Against the Gods

Chapter 2135 - Fighting the Twin Stars Alone

Cultivation, weapon, even control over profound energy. Sha Xing was superior to Pan Buwang in terms of everything. As if that wasn’t enough, he was also in a state of fury. As a result, he was able to suppress Pan Buwang in one strike. This... was the outcome everyone expected. There was nothing out of the ordinary whatsoever.

Before Wild Fang’s power was spent, Sha Xing’s sword style suddenly underwent a change. The azure wolf's shadow let out a mournful howl with eyes that shone like a heavenly star, and a pressure that threatened to break open the heaven itself... It was none other than the Heavenly Wolf Third Sword Style, “Heavenly Star Lamentation”!

This sword style descended like a meteor that would set civilization back a couple of millennia. He was fully confident that this one attack would drive Pan Buwang into a corner and kill off any chance for him to make a comeback, leaving naught but defiant, useless struggles.

In fact, that seemed to be the case. Pan Buwang was pressured to the point where his posture was slightly off balance. When he raised his arm seemingly to block the attack, his movement looked strained and slow. Rather than a counterattack, it looked more like a person’s instinctive reaction toward encroaching danger.

Then, the arm that seemed to have been raised in futility suddenly unleashed a burst of dark profound energy. Although it lasted only an instant, the dark profound light was unbelievably pure and dark. It engulfed most of the light that existed in the space they were fighting in immediately.

“...” The Abyssal Monarch, who had been watching the battle with casual ease so far—not interfering or commenting to the point where he felt like a foreign spectator—reacted for the first time. Specifically, a tiny flash had appeared in his eyes before it disappeared like it never happened.

When the world suddenly darkened, and surprise caught him out of nowhere, Sha Xing’s pupils contracted to pins. That was all the reaction he managed to muster before a pitch black palm struck him three fingers below his right shoulder bone. He was completely unable to defend himself.

Bang!

The explosion of energy wasn’t intense by any means, but it completely destroyed the energy Sha Xing had just accumulated and would have unleashed the next instant. As a result, the “Heavenly Star” that should have engulfed Pan Buwang died inside his body and eyes instead. The consequence of failure was a backlash that was almost as bad as his strength slamming into an immovable wall and rebounding upon himself.

Crack! His bones broke like an avalanche, and his arm was mutilated all the way to his right chest. Even worse than the physical injury was his own profound energy running rampant as it died. A muffled groan escaped his lips as he hit the ground with a terrible thud before rebounding high up into the sky. The unwanted faux flight would continue for a while until Sha Xing finally managed to arrest himself, albeit just barely.

The Heavenly Wolf’s will and the pride of a Divine Son were engraved into Sha Xing’s marrow. That was why he ultimately did not let go of Heavenly Star Holds A Star despite suffering a terrible and unexpected blow. However, the world darkened once more, and the next thing he knew, Pan Buwang’s deep, black, and ice-cold eyes appeared right before his own.

His right arm had not yet regained its feeling, and his energies were running out of control inside his body. As a result, he only managed to muster one-fifth of his strength and held his greatsword in front of himself.

CLANG!!

Wreathed in dark profound energy, Chang Geng of the Silent Night drew a twisted arc of darkness across the air before smacking Sha Xing right across the torso. The arc would not fade for a very, very long time. Sha Xing immediately crashed toward the ground like a meteor fragment, his afterimage lingering in the air, and his descent causing an ear-piercing shriek that grated on everyone’s ears. When he finally hit the ground, the ensuing bang was such that the echoes would linger in Eden’s Crown for a long, long time.

The rumbles were utterly devoid of any other noise. It was because no one was speaking at all.

Every single person present at the venue was notable. Right now, though, they were all wearing different expressions of astonishment or even shock.

Pan Buzhuo’s eyes were wide like saucers. He had no idea that the hand he used to cover up the right side of his face was hanging by his side. Pan Yusheng, the man who never gave Pan Buwang so much as a side-eye from the start until the end, was now staring straight at him. Such was his shock that he had even taken an unconscious step forward.

As the Pray Eternal Divine Regent and the man with the strongest dark profound energy in the world, no one knew better than him what that instantaneous burst of darkness meant.

Yun Che was the only person at the scene who felt nothing from this outcome. There was neither astonishment nor pleasant surprise. To him, Sha Xing was far too predictable for his own good.

“Hah!!”

Sha Xing let out an explosive roar and bounced back to his feet. Wielding his sword with his left hand and wearing a pair of eyes that could only be found in a cornered wolf, he glared at Pan Buwang and uttered, “What a pleasant surprise you have given me, Pan Buwang!!!”

Although his right arm was mutilated, Sha Xing had recovered from the sudden collapse of his internal energies. His aura was at least several times more stunning and intense than before, and the Heavenly Wolf’s shadow behind his back was carrying itself in an unprecedentedly violent fashion.

It was at this moment that a warm hand slowly grabbed his arm. Like a basin of cold water, the sensation rapidly extinguished his anger and awakened his reason. It was only then that Sha Xing realized that he was standing next to Xian Yue... and outside the barrier!

In other words, he had lost. He had lost at the hands of someone he could never lose to... and in a single exchange no less!

Xian Yue gave Sha Xing a long look and tightened his grip slightly. Then, he declared, “Your surprise move is beyond stunning, Divine Son Buwang! This is our defeat!”

If you lost, you lost. No matter how surprising the defeat was, no matter how reluctant he was to accept it, he must accept it. This was the minimum level of dignity and bearing a Divine Son was expected to display in public.

“...”

Sha Xing was gritting his teeth, and the wolfish shadow in his eyes looked distorted enough to rend itself apart. Still, he did not say a word. He, a Divine Son of Star and Moon, had lost to a castaway of Owl Butterfly in one exchange! Hah! How laughable! How humiliating!

So what? This was the Pure Land and the rules of the battle between Divine Children. What did his feelings amount to?

Meanwhile, Wushen Xing and Wushen Yue were exchanging glances with each other. Even now, the astonishment in their eyes hadn’t faded completely.

“The power he unleashed was standard, but it struck the ‘seventh inch’ of Sha Xing’s technique perfectly.”

Wushen Xing muttered under his breath, “If this is a coincidence, it is too much of a coincidence. If it is not... I would rather believe that it is a coincidence.”

“Setting aside whether or not it is a coincidence,” Wushen Yue’s long, narrow eyes narrowed even further until they resembled a pair of beautiful and dangerous new moons. “Could Pan Yusheng unleash his dark profound energy instantaneously without showing any signs beforehand?”

Wushen Xing replied without hesitation, “No.”

Everyone walking the way of the profound knew that mastering ordinary profound energy was akin to wielding a weapon. No matter how complicated or heavy it was, assuming that the profound practitioner gave it his all, it was only a matter of time before they mastered it. However, mastering dark profound energy was like trying to control a powerful but vile beast that was always struggling and rampaging against its wielder. One misstep, and this damned beast would bite them in return.

Pan Buwang’s release of dark, profound energy just now... looked so easy, casual, and unimpeded; it was as if he were moving his own body.

“Could it be... darkness affinity?” Behind Pan Yusheng, an Owl Butterfly elder let out an unconscious, trembling remark. However, he immediately rejected his own assumption, “No, that is impossible. Not even the Divine Regents could pull off such a thing, so how could he... It's just impossible!”

“Of course it’s impossible. It’s probably just a coincidence. After all, even the wildest, craziest beast cannot be rampaging all the time, right?”

It took no effort for the speaker to convince everyone that this was the truth. After all, who could, would, or was willing to believe that the Divine Son they had cast away would possess an unthinkable darkness affinity that even the Divine Regents of Owl Butterfly only dreamed of having?

“Sha Xing is out of bounds. Pan Buwang wins!” The Chief Priest announced the result indifferently, catching everyone by surprise.

Sha Xing was still panting heavily, but he ultimately managed to put a lid on the anger that was still boiling like an out-of-control volcano. Glaring at Pan Buwang and gritting his teeth tightly, he uttered, “Congratulations on reclaiming the honor of the Owl Butterfly Divine Son, Divine Son Buwang. Heh... hehehe... You finally... have a real shot at returning, don’t you? What are you waiting for? Go take credit for your achievement and beg for a reward already!”

Pan Buwang did not withdraw his strength, however. Darkness still circling around his spear, he looked at Sha Xing and said, “You seem to have forgotten something, Star Divine Son.”

“Before our fight, you promised me that you would invite the Moon Divine Son onto the battlefield and graciously show me the true power of the Twin Stars.”

“...!”

Sha Xing’s expression stiffened in an instant.

Xian Yue did not look astonished or annoyed, however. Smiling, he said, “Of course not. The Star and Moon Kingdom of God value promises like gold, and the Star Divine Son and the Moon Divine Son have been one for many generations.”

“Sha Xing’s promise is no different from my promise. Since we lost, we will fulfill our promise as a matter of course.”

Sha Xing looked at Xian Yue. The moment their gazes met, they understood each other without communicating a single word. Sha Xing was soundlessly apologizing to Xian Yue, and Xian Yue was telling him there was no need.

The Twin Stars came into being when the Star God and the Moon God began sharing a single artifact of inheritance. Every generation, the two Divine Sons were required to achieve synchronisation of cultivation, breath, and even soul. Because the requirements for compatibility were so strict, the power they unleashed when they worked together went beyond simple multiplication.

For the two of them to fight Pan Buwang together... Their victory was synonymous with defeat. However, a promise given must be kept no matter what. So, they entered the barrier together and faced Pan Buwang shoulder-to-shoulder.

Light and shadow circulated in Xian Yue’s hand, and a gorgeous-looking purple sword manifested. Drawing an elegant crescent with the blade, Xian Yue pointed the tip of the sword at Pan Buwang and declared, “Xian Yue of the Star and Moon Kingdom of God requests your guidance!”

For a time, purple radiance illuminated the sky, fantastical and dreamlike. It was at this moment that a ripple stirred in Shenwu Yi’s dead, silent eyes. It looked like befuddlement and puzzlement, but it lasted only an instant before vanishing like it never was.

Back on the battlefield, Sha Xing did not say a word. Heavenly Wolf Holds A Star was pointed soundlessly toward the floor, and his power was perfectly contained within his body. However, everyone outside the barrier felt a terrible pressure from him. The only thing scarier than a wolf was an angry wolf, and the only thing scarier than an angry wolf was a wounded wolf.

The twins’ postures were different, and their sword styles looked contradictory. And yet, they gave off a vague but strange feeling of flawless synchrony when they stood together. It was as if they were originally one person. It was a kind of wholeness that could not tolerate any foreign object or even the slightest bit of separation.

Just now, everyone was laughing at the idea of Pan Buwang challenging the Twin Stars. Now, just the blink of an eye later, it was actually happening.

Whatever the outcome of this battle was, this scene alone was enough to blast the name of Pan Buwang—even if the title of Divine Son had been stripped from him—throughout the Abyss.

“Tsk!! A fool cannot help but be a fool. He could have stopped here after achieving an unlikely victory, but no, he just had to overdo it and ruin everything he had gained...”

Pan Buzhuo muttered hatefully to himself before sneaking a glance at his Father. It was then that he realized Pan Yusheng was wearing a deep frown. His eyebrows were knitted together, and his eyes were focused to pins. The Divine Regent wasn’t wearing an expression of annoyance and disgust that he expected at all.

“Don’t underestimate him.”

Wushen Xing’s unexpected sound transmission startled both Sha Xing and Xian Yue.

“Something is off about this Pan Buwang... Do not underestimate him.”

They were going to face down Pan Buwang as a pair, as the Twin Stars, and yet the Heavenly Star Divine Regent decided to warn them not to underestimate him?

The shock the duo felt at this moment was probably greater than even the shock of Sha Xing being defeated by Pan Buwang in one exchange.

The duo’s mindset and even the way they looked at Pan Buwang shifted a little. Then, they entered a state of complete focus.

Their profound qi merged seamlessly, and their breathing matched perfectly. They could even feel their heartbeats overlapping with each other.

“Begin,” The Chief Priest declared indifferently.

Pan Buwang said nothing. The only thing that got stronger was the ripples of darkness flowing around his body.

......

Buwang: “Assuming this disciple successfully crushes Sha Xing, what should I do next?”

Fog Monarch: “What else? You should crush the Twin Stars next, of course!”

Buwang: “... The first time this disciple visited the Star and Moon Kingdom of God, I was lucky enough to witness the strength of the Twin Stars. Forgive me for saying this, master, but this disciple... has no chance of winning against them.”

Fog Monarch: “Of course, you cannot beat them in a fair fight, but again, you hold a massive advantage over first-time opponents. It’s the exact same one that allows you to beat Sha Xing: information.”

“Not only that, they have a massive disadvantage that you can exploit.”

Buwang: “Disadvantage? Please enlighten me, master.”

Fog Monarch: “Their advantage is their greatest disadvantage!”

Buwang: “Huh?”

Fog Monarch: “Engrave this into your memory, Buwang: A person is most unguarded in their proudest and greatest area of expertise. The Star and Moon Divine Sons are in perfect harmony. It is also the biggest source of pride.”

“When they are united, it is as if invisible threads are linking them together. These threads connect their aura, perception, and will seamlessly to create a level of power that is far greater than if they were fighting individually.”

“However... if these ‘threads’ were severed from the get-go, then the two powerful divine Sons will turn into headless flies who have lost all of their senses.”

“That will be your chance to carve your path to victory!”

Buwang: “... What should this disciple do?”

Fog Monarch: “Dark profound energy naturally devours. It is, in fact, the bane of their ability to ‘harmonize’. Unfortunately, the ‘’Original Abyss Pray Eternal Art’ practiced by the Owl Butterfly Kingdom of God is great at devouring life, but lacking in the ability to devour the soul.”

“This is why I am going to teach you a new technique. A soul-devouring Profound Skill I invented based on your ‘Original Abyss Pray Eternal Art’. I call it the ‘Original Abyss That Severs The Night’!”

“Remember. You are the one who discovered and invented this Profound Skill!”

......

The Star Divine Son and Moon Divine Son attacked at the same time. The Heavenly Wolf shook the sky, and the purple moon illuminated the soul. The two powers were completely different, yet they enveloped and completely locked down the space Pan Buwang existed in. Not a single flaw could be found internally, nor could any be seen externally. It was like a pair of hands naturally and easily casting a forcefield that made up for each other’s weaknesses.

Darkness leaped across his body as Pan Buwang slowly raised his head. It looked like he was channeling his profound energy, but his eyes had turned into black abysses containing thousands of layers of dark nights a long time ago.

RUMBLE—

The air currents were pushed aside by force as Sha Xing’s silhouette appeared in the sky, and the might of the Heavenly Wolf descended in rage. Behind the Heavenly Wolf, a purple beam followed closely and seamlessly.

The first strike was the only time the two powers were working separately. After that, the Heavenly Wolf and the Purple Pylon would harmonize and unleash a flurry of unending, seamless attacks. Unless the defender was overwhelmingly greater in terms of cultivation, they would face an unending torrent of attacks that resembled a downpour. Forget retaliating, they would not even have an instant to breathe.

Still, Pan Buwang’s Chang Geng Of The Silent Night did not move. It wasn’t until the Heavenly Wolf greatsword was less than thirty meters away from him that the black light in his eyes finally reached peak saturation.

In an instant, darkness engulfed everything. There was no sound or sign whatsoever. A second ago, everything was still normal. Next, everything inside the battlefield had transformed into darkness.

Cries of shock erupted everywhere. Even the Pray Eternal Divine Regent could not conceal the explosive shock in his eyes.

The darkness spilled into Yun Che’s eyes, but could not touch the bottomless abyss that resided within.

This move was taken from the Illusory Devil Tome of Eternal Night. It was called Lightless Eternal Night. By combining the power of Eternal Calamity of Darkness and Original Abyss Pray Eternal Art, he turned it into the “Original Abyss That Severs The Night”. He also transformed the Profound Skill enough that even someone who knew the Illusory Devil Tome of Eternal Night would not be able to put two and two together easily.