Against the Gods (Web Novel)

“Young human, you do not need to be worried. I am a mere wisp of a residual soul left behind by the Primordial Azure Dragon that watches over this trial ground. I won’t harm you.” The ancient voice sounded once more; an honorable dignity was expressed through this voice, yet it was also as gentle as the wind.

“Primordial… Azure Dragon?” Yun Che lifted his head and looked upwards as he bewilderedly pondered this name repeatedly. And in the deepest part of his mind, actually came a completely shocked Jasmine’s voice. “What? Primordial Azure Dragon? Head of the various Divine Beasts in the Primordial Era, the Dragon God —— Primordial Azure Dragon!?”

A pair of mysterious eyes suddenly opened in the pitch-black space overhead. These two eyes were huge, yet long and narrow; they were about the same shape as a human’s eyes… This scene resembled the phoenix eyes Yun Che had seen in the phoenix trial grounds. What was different was that the phoenix eyes were gold while these eyes were an azure blue color that was deeper than the skies.

At the same time, as if the sky had capsized, an endless expanse of aura descended. In front of this field of aura, Yun Che suddenly felt as if he were as minuscule as a single grain of sand in front of this mountain.

This aura's depth, far surpassed the phoenix aura he had experienced that day!

Enveloped beneath this soul's aura, Yun Che was completely incapable of suspecting any hint of untruth behind what the voice had previously said. This was a kind of absolute power that suppressed the interference of the mind. And at the same time, this soul's aura was simply that terrifying; how could it even be possible for that voice to tell an untruth?

"Primordial Azure Dragon's residual soul... Trial grounds... Don't tell me that this place is the same as the phoenix secret grounds; is a place that you had temporarily stopped at one time and is a place where you left behind a power to pass on to future generations?" Yun Che lifted his head to look at the pair of azure blue eyes as he asked unhurriedly.

"Correct. The Era of the Gods had long since ended, and True Gods had also completely vanished. But we were not willing to completely disappear from the world, and would attempt to use various sorts of methods to leave behind a vestige of our strength to pass onto those of the future generation we had an affinity with, who would then pass on what used to be our strength to their future generation for an eternity... After waiting all these years, I have finally found a fated one. And within this millennia, you are the first."

"Me? The first?"

"Right, the first after a thousand years." The Primordial Azure Dragon's voice echoed: "A thousand years ago, there were a hundred twenty nine challengers who had arrived at this place. But after that, two Flood Dragons came here while following my aura and never left. Furthermore, they rapidly matured under the nourishment of the Dragon God aura and reached the pinnacle of the Sky Profound Realm. The level of strength in this land is extremely low; therefore, the existence of these two Flood Dragons made it fundamentally impossible for humans to approach this place. Added to the fact that this area had long since become a profound beast gathering’s Wasteland of Death, whose bad reputation had been spread far and wide, those who have the courage and ability to approach this place have grown less and less; sometimes it has even been difficult to even see one person once every hundred years.”

“No wonder there’s actually this many profound beasts gathered here, so it’s because of the Dragon God aura’s existence.” Jasmine softly said: “The gathering of so many profound beasts in the Ten Thousand Beast Mountain Range is because of the Phoenix’s aura, and the reason behind this region’s, is because of the Dragon God’s aura! Out of all the Primordial Divine Beasts, the Dragon God is at the top of the list; its level, far surpasses that of the Phoenix! After the fall of numerous gods, there were so many who wished to find any vestiges of the Dragon God even in their dreams; with the extravagant hopes of obtaining any power the Dragon God had left behind. Never would they have expected that it had actually left behind its legacy in this little Profound Sky Continent.”

“Although you being able to reach here was not based on your own power, it was still destined by fate. You are qualified to undergo the trial I had left behind… If you are able to pass through the trial I had left behind, I can grant you three drops of Azure Dragon blood and let you possess Dragon God’s bloodline. Are, you willing?”

Yun Che actually did not immediately reply because at the moment, his current thoughts were fundamentally not thinking about some trial or not trial. After the initial mindblowing shock from the sudden appearance of the “Primordial Azure Dragon”, his state of mind cooled down once more as he hurriedly said: “Primordial Azure Dragon, you are the Primordial Era’s strongest Dragon God. Then… then you must have a way to save this person beside me! I’m begging you, please save her… save her life, and also help her regain her original strength… If you can do this, I’m willing to give you anything in exchange, willing to pay whatever the cost.”

Little Fairy’s long eyelashes faintly trembled for a moment.

The azure blue colored eyes faintly flashed. Then, an ancient voice sounded: “Her internal injuries are extremely severe; all five viscera have collapsed; the profound veins and meridians, have been shattered. Furthermore, her heart overflows with the will to die. I am but a mere wisp of a residual soul that simply does not have the ability to save her… But I know a way to save her. As you wished, it could save her life, and also completely restore her previous strength… No, it could even help her make a breakthrough and genuinely step into the Emperor Profound Realm.”

The first half of the Primordial Azure Dragon’s speech shattered Yun Che’s hopes, but the latter half made him suddenly raise his head. With an odd radiance in his eyes, his voice also emotionally trembled aloud: “Wh… What did you say? Is… Is what you said true? Quickly, tell me, what is this method… Hurry up and tell me!”

After finished speaking, he excitedly lowered his body and said to Little Fairy: “Little Fairy, did you hear that? Not only is there a method to save your life, it could also restore your profound veins and meridians. It could also help you regain your previous strength and also possibly allow you to breakthrough the bottleneck that you were unable to break through previously… Did you hear that? These words personally came from a Primordial Divine Beast’s own mouth, so it is definitely not a lie… Did you hear that!”

Little Fairy’s desire to die came from the despair of losing all of her power and becoming a cripple. The only thing that could possibly remove her desire to die was the hope of regaining back her power. As expected, after hearing the Primordial Azure Dragon’s voice and under Yun Che’s excited cries, Little Fairy’s eyes, that had always been closed in despair, slowly opened to a crescent moon’s crack. What was reflected within were no longer two completely dim eyes, but rather a light brimming with desire.

“Primordial Azure Dragon, please tell me what this method is… No matter what kind of method, no matter how difficult it is, I will definitely accomplish it. Please tell me!” Yun Che lifted his head towards the pair of azure blue eyes and loudly exclaimed.

The Primordial Azure Dragon’s reply was calm and emotionless: “Even though I know of this method, you and I are not related to one another in any way, nor are there any debts or grievances between us. There is absolutely no reason for me to tell you about it. Unless…”

“Unless what?”

“Unless you can pass through the trial I had left behind, and obtain my bloodline and my legacy! Then, the method to save her, I'll tell you in the entirety. Otherwise, I don't have any obligations to tell you. You, can choose as you wish."

“Okay!”

Immediately after Primordial Azure Dragon finished speaking, Yun Che nodded right away without even hesitating in the slightest: "I accept your trial!"

As long as he passed the Dragon God's trial, he would be able to obtain the Dragon God's bloodline, and would also acquire the method to save Little Fairy; what reason did he have to not agree.

"Haha, very good." The aged voice began to laugh: "However, before I finish my words, there's no need for you to agree to quickly. The trial I left behind does not test the challenger's strength, but test their innate talent, willpower, and determination. The trial's difficulty, will vary based on the challenger's strength. Once one enters the trial grounds, there will only be two outcomes. One, is to pass the trial and obtain the Dragon God's bloodline; the other outcome...."

"Is death!"

"There are no failures, there is only passage or death!"

"....Then amongst those one hundred and twenty nine challengers, how many had passed?" Yun Che gasped lightly.

"In this continent, I believe you have never heard of the existence of anyone who possessed the Dragon God's bloodline. Because, amongst the one hundred and twenty nine challengers before you, none had passed. They all remained in the trial grounds, and became dried skeletons. Moreover, amongst these one hundred and twenty nine challengers, even the ones with the lowest strength was of the Sky Profound Realm!"

Yun Che: “...”

"Even so, do you still insist entering the trial grounds?" Primordial Azure Dragon asked slowly.

Yun Che glanced at Little Fairy, and nodded strongly. Even after hearing Primordial Azure Dragon's words, his voice was still incomparably resolute: "Of~~course!"

“Your answer is not reluctant. Your courage is quite remarkable; moreover, I sense that a very large part of your determination comes from your wish to save this person beside you. Since it’s like this, I’ll grant your wish, and open the gate to the trial grounds for you… Before you enter the gate of the trial ground, you have enough time to prepare for everything; especially mental preparations. You have the blood of the Phoenix flowing within you, which proves that you had successfully completed the trial left behind by the Phoenix before. However, you mustn't try to gauge the difficulty of the Dragon God’s trial with the difficulty of the Phoenix’s trial.”

“The Phoenix’s nature is benevolent and conservative. Even if the the trial it left behind is tough, it would not be difficult to the extent of driving one into despair, and it is even more unlikely to be fatal. But the Dragon God being the sovereign of all beasts, looks down upon the world with pride. The Dragon God’s bloodline, absolutely would never be granted to any ordinary person. Only a supreme being who possesses enough talent and willpower to become the ruler of heaven and earth, can be qualified to bear the Dragon God’s bloodline!”

“If you believe you have this kind of qualification and courage, then step into this trial ground gate! If you stand still, you live, she dies. If you step into it, whether you and her will live and die will not be certain. Make the last decision.”

As the Primordial Azure Dragon’s voice fell, a blue light suddenly flickered on the rock wall in front of Yun Che. After that, a blue colored teleportation formation that was over two men in height emerged from it.

The teleportation formation leading toward the trial grounds.

Yet, Yun Che didn’t immediately step forward and instead asked: “Primordial Azure Dragon, if I were to pass this trial, roughly how long would it take?”

“The time will depend on you…. Perhaps a few days, or perhaps a few month, or perhaps a few years.” This was the Primordial Azure Dragon’s answer.

Looking at the Little Fairy on the ground whose breath was faint, his brows twitched, and then said resolutely: “Then, may I take her along into the trial grounds with me ?”

“You may, but I do not recommend it.” The Primordial Azure Dragon said with a solemn voice: “The Dragon God’s trial, could be taken by many at once from the start. But the trial’s difficulty one faces against, will also increase along with the number of people. Moreover, the difficulty is increased with the strongest person as basis. Which is to say, if you bring her in with you, the trial’s difficulty will be increased by one-fold with your strength as the basis! You will encounter a trial that is twice as difficult as compared to when entering alone!”

“Alright, I understand.” Yun Che slowly nodded; the resolution in his eyes did not falter or waver in the slightest: “Then I choose to bring her along with me and enter.”

Once he entered the trial grounds, it would be unknown as to when he would come back out. With Little Fairy’s current condition, the only way she would last was for her heart vessels to be protected by Yun Che’s profound energy. If he left her alone here, and enter the trial ground by himself, she might just suddenly pass away at anytime.

“If this is your decision, then I have no right to interfere. But you need to know, after bringing her to enter with you, not only will the trial’s difficulty increase by one-fold, you will also need to constantly protect her. Not only would it be distracting to the mind, you will have to split a part of your profound energy to protect her life veins as well… This is an extremely unwise decision.”

“Don’t… mind… me... Don’t take… me…” Little Fairy’s eyelashes slightly trembled, and her voice that was as feeble as a gentle breeze exited from the gap between her lips.

Yun Che crouched down, looked at the expressions in her eyes and spoke gently: “You turned out like this for me. I am a man; as a man, how can I just leave you behind like this?

“Man? ... I… don’t need… a man’s… protection…” Little Fairy’s lips were ghastly, and every single word she spoke greatly exhausted her strength.

“You have no say in this matter!” As Little Fairy let out a soft moan, Yun Che lifted her up in one go and walked toward the gate of the trial ground: “You have your reasons of rejecting and deeming men as unnecessary, but I, as a man know more about what actions men ought to take. The current you, does not need to think about nor speak anything. I only want you to live no matter what may come along… When I pass the trial and restore the strength that belongs to you, at that time, whether you want to condemn me, hit me, or say that I hugged you and desecrated you without your permission, anything is fine… But now, before your strength is restored, your everything… will be decided by me!”

After he finished speaking, without giving Little Fairy any more chance to speak up and refuse, he carried Little Fairy and dashed into the trial ground’s teleportation formation with a fleeting pace.

The moment Yun Che stepped in while carrying Little Fairy, the teleportation formation vanished. After a short moment, the drawn-out voice of Primordial Azure Dragon resounded in the dim mountain cave: “Haha, what a good youngster. Even though an astonishing aura of blood and death permeates within his soul, this stage of measuring character and courage, he completely passed.”