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As Storge was originally an exclusive spell belonging to the Monster Clan, only the Monster King’s blood was able to successfully activate it. To make it usable for other Celestials, a Monsterification Array had been placed over this place, transforming demonic energy into spiritual power. Next, the power was enveloped by an Empathy Array, and on top of it was the base of the summoning spell, the Time-Shifting Array. Anyone who did not have a deep understanding of arrays would gain a headache with just one glance at the thickly dotted lines and runes on them.
The cost of adding these supplementary arrays was that it consumed ten times the energy needed to summon a person, and this was something extremely strenuous even for someone of Ye Junhou’s cultivation level. Fortunately, the array was finally satiated when his demonic was about half spent, the scratches on the ground slowly charging up with gold light.
As the first person to receive this array, Chang Hui was naturally aware of its large cost. He had to admit that not even he might be able to fill it up by assembling all of his clones. Now that Ye Junhou had succeeded in activating the array without revealing the slightest hint of exhaustion, he clearly recognized the disparity between their cultivation levels, and also silently heaved a sigh over the gap between Celestials favored by their gods and those who were not.
Yes, both he and the Monster King regarded Ye Junhou as his god’s most favored Celestial. Amongst all the Celestials they knew, only this Demon Lord had been given an easy life, bestowed the power to conquer all mortals even after becoming a wanted criminal in the Fei Kingdom. This god hadn’t even given him the ability to feel sadness, as if Ye Junhou had been born just to indulge in a life of pleasure. It was truly enviable.
No one knew the life Ye Junhou led before awakening his bloodline. To the eyes of the common people, he was the biggest winner in life with the whole world in the palm of his hand. Such a thought flashed through his mind, not knowing that his line of thinking would probably make a group of authors spit out a mouthful of blood. At last, Chang Hui couldn’t help but express his own doubts, “Demon Lord, I’m curious. Why do you seem so unconcerned about the existence of God?”
The Empathy Array couldn’t be falsified, and as one of the people casting the spell, Chang Hui was awfully clear that Ye Junhou was in an incredibly stable mood. Apart from puzzlement and curiosity, he even regarded that god of his with a trace of goodwill. This was something beyond Chang Hui’s comprehension. Would the prideful and supercilious Demon Lord be willing to let another control his own fate?
“Because I’ve always recognized the truth for what it is.”
Throwing out this ambiguous answer with a hint of ridicule, Ye Junhou glanced over at where the array was operating slowly. He knew that a new god would appear in less than 30 minutes, and it was the one who had taken away his ability to love others. But he just was a heartless demon, nor did he think there was anything wrong with his present self, so he replied with some relish,
“Since that person was able to create an unscrupulous thing such as I, he must not be the kind of god with any sort of high moral standards. As long as I treat him well with good wine and fine women, the two of us bastards will probably have a merry time plundering the world.”
Even after saying these words, Ye Junhou did not seem the least bit stressed. As long Cheng Shuang was not in front of him, he would be perpetually lazy and unrestrained. Just like how Ji Mo had described, the Demon Lord was a fairly straightforward guy.
Gazing at him, Chang Hui thought that he’d undoubtedly never be able to freely discuss the gods as he did. In all the years that he had lived, he’d only felt some joy during his childhood days. His previous world was filled with days of seeking revenge in officialdom after having his entire household assassinated and left on his own. After arriving in the Fei Kingdom and finally settling down with a new wife, he became Xuri City’s city lord. Yet the peaceful days did not last long, and the Fei Kingdom became embroiled in war, his bride dying from an untreated stray arrow during Ye Junhou’s invasion. While he couldn’t call himself a good person, he was far less villainous than Ye Junhou, who had slaughtered an entire city out of his own personal vendetta. So, he asked himself, why did his god still not favor him?
When informed of the conditions for the summoning spell, Chang Hui did not hold any hope for the normal way of summoning his god. He’d never heard of someone wishing for another’s suffering and utter despair because they loved him. At the very least, even the heartless Ye Junhou would protect his own son. Chang Hui thought that god must loathe him, which was why they liked seeing him struggle in hardship, treating him like an interesting game just as easily as others spectated a cockfight.
But, just as Su Ge had said, Ye Junhou was the one who directly caused his wife’s death, regardless of what the gods had planned for him. Revenge had to be served, when all was said and done.
In a blink of an eye, Chang Hui steadied his state of mind and lifted his head to look at the white pigeon flying quietly across the sky. He said nonchalantly, “Demon Lord, do you know why I opposed you for all these years?”
“Unlike you, my god only taught me how to bear grudges, and how to seek revenge.”
Ye Junhou had his guard up the moment Chang Hui said these indifferent words. However, it was only until an ark emerged from the clouds and a white-robed High Priest descended leisurely under the moonlight that he finally understood that this was a trap.
Ye Junhou actually had no clue of what grudges Chang Hui bore against him. To him, that was merely a simple siege against a city, and a siege that ultimately failed because of Su Ge’s emergence. It shouldn’t have been a serious matter for someone of Chang Hui’s status.
As for the mortal woman who died during the siege, the Demon Lord didn’t even know of her name. After all, too many mortals had died by his hand. If he had to write down all of them, the name list might be long enough to fill the entire streets of the Dark Capital.
So, he ultimately came to the conclusion that these two had faked a falling out to plot against him. Despite not understanding why Ren Qingya, who generally steered clear of the Godly Continent, would participate in this matter, Ye Junhou still replied haughtily, “Heh, you geezers sure are experts at colluding together.”
“This is just for mutual benefit, whether it be with the Godly Continent, or the Monster Continent.”
Chang Hui replied with a practiced courteous smile, then quietly entered the protective array. He had no need for his enemy’s apologies— God needed to die, and so did Ye Junhou. An opportunity had presented itself to him and he had simply grasped it, that’s all there is to it.
“Ye-xiaozi, it has been thirty years since we last fought, hasn’t it?”
It was a testament to Chang Hui and Su Ge’s established good rapport that the moment he fell back, the High Priest immediately blocked Ye Junhou’s way. He knew that this was perhaps his last time joining hands with Chang Hui, and would be on opposing sides the next time they met. Even so, he wished to give this partnership a perfect ending, just like the promise he had given that grief-stricken Xuri city lord upon his first arrival to this world— I will help you seek revenge, so will you assist me in curbing this meaningless war?
“Interesting. If you’re so confident, then come at me!”
Su Ge and Chang Hui, the enemies Ye Junhou was most acquainted with. Even in such a weak state after consuming more than half of his cultivation, he showed no sign of fear, simply summoning several demonic beasts to protect Ye Po then lifted a hand to transform his demonic blood into a gigantic scythe, smashing it down upon Su Ge,
“Old Pigeon, you’re just too stuck in your old ways. If you really wanted to win, you should have seized the chance while I was caught off guard.”
Just as Ye Junhou was familiar with Su Ge’s fighting style, Su Ge had encountered his own skills countless times. The blood scythe was warded off by a resplendent light, a sacred tome made of pure gold appearing in Su Ge’s hands. It was a godly artifact that could instantly fire any divine spell within a shichen— The Myriad Scriptures.
The Shrine’s divine attendants were mainly trained in close combat, and priests were divided into two categories: combat and healing. No matter which branch they specialized in, it’d be an arduous battle for any priest attacked at close quarters without a divine attendant’s protection. Yet, as the Shrine’s founding father, Su Ge was not that easy to deal with. With just a flip of a page of the Myriad Scriptures, the ark above them fired off several cannons, a variety of divine spells launching incessantly in the next moment, flattening the enormous palace in the blink of an eye.
Fixing his eyes on the smoke that had yet to dissipate, Su Ge knew that attacks of such magnitude would not fatally injure the Demon Lord, replying placidly, “Rather than assassination, I’d much prefer sending you off with a fight to your heart’s content.”
As Su Ge had anticipated, the Demon Lord stood unharmed in his original spot as the night became clear again, even if the spell was powerful enough to level an entire city. He merely gave a sigh after hearing his words, “I really can’t stand talking to you, out of all the Celestials.”
For the first time in ever, Su Ge could sort of agree with the Demon Lord’s words, “I feel the same way.”
As schoolmates from the same city, Dark Black and Tang Song Yuan Ming Qing had the closest relationship within the writers group, frequently inviting each other to meals and road trips even after graduating. In the past, everyone in the group chat used to refer to them as ‘those two buddies’. Who would have thought that the two characters they created would be like oil and water? As he watched the two fight it out in the sky, Ji Mo gave a sigh, then used Wuyan to locate Chang Hui. Gazing at the Celestial who was astounded to see him here, he spoke, “I think, that we all want to end this without using force.”
Of all the Three White-Robed Priests, only Brilliant Moon could fight. While Chang Hui was a little tougher than Ji Mo, as a god Chang Hui worried that Ji Mo had some sort of ace up his sleeve. He smiled in reply, “Certainly. I’m always of the opinion that negotiations are the most effective solution.”
Then, Ji Mo opened up the Fire Scroll he already had in hand, watching on as large vines became engulfed by flames, “That’s not what your Thorn Array says.”
With light footsteps, Chang Hui instantly appeared above another array, gazing down at the grounds ravaged by water, and sneered, “Nor does that Flooding Scroll you threw behind me.”
If Su Ge and Ye Junhou were the straightforward types who drew their weapons without another word, these two were the ones who competed on who could out-scheme the other first. However, a slightly troubled look appeared on Ji Mo’s calm expression when he saw the array carry on despite the countless heavy hits thrown at it, “I didn’t expect this array to be so sturdy.”
Since Chang Hui knew that Su Ge would strike tonight, he naturally had a few measures prepared for it. He was a civil official most adept at learning, and even without the talent for cultivation, he had become pretty well-versed in the art of array construction over the years. He’d added several protective talismans over the array beforehand, which would consume more of Ye Junhou’s power as well as prevent the Shrine’s people from interrupting the summoning— truly the best of both worlds. As for his alliance with the Monster Continent? That was none of his business, he wasn’t exactly close to Ren Qingya.
“It was also thanks to this god for granting the Demon Lord such strength. I wonder if he’ll regret it once he arrives?”
“Is that so? I’ll give you a hand, then.”
Ji Mo had already guessed that he might not give up this opportunity to kill two birds with one stone, nor had he ever counted on stopping the summoning spell himself. When Chang Hui’s attention was successfully drawn away by these words, Ye Junhou appeared behind him in a flash of white and immediately immobilized him, whilst Ji Mo pulled out the Diorama of Civilization that he had borrowed.
As Ye Mingjun’s current cultivation had yet to surpass Ye Junhou, it would be pretty difficult to destroy the array. But there was no one in this world who knew Re Qingya’s abilities better than Ji Mo, and he had long since thought of another way to break the spell. Only one corner of the Diorama of Civilization was unfolded, yet several types of completely different powers had started pouring into the array. Gazing at Chang Hui’s startled expression, his tone of voice was as tranquil as ever,
“Storge is a spell that uses the caster’s emotions to track down a person, but what it perceives is the power that it is imbued with. This scroll has saved up the power source of all the Shrine’s Celestials, no less than twenty people. Say, with so much complex information fed into it, will it still be able to find its target?”
A summoning spell of this caliber that spanned across time and space would not allow for the slightest error; even splitting it into two energy sources had been a risky venture. Now, with this amount of Celestials’ powers mixed into it, it would still be incapable of seeking a true objective regardless of Ye Junhou’s vast power. It couldn’t even make a clear decision on who to track. As long as the author’s location was unobtainable, this summoning could only fail.
Even though he’d come a little late, unable to put a stop to it before the array was complete, Ji Mo did not wish to see someone like him come to this world ever again. He could no longer remember who Chang Hui’s author was, but Dark Black was a senior he was well acquainted with. Even if it was just an online friendship, Ji Mo did not want to let him witness the death of the Ye Junhou he had created. To any author, regardless of who they were, this wasn’t a good thing at all.
Even if they met, would that even be a good thing?
Smiling soundlessly, Ji Mo lifted his head, speaking in a calm tone as if he had foreseen it all, “No one knows a son better than his own father. Tell Ren Qingya, don’t think that I really won’t teach him a lesson.”
He had no idea if Chang Hui would pass these provocative words over to the Monster King, because the body started shriveling up the moment Ye Mingjun started restraining him. Lifting the dried-up skin in his hand, the immortal was certain that there had been an actual living person in here from the way he breathed and the cultivation he had prior to this. Yet the soul had left the body in a single instant; this was his first time encountering such an odd ability. “You were right, it’s really just an empty shell.”
“Chang Hui is an old fox who has never taken any risks if he could help it, his true form must have escaped long before this plan started.”
Ji Mo wasn’t surprised by Chang Hui’s troublesome ability to create clones, since he had never counted on capturing him here. As he was about to lead Ye Mingjun over to assist Su Ge, he suddenly heard the immortal say, “Ji Mo, I think the array succeeded.”
“What? How is that possible?”
Now that the one with the presiding emotions was gone, the mix of Celestials’ powers within the array had become even more confusing, and it could be said that there was zero possibility of the array finding its target. Ji Mo never imagined that it would actually succeed, and yet, the reality was that the scratches on the ground were filled up with spiritual power, tranquil light slowly dissipating. It was pure snowy white, the very same color he had encountered when he first appeared in this world.