In the Jade Void Palace of Kunlun Mountain, Randeng knelt alone in the hall.
"Teacher, please forgive me. I have failed you and disappointed your expectations." Ran Deng slammed his head on the ground.
The Primordial Celestial Venerable sat high on his throne with his eyes closed.
On that day, the members of the Chan Sect, along with the Xiqi army, withdrew three thousand miles, and Randeng returned to Yuxu Palace immediately to apologize.
Drips of sweat fell from Ran Deng's face. This time, it seemed that the two sides were evenly matched, but in reality, the Chan Sect was at a disadvantage. He had an inescapable responsibility. That person was too arrogant. If he had gone all out from the beginning, Sishui Pass would have been easy to capture. Who knew that a bald monster would appear halfway through the battle? He clearly had no magic power, but he was incredibly strong, causing Ran Deng to waste a lot of his magic power.
After a long while, Yuanshi Tianzun slowly opened his eyes.
"I originally thought you were the most composed among my disciples, but I never expected..."
"This disciple knows his sins," Ran Deng said hastily.
"Alright, get up." Yuan Shi shook his head.
Randeng felt as if he had been granted a pardon, and hurriedly kowtowed to Yuanshi, then stood up respectfully.
"Lu Ya of the demon race, one of the Four Great Demon Saints, interesting. He's getting restless after being too still for a while," Yuanshi sneered.
"Teacher, could this be related to the goddess Nuwa?" Ran Deng asked.
Upon hearing this, Yuanshi fell into deep thought. Based on his understanding of Nuwa, he knew she would not do such a thing, since doing so would be going against the Dao Ancestor.
"And that bald, strange man is also extremely mysterious. Ji Fa, the chosen one of heaven, was taken in by him as his disciple," Ran Deng continued.
“None of that matters. What matters is determining whether the Investiture of the Gods is in the hands of the Shang Dynasty,” Yuanshi said.
“Uh…yes,” Ran Deng replied.
"Take these two jade pendants. The white one contains thirty percent of my magic power. Use it as you see fit. As for the purple one, use it immediately when a crisis arises, and I will come to your aid personally." Tongtian said, tossing the two jade pendants, one white and one with a character on them, to Randeng.
Ran Deng respectfully extended both hands to receive it.
"Thank you, Master," Ran Deng said with a joyful expression.
"Alright, you can go back now." Yuanshi then waved his hand.
The figure of the Taoist Ran Deng gradually disappeared into the hall.
After Randeng left, Yuanshi Tianzun fell into deep thought again, as events were increasingly spiraling out of his control.
Immediately afterwards, Yuanshi took out a jade slip and spoke to it.
"Fellow Daoists Jieyin and Zhunti, please come to the Eight Views Palace. I have important matters to discuss with you."
After saying that, the jade slip broke through space and disappeared.
Yuanshi also rose up, and his entire body transformed into a rainbow of light and disappeared.
The Western world, Mount Sumeru.
Jieyin, who was meditating, suddenly opened his eyes and looked up at the sky. He saw a white light flash by, and he reached out and took the white light into his hand. It was the jade slip emitted by Yuanshi.
“It’s Yuanshi.” Zhunti, who was standing to the side, sensed the residual aura of the jade slip.
Jieyin then broke the jade slip, and the voice of Yuanshi Tianzun came from inside.
"The fact that you're in such a hurry to see us means you've run into trouble," Zhunti said.
"Hmm, it seems to be related to the great calamity." Jieyin nodded.
"Senior brother, this time, our plan can be put into action," Zhunti said with a smile.
“Yes, the West has been silent for too long. Fellow Daoist Yuanshi will surely understand,” Jieyin said.
Immediately afterwards, the two of them transformed into a rainbow of light and disappeared into Mount Sumeru.
Beyond the thirty-three heavens lies the Eight Views Palace.
A sudden aura appeared, immediately disturbing the flames in the Eight Trigrams Furnace. Taishang frowned, and a plume of smoke instantly billowed from the furnace before him.
"You never greet me when you come, and now this furnace of pills is ruined again," the Supreme Elder said, somewhat angrily.
"Uh... Senior Brother, please forgive me." Yuan Shi was slightly taken aback, and quickly bowed to apologize.
"Why..."
Taishang sighed softly and then turned around.
"What is it now?" Taishang asked.
“Senior brother, a few days ago, my disciples of the Chan Sect suffered a great defeat at Sishui Pass, with more than half of them killed or wounded,” Yuanshi said hurriedly.
Upon hearing this, the Supreme Lord frowned slightly.
“There’s no need to send those low-level disciples from the start,” Taishang said, frowning.
Upon hearing this, Yuanshi smiled bitterly. Taishang thought he was sending his low-level disciples to be cannon fodder.
“Senior brother, you’re mistaken. How could I do such a thing? There were many Great Luo Immortals among the dead and wounded,” Yuanshi hurriedly said.
"Hmm?" The Supreme Being was somewhat surprised at this moment.
"Randeng, Guangchengzi and the others can't stop Duobao and the others?" Taishang asked.
Just then, two more powerful auras appeared outside the palace; it was Jieyin and Zhunti who had arrived.
"Did you summon them?" the Supreme Lord asked.
"Please forgive me, Senior Brother." Yuan Shi nodded.
Soon, Jieyin and Zhunti walked in.
"Greetings, fellow Daoists," the two men said, bowing.
"Please sit down."
With a wave of his hand, the Supreme Being produced three prayer cushions, and the three of them sat down.
"Now that everyone is here, tell me what happened," the Supreme Lord said.
Yuanshi took a deep breath and then recounted the news he had heard from Randeng.
"Well done, Lu Ya. I never expected him to return to the demon race." Taishang said coldly after hearing this.
"If it weren't for Junior Sister Nuwa stepping in to protect these wicked creatures back then, this whole thing wouldn't have happened," Zhunti said coldly.
“This may not be Nuwa’s intention,” Yuanshi said, still not believing that Nuwa would oppose him.
"That makes sense." The Supreme Lord nodded.
“Senior brother, fellow Daoists, the reason I’ve come to see you all is because of that mysterious bald man,” Yuanshi continued.
"Without magic power, yet possessing boundless divine strength, could it be that you are proving your path through force?" Jieyin asked.
“I had my suspicions before, but it didn’t seem like it. I’ve been in close contact with him, and he really doesn’t have any cultivation at all. He’s just an ordinary person. That’s what surprised me,” Yuanshi said.
Everyone nodded in agreement. Proving one's Dao through force also requires magical power; otherwise, one cannot reach the ultimate level with just physical strength.
"Do you remember the hidden powerhouse the teacher mentioned?" Taishang asked.
The three of them couldn't help but look at the Supreme Elder.
"I suspect this person is connected to that mysterious figure."
"The person who stole the Investiture of the Gods?" Yuanshi's eyes narrowed instantly.
"Fellow Daoist Yuanshi, is there anything we brothers can do to help you?" the Guide Daoist asked with a smile.
Upon hearing this, Yuan Shi instinctively wanted to refuse, but then he thought, why not use the two of them to test the waters, perhaps to lure out the mysterious person?
"Oh? Are you two fellow Daoists willing to help?" Yuanshi said softly.
"Do you two have any requests...?"
Yuan Shi continued, knowing that these two wouldn't act until they saw a clear benefit.
Jieyin and Zhunti exchanged a glance.
"Brother Dao, you know that the West is barren and has few disciples. After this matter is accomplished, could you spare a few disciples for the West? I would be extremely grateful," Jieyin said.
Yuanshi's expression changed immediately. Just as he was about to refuse, he saw Taishang give him a wink.
Yuanshi understood immediately, suppressed his anger, and asked coldly.
"Which of my disciples have taken a fancy to?"
"Haha, to my shame, we actually noticed your disciples of the Chan Sect a long time ago. Several of them have a special connection with my Western Paradise," Zhunti laughed.
“Indeed, Cihang Daoren, Puxian Zhenren, Wenshu Daoren, and Julusun, these people are quite wise and will surely be able to comprehend the Great Dao of the West,” Jieyin said.
Upon hearing this, Yuanshi abruptly stood up and said angrily.
"You two have quite the appetites, why not go and light the lamp as well?"
"That would be wonderful! With Randeng joining my sect, he will surely be able to bring glory to our Western Sect," Jieyin said hastily.
Yuan Shi was furious. These two were incredibly shameless. He had witnessed it firsthand. They were so brazen because they had guessed his thoughts.
Yuanshi closed his eyes slightly, his chest heaving, while Taishang remained calm and composed, seemingly not intending to get involved.
“Alright, I can agree to your request afterward, but there’s one thing I need to make clear,” Yuanshi said.
"Please speak, fellow Daoist," the guide said hastily.
“I will not stop any of my disciples, but you cannot use force. Everything is up to their wishes. As long as the conditions you offer can attract them to switch sides, even if it means emptying my Chan Sect, I will not say a word. How about it?” Yuanshi sneered.
Upon hearing this, Jieyin frowned, then secretly communicated with Zhunti. The two brothers discussed it for a long time before nodding in agreement.
“Okay, we agree,” the guide said.
"That's good then. Next, I'll ask you two for your help. You should know what it is without me having to tell you," Yuanshi said.
“Of course, isn’t your goal to lure out the mysterious person behind the scenes? No problem.” Jieyin said confidently.
"Furthermore, if the Dao Ancestor punishes you, you cannot say that I ordered you to do it," Yuanshi continued.
"Of course," Jieyin said with a smile.
In the Heavenly Court, in the Peach Garden.
Haotian stared blankly at Mengmeng, who held a peach in each hand, the one in her left hand being much larger than the one in her right.
"Hmm, your peaches are so small." Mengmeng tossed the peach in her right hand back to Haotian with a look of disgust, and started eating the one in her left hand.
"You...you...you also have a peach?" Haotian asked uncertainly. Although he could already sense the aura of the peach in Mengmeng's hand.
"Yes, I still have a lot left," Mengmeng said while eating.
"His Majesty."
Just then, a voice came from the sky, and a lucky cloud slowly descended. On the cloud was a beautiful and dignified woman, wearing a golden crown and a long blue-purple dress. She was ethereal and had a kind face. She possessed the beauty of an empress. She was none other than the Queen Mother of the West.
"You've arrived." Haotian nodded.
The Queen Mother first surveyed her peach orchard, and was relieved to see that it was undamaged. Then she looked at Mengmeng, who was eating peaches with gusto.
The little one blinked his big eyes and looked at the Queen Mother.
"Huh?"
The Queen Mother immediately noticed that the peach in Mengmeng's hand was different from the others.
He looked at Haotian with a slightly questioning expression.
"Don't look at me, this isn't from our garden. I don't know where she got it from," Haotian said with a wry smile.
"I have so many more, much bigger than yours," Mengmeng said, patting her little hand on her shoulder bag.
Suddenly, a huge pile of peaches flew out of the bag, densely packed like a small mountain around the three of them.
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