Tome of Troubled Times
Chapter 790 (1): New Ranking

Chapter 790 (1): New Ranking

Ranking of Heaven, Rank 10: Tang Wanzhuang.

Ranking of Earth, Rank 1: Li Boping.

Ranking of Earth, Rank 2: Huangfu Yongxian.

Ranking of Earth, Rank 20: Xue Canghai.

Ranking of Earth, Rank 33: Xiang Simeng.

This time, the blind woman kept the descriptions of the ongoing battles concise. There were still other battlefields to record, and she could not afford to write thousands of words on each one. The clash between Li Boping and Cui Wenjing, the duel between Sisi and Underworld Guide and Hidden Wind, and everything else had to be documented as well.

With Tang Wanzhuang ascending to the Ranking of Heaven, the vacant first rank on the Ranking of Earth could not be directly inherited by Huangfu Yongxian. He had yet to break through the third layer of the Profound Mysteries, and thus, the spot could only go to Li Boping, who had fought Cui Wenjing on equal footing.

Meanwhile, what truly caught the world’s attention was Xiang Simeng, Queen of Dali. She had slain Underworld Guide and eliminated Hidden Wind. Her accomplishments were simply dazzling, yet she had not soared to the top in one leap. Instead, she barely managed to squeeze into the lower ranks of the Ranking of Earth.

By all accounts, even if she had relied on the power of a divine beast, she should still have been ranked on the Ranking of Heaven, just like how Zhao Changhe’s feats with a divine weapon were considered his own achievements. Sisi should have been acknowledged in the same way. Moreover, if Xue Canghai were to fight Sisi, he would be beaten so badly he would probably cough up his guts, so why was he ranked ahead of her? Was it the blind woman’s personal bias, or did the Heavenly Dao itself refuse to recognize such methods? In the end, all she got was a begrudging spot at the bottom of the Ranking of Earth, as if the Heavenly Dao was sulking about it.

However, none of this really mattered. No one was paying attention to those details.

What truly shocked the world was that Rankings of Troubled Times had taken advantage of the chaos following the great battle between the Ranking of Man contenders to rearrange its rankings. Or rather, it was not exactly a rearrangement, but the addition of an auxiliary ranking called the Ranking of Demon Gods, which only recorded ancient demon gods. Nobody from the current era was included in this ranking.

Ranking of Demon Gods, Rank 1: Unknown Existence.

The world collectively gawked in disbelief.

Unknown?!

The Rankings of Troubled Times is a manifestation of the Heavenly Dao itself. Does this mean that even the Heavenly Dao is unable to recognize this entity?

Then why even place them on the ranking? Just say they are a supreme being beyond ranking and be done with it. Who would dare challenge something that even the Heavenly Dao cannot comprehend? They’d have to be suicidal! And if this being is unknown, then why mention them at all? This ranking might as well be nonsense!

The next few words, however, were tangible and enough to instantly draw the undivided attention of the world.

Ranking of Demon Gods, Rank 2: Ye Jiuyou.

In that moment, even Zhao Changhe’s rise to the top of the Ranking of Heaven and the mystery of the Unknown Existence was overshadowed.

Since Zhao Changhe’s rise to the first place on the Ranking of Heaven was somewhat anticipated, there was not much left to say beyond marveling at him as a once-in-a-generation prodigy. As for the Unknown Existence, there was even less to discuss. They were practically nonexistent as they were simply too far from anyone’s reach.

But as for this figure ranked second on the Ranking of Demon Gods... Now that was a ranking that made the world take notice. In reality, this was the true first place among known demon gods, perhaps even the actual strongest existence in the world.

People understood that the Ranking of Demon Gods was not necessarily superior to the Ranking of Heaven. After all, the top figures in the Ranking of Heaven had slain demons and gods more than once. Furthermore, ancient demon gods were a closed category. Each one that died was lost forever, and once they were all gone, the ranking would become obsolete. As an auxiliary ranking, it made sense for it to exist separately rather than competing with the rankings of the figures of this era.

Still, in the minds of many, the ancient demon gods were fundamentally stronger than the mortals of today. The Ranking of Demon Gods carried an inherent sense of dread, making it even more terrifying than the Ranking of Heaven. And if the strongest among them was Ye Jiuyou... then this Ye Jiuyou was probably stronger than Zhao Changhe.

After all, Zhao Changhe had yet to reach the second layer of the Profound Control Realm. Even if he was unmatched among mortals, could he truly claim invincibility if the Ranking of Demon Gods still loomed overhead?

But then again... Ye Jiuyou had been humiliated, and the whole world knew it. On top of that, with the Unknown Existence suppressing the rankings above, Ye Jiuyou’s name now carried a certain... comedic irony.

Now this was news. For the blind woman, hyping up Ye Jiuyou was probably more painful than taking a beating herself.

“What strongest ancient demon god? It seems to me more like a case of when the tiger’s away, the monkey becomes king... There’s no way that Ye Jiuyou was stronger than the Night Emperor back in the day.”

The blind woman found this remark particularly insightful. Perhaps this speaker deserves a little reward.

“Exactly! Wasn’t this the same person who just delivered themself to be humiliated? Speaking of which, does anyone actually know how it happened? Where were they touched?”

“No idea. I heard it was a kiss.”

“So... it’s a woman?”

“Doesn’t have to be. Men can be taken advantage of too.”

“Wise words, brother.”

“Speaking of which, has anyone actually heard of this person in historical records? The likes of Desolate Calamity never even made it onto the rankings, so why did this one suddenly appear?”

“Not just this one. There’s more.”

Ranking of Demon Gods, Rank 3: Sword Emperor.

Ranking of Demon Gods, Rank 4: Piaomiao.

Ye Jiuyou had at least been mentioned in battle reports, and the Sword Emperor had long been a whispered legend in Gusu, but Piaomiao... no one had ever heard of them before. It was as if the name had materialized from thin air.

Even Zhao Changhe, far off in the vast desert, was startled by the rankings. First, he was surprised that the Sword Emperor ranked higher than Piaomiao. Second, he was confused as to where Piaomiao had even come from. Was Cui Yuanyang gone?

A quick glance at the Rankings of Troubled Times confirmed that Cui Yuanyang’s name was still there. That settled his nerves a little. He scratched his head and called out to the blind woman for an explanation, but as usual lately, there was no response.

Speaking of which... Blindie, do you even have any shame? Where’s your name? If you have the guts, put yourself on the ranking! Ranking of Demon Gods, Rank 1: Ye Wuming. Who else can it be but you? What the hell is up with Unknown Existence? Who are you fooling? And you still call yourself a rule-abiding person? How about switching places with Ye Jiuyou instead?

Ranking of Demon Gods, Rank 5: Lie.

Ranking of Demon Gods, Rank 6: Heavenly Demon Papiyas.

So he’s still alive.

Ranking of Demon Gods, Rank 7: Ancient White Tiger.

Zhao Changhe: What?

Huangfu Qing: What?!

In the imperial palace, Xia Chichi abruptly stood up.

Ranking of Demon Gods, Rank 8: Frost Chi[1].

There remain numerous figures in the Profound Control Realm, of which there are various vajras, demons, exotic beasts, and lingering spirits. They are not yet on the ranking and will only be ranked upon proving their strength in battle.

There was no need to list more. Just these eight were enough to make Zhao Changhe’s head split open.

He was already baffled by Piaomiao’s sudden appearance, and now the Ancient White Tiger had emerged out of nowhere.

Blindie, you knew the Ancient White Tiger was alive, and you didn’t say a damn word?! Where the hell are they? And more importantly, what does this mean for the Four Idols Cult and the new Night Emperor?

The very foundation of faith for the Four Idols Cult was built upon the (presumably dead) ancient Four Idols and the (vanished) Night Emperor. Their entire structure revolved around these entities being gone, allowing them to replace the ancient Four Idols and establish a new Night Emperor. Thus, if one of the ancient Four Idols had just stepped back into the world, this could spell chaos beyond imagination.

And it was almost certain that none of these ranked figures were still at the first layer of the Profound Control Realm. The blind woman did not even bother listing figures at the first layer, meaning that all of those whose names were listed on the ranking were at the second or even third layer.

Zhao Changhe clutched his head, feeling a splitting headache.

He had just won a great war and thought he could relax for a year or two only to turn around and realize his problems had only grown much larger. And worst of all, no matter how much he called for the blind woman, she refused to show up. There was no one to ask.

For now, they were still far out at Hanhai. It was not like they could just skip the victory feast, ignore the aftermath in the Grasslands, and rush back home just because of the update to the rankings. That was simply not how things worked. If they abandoned everything now, the entire army would revolt.

Forget it. Zhao Changhe pushed aside his frustrations and instead herded the captives of the Vulture Tribe back to Langjuxu.

During their time away, a new temple had been hastily rebuilt on the mountain. At the foot of the slopes, an overwhelming number of tribal leaders’ camps now sprawled across the land, waiting to pay tribute. Though more than seven days had passed, not a single person dared to utter a complaint.

The vast number of Vulture Tribe captives, the heads of Timur and Vulture Beak, and the defeated warriors from the Golden Wolf Tribe and other tribes near the royal court... all of it stood as a bloody testament to the fate of the tribes who failed to submit in time.

Though the ordinary members of the tribes may not be aware of the implications of the failure to submit in time, the chiefs certainly did. They knew that should they fail to do so, it would spell the extermination of their entire tribe. Zhao Changhe simply refrained from saying something so blood-soaked outright.

Of course, the Han army would never truly carry out a full-scale massacre. After all, the one in charge was Zhao Changhe, not Vermillion Bird, and certainly not Xue Canghai. But everyone could foresee that these defiant tribes would not have an easy future either. With the Han possibly establishing a system of indirect rule and pacification, these tribes would likely be subjected to endless forced and unpaid labor, turning them into a workforce of suffering. In the end, their fate might not be much different from extermination.

Such is the inevitable fate of the conquered.

1. The Chi (螭) is a hornless dragon and is one of the nine sons of the dragon in Chinese mythology. The one in this novel seems to be a variant and has a special attribute. ☜

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