"Yes, Big Brother, we really should go offer our congratulations."
Emperor Taiyi's eyes were filled with anticipation as well. He had always had a fiery temper, and he also possessed the companion Innate Supreme Treasure, the Chaos Bell.
The Eastern Emperor Bell was also known as the Chaos Bell!
Legend had it that when Pangu opened the heavens, the Pangu Axe split into three.
Its blade became the Pangu Banner, which specialized in offense and could tear apart space and time.
Its back became the Taiji Diagram, which governed balance and could transform yin, yang, and the five elements.
Its handle became the Chaos Bell.
When Emperor Taiyi was born, the Chaos Bell had accompanied him from birth. As long as no Saint emerged, he was invincible.
With an Innate Supreme Treasure in hand, his defenses could practically be called invulnerable. No one below a Saint could break them.
The Chaos Bell's offensive power was equally terrifying. It governed the suppression of space and time, combining offense and defense.
In terms of the Demon Clan's combat strength, Di Jun appeared to be the strongest.
But in truth, it was Emperor Taiyi who was stronger than Di Jun.
Di Jun, seated upon the throne, looked down at the Ten Demon Gods, then at his younger brother Emperor Taiyi. He shook his head and said solemnly,
"No need!"
The moment those words fell,
In an instant,
Every member of the Demon Clan in the Great Hall looked at Di Jun in confusion.
Why?
This was a rare opportunity.
An opportunity to make East Prince Gong lose face before countless great powers.
At the same time,
It was also a chance to display the Demon Clan's strength.
Yet Di Jun was telling them not to act on such an opportunity.
They truly could not understand what Di Jun was thinking.
Seeing the confusion on their faces, Di Jun slowly explained, "A mere East Prince Gong is not worthy of becoming the Demon Clan's great enemy. Besides, if we send people to cause trouble, countless living beings of the Primordial Wilderness will only laugh at us and think the Demon Clan petty."
"Big Brother, East Prince Gong is holding the Myriad Immortals Assembly most likely to win over the various great powers and strengthen the Purple Mansion Prefecture Immortal Court."
"If we make no response at all, wouldn't that be granting his wish?"
Emperor Taiyi frowned, still unable to understand why his older brother was doing this.
Given his temperament, he wished he could personally make a move.
He wanted to descend upon the Purple Mansion with the Eastern Emperor Bell in hand and deliver East Prince Gong a fine gift.
A scornful smile appeared on Di Jun's face. "Don't worry. We won't need to act. Someone will deal with him."
"Do you really think those great powers went there for him?"
"They are merely giving the Dao Ancestor face. So what if he was bestowed the title of Head of Male Immortals by the Dao Ancestor?"
"None of the truly great powers take him seriously. Besides, we want him to grow even more arrogant and overbearing. Only then can we accelerate the Demon Clan's unification."
As the emperor of the Demon Clan, Di Jun was skilled in strategy.
How could he fail to see through East Prince Gong's intentions?
Their Demon Heavenly Court had long possessed the strength to utterly crush its opponent. The reason they had not acted directly was, on one hand, out of consideration for the Dao Ancestor's dignity.
On the other hand, they needed someone like him to stir up trouble.
Without East Prince Gong forcing those neutral Demon Clan beings of the Primordial Wilderness to make a choice, the Demon Clan's path to growth might encounter some trouble.
If Di Jun personally forced those Primordial Wilderness races to join the Demon Heavenly Court, it would be entirely different from them joining willingly.
At this moment,
Within the Purple Mansion Immortal Court.
After three rounds of wine, everyone was in high spirits.
Seeing that the time was about right, East Prince Gong prepared to reveal the true purpose of this gathering.
He rose with his wine cup in hand and said with a smile, "I invited you all to the Myriad Immortals Assembly today because there is an extremely important matter I wish to discuss with you."
The moment he spoke,
The conversations among those present came to a halt.
Seeing everyone's eyes gather upon him, East Prince Gong swept his gaze around before continuing.
"As you all know, I was appointed Head of Male Immortals by the venerable Dao Ancestor and bear the responsibility of maintaining the stability of heaven and earth. Yet I have discovered that certain forces in the Primordial Wilderness have defied the Dao Ancestor's will."
Every cultivator who had been to the Purple Sky Palace scoffed inwardly.
He really knew how to wield borrowed authority!
East Prince Gong paid no attention to the others' expressions. Raising his wine cup, he continued, "Everyone, as the Head of Male Immortals, I have convened today's Myriad Immortals Assembly to invite you to join my Purple Mansion Immortal Court and uphold the order of Primordial Heaven and Earth with me."
As he spoke, his expression was exceedingly arrogant.
He had invoked the Dao Ancestor now. Even if these people obeyed in word but not in deed, they still had to give the Dao Ancestor some face and choose to join his Immortal Court.
With so many powerful experts joining, the mere Demon Heavenly Court would be nothing to fear.
He had already made up his mind. Once the Myriad Immortals Assembly ended, he would immediately set out to attack the Demon Heavenly Court and, in one burst of momentum, beat Emperor Taiyi and Di Jun, those two Mottled Birds, until both body and soul were destroyed.
He would make the living beings of the Primordial Wilderness understand exactly who had the final say in this world.
At this moment, everyone present exchanged looks before turning their gazes toward the Three Pure Ones.
They were considering it inwardly as well.
East Prince Gong was clearly using force to pressure them, borrowing the Dao Ancestor's authority in an attempt to make them join the Immortal Court. If they refused outright, they would be refusing to give him face.
Moreover, everyone knew the character of a petty man like East Prince Gong. He might even go straight to the Dao Ancestor and lodge a complaint against them.
Among those present, Taishang was the Dao Ancestor's Personal Disciple and senior disciple.
Primordial Heavenly Lord and Tongtian were also the Dao Ancestor's Personal Disciples.
If the Three Pure Ones joined, they would surely follow without hesitation. Perhaps this was the trend of heaven and earth. Even if they looked down on East Prince Gong's character, they at least had to keep up appearances.
Furthermore, with the Three Pure Ones holding the fort, joining the Immortal Court would count as finding powerful backing.
Everyone waited for the Three Pure Ones to state their position.
Their attitude would determine everyone's choice.
Hearing East Prince Gong's words, Niu Ben wanted to laugh. East Prince Gong truly was the foremost expert at courting death.
If he had simply remained the Head of Male Immortals and refrained from fighting for fame and profit, perhaps his end would not have been so miserable. After all, Queen Mother of the West, who had been appointed Head of Female Immortals alongside him, had lived on peacefully.
Sure enough, the moment East Prince Gong finished speaking, Taishang's brows faintly furrowed before relaxing again. The same natural, gentle smile remained on his face.
He rose and lightly flicked his Fly Whisk, his voice calm. "Fellow Daoist East Prince Gong, the three of us are accustomed to quiet cultivation and will not involve ourselves in the great trends of the Primordial Wilderness. Thank you for today's banquet. There are matters at Kunlun Mountain that require my attention, so I shall take my leave."
Niu Ben had long anticipated Taishang's attitude.
His body shifted, and he directly transformed into his true form.
Taishang floated into the air.
Niu Ben carried Taishang away from Purple Mansion Prefecture.
Primordial Heavenly Lord and Tongtian followed closely behind.
The two of them took Guangchengzi and Duobao with them without even offering a word of farewell.
They had only come this time to give the Dao Ancestor face, not because of East Prince Gong. Besides, their status was far greater than East Prince Gong's, for they were the Dao Ancestor's Personal Disciples.
At most, East Prince Gong was merely the appointed Head of Male Immortals. Narrow-minded, arrogant, and conceited as he was, no matter how high his status, he would never accomplish anything great.
The attitudes of the three of them had already made everyone understand what choice to make.
At this point, some could no longer hold back their sneers, though they made no sound.
Everyone understood that East Prince Gong wanted to borrow their hands to deal with the Demon Heavenly Court.
None of them were fools. If the Three Pure Ones had been holding the fort, they would certainly have been willing to act. That would also mean the Purple Mansion Immortal Court possessed legitimacy and represented the Dao Ancestor's stance.
But now, Taishang—Laozi—was not giving him any face at all. The meaning behind his words was clear: he had only come to attend a banquet, and everything else had nothing to do with him.
He would not participate in any of the great trends of the Primordial Wilderness.
He did not even give East Prince Gong a chance to speak, casually finding an excuse before turning and leaving.
Primordial Heavenly Lord and Tongtian were even more direct.
Especially their gazes. Primordial Heavenly Lord's was filled with disdain and mockery.
Tongtian's indifference seemed to proclaim to everyone that, if not for East Prince Gong's status as Head of Male Immortals, the Four Immortal Slaying Swords in his hands might already have left their sheaths.
The Great Hall was so silent that a needle dropping could be heard.
East Prince Gong was nearly grinding his teeth to pieces, the fury in his heart surging like towering waves.
But he only raged for a moment.
He still tried his best to maintain a smile, though the wine cup raised in his hand revealed his embarrassment.
Before you continue