Against the Gods

Chapter 1988 - Snort

Partially Edited Chapter - Rubble

“You won’t succeed!” Helian Lingzhu shouted at the duo while supporting her father, “Our empire has ruled the Qilin Abyss Realm for countless years. It will not fall to the likes of you!”

“Is that so? I’m pretty sure that your father and your wannabe husband do not share your sentiment.” Zhuai Liancheng chuckled. “It’s fine though. Considering how much time you have left, your naivety could be a boon instead of a curse.”

“You—!”

“Enough.” It was at this moment Helian Jue raised his hand and interrupted Helian Lingzhu’s retort. “I’ve always known this might happen, but not so quickly and definitely not from the Qilin Worship Alliance.”

“What else do you have to say? Speak.”

Helian Jue managed to get back on his feet, but he was still twitching from pain from time to time. It was a pitiful sight.

“You will skip this year’s Qilin Abyss Conference.” Zhuai Liancheng decided to skip the theatrics this time. “There’s barely enough Qillin God Realm to be shared between four factions. Five? Someone has to be cut, and it’s gonna be you, of course.”

Mo Cangying’s lungs nearly exploded from sheer fury. “The Qilin God Realm was set up by the Abyssal Monarch himself! You dare—”

“We would never break the Abyssal Monarch’s rules.” Zhuai Liancheng interrupted him smilingly. “But the right to enter the Qilin God Realm has always been decided by strength. If you think you’re qualified to participate, then feel free to show your faces. We are more than willing to watch you humiliate yourself.”

Zhuai Liancheng exchanged a mocking laugh with Ximen Qi before adding, “By the way, did you know that the Abyssal Knight overseeing this year’s Qilin Abyss Conference is Ximen Boyun? Who would’ve thought, right?”

The blows kept coming like it would never end. Mo Cangying was gritting his teeth so hard his gums were bleeding.

The Qilin God Realm was where the final Qilin lived and the place with the richest amount of earth element.

It would not be an exaggeration to say that countless geniuses were made, and bottlenecks were broken in the Qilin God Realm.

Even Helian Lingzhu, who had been stuck at peak Divine Sovereign Realm for ages, was hoping to achieve her breakthrough in the Qilin God Realm.

If they lost even the right to enter the Qilin God Realm, then it would truly be over for the Helian Empire.

“We may be no match for the three sects, but who says we cannot defeat the Qilin Worship Alliance?” Mo Cangying uttered.

If only for Helian Lingzhu, he would never give up the right to participate in the Qilin God Realm without a fight.

“You are correct! It has only been a while since the Qilin God Alliance was founded after all. As you say, they may not necessarily be able to defeat the Helian Empire.”

“But you seem to have forgotten something important.” Zhuai Liancheng stared at Mo Cangying with half-lidded eyes. “The Qilin Worship Alliance is backed by an Abyssal Knight right now! With senior Ximen’s authority, it would be all too easy for him to recruit powerful helpers!”

“But the Helian Empire can’t do that, now can you? You don’t even have enough resources left to raise your warriors. Do you think you can hire even one person who is strong enough to perform well enough in the Qilin Abyss Conference?”

Mo Cangying couldn’t say anything to that.

Ximen Qi joined in leisurely, “If you really want us to step on your faces so badly, then I don’t mind giving you an early warning.”

He raised one finger and slowly bent it like he was crushing an ant. “We’ve recruited many powerful helpers for this conference, but one of them is enough to crush every. Single. One of you.”

“You and your so-called geniuses are welcome to taste their might, but I give no promises whether you will come back alive.”

“Are you done?” Helian Jue’s face turned as white as a sheet. He was starting to weaken again due to the rampaging profound energy in his heart. “If you’re done, then get lost.”

“Please hang on a little longer, Your Majesty,” Zhuai Liancheng taunted mercilessly, “I haven’t talked about the lifeline we have specifically prepared for you. If you refuse to listen, you may not get a second chance.”

“...” Helian Jue wanted to tell Zhua Liancheng to fuck off, but the word “lifeline” resonated deeply with his soul. His chest heaved with exertion, but in the end he uttered, “Speak!”

Zhuai Liancheng smiled. “The Helian Family was the rulers of the Qilin Abyss Realm for many years. If conflict were to arise because of the change of power, people would get hurt, and the entire Qilin Abyss Realm would suffer. And if someone was too stubborn to see the light, why, your entire lineage might just be eradicated from existence. It would sadden us deeply to see this happen.”

He was practically threatening them to their faces, but every person in the hall knew it could very well happen. It would be all too easy for the Boulder Profound Sect, the Thousand Blade Sect and the Fiery Sand Sect to crush the Helian Empire.

Helian Jue was full of sorrow, regret, and hatred toward himself. If he hadn’t abandoned Mo Beichen’s family back then, the Abyssal Knight would’ve become the Helian Empire’s strongest backbone. At the very least, the three sects would not have the gall to kick them while they were down.

“For the sake of my Qilin Abyss Realm, and for the sake for whatever dignity you have left, the Qilin Worship Alliance has magnanimously decided to bestow you another option.”

“We will allow you the chance to submit to the Qilin Worship Alliance via political marriage!”

Before Helian Jue could react, Zhuai Liancheng looked at Helian Lingzhu and said, “As a show of sincerity, the bride-to-be is of course, the most beloved and reputable member of your family, the First Princess.”

He then half-turned toward Ximen Qi and bowed, “As for the groom, it will have to be young master Qi. I hope you don’t mind, young master Qi.”

“Not at all,” replied Ximen Qi while staring at Helian Lingzhu with undisguised, no, intentional lust.

Bang!

Every hair on Mo Cangying’s head stood on end as profound energy exploded from his body. His eyes looked like they might rip themselves apart from how wide they were.

“Oh no!” Zhuai Liancheng taunted, “The emperor and the princess haven’t said anything yet, and it looks like the wannabe husband is about to blow his top!”

“Wannabe husband indeed!” Ximen Qi scoffed in disdain.

Buzz!

A translucent layer of rocks and soil surrounded Zhuai Liancheng as he gathered his own power. “Do you want to fight me, Mo Cangying? Come on! Of all the dogs of Helian, you are the one I hate the most. There is nothing I would enjoy more than ripping your wings off with my own two hands!”

“No! Don’t!” Helian Lingzhu grabbed Mo Cangying’s arm tightly. There was no way the Helian Empire could fight against the three sects and the Qilin Worship Alliance at the same time. Their chances of winning were less than zero. So what should they do in this situation?

If they fought to the death, the Helian lineage might become extinct, and all that was left of their empire was a mountain of corpses and their history. If they submitted, they would lose all of their dignity, but at least they would be able to preserve their bloodline.

This was the “lifeline” the three sects and the Qilin Worship Alliance offered them, but it was one that was full of shame.

At this point, Helian Jue was almost mindless with pain. Even so, he bit his tongue to regain a moment of clarity before staring at Ximen Qi and uttering the most humiliating words of his life, “A political marriage is acceptable, but you cannot be the match! At the very least, it must be Ximen Borong’s chosen heir, the young master of the Qilin Worship Alliance—Ximen Hong!”

Ximen Qi seemed powerful, but there was no way he was Ximen Bohong’s heir. If he was, there was no way Helian Jue wouldn’t recognize him. There was absolutely no way he would accept his daughter marrying a common son of Ximen Bohong!

“Your… Majesty?” Voice hoarse, Mo Cangying turned around to stare at Helian Jue in disbelief. His anger and profound energy became distorted as if they had been ripped apart by something.

Zhuai Liancheng and Ximen Qi were stunned for a second. Then, they burst out laughing on top of their lungs.

“Hahahaha! Ahahahahahahahaha!” Zhuai Liancheng literally could not control himself. He was swaying back and forth like he had heard the funniest joke in the world. “What on earth are you thinking, Helian Jue?”

“Are you senile? Do you think that the Helian Dynasty is still what it was?”

“The only reason we’re even offering you a lifeline is because of your Guardian Ancestor. Do you really think your First Princess even deserves to be Young Master Qi’s concubine otherwise?”

Concubine!?

The concubine of a common son of Ximen Bohong!?

“How… dare… you?!”

Mo Cangying could not withstand his beloved being shamed this way, of course. He looked like he was seconds away from bursting a vein. He would have attacked them already if Helian Lingzhu and Helian Jue weren’t nearby.

“You seem to think it’s a dishonor for your First Princess to marry Young Master Qi, but really, it’s not.” Zhuai Liancheng’s tone turned respectful as he said, “When Senior Ximen returned from the Pure Land, he proclaimed Young Master Qi to be the most outstanding genius of the entire Qilin Worship Alliance—no, the entire Qilin Abyss Realm.”

“He became a peak Divine Sovereign in less than 360 years. He would’ve entered the Divine Master Realm if Alliance Master Xi and Senior Ximen hadn’t told him to hold himself back and solidify his foundation some more.”

Ximen Qi accepted his companion’s praise with a bright smile.

Zhuai Liancheng continued, “Your First Princess is a peak Divine Sovereign as well, but I dare say that two of her are still no match for him.”

“Hah!” Ximen Qi scoffed before declaring arrogantly, “Forget the Helian Empire, there is no one in the entire realm below the Divine Master Realm who is a match for me! So tell me again, Your Majesty. Who’s the one who is unworthy between me and your daughter?”

The blood rose back to Helian Jue’s face until he looked beet red.

The Helian Family was stuck in their ways for so long that the world had literally surpassed them.

Even a common son was enough to pressure their whole empire!

“Heh~~”

It was when the Helian father and daughter were at the bottom of their despair, and Mo Cangying at the height of his anger when someone scoffed under his breath.

It was so quiet that it should have been inaudible, but it was such a harsh contrast to the tense atmosphere in the main hall that everyone heard it as clear as day.

A certain invisible man had finally stepped into the open and drawn both Zhuai Liancheng and Ximen Qi’s attention.

“Why are you scoffing?” Ximen Qi narrowed his eyes.

As a junior, he had literally driven the emperor of the Helian Empire to illness. The man was angry enough to rip him to shreds, but he didn’t actually dare to express anger. It was easily one of the most exhilarating experiences of his life.

Then, a nobody had spoiled the mood with his untimely scoffing.