Chapter 34

They knew full well that if the Dao Ancestor had not spoken, they would never have been able to take up the positions of Heavenly Emperor and Queen Mother. Even so, facing saints such as Yuanshi, Tongtian, and the Two Sages of the West, they still needed to strive for more support.

They would be directly ignored, met with cold looks, and abandoned without a second glance.

In the eyes of the saints, the Heavenly Emperor and Queen Mother were insignificant.

Simply because they stood in the saints' way.

Under such circumstances, who would care about those so-called Heavenly Emperor titles? Thinking back to the Demon Race's heyday, the majesty of Demon Emperor Di Jun and East Emperor Taiyi now seemed no more than ants before them.

So what did Haotian and Yaochi amount to now? Naturally, no one valued them.

Thus, any thought of bringing the saints under their command could only be buried deep in their hearts.

Haotian shifted his gaze to Grand White Golden Star among the assembled officials and asked, "How is the matter progressing?"

Grand White Golden Star had taken form from the Morning Star constellation. Having comprehended the true words of virtue, he took Grand White Golden Star as his name.

He replied to Haotian, "The nine-thousand-year peaches of immortality have ripened. Heavenly Emperor, you may hold the Peach Banquet at any time."

Joy appeared on Haotian's face upon hearing this news.

He nodded and smiled. "It is time to invite the saints to a feast."

In his view, if he wished to befriend the saints and gain their support, he first had to invite them to the Peach Banquet.

He instructed Grand White Golden Star, "You must handle this matter personally. Remember, you must not offend the saints."

Grand White Golden Star understood perfectly. He nodded in agreement and left the Lingxiao Treasure Hall.

However, Haotian seemed to have overestimated himself.

As lofty beings, how could the saints care about a Heavenly Emperor's Peach Banquet? Moreover, the position of Heavenly Emperor had once been something they fought over.

Therefore, no one would care about this gathering.

At this moment, the atmosphere between the Heavenly Court Haotian had established and the saints was delicate, and all the saints felt displeased.

The Two Sages of the West might have been tempted by this invitation, for they had always longed for the eastern lands.

Though the existence of the Three Pure Ones prevented them from setting foot there easily, an invitation from the Heavenly Emperor himself might have been an opportunity they could not afford to miss.

When Grand White Golden Star received the Heavenly Court's decree to invite the saints to the gathering, being a seasoned figure, he naturally knew which sacred grounds he should visit first.

He knew that the Three Pure Ones held transcendent status, especially Grand Supreme Elder Lord, who stood at their head. Thus, he did not begin with the nearest saint's sacred ground, lest he offend a saint.

He arrived at Li Er's Eight Sceneries Palace, intending to personally invite the saint to the gathering.

He held deep respect and gratitude for Li Er, because it was Grand Supreme Elder Lord's teachings that had profoundly influenced him in the past.

Before the Supreme Saint, he made his request for an audience with excitement and solemnity in his heart.

Before long, Xuandu emerged from the Eight Sceneries Palace, allowing Grand White Golden Star to meet him.

Xuandu smiled. "So it is Grand White Golden Star of the Heavenly Court. What instructions does the Heavenly Emperor have?"

Upon learning the visitor's identity, Grand White Golden Star gave a slight bow and said, "By order of the Heavenly Emperor, I have come especially to invite the Supreme Saint to attend the Peach Banquet.

I hope the saint will condescend to honor us with his presence."

Xuandu knew that Grand White Golden Star was acting on the Heavenly Emperor's behalf, while Li Er had never left the Eight Sceneries Palace since opening his abode.

Xuandu understood the intentions behind this invitation all too well.

This so-called Peach Banquet was nothing more than Haotian's attempt to display his majesty as the Heavenly Court's new master and his good relations with the saints.

Neither Xuandu nor his master had any interest in such a purpose-driven gathering.

However, Li Er's voice suddenly rang out from within the Eight Sceneries Palace. "I already know about the Peach Banquet. There is no need to invite me again.

Let Earthly Sovereign Hong Yun attend in my place."

Hearing this, Xuandu could only shake his head helplessly.

He knew that after Hong Yun regained his former temperament, he enjoyed joining such lively occasions.

Now that the Three Sovereigns were not bound by Li Er, it was reasonable enough for Hong Yun to attend in Taishang's place.

But Xuandu was exceptionally clever and immediately guessed the deeper meaning—this was a strategy arranged for the Peach Banquet that Jieyin and Zhunti would certainly attend.

Li Er wanted Hong Yun to reunite with his old friends and settle the unresolved karma between them.

Upon hearing this, Grand White Golden Star became solemn and bowed toward the depths of the Eight Sceneries Palace. "I shall obey the Supreme Saint's decree."

When Grand White Golden Star entered Hong Yun Palace and spoke with Hong Yun, one of the Three Sovereign Saints of Fire Cloud Palace.

Hong Yun was greatly interested upon hearing about the Peach Banquet.

When he learned that Li Er had specifically named him to represent the Eight Sceneries Palace at the gathering, Hong Yun fell silent for a moment.

He understood Taishang's intentions and then sighed over the passage of time. It was time to meet his old friends again.

Hong Yun's attitude puzzled Grand White Golden Star, but given their respective statuses, he did not ask further.

After receiving Hong Yun's reply, Grand White Golden Star headed for Yuanshi's Jade Void Palace in the Jade Capital Golden Tower on Kunlun Mountain.

However, the Twelve Golden Immortals of the Chan Sect gave him no friendly reception and directly turned him away.

After hearing Grand White Golden Star's purpose, Yuanshi merely sent a voice transmission through the air to ask, "You went to the Eight Sceneries Palace. Did the Supreme Saint give any instructions?"

Grand White Golden Star answered that the Supreme Saint had asked Earthly Sovereign Hong Yun to attend in his place.

Yuanshi was briefly stunned upon hearing Hong Yun's name, then burst into laughter and said that he would attend the Peach Banquet.

Grand White Golden Star and the Chan Sect's Golden Immortals were both puzzled by Yuanshi's sudden change of heart.

Likewise, when Grand White Golden Star went to Biyou Palace on Golden Ao Island, Sect Master Tongtian's attitude was the same as Yuanshi's. At first, he had no interest whatsoever, but upon learning that Hong Yun would attend in Taishang's place, he immediately agreed to participate.

Grand White Golden Star was filled with doubt, but before the dignity of saints, he neither dared to ask nor dared to linger.

In the end, he completed his mission and arrived outside Nuwa's Wa Huang Palace.

The result was the same.

Grand White Golden Star felt an inexplicable premonition, as though something was about to happen.

Even if he had been foolish, he would have known that the saints who had originally been unwilling to attend the gathering in the Heavenly Court had now changed their minds because of a single sentence from the Supreme Saint.

He could not help sensing the scent of a conspiracy.

In the west, on Mount Sumeru, Jieyin and Zhunti had already learned that the saints would be going to the Heavenly Court for the gathering, and they knew Li Er's scheme was involved.

Although they were vexed and did not meet Grand White Golden Star, they made it clear that they would attend the Heavenly Court's gathering.

Jieyin still wore his usual sorrowful expression, while Zhunti's face was grim.

Zhunti let out a long sigh. "Taishang has set me up!"

He had now roughly guessed Li Er's intention in arranging for Hong Yun to attend the Heavenly Court gathering in his place: nothing more than letting Hong Yun come to the west and settle their karma.

Yet even though they knew all this, they could not stop it from happening.

Because Li Er's arrangement was an open scheme; even if they knew it, they could not avoid it.

Unless they never set foot in the eastern lands for the rest of their lives, they would inevitably have to repay the karma they owed Hong Yun.

Yet the western lands were not only barren, but when they founded the Western Sect, they had also incurred the merit of forty-eight grand vows that remained unpaid.

Those grand vows were promises for the future, not matters of the present.

Thus, they were effectively drawing upon merit in advance.

The Western Sect's current circumstances made it impossible for them to establish their sect and fulfill their vows by relying solely on the western lands.

Therefore, they had to seize every opportunity to forge an agreement with the eastern lands.

Naturally, they would not let an opportunity like the Peach Banquet slip away.

Even if they chose to hide, they could not escape the coming Immeasurable Kalpa.

Therefore, Li Er's arrangement for Hong Yun to represent the Eight Sceneries Palace lineage at the Heavenly Court gathering was not some plotted conspiracy, but an inevitable outcome.

Li Er's strategy was open and grand, intended to gradually force Jieyin and Zhunti into making a choice.

His purpose was not simple, but the result of careful consideration.

Even if Jieyin and Zhunti saw through it, the result would remain unchanged.

Li Er's goal was to force them to choose compromise and repay their karma.

If they refused, it would not only affect their cultivation, but also draw Li Er's support.

Hong Yun was not alone now. Behind him stood the Three Sovereigns Saints of the Grand Pure lineage.

"Taishang, Taishang!"

Li Er seemed to murmur inwardly, What deep hatred do we Two Sages of the West have against you for you to scheme against us like this?

Though such scheming was infuriating, this was the reality of conflict among saints.

Li Er was not here. Otherwise, he would certainly have conveyed eight words to Zhunti: Such is the struggle among saints.

Just like the Investiture of the Gods killing tribulation, the struggle between the Human, Chan, and Interception Sects had nothing to do with the grudges of the Western Sect.

Yet Jieyin and Zhunti used the Three Pure Ones' ** to unleash the kalpa, calculating against nearly half of the Interception Sect's **, and even plotting against Li Er's former self, Laozi, leaving him owing karma.

In the end, they forced him to send out Daoist Duobao, transforming barbarians into Buddha and supplying the Western Sect with elites.

Were those methods any cleaner than Li Er's step-by-step pressure?

One had to know that Li Er was the Daoist Sect Leader, while the Western Sect would later break away from the Dao to become Buddha, establishing Mahayana Buddhism and taking away Daoist Sect Destiny.

Thus, in essence, Li Er and the Two Sages of the West stood opposed to one another.

Since they were enemies, how could Li Er, while holding the advantage, nurture a tiger that would bring future calamity? If he had the chance, would it not be better to ** Jieyin and Zhunti with a single blow? Their differing camps had doomed them to opposition.

If Jieyin and Zhunti had the opportunity, they too would mercilessly divide away Daoist Sect Destiny just as Li Er would.

Thus, the doubts in his heart vanished in an instant.

Such was the struggle among saints. There was no need to say more.

Then came mention of the magnificent Heavenly Court.

The Lingxiao Treasure Hall, as the core of the Heavenly Court, carried an air of legend.

It was said that the two great Demon Emperors of the past—Di Jun and Taiyi—had once named it.

Standing above the clouds of Lingxiao, one could gaze out over the entire Heavenly Court from on high.

Thus, it was named the Lingxiao Treasure Hall and became the Heavenly Court's supreme abode.

Before the South Heaven Gate, Haotian broadly sent out invitations to the Peach Banquet, summoning the saints to attend in person.

The great powers, unwilling to miss such a grand occasion, arrived one after another on clouds or mounted upon their beasts. The sight was exceedingly magnificent.

"The power of the stars is so dense. No wonder the Demon Race occupied the primordial lands..."

Upon arriving, the many great powers all marveled in admiration.

They could tell at a glance that the clouds and mist in the Heavenly Court were no ordinary spiritual energy, but a convergence of heaven and earth's energy.

Cultivating here was superior even to the Blessed Lands of the primordial world.

Before long, several Quasi-Saint titans gathered in the Lingxiao Treasure Hall.

At that moment, pressure descended from the void as an imposing aura arrived.

Immediately afterward, the Nine Dragon Incense Carriage crossed the void and hovered above the Lingxiao Treasure Hall. A saint had arrived.

Yuanshi, Tongtian, and Nuwa arrived with graceful lotus steps, while the many Quasi-Saint great powers present were filled with anticipation.

Such a scene had never been seen before, aside from the investiture of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors.

Had Li Er not appeared and spoken, why would these great saintly titans have been willing to come here for the Peach Banquet? Within the Lingxiao Treasure Hall, the lofty saints shook the entire gathering merely by appearing in the sky; they had not descended in their true bodies.

It was as though Heavenly Emperor Haotian and the other Quasi-Saint titans present were nothing more than insignificant beings in their eyes.

Although Haotian sat upon the Heavenly Emperor's throne at this moment, he still felt powerless beneath the saints' gaze.

The saints' majesty deeply shook Haotian's heart.

They seemed to be deliberately teaching Haotian a lesson.

Outside the South Heaven Gate, as golden light surged, Jieyin and Zhunti also appeared with their distinctive, mysterious bearing.

After greeting the other saints, they also offered Haotian their salutations.

Though they were saints as well, Jieyin and Zhunti were comparatively low-key and humble, forming a stark contrast with the others.

Because the western lands were barren, Jieyin and Zhunti were exceptionally skilled at winning people over.