As he departed, East Prince Gong glanced back at the mist-shrouded West Kunlun, his face dark.
"Queen Mother of the West... You refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit."
"And the Four Pure Ones... Hmph. Once I've unified the Immortal Court and broken through to the Primordial Realm, I'll settle things with you!"
He sped up and raced toward Penglai, his yearning for power burning ever more fiercely.
He had barely returned to Penglai Immortal Island when a Great Luo rogue cultivator came to report to him:
"Your Majesty, True Lord Li Huo, a Quasi-Saint, wishes to join us!"
"True Lord Li Huo?" East Prince Gong was taken aback, then burst into laughter.
There were three thousand Great Powers at Zixiao Palace. At this point in time, quite a few had broken through to the Quasi-Saint realm, but winning them over was harder than reaching the heavens.
He hadn't expected someone to take the initiative and join him.
This gave East Prince Gong a little more confidence. As expected, he was the protagonist chosen by fate.
"Take me to meet him," East Prince Gong said.
Then, guided by the Great Luo rogue cultivator, he passed through layer upon layer of restrictions and arrived at the Grotto-Heaven Blessed Land Penglai used to receive guests.
Dozens of figures had already gathered there.
At their head stood True Lord Li Huo, who had clashed with Tai Yi on the Coast of the East Sea and had later been sent flying by a single punch from Dijiang.
He still wore a scarlet Daoist robe, his face as red as a jujube. Compared with before, though, his brows held more gloom and ruthlessness, and his aura had clearly reached the Early Quasi-Saint stage!
Behind him stood more than a dozen cultivators, their cultivation ranging from the middle to late stages of Great Luo.
Their expressions varied. Some were furious, some ashamed, and some avoided East Prince Gong's gaze, but all of them bore an inescapable air of resentment and dejection.
Seeing East Prince Gong arrive, True Lord Li Huo drew a deep breath, stepped forward, and solemnly cupped his hands in salute:
"This rogue cultivator, Li Huo, and these fellow Daoists respectfully greet Your Majesty!"
His voice rang out, and he held himself in a deeply deferential manner.
Those behind him also bowed, though their movements were somewhat uneven.
East Prince Gong's gaze swept over the group as his thoughts raced.
He remembered True Lord Li Huo, a guest of Zixiao Palace with a rather fiery temperament.
Back on the Coast of the East Sea, Tai Yi had flirted with his Dao companion, Lady Lingrui. Enraged, Li Huo had attacked, only to be gravely injured by Dijiang's punch and humiliated.
Now, it seemed not only had his injuries healed, he had also broken through to the Quasi-Saint realm. But that gloom between his brows...
East Prince Gong glanced at the people behind him. With a slight movement of his divine sense, he made a quick deduction and understood what had happened.
Good heavens!
That fellow Tai Yi sure moved fast! In less than one epoch, he'd managed to create so many wronged victims?
East Prince Gong nearly burst out laughing.
He suppressed the corners of his mouth, striving to make his expression seem both dignified and sympathetic, and raised a hand in a gesture of reassurance:
"Daoist Li Huo, there's no need for formalities. Fellow Daoists, please rise."
"May I ask what brings you all here?"
True Lord Li Huo straightened. The muscles in his face twitched as though he'd recalled something deeply unpleasant, and his voice carried suppressed fury:
"I dare not conceal the truth from Your Majesty! We've come to join the Immortal Court and serve you. We're willing to stand against the Demon Court and slay that shameless wretch, Tai Yi!"
The people behind him also lifted their heads, hatred blazing in their eyes. In unison, they cried, "We're willing to serve the Immortal Emperor and slay Tai Yi!"
Their cries rang out amid a surge of resentment.
After Dijiang had gravely injured him, True Lord Li Huo had spent a long time recovering.
His origin was the first Li Fire at the creation of the world, which wasn't particularly extraordinary.
After listening to Hongjun's lecture at Zixiao Palace, he had wanted to find his Dao companion, Ling Rui, and share what he had learned.
But he searched for hundreds of years without finding her.
Only later did Bai Ze tell him that Ling Rui had joined Tai Yi's harem.
He refused to believe it!
His Dao companion would never betray him. How could she abandon the years of love they had shared?
He went to the Demon Court and found Ling Rui, intending to take her away.
But one sentence from her shattered him.
"Li Huo, don't contact me again. I don't want Tai Yi to get the wrong idea."
"No!"
From that day onward, True Lord Li Huo devoted himself to bitter cultivation, vowing to slay Tai Yi.
After breaking through to the Quasi-Saint realm, he contacted many others who had suffered the same fate and came to join East Prince Gong, hoping he would give them justice.
After making arrangements for True Lord Li Huo and the others, East Prince Gong also received a reward from the system.
Another Top-grade Innate Spiritual Treasure was now in his possession.
At this point, he was probably the richest person in the world after Hongjun.
Just as East Prince Gong's spirits were soaring, a tremendous commotion erupted from the direction of Buzhou Mountain.
All the living beings of the Prehistoric World felt it and looked up together at the immense phantoms above Buzhou Mountain.
The phantoms of the Thirty-Three Heavens appeared one after another in the highest reaches of the sky.
Ten thousand rays of rosy light and thousands of streams of Auspicious Qi shone forth. Innate Spiritual Qi took solid form and fell like sweet rain, while the flow of Daoist resonance revealed boundless mysteries of creation.
Each heaven formed its own Great Thousand World, with mountains and rivers, the sun, moon, and Stars, Innate Spiritual Roots, Grotto-Heaven Blessed Lands... all faintly visible.
The Great Luo Heaven at the very top was especially imposing. Though shrouded by hazy restrictions, it emanated the pressure of the Saintly Dao, enough to make even Quasi-Saints tremble.
"The Thirty-Three Heavens have appeared!"
"A natural cultivation ground! Boundless resources! If we can claim it, our Dao is within reach!"
Countless cultivators' eyes reddened. This was an incredible opportunity bestowed by the Heavenly Dao!
However, most cultivators were excited for only a moment before sighing in resignation.
They knew that such a great opportunity was destined to belong to the top powers.
Sure enough.
On Penglai Immortal Island, East Prince Gong abruptly rose to his feet, his eyes blazing:
"The Thirty-Three Heavens! They're meant to be the Immortal Court's domain! Send word: muster the immortal soldiers and generals. Follow me... We'll take the Thirty-Three Heavens!"
His voice rang with fervor, Immortal Light soaring around him as the pressure of a mid-stage Quasi-Saint who had severed two corpses poured forth without restraint.
The immortals of the Immortal Court were greatly heartened and answered in unison, "We obey Your Majesty's decree!"
At the Demon Court, on the throne of the Heavenly Emperor,
Tai Yi abruptly opened his eyes, golden flames blazing within them. Delight mingled with a cold killing intent.
"The Thirty-Three Heavens... Just in time!"
"Bai Ze! Qin Yuan! Xuan Qing!" He called out the names of three Quasi-Saints. "Come with me to battle! The Thirty-Three Heavens must be in the hands of our Demon Court!"
"Yes!" The demons in the hall roared in unison, their battle intent soaring.
Bai Ze was composed, Qin Yuan was eager, and Xuan Qing remained expressionless, though the Green Lotus Sword in his hand hummed.
He left Kunpeng behind to guard the Demon Realm and brought all his other top fighters with him to the Thirty-Three Heavens.
High above, the phantoms of the Thirty-Three Heavens gradually solidified.
East Prince Gong led the way, guiding the immortals of the Immortal Court as they transformed into a vast torrent of Immortal Light and charged toward the lowest heaven, the Grand Emperor Yellow Firmament Heaven.
He was full of confidence, as though he could already see the Immortal Court ruling the Thirty-Three Heavens and dominating the Prehistoric World.
Almost at the same time,
a blazing golden light, bright as the sun, shot up from the Demon Court.
With the Chaos Bell above his head and Bai Ze, Qin Yuan, and Xuan Qing—all three Quasi-Saints—behind him, Tai Yi led billions of demon soldiers and generals like a dark cloud blotting out the sky, charging for the Grand Emperor Yellow Firmament Heaven as well!
The two torrents collided violently at the lowest level of the Thirty-Three Heavens!
"East Prince Gong! This heaven belongs to my Demon Court!" Tai Yi shouted. The Chaos Bell boomed, freezing Space-Time.
"Tai Yi! You think you're worthy of challenging me?!" East Prince Gong bellowed. The Dragon Head Crutch transformed into a ten-thousand-zhang golden dragon, tearing through the Chaos Bell's waves.
The two mid-stage Quasi-Saints clashed in an instant.
Golden light and Immortal Light intertwined and collided. Every exchange made the World Barrier of the Grand Emperor Yellow Firmament Heaven shudder violently, shattering mountains and rivers.