One of the two Daoists wore a bitter expression and looked gaunt, while the other stood twelve feet tall, with a compassionate smile on his face.
Both were utterly bedraggled, their Daoist robes torn and tattered.
When they saw the gods gathered inside the Purple Heavens Palace, and especially that all six Sagehood Meditation Cushions at the front were occupied, grief immediately spread across their faces.
"Senior brother, our west is barren and remote. We brothers finally managed to reach this place after so much hardship, yet we don't even have a spot to settle down. Our lot is truly bitter!"
The bitter-faced Daoist immediately burst into tears.
"Junior brother, we were born lowly. To end up like this-such is fate, such is destiny."
The twelve-foot-tall Daoist also looked ready to weep.
Disregarding the three thousand mighty beings of the Primordial World present, he embraced the other Daoist and began to cry.
Their cries were so mournful that one could not help feeling pity.
These two were none other than Jieyin and Zhunti!
"Alas, these two Daoists have such bitter lives. They traveled countless miles through hardship, yet don't even have a place to settle down. How tragic."
Watching Jieyin and Zhunti wail, Old Ancestor Hongyun could not quite bear it.
"Eldest brother, should I give him my seat?"
Eastern Emperor Taiyi, seated on one of the six Great Dao Meditation Cushions, sent Daochen a voice transmission.
Seeing Zhunti and Jieyin like this, he too felt a little sorry for them.
The Eastern Emperor Taiyi of this moment was not yet the ruthless emperor of the Demon Race he would become.
He had only recently taken form, and his nature was still relatively innocent.
Not only Eastern Emperor Taiyi, but Dijun also showed signs of pity.
It could not be helped. Zhunti and Jieyin were putting on a brilliant performance.
Even in later ages, they would have had no trouble winning an Oscar.
"No need. Just stay seated. Someone will naturally step in."
Daochen looked as though he were enjoying a show.
Of course he had heard the names Jieyin and Zhunti.
But seeing them today, they truly were extraordinary!
"Someone will step in?"
Dijun and Eastern Emperor Taiyi were taken aback.
They did not quite understand whom he meant.
Daochen merely smiled faintly.
According to the Primordial World's original course, the kindhearted Hongyun would have felt sorry for Zhunti and surrendered his seat, causing Kunpeng to lose his chance at sagehood as well.
But now, because of Daochen, Dijun and Eastern Emperor Taiyi occupied the sagehood seats that originally belonged to Jieyin and Zhunti.
This had changed the course of the Primordial World's heavenly destiny.
He wanted to see how Hongjun would clean up this mess.
Seeing that no one paid any attention despite the brothers' grand performance of misery, Zhunti grew anxious.
The bitterness on his face became even more bitter!
"Boo-hoo! Forget it, forget it! We would be better off dead!"
Zhunti wailed sorrowfully and shot Jieyin a meaningful glance, then hurled himself headfirst toward a heavenly pillar of the Purple Heavens Palace.
"Junior brother, wait for your senior brother!"
Jieyin immediately understood. In a flash, he too charged toward the heavenly pillar.
They looked utterly determined to end it all.
In truth, however, both had their attention fixed entirely on Hongjun atop the Dao platform.
They had no choice. Not one of the three thousand mighty beings of the Primordial World gave a damn about them.
They could only pin their hopes on Hongjun, the master of the Purple Heavens Palace!
Hongjun naturally knew what was happening inside the Purple Heavens Palace, but he was in no mood to concern himself with it.
What concerned him was that heavenly destiny had changed!
It had begun changing the moment Daochen helped Dijun and Eastern Emperor Taiyi claim those two Sagehood Meditation Cushions!
It had become impossible to see through!
We're done for. We've taken the act too far!
Seeing Hongjun remain unmoved, Zhunti and Jieyin began to panic.
They had made such a spectacle of wanting to die before the three thousand mighty beings in the Purple Heavens Palace.
If they lost their nerve now...
The two brothers would truly have no face left to show in the Primordial World!
What do we do?
Zhunti was panicking terribly now.
He had never imagined that the saying, "Walk along the river often enough, and your shoes are bound to get wet," would come true for him.
"Junior brother, what do we do?"
Jieyin also sent a voice transmission.
They were already arrows on the bowstring; they had no choice but to fly!
"Senior brother..."
Zhunti immediately sent Jieyin a voice transmission.
"Mm!"
Jieyin nodded slightly.
The next moment, an almost imperceptible current suddenly rose from Jieyin and Zhunti.
Although their auras soared skyward, their charge toward the heavenly pillar slowed considerably.
They could no longer avoid hitting it!
As for how they hit it, that was their own business!
This way, even if the many mighty beings of the Primordial World brought up today's incident in the future, they would have grounds to argue back.
It had to be said that their little scheme was finely calculated.
But they had overlooked the unexpected variable that was Daochen.
Seeing Jieyin and Zhunti's charge toward the heavenly pillar visibly slow, the mighty beings of the Primordial World could not help chuckling.
Only these two fellow disciples, Jieyin and Zhunti, could take shamelessness to such heights.
Just as Daochen was thoroughly enjoying the show, he suddenly heard a familiar voice ring out in his mind.
"Ding! Jieyin and Zhunti are riding a tiger they cannot dismount. Host, you have two choices." "Option one: help Jieyin and Zhunti resolve their embarrassment. Reward: gain Jieyin and Zhunti's goodwill!" "Option two: act in secret and thwart Jieyin and Zhunti's little scheme. Reward: one Time Law Fragment!"
Daochen rejected the first option without even thinking.
Help Jieyin and Zhunti?
Was this a joke?
What the hell did their making fools of themselves have to do with him?
Even if he helped, would Jieyin and Zhunti really appreciate it?
Back then, Hongyun had surrendered his seat, leaving Zhunti with an immense karmic debt to him that he could not repay even after becoming a sage.
And what had Zhunti done in the end? Knowing that he could not repay the karmic debt, he had simply acted in secret to force Hongyun out of the Five Villages Temple, leading to Hongyun's tragic death at the hands of Kunpeng, Dijun, and Eastern Emperor Taiyi.
Help an ungrateful wolf like that?
Only if Daochen had lost his mind.
I choose option two!
As Daochen's words sounded in his mind, a law fragment wreathed in a dense aura of time law appeared within his sea of consciousness.
A Time Law Fragment!
It was something left behind after the fall of the Time Demon God, who had once been able to lock wrists with Pangu himself.
Although it was only a fragment, its value was no less than that of a Supreme Xiantian Spiritual Treasure!
Daochen forcibly suppressed his excitement and left the Time Law Fragment in his sea of consciousness, saving it to refine after returning to the Sun Star.
It was not that he did not want to refine it, but doing so now might invite unnecessary trouble, given Hongjun's strength.
"Go!"
Daochen flicked his finger.
An obscure ripple of magical power flew from his hand toward Jieyin and Zhunti.
"Senior brother, what's happening?"
Feeling himself suddenly accelerate, Zhunti was startled.
"I don't know!"
Jieyin was equally bewildered.
He had clearly acted to slow himself down, so why was he speeding up again?
They were just about to repeat their trick and slow down.
But no matter how hard they tried, neither could break free of Daochen's enveloping magical power.
We're done for. We've really gone too far this time!
Seeing the heavenly pillar right before them, Jieyin and Zhunti were filled with regret!
They had only intended to give themselves a step down and leave it at that.
They had never expected that this time, it would not be a step.
It was a cliff!
"Senior brother, in our next life, we must never put on an act like this again!"
With all hope extinguished, Zhunti sent Jieyin a voice transmission.
"Let's see whether we even get a next life first!"
Jieyin had completely given up as well.
If they hit it at this speed, even if they survived, they would lose a layer of skin!
"Enough!"
Just as Jieyin and Zhunti were about to strike the pillar, an aged voice suddenly rang out.