The Ancient Sacred Knocks on the Palace Gate

The days in Purple Heaven Palace, amidst Xiao Kuang's lazy, fish-like pace and everyone else's subtle unease, slipped by once more.

One day, Xiao Kuang was sprawled out on his "Internet Cafe VIP Supreme Lounging Chair," directing Chang Xi to use moon essence to chill spiritual fruits for him. Xi He stood by, expressionlessly reading aloud a "complaint letter" from the Heavenly Dao urging him to preach.

"The Heavenly Dao says if the Dao Ancestor continues to slack off, the next lightning strike won't be a warning-level Purple Heaven Divine Thunder, but a Chaos Tribulation Thunder imbued with the '996 work-benefit' law..." Xi He's lips twitched slightly as she read the latter part. The Heavenly Dao's wording was becoming more and more like that of a certain unscrupulous Dao Ancestor.

"Tsk, who are they trying to scare?" Xiao Kuang mumbled around a spiritual fruit, waving a hand dismissively. "Let it strike! It'll be free electrotherapy for this Purple Heaven Palace. Maybe the internet speed will even improve."

As soon as he spoke, the entire Purple Firmament Palace trembled slightly.

It wasn't a violent tremor, but an extremely subtle chill that seemed to penetrate the very soul. It was like a piece of ancient ice gently touching the palace's outer walls.

Every being within the palace, whether it was the Three Pure Ones soaking in the hot springs (Primordial Lord of Heaven's face was as black as the bottom of a pot), Jieyin and Zhunti wailing in the KTV, or the exotic birds and beasts dozing in the backyard zoo, froze abruptly at that moment, feeling a reverence and tremor stemming from their primal instincts.

Xi He and Chang Xi, in particular, turned deathly pale. Their movements stopped completely, and their eyes shot towards the palace gate in alarm.

That aura... cold, pure, ancient, vast... It was the Taiyin Origin! It was their Master!

She... she was really here!

"Huh?" Xiao Kuang also felt the unusual chill. He sat up and scratched his head. "Did the air conditioning break? No, wait, I'm using a dual-directional temperature control system with the earth vein heater and Solar True Fire... Could the AC from the 'Chilled Watermelon' section next door be leaking?"

Just then, a layer of crystalline frost silently appeared on the Purple Firmament Palace's gate, condensed from the laws of the Heavenly Dao.

A clear, emotionless female voice, yet one that seemed to contain the power of eons of moon essence, pierced through the heavy restrictions and echoed clearly in the ears of every being in the palace:

"Taiyin, Wangshu."

"Requesting an audience with the master of this domain."

The voice was plain, yet carried an supreme majesty that made the hearts of all the great beings present clench. They all stopped their absurd activities, looking towards the gate with expressions of shock and uncertainty.

Taiyin Wangshu! This was an existence even older than the Dao Ancestor Hongjun! Legend had it she had long since merged with the moon and fallen into eternal slumber. Why was she appearing now, and why had she come to this bizarrely drawn Purple Heaven Palace?

Sect Master Tongtian subconsciously put away his mahjong tiles. Laozi's hand, which was stroking his beard, paused. Empress Nuwa poked her head out of the hot spring pool, her eyes full of curiosity. Di Jun and Taiyi exchanged a glance, secretly feeling fortunate that they hadn't clashed head-on with this Dao Ancestor back then. This Xiao Kuang's ability to stir up trouble was simply beyond imagination; he could even attract such an ancient and sacred being!

Jieyin and Zhunti even shrunk their necks, feeling that the Purple Firmament Palace was becoming increasingly dangerous, but at the same time... it seemed like there were more opportunities?

Xi He and Chang Xi felt like they were suffocating. They instinctively wanted to rush to the palace gate to welcome their Master, but they looked at Xiao Kuang fearfully.

Xiao Kuang blinked, stunned for a few seconds, then slapped his thigh hard!

"Oh, my goodness! She's really here?!" Instead of nervousness, his face showed extreme excitement and... a lewd smile. "Miss Wangshu is quite efficient! How long has it been since that 'phone call'? She's already here for 'after-sales service'? How thoughtful!"

He completely ignored the coldness and majesty in her voice, his mind filled with labels like "Primordial Era's Number One Homebody + Experienced Older Sister + Top Goddess." He instantly sprang up from his chair, tidying his non-existent wrinkles on his Daoist robe (which was actually still the lazy T-shirt and beach shorts he'd transformed), and shouted to those around him:

"Quick, quick! Xi He, Chang Xi, what are you waiting for? Open the gate and welcome our guest! And you... Ao Qingxin, bring out the best chilled jade marrow! Feng Wanxia, turn on the heating... no, turn on the ambient lighting! Qi Yao Guang, arrange those flowers and plants you grew nicely!"

"Our Purple Cloud Palace's spirit must make our customer... ah, no, our distinguished guest feel the warmth of spring! Although she herself might prefer winter..."

The beings of Purple霄 Palace: "..." (╯°□°)╯︵ ┻━┻ Dao Ancestor! This is a visit from an ancient sacred being! Not an opening celebration for a club!

Heavenly Dao (Core code fluctuating violently): Alert! Unknown ancient variable intervening! Proxy behavior prediction: Extremely dangerous! May cause a social death event of Primordial Era historical fragmentation level! Initiating emergency protocol... Protocol loading failed... No relevant data... Suggestion: Format Proxy... Insufficient permissions... [HeavenlyDao.exe enters slow response again].

Under Xiao Kuang's boisterous command, the frost on the Purple Heaven Palace's gate slowly melted. The peculiar palace gate, adorned with the neon lights of an internet cafe, the massage parlor light effects of a foot spa, and the dazzling disco ball effects of a KTV, slowly opened with a cheerful "Welcome!" electronic sound (recorded by Xiao Kuang himself).

The Chaos Qi outside the gate parted to reveal a figure of unparalleled cold beauty.

Wangshu wore a plain white palace dress, enveloped in a hazy moon essence. Her silver hair cascaded like a waterfall, and her face was exquisitely beautiful, yet as cold as if she were not of this world. Her gaze calmly swept over the bizarre and colorful scene within the palace. When she saw her two disciples, who appeared "hesitant and anxious" yet had clearly advanced in their cultivation and reduced their karma, a barely perceptible ripple flashed in her eyes.

Finally, her gaze settled on the young man dressed strangely, with an enthusiastic (and somewhat irritating) smile and rubbing his hands as he stepped forward to greet her.

Xiao Kuang grinned, revealing a row of white teeth: "Miss Wangshu, welcome from afar! You've worked hard, you've worked hard! Please, come inside! Our Purple Heaven Palace has a new SPA wellness package, 20% off the whole venue, satisfaction guaranteed! By the way, do you want to get a membership card? If you get one now, you'll get a free Primordial Violet Qi trial voucher!"

Wangshu: "...?" (A crack of "bewilderment" appeared on her icy face.)

The great beings of the Purple Firmament Palace: ( ;￣д￣) It's over... The Dao Ancestor is courting death again!

At this moment, a huge question mark appeared in everyone's minds: Would this ancient sacred being swat this unreliable Dao Ancestor to death, or... would she be dragged down with him?

As for Xiao Kuang, looking at Wangshu's stunning icy face, he thought: "This aura... she'd be the perfect spokesperson for a 'Purple霄 Palace Ice and Snow Goddess Themed Pavilion'! It would definitely be a hit across the Primordial Era! Should I have her come to my next lecture to support me? Hmm... seems more reliable than me teaching myself!"

The lazy Dao Ancestor was already contemplating how to drag the newly arrived ancient sacred being down with him and enjoy some leisurely slacking together.