Chapter 941: Is That All?
The words had come right out of Ningyan’s mouth! As they echoed out, they became a tempest in the hearts of everyone who could hear.
Xu Qing looked at Ningyan and sighed inwardly. Given how well he knew Ningyan, he could already see the clues pointing to who this person really was.
No wonder he’s been spending all his time in seclusion....
‘Ningyan’ took a step forward, his eyes flashing like blades as he looked at the emperor.
“Did I say something incorrect, father?”
All of a sudden, the bloodline fluctuations of the imperial clan surged out of him, rising into the air and sweeping the destiny aura of humankind with it into a seething maelstrom. He took another step, and as he did, a black band of silk swirled out around him, circling around a few times before flying up into the air.
“On this day, I have three gifts I want to offer as sacrifices to you!”
As his words rang out, the silk band spread out into the sky like a black dragon, growing larger and larger until... it was a scroll! Countless images could be seen within the scroll, and all of them depicted the pain and grief of humankind!
It was possible to see people resorting to cannibalism in times of famine, corpses that had frozen in winter, mortals burning to death in fires, and even children wracked by the pain of mutation. There was pillaging, murder, and rape. The weak were the prey of the strong, and as chaos filled the mortal world, all living beings suffered. It was endless.
People starved to death. People died to become living treasures. Children were killed to be offered as sacrifices. There were good people whose kind deeds got them killed. There were evil people who were brutally killed by people even more evil than themselves. There were brutes who wreaked havoc. There was insane laughter echoing into the sky.
Every single image... was appalling and horrid.
Xu Qing looked at the images and saw things that he himself had experienced as a child. Back then, he had been confused and numb, wondering why people were like this, and why the world was this way.
Why did people look out and see only evil and more evil? Why had mere survival become his own dream in life? Where was the light...?
Xu Qing didn’t say anything. Everyone was quiet. The entire world was quiet.
Except for ‘Ningyan.’ His eyes were bloodshot as he stared at the emperor, his teeth gritted as he said, “This is the Painting of Grievances, and it depicts the grief and suffering of all the humans who have lived during your reign. Their weeping. Their pain. Their confusion. Today... the time has come for you to listen well, emperor!
“This is the result of your being emperor!! This is the result of your pompous sacrifices to the ancestors!! This is the result of how you shamelessly take credit for everything!! On this day, I say NO. And all of the citizens who have died over the past 3,000 years also say NO!”
‘Ningyan’ waved his hand, and the canopy of heaven rumbled as the Painting of Grievances collapsed, turning into countless black dots that entered the surrounding destiny aura. The destiny aura seethed furiously, transforming into a vortex that spun above the Temple of Heaven. Intense fluctuations rolled out into heaven and earth.
“You, Dark War, actually dare to say that you will live up to the dreams of your ancestors and fulfill the desires of your offspring? Does the Map of Humankind you sacrificed describe the suffering of the people? Does the Register of Heroic Spirits record the brutality inflicted on their children? Does the Wind and Rain really bring good harvests and general prosperity? If so, where are they?”
The voice of ‘Ningyan’ was mournful as it echoed out, shaking the planet and causing the Temple of Heaven to tremble. Then, immense pressure erupted from the black spots that were the remnants of the Painting of Grievances.
And yet, up to this point, the emperor hadn’t said a single word in response. Nor had his facial expression changed. He was just looking calmly at ‘Ningyan.’
Seeing that, the eyes of ‘Ningyan’ grew even more bloodshot as he took another step forward.
“Since you aren’t willing to say anything, then as your son, I’m going to offer you the second gift!”
Another scroll appeared in ‘Ningyan’s’ hand, and then it flew up into the air. It was crimson, and as it unfurled, it also revealed innumerable images. Astonishingly, they were... government officials of all ranks and descriptions, and they were engaged in countless acts of greed, crime, and murder! The emperor ruled over clans that had committed unending criminal acts for the sake of personal profit, differing opinions, and conflicting purposes. Some of the images were so shocking that they made people bristle with anger.
This was the Mural of Corrupt Officials!
The sight of it caused many of the officials in the crowd to react with flickering expressions, pounding hearts, and open shock. Uneasy feelings began to rise up in many of them.
“Is this the country you govern, Dark War? Is this the society you oversee?”
‘Ningyan’ suddenly laughed harshly as the long, crimson scroll collapsed, becoming a host of black spots that rushed into the destiny aura. The destiny churned more violently, until it seemed to reach a peak level. It was like an ancient giant, roaring toward the Temple of Heaven. And it seemed to be asking a question.
Yet the emperor still seemed completely calm, and had not yet spoken. He was just looking at ‘Ningyan.’
Seeing that, Ningyan took a deep breath and produced his third gift. It was a blood-red bone! And it was human. From the look of it, it wasn’t the bone of an adult, but rather, a child. It had blood on it that apparently had been converged in life, only to wither in death and stain the bone red.
Gripping the bone, ‘Ningyan’ looked at the emperor. Grinding his teeth together, he said, “I doubt you recognize this bone, Dark War. But that doesn’t matter. I’ll explain exactly what it is.”
‘Ningyan’s’ gaze swept the crowd, passing over Xu Qing, taking in Planet Ancient Emperor, and then coming to rest on the vortex of destiny aura.
“Let all the ancestors and forefathers bear witness. Let the destiny aura of humankind bear witness. And let all of the people bear witness! Do you know how Emperor Dark War managed to reach the level of Imperial Sovereign?”
A surge of curiosity swept through the crowd. After all, the emperor had become an Imperial Sovereign before he succeeded as the emperor....
“Most people probably think that Dark War’s bloodline is how he broke through from Smoldering God to Imperial Sovereign. But the truth is... that he secretly sacrificed nine counties from foreign regions to achieve the breakthrough. Maybe that wouldn’t be a big deal if they were all nonhumans, right? But those sacrificed from those nine counties weren’t just nonhumans. There were also human citizens as well!
“Dark War is the emperor, and that means he’s the emperor of all humans! Even citizens living in foreign regions are still citizens! Yet he didn’t even care that his own citizens were killed! An affair as cruel and brutal as this deserves outrage both in heaven and among men!
“He reached the Imperial Sovereign level with the blood of my people! With the souls of my people!”
The voice of ‘Ningyan’ echoed as deafeningly as thunder through the imperial capital. Then he threw the blood-colored bone up into the sky, where it merged into the vortex of destiny aura.
“And now, destiny aura of humankind, please judge this matter!”
As the bone vanished, all eyes instinctively focused on the vortex. An instant later, a dragon of destiny aura flew out of the vortex, faced the emperor, and howled. It was a profoundly mournful howl.
Everyone was shaken, both mentally and physically.
As the dragon howled, the black and red vortex began to spin faster, sending out rumbling sounds that could shake heaven and earth. It was as if the vortex was being stimulated by the mournful howl, and as the saying goes while the waters may keep the boat afloat, they may also sink it.
As the thunderous booms grew louder, black and red chains swept out of the vortex and then slashed down. There were no less than a thousand of them. They shot directly toward the emperor atop the Temple of Heaven, and the emperor did nothing to stop them. Loud clanking sounds could be heard as they wrapped around him and then dragged him up into the air. Next, more chains came out of the destiny aura vortex, ratcheting up the pressure and the punishment from the destiny aura!
As ‘Ningyan’ watched that happen, he glared at the emperor.
“You didn’t deign to open your mouth earlier, but what about now? Are you struck speechless?”
The emperor’s expression remained calm. He was suppressed by the pressure of the destiny aura and was wrapped up in chains. It was as if all he could do was look at ‘Ningyan’ and wait for what was to come next.
The gathered officials were paying very close attention to everything that was happening. As for ‘Ningyan,’ his heart was starting to sink. But he had made a lot of preparations for this moment and was fully confident. He was like a nocked arrow that had to be shot!
Eyes turning even more bloodshot, he shouted, “Why aren’t you doing anything?”
Those words clearly weren’t being directed at the emperor.
What happened in response caused Xu Qing to gasp. King Firecrusher, who was standing next to him... suddenly vanished.
Then a rift appeared in the dome of heaven. King Firecrusher stepped out of it, his face expressionless. The power of an eight-world Smoldering God erupted from him, creating massive pressure. He stepped forward, lifted a saber in his hand, and... chopped it toward the emperor! That saber strike was backed by the power of eight major worlds. It caused the cosmos to shake, and its blade light was strong enough to destroy the heavens and extinguish the earth.
All of this happened so quickly that no one on Planet Ancient Emperor had any time to react. For King Firecrusher to suddenly turn traitor and try to kill the emperor was something no one could have possibly predicted would happen.
It was theoretically possible for anyone to turn traitor. But in the minds of everyone, King Firecrusher was someone who had championed humankind for countless years. He had worked himself to the bone to serve humanity. How could he possibly betray the emperor? And yet... that seemingly impossible development was playing out in front of everyone.
He was ‘Ningyan’s’ secret weapon.
Everyone was overwhelmed with astonishment, and there wasn’t time to sit around contemplating the situation. Cultivators both on Planet Ancient Emperor and off it saw that the emperor was about to be assassinated, and they immediately leaped into action to try to stop it.
The first to appear in front of the emperor was an old man dressed in the clothing of a court eunuch. It was almost as if he had been there the whole time, as he appeared in the blink of an eye. And he immediately reached out toward the descending saber of King Firecrusher.[1]
The power of a nine-world Smoldering God cultivation base erupted from the old eunuch. Astonishingly, this person was a powerful expert that had been hiding in humankind, and was thus an unknown to everyone!
His action caused heaven and earth to rumble as he directly blocked King Firecrusher’s saber. And yet, even with nine-world power, he still staggered backward and coughed up a mouthful of blood. That went to show how amazing King Firecrusher was!
More cultivators began to arrive from beyond Planet Ancient Emperor. Unfortunately for them, the spell formation was preventing them from entering. The planet was not just open to anyone! It kept out the uninvited. Some who were on the planet also took action, but King Firecrusher’s saber shoved them all back.
However, King Firecrusher was now incapable of doing anything further, as he had a nine-world expert to deal with.
Xu Qing watched all of this happen and then looked at ‘Ningyan.’
‘Ningyan’s’ eyes glittered with killing intent as he shot toward the restrained emperor. As he flew forth, a long spear appeared in his hands.
But then, the emperor shifted in place, and a rumbling boom echoed out as one of the chains collapsed. Next, as the emperor’s energy rose to terrifying levels, the chains could no longer hold tight, and began to snap one after another. The emperor looked up expressionlessly at ‘Ningyan,’ and for the first time, he spoke.
“Is that all, Little Eleventh?”
1. As I’ve mentioned in relation to other outfits described in the story, it’s often hard to determine what exact type of clothing the author is thinking about. Clothing was very important in the history of China, and it was generally easy to identify who someone was by the clothing they wore, be they an emperor, government official, soldier etc. It’s the same with the court eunuchs. However, fashion changed from dynasty to dynasty, and with a history of thousands of years, there is no one specific outfit eunuchs wore throughout time. If youcheck this link , you can see a few pictures I compiled of different eunuch outfits from varying time periods. In my imagination, this court eunuch looks like the first image in the set, but again, the author doesn’t give much information about the specifics of the fashion. ☜