Annihilating the Gods - Chapter 2

Chapter 2

After returning to the palace, I issued an imperial decree ordering every temple in the mortal realm destroyed, all incense offerings extinguished, and every subject forbidden from believing in or worshiping the gods.

Anyone who disobeyed would have their entire clan executed.

But the people, whose faith in the gods had already been shattered, needed no torture or threats. Burning with resentment, they smashed every divine statue themselves and swore never to believe in the gods again.

Since ancient times, the God Clan had relied on the power of human faith to strengthen their cultivation and attain immortality.

Once that faith vanished, their divine power would collapse.

When none of the gods could draw upon the power of worship from the mortal realm, I wanted to see how they could continue holding themselves above everyone else!

On the first day that the Human Race stopped believing in the gods, the God Clan noticed nothing.

After the first month without faith in the gods and Buddhas, the God Clan felt no more than an itch through a boot. Their foundations remained untouched.

But by the first year that the Human Race had stopped believing in the gods, the power of faith was vanishing at an astonishing rate, and only the tip of the iceberg of the God Clan’s divine power had finally collapsed.

The gods in the heavens could no longer sit still. They sent an envoy down to negotiate with me.

He had the Rain God brought before me to atone for his crimes, and promised that from then on, every member of the God Clan would faithfully protect the mortal realm and never abandon their duties again.

But I sneered at such perfunctory sincerity.

The Immortal Envoy said, “Ever since Pangu separated Heaven and Earth, the Human Race and the God Clan have watched over one another and maintained friendly relations. Yet because of the Rain God’s single offense, Your Majesty ordered every temple and divine statue destroyed and forbade the mortal realm from believing in the gods. Isn’t that somewhat extreme? If the God Clan truly perishes, how will the Human Race face the demons and monsters that covet the mortal realm?”

“Then you needn’t trouble yourself over it, High Immortal.”

The Immortal Envoy asked again, “Does Your Majesty truly intend to go your own way and oppose the God Clan over a trifling matter? Can Your Majesty withstand the wrath of the God Clan?”

A trifling matter?

At those words, my anger erupted completely.

With my eyes burning red, I advanced on the Immortal Envoy step by step.

“In the third year of Linping, a devastating earthquake struck the region under the Earth Immortal’s protection, causing countless deaths and injuries among the people of the northwest.

“In the ninth year of Linping, a blizzard struck Tingde. Snow fell for four months, leaving the people in unbearable misery. My grandfather offered his life to Heaven and begged the Snow Woman to answer his prayers and save the people of Tingde from their suffering, yet not one god from the God Clan responded.

“In the third year of Qing’an, the Demon Emperor invaded the mortal realm and slaughtered its people. My father personally climbed the sacred mountain, ascending all nine thousand stone steps, to beg the War God to subdue the demons and monsters, but no one paid him any heed. In the end, my father had to leap into the sacrificial flames as the Son of Heaven and temper a divine weapon with his own body before the demons could be slain!

“Each and every one of these disasters was a matter of life and death to the people of the mortal realm. How dare you call them trifling matters?”

Every word I spoke was drenched in blood, leaving the Immortal Envoy’s face flushed with shame.

“Now that I have ascended the throne, the rains that should have come have been delayed indefinitely. I used my blood as a summons and begged the Rain God to send down water, yet he abandoned an entire people for the sake of love. Such conduct treats human lives as worthless and is an unforgivable crime. Not only did the divine realm refuse to give the Human Race justice, it even tried to minimize the matter. Do you truly think the Human Race can be bullied?”

The Immortal Envoy was rendered speechless by my words, but Songqiu was still unwilling to accept them.

“You know only about the disasters that befell your mortal realm. Have you ever tried to understand the circumstances those gods were in at the time?

“In the third year of Linping, the Earth Immortal stripped away his own immortal bones to save the woman he loved. That was why he lacked the strength to stop the earthquake.

“In the ninth year of Linping, the Snow Woman was wounded by love and broke things off with her lover. She threw herself into the Nine Netherworld Springs to ease her heartache and had no idea that a blizzard was raging.

“And in the third year of Qing’an, the Demon Emperor attacked the mortal realm because the War God sealed away the Demoness he loved for the sake of all living beings. The Demon Emperor then sought to slaughter everyone in the world to avenge the Demoness. The War God, devastated after sealing away his beloved with his own hands, withdrew into seclusion, which was why he failed to destroy the demons and monsters.

“As for me, I delayed sending rain to your Human Race because I was trying to comfort the woman I love. Yes, your people lost their lives, but we gods lost our love as well! Why can’t you show us some understanding? Are we not worthy of love?”

What?

His twisted sophistry left me so furious that I actually laughed.

I had imagined countless reasons why the God Clan might abandon their duties, but I had never once expected this.

The Human Race prayed to and worshiped the gods, willingly offering them the power of faith, for no other reason than to seek the God Clan’s protection and keep the mortal realm safe.

Yet after enjoying the incense and offerings of the mortal realm, these despicable gods refused to fulfill their responsibilities, leaving the world in ruins.

And now they had the nerve to spout such nonsense. They were utterly unworthy of their positions and shameless beyond belief!

I said furiously to the Immortal Envoy, “We place our faith in the God Clan to seek protection. But if you can’t even fulfill your duties, then the Human Race and the God Clan will sever ties from this day forward. I would like to see what you gods will use to pursue your romances once you have lost the power of faith from the mortal realm!”

Thus, the negotiations between the two races ended in failure.

The Human Race and the God Clan officially declared war!