After receiving a "soft rebuff" from West Queen Mother at Buzhou Mountain, East King Duke was not discouraged in the slightest. Instead, his fighting spirit blazed even fiercer—mainly because he really could not bear the loss of face. He returned to Penglai Island in the East Sea, gazed at the mist-wreathed, immortal-energy-rich paradise before him, and slapped his thigh.
"Hmph! West Queen Mother is just a woman, long-haired and short-sighted! Watch how this Immortal Leader builds the Immortal Court from scratch and turns it into an impregnable fortress!"
This newly minted "Male Immortal Leader" carried the appointment letter issued by the Heavenly Dao and brimmed with lofty ambition. He felt like the next pig riding the wave in the prehistoric world... no, the next immortal!
He returned to Penglai Island in the East Sea, looked at this mist-wreathed, spiritually abundant—at least in his own opinion—treasured land, and immediately launched his "Immortal Court" startup plan.
The moment he decided on it, he acted! East King Duke transformed into the prehistoric world's number one HR manager.
He knew that while the title "Male Immortal Leader" sounded impressive, his actual power to rally others was limited. After all, once the Dao Ancestor merged with the Dao, he was essentially in "offline managed mode" and would not back him up. So, East King Duke brought out the tried-and-true ultimate move used throughout the ages and across all worlds—making grand promises!
First, he sent out "Immortal Court Recruitment Notices." Rather than jade slips, they were golden flyers condensed from pure yang energy, inscribed with Great Dao runes:
"Do you want to achieve Great Luo? Do you want to wield spirit treasures? Do you want to swagger through the prehistoric world?
Join the Immortal Court and bid farewell to the life of a wandering cultivator!
Here, we have:
- Official certification personally designated by the Dao Ancestor, issued by the Male Immortal Leader himself!
- Cave residences on Penglai Island with permanent ownership rights—first come, first served!
- Personal cultivation guidance from Big Boss East King Duke—occasionally!
- Internal-price exchanges for innate materials—limited quantities!
- When the Immortal Court goes public in the future and becomes the orthodox power of the prehistoric world, you will be founding shareholders!
What are you waiting for? Come interview at Penglai Island!"
Damn, once these flyers went out, phrases like "personally designated by the Dao Ancestor" and "orthodox power of the prehistoric world" really did attract quite a few wandering cultivators struggling at the bottom with no way forward. Some Golden Immortals and Grand Unity Golden Immortals, thinking, It costs nothing to give it a try. What if it works out?, flocked to Penglai.
Standing at Penglai's highest point and facing a crowd of wandering cultivators with wildly varying cultivation levels, East King Duke launched into an impassioned speech:
"Fellow Daoists! We wandering cultivators struggle to survive in the prehistoric world like rootless duckweed! Why? Because we have no organization! No discipline! No sense of belonging!"
"Now, the Heavenly Dao has shown mercy, and the Dao Ancestor has personally bestowed his title! This one has been favored by the Dao Ancestor and humbly serves as the Male Immortal Leader! Today, our Immortal Court is officially established! Our goal is—to establish a new order for the immortal path in the prehistoric world! So that every wandering cultivator has a home to return to, methods to cultivate, pills to swallow... ahem, a Dao to follow!"
With a grand sweep of his hand, a glittering "Immortal Court Future Development Plan"—or PPT for short—appeared in the sky, condensed from immortal energy and filled with all sorts of beautiful visions:
"Look! This will be our future Hall of Ten Thousand Immortals! Its floors will be paved with ten-thousand-year Warm Jade, and its pillars made from Star Gold!"
"Look! This will be our future Scripture Repository! It will contain every method in the prehistoric world and be open to members for free... no, at an extremely low cost!"
"Look! These will be our future Alchemy Room and Artifact Forging Workshop! This seat... along with the great alchemy experts he invites, will personally provide guidance. Everyone will have no shortage of resources and no worries over magic treasures!"
"As long as you join the Immortal Court, you will be founding members! You will be elders! When the Immortal Court shakes the prehistoric world in the future, all of you will be meritorious contributors, sharing its providence and bearing witness to the Great Dao together! Cultivation methods, resources, status, providence, even merit—you will have it all!"
After that series of moves, many wandering cultivators who lacked experience or harbored wishful hopes were worked into a feverish frenzy and eagerly signed up. Looking at the "team" that had begun to take shape before him, East King Duke stroked his nonexistent beard with satisfaction.
Of course, some clearheaded people muttered in private:
"Warm Jade? Star Gold? Where are we supposed to rob... no, find those?"
"This Immortal Court feels a little shaky, like some slapdash operation..."
Still, relying on his "Heavenly Dao-certified" title, his impressive eloquence, and those grand, perfectly round promises, East King Duke truly did assemble a seemingly massive Immortal Court force.
Although it lacked top-tier combat power, had chaotic middle management, and was full of mixed fish and dragons at the lower levels, its momentum was tremendous and its fanfare deafening. At least when it came to building public hype, it was unrivaled for a time.
Meanwhile, on the Sun Star, the two "tsundere CEOs," Di Jun and Taiyi, looked down on East King Duke's "PPT startup" with immense disdain.
"Hmph! A jumping clown, pandering to the crowd!" Di Jun snorted as he looked at the jade slip containing news of the Immortal Court, then casually crushed it. "Can the orthodox power of the prehistoric world be talked into existence?"
Taiyi held the Chaos Bell in his arms, his gaze sharp. "Brother is absolutely right. Our demon race has countless billions of living beings, occupies the Heavenly Court—the Thirty-Three Heavens—and commands the Zhou Tian Stars. We are the ones favored by Heaven's Mandate! This Heavenly Court is the true governing and executive body of the prehistoric world!"
The two acted as soon as they decided. Unlike East King Duke's "grassroots startup," the Demon Race Heavenly Court took the route of "power-based annexation" and "high-pay poaching."
Relying on their own immense strength—early Quasi-Saint cultivation, along with supreme treasures such as the Chaos Bell, River Diagram and Luo Book—and their grand vision of "ruling the starry sky and ordering yin and yang," Di Jun and Taiyi began aggressively recruiting the great demons of the prehistoric world.
They established clear ranks and generous "compensation and benefits packages":
Ten Great Demon Sages: High status and great authority, enjoying the blessing of the demon race's vast providence, priority access to resources, and personal Dao lectures from Di Jun and Taiyi.
Three Hundred Sixty-Five Zhou Tian Demon Gods: Corresponding to the Zhou Tian Main Stars, able to draw upon stellar power for cultivation and command demon soldiers in their respective regions.
Countless Demon Soldiers: Basic benefits, food and lodging included—meaning they could occupy Spirit Mountains and blessed lands—with rewards guaranteed for meritorious service.
These tangible benefits were far more appealing than East King Duke's empty checks. In no time, the framework of the Demon Race Heavenly Court rose rapidly, its troops strong, its ranks disciplined, and its presence radiating a chilling, murderous air.
But Di Jun and Taiyi's ambitions did not end there. They knew that if the Heavenly Court truly wanted to become the "orthodox power of the prehistoric world," it needed sufficiently weighty figureheads.
Their eyes turned toward Nuwa, who had just obtained the Primordial Violet Qi and possessed limitless prospects, as well as her elder brother Fuxi.
That day, Di Jun and Taiyi prepared lavish gifts and personally went to visit the cultivation grounds of Fuxi and his sister on Buzhou Mountain.
After both sides exchanged greetings and took their seats, Di Jun got straight to the point. "Fellow Daoist Nuwa, Fellow Daoist Fuxi, the prehistoric world is currently in chaos. The witch race is overbearing, while the likes of East King Duke possess nothing but empty reputations."
"Our demon race wishes to establish the Heavenly Court, order yin and yang, and rule the heavens. This is an act in accordance with the Heavenly Dao. You two are outstanding figures of the prehistoric world, and Fellow Daoist Nuwa bears a Saint Position. If you join our Heavenly Court, it will surely gain wings like a tiger and bring blessings to all living beings of the prehistoric world."
Before Nuwa could speak, Fuxi frowned slightly. "Establishing the Heavenly Court and maintaining order is certainly a good thing. But my younger sister and I have grown accustomed to an idle life. I fear we would be unable to take on demanding duties."
Taiyi immediately cut in, his tone carrying unquestionable dominance. "If you two are willing to join, your status will naturally be extraordinary! We are willing to honor Fellow Daoist Nuwa as the Empress Wa, standing alongside my brother and me! Fellow Daoist Fuxi will be Emperor Xi, equally revered, second only to Empress Wa and my brother and me! Normally, neither of you will need to handle mundane affairs. You need only step forward to deter others whenever the Heavenly Court requires it. The Heavenly Court's providence will be shared with you both!"
Well now, "Empress Wa" and "Emperor Xi"—those titles sounded far more imposing than East King Duke's bare "Immortal Leader"! And with "extraordinary status," "no need to handle mundane affairs," and "shared providence," it was practically an honorary chairman position custom-made for them.
Nuwa and Fuxi exchanged a glance and communicated in secret. Nuwa transmitted with her thoughts, Brother, I need the Merit of Creation to become a saint. Establishing the Heavenly Court may allow me to draw upon its providence and make things easier. Besides, the terms truly are generous.
After pondering for a moment, Fuxi replied, Di Jun and Taiyi are wildly ambitious and not easy men to deal with. But if we can maintain an extraordinary status and borrow their influence to pursue our own Dao, there is no harm in it. We must simply be cautious in the future and not become too deeply entangled.
After some bargaining, Nuwa finally nodded. "In that case, my brother and I will accept. We hope the Heavenly Court can truly, as you two have said, bring blessings to the prehistoric world."
Before you continue