Chapter 190: The Protective Nature of Those Few in the East

At this moment.

The internet was a storm of noise, everyone discussing.

Many believed the netizen's idea—that "the Eight-Headed Serpent will reclaim the name Xiangliu" actually referred to a divine clan behind it, using it to intimidate—had high plausibility.

After all, China was one of the four oldest ancient civilizations, with an immensely long history.

How could the deities of such an ancient civilization not be terrifying?

Threatening with the name of a divine clan from mythology would better intimidate the other gods.

Yet not all netizens supported this view; some still held the earlier interpretation.

They thought "he will reclaim the name Xiangliu" meant threatening the gods with Xiangliu's own fearsome reputation.

"Don't forget, the Feathered Serpent God was also a deity forged in the earliest battlefield, one of the strongest, respected by the gods, and famed for his terrible might—so if he's the Eight-Headed Serpent's brother, the latter is certainly no weakling."

"Moreover, given Xiangliu's fearsome reputation in Chinese mythology, it's possible the Eight-Headed Serpent, like the Feathered Serpent God, once entered the earliest battlefield and fought at its heart—if so, even the gods must fear him to some degree."

As the saying goes: the ruthless fear the reckless, the reckless fear the mad, and the mad fear those who don't care if they die.

The Feathered Serpent God feared nothing—not even death—to defend the honor of his worshippers; as his brother, and one who dares threaten the gods, the Eight-Headed Serpent was likely the same kind of mad, death-defying being.

Even if the gods had walked the earliest battlefield and weren't cowards, they couldn't stand against someone who didn't care if he died—especially when that someone was incredibly powerful.

For the gods to fear him to some degree was not impossible.

The online debate over the Eight-Headed Serpent's words through Lord Cimu continued, while the standoff among the gods in Beimeizhou also persisted.

After Lord Cimu spoke, all the gods fell silent.

Not long after.

A god from Celtic mythology opened his mouth, divine light flickering in his eyes:

"I admit the Eight-Headed Serpent is powerful. If he were a single mythic deity, perhaps we'd show caution and yield—but now he's targeting us all. One cannot stand against many mythic deities, and moreover, he has been stripped of the name Xiangliu, unable to manifest its ancient fearsome might."

His tone was resounding, unafraid of the Eight-Headed Serpent.

For now, it was Heaven's side that sought to kill the Feathered Serpent God, and these mythic deities stood with Heaven—in other words, if the Feathered Serpent God died, these mythic deities were the murderers, inextricably implicated; the Eight-Headed Serpent seeking vengeance for his brother would come for these mythic deities.

One god might be feared, but so many mythic deities—why fear the Eight-Headed Serpent?

Moreover, these many mythic deities were not all weak; many were powerful, such as the Norse gods who stood with Heaven.

Norse mythology was one of the main forces of the earliest battlefield.

It also revealed a shocking secret: the Eight-Headed Serpent's name Xiangliu had been stripped, seemingly causing him to lose part of his power, no longer possessing the ancient fearsome reputation of the primordial beast.

As soon as this was said, the internet erupted.

"See? I told you—the Eight-Headed Serpent's words through Lord Cimu were meant to intimidate with Xiangliu's fearsome name; he's too powerful, yet…"

But the netizen's message had barely been half posted.

A god, standing atop an ancient war chariot, radiant with golden light, majestic like an ancient emperor, spoke immediately after the Celtic god finished.

"The Eight-Headed Serpent was expelled from the East, long ago stripped of the name Xiangliu. Even if the few from the East still cherish old ties, they will not act for the Eight-Headed Serpent on behalf of the Feathered Serpent God."

Netizens' lips twitched—so both theories were possible?

Or perhaps neither was correct.

The true meaning might be: the Eight-Headed Serpent will return to China, reclaim the name Xiangliu, restore the ancient fearsome might of the primordial beast, and even seek out Gonggong—after all, being stripped of the name Xiangliu was no different from being cast out of the family; he had no face to meet Gonggong and the others.

Only if he reclaimed the name Xiangliu could he go to see Gonggong.

After all, they had heard clearly: the gods mentioned the name Xiangliu had been stripped, and how it was stripped was almost certainly tied to Xiangliu's chaos in ancient times.

Yet.

The gods knew: the Eight-Headed Serpent had been stripped of the name Xiangliu, could not reclaim it—or at best, the chance was vanishingly small, nearly impossible.

So they were not afraid.

Meanwhile.

As the god, majestic like an ancient emperor, spoke, the other gods echoed him one after another.

"Stripped of the name Xiangliu, to reclaim it is not as simple as speaking words."

"True. The East will not break its rules for the Eight-Headed Serpent."

…

All who spoke were mythic deities aligned with Heaven; even Lei Shen held the same view—but differed slightly from the others.

Lei Shen, wreathed in thunder, glanced at the other gods:

"Whether or not the Eight-Headed Serpent can reclaim the name Xiangliu doesn't matter. What matters is that the East will not act for the Feathered Serpent God. If the Eight-Headed Serpent were in danger, the East would act—I've always believed this. After all, the Eight-Headed Serpent has ties to Chinese mythology, but the Feathered Serpent God does not."

Clearly, Lei Shen had hit the nail on the head.

The real reason the gods feared the Eight-Headed Serpent so little was that the East would not aid the Feathered Serpent God.

In fact, from the gods' words, people faintly sensed that Chinese mythic deities followed certain rules, never lightly acting against other gods.

And the Chinese mythic deities were protective of their own—this was already known to Director Takahashi and others: the Eight-Headed Serpent was always an ancient Chinese primordial beast, so the Chinese deities would intervene for him—but the Feathered Serpent God was not.

Just as the gods were affirming this belief.

The Japanese god Tsukuyomi, who had arrived but said nothing until now, spoke calmly:

"Who says the Eight-Headed Serpent cannot reclaim the name Xiangliu? He reclaimed it two hundred years ago—but chose not to use that reclaimed power, to atone for the crimes he committed in ancient times."

When the Feathered Serpent God was in peril, the Eight-Headed Serpent would use that power without hesitation.

"The East won't break its rules for the Eight-Headed Serpent? You underestimate the protectiveness of those few in the East."

"When Ame no Hohi died because of Ashiya Dōman, the Eastern master Bo Dao directly intervened to save him—did he care about the rules? He did care, but when those few in the East learned Ame no Hohi was Bo Dao's disciple, they immediately allowed him to step beyond the boundary and rescue Ame no Hohi."

"And what about the Five Barbarians' chaos? Do you really think your investigations into history after returning were fake? I don't believe you never looked into China's recent history."

"Also, you say the Eight-Headed Serpent lacks weight—what if you add the life-threatening crisis of the Yilong's offspring? Is that weight enough?"

"If the East won't save a stranger, what if he's the Yilong's offspring? Will you still say the East won't act?"

The gods fell utterly silent.

Along with it, the whole world fell silent.

Tsukuyomi's words struck like a cannonball hitting the center of a lake, splashing up not only mist but also dust and water vapor that filled the sky — a sight that shook the heart.

Especially that last sentence.

Yinglong's offspring facing a life-or-death crisis? What does that mean?! The Feathered Serpent God is Yinglong's offspring?!

……