novel against the - Chapter 2042

Chapter 2042: The Answer

The eerie light of the Abyss Crystal rapidly approached in their pupils, almost within reach. The excitement in the eyes of the man in black was palpable, almost tangible.

But at that moment, the scene before him suddenly twisted, as an immense, irresistible force yanked him violently to the left.

Shock surged through him, but he had no time to react before his head slammed heavily against the ground. The arm that had been merely inches away from the Abyss Crystal was crushed mercilessly underfoot.

At the same time, a cry of alarm rang out from his companion. His broadsword flew far away, as his body was pulled in the same instant. The two men’s arms became entangled in a twisted position, pinned down by the same foot.

In their terror, the two surged with profound energy, but before they could unleash it, they were crushed as if by the weight of ten thousand mountains. Their arms, which had just begun to rise, were slammed back to the ground, their heads forced into the earth, unable to lift even slightly.

Struggling with great difficulty, they turned their heads, their gazes barely meeting Yun Che’s cold eyes, which seemed as indifferent as a mayfly’s.

“You…” The two men’s eyes widened in disbelief. No matter how they assessed him, the man before them exuded only the aura of a level three Divine Master.

“State your names and origins,” Yun Che spoke, his voice devoid of emotion.

The two remained silent, either out of defiance or lingering shock.

Yun Che’s lips curled downward, and without any visible movement, two loud cracking sounds suddenly echoed… Their arms shattered simultaneously, accompanied by two piercing screams of agony.

The screams did not stir even a flicker of emotion in Yun Che. He continued in a flat tone, “You have one more chance to answer.”

Pressure, fear, and excruciating pain rapidly eroded their will. The man on the right spoke in desperation: “I… I am Han Quan; this is my junior brother, Liu Jing… We hail from the Fury Smoke Realm, the Hegemon Sword Sect… Please… Please, sir…”

“Very good.” The cold voice interrupted his pained tremors: “Considering you’re somewhat cooperative, I’ll grant you a quick death. Die!”

Zheng!

The broadsword that had been knocked away was drawn into Yun Che’s hand, carrying a ruthless killing intent as it hurtled towards the heads of the two.

“Sir… Senior, spare us!” Han Quan let out a desperate scream: “It was our greed that blinded us, we failed to recognize a true expert! We beg you to spare our worthless lives!!”

Under the shadow of death, his shout nearly tore his throat apart. The penetrating killing intent seemed to pause at his cry, hanging in the air.

Yun Che turned to Hua Caili and asked, “Sister Qu, how should we deal with these two?”

Yun Che’s actions stunned Han Quan and Liu Jing, and they suddenly realized that they were being treated as subordinates to this girl.

Han Quan, forgetting everything else, desperately twisted his neck to shout: “Fairy, spare us! The Hegemon Sword Sect is one of the three guardian sects of the Fury Smoke Realm, we are not villains, please…”

“Not villains?” Yun Che sneered: “It seems you need me to remind you of your ugly faces when you attempted to murder and rob us.”

“No, no!” Han Quan shouted hastily: “As members of the Hegemon Sword Sect, even in the Endless Fog, we would never willingly commit murder. This Abyss Crystal is something we have never seen before; we could hardly suppress our greed. As for our attempt to kill, it was merely… mere verbal threats; we would never truly harm anyone.”

Without a decisive response from the girl, Han Quan’s hopes soared. He continued urgently: “Fairy, your supreme grace is beyond compare; how could we allow our filthy blood to stain your hands? After we leave, we will certainly… the entire Hegemon Sword Sect will remember your and this senior’s great kindness and will repay you a thousandfold in the future.”

Yun Che remained motionless, silently observing Hua Caili.

She slightly turned her gaze and quickly looked away, softly saying: “Regardless of their intentions, they ultimately did not harm us; let them go.”

“But…” Yun Che frowned, then seemingly sighed in resignation. He suddenly withdrew his foot from their arms, the killing intent dissipating as he turned away, coldly commanding: “Get out of here.”

The two scrambled to their feet, momentarily dazed, unable to believe that they had truly been spared.

“If it were just me, you would already be dead. After you get far away, don’t forget who saved your pathetic lives.”

The sound of his voice made them shudder, as if waking from a nightmare. Han Quan stammered: “Yes… yes! We will never forget the grace of the Fairy who saved us. Should you ever need anything in the future, we will repay you with our lives.”

As they spoke, they cautiously retreated. They backed away until they were ten steps away, cradling their severed arms, fleeing like whipped dogs.

Hua Caili opened her eyes and looked at Yun Che, seemingly wanting to speak but hesitating.

She had already grasped the meaning behind Yun Che’s actions.

“Continue maintaining this state,” Yun Che said. “It shouldn’t take them long.”

Hua Caili opened her mouth, but ultimately did not ask anything.

Indeed, it did not take them long. In less than fifteen minutes, a wave of air carrying a dense, murderous aura rapidly approached.

Boom!

Three figures descended, shaking the ground of the Endless Fog, creating a long crack that nearly reached Yun Che’s toes.

Hua Caili, within the barrier, her eyelashes fluttered slightly, a sense of disappointment echoing in her heart: As expected, it’s like this again.

Of the three, Han Quan and Liu Jing stood on either side, their shattered arms dangling, bloodstains wrapping around them. But their faces no longer held the previous fear and humility, instead replaced by a ferocious rage.

Standing between them was a middle-aged man in a black robe, a nine-foot greatsword on his back. It was without a sharp edge or point, yet it silently exuded a suffocating aura of power.

Half-step Divine Extinction… Yun Che glanced sideways at the middle-aged man for a moment.

“Elder, it’s them!”

“Look at that Abyss Crystal! What we said was not an exaggeration.”

The middle-aged man’s cultivation had reached half-step Divine Extinction, undoubtedly placing him at the apex of the realm. Even so, his gaze lingered on the Abyss Crystal for several breaths, as the greed that had been dormant for countless years stirred violently within his soul like a resurrected viper.

He maintained an indifferent demeanor, coldly saying: “A mere level three Divine Master? You two were defeated by him?”

“Elder, this man’s cultivation is extremely strange,” Han Quan gasped. “When he fought us earlier, he clearly was a level three Divine Master, but his strength was comparable to a level eight… or even a level nine Divine Master. Elder, please do not underestimate him.”

“Comparable to a level eight Divine Master?” The middle-aged man scoffed. “What kind of nonsense are you spouting! You were likely ambushed and are too ashamed to admit it.”

Han Quan and Liu Jing wanted to deny it, but Yun Che’s cold voice interrupted them: “Is this how your Hegemon Sword Sect repays a life-saving favor?”

“Life-saving favor? Hahahahaha!” Han Quan’s gaze shifted, a sinister smile spreading across his face. “In my entire life, I’ve never encountered such fools. You actually let us go.”

“Today, I will teach you a lesson.” He removed his hand from the shattered arm, his pale face growing more sinister: “You broke my arm; soon, I will tear you apart with this very hand! When you reach the underworld, don’t forget to thank me for the lesson!”

The middle-aged man raised his hand, silencing Han Quan’s outburst. His gaze swept over Yun Che before settling on Hua Caili: “Where do you two hail from?”

Though he only glanced at her, and despite her face being veiled, Hua Caili’s faintly supreme presence surpassed any Realm King’s daughter or royal princess he had ever seen in his life. Even a blind man would know that their background was extraordinary.

“Hmph, enough.” Before he could hear the answer, or perhaps out of fear of the response, his tone suddenly shifted, his eyes condensing with killing intent: “Knowing we come from the Hegemon Sword Sect, your only path is death. Blame your own stupidity.”

Knowing their origins must be astonishing, he had to silence them. There were no rules within the Endless Fog, but there were rules beyond it. In the fog, one could avoid conflict; once they engaged, they must eradicate all traces.

Otherwise, if news leaked, it would be a small matter of damaged reputation; one could never know whether the ensuing retaliation would be utterly devastating.

Without any hesitation, his hand shot out like an eagle’s claw towards Yun Che, his fingers stretching forth, leaving dark trails in the air.

A chilling wind rushed toward Yun Che, who leaned back, his arm half-raised, seemingly pinned by an overwhelming force.

But just as the claw was half a foot from his chest…

Bang!!

The sound was so deafening that Han Quan and Liu Jing instantly lost their hearing, left with a lingering ringing in their ears. Their gazes shifted from ferocity to sheer terror.

The middle-aged man, who had originally lunged at Yun Che, suddenly recoiled violently, a massive blood hole erupting from his back, sending bone fragments flying in every direction.

The middle-aged man’s eyes widened in shock, the world around him fading to gray as he could only vaguely see Yun Che’s face, which bore a faint, cold smile.

Yun Che twisted his hand, and the giant sword from the middle-aged man’s back fell into his grasp, a brilliant blue ice light blooming along the blade before it was thrust fiercely into his body. With a tremendous explosion, the man was sent flying, deeply embedded in the ground of the Endless Fog.

The chief elder of the Hegemon Sword Sect, a powerful figure at the brink of the Divine Extinction Realm, was thus pierced in an instant, like a lifeless dog nailed to the ground.

His eyes rapidly lost focus as he gasped, “Half… supreme-ruler…”

With his level of cultivation, even when facing a half-god, he should not have been killed instantly. However, burdened by only half a step into the Divine Extinction Realm, he would have looked down upon a level three Divine Master.

He had unleashed six-tenths of his strength, leaving nothing in reserve. Yet Yun Che erupted with all his power in an instant, leaving him no opportunity for regret, extinguishing his life completely.

In the distance, Hua Qingying’s eyes flashed with a strange light.

In one moment, there was no ripple; in the next, he exploded with such power.

This level of control over profound energy…

Could it be…

He possessed over eighty percent of a Divine Soul!?

Reflecting on his many unusual qualities, Hua Qingying felt no surprise at all.

“El… El… Elder…”

Han Quan and Liu Jing trembled uncontrollably, their legs quaking as they felt they might collapse at any moment.

Thud!

The figures in their peripheral vision shifted, and Yun Che stood beside them, his face devoid of emotion, not even a hint of scorn.

In that instant, both men felt as if poisoned by a snake’s venom, letting out a cry as they collapsed to the ground in near-identical postures.

Their faces were as pale as sheets, their lips moving rapidly, yet they could not utter a single sound, only trembling from the chattering of their teeth.

Yun Che glanced at Hua Caili but did not seek her opinion again. Instead, he extended his hand, the ice light swirling as he easily transformed the two terrified Divine Masters into ice sculptures… which then silently shattered into countless fragments, leaving no trace of blood.

Approaching the barrier, Yun Che leisurely collected the Abyss Crystal and asked: “Now, have you found the answer?”

Hua Caili stood up, pondering for a while before softly saying: “Could it be… gratitude?”

Yun Che smiled: “Yes, but that’s not the complete answer.”

Without allowing Hua Caili to ponder further, he directly stated: “The questions your father entrusted to you—the most precious thing in the world and the most worthless—their answers are both tied to ‘emotions’.”

“Emo…tions…?” Hua Caili softly repeated the word, which was seemingly simple yet left her feeling somewhat bewildered.

Yun Che turned his gaze slightly, slowly continuing: “Gratitude is a type of emotion. Some view it as sacred, a refreshing spring, feeling they must repay it with an ocean. Yet others… as you have seen, you saved his life, yet he mocked your kindness and sought to take yours in return.”

Hua Caili: “…”

“Familial bonds are a type of emotion. Some regard them as more precious than life itself, willing to die for them; yet others… even blood relations, use their kin as tools when useful, discarding them like worn-out shoes when not, and killing them without a second thought when envious.”

“Trust is a type of emotion. Some willingly invest everything for it, never betraying it; while others will use it as a weapon to stab those who trusted them.”

“There’s also the bond between teacher and student. Many respect their teacher as a father, holding them in high regard throughout their lives; yet there are those who betray and murder their teachers to advance their own path.”

“And then there’s the bond of true friendship… the ties of brotherhood… romantic love… all are the same.”

Hua Caili listened earnestly, and after a long time, she softly said: “I understand all of this, it’s just…”

“You must have encountered situations like this before, haven’t you?” Yun Che suddenly asked.

Hua Caili was taken aback, her head bowing even lower: “Yes…”

Yun Che continued: “Then, if today you had let them go, and they had brought back someone we couldn’t handle, what do you think would have happened to us? Would they have shown you the same mercy you showed them?”

“I know.” Hua Caili closed her eyes, her voice dropping even lower: “But they are not beasts; they are living, breathing people. They have parents, wives, and children, and they have had to survive countless cruel trials to reach their current level… Each time I encounter such a situation, I always wonder if they are truly evil, or simply momentarily blinded by greed… I cannot bring myself to kill them.”

She gently said: “My aunt often says that foolish kindness is not true kindness, but simply foolishness. But I…”

Taking a deep breath, she opened her beautiful eyes, as if speaking to herself: “It’s alright; I am still inexperienced. I will… gradually mature.”

Yun Che looked at her, seriously shaking his head: “To transform from someone who sees saving all beings as a glorious duty, to someone who can heartlessly annihilate thousands of lives, certainly requires a kind of growth. But this process can be incredibly painful… more painful than you can imagine.”

“And you don’t need to endure that.”

“I believe your father and your aunt’s teachings are simply guiding you to see human nature with greater clarity, not to force you to become cold and ruthless like me. They would surely prefer you to maintain your pure heart.”

Faced with Hua Caili’s astonished gaze, he spoke meaningfully: “Growth is a thorny path that all mortals must walk. You, however, only need to ascend the platform that has already been built for you, using your ever-sharpening vision to observe the myriad beings below.”

Hua Qingying: “…”

She could not help but marvel once again, astonished that these words came from someone so young.