Against the Gods

To say that Yun Che’s words were stunning, and the expressions of the audience—slack, stupefied, dazed, amused and more—awe-inspiring would probably be the understatement of the century.

This was doubly true in the case of Meng Cangji, the man who stood above countless and answered to only one man in the Dreamweaver Kingdom of God. Not even the Dream Lords had ever seen such an expression on him.

Meng Cangji was Meng Cangji, however. Despite being completely caught off guard by Yun Che’s response, he quickly calmed down and replied in a calm, heavy voice, “As expected of the son of the supreme one. You really are intelligent beyond imagination. What you just said does fit what I was thinking.”

“Your cultivation and Jianxi’s are worlds apart. Anyone can see that. Your cultivation is far below that of a Dreamweaver profound practitioner’s. Anyone can see that as well. Since you’re so self-aware, you should understand that, for now at least, you are not fit to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Jianxi.”

He paused for a brief moment before his voice turned harsh, “As for arranging a profound practitioner of the same cultivation level to humiliate you… what nonsense are you talking about?”

“You are the supreme one’s son, Meng Jianyuan. You of all people should be careful what you say! Your appearance is undisciplined, you hold no respect for your elders, and now you’re talking nonsense? How can someone like you… deserve to be the Dreamweaver Divine Son?”

Meng Cangji’s rebuke was logical, aggressive, and filled with the lamentations of a senior toward a junior… But anyone who knew him would know that he was just provoked. He, an old man who was tens of thousands of years old, had been provoked by a junior he just met.

“Talking nonsense?”

In contrast, Yun Che’s expression didn’t change much. He put on a doubtful look anyone with eyes would know was fake and said, “That is strange. If you wish to stop me from becoming the Dreamweaver Divine Son, then you must question and attack my talent and cultivation. And to prove that your argument isn’t baseless, you must arrange a handful of profound practitioners at my cultivation level to challenge me and humiliate me in public. Only then would I cease dreaming about becoming the Divine Son… no, surely not! You cannot tell me that you haven’t even prepared such an obvious and perfect follow-up!”

His eyes widened a little as he turned to Meng Jianxi with innocent puzzlement. “Divine Son Jianxi, surely the people of your clique cannot be so useless?”

Meng Cangji was a grandmaster at hiding his emotions, but at this point, even he could not stop his long, white beard from shaking a little.

“Pff…” Dian Jiuzhi snorted out loud before mastering his reaction instantly. It was almost as if nothing had happened.

The word “clique” was a sensitive one be it a Kingdom of God or a force outside the Kingdom of God.

Meng Jianxi’s fate was bound to the clique he was born to, the one helmed by his maternal side no less. Everyone in the Dreamweaver Kingdom of God was aware of this even though they did not say it out loud.

No one was expecting “Meng Jianyuan”, the prodigal son who just returned to his homeland after a whole century and hadn’t even properly set foot in the Dreamweaver Kingdom of God, to voice this taboo in front of everyone.

“...” Meng Kongchan’s expression remained unchanged. He simply kept quiet and waited for the situation to continue unfolding.

He hadn’t forgotten the day Hua Fuchen had smiled a fox’s smile and told him to just let Yun Che fend for himself.

Strangely, despite the fact that Yun Che was facing off against Meng Cangji, Meng Xuanji, Meng Kongdu… Meng Jianxi’s whole clique, really, Meng Kongchan did not feel worried in the slightest.

Maybe it was because he subconsciously thought that winning Hua Caili’s heart, a young woman who shared a marriage engagement with Dian Jiuzhi right under Hua Qingying’s nose… was far harder than facing the Nine Dream Halls alone.

As myriad emotions brewed inside the hall, Meng Jianxi rose to his feet. He was no longer smiling, and his eyebrows were slightly furrowed. “Brother Yuan, that is incorrect. All sons and daughters of Dreamweaver share the same roots. We may have our differing opinions, but we are all striving to better our kingdom. There has never been such a thing as a clique in Dreamweaver, and there never will be. In the future, make sure you do not use that word again, Brother Yuan.”

His expression was serious, and his statement was simple and well thought out. In just a few words, he had expressed the disapproval of a Divine Son toward an ordinary son of the divine regent, and an older brother toward his younger brother. There was also a tinge of visible disappointment in his reprimand as well.

Not only that, his last sentence might sound like gentle advice, but if you really thought about it, it could also be interpreted as scorn. It was as if he was saying: You think the likes of you deserves the malicious attack of the Lords of Dream Hall? Really?

Yun Che remained smiling despite facing Meng Jianxi himself. “Oh, is that so? Then…”

Yun Che suddenly raised his hand and pointed toward the crowd. A few wisps of fiery profound light instantly flew over to a few young profound practitioners sitting at the back of the audience as he asked, “Who are those people?”

The crowd immediately turned to look at the people with red profound light hovering above their heads. In that instant, the six Dream Lords under Meng Jianxi felt their hearts beating furiously, and Meng Jianze broke his long silence and blanched. Such was his shock that he nearly lost his composure and rose to his feet.

It was because the night people being pointed by the profound light were all people he had personally arranged to “challenge” Yun Che at the right time.

Not one more, not one less!

It was as if Yun Che could see right through him. The shock he received was no joke at all.

Meng Jianxi was still calm despite all this. Yun Che admired his composure while saying, “These nine people are very strange. While the divine regent, the Chief Lord and the other Dream Lords were exchanging conversation, everyone was paying close attention except these nine. Every time their gazes brushed past me, I could clearly feel them recoiling and cringing as if afraid of something. Despite this, they wouldn’t stop looking at me.”

“Even better, all nine of them just happens to be a level three Divine Master like me.”

These nine profound practitioners hailed from vassal states of the Dreamweaver Kingdom of God, and they all harbored ulterior motives. As Yun Che said, they were already anxious and afraid to begin with. Now that they were singled out by Yun Che and watched by everyone, they were so tense that their complexions ranged between beet red and deathly pale. To say that they looked uncomfortable would be an understatement.

“Meng Jianyuan!”

Meng Jianxi addressed Yun Che by his “real name” directly as if he was angry. He stopped concealing his disappointment altogether and said, “You have just escaped a life of tragedy and returned to the embrace of Dreamweaver. I believed I have done everything I could to tolerate you and accommodate you. But what you did today is just beyond the pale! How could you slander these innocent profound practitioners and drag them into the mess you made?!”

His voice was filled with disappointment and increasing frustration, “Perhaps you were forced to learn some dirty laws of survival during the hundred years you were away, but this is the Dreamweaver Kingdom of God. A son or daughter of Dreamweaver should be pure in soul, know their actions and be broad and level! How can you resort to such despicable methods?”

“You realize that this won’t help you become the Divine Son at all? On the contrary, it will… it will…”

He let out a long sigh as if to vent his anger and force the remnants back into his chest. Then, he said in a much gentler and amiable voice, “Don’t be like this, Brother Yuan. At the very least, you shouldn’t let down Father, who cherishes you and accommodates you like no one else.”

Meng Jianxi’s words drew everyone’s thoughts to the laws of survival outside the Kingdom of God. There was no one who wasn’t aware of the terror of abyssal dust, and the laws of survival it generated were beyond cruel to say the least. For anyone to wander the outside world for a hundred years… they could only imagine how it would warp a man. It was natural for a survivor to resort to dirty and despicable tactics.

Meng Jianxi thought his chosen words were perfect, and that it would sour Yun Che’s expression at least a little. However, he quickly found himself disappointed because Yun Che’s smile hadn’t diminished in the slightest. Not only that, he was astonished to find a bit of jarring disdain creeping onto his smile.

Clap! Clap! Clap!

“Well said, well said!” Yun Che praised while clapping his hands. “Do make absolutely certain that you remember what you just said, Divine Son Jianxi.”

While Meng Jianxi was talking, Meng Jianze had finished communicating with his pawns via sound transmission. He chose this moment to stand up and say loudly, “Your Highness, all of Dreamweaver knows of your magnanimity and great self-cultivation. But you can see just like me that Meng Jianyuan is beyond hope. You should not waste your efforts on him.”

He then turned to face Meng Kongchan and bowed deeply. “Father! You have witnessed Meng Jianyuan’s behavior and conduct with your own eyes. He has no ethics, no culture, and no respect for anyone. It is bad enough that he disrespected his elders, but he even slandered His Highness and the Dream Lords right in front of you! To resort to such despicable methods… If such a man were to become the Dreamweaver Divine Son, forget the outsiders, even I would feel indescribably ashamed.”

Yun Che side-eyed Meng Jianze for an instant before putting on a look of realization and wonderment. “Oh! You’re Meng Jianze, the one they call the number one dog of Meng Jianxi! Well met, legend! Well met!”

How do you anger the son of a Divine Regent in one breath?

That was how.

Meng Jianze’s smooth, pale face began turning red, blue, then purple at an unbelievable rate right before everyone’s eyes.

Meng Jianze knew he needed to maintain his composure, but the blood rushing, no, jetting into his skull still caused him to growl out, “Meng… Jian.. Yuan… You…!”

Suddenly, there was a surge of profound aura, and a figure leaped onto the stage. He dropped to his knees before Meng Kongchan and said, “This one is the thirty-seventh prince of the Restful Dream Empire, An Zhiming. This one dares to request a duel with Prince Yuan.”

Obviously, An Zhiming’s sudden interruption drew everyone’s attention. He was also one of the nine people whom Yun Che pointed out with his profound energy earlier.

His voice was hoarse, and he was trembling from head to toe. His head was bowed so deep it was almost touching the floor. Despite this… he had openly challenged a prince who was about to be conferred a Divine Son.

Meng Kongchan afforded An Zhiming his side eye and asked, “Why?”

“Divine regent,” An Zhiming kept his head bowed. “I am just a prince of a small nation, but even small people have their own dignity. Earlier, I was slandered by Prince Yuan for no reason whatsoever, but did not dare to say anything because I am of humble character and body… However, my imperial family owes Prince Jianze a huge favor, and Prince Yuan dared to belittle him. I can tolerate a baseless slander, but not the vile words against my benefactor!”

“Since Prince Yuan believes that I am a pawn arranged to fight him anyway…” He glanced in Yun Che’s direction and said, “Then I might as well do as he wishes. As a fellow level three Divine Master, I challenge you to a duel, Prince Yuan!”

At this point, An Zhiming knew that his retreat was cut off. His voice actually gained a bit of strength as he declared, “As Prince Yuan says,I am just a humble person from a small vassal state. I am sure that Prince Yuan can best me handily.”

“But if this one somehow manages to gain the upper hand… in our eyes, the Dreamweaver Divine Son is someone who is like the gate of heavens or a god. If Prince Yuan cannot even best me… then even a humble outsider like me cannot accept someone like that to become the Dreamweaver Divine Son.”

Meng Kongchan listened to him from the start until the end. Then, a small smile crossed his lips as he said meaningfully, “You know that you are an outsider from a small nation, and you dare to say such a thing before this divine regent? Hah. You may be humble, but your gall rivals that of the heavens.”

An Zhiming remained kneeling, afraid to move even a muscle.

Meng Jianxi’s heart and soul skipped a beat, however.

Meng Kongchan did not wait for a reaction from An Zhiming. He turned to Yun Che and asked, “What do you think, Yuan’er?”

Yun Che gave him a small nod and took two steps toward An Zhiming. He said while sending a gust of profound energy toward the prince, “An Zhiming, is it? Rise.”

Before An Zhiming knew it, a gust of profound energy had lifted him to his feet. When he looked up, he found himself coming face to face with Yun Che.

“Hmm… your attire and ornaments are all very luxurious, and your profound energy is quite pure. You must enjoy plenty of high level resources to make it to this level. I don’t think you would dare to take such a huge risk just for a shot at a better future and opportunity.”

Yun Che looked An Zhiming up and down without a care while prattling away seemingly without aim.

“Your eyes are clear and pure. As expected of a prince born in an imperial family. You probably lead a smooth life with little difficulty, and someone like you probably has a fairly clean record. This means that it is unlikely that you have a fatal weakness that someone could use to manipulate you.”

“In that case, there is only one possibility left.” Yun Che narrowed his eyes a little. “Speak. Which one of your family or friends was taken hostage? Or perhaps… you were threatened with the fate of your entire imperial family?”

An Zhiming visibly shook once, and his pupils contracted for a brief instant. He forced himself to remain calm and retorted, “What hostage? I don’t understand what nonsense you are spouting, Prince Yuan…”

“Hahaha!” Yun Che burst out laughing as if he heard a funny joke. “Do you truly not understand what I’m saying, or are you just pretending not to understand?”

He abruptly ripped his gaze away from An Zhiming and declared in a profound energy-empowered voice that shook the sky, “I may have gone missing for a hundred years and lost my past, but the Dreamless Divine Regent’s love for me hasn’t diminished one bit. Despite knowing that he would face fierce opposition and pressure, he still chose to make me the Divine Son. Anyone can tell how much he loves me from this alone.”

“That is why even the clique that opposes my conferral the most, Meng Jianxi’s clique, has no choice but to send their own Dream Lords to voice the opposition. After all, who else beneath this level would be stupid enough to touch the Dreamless Divine Regent’s reverse scale?

Once again Meng Jianxi’s heart and soul skipped a beat, and this time his eyebrows were furrowed as well. Yun Che gave him no room to interject, however.

“As for you,” Yun Che turned his gaze back to An Zhiming. “You are a little prince of a little vassal state, and you dared to object to the Dreamless Divine Regent's wish to confer as a Divine Son to his face? Phew… audacious would be too weak a word to describe your gall. I am sure you understand that it takes but the flick of a finger—literally—for the divine regent to wipe out your imperial family and even your nation, right?”

An Zhiming clenched his hands tightly and trembled like a leaf.

“You did this anyway despite knowing the potential consequences, so you could only have been forced into it.” The corners of Yun Che’s lips curled up a little as he continued unhurriedly, “Someone forced you to challenge me, a soon-to-be-Divine-Son as a vassal state profound practitioner.”

“If I accept this challenge, and you, a fellow level three Divine Master from a vassal state, succeed in defeating me… it would be an unforgettable brand of shame on my person. Even the Dreamless Divine Regent would find it difficult to confer me a Divine Son. If I reject your challenge, then I am a coward who did not even have the courage to answer the challenge of a vassal state profound practitioner at my cultivation level. I wouldn’t deserve to be the Dreamweaver Divine Son either, right? Tsk tsk!”

Yun Che shrugged and shook his head. “What a cheap and pathetic tactic. A sow[1] would be able to see through this in one glance, and a donkey would be able to tell who the one behind this move is.”

“As for those shoddy reasons you gave me, heavens, even a sow would shake its head in disbelief. Oh wait, you had to come up with a new excuse because I exposed your original excuse. So sorry to trouble you so.”

With that said, he swept his gaze across countless stupefied faces and asked in a voice of dumb innocence, “I mean, it is obvious, right? Surely there isn’t a single person at this venue who hasn’t seen through it, right?”

No one answered him, and everyone was wearing strange expressions on their faces.

As Yun Che said, there wasn’t a single person here who did not know who the one person was who did not want Meng Jianyuan to become a Dreamweaver Divine Son the most. It was the same for the Chief Lord, Meng Xuanji, everyone in Meng Jianxi’s clique.

It was impossible not to know after Yun Che had laid it out as clearly as it could possibly be.

The tactic Meng Jianxi’s clique was using was very simple. However, it was also very effective. The fact was that Meng Jianyuan had just returned to the Dreamweaver Kingdom of God seven days ago, and his cultivation was only Divine Master Realm. He did not possess a lick of foundation or loyalty from the kingdom and so did not deserve to be conspired against meticulously. If anything, some might argue that they were already too much.

Overt and covert conflicts, conspiracies and schemes were happening in any Kingdom of God or faction everyday. However, no one imagined that this “Meng Jianyuan” who seemed to have fallen out of the sky would rip open this loincloth completely and bare the ugly private parts for everyone to see.

He wasn’t just exposing the “cheap and pathetic” tactic, he was ripping off the faces of the important people of the Dreamweaver Kingdom of God as well.

No scruples, no mercy, no leeway!

Bang!

“Meng Jianyuan!”

Meng Jianxi rose to his feet. At this point, he had to show anger even if he didn’t want to.

He glared at Meng Jianyuan and yelled, “Are you implying that I’m doing all this!?”

“Oh no no no,” Yun Che hurriedly denied the accusation, “I’m not implying, I’m telling you that you are the one behind this.”

1. Picking up those slangs from Ni Xuan without trying. ☜