A Man Born Between Heaven and Earth

Jiang Mingyang followed Jiang Tian and the others inside, and they began their meal.

As they ate, his eldest brother Jiang Ti and second brother Jiang Nan kept glancing at him. Their eyes held bewilderment, doubt, and deep confusion.

Unlike the steady, mature Jiang Ti, Jiang Nan had little patience.

Jiang Nan was intensely curious about what had happened between Jiang Mingyang and His Majesty...

It was not that Jiang Nan was especially curious about such things. As a top noble, he had met nearly every sort of person, and he had never lacked noble friends with those particular inclinations.

What he wanted to know was which of the two was... the one underneath.

After all, His Majesty looked so gentle and refined. Could it be...

Jiang Nan was choosing his words and about to ask when...

Jiang Ti spotted what he was doing. He quickly kicked Jiang Nan in the shin and shot him a glare.

Jiang Nan promptly realized this was probably not something he should ask and obediently went back to eating.

After the meal, Jiang Tian took Jiang Mingyang up to the observation deck on the top floor.

As the home of the Heaven Dou Empire's First Military Commander, Cheng Garden ranked among the finest residences in all of Heaven Dou.

From the observation deck, most of the Imperial Capital's buildings were visible at a glance.

A crystal-clear stream ran through Cheng Garden, lending the view a serene beauty.

An awkward silence settled over them.

Jiang Mingyang knew that what had happened between him and Qian Renxue was bound to be misunderstood by outsiders.

But that misunderstanding could not be cleared up, leaving him unsure how to face Jiang Tian.

Jiang Tian, too, had no idea how to bring up the matter between Jiang Mingyang and "His Majesty."

He had seen plenty of top nobles with such tastes.

But never when the other party was the emperor.

More importantly, His Majesty had never seemed to have those inclinations before!

Still, Jiang Tian did not find the change in "Xue Qinghe" particularly strange.

After all, perhaps the emperor was gentle and refined in public, but in private...

Besides, sitting on the imperial throne above ten thousand others could change a person's outlook.

The silence stretched on.

After a moment, Jiang Tian spoke. "You did well on this trip to Slaughter City, you rascal!

"Whatever you choose to do from now on, things will be much easier for you!"

Jiang Mingyang nodded. "Father, what happened between His Majesty and me was my fault..."

Jiang Tian cut him off. "Ah! Everyone has their own tastes and views.

"Maybe I'm the one who can't keep up with the times. I... I won't judge!"

Jiang Mingyang slowly nodded and prepared to raise the real matter. Jiang Tian would have to learn about it sooner or later.

"Father," Jiang Mingyang asked slowly, "do you... know about gods?"

At the same time, he slowly drew the Asura Demon Sword from where it hung at his right hip.

Even before obtaining it, Jiang Mingyang had known the Asura Demon Sword probably could not be stored in a Space Soul Tool.

After all, Tang San's Sea God Trident could not be stored in one either.

That left him with a problem: what should he do with the Asura Demon Sword?

He certainly had to keep it close and carry it wherever he went.

But in an age of Martial Souls, a man wandering around with a sword would look a little absurd.

Fortunately, when the Asura Demon Sword was in its scabbard, its aura was concealed. It looked like an ordinary object.

In the end, Jiang Mingyang had chosen to wear it at his waist like an accessory.

On Douluo Continent, weapons were not commonly worn as accessories.

Among the top nobles, however, quite a few liked to make small accessories shaped like their Martial Souls and keep them on their person.

It was one way for nobles to display their exalted bloodlines.

Jiang Nan, for example, wore a miniature Mingyang Bow around his neck as a pendant.

So Jiang Mingyang had chosen to wear the Asura Demon Sword at his waist like an accessory.

The sword could also conceal its aura on its own.

When Jiang Tian and the others saw the sword at Jiang Mingyang's waist, they gave it a second look but thought little of it.

After all, if he could even do that with His Majesty...

A huge accessory was hardly surprising. It was just a shame about such a fine young man...

But when Jiang Tian saw the Asura Demon Sword in Jiang Mingyang's hand, his eyes widened in shock.

He looked at Jiang Mingyang. "Gods... Do you mean the beings of legend who surpassed level one hundred and could live forever?

"Can such beings really exist?" Jiang Tian stared at the Asura Demon Sword, scarcely able to believe it.

No god had appeared on Douluo Continent for tens of thousands of years, and few legends remained. To its people, gods belonged to a distant past.

Jiang Mingyang nodded firmly. "Slaughter City is a place of inheritance left by a god.

"That god told me that once I reach level ninety-nine, I can attempt to inherit his godhood."

There was far too much to explain about inheriting godhood, so Jiang Mingyang could only give him the essentials for now.

Jiang Tian fell into a daze. That single revelation took him a full quarter of an hour to absorb.

"Gods..." he murmured at last. "They rarely appear even in legends!"

Seeing that Jiang Tian was still reeling, Jiang Mingyang did not rush him. It sounded simple enough to take in.

But put another way, it was as though someone had suddenly told Jiang Mingyang in his previous life that Nuwa mending the heavens had truly happened. He would have been stunned too.

The difference was that people on Douluo Continent cultivated as well. To them, a god was a being above level one hundred, which made the idea much easier to accept.

Before long, Jiang Tian came back to himself, excitement surging through him. A god!

Then, as a thought struck him, he asked Jiang Mingyang expectantly, "Mingyang, what do you want for your future?

"Whatever you decide to do, I will support you!"

After so many years together, Jiang Mingyang knew his adoptive father was not particularly loyal to the Heaven Dou Imperial Family.

In the original story, Jiang Tian had lost his position as Grand Marshal to Ge Long. His support for "Xue Qinghe" had certainly played a part.

But with the Heaven Dou Empire beset by troubles at home and abroad, his lack of loyalty to the imperial family had likely mattered too.

So Jiang Mingyang answered without hesitation. "A man born between heaven and earth cannot spend his life languishing beneath another.

"The Heaven Dou Empire and the Star Luo Empire rule without the people's support. Their standing among the common folk cannot even compare to Spirit Hall's.

"I will follow the will of the people and take their place."

Jiang Tian burst out laughing.

He patted Jiang Mingyang on the shoulder, then walked down from the observation deck.

Jiang Mingyang watched his carefree figure depart and sank into thought.

In ancient times there was a beauty named Mingyang.

Mingyang seldom smiled. Emperor Li wished to make him smile, but for a long time, he did not.

Emperor Li had Beacon Drums set up, to be sounded when invaders came.

The Vassal Kings all arrived. Finding no invaders, Mingyang burst out laughing.

Delighted, Emperor Li had the Beacon Drums sounded several more times.

After that, the vassals no longer believed the alarm, and fewer and fewer came.

Emperor Li appointed Mingyang's father to high office and put him in charge of state affairs. The people all resented it.

Mingyang's father was a cunning flatterer who loved profit, yet the emperor employed him.

Marquis Shen was an upright man. Enraged, he joined Barak in attacking Emperor Li.

Emperor Li sounded the Beacon Drums to summon his troops, but none came.

And so... Heaven Dou fell.

Post One: What was the relationship between the Grand Ancestor and the beauty Mingyang? Their names sound so alike!

Netizen Customer This Year: I have no proof, but I strongly suspect Mingyang was the Grand Ancestor himself.

Netizen Right Arm: It never actually gives Mingyang's surname, okay? ~_~ Stop talking nonsense, upstairs. How could the Grand Ancestor possibly do that?

Netizen Okay Area: Tsk, tsk. Emperor Li... there was only one emperor by that name. If I remember right... it's very likely the beauty was the Grand Ancestor.

Netizen Method V Sister: Ahem... Careful, or this post will disappear.

Netizen U V Tragedy: I agree with the first commenter. But why don't the histories say so explicitly?

Netizen Hahaha Hic: It's not like the Grand Ancestor only rewrote history once or twice...

Netizen Cut the Crap: Damn, upstairs. You've got guts.