Chapter 187: The Feud Between the Human Emperor and the Western Emperor

A reminiscent look appeared in the old black cat’s eyes.

“I, this Prince, saw the Western Emperor back in the day!”

Cao Ye’s heart lurched.

So, the legendary Western Emperor truly existed.

And now, He was right here at South Sea No. 24 Middle School!

Cao Ye quickly pressed,

“Is the one in the south right now the Western Emperor?!”

The old black cat sneered.

“That thing? It’s just a failed creation. How could it possibly compare to the Western Emperor?

At best, that Black God is just a part of the Western Emperor.”

Cao Ye mused.

‘A part… of the Western Emperor?’

Even if the Black God was only a part of the Western Emperor, he was still a genuine Deity!

Could Dusk… really be his opponent?

The old black cat continued,

“Originally, that Black God had the chance to become a Supreme God on the same level as the Western Emperor.

Unfortunately, when the Western Emperor was carrying out his plan, it coincided with the ascension of that Human Emperor.”

Cao Ye thought to himself,

‘That Human Emperor? Could he be talking about Dusk?’

The old black cat began to recount a little-known piece of history.

“Legend has it that the Taoist Ancestor performed the ‘One Qi Transformed into the Three Pristine Ones’.

Do you know what that means?

It’s when one Supreme God becomes three Supreme Gods.

The Western Emperor wanted to do the same.

What was it called again?”

Like a model student, Cao Ye answered,

“The Trinity!”

The Trinity refers to:

The one True God existing in three different “persons”: the Holy Father, the Holy Son, and the Holy Spirit.

The old black cat nodded.

“He created his own incarnation in the Human World—the Holy Son.

His plan was originally quite good. He wanted to use the power of mortals’ faith to help the Holy Son’s physical body achieve godhood.

Angels descended into the Human World, performing miracles to establish the Holy Church and spread faith in the Western Emperor.

Back then, the Last Human Emperor harbored an extreme hatred for All Gods. Every time the Western Emperor created an incarnation, the Human Emperor would destroy it.

But the Western Emperor was stubborn. Each time the Human Emperor killed an incarnation, He would just create another one.

His thinking was simple.

While he was locked in this battle of wills with the Human Emperor, he would let the Holy Church develop in secret.

Once there was enough faith, his incarnation would instantly ascend to godhood and become a second Supreme God.

And things did indeed develop that way.

As the power of faith grew, each generation of the incarnation became stronger than the last.

The Human Emperor went from being able to kill the incarnation instantly to struggling to defeat it.”

As the old black cat spoke, a sneer appeared on its face.

“The Western Emperor made two mistakes.

First, he shouldn’t have tried to out-stubborn the Human Emperor. Second, he underestimated the Human Emperor’s cleverness.”

Cao Ye was a good listener and quickly asked,

“How so?”

The old black cat gave a mysterious smile, its face full of pride.

It was clear that it was proud the Human World had produced such a great Human Emperor.

It shook its head smugly and said,

“The Human Emperor issued a warrant for the Western Emperor’s arrest.”

Cao Ye was stunned.

“A warrant for the Western Emperor?”

Putting a warrant out for a god… it was simply absurd.

The Western Emperor was in the legendary Western Heaven. Who could possibly go to Western Heaven to find Him?

Besides, even if the Western Emperor did descend to the Human World and was discovered by the common people, who could possibly capture Him?

The old black cat shot Cao Ye a look.

“How could you possibly understand the profound cunning of the Human Emperor?

Of course the Human Emperor knew that issuing a warrant in the Human World couldn’t actually lead to the Western Emperor’s capture.

But it destroyed the Western Emperor’s following in the Human World.

The warrant showed the entire world the Human Emperor’s stance on the Western Emperor.

It showed that the Western Emperor was no different from a common criminal.

Just like that, the Western Emperor’s lofty, divine image in the Human World was shattered, and the mortals’ faith in Him naturally collapsed.”

A glint appeared in Cao Ye’s eyes.

It was like a woman renowned for her perfect, flawless image, admired by men everywhere. Then, some ruffian takes a photo of her on the toilet and it spreads across the internet.

Her perfect persona shatters instantly.

Because no matter how flawless she was, she still had to use the bathroom like everyone else.

Cao Ye murmured,

“The Human Emperor used his imperial authority to suppress the Western Emperor’s divine authority!”

Then, a thought struck Cao Ye, and he pressed on,

“But the Holy Son does exist! Did the Human Emperor’s strategy fail?”

The old black cat fell silent for a moment.

“After the Human Emperor passed away, the Western Emperor faced no more obstacles and did manage to groom one of his incarnations into a powerful being.

However, the foundation of faith had been shaken, and many people viewed the Holy Church as something foul.

In the final moments of his ascension, that incarnation was killed by Longinus, a man who despised the Holy Church.

The Long Spear that killed the incarnation became the Spear of Destiny.

Although the Spear of Destiny became a Divine Artifact because of it, how could the value of a mere Divine Artifact compare to that of a Supreme God?

You have to understand, the Holy Son was just a hair’s breadth away from becoming a Supreme God.

The Western Emperor placed a Curse on that resentment-filled Spear of Destiny, intending to use it to pass judgment on humanity.

The Black God in the south is the resentment of that Holy Son.

That’s why I said the Black God is a part of the Western Emperor.”

After hearing all this, Cao Ye was lost in the untold story, unable to pull himself out of it for a long time.

The old black cat said,

“Your turn. Tell me what you know about the Human Emperor.”

After saying this, the old black cat started to doze off.

“Hurry up so I can sleep.

Don’t expect me to help you deal with the Black God.

Without the Heirloom Seal of the Realm, I’m not necessarily a match for that thing.”

Cao Ye came back to his senses and shook his head.

“There’s no need for you to intervene, Your Highness. The Black God will fall.”

The old black cat scoffed.

“Even if the Black God is just a wisp of resentment, incomparable to the Holy Son or the Western Emperor, he’s still not someone you mortals can handle.

I have no idea where you get your confidence!”

Cao Ye looked at the old black cat and said quietly,

“Because the one fighting the Black God… is the Human Emperor!”

The old black cat’s eyes flew wide open.

“What did you say?

Quick, tell me! What is the Human Emperor’s identity in this era?!”

Cao Ye said,

“He’s suspected to be the owner of an antique shop.”

The old black cat was utterly astonished.

“The… the Manager of Antique Shop Zero?”

Cao Ye nodded.

“We call him ‘Dusk’.”

The old black cat murmured,

“Dusk… Ragnarok… Fitting enough.”

Cao Ye stared into the old black cat’s eyes and asked, as if unconcerned,

“Did you ever see that Human Emperor back in the day, Your Highness?”

The old black cat shook its head.

“By the time I was born, the Human Emperor had long since passed away.

The story I just told you was told to me by my master.”

Cao Ye’s pupils contracted. He continued to fish for information.

“And your master is…”

The old black cat’s gaze darkened.

“He was the most wise and martial personage after the Human Emperor.”

Cao Ye pressed,

“Who? Are there any… hmm… legends about him in history? Or in mythology?”

After saying this, the old black cat closed its eyes, unwilling to engage with Cao Ye any further.

“Your Highness?”

“Your Highness?”

Cao Ye called out twice, but the old black cat didn’t answer.

He sighed and started to walk out of the Antique House.

“Kid.”

As he reached the doorway, Cao Ye heard the old black cat’s voice.

Cao Ye turned his head and saw the cat’s burning gaze.

“Your Highness, please, enlighten me.”

A teasing smile played on the old black cat’s lips.

“I get the feeling you don’t like the Human Emperor.”

Cao Ye frowned and said nothing.

The old black cat continued,

“And you don’t like the Western Emperor, either.”

Cao Ye remained silent.

The old black cat then said something that shocked Cao Ye to his core.

“Help me find the Heirloom Seal of the Realm, and I’ll help you suppress the Human Emperor.”

A tremor ran through Cao Ye. He narrowed his eyes and stared at the old black cat.

“I thought you were a follower of the Human Emperor.”

The old black cat stood up from its chair and said,

“The Human Emperor is someone that you, I, and all living beings should admire.

Even my master held the Human Emperor in high regard.

But I am not his follower.”

Cao Ye scrutinized the old black cat for a moment, a mocking curve forming on his lips.

“I can hear the ambition in your words.

Your purpose for finding the Heirloom Seal of the Realm… is it to ascend the throne and become an emperor yourself?”

A human-like chuckle also appeared on the old black cat’s face.

“That is none of your concern.”

…

「South Sea, Twenty-Fourth Middle School.」

The Black God watched as Jiang Chaosheng was engulfed in a fiery tornado, his eyes filled with glee.

He stretched out a hand, adding black divine flames to the tornado.

“You irreverent mortal! This is the end you deserve—to be crushed to dust!”

The smile on the Black God’s lips widened, growing more and more frenzied.

It was the exhilaration and release of finally avenging a thousand years of hatred.

Suddenly, the Black God’s smile froze.

Somehow, the fiery tornado had subsided.

On the field, only the dissipating black divine flames remained.

Jiang Chaosheng’s figure shot out from the black smoke.

Holding the Wind-Still Bead in his left hand and the Scythe of Death in his right, he instantly pierced through the thick smoke.

The Scythe of Death grew larger and larger in the Black God’s eyes.

“SHLICK!”

The Scythe of Death sliced across the Black God’s neck!

…

「Outside the gates of the Twenty-Fourth Middle School.」

The Investigators watched this scene, their hearts soaring.

“Did he win?”

“That’s Mr. Dusk for you!”

“To think he can even slay a god!”

Suddenly, the situation inside took a turn.

The wound on the Black God’s neck was healing at a visible rate!

“Human Emperor, I underestimated you!”

The Black God’s rampant voice echoed throughout the Twenty-Fourth Middle School.

“But you underestimated me as well!

I am a Deity! I am naturally immortal and indestructible!

You couldn’t kill me thousands of years ago, and you still can’t kill me now!”

The Investigators had no time to ponder the meaning of “thousands of years.”

They only saw Dusk raise his Giant Scythe once more and resume his battle with the Black God.

The Investigators’ hearts sank.

Was Dusk truly a match for the Black God?

Just then, a figure was seen running along the wall of the Twenty-Fourth Middle School.

The Investigators were taken aback.

“Who’s that?”

“Isn’t this area sealed off? Where did that person come from?”

Li Mingyue narrowed her eyes, carefully observing the person running on the wall.

It was a thug in a suit.

He had a skinny, bespectacled young man tucked under his left arm, and three enormous clock hands tucked under his right.

…

PS: My grandmother’s funeral was this afternoon. I was overwhelmed with emotion at the time and thought I’d have a burst of inspiration and write this content smoothly.

But, well, I didn’t expect that after sitting here from the afternoon until midnight, smoking two packs of cigarettes and drinking three bottles of red wine, my head would still be completely empty.

I don’t even know what I’m thinking about.

Sorry for the late update!