Ren had no idea what changes had occurred in the Investiture List. Perhaps Jiang Shang had left another contingency behind. Ren knew how clever Jiang Shang was; he wouldn't be surprised if Jiang Shang had planted some scheme in the Investiture List.
Still, Ren had a few suspicions about its recent changes. After all, he possessed a small sword that housed the Artifact Spirit of the God-Striking Whip—or perhaps the Artifact Spirit of the Investiture List.
Ren had been secretly nurturing the Artifact Spirit, hoping it would grow stronger. If it did, he might one day be able to control the Investiture List.
For now, though, Ren absolutely could not reveal its existence. The Investiture List was closely tied to the Divine Positions of the Heavenly Court, and no one wanted anything to happen to it.
As he thought it over, Ren was certain the Jade Emperor suspected Jiang Shang had left something behind in the Investiture List.
The mood at the banquet sank for a moment.
The Jade Emperor laughed. "Enough of these worries! Let's talk about you, my dear nephew Ren. What brings you to the Heavenly Court? If you've run into any difficulties, come to me!"
He sounded generous, but Ren merely sipped his wine. "Nothing in particular. I got tired of staying in Kunlun. Then Nezha returned and told us about leading troops into battle and matching wits with those alliances in the Primordial World. A few of us got fired up, so we came to the Heavenly Court to see if we could lead troops down to fight."
Ren sipped his wine as he spoke, his tone so calm that not a trace of that supposed fighting spirit showed.
The Jade Emperor didn't believe him. He was sure Ren had come to the Heavenly Court