Against the Gods - Chapter 2056: “Cradle”

Screeerooaaarr!!

A shrill bestial cry erupted from a small abyssal beast darting out of the pitch black broken gorge ahead. Its destructive aura was that of a Divine Sovereign.

“Ah!” A young woman let out a cry of surprise before darting behind a man, begging, “It’s an abyssal beast! Protect me, young master Yun!”

Yun Che raised his hand, and a blue light flashed. The abyssal beast was frozen from head to toe before it could even get close to them.

The blue light in his hand turned into a vortex, and a soft breeze blew the frozen abyssal beast away from them. At the same time, it scattered into fine ice powder.

Hua Caili peeked out timidly from behind Yun Che’s back. Then, her eyes erupted into stars as she praised, “As expected of young master Yun. You’re so strong!”

Yun Che replied, joking yet half-exasperated, “Are you done playing yet?”

It was just a Divine Sovereign… poor thing…

“Hehe,” Hua Caili’s eyes curled into crescents as she giggled like a young, innocent teenager. “I like being protected by you.”

She then grabbed Yun Che’s arm and asked worriedly, “How are you recovering? You were hurt so much worse than me.”

Yun Che smiled. “I bear the light profound energy in me, and my recovery speed far exceeds that of a normal person. It’ll take me another half a month at most to achieve full recovery.”

It was a lie. If he wasn’t suppressing his recovery speed, he wouldn’t need half a month at all. And if Li Suo intervened, he would be right as rain already.

The girl looked at him with undisguised adulation. “Young master Yun is the only light profound energy bearer in this world. Of course you would enjoy the best blessings.”

“I’m not though.” She lowered her voice and intentionally spoke in a weak voice, “I recover much slower than you. In fact, I feel like I don’t have the strength to keep walking.”

The corners of her lips turned up, and she abruptly pounced onto Yun Che’s back and wrapped her legs around his waist. “You’ll have to carry me.”

Yun Che smiled again and made a grab for her waist. With a bit of strength, he moved the young woman in front of him—eliciting a cry of surprise as he did so—and held her in a princess carry. He asked, “You don’t mind this, do you?”

The tips of their noses were touching, and their breath was intermingling. Cheeks turning a little pink, the young woman wrapped her arms around Yun Che’s neck and nestled her face in the crook.

“You were talking about the last Kingdom of God you visited. I’m curious, why is the Owl Butterfly Kingdom of God called the Owl Butterfly Kingdom of God? Not only does it make no sense, it completely lacks the oomph of a Kingdom of God, don’t you think?” Yun Che asked casually.

“From what Father told me, ‘Owl Butterfly’ is a name bestowed by the Abyssal Monarch Himself. All other Kingdoms of God have changed their names before, but the Owl Butterfly Kingdom of God is the one exception. As for why that is the case, not even Father can give me an answer. I’ve even asked Uncle Abyssal Monarch in secret before, but he pretended that he didn’t hear me and refused to answer.”

“…” Yun Che frowned a little but did not press further. He moved onto the next question, “Why does your father refuse to take you to the Eternal Night Kingdom of God?”

“Father said that Lightless Divine Regent is a scary person who absolutely cannot be negotiated with, and she especially loathes men. It is to the point where no foreign men are allowed to take one step into her Kingdom of God, just as no local men are allowed to leave. Not only that, they are slaves who make up the lowest class.”

“Wow… that is a little scary.”

A while later…

“Sister Hua, do you know… is there anyone you know; any sect or clan that has the surname ‘Xia’?”

“Xia… Hmm? Is there anyone with a surname like that?”

“I owe a huge favor to a person whose surname is Xia… maybe I misremembered or misheard her.”

“Hmm…”

“…”

“Sister Hua?”

The breathing on the crook of his neck felt unusually warm and even. It wasn’t until he looked that he realized that Hua Caili had fallen asleep in his arms.

He did not continue his journey. Instead, he walked over to a tall stone wall and slowly set down the slumbering woman. Then, he snuck a glance at the sky above his head.

Ever since Hua Qingying had passed Hua Caili to him, she had not reappeared, almost as if she had left entirely.

Hua Qingying couldn’t have left, of course. Several days had passed since that day, but not only did she not calm down, but her feelings were only growing more and more complex.

She saw Hua Caili pouring her heart out to Yun Che and showing off a side she never thought existed. She saw the thunderbolt in her eyes mended by the silhouette of Yun Che. She saw her acting like a childish woman who wanted nothing more than to physically attach herself to Yun Che’s person twenty-four seven with none of the bearing a Divine Daughter should possess…

Now, here in the most dangerous place of the Abyss, she actually fell asleep just like that.

A blind person could have told that she trusted and relied on Yun Che completely.

She was the most talented Divine Daughter in the history of the Heaven Breaker Kingdom of God. She possessed a countenance that was unrivaled in the Abyss, and she was the container that held all of the Heart Painter Divine Regent and Hua Qingying’s love and care. And yet… it felt like it was all in vain; that it all benefited this man in the end.

Actually, scratch that. To say her feelings were complex would be an understatement. She could not even begin to describe them, much less absolve herself from them.

She definitely had no idea how she was going to face Hua Fuchen and explain all this.

……

“Mm…”

There was a soft murmur, and Hua Caili groggily opened her eyes and looked up.

“Awake already?” Yun Che’s voice and warm breath tickled her ear. “You’ve only been asleep for four hours.”

Hua Caili blinked once, and Yun Che’s blurry face instantly became clearer. Suddenly, she leaned forward and pecked Yun Che once on his lips. Then, she lay back down on his shoulder and closed her eyes lazily.

“Young master Yun, I want to hear your promise again,” she rubbed her face against his shoulder greedily while making a request she had repeated over thirty times in the past five days.

“Sure.” Yun Che replied obediently just like every other time and said in a pampering tone, “I love Sister Hua the most. I won’t ever run off on my own again.”

“Hehehe…” She giggled in satisfaction. She believed in promises—or at least, she believed any promise from Yun Che wholeheartedly.

She feared nothing so long as he didn’t leave; so long as he was by her side.

Yun Che let out a sigh and said half-seriously, “It looks like I have to train harder. Otherwise, your Father might sneeze me to death the day we meet.”

“Pff…” The young woman giggled and defended her Father. “Don’t say that. Father isn’t scary at all. He may be a Divine Regent, but he is one of the gentlest people I know. I’ve never even seen him get angry before.”

That’s because you’re his daughter, Yun Che complained mentally.

“It’s not just your Father. There is the Divine Son who’s engaged to you as well.” Yun Che’s voice grew a tad heavier. “He will hate me to the bone when he hears about this. When the time comes…”

“You worry too much!” Hua Caili snuck a hand into his shirt and drew circles on his chest. “Big Brother Bighead is a very kind person. He is not as scary as you imagine him to be.”

“Excuse me?” For an instant, Yun Che doubted his own ears.”Did you say… Bighead?”

He said tentatively, “I’m talking about your fiance, the Boundless Divine Son Dian Jiuzhi.”

“Yes? Big Brother Bighead is the Boundless Divine Son,” Hua Caili answered matter-of-factly.

Yun Che: (?_?)……

“That is… quite the unique nickname,” said Yun Che as the corners of his lips twitched uncontrollably.

Hua Caili giggled when she sensed his astonishment. She explained, “When he was younger, he had an unusually large head and was called ‘Bighead Dian’ by others. I thought it was his real name at first, but I later found out that that wasn’t true. It’s just that his original name was forgotten by everyone.”

“Now I’m curious. How large is his head?” Yun Che asked.

Hua Caili got up and held two fingers above her left and right shoulders. Then, she thought better and increased the range. “About this big.”

“What in the…” Yun Che exclaimed in shock before asking, “But I heard that the Boundless Divine Son is a refined and handsome man… are the rumors false?”

Hua Caili shook her head. “No, Big Brother Bighead is exactly as the rumors say.”

She explained in detail, “In the past, he had an exceptionally large head not because he was deformed or ill, but because he was born with the Divine Vein of Great Rage in his head.”

“…” Yun Che’s eyebrows twitched visibly.

Hua Caili noticed his reaction but wasn’t surprised in the least. “I knew you would know about the Divine Vein of Great Rage.”

Yun Che shook his head. “This is the first time I heard of the Divine Vein of Great Rage, but I have heard of a ‘Divine Body of Great Rage’.”

When he said this, he saw Hua Caili’s mouth turning into an O-shape.

High up in the sky, Hua Qingying’s gaze immediately centered on Yun Che as well.

Yun Che raised his eyebrows. “Hmm? I heard the name from my master, but… it actually exists?”

This shouldn’t be possible. The Ancestral God herself declared that the “Divine Body of Great Rage” belonged to Xia Yuanba before Xia Qingyue was “born”. Its level was…

“Yep.” Hua Caili nodded before bowing her head and lowering her voice instinctively. “From what Father told me, Uncle Abyssal Monarch possesses the Divine Body of Great Rage.”

“I see…” Yun Che nodded impassively, though he was hiding tidal waves of shock on the inside.

Hua Caili continued, “The Divine Body of Great Rage originates from ancient times and belongs solely to the Abyssal Monarch. It is a supreme divine body that may never appear again in this world. Father describes it as the monarchical body that surpasses everything.”

“Of course, the Divine Vein of Great Rage cannot compare to the Divine Body of Great Rage, but they definitely share the same origin. They are miracles by something called the… primordial energy. It should’ve been near impossible to manifest.”

“Big Brother Bighead had an unusually large head because of it. It has never appeared in the Abyss until him, and it was completely dormant to the point where even the Boundless Divine Regent failed to notice it.”

“Later, he suddenly awakened the Divine Vein of Great Rage and became a completely new person. He also awakened ninety percent of his divine essence and shook the entire Boundless Kingdom of God. It wasn’t until Boundless Divine Regent took him to Uncle Abyssal Monarch that he found out that it was the Divine Vein of Great Rage.”

Yun Che listened carefully until the end before musing, “So, his appearance gradually returned to normal after he awakened the Divine Vein of Great Rage?”

“Mm!” Hua Caili nodded. “Right now, he is the strongest and most handsome of all the Divine Sons. If we’re talking about appearance alone, he’s only a little… no, many littles inferior to you.”

Yun Che frowned slightly. “Then why do you still call him ‘Big Brother Bighead’?”

Hua Caili answered, “When I first saw him at the Boundless Kingdom of God, I thought that Bighead Dian was his name. So, I addressed him as Big Brother Bighead. Later, he changed completely and even became the Divine Son of the Boundless Kingdom of God. So, I addressed him as the Boundless Divine Son.”

“However, he told me that he preferred the nickname ‘Big Brother Bighead’, so I’ve been calling him that to this day.”

Yun Che reached out and squeezed her cheeks a little. Then, he said seriously, “From now on, never call him that again.”

“Huh? But why?” Hua Caili puffed up her cheeks in puzzlement.

Yun Che said, “Considering his unusual appearance, he must have received far more ridicule and torment than pity. Therefore, ‘Bighead’ is a kind of pain and shame he normally would never wish to hear ever again.”

“However, it is a special memory between you two; a special nickname that only the two of you share.” He squeezed her cheeks again and asked, “Understand?”

Hua Caili blinked before breaking into a wide grin. “I get it. You’re… jealous, aren’t you?”

“Huh?” Yun Che looked astonished. “Who taught you that word?”

“Grandma Ling Xian.” The young woman grinned even wider when she heard no denial from him. “Grandma Ling Xian said that only someone who’s especially fond of another person would get jealous on their behalf.”

“Anyway, if you don’t like it, then I would address him like that anymore.” She leaned forward and pressed her cheek against Yun Che’s affectionately. “In the future, I’ll address you and only you as big brother, okay?”

“Of course… wait.” A cheeky grin spread across Yun Che’s face. “Age wise, it’s really you who’s… but I’m not gonna complain if you don’t mind, of course.”

He thought Hua Caili would fly into a mock rage and chide him or something, but instead, she said with seriousness, “You’ve never asked about my age before, and it’s a good thing you didn’t. I wouldn’t have been able to give you a true answer then.”

Looking at Yun Che’s confused expression, she confessed, “I’m actually way younger than you. I should have addressed you as my elder from the start… though, it’s not my fault you insisted on calling me big sis.”

“???”

Hua Caili’s pure eyes made it clear that she wasn’t lying. That was why Yun Che was even more confused.

The title “Rainbow Glass Divine Daughter” had existed in the Abyss for at least several thousand years, so how…?

Hua Caili understood his confusion, of course. “I was born ten thousand, seventeen years and six months ago, but I’m really just nineteen years, eight months old.”

“…” Hua Caili’s explanation confused Yun Che even more.

Then, Hua Caili revealed a Pure Land secret before Hua Qingying could stop her, “I was slumbering in Pure Land’s ‘Cradle’ until nineteen years and eight months ago.”

“Cra… dle?” It was a term Yun Che had never heard before. It did not exist in the rumors he had collected or the memories of Mo Beichen or Meng Jianzhou.

“It is an amazing place where space… is completely still.”

—

P.S.

1. Do recall what Chi Wuyao forcefully bestowed Yun Che before he jumped into the Abyss. It’s very important.
2. The Cradle is very important.
3. The Cradle is very important.