Absurd! So Absurd!

At this thought, Haotian could not help but feel a measure of gratitude toward his master—it was precisely that Imperial Edict that had fulfilled the most perfect union of his life.

"No need to dwell on it. I simply did not expect the Immortal Peach Gathering to arrive so soon."

Haotian lightly waved a hand, gathering his thoughts as clarity returned to his gaze.

Then he and the Queen Mother carefully discussed every matter concerning the gathering...

Today, auspicious clouds billowed through the Heavenly Court, golden light spilled across the skies, and music and song rang everywhere amid joy that soared to the heavens.

Between jeweled towers and jade halls, lines of fairy maidens drifted gracefully past, bearing spiritual brews, jade nectar, purple ganoderma, jade dew, fire dates, dragon liver, and phoenix marrow in their hands, streaming without end into the sacred grounds of Yaochi.

Today was the Heavenly Court's once-in-a-century Immortal Peach Gathering.

Months ago, Haotian Shangdi and Yaochi Queen Mother had already dispatched envoys with invitations far and wide, inviting true immortals from every corner of the Primordial Wilderness, Rogue cultivators and Great Powers, and reclusive old ancestors to the feast.

This year's gathering was also the first grand celebration following the end of the War of Investiture of the Gods, and a crucial campaign for the Heavenly Court to proclaim its rightful authority to the Myriad Worlds and reestablish its prestige.

At this moment, Haotian and Yaochi sat in the seats of honor atop the Immortal Peach Platform, overlooking the gods of the heavens and immortal sages from all directions crowding in below, their brows relaxed and their bearing composed.

Compared to the desolate sight when they had first ascended to the Heavenly Court—its gates deserted and its halls crumbling—

today's Heavenly Court had grown its wings