Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Title Note: The Hongmen Banquet was a historical event that took place in 206 BC at the Hong Gate of China. This term is used figuratively to refer to a trap or a situation ostensibly joyous but in fact treacherous.
Nie Yuan stood on the waves of the sea, looking upwards to the Divine Gate located three thousand meters away.
At this moment, he was trembling in fear. None of his pride in the Underground Kingdom of the Giant Rat Clan could be found. The instinct of rodents towards danger gave him the ability to clearly sense a pair of eyes from the sky fixating on his being.
He knew this taste of danger, the gut feeling of sheer terror. Being the most sensitive of the Royal Giant Rats, it had even evolved into their exclusive Natural Trait. Whenever or wherever a life-threatening situation were to occur, they were able to detect them beforehand and thus avoid them in time.
As a local, lowly wretch, he did not possess an extraordinary sense of danger. However, even his weak instinct was screaming at him now, reminding him of his position.
If he were to take another step, he would die!
If he were to move even a centimeter, he would die!
This was enough to illustrate how massive the danger that he was facing! How helpless he was, and how unstoppable it was!
Within this moment, thousands of emotions and thoughts had crossed his mind. It almost seemed like an eternity.
He should not have come…
Regret filled him. When he was scoffing at his kind who fell into the traps of humans, he never would have thought that he would one day make the same mistake!
The nature of a rat was greed, just as a human was a natural sloth.
He tried to escape. All thoughts of the Ladder to Heaven, the Giant Rat King, and his unbounded ambitions had all withered away.
The only thing he wanted now was to retreat to the Giant Rat’s Underground Kingdom, and return to the protection given by the old man. He wanted to live his life once more with only one above him.
However, a dragon-shaped form of sword-energy had pounced upon him from the sky!
Why? Was it not agreed that those of evil could also climb the Stairway to Heaven?
Did that loyal follower of mine betray me? Has he sided with the Master and given me the wrong information?
Numerous thoughts flashed in and out of his mind, but his body could no longer move due to the magnificent Dragon Force that accompanied the dragon-shaped sword-energy that shocked him to his core.
‘This is where my life ends!’
At the final moment, a voice akin to the sound of grace was heard.
“Are you willing to convert?”
A rich black aura appeared out of thin air, and completely blocked the sword energy and Dragon Force that was crashing down above his head.
“I am willing to convert.” Nie Yuan’s answer was instinctual. He did not even need to see who came to speak to him.
“Haha, you’re indeed an intelligent one. Come with me.”
The only thing he felt next was that with a sway of his body, he somehow disappeared from the top of the waves and reappeared in the sky in just a blink of an eye. His position was coincidentally at the southwest of the Divine Gate.
“Nie Yuan is here to thank the Great Devil Saint for your great kindness in saving my life.” He quickly fell to his knees and gave a kowtow of appreciation1 , is the act of deep respect shown by prostration, that is, kneeling and bowing so low as to have one’s head touching the ground.)
As the newly appointed General of the Giant Rats, he definitely knew who he was speaking to.
This man was Saint Zhi Nan, someone who had been very active recently, and could even singe the wings of someone as powerful as Vigilante A. The Upper Realm Devil Lord also nearly suffered defeat from the Path of Heavenly Punishment.
However, from the information that was purchased from the humans’ Hummingbird Society, it seemed like this Devil Lord had an Achilles heel in Vigilante A’s hands. He had to avoid Vigilante A even after he had suffered a heavy blow from the man.
Judging from what happened the information must have been fake. The Devil Lord did not seem to be afraid of Vigilante A.
Nie Yuan rejoiced in his luck. Even the Heavens want me to live on!
Zhi Nan chuckled. “There is no need to be overly courteous. From now on, you will be one of the nine Demon Generals working under me. Your future is boundless, and you are in the run to be one of the nine Devil Deities. Do conduct yourself well.”
“Yes, of course. Thank you for placing me in high regard, Devil Lord.” Nie Yuan repeatedly nodded before smartly taking a spot behind the crowd as what befit the circumstances.
Zhi Nan nodded. Then, he flashed a weird smile towards the Divine Gate. When Nie Yuan followed Zhi Nan eyes, he realized that the Devil Lord was actually looking at an expressionless Vigilante A. Immediately, a chill shot down his spine, but a sense of mirth pulled on his lips after.
Vigilante A, the Pharos of the East, the Dragon God Hero, huh? So what?
I have done so much evil, with another sinister event brewing in the background. If that was activated, the world would face a significant shift.
Even so, he was still safely standing here, no?
So what if the old man (TN: Here referring to the Elder Ancestor Bai) has managed to become a God? He would only be a God to a mere clan, and not a major God of the heavens and earth. How could he compare to an Upper Realm Devil Lord?
As long as he could survive until next year when the Heavenly Axiom loosens the restrictions once more, he would then finally get his time to rebel!
With the support of this Great Devil Saint, he could actually have the stakes to compete for the position of the Giant Rat King.
Hmph, at that time, no matter if it were Cang Gongzi, Bai Shixin, that old man, and that fickle-minded woman, all of them should all be dead!
The Giant Rat Clan should be under my command and my command only!
My blood will be flowing in the new royal family of the Giant Rats!
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“D*amn it, this bald donkey Zhi Nan (TN: Bald donkey 秃驴 is a derogatory term used to refer to monks), must have forgotten what it felt like to be hurt after he’s all recovered, huh? How dare he steal a kill from me? Sir Big Spender, you must find a way to teach him a lesson again.” Sir System was furious.
“Hold your horses, alright, be patient. Zhi Nan is a false monk, but there are quite a number of real monks out here. Stop tossing the term ‘bald donkey’ around. If it slips your mouth, even I will have difficulties in dealing with the mess that comes from that.”
Fang Ning felt a headache growing. He had not even started to climb the Stairway to Heaven, and all sorts of problems have already found their way into his hands…
How could he allow his magnificent journey of showing off terminate even before he completes half of it? If this became widely known, how could he maintain the respect he had gotten from the public?
Still, something else nagged at him. Why did Zhi Nan not expose his real identity to the public? Why did he insist on using the title ‘Vigilante A’?
If he was being totally honest, Fang Ning was quite worried about that. Not because he was afraid of anything, but that it would definitely bring significant impact to his work.
For now, Fang Ning could not comprehend the reasons behind Zhi Nan’s actions. Thus, his procrastinating habit led him to place the issue on the backburner, and he moved his focus onto more pressing matters.
With this fellow around, his actions were now restricted. He must come up with a way to reestablish the dynamics while causing the Devil Lord some trouble.
Inspiration hit Fang Ning like a truck. “Ah, I know what is going on. Since it is the Will of the Heavens that allows the devils into the Divine Gate, we could always round them up in one fell swoop after they exit the Divine Gate. The Will of the Heavens will no longer bother about their wellbeing after that, and we could leverage the available manpower that we have in the area.”
“Oh, Sir Big Spender, look at how evil you are…” Sir System giggled in excitement.
“Haha, since I have a just cause, it is natural that we will be able to rally support. Since Ren Ruofeng has spent so much effort stationing guards at all corners, we must of course utilize these human resources to avoid any wastages. You must quickly upgrade the Bodhi Flower Formation that was previously given to us by the Bodhisattva. Only then can we discreetly teach them how to position themselves in the formation. All this could be done under the name of preventing commotion from evil.”
Now, Fang Ning seemed to have transformed into a schemer, plotting his own Hongmen Banquet.
“That’s right, Sir Big Spender. I’ll get to it immediately.”
Not long after, Ren Ruofeng’s expression shifted while he was managing the proceedings before the Divine Gate.
If they eliminated these devils right after the event, would there be any undue pressure that they had to face in the future? Hm, there was no grounds for worry. As long as there was a good reason behind the conflict, there would always be supporting voices.
Would he be afraid that no one would dare to come to the Divine Gate in the future? To be frank, he would be happier. The fewer people there were, the weaker the competition. Thus, no, he was not afraid.
Previously, those who were framed and trapped were always the righteous. Now, with this Hongmen Banquet of the righteous, the evil will finally have a taste of their own medicine.
Ren Ruofeng’s contemplations cleared up quickly. He immediately started arranging the subsequent actions discreetly.
///
If Nie Yuan, who was standing beside Zhi Nan, knew of Ren Ruofeng’s and Vigilante A’s thoughts, he would then understand that the golden standard as said by his previous master, Bai Shixin, was true after all. Bai Shixin did not have one ounce of untruth in his words.
Only those who knew Vigilante A’s modus operandi and mentality could have that lesson written in blood. Those who never had that lesson will never understand.
Meanwhile, Zhi Nan seemed to be unaware of everything that had happened. Instead, he just gazed quietly at the Divine Gate, looking out for any changes.
The Divine Gate was a monumental object. Majestic and solemn, the Gate was surrounded by a purple aura, looking entirely glorious.
Within the Divine Gate were the nine jade steps of the Stairways. They were objects of mystery in the monument, and no one knew how to climb the Stairways.
Was it dependent on one’s capabilities, or one’s mental resilience?
No one knew. Only the first one to enjoy the crab (TN: Meaning the first one to try something) could describe it.
Based on that point alone, being the fifth group to climb the Stairway no longer seem to be disadvantageous. This was exactly why Zhi Nan did not make a huge fuss out of the issue.
Being the first few to enter the Divine Gate will not only bring no advantages but would suffer more disadvantages than others.
