As time passed.
Watching the Three Thousand Innate Gods enter the Zixiao Palace, Haotian and Yaochi slowly began to close the gates.
"No! We haven't gotten in yet!"
A scream echoed from outside the Zixiao Palace.
Two gaunt, ragged Daoists squeezed through the gap in the doors.
They were tall and thin, covered in dust from the road, and a sour stench wafted off them. In an instant, it made the sacred Zixiao Palace feel like a roadside inn.
"Zhunti and Jieyin—those two Innate Deities are no ordinary figures!"
Dong Wanggong thought to himself.
Zhunti and Jieyin were Heaven-Appointed Sages, and their origins were remarkably profound.
Zhunti's true form was the Supreme Innate Spiritual Root Bodhi Tree. After attaining human form, he refined his true body into the Top-grade Innate Spiritual Treasure Seven Treasures Wonderful Tree. It was peerless in attack and extraordinarily fierce.
Jieyin had been formed from a mass of Geng Metal Qi in the Western World. His accompanying treasure was the Six Roots Pure Bamboo, refined from the Supreme Innate Spiritual Root Bitter Bamboo.
In the Western World, Zhunti and Jieyin commanded supreme karmic fortune, and their dojo was Mount Sumeru.
People called Zhunti and Jieyin shameless, yet the two had established the Western Teachings on their own. They schemed for the fortune of Heaven and Earth through the Investiture of the Gods Tribulation and the Journey to the West Tribulation, ultimately crushing the other Sages.
The Western World had once been shattered and laid waste, but these two senior and junior brothers had managed to build it up into an Immortal's Blessed Land in the Primordial World.
In the end, its spiritual energy and living beings were no less abundant than those of the Eastern Continent.
"Senior Brother, there are no seats left! Waaaah, waaaah..."
Zhunti's eyes went wide, and tears streamed down his face, mixing with the dust on his cheeks and making him look utterly miserable.
The Sage's lecture hall was in the far eastern reaches of Chaos.
The two had trekked across countless mountains and rivers and crossed the starry void, all to find a good place to listen to the Dao. They had never expected to arrive too late.
Only a spot in the corner near the entrance remained inside the Zixiao Palace.
From there, Dao Ancestor Hongjun would be far away, and even the Heavenly Dao might of a Sage would seem faint. How could that satisfy Zhunti and Jieyin's ambitions?
"Waaaah, waaaah... The West is barren. My senior brother and I have traveled for countless years, seeking a way to bring Life Force to the beings of the West. Now that we've heard a Sage would lecture, we journeyed here through hardship, never daring to delay, hoping to seize even the slimmest chance of providence."
"But who would've thought there'd be no room for the two of us in the Zixiao Palace? I might as well smash my head against that Jade Pillar!"
Jieyin wept bitterly, as if he'd been assaulted by a brute.
The depth of his anguish was beyond anything the Innate Deities present could have portrayed, no matter how many of them there were.
As he spoke, Jieyin lunged toward a Jade Pillar inside the Zixiao Palace.
An ordinary pillar would have been no match for a Mid-stage Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal.
But the Zixiao Palace was Dao Ancestor Hongjun's dojo. It was protected by countless layers of restrictions, and the palace itself was a spiritual treasure no weaker than an Innate Supreme Treasure.
If Jieyin really hit it, his brains would splatter and his body would be reduced to dust.
"Senior Brother, don't!"
Zhunti hurriedly wrapped his arms around Jieyin's waist. The two grappled like a pair of lovers, one pulling forward while the other tugged back.
Their bodies rubbed together, making the female immortals blush with embarrassment, while the male immortals felt sick at the sight of the senior and junior brothers.
Dao Ancestor Hongjun kept his eyes closed, breathing naturally, and made no move to stop them.
As Zhunti and Jieyin wrestled, they somehow made their way in front of the six meditation cushions, fixing their eyes on Ancestor Hong Yun.
Clearly, they had no good intentions.
"Fellow Daoist Hongyun, you're the kindest person in the Primordial World. Could you give my senior brother and me a seat?"
"If my senior brother can't get a good place to hear the Dao, he'll surely smash himself to death in the Zixiao Palace. You wouldn't want the two of us to end up dead and our Dao destroyed, would you?"
Zhunti's eyes brimmed with tears, and his voice trembled.
Ancestor Hong Yun was known throughout the Primordial Wilderness for his compassion. The many Innate Deities admired him for his great kindness. If he refused to give up his seat, everyone would despise him instead.
Lay down the butcher's knife and become a Buddha on the spot!
An evildoer could earn forgiveness with a single good deed, but a good person who made one mistake would be spurned by the world.
The first moral-blackmail farce in the Primordial World was unfolding before them!
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"Please, don't!"
Zhen Yuanzi grabbed Ancestor Hong Yun. He didn't want his dear friend to give up his chance at providence.
But how could Ancestor Hong Yun listen?
His path was one of supreme kindness, bringing blessings to the Primordial Wilderness. He had acted this way for countless years. He couldn't give up a reputation he'd built over eons just for a mere seat.
"Fellow Daoist, this is my path. There's no need to stop me!"
With a sigh, Ancestor Hong Yun stood and sat beside Zhen Yuanzi. Seeing their chance, Zhunti and Jieyin took the cushions without even thanking him.
Watching this, Dong Wanggong shook his head slightly.
"Has Ancestor Hong Yun lost his mind? The cushions are a chance at providence left by a Sage, yet he's just handed them over to those two shameless scoundrels. What a pity!"
"By the way, Fellow Daoist, aren't you going to fight for a seat?"
West Queen Mother's mind was clear, but her brows furrowed slightly.
She couldn't make sense of Ancestor Hong Yun's move. He would've been better off giving the seat to Zhen Yuanzi.
Or Dong Wanggong, whose cultivation was profound—wouldn't it have been easy for him to snatch a cushion from Zhunti and Jieyin?
At her words, Dong Wanggong stroked West Queen Mother's hair, his eyes full of tenderness.
"My fortune isn't sufficient, and I don't want to get entangled in karma."
"There's no difference between listening to the Dao from here and from a cushion. But if you want one, I can help you take it."
The Heavenly Dao Saints were beneath Dong Wanggong's notice.
Rather than become a pawn of Dao Ancestor Hongjun and the Heavenly Dao, he would do better to seek the Dao in peace and cultivate the Nine Revolutions Profound Origin Technique to perfection. Then he could reach the Primordial Great Dao Realm. Wouldn't that be wonderful?
"Then let's not."
West Queen Mother quietly nestled her head against Dong Wanggong's chest. Feeling his heart beat powerfully, she smiled with happiness.
While the two were displaying their affection, Zhunti and Jieyin turned on Old Ancestor Kunpeng.
Without hesitation, the two brought out the Seven Treasures Wonderful Tree and the Six Roots Pure Bamboo.
Old Ancestor Kunpeng was no Ancestor Hong Yun. He wasn't a pushover for anyone to bully. The two senior and junior brothers intended to take the last cushion by force.
"Fellow Daoist Kunpeng, my senior brother and I have come a long way. Don't you think you should show us some courtesy and give up your seat?"
Golden light radiated from the Seven Treasures Wonderful Tree as violent divine laws gathered around it.
If Old Ancestor Kunpeng refused, Zhunti would surely unleash a slaughter and display his peerless might.
The sight left Ancestor Hong Yun dumbfounded.
It seemed giving up his seat to those two brothers had been the biggest mistake of his life.
Thinking of it, Ancestor Hong Yun couldn't help regretting it.
"You two mangy bastards! Your shameless faces might fool softhearted Hong Yun, but they don't fool me. You're just coveting the meditation cushions the Sage set out!"
"As top-tier Innate Deities, we all temper our cultivation through tribulations. Your journey through the West is long, but the road from my North Sea is even more perilous!"
"With a Dao heart like yours, instead of steadily cultivating, you go around cheating and swindling. If you want the cushion beneath me, then take it by force!"
Old Ancestor Kunpeng's face was so dark it seemed he could wring water from it.
He raised the North Sea Divine Mansion in his right hand, and Dark Water—capable of corroding all things under Heaven—poured out, enveloping Zhunti and Jieyin. His Mid-stage Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal cultivation shook everyone present.
His impassioned speech filled the air with a murderous aura.
"Old Ancestor Kunpeng, my senior brother and I only wanted to borrow a seat. How can you insult us like this?"
"You're a creature born of the wet and the egg, covered in fur and wearing horns. You're unworthy of a Sage's providence or of sitting with the Three Pure Ones, Fellow Daoist Nuwa, and my senior brother and me!"
"Zhunti, let's drive this Mixed-Feathered Bird out!"
Jieyin held the Six Roots Pure Bamboo. Geng Metal Qi transformed into a divine power, forming a sharp sword in midair that slashed toward Old Ancestor Kunpeng.
The two brothers were formidable when they joined forces.
Only by relying on the power of Dark Water could Old Ancestor Kunpeng barely hold his own against them.
Clang!
Bang! Bang!
The shockwaves of their battle swept across the entire Zixiao Palace, yet none of the Innate Deities tried to stop it.
Dao Ancestor Hongjun had yet to speak. That meant he had tacitly allowed Zhunti and Jieyin to seize Old Ancestor Kunpeng's seat.
As for the other top powers, such as Dijun and Eastern Emperor Taiyi, none were willing to sacrifice the dignity of an Innate Deity to fight over a mere cushion.
Little did they know that they had missed their chance to Prove Dao and Become a Saint!
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