The luminous pearl hanging from the Crystal Palace's dome suddenly trembled violently. Ao Bing staggered, crashing through the coral screen, his silver armor still stained with unhealed blood. "Father! Something terrible has happened!" His voice, deliberately trembling, echoed throughout the Dragon Palace, "The Palace-Guarding Dragon Pearl... is gone!"
Ao Guang, who had been feigning sleep on the dragon throne, suddenly opened his eyes, his dragon pupils blazing with golden light. The seawater surrounding the entire palace instantly boiled, countless bubbles exploding around him. "What? That's the treasure of our Dragon Palace! Who, who dares to steal the treasure of our Dragon Palace? How dare they! How dare they!"
Ao Bing lowered his head, concealing the sinister smile in his eyes, his fingertips clenching deeply into his sleeve. "Your subject has ascertained the truth." He deliberately lowered his voice, feigning hesitation, "I heard that Nezha visited the Dragon Palace yesterday with my little sister. Your subject suspects that Nezha bewitched my little sister, bringing her to the Dragon Palace and stealing our Dragon Palace's most prized treasure!"
"It really was him!" Ao Guang's whiskers stood on end, and his breath seemed to burn with flames. "Good heavens! He injured my son, killed the Yaksha, and stole the Dragon Pearl! Waaaaah, what heinous crimes! This little bastard!"
The Turtle Prime Minister, dragging his heavy tortoise shell, rushed over. "Your Majesty! We have discovered Nezha's origins! Nezha is none other than the son of Li Jing of Chentang Pass! Li Jing, as the general guarding this region, has allowed his son to rebel!"
The rage surging around Ao Guang seemed to scorch the seawater, creating distorted, ghostly images. "That Li Jing! He's outwardly obsequious, yet he's raised such a wicked creature!" He abruptly stood up, his dragon robe fluttering in the wind, "I will personally go to Chentang Pass to demand an explanation!"
"Father! Your son is willing to go with you!" Ao Bing stepped forward, gripping the newly forged ice hammer at his waist. "With me as your witness, let's see how those father and son deny it!" A barely perceptible smile appeared on his lips: Nezha, this time you will surely suffer eternal damnation!
On the green tiles of the Li family mansion in Chentang Pass, the setting sun dyed the evening glow blood red. Li Jing sat in the pavilion, his fingertips caressing the strings of the harp. With his skillful plucking, the strings vibrated, and beautiful notes poured out. The melodious and graceful tunes, like flowing water, echoed leisurely in the study.
Just then, the steward came running up, his robes dusty, panting, and bowed, reporting, "Reporting! Master, the Dragon King of the East Sea, Ao Guang, has come with his Third Prince Ao Bing, saying they have urgent business to discuss!"
Upon hearing this, Li Jing paused in his actions, frowned slightly, and a hint of barely perceptible tension flashed across his face, but he quickly regained his composure, stood up, straightened his clothes, and hurried to the main hall to greet him.
Upon entering the main hall and seeing the Dragon King Ao Guang, Li Jing's face immediately lit up with a smile. He bowed deeply, his words full of humility. "I was unaware of Your Majesty's arrival. I have failed to greet you properly. Please forgive me, please forgive me."
Ao Guang's face was grim, like the sky before a storm, overcast and dark. He snorted coldly, strode into the hall, flicked his sleeves, and stared at Li Jing with eyes like knives, demanding, "Don't give me that formality! Li Jing, let me ask you, do you have any objections to my demand for young boys and girls for sacrifice?"
Ao Bing followed closely behind his father, Sisi seeping from the bandage around his neck. His eyes were filled with resentment as he shouted, "That's right! Don't think you can fool Father!"
Li Jing knelt down with a thud, his forehead pressed against the bluestone slab, his voice trembling. "I dare not! How could I dare to utter the slightest complaint! It is only right and proper for Your Majesty to perform the sacrifice, and I will certainly cooperate with all my might!"
"Fully cooperate?" Ao Guang suddenly waved his sleeve, a gust of wind whipping up the sand and stones on the ground. "Your wretched son robbed tributes on the shores of the East Sea, stole my Dragon Pearl, killed my yaksha, and injured my child! And now you dare to pretend to be deaf and dumb here?"
Li Jing, as if struck by lightning, trembled and looked up. "Dragon Lord, please calm your anger! Please calm your anger! I will investigate this matter thoroughly and give Your Majesty an explanation!" After retreating, his face was ashen, and he gritted his teeth, cursing inwardly. " Nezha, you really are a troublemaker! If it was truly your doing, don't blame me for disregarding our father-son bond!"
Li Jing strode into the courtyard and sternly ordered, "Quickly summon Nezha to see me!" The steward obeyed and soon found Nezha meditating in the room. He was surrounded by a pale golden light, and his aura was calm and powerful.
" Nezha! Nezha! Master wants you to go immediately!" the steward called anxiously.
Nezha slowly opened his eyes, the golden light in them gradually fading. "I know, I'm coming." He pondered to himself, wondering why his father had summoned him.
As soon as he entered the courtyard, Li Jing immediately questioned him, "Did you go to the East Sea to cause trouble?"
Nezha remained calm. "It's nothing serious, just seeking justice for the people. It's just a pity... that it wasn't perfect."
"Still dare to talk back!" Li Jing's face turned red with anger. "The Dragon King and the Third Prince have come knocking on our door! Did you kill the Yaksha? Did you steal the sacrificial child?"
"So what if it is?" Nezha looked directly into his father's eyes, unwavering. "The Dragon King forcibly abducts children from the people, disregarding human life. I am merely acting on behalf of Heaven!"
"Outrageous!" Li Jing exclaimed. "The Dragon King's sacrifice has always been the same throughout history. This year may have gone a bit too far, but what does sacrificing a few children matter for the people of Chentang Pass? And you, you actually injured the Third Prince! Do you know that this will bring utter destruction to Chentang Pass?!"
Nezha retorted, his neck stiff with arrogance. "Aren't the children of ordinary people children too? Why should they be sent to their deaths in vain?"
Li Jing trembled with rage, pointing at Nezha, his voice trembling. "You unfilial son! You unfilial son!" He took a deep breath, suppressing his anger, and continued to ask, "I'll ask you again, did you steal the Dragon Pearl?"
Nezha looked bewildered, his eyes full of confusion. "What Dragon Pearl? I don't know..."
At this moment, Ao Guang Ao Bing, who had heard the heated argument, quietly came over. Upon seeing Nezha, Ao Guang's eyes widened instantly, like copper bells, and the flames of hatred burned fiercely in his eyes.
Without a word, he drew his gleaming sword from his waist and slashed fiercely at Nezha, shouting, "You're that little wretch! Oh my god, I'm going to kill you, you little thief, you killed my Yaksha and hurt my child!"
Ao Bing followed closely behind, his twin hammers spinning in his palms, creating a piercing shriek in the surrounding air. "You little thief! Prepare to die!"
"A demonic dragon dares to speak of justice?!" Nezha lightly touched the ground with his toes, his black robes fluttering like Red Armillary Sash transforming into a crimson ribbon that entangled Ao Guang's sword blade. The Universe Ring hummed in his wrist, reflecting a brilliant golden light in his eyes. "You ate young boys and girls first, then Yaksha and Ao Bing attacked me one after another. If I had surrendered, I would have already perished in your bellies! As for that fictitious Dragon Pearl— " He suddenly flicked his sleeve, shaking off Ao Bing's ice hammer, "I've never even seen it!"
Ao Guang was enveloped in eerie blue dragon flames, and the seawater beneath his feet froze into ice crystals. "Eloquent tongue! The Dragon Palace's treasure has been stolen, and you are the only one who entered and exited the palace. My son has already verified this. If it wasn't you, then who was it? Today, I won't be satisfied until I've torn you to pieces and ripped your flesh!"
"You wretched child! Apologize at once!" Veins bulged on Li Jing's forehead.
Nezha, however, did not retreat an inch, standing in stark contrast. "What crime have I committed? If protecting the people is considered wrong, then this world is truly upside down!" Before he finished speaking, he kicked Ao Guang in the chest, and the two Dragon Clan powerhouses flew backward like kites with broken strings.
"Fine! Fine!" Ao Guang struggled to his feet, lightning crackling Entanglement his dragon horns. "Since you refuse to confess even in death, I will go to the Heavenly Court and sue the Jade Emperor!" He transformed into a hundred-zhang-long dragon, lightning sparkling between its scales. Ao Bing followed closely behind, grinning maliciously, his ice hammer pointing at Nezha: "Just wait to be torn to pieces!"
The Twin Dragons flew into the sky and slowly disappeared.
"Dragon King, don't go! Dragon King, don't go!" Li Jing sighed, watching the Dragon King's departing figure, his face full of worry and helplessness. "What should we do?"
Nezha gazed at the horizon where the Dragon King had disappeared, thinking to himself, "If I go to the Heavenly Court to complain to the Jade Emperor, it will probably implicate the entire Li family. I'm at my wit's end. Oh well, I'll go to the Golden Light Cave and see if my master has any solutions."
Nezha, without stopping, arrived once again at the Golden Light Cave on Qianyuan Mountain. The Immortal Taiyi sat upright on a futon.
"Disciple greets Master!" Nezha knelt on one knee, his voice filled with an unusual urgency.
Seeing Nezha approach, he slightly opened his eyes and said with a solemn expression, "You've really gotten yourself into a huge mess this time, but upon closer inspection, there's some truth to it. However, that Dragon King is ruthless and cunning, and he certainly won't let this go easily. It will also implicate your father."
"That's why I've come to ask Master for guidance! I will take responsibility for my actions and will never let the Li family suffer because of me!" Nezha said sincerely, thinking that although Li Jing was usually indifferent to him, he had not done anything too heartless, and the steward and servants of the Li family were innocent.
Upon hearing this, Taiyi Zhenren's eyes flashed with satisfaction. "Good! Well done, one person does the deed and takes the blame!" He beckoned Nezha closer, his aged voice lowered, "Come closer..." and whispered the plan to him in detail.
P. S.: Thank you Liang Siyue for the monthly ticket donation, thank you for your support.