Diverting Disaster Eastward

In the Purple Heaven Palace, Haotian Shangdi and the Holy Mother of Yaochi appeared exceptionally excited.

Who could have imagined they would leap from being mere attendants serving tea and water to becoming the supreme rulers of the Three Realms?

However, being supreme rulers was proving rather difficult...

Although the Heavenly Court had been rebuilt, it was severely understaffed.

Nearly all the high-ranking officials of the former Demon Race Heavenly Court had perished in the Witch-Demon War.

Some of the survivors had joined the Jie Cult, some had become disheartened and chosen to rule their own territories, and only a very small number of demon immortals were willing to remain in the Heavenly Court.

But those individuals, to put it bluntly, were just weaklings who hadn't even qualified to participate in the Witch-Demon War.

Even so, the Heavenly Court's manpower was still insufficient.

For instance, the Four Dragon Kings, who had just joined the Heavenly Court, were each worth ten men.

Controlling the clouds was him, summoning the wind was him, bringing the rain was him, and even conjuring thunder was him...

Long ago, Old Ancestor Hongjun had instructed the Three Pure Ones and other Saints to assist Haotian Shangdi in rebuilding the Heavenly Court, but in the end, not a single Saint was willing to help.

This time, Old Ancestor Hongjun had summoned them to the Purple Heaven Palace to discuss this very matter.

However, they had arrived a little too early, and the doors of the Purple Heaven Palace were shut tight. They could only wait outside.

Caw!

A phoenix cry echoed, and a streak of fire broke through the Chaos. A massive fire phoenix appeared on the horizon.

They recognized this phoenix as Caiyi, the attendant of Empress Nuwa, and quickly went forward to greet her.

"Greetings, Senior Disciple Sister Nuwa!"

Empress Nuwa merely nodded at them as a greeting, then turned her gaze in another direction.

Roar!

A dragon's roar sounded, its might far surpassing Empress Nuwa's.

Nine true dragons pulled a luxurious chariot resembling a palace. Wherever it passed, lotuses bloomed, filling the air with a rich fragrance.

The Nine Dragon Incense Chariot!

It was the mount of Venerable Primordial, the Sect Master of the Chan Sect.

"Greetings, Senior Disciple Brother Yuan Shi!"

Haotian Shangdi and Holy Mother of Yaochi were exceedingly solicitous; after all, they were still far inferior to a Saint.

Venerable Primordial let out a cold snort, ignoring them completely, and turned with a fawning smile to exchange pleasantries with Empress Nuwa.

Haotian Shangdi and the other looked at each other with bitter smiles but dared not harbor any resentment.

Their true forms were two pieces of bluestone, and they were fortunate to have been enlightened by Teacher Hongjun, who had awakened their sentience.

With such origins, how could they possibly catch Venerable Primordial's eye?

The atmosphere outside the Purple Heaven Palace instantly became awkward. No one spoke until Laozi appeared, riding a Green Ox, which finally broke the silence.

Laozi was somewhat more approachable, but only just.

Inside the Purple Firmament Palace, Old Ancestor Hongjun sat with his eyes closed. The Heavenly Dao appeared before him, though it had now taken on a human form, its face constantly shifting.

"After the Investiture of the Gods Tribulation, the Saints will not appear, and the immortals will retreat into seclusion. Those on the Investiture of the Gods will see no further growth in their realms. All beings with innate spiritual bodies will be placed on the list. After this tribulation, all living beings in the world will have mortal bodies," the Heavenly Dao said slowly.

"Are you truly so fearful? You are the Heavenly Dao?" Old Ancestor Hongjun asked, looking at it intently.

"The momentum of the Great Dao cannot be changed. The Heavenly Dao can be slightly altered. If someone capable of rewriting the grand momentum appears, the heavens and earth will be unable to bear it and will collapse. Only when all Pangu's descendants are under my control can this be achieved," the Heavenly Dao replied coldly.

After the Heavenly Dao disappeared, Old Ancestor Hongjun sighed.

Perhaps Ye Changqing had put too much pressure on the Heavenly Dao. He must be that person it spoke of!

He wondered how long it could hold on...

The doors of the Purple Firmament Palace slowly opened, and Old Ancestor Hongjun's expression returned to its former placidity.

Now that all the Saints except Sect Master Tongtian had gathered, it was time to begin discussing the Investiture of the Gods.

"Greetings, Teacher!"

All the Saints and the two Heavenly Venerates, Haotian and Yaochi, quickly bowed.

"Rise, all of you. I have summoned you here today regarding the Heavenly Court. Under the Heavenly Dao, the three realms of heaven, earth, and humanity require someone to maintain order. Currently, the Heavenly Court is weak and needs a power boost. What suggestions do you have?"

Old Ancestor Hongjun asked, looking at the people below.

Laozi stepped forward first and said, "Your disciple cultivates the path of pure tranquility and non-action. I only have Xuandu under my tutelage, and I fear his cultivation is insufficient."

"This disciple is willing to have his good corpse permanently stationed in the Heavenly Court!"

Grand Master Xuandu, having received Laozi's true teachings, was quite skilled in the art of alchemy. He was originally an ideal candidate in the minds of Haotian Shangdi and Holy Mother of Yaochi.

But now that Laozi was willing to have his good corpse stationed in the Heavenly Court, it seemed they were still gaining.

Nuwa also stepped forward and said, "This disciple is a Saint of the Demon Race. The Heavenly Court was previously established by the Demon Race, so I have no intention of interfering again."

"Furthermore, this disciple has no one under her command, only a few young attendants. I cannot offer much help to Junior Disciple Brother Haotian."

Empress Nuwa's words were not false; she was merely trying to avoid suspicion.

Daoist Jieyin and Daoist Zhunti replied together, "Before we attained enlightenment, the Western world was already destroyed by Demon Ancestor Luohu. The spiritual energy was insufficient, the land barren, and no powerful beings appeared thereafter. We two were also powerless."

Even if the two of them said nothing, Haotian was unwilling to let disciples of the Western Sect reside in the Heavenly Court.

The reputation of these two Saints was truly too poor; they feared that one day the Heavenly Court might change hands.

After the several Saints had finished speaking, only Venerable Primordial pretended to be in deep thought and refused to answer.

How could Old Ancestor Hongjun not know his intentions? He turned to Haotian and the others and asked, "What are your thoughts?"

"You might as well speak them so that your Senior Disciples Brothers and Sisters can offer some advice."

Haotian glanced at Yaochi. Since these Saints looked down on him anyway, he might as well offend them.

Now that he had the backing of Teacher Hongjun, he gritted his teeth and said, "Teacher, among all the Saints present, Senior Disciple Brother Yuan Shi and Senior Disciple Brother Tongtian have the most powerful disciples."

"The Chan Sect's Twelve Golden Immortals are renowned. It just so happens that our Heavenly Court is lacking twelve immortal heads. If we let them take on these roles, it will surely ensure the Heavenly Court's peace."

Yaochi also said, "Senior Disciple Brother Tongtian's sect is known as the Myriad Immortals coming to court. We can also let some of them come to our Heavenly Court, and we will naturally not treat them poorly. This is a method that kills two birds with one stone. We hope Teacher will approve!"

Venerable Primordial sighed, thinking he couldn't avoid it after all. He glanced at Laozi and saw him smiling and nodding in his direction, already having a plan in mind.

He stepped forward and bowed, saying, "Teacher, although I have the Twelve Golden Immortals under my command, their strength is far inferior to that of Junior Brother Tongtian's disciples."

"I think it would be better to let Junior Brother Haotian go to the Jie Cult to select people. However many people he wants, he can have?"

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone present's eyes lit up. This was a good opportunity to shift the blame.

After all, no one wanted their own disciples to be controlled by others, or even have their lives in their hands.

With this thought, they all turned their gaze towards the empty position.

For some reason, Sect Master Tongtian had not yet appeared.

"Hahaha, this idea is not bad!"

"If that's the case, then how about you let me be the Lord of the Heavenly Court as well?"

A hearty laugh came from the doorway. As everyone looked towards the source of the sound, Ye Changqing, with a pale face, appeared before them.