my feathers were filled.”

“With that in mind, I have a request to make.”

Meng Kongchan nodded smilingly. “A man who values his relationship with his master, obeys his will, and keeps his oath. Very good. No need to mince words with me. Just tell me whatever you want. Actually, let me guess: you wish to further empower this cultivation space with enough isolation power to fully secure your master’s secrets, am I right?”

“That’s right!” Yun Che nodded. “Is that—”

“Hahahaha! That’s a most simple task!”

Meng Kongchan laughed and took a step forward. Then, he extended an arm.

Whoosh!

In an instant, the wind stopped, the air froze, and heaven and earth both fell completely silent. The Dreamless Divine Regent’s clothes and hair billowed as the power of a True God slowly surged out of his palm.

As Yun Che was standing next to him, the Dreamless Divine Regent made sure to circulate his power gently. Even so, the forcefield alone was enough to cause the blue sky to sink, and the earth to quake soundlessly.

The power of a True God… Yun Che silently clenched his right fist.

If such power is allowed to enter my universe… all realms can be turned to rotten earth with the flick of a finger.

Even if these True Gods choose to stay their hands, their existence alone would cause the already fragile laws of the God Realm to collapse. Such is their power.

There are only forty nine years left…

I must not allow anyone from the Abyss to set half a foot into the God Realm!

No one… never… no matter what!!!

The True God forcefield lasted a hundred breaths or so before Meng Kongchan finally lowered his arm, and the world began to breathe once more. Yun Che’s tightened chest slowly began to relax as well.

A faint silver isolation barrier had appeared outside the cultivation space.

Meng Kongchan pointed, and a bead of blood immediately flew out of Yun Che’s fingertip. After Meng Kongchan flicked it to the isolation barrier, it soundlessly melted into it.

The isolation barrier flickered a little before slowly vanishing and turning formless.

The barrier was completely formless and untraceable when it was still. It would emit a True God’s aura immediately once it was triggered.

Having completed “Yuan’er’s” first request, Meng Kongchan looked to be in a supremely good mood. He put one hand behind his back and beamed at Yun Che, “It is done. This is an isolation barrier I have built using the power of a True God, and you are the only one who can enter or leave it. Now, not even I will be able to cross into the cultivation space without alerting you.”

“Besides that, I have left my soul imprint on the barrier. If someone dares to breach it by force, I will personally rush over to expel the audacious bastard.”

“Finally, I will reinforce it every fifty years. This way, you may cultivate to your heart’s content.”

It was at this moment Meng Kongchan’s eyebrows twitched. He turned around and said with a mixture of exasperation, guilt and regret, “Yuan’er, news of your return has already spread throughout the kingdom and caused quite the commotion. I must return to handle things, so stay here and familiarize yourself with everything… don’t worry. Every brick, every stone, every tree, and every blade of grass in this place exists for your sake. Worry not about consequences and just do whatever you want.”

He did not seem to want to watch Yun Che performing the salute of a junior because he jumped and vanished into the clouds instantly. After he was gone, a message slowly entered Yun Che’s ears and into his heart, “Yuan’er, I know you cannot accept being ‘Meng Jianyuan’ due to your missing memories. It’s fine. There is no need to be hasty, nor do you need to force yourself to remember. Back then, I already owed you far too much for failing to protect you. Now that you’ve returned… in the name of the divine regent, I swear I won’t allow anyone to harm a hair on your person ever again.”

“...” Yun Che watched the spot where Meng Kongchan departed with complex feelings.

It wasn’t until Meng Kongchan was long gone that Li Suo spoke up, “Yet again, you’ve succeeded.”

“I did… in fact, I might have been a little too successful.”

Yun Che replied as he walked toward the cultivation space. As soon as his body made contact with the barrier, a silver flash took place, and a gap automatically opened on the barrier. Once Yun Che was through, the gap mended in an instant, and the barrier turned invisible and formless once more.

Yun Che was now standing in the middle of a fifty-kilometer-wide space. It was filled with dreamy lights and so much spirit energy it felt luxurious.

“Did you… alter Meng Kongchan’s cognition?” Li Suo asked.

“Yeah.” Yun Che answered, “When the Nirvana Devil Emperor Soul breached his defenses, I engraved the recognition ‘I am Meng Jianyuan’ into his soul.”

“He may be a True God, but not even he could remove the backlash of a Devil Emperor. He will never realize the truth until he dies.”

The imprint of cognition the Nirvana Devil Emperor Soul had engraved into Meng Kongchan’s soul would make him believe that Yun Che was Meng Jianyuan absolutely. Even if someone were to present him with a million bits of irrefutable evidence that he, Yun Che, was definitely not Meng Jianyuan, the divine regent still wouldn’t waver one bit.

“Aren’t you afraid that you will be exposed?” Li Suo asked with reasonable worry. “Meng Kongchan would never doubt you, but what about the others? After all, your bloodline, your soul… there are countless things that may irrevocably expose you for who you are.”

“You’re overthinking this.” Yun Che did not look worried in the slightest though. “Meng Kongchan is the divine regent of the Dreamweaver Kingdom of God. Put yourself in another person’s shoes: is it possible for the divine regent of a Kingdom of God to misidentify his own son?”

“The most paranoid man in the world may suspect his wife’s infidelity, but not even he would doubt that one of the highest powers in the Abyss, a divine regent, would mistake someone else for his own son—especially since this is the Dreamless Divine Regent we’re talking about, the being with the greatest soul energy, the one person who could not possibly misidentify his son.”

“In the extremely unlikely event that someone actually suspects something, then they must face the rage of a Divine Regent the second they voice their doubts. The Dreamless Divine Regent will stop anyone from attempting to test my blood or soul before they so much as suggest such a thing, and as for my age, I’ve already disguised that sufficiently.”

“Therefore, so long as Meng Kongchan believes that I am Meng Jianyuan, no one will suspect that I’m not Meng Jianyuan. The only two people who could have exposed me as a fraud, Meng Jianyuan’s two killers (Meng Jianzhou and Meng Jingzhe), have died as well. Therefore, I am fully secure.”

“...” Li Suo seemed to understand his explanation. She asked another question, “By the way, is it just me, or did you engrave more than just the recognition that you are Meng Jianyuan with the Nirvana Devil Emperor Soul?”

“Of course!” Yun Che nodded with chilly eyes. “The Nirvana Devil Emperor Soul created such a massive gap in Meng Kongchan’s soul. It would’ve been far too wasteful to engrave just the recognition. I have left behind three suggestions in his soul as well.”

“Suggestions?”

“Just three.” Yun Che did not go into details, though it was clear from his tone that he lamented the lost opportunity. “There was a chance I might be discovered if I was greedy, so I had to restrain myself.”

The corners of Yun Che’s lips curled up as he stared at the cultivation space that belonged to him and him alone. He never thought that this would happen. He was sure that it would take him far, far more effort to acquire this space, so for it to practically fall into his lap from the beginning… This was a much better start than he thought he would have.

“Originally, my plan was to step on Meng Jianxi again and again until the position of Divine Son was slanted in my favor. This way, I’d be able to make increasingly useful demands to Meng Kongchan.”

“I wasn’t expecting Meng Kongchan’s love for Meng Jianyuan to be this special, however.” Yun Che let out a deep sigh. “It is on par with Hua Fuchen’s love for Caili.”

“It is a combination of love and guilt,” Li Suo added.

Yun Che spread his arms and closed his eyes a little. “So far, it looks like the fate of the Abyss is on my side[1].”

Li Suo fell silent for a moment, but in the end, she couldn’t help but ask, “Why are you doing all this?”

“It’s simple.” Yun Che was frank for once. “Fundamental speaking, the best way to stop the Abyss from setting foot into God Realm is to steal or destroy the ‘Nether Mirror,’ the profound artifact the Abyssal Monarch uses to open the abyssal passage.”

“Unfortunately, the Abyssal Monarch is far too powerful and distant right now. Therefore, I can only change my strategy and destroy… the energy sources that fuel the ‘Nether Mirror’ instead.”

“You mean… you’re planning to destroy the divine origins of all six Kingdoms of God?” Li Suo whispered, though she wasn’t too surprised by this.

The “Nether Mirror” could only be activated once every fifty years, and each time, it cost the full power of the Abyssal Monarch, the Four High Priests, and the Seven True Gods of the six Kingdoms of God.

If he could destroy all of the divine origins, the Six Kingdoms of God would lose their True God inheritance, and the “Nether Mirror” would lose its fuel source… It wouldn’t be a perfect severance, but it would delay its activation for a very long time.

“That’s right!” Yun Che schemed. “Boundless, Heaven Breaker, and Dreamweaver are already inside my web. I have a plan for the Star and Moon Kingdom of God as well. As for the Owl Butterfly Kingdom of God, they mainly practice dark profound energy. Although I haven’t made any contact with them yet, I am certain that they are the easiest Kingdom of God to deal with.”

“The Eternal Night Kingdom of God though… Even if the rumors weren’t exaggerated, the Lightless Divine Regent is at least an eccentric character who loathes men and detests making contact with other Kingdoms of God. That's the biggest problem here, and I have no idea how to deal with it right now.”

Males were slaves in the Eternal Night Kingdom of God. As a male, just setting foot inside the kingdom of god would prove to be a most difficult problem, much less anything else.

He could only wrap up his current business and tackle them later.

1. Clatter clatter. ☜