After collecting the Innate Gourd Vine and the seven treasure gourds, Xuan Wazi was thoroughly satisfied and did not linger long on Mount Buzhou. He knew that Di Jun, Taiyi, and the others would soon discover that their opportunity had been taken. Though they would not trace it back to him, some turmoil was inevitable. Using the Chaos Bead to conceal his tracks, he quietly returned to the hidden underwater manor deep in the East Sea, ready to thoroughly process his gains while keeping an eye on developments in the Primordial World.
Inside the underwater manor, the aura of the Chaos Bead cut off the inside from the outside.
Xuan Wazi first turned his attention to the vibrant Innate Gourd Vine. This vine was an Innate Spiritual Root. Though it had already borne fruit, it still contained immense Creative Vitality and the origin of Yi Wood. It was also the crucial object Nuwa would need to create humans in the future.
He carefully transplanted the gourd vine into the inner space of the Chaos Bead, setting aside a special area for it. He used the collected Innate Wu Earth Essence as soil and summoned the Dao resonance of the Creation Green Lotus to rain down a shower of light and nourish it. The moment the vine entered the soil, it swiftly took root. Its emerald leaves unfurled, seven-colored radiance flowed around it, and it appeared increasingly miraculous.
"With this vine, when Nuwa creates humans in the future, I can go with the flow and give her this favor, forge a good connection, and receive a share of the merit from creating humans." Xuan Wazi nodded in satisfaction, then took out a small amount of the Nine Heavens Breathing Soil he had obtained from the system and mixed it into the Wu Earth Essence, adding boundless Qi of Creation.
Next, he took out the seven gleaming treasure gourds. He first refined the most precious Chaos Gourd. Within it lay a pocket of chaotic space. Though it was not as vast and primordial as the unopened chaos within the Chaos Bead, it was more "malleable." It could devour all things and return them to their origin, transforming them into Chaos Qi, or use Chaos Qi to nurture specific objects. It combined offense and defense, and its mysteries were extraordinary.
"Not bad. If I don't like the look of someone in the future, I can just collect him with this gourd and turn him into a wisp of Chaos Qi. Clean and efficient." Xuan Wazi performed an initial refinement on it and hung it at his waist as one of his commonly used spiritual treasures.
He was in no hurry to refine the other six gourds. The scarlet gourd contained the essence of fire and could be refined into a fire-element treasure; the purple-gold gourd was incomparably sharp and suited for refining swords or flying daggers; the water-blue gourd contained vast water essence and could command water and unleash floods; the earth-yellow gourd was heavy and capable of bearing things, suitable for suppression and defense; the green jade gourd brimmed with vitality and had remarkable effects in healing and cultivating spirit plants; the black gourd possessed dark devouring power and could injure Spirit Souls and collect spiritual light.
"Each of these gourds has its own wondrous use. I'll keep them for now. In the future, I can grant them to disciples, use them for trade, or refine them into avatar artifacts." Xuan Wazi put away the six gourds and turned his gaze into the distance. With his divine sense aided by the Chaos Bead, he quietly observed heaven and earth in the Primordial World.
Sure enough, just as he had expected, after a period of recuperation and consolidation, the Demon Clan's momentum had grown ever more immense. With their peak Grand Unity Golden Immortal cultivation and the might of the Chaos Bell, Di Jun and Taiyi had subdued many great Demon Clan experts, including Kunpeng, Fuxi, Bai Ze, Gui Che, and others. Their power expanded at a terrifying rate.
On this day, the Solar Star blazed brilliantly, illuminating the Primordial World! From above the Thirty-three Heavens came Di Jun's vast and imposing voice, announcing to heaven and earth:
"Heavenly Dao above! Today, Di Jun and Taiyi of the Demon Clan have perceived the disorder among the myriad beings of the Primordial World, where the strong devour the weak. We hereby unite the Demon Clan of the world, establish the Heavenly Court, govern the Great Zhou Heavenly Stars, regulate yin and yang, and manage the order of the Primordial World! Plant spirits, beasts, birds, scaled creatures, and aquatic tribes—any who have awakened spiritual intelligence and taken human form by absorbing the essence of the sun and moon—may join our Demon Clan and receive the protection of the Heavenly Court! The Heavenly Court is established!"
As his voice fell, the Heavenly Dao responded, sending down boundless Golden Light of Merit. It split into two: most descended into Di Jun and Taiyi, while a smaller portion scattered over the many core members of the Demon Clan. Borrowing the merit of establishing the Heavenly Court, Di Jun and Taiyi's cultivation became more condensed and profound, their auras smooth and complete. They had already touched the threshold of the Quasi-Saint realm, and for a time their momentum was unmatched!
At the same time, the Solar Temple deep within the Solar Star was transformed into Lingxiao Palace. The Chaos Bell in Taiyi's hand was used to suppress the Heavenly Court's fortune. Though it was not a perfect match, the Chaos Bell was one of the three great treasures of creation and possessed limitless power, enough to temporarily suppress its fortune. The River Diagram and Luo Script were then used to derive the foundation of the Great Zhou Heavenly Star Array, drawing upon the power of ancient stars to envelop the Heavenly Court in overwhelming majesty.
The Demon Clan's Heavenly Court had officially stepped onto the stage of the Primordial World!
"Tsk, they established the Heavenly Court. They moved pretty quickly." Xuan Wazi rubbed his chin in the underwater manor. "Two peak Grand Unity Golden Immortals, backed by the merit of establishing the Heavenly Court and the Chaos Bell—they can barely hold up the facade. What a pity. The Chaos Bell may be powerful, but it was never specifically meant to suppress fortune. The Demon Clan also lacks a supreme Innate Spiritual Treasure capable of suppressing fortune. This fortune... probably won't last long."
He was familiar with later developments and knew that although the Demon Clan's Heavenly Court appeared glorious, it was actually riddled with hidden dangers. Still, that suited him perfectly. The more chaotic things became, the easier it would be to fish in troubled waters.
Just as the Demon Clan's Heavenly Court was established and its momentum reached its peak, the system mission arrived right on schedule.
[ Ding! The establishment of the Demon Clan's Heavenly Court has been detected, causing changes in the Primordial World's overall situation. Side mission issued: Send the Heavenly Emperor a generous gift.] [Mission content: While Di Jun and Taiyi have only just established the Heavenly Court and their foundation remains unstable, infiltrate the Heavenly Court treasury, "borrow" part of its collection, and leave behind the generous gift of "Xuan Wazi was here."] [Mission reward: Divine ability "Myriad Transformations" (enhances transformation arts; unless one's realm exceeds yours by two major stages, it will be difficult to see through), Innate Spirit Materials "Star Core" ×3.]
"Hey, System Bro, you really get me!" Xuan Wazi's eyes lit up. "I was just thinking about taking a stroll through the Heavenly Court!"
He put on the Heavenly Secret Concealment Mask once more, this time transforming into the appearance of an ordinary Demon Clan general, with his aura simulated at the Golden Immortal realm. Then he quietly left the underwater manor and headed for the Demon Clan's Heavenly Court in the Thirty-three Heavens.
At that moment, the Heavenly Court was holding a celebration to establish its authority. Though the guards were strict, the sheer number of people inevitably created some oversights. With the Chaos Bead's concealment and the mask's transformations, Xuan Wazi easily blended through the South Heaven Gate like a drop of water merging into the sea.
He did not go directly to Lingxiao Palace to provoke Di Jun and Taiyi. That would have been pure suicide. His target was—the Heavenly Court treasury!
With his keen perception of treasure auras, along with the fact that the Heavenly Court's Great Zhou Heavenly Star Array had not yet been completely arranged, he completely evaded the internal defensive formations with his array-breaking ability. Like an invisible ghost, he moved through the Heavenly Court's complex and quickly found a palace guarded with exceptional strictness, formations glowing all around it—the Heavenly Court treasury!
The treasury doors were tightly shut. Several Demon Gods at the Grand Unity Golden Immortal level led elite guards there, while layer upon layer of restrictions protected the place.
"A little troublesome, but not impossible." Xuan Wazi hid in the distance and studied the treasury's defenses. He noticed that its defensive formation was faintly connected to the Great Zhou Heavenly Stars. However, perhaps because the grand formation had only recently been established, there was an extremely subtle, periodic gap in its circulation.
He waited patiently, like the most seasoned hunter.
Several hours later, when the Great Zhou Heavenly Stars revolved to a particular angle and the connection between the treasury formation and the power of the stars showed that barely perceptible moment of stagnation—
"Now!"
Xuan Wazi moved! Rather than forcing his way in, he used his newly acquired divine ability, Myriad Transformations. His body transformed into a nearly invisible streak of starlight, mimicking the frequency of the formation's fluctuations. Like a key sliding into a lock, he silently merged into that layer of defensive light! At the same time, the aura of the Chaos Bead concealed every trace of his presence.
He had successfully infiltrated it!
Inside the treasury, treasures gleamed everywhere, dazzling the eye! Although the Demon Clan had only recently been established and its collection could not compare to what it would possess in the future, countless spirit materials, spirit medicines, minerals, and Acquired Spiritual Treasures seized during the Demon Clan's campaigns still filled the place. There were even several low-grade Innate Spiritual Treasures in a corner, emitting a soft treasure light.
"Not bad, not bad. There may be no top-tier goods, but there's plenty of it!" Xuan Wazi showed no courtesy. Like an autumn wind sweeping away fallen leaves, his divine sense swept across the treasury, and he stuffed all the high-quality spirit materials, spirit medicines, and those low-grade Innate Spiritual Treasures into the Chaos Bead in one go! He left behind only the ordinary items he did not care for.
After finishing all this, he did not immediately leave. Instead, he went to the most conspicuous wall in the treasury, formed his fingers into a brush, circulated his mana, and inscribed a line of bold characters with sweeping strokes:
"Fellow Daoist Xuan Yunzi, seeing that the Heavenly Court has only recently been established and is short on supplies, I have specially come to present a generous gift as a small token of my regard. May His Majesty the Heavenly Emperor accept it with a smile. No need for thanks; may we meet again if fate allows. —Xuan Yunzi."
The handwriting was carefree and unruly, carrying an unmistakable air of mischief and mockery.
After writing it, he still felt it was not enough, so he drew a simple grinning face beside the words, winking and pulling a face.
"Perfect!" Xuan Wazi admired his "calligraphy," chuckled, transformed into starlight once more, and silently slipped out of the treasury through the next gap in the formation's fluctuations. Blending into the passing Demon Clan members, he easily left the Heavenly Court.
Not long afterward, when the Demon God on duty conducted a routine inspection of the treasury and saw that more than half of it had been emptied, along with the glaring words and smiley face on the wall, he was terrified out of his wits. He scrambled away to report to Di Jun and Taiyi.
"Xuan! Yunzi!" From within Lingxiao Palace came Eastern Emperor Tai Yi's utterly enraged roar, and the toll of the Chaos Bell shook the Heavenly Court! "Search! Search the entire Primordial World for him! Even if you have to scour every inch of it, drag out that thief who isn't being a person and tear him to pieces!!" Although they caught several cultivators with the Daoist name Xuan Yunzi and forcibly searched their souls, it ultimately led nowhere. After all, the one who had delivered the gift was Xuan Wazi.
Meanwhile, Xuan Wazi had already returned to his underwater manor in the East Sea. As he counted the spoils from this "assistance" and listened to the notification that the system mission had been completed, he happily prepared to welcome the upcoming second sermon at Zixiao Palace.
[ Ding! Side mission "Send the Heavenly Emperor a Generous Gift" completed! Rewards issued: Divine ability "Myriad Transformations," Innate Spirit Materials "Star Core" ×3.]
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