I'm Actually a Cultivation Bigshot

381-390

Chapter 381: Certified Farmer Li Nianfan

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

That place was like where Lord Pangu lived!

'The mountain shall be known as...the best Saintly Mountain and the blessed sacred land from now on!'

Ziye thought to herself. Qin Manyun took a deep breath and stepped forward. She carefully raised her hand and knocked three times on the door.

"May I know if Mr. Li's home?"

"Guests? I'll go answer the door!"

Tap tap.

Creak.

Dragin opened the door. She had flour on her face—looking like a messy cutie. She looked at everyone outside and smiled. "Hey, it's Sister Ziye. Please, come in."

Ziye and Gu Xirou smiled at the same time. "Hello, Dragin."

Then, they stepped into the four-part architecture. They saw the busy people in the yard. White flour was floating in the air. The floor was also covered in white flour. It looked like a mess.

Li Nianfan and the others were kneading dough. They added water to the flour and they had all sorts of stuff to knead the dough with on the table.

Xiao Bai had hands like a vacuum machine, chasing after loose flour and cleaning up the place.

Ziye and the others had imagined countless scenarios when they walked in the door, except for a scenario like that. When they saw the house full of flour, the corners of their mouths unconsciously twitched.

'That's not flour, that's incomprehensible Luck!'

If cultivators, or even Immortals, were there to see all that flour, they would have lost control as if they had discovered some ultimate treasure. Then, they would do anything to gather it.

'Are they playing with Luck? Luxurious, too luxurious!'

They looked at Daji and the others. They seemed alright. It seemed like they did not think it was wasteful.

'Forget the expert. Since when were you girls so carelessly lavish, too?'

Huff!

Qin Manyun breathed fast. She noticed that some flour was floating in front of her. She silently turned her mouth into an 'O' to suck the flour in.

'Suck it in as much as I can. Rich people don't understand the desires of the poor. It'd be a shame to waste it!'

Li Nianfan saw the guests and instantly smiled. He said, "Yo, Lady Manyun's also here. I haven't seen you in a while."

Qin Manyun hurriedly saluted and bowed, "Yeah. Greetings to Mr. Li."

Gu Xirou and Ziye also hurriedly said, "Mr. Li, sorry to intrude."

Li Nianfan smiled. "Ha, there's nothing to intrude. It's a bit messy at the moment. Sorry about that."

"No...not at all." Gu Xirou sounded a bit anguished.

'You should feel sorry for us instead. We've never seen a messy house caused by excessive Luck. We truly learned something new this time.'

Li Nianfan said, "Sit, have a seat. Xiao Bai, turn off the vacuum machine mode. Hurry up and serve tea to the guests."

"Yes, my noble Master."

Xiao Bai immediately went off to make tea.

Ziye and the others looked to where Li Nianfan was standing. They looked at the dough on the table.

Their hearts raced on sight. They felt as if the dough was lively, or like it would come alive at any moment. However, the feeling disappeared when they looked closely. It still felt extraordinary.

There were puppets and all sorts of animals on the table. Li Nianfan and the others made them from kneading dough. However, it was easy to differentiate. After all, the dough kneaded by the others was too ugly. Not only were they ugly, they were tragic to look at compared to what Li Nianfan made. The difference was too obvious.

Ziye stared closely at a puppet kneaded by Li Nianfan. She could only detect a hint of powerful aura from it. It meant that her level was still too low. She was not worthy enough to understand the wisdom within it.

The dough must have contained some sort of wisdom, and it was far beyond Ziye's comprehension. The Insights from his dough were way higher than the others. It was subtle and mysterious. It seemed like the expert was not trying to preach. It was more like...a creation!

'Perhaps this dough is a kind of...super powerful Spiritual Treasure?'

Ziye guessed in her mind. Suddenly, Li Nianfan casually placed the puppet dough into the steamer. He steamed it...

Li Nianfan noticed that Ziye was dumbfounded while she was looking at the steamer. He had to laugh as he asked, "Goddess Ziye, what are you looking at? Do you like this puppet dough?"

Ziye snapped out of it. She hurriedly replied, "Mr. Li, that puppet dough's well-made. I unconsciously had to look at it."

Li Nianfan laughed. He shook his head and said, "Actually, it tastes better than it looks. Goddess Ziye, if you like it, I'll give some to you later."

Xiao Bai came over with a tray to serve them tea as well as a fruit platter. "Please, enjoy, guests."

The three of them thanked it at the same time, "Thanks, Xiao Bai."

They looked slightly ashamed. They were embarrassed to receive free food and drinks.

Daji took out her handkerchief and carefully wiped Li Nianfan's hand. The two of them walked together and sat down.

Li Nianfan smiled and asked, "Is there any reason why you're all here?"

Qin Manyun put her words together and said, "Mr. Li, I'm here to invite you to an end-of-the-year event hosted by cultivators."

Li Nianfan had a realization. He asked, intrigued, "Ha, what a coincidence. I just heard someone talking about this today. Since when did cultivators start getting interested in end-of-the-year events?"

Qin Manyun saw that Li Nianfan had laughed. It seemed like he was not against it. She was immediately thrilled. She said, "Actually...We just did. It's lonely being cultivators so we wanted to gather and create some events. It just so happens to be the end of the year, so we're just doing it together."

She paused, bit her lip, and said, "Apart from battles, we have dance performances. I will be performing with my zither, too."

"You'll be performing on stage, too?"

Li Nianfan looked at Qin Manyun weirdly. She was quite prestigious. It seemed like the event would be very formal if she was going to show up and perform.

Qin Manyun nodded. She asked excitedly, "Mr. Li, are you going to come? I practiced hard on 'Ambush' and 'High Mountains and Flowing Water'."

Li Nianfan smiled and said, "Since Lady Manyun already said so, it makes no sense if I don't go."

Qin Manyun and Gu Xirou were overjoyed. They hurriedly said, "We'll pick you up for the event, then."

Li Nianfan laughed. He said smugly, "No need to do so. I don't need to rely on the skyship anymore."

Ziye silently sighed at the side. She felt lonely.

If the Seven Princesses were together, they could perform a set of dances for the expert. However, it was just her. She could not present the performance on her own.

She lightly flicked her wrist and out came two seeds in her hand. She spoke, "Mr. Li, I heard you were looking for special fruit trees to fill up your backyard. I found these two seeds by accident. How about you take a look?"

"Oh? Let me see."

Li Nianfan was instantly interested. He took the seeds from Ziye and carefully observed them.

The two seeds were not that different in sizes. They were plump. However, one was smoother, the other one had deep patterns and small holes on it. They looked kind of dry. They appeared to have been out in the wild for quite some time.

Thankfully, the environment was nice at the Immortal Realm. There were Spiritual Qi everywhere. If the seeds were placed in the past realm, they would have dried out and died a long time ago.

"Good seeds. These are good seeds!"

Li Nianfan carefully touched them and smiled. "This one's a Peach, and this one's a Plum. Both are good seeds. Goddess Ziye, thank you so much."

'So the Flat Peach is called a Peach and the Yellow Plum's called a Plum. I see.'

"You're welcome, Mr. Li. I can't plant this...Peach seed and this Plum seed anyway, so I may as well give it to you."

"You gave it to the right person then. I'm a certified farmer after all. It's not hard to plant these seeds!" Li Nianfan laughed. "Once I harvest the fruits, I'll give them to you, Goddess Ziye."

'Planting Spiritual Herbs, Flat Peaches, and Yellow Plums. Is there anybody else in the world who could do something that cool?

'Yet...you merely referred to yourself as a certified farmer?

'The expert's truly the expert. Even his cool act is beyond us.'

Ziye was excited but at the same time, she felt her emotions were being relentlessly attacked. She kept smiling. "Ha, thanks, Mr. Li."

Li Nianfan put the seeds aside. He was planning to plant them later. He suddenly had a thought and asked curiously, "Oh, yeah. How's the Heavenly Palace?"

Her face dropped at the mention of that. Ziye sighed and said, "No progress at all. But fortunately, I saw my Second Sister."

"Your Second Sister?" Li Nianfan was slightly surprised. He thought to himself, 'Her Second Sister would be the Second Princess?

'Awesome. Why isn't she here? It'd be great to meet more legendary characters.'

Ziye automatically answered his question. She said, "Yes, but she was confined. She can't leave the Heavenly Palace yet."

"I see." Li Nianfan nodded. Then, he asked, "Can we go to the Heavenly Palace?"

Li Nianfan only asked casually but Ziye's heart clenched hearing that. Her heart started beating frantically. She was excited and anxious. She was thinking a lot and could not control her breathing.

'The expert's starting to take an interest in the Heavenly Palace. If he went over, there might be a chance for everyone to wake up.'

Previously, Ziye did not dare to guess what Li Nianfan was thinking. Therefore, she never asked him to do anything. However, the expert himself brought up the Heavenly Palace. That was a different case.

Deep down, she knew that she could never think of a solution on her own. Even the Jade Emperor and Empress of the Heavenly Palace could not do anything. It was an unsolvable issue. The only hope lied with the expert.

However... Could she directly ask the expert for help? Obviously not. If she asked for help, she would not receive it. She would probably also be dead.

At that moment, Ziye wanted to cry. She did not know how it would end but it would be a huge blessing if the expert was at the Heavenly Palace. After all, there was a prior example—the Underworld. 'Maybe the expert will rebuild the Heavenly Palace if he's in a good mood?'

Her mind was running fast. She hurriedly calmed her overturned heart. However, her voice was still shaky. She said, slightly nervous, "Of course, you can. Mr. Li, if you want, I can bring you all there right now. The Heavenly Palace isn't that different from the eldritch eras."

Li Nianfan was thrilled. "Really? Can we go to the Heavenly Palace?"

Ziye almost begged him. She kept nodding, "Yes, you absolutely can."

Li Nianfan looked at Daji. "Daji, how about it? How about we...have a stroll at the Heavenly Palace?"

Daji smiled and said, "I'll follow you if you want to go."

"We've been to the Underworld, so of course, we can't miss out on the Heavenly Palace! We must go. We must go!"

Li Nianfan looked excited. He was thrilled.

That was the Heavenly Palace. In the past realm, the Heavenly Palace was an important place in every legendary story. It was also the holiest and most mysterious place. The story of 'Havoc in the Heavenly Palace' won the hearts of countless teens.

He was...about to visit the Heavenly Palace.

Chapter 382: Plucking the Stars From the Sky

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

"Mr. Li, shall we depart...now?" Ziye took a deep breath. She was irrecoverably nervous.

"No rush. I'll deal with some things first. Please, wait for a moment."

Li Nianfan smiled. He looked at the hot steamer and said, "Oh, yeah. Goddess Ziye, if you like my puppet dough, I should give this steamer to you. Xiao Bai, help Goddess Ziye pack it up."

It was common courtesy. Since Goddess Ziye gave him two seeds, he had to be polite and give something back.

Then, he took the two seeds into the storage room and started to cause a commotion while looking for something.

Soon, he walked out of the storage room with a small container. He slowly walked towards the backyard.

Ziye and the others looked at the small container. It had translucent liquid inside. It seemed ordinary but everyone felt their hearts race.

They could not forget about that.

'That's the growth serum. It must be the growth serum!'

Extraordinary people could look ordinary. The same could be said for treasures.

The growth serum looked like ordinary water. However... It was a legendary liquid that defied the laws of nature.

'Awesome.

'We'd probably be eating peaches and plums in no time.'

Everyone sat and waited. After a while, Li Nianfan walked out from the backyard. He satisfyingly smiled and said, "Alright, shall we...depart?"

Ziye suddenly stood up. She could not contain her excitement. She smiled and said, "Yeah, anytime."

Li Nianfan felt sentimental that he was able to befriend such a kind Seventh Princess.

Then, everyone rode on clouds and slowly rose to the sky.

Ziye became the tour guide. She said, "Mr. Li, I stay at the Ice Palace in the Above Immortal Realm. That's also where the Heavenly Gates of the Heavenly Palace is at. Later, we'll pick an intersection route from the Immortal Realm. We can go directly from there."

"Whatever you decide, Goddess Ziye."

Li Nianfan smiled. He stepped on a golden cloud and flew in a direction.

He looked up to the sky as he rose. The sky was like a blanket, slowly descending upon him. He was curious where the Above Immortal Realm was at.

However, before he could observe anything closely, he felt a movement in the air. It was like bursting through ripples after resurfacing from beneath the water. They swam past an invisible border and peeked their heads out in the Above Immortal Realm.

They arrived at a vast field when they reappeared again.

The land was filled with grass and flowers. There were forests in the distance filled mostly with small trees.

Li Nianfan was slightly startled. He asked, "We're here? We don't need to fly anymore?"

Ziye said, "No need. The Heavenly Gates are gone. The restriction between the three realms is basically gone. Great cultivators can easily pass between the three realms now."

"Yo, awesome. This is much more convenient. Good, good."

Li Nianfan remembered when the Immortals would be struck by lightning whenever they went to the Immortal Realm. The lightning was not useful or effective but they still had to be struck. Transcending to the Above Immortal Realm also seemed difficult. It was much more convenient now that the bridge was wide open.

Everyone else silently glanced at Li Nianfan. They pursed their lips to stop themselves from cursing him out.

'Of course, you think it's good. The realm became like this because of you, right?'

'Are you trying to compliment yourself?'

Ziye coughed and interrupted Li Nianfan and said, "Mr. Li, the Heavenly Palace is up there."

"Up there?" Li Nianfan looked up in surprise. "Are we going to reach outer space?"

The clouds continued to rise.

He did not feel any obstacles at that time. He looked up at the sky and saw thick clouds. The clouds were as huge as an ocean. It was endless!

They passed through the clouds and opened their eyes again. They arrived in front of a huge gate.

The gate was broken. Only two pillars and half a sign were left.

Li Nianfan was slightly startled. "Southern Sky Gate?"

They walked into the Southern Sky Gate and stepped on the bridge above the Sky River. He looked at the palace amongst the clouds with a complex gaze. He had arrived at the Heavenly Palace.

Li Nianfan shook his head and said, "It looks like how I imagined it to be but something's off. It isn't majestic enough."

The Heavenly Palace was beautiful and had clouds as paths. The basics were there but there was no Immortal Qi and magical phenomenon. The Heavenly Palace was very quiet. It was different from what he expected.

Buzz!

Suddenly, the quiet buildings beamed strands of light. The lifeless palace instantly became a light source. The Heavenly Palace was shining brightly.

The light beamed into thin air and formed a magical phenomenon. The Heavenly Palace became a holy and opulent place.

Splash!

The water of the Star River started to flow. There were no waves. Instead, in the river were endless stars.

The stars sparkled, decorating the river water. The colorful Star River was eye-catching.

Dang!

Immortal Music played softly from afar. A sky full of sunset halos shined. Then, a Rainbow Bridge appeared from South to North. Cranes were flying around the rainbow.

It was shiny, prestigious, and regal. Immortal Qi surrounded the palace as Immortal Music echoed.

The palace was like a pearl covered in dust, dust that was suddenly blown away.

"This...this is..."

Ziye, who was next to Li Nianfan, instantly widened her eyes. She gasped. She was so excited that she had goosebumps. It was as if she was back at the original Heavenly Palace.

She always felt like the Heavenly Palace would have hope if she brought the expert. She did not expect the nice surprises to come so early. A comment from the expert revived the lifeless Heavenly Palace.

Actually, the entire Heavenly Palace was a Spiritual Treasure. It was born from the realm. It was a Demon Palace at first, which Hongjun gave to the Jade Emperor. Then, it became the Heavenly Palace. After the catastrophe, the treasure ceased to function. It did not shine anymore and it would not be activated.

However, the expert arrived. 'Did it start to present itself like crazy to impress the expert?'

1

"Haha, I knew it. This is how the Heavenly Palace should look like." Li Nianfan was slightly surprised. Then, he had to ask, "This Heavenly Palace is so prideful. What if it became like that because I said something just now?"

Ziye felt her skin crawl because Li Nianfan showed off. She forced herself to reply, "Ha-ha... Stop joking, Mr. Li. Of course, n—not."

A beautiful orange figure flew in their direction from afar. She looked startled by the sudden lights in the Heavenly Palace. She was excited and in disbelief.

'What's going on?

'The Heavenly Palace is back in business?'

She quickly flew to the Southern Sky Gate and saw her Seventh Sister. Then, her heart instantly raced when she saw that her Seventh Sister was carefully standing next to a man. Her skin crawled. She almost turned around to flee.

'It's him, it's that guy!

'No wonder the lifeless Heavenly Palace works again.

'Come on, Seventh Sister. Shouldn't you warn me before bringing the expert here? At least let me be mentally prepared!'

She felt uneasy. However, she noticed that Li Nianfan had seen her, so she could only force herself to go.

'Time for an improvisation test.'

The girl with the orange dress remained calm. She flew in gracefully like a beautiful Goddess. She glided in with her slim arms in the air as her orange dress blew in the wind. She waved and out came a halo around her. She was holy, graceful, and prestigious...

"Seventh Sister."

She gracefully landed in front of everyone. She slightly bowed, smiled, and asked, "You brought guests today?"

"Second Sister," greeted Ziye. Then, she introduced her to Li Nianfan. "Mr. Li, this is my Second Sister. Her name is Cheng Yi."

'She's indeed the Second Princess. I finally got to see her in person.'

Li Nianfan already guessed who she was. He hurriedly saluted and smiled, "Greetings to Goddess Cheng Yi."

Cheng Yi bowed politely at Li Nianfan. "Mr. Li, I heard about you from Zi. You are the great Deluxe Merit Saint so just call me Cheng."

'This lady is truly Ziye's sister. Ziye feels like a bit of a brat compared to her sibling.'

Li Nianfan did not mind bonding with her. He nodded and said, "Lady Cheng."

Ziye at the side hurriedly said, "Oh yeah, Mr. Li, you can call me Zi from now on, too. Otherwise, it'd be too formal."

1

Li Nianfan smiled. "Ha, okay then."

"I didn't know we'll be having guests today so I didn't prepare much, so sorry about that," Cheng Yi said while moving aside. "How about I bring you to look at the Heavenly Palace's view, Mr. Li?"

"Nice."

Li Nianfan nodded and followed Cheng Yi. They walked on the cloud path. Rainbow lights illuminated the path when they glided across it. They seemed to be reminding everyone that they were at the Heavenly Palace.

He smiled and said, "It's much better with the lights, everything's shiny and bright."

Cheng Yi smiled and said, "As long as you like it, Mr. Li."

The Heavenly Palace was big. Most of the buildings were connected with cloud bridges, or they needed to fly on clouds to get there. The layout was very interesting.

Li Nianfan visited a lot of the palaces out of curiosity. He realized that the people inside were turned to stone. They looked peaceful.

Cheng Yi brought Li Nianfan to a wide and high tower. She said, "Mr. Li, this is the observatory. There are a lot of observatories in the Heavenly Palace but the view here's the best."

It was evening and the sun was setting. A red cloud covered the sky and spread to the horizon.

The Heavenly Palace was called the Heavenly Palace because it was high up in the sky and they could look down upon the realms.

They could see the split realms from afar. The sky was separated—one part was a fiery sunset, and the other was a night sky.

For Li Nianfan, that was the endless universe.

Multiple stars and galaxies were aligned with the Heavenly Palace. They shined and glimmered, sometimes bright, sometimes dark. Sometimes they were far, sometimes they were near. A cool silver sphere hung high in the sky. Li Nianfan did not need an introduction to know that it must be the moon. It was also the legendary Moon Palace.

At that moment, nothing was out of reach.

Plucking the stars from the sky was no longer just a rumor.

Chapter 383: Sorry, We Can't Go Along With This Performance of Yours

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Li Nianfan stood on the high tower and fully felt the benefits of being an Immortal.

The view was truly scattered with stars like chess pieces on a board!

The vast galaxy was just a chess piece.

'Immortals at that time could probably move the infinite stars around. Although they had limitations, it's still exciting to think about it.'

Li Nianfan asked, "Lady Zi, can the galaxy be manipulated?"

"Yes. There are managers for the stars. Some were born with the galaxy, and some were assigned by the Heavenly Palace. They control the movement of the stars, the time, and the changes of the four seasons."

Ziye paused, then said, "Taoist Xinghe's one of them."

Li Nianfan thought of when he first met Taoist Xinghe. He was surprised. "Yo, that's awesome for Brother Taoist. Which one is he in charge of?"

Ziye lifted her hand. She was about to point it out. She looked for it for a long while and said awkwardly, "It's a bit far and a bit small. And a bit dim. Can't see it from here..."

"Ha, I understand."

Li Nianfan laughed. He looked at the intersection of the realm and the universe again. They were star-crossed, it was extremely beautiful.

Cheng Yi smiled and said, "Mr. Li, this is just the sunset. The sunrise is more beautiful. The morning sun will pass through the Heavenly Palace."

"So exciting," nodded Li Nianfan. Then, he looked around and said, "Truly the Heavenly Palace. It's such a great place."

Cheng Yi was thrilled to hear that, she even blushed. She felt like she understood what the expert really meant. She hurriedly said in a trembling voice, "Mr. Li, if you want, you can pick a palace to stay at."

Ziye also hurriedly said, "Yeah, Mr. Li. There are a lot of empty palaces. My Second Sister and I can pick out the best one for you."

Li Nianfan smiled and waved it off, "Haha, no thanks. I'm just a nobody and I'm an ordinary man. How could I stay at the Heavenly Palace? I'm not worthy! Thanks for the generosity."

Cheng Yi and Ziye secretly sighed at the same time. 'The expert's supposed to like it, why did he reject us? If the expert truly liked the Heavenly Palace, the future of the Heavenly Palace would be secured. Sigh, we failed to promote the Heavenly Palace. What a miss!'

Cheng Yi continued to introduce the place. She pointed at a nearby palace and said, "Mr. Li, this is our Palace of the Seven Princesses."

Li Nianfan immediately smiled. "The Palace of the Seven Princesses is located nicely, and it's next to the observatory."

"Hehe, we like to watch the view. We were just favored by the Empress," said Cheng Yi. She led the way and walked towards the Palace of the Seven Princesses. "Mr. Li, how about you visit my Palace of the Seven Princesses?"

"Alright."

Li Nianfan nodded. They entered the Palace of the Seven Princesses. It was a classic room for young ladies. It was fresh and elegant and very tidy inside. It smelled a bit like incense candles and perfume. At that moment, Li Nianfan suddenly realized something. He said, "I'm a man. It's not appropriate for me to be in your room, right?"

Cheng Yi pursed her lips and chuckled. "Mr. Li, no need to be a stranger. We sisters don't care about that much. If it wasn't for the fact that five of my sisters are still sealed, we could've performed for you, Mr. Li."

Li Nianfan waved it off. He smiled troublingly and said, "Stop joking, Lady Cheng. I'm not worthy. How can I let the Seven Princesses perform for me?"

Then, everyone saw the five other Princesses that ended up as statues. They were still smiling and they seemed to be chatting. Cheng Yi and Ziye stopped talking at the same time. They silently sighed and looked down.

Nanan and Dragin stopped looking so curious. They said with sympathy, "Brother Nianfan, they're so pitiful."

"There'll be a way as long as they're alive," comforted Li Nianfan. Then, he asked curiously, "Lady Zi, is the Jade Emperor and the Empress also sealed?"

Ziye shook her head and replied, "No. For all these years, Second Sister has been with the Jade Emperor and Empress. However, they're stuck somewhere."

'The Jade Emperor and Empress are here? They're major bigshots.'

Li Nianfan nodded, he was slightly weirded out. He was also unavoidably excited.

He focused and noticed a scroll on the table. He picked it up and inspected it in his hand.

"What's this?"

Ziye and Cheng Yi were stumped at the same time. They stuttered as they struggled to answer the question.

The scroll was previously traded from Ma Yunming with chives. They could not open it and could not damage it. Cheng Yi was studying it earlier. She simply placed it on the table because of the sudden change in the Heavenly Palace.

1

While they were stumped, Li Nianfan tugged the scroll. Then, he easily pulled it open, leaving them dumbfounded.

The first thing he saw in the scroll was the mountains and rivers. The ink on the scroll was already dried out. The painting scroll was long and filled up with contents.

Apart from the mountains and rivers, there were a lot of animals and all sorts of plants.

The old painting started to gleam as he opened it. A powerful and endless aura started to knock them in the face. Everyone felt their hearts thump as they felt a fearful respect.

'This—this is...'

Cheng Yi astoundingly looked at the painting with her pretty eyes. She suddenly widened her eyes and breathed fast. She unconsciously tightened her grip because she was overly excited. The veins on her hand slightly popped up.

'The Land of Mountains and Rivers Painting!

'That's definitely The Land of Mountains and Rivers Painting!'

She was with the Empress for a long time. The Empress always told her stories of the eldritch realms because she was overly bored. It included stories of Spiritual Treasures. The Land of Mountains and Rivers Painting was one of the most important ones!

The painting was an Ultimate Heavenly Spiritual Treasure but its function was extremely unique. The painting was about a scene from a prehistoric world. It was a scenery painting. It had everything in it. Also...the painting was alive!

The painting could change its scenery however its master desired. It could also absorb someone into the painting and trap them in there like a vessel.

Out of all the Spiritual Treasures, Cheng Yi was most impressed by The Land of Mountains and Rivers Painting. Not because of any fancy reasons. It was just because the painting could save the Empress and the Jade Emperor!

The Land of Mountains and Rivers Painting was also a seal that could trap people in it. If she placed the Empress and the Jade Emperor inside the painting, then brought it out, she could save the Empress and the Jade Emperor from being trapped, right?

The possibility of that...was high!

She dreamt of that scenario countless times all those years. She knew that it was nearly impossible to get The Land of Mountains and Rivers Painting after the catastrophe. However...she did not expect that the painting would appear in front of her in the most incredible way without any warning. It was unreal.

She had to look at Li Nianfan. Thoughts were running in her mind. She did not know how to describe how she felt at all. She was irrecoverably impressed by the expert.

'Truly the expert. He did it so easily for something that was impossible for me. He succeeds at everything without trying hard. The Land of Mountains and Rivers Painting automatically appeared in front of him.'

"This is a hodgepodge of landscape paintings." Li Nianfan finally opened the whole scroll. He looked at it for a while and gave his review. "Good painting!"

He curiously looked at Ziye and Cheng Yi. He asked, "This painting's incredible. It has a lot going on. I wonder who painted it?"

The painting was an Ultimate Heavenly Spiritual Treasure. It recorded everything from the prehistoric world. It was born with the realm. It could not have been painted by someone.

Her mind was running fast. She quickly thought of how to answer that question.

Cheng Yi forced a smile and replied, "Don't know. We just...think that it's a good painting so we kept it."

"I see." Li Nianfan nodded understandingly. He groaned for a moment and said, "No wonder. The painting dried out for too long. There are already a lot of damages. It makes me want to paint. I wonder if I could fix it?"

It was pretty easy to understand what that meant. Everyone jolted.

'The Land of Mountains and Rivers Painting was damaged. Is Mr. Li going to perfect it with a brush?'

'Can he do that?'

"Of course, y—you...can," Cheng Yi stuttered. She could not be blamed. Even the Empress would fumble in front of such an expert. It was hard to maintain calm even if she was mentally prepared. The expert constantly turned her worldview upside down. It was hard not to be shocked by that!

There was nothing he could not do that they could think of.

She hurriedly said, "Seventh Sister, hurry up and prepare the brushes and inks for Mr. Li to paint."

"No need for all that trouble. I brought my own brush and ink. Daji, help me grind the ink."

"Yes."

Then, Li Nianfan placed the scroll on a long table. He held his brush and started to inspect the painting.

He did not rush to paint because it was not his painting. He was just going to retouch the original painting. He had to think like the original artist. Otherwise, the painting would end up mismatched and sloppy.

The others did not dare to breathe. They felt like they were witnessing a miraculous moment. Everything and everyone, including Saints, would not dream of that miraculous moment!

Li Nianfan smirked while they stared. Then, he started to paint...

Some of the mountains were blurry, Li Nianfan sketched its sides with ink. There was a missing spot at the lake, so Li Nianfan painted a swimming fish in it. His brushstrokes were gentle as if it was dancing on the painting scroll. It was a sight to behold.

Li Nianfan retouched the painting. Everyone noticed that The Land of Mountains and Rivers Painting started to change. The initial still painting seemed to be alive and flowing.

A mysterious aura was emitted from The Land of Mountains and Rivers Painting. They felt as if they were in a mountain forest where the mountain was high and steep, and the sky had a sun and a moon at the same time. Then, they felt as if they were immersed in the river, waves splashing over them as fishes swam freely. Then, they imagined a starry night, feeling the vastness of the universe...

The vast universe, the mountains, the rivers, the lands, the light, the sun, the moon, the stars, the flowers, the grass, the trees, the animals, and all the living beings birthed in the realm. Everything was in place. It was as if the painting was a real land of mountains and rivers.

Everyone stared at the ever-changing painting without blinking. They almost lost themselves in it.

"Done!" Suddenly, Li Nianfan finished painting. Everyone snapped out of it.

They looked at the painting scroll again. The mysterious feeling had vanished. However, the painting was way better than before. They were not sure if they imagined it but they felt like the painting looked newer, too.

'He did it. The expert painted the Ultimate Heavenly Treasure!'

'Terrifying, horrifying!'

Li Nianfan satisfyingly looked at his work. He smiled and asked, "How is it?"

Cheng Yi gulped. She replied, "Mr. Li, your painting skills are truly beyond. This is too beautiful, too majestic. Cheng's impressed from the bottom of her heart."

Li Nianfan laughed. 'Look, my talents impressed the Second Princess.'

He immediately said with humbleness, "Hey, it's just some tricks. I'm not trying to brag or anything, but even though I don't know how to cultivate, I still know a lot of odd tricks."

'Of course, we know you're not trying to brag. Not only were you not bragging, you were overly humble.'

'You call that odd tricks?'

'You call that not knowing how to cultivate?'

'Can you please stop attacking us? Let us be useless losers in peace.'

1

Li Nianfan put the painting scroll aside. Then, he gave it to Cheng Yi. "Here."

"Thank... Thanks." Cheng Yi did not reject it. She took the painting scroll and bowed at Li Nianfan.

She gripped The Land of Mountains and Rivers Painting in her hand. It felt unreal.

The Land of Mountains and Rivers Painting was too important to her. It was so important that it was unreal to her.

The painting might help the Empress and the Jade Emperor. She would also be able to leave the Heavenly Palace!

They got the painting, opened the painting, and repaired the painting because of the expert!

If it was not for the expert, they would have been desperately helpless in whichever of those three steps. However, the expert easily solved them.

Cheng Yi looked at Li Nianfan. He had a casual facial expression. She suddenly teared up and almost cried.

'The expert might not mind it but I have to remember this!' She could not repay his generosity. If it was not for the taboo of the expert, she would have knelt and thanked him without hesitation.

Cheng Yi wanted to do more for the expert, as long as the expert was happy. She said with respect, "Mr... Mr. Li, let me take you elsewhere to visit."

"Thanks, Lady Cheng." Li Nianfan smiled and nodded. He groaned for a moment and asked curiously, "Oh, yeah, where's the famous Flat Peach Garden? Can you bring us there?"

Cheng Yi immediately smiled and said, "Of course. Please, follow me, Mr. Li."

The Flat Peach Garden was behind the palaces. It was huge and fenced with jade-like snow. There were refined windows on the walls. The only entrance was a wonderful red door.

A sign was hung on top of the door. Three golden words were on the sign—'Flat Peach Garden'.

Creak.

Cheng Yi pushed the door open and entered.

Li Nianfan looked over and was baffled. There was nothing in the garden, only an empty land. Even the grass and flowers were gone. A few Goddesses had baskets in their hands. They were graceful and they were laughing but they were also turned into stone statues.

Cheng Yi said, "After the catastrophe, all Spiritual Plants were wiped out. I heard from the Empress that it was hard to raise Immortals in the Absolute Era. It was even harder to raise Spiritual Plants. Hence why they were wiped out."

"Sigh, too bad. This is the legendary Flat Peach!" Li Nianfan looked like he was in pain for a moment. He sighed, "How can it be gone just like that? I want to eat one! I also want to become an Immortal!"

Everyone had to glance at him. No one spoke because they did not know how to reply.

'Sorry, we can't go along with this performance of yours.'

'What are you acting pitiful for?!'

'Tell me what's in your backyard again?'

Chapter 384: The Expert's Hint, Missed Opportunity

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Li Nianfan looked at the empty Flat Peach Garden and then he looked at Ziye and Cheng Yi. He suddenly had an idea. He asked without thinking, "Did that monkey steal peaches here?"

1

Cheng Yi was stumped at first. Then, she smiled and nodded. "Yeah."

Li Nianfan continued to ask, "He targeted you all?"

Ziye scrunched her nose in response. "Hmph, that monkey's too naughty. We were freshly transformed back then. Otherwise, how could we be easily defeated by him?"

Li Nianfan asked what everyone was thinking about, "Did he do anything else once he targeted you all?"

"Anything else?" Cheng Yi thought about it. She shook her head and replied, "What's more important than eating the Flat Peaches?"

Ziye also shook her head. "Nothing else, I assume."

Li Nianfan did not change his facial expression. He nodded understandingly. "True, nothing's more important than eating peaches."

"Brother, brother."

Suddenly, Dragin tugged on Li Nianfan. She looked up at Li Nianfan and said coyly, "I know how to revive the stone statues!"

Ziye and Cheng Yi jolted. They asked excitedly, "What is it?"

Dragin and Nanan raised their hands at the same time. They made a fuss and said, "Be a being of light!"

Smack!

Li Nianfan felt embarrassed. He smacked Dragin and Nanan on their heads. "Shut up, little brats. What nonsense, read the room."

He hurriedly chuckled awkwardly. He apologized to Ziye and Cheng Yi, "Lady Cheng, Lady Zi, sorry about that. These two have been watching too much television. They don't know what they're talking about."

He decided to make Nanan and Dragin watch less television when they get back. They were becoming foolish from that.

Nanan and Dragin rubbed on their heads and pouted. They mumbled, "It's true though. As long as we believe, we can become a being of light, too."

Li Nianfan smiled coldly. "Ha, I believe that there will be no more television to watch when you go back!"

Cheng Yi looked serious. She asked excitedly, "That... Mr. Li, what's the meaning of 'become a being of light'?"

'Can this situation be joked about?'

Li Nianfan truly did not know how to explain. He could only reply, "Cough, it's nothing. Don't mind it, Lady Cheng. Um... It's getting late, we should go back now."

Cheng Yi and Ziye looked disappointed. However, they noticed that the expert did not want to tell them more, so they did not dare to question it. They said, "It's late. How about my Seventh Sister and I prepare a palace for you? Stay the night, Mr. Li."

Li Nianfan shook his head and saluted, "No thanks. I won't be disturbing you all. Farewell."

"Safe journey, Mr. Li. Come again next time."

...

Cheng Yi and Ziye watched Li Nianfan leave. They could not calm down.

Especially Cheng Yi. She was holding on to The Land of Mountains and Rivers Painting tightly. Her voice was shaky as she said excitedly, "Seventh Sister, wait for me here. I'll go and try to see if I can bring the Jade Emperor and the Empress back."

She instantly leaped and was gone with the wind.

Somewhere in outer space.

Cheng Yi quickly walked in with ripples following behind her.

Tap tap!

She could not maintain her gracefulness anymore. She breathed fast and walked quickly.

The Empress and the Jade Emperor were in a good mood that day.

They did not fight either. They walked together like a lovely couple.

The Empress scolded, "Cheng, why the rush? Didn't I tell you that you have to be mindful of who you are? You have to be poised and graceful. What's the use of rushing?"

"You're right, Empress."

Cheng Yi nodded. Then, she could not wait to ask, "Empress, if I have The Land of Mountains and Rivers Painting. Am I able to get you out of here?"

"The Land of Mountains and Rivers Painting?"

The Empress was stumped at first. Then, she said, "That painting is the essence of how the prehistoric world looked like. If we do have the painting, it would help us escape. However...the realm's broken and I'm afraid this painting no longer exists."

The Jade Emperor also nodded. He said, "Yeah, Cheng. I know you're always trying to help us escape, just like your Seventh Sister. You were always hopeful, too, but...it's too hard. This is beyond all of us, so stop trying and let it be."

The Jade Emperor and the Empress were greater cultivators than the Seventh Princess. Hence, they knew how serious the catastrophe was. They could see it, they could feel the despair and fear. Sometimes, giving up was a relief. It would be nice if they kept giving up.

He paused. Then, he added, "Remember to bring more of those chives next time. The Empress and I are stuck here. It's nice that we finally have something we like to eat."

Cheng Yi took out the painting scroll in her hand and said, "But... I think I have The Land of Mountains and Rivers Painting in my hand."

The Empress and the Jade Emperor ridiculed her and shook their heads at the same time. "Impossible. You thought wrong."

'No wonder the girl was in such a rush just now, she recognized the wrong treasure. The Land of Mountains and Rivers Painting is too eldritch. Even if it still exists, how could it possibly end up in your hands?'

However, they watched Cheng Yi open the painting scroll slowly. They were bewildered at the same time. Their facial expressions and their gazes froze in place.

"Let me see, let me see!"

They rushed to take the painting scroll. They did not dare to caress the painting as they inspected it without blinking.

They felt the pulse of the painting scroll and that overflowing mysterious aura. The Jade Emperor and the Empress felt their hearts race. The Empress said with a shivering voice, "The Land of Mountains and Rivers Painting! It's The Land of Mountains and Rivers Painting!"

They were stuck at the same place every day. They looked at the same view for years. It would be a lie to say they did not wish to leave.

The appearance of The Land of Mountains and Rivers Painting was way too valuable to them. It was their ticket for survival!

The Empress looked at Cheng Yi with disbelief. She asked in shock, "Cheng, honestly, where...did you get this painting?"

Cheng Yi smiled and replied, "I got it from the expert."

"No wonder... The expert gave it to you," nodded the Jade Emperor. Then, he asked in disbelief, "He was willing to give this treasure to you?"

Cheng Yi pursed her lips. She said weakly, "Actually... The painting's just a normal painting in the eyes of the expert, and it was already damaged. It lost its power. The expert retouched it by painting on it and fixed the painting."

"What?!"

The Jade Emperor and the Empress almost jumped. They had their jaws on the floor as they gasped.

"This is just a normal painting to the expert?"

"The expert painted on The Land of Mountains and Rivers Painting?"

They stood in place. They were baffled.

They felt like their minds were buzzing and they had entered a whole new world.

'So... He can do that.'

"An expert, an ultimate expert!" The Jade Emperor widened his eyes in extreme shock. He was surprised, respectful, and nervous all at the same time. He said in a trembling voice, "I can confirm it. He can do such an incredible task, he must be someone on the same level as Pangu!"

The Empress asked, "Did you give the Flat Peach seed and the Yellow Plum seed to the expert?"

Cheng Yi nodded. "I did. I heard from Seventh Sister that the expert seems to be pleased."

The Empress instantly smiled. "Great, the expert must have felt our sincerity so he was willing to give us The Land of Mountains and Rivers Painting. He's helping us to escape."

"It must be. It most probably is."

The Jade Emperor nodded in agreement and said with sentimentality, "The expert played around in the realm for joy. He was willing to help us all because he was in a good mood. It's greatly beneficial to us! You have to know, I was just a kid sitting next to the Buddha back then. To put it nicely, the pawns close to the expert are more valuable than me, the Jade Emperor!"

The Jade Emperor and the Empress looked at each other. They looked excited and anxious. They knew how great it was to be close to the bigshot. They could not calm down.

'That's the bigshot who surpassed the Buddha, and as powerful as Lord Pangu!'

"You and Zi did a nice job for befriending such a bigshot. Nicely done!"

The Empress took a deep breath. Then, she said with seriousness, "What else did the expert tell you? Tell us everything in detail so we can provide better services for the expert!"

Cheng Yi immediately started the story. "So, the expert suddenly wanted to visit today, so he followed Seventh Sister to the Heavenly Palace..."

The Jade Emperor and the Empress had their ears up. They listened attentively. They did not dare to miss a word.

When they heard about the automatic reboot of the Heavenly Palace to welcome the expert, they were not surprised. They nodded. 'Seems like the Heavenly Palace isn't stupid, quite observant.'

However, when they heard about how the expert complimented the Heavenly Palace, the Jade Emperor suddenly frowned. He sighed and said, "Cheng, you didn't handle this properly."

Cheng Yi jolted. "What is it?"

The Jade Emperor said, "The expert likes to travel around the three realms, so you have to give the expert a palace. You also should've given him the most majestic one with the best location. You failed to give it to him... Sigh."

Cheng Yi said with regret, "I wanted to but I was rejected by the expert."

"You still didn't understand what the expert meant by that!"

The Jade Emperor shook his head. Then, he said, "How did the expert reject you? He said he wasn't worthy. That meant he wasn't an Immortal yet. Was the hint not obvious enough? We have to give him a title before we can give him a palace!"

The Empress was intrigued. "Do you mean we have to give the expert a job?"

"Careful of your words, careful of your words! What were you thinking? How can I be the Jade Emperor if the expert works here? Are you trying to kill me?!"

The Jade Emperor went pale in an instant. He hurriedly said, "We can't give him a job. Since the expert's a Deluxe Merit Saint, we can give him the official title of the Deluxe Merit Saint. Once we give him a respectable title, we could've given him a worthy palace, right?"

Chapter 385: Real Spy Operation, Start

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

The Empress nodded in agreement. "Truly the Jade Emperor. You're detail-minded and have great ideas. You're right."

"Sigh, why didn't I think of it at that time? The expert must be so disappointed in me."

Cheng Yi frowned. She wished she could turn back time. She missed that opportunity. What a waste, what a shame!

1

"It's still fixable. Wait for future opportunities to give the expert a palace," said the Jade Emperor. Then, he asked, "What next?"

"Then, we brought the expert to the Seventh Princess Palace. The expert painted The Land of Mountains and Rivers Painting. Then, we visited the Flat Peach Garden..."

Cheng Yi seemed to recall something. She suddenly went serious. Even her voice changed. She said with uncertainty, "I think I heard the solution to remove the seal."

"What?"

The Empress and the Jade Emperor suddenly stared at Cheng Yi. "Are you sure?"

Cheng Yi shook her head. "I'm not sure."

She paused and continued, "The solution wasn't said by the expert. A kid next to the expert simply said it, but they seemed to be fooling around. They were also scolded and punished by the expert."

The Jade Emperor was intrigued. "You heard something?"

"I think it's something like...becoming a being of light?" Cheng Yi frowned. She could not figure out what it meant.

"Become a being of light..."

The Jade Emperor and the Empress fell into deep thought. They could not figure it out either. However, their facial expressions gradually became serious.

They looked at each other and took a deep breath. They said, "Cheng, it might be the solution!"

The Empress said softly, "Anyone who stayed with the expert would know a lot of things under his influence. The casual words of that kid must be because they noticed something from the expert. Too bad the expert won't allow them to speak more of it."

The Jade Emperor nodded and said, "The Empress and I were also servants for the Buddha back in the days. Although we just served tea, we still had a greater advantage than any genius who worked a hundred times harder than us. They couldn't compare to us!"

Then, he warned, "Remember, don't offend the expert in any way. The same goes for those around the expert!"

"Of course, I know that."

Cheng Yi nodded. Then, she asked, "What should we do, then? How about we start from the two kids, ask them for the specific meaning?"

"No! Scrap that idea right now!"

The Jade Emperor hurriedly stopped her. He said nervously, "If you do that, where's your respect toward the expert? The expert's plan is the most important thing. You being so calculative will displease the expert."

Cheng Yi immediately realized. She hurriedly said, "You're right, Emperor."

The Empress waved it off. She said, "Forget it. We shall pick a nice day to visit him ourselves. We should check out the Heavenly Palace first."

The Jade Emperor immediately said with excitement, "Haha, you're right, Empress. Let's hurry up and leave this lousy place. I can't wait."

...

It was late at night when they returned from the Heavenly Palace to the four-part architecture.

Li Nianfan yawned and said goodbye to everyone. Then, he went back to his room to sleep.

After half an hour, Daji and the Fire Phoenix slowly crept out of their room. They ensured they would not disturb him so they looked at each other and started walking outside.

Daji waved and summoned a little fox from the woods. She hugged the little fox.

Then, the little fox gently looked up and said quietly, "I already gave the orders. The operation starts now."

The name of the operation was... Real Spy Operation!

It was an easy and direct operation.

The operation involved a spy in the mix. Then, it would gradually convert and take in a second spy, and then a third...

Once they had a spy of every species, they could easily overpower them.

The little fox nudged her head at Daji. She changed into a comfortable position in Daji's embrace. She asked with enjoyment, "Sister, where are we going?"

Daji petted the little fox. She smiled and said, "On the way to becoming the Demon King."

The little fox relaxed and moved her ears. She immediately said with admiration, "Wow, sister's so awesome."

Daji lifted her by the tail. She had to frown and ask, "Alright, stop acting cute. Why haven't you been immortalized?"

"Immortalization's so dangerous. I heard that eight out of ten people die from the lightning tribulation when they're immortalized. I think it's quite nice to be a fox, I don't think I'll immortalize." The little fox was kind of scared. She did not dare to look at Daji.

"That won't do."

Daji frowned harder. "I'm here, so you'll successfully immortalize. Also, we have the Master. Even the tribulations will lessen for you."

The little fox flinched. "Just in case. More importantly, I like being a fox."

Daji was annoyed. However, it was not the time to speak about that. She said, "I'll deal with you later!"

The Fire Phoenix at the side asked, "Just the two of us?"

Daji replied, "I also called Ao Cheng just in case. We'll meet up later."

1

The Fire Phoenix had to say, "It's a bit too safe."

"It's important. Our opponent's a Taiyi Golden Immortal after all. They must have a lot of tricks to defend their lives. We have to ensure safety and avoid mistakes."

They chatted on the way there. Daji and the Fire Phoenix stood on clouds and traveled toward the faraway horizon.

Meanwhile.

Two figures snuck out of the Dragon Palace. They peeked around and made sure no one was alarmed.

They were Ao Feng and Ao Shu.

"Elder Ao Shu, what kind of opportunity is it exactly? Stop playing riddles, I'm truly itching from curiosity," rushed Ao Feng. His eyes were sparkly with excitement.

Ao Shu smiled and said mysteriously, "Don't worry, Prince. Would I lie to you? That day, I was being hunted and I ran for my life. But, I also got lucky from the disaster. I passed by a secret border and found a great opportunity! I'm only willing to share it with you. You didn't tell anyone, right?"

Ao Feng immediately said, "Do I look that foolish to you? What opportunity is it? Tell me!"

Ao Shu reached into his pouch.

Out came an orange in his hand. "Take a look. What is this?"

"An orange, right?" Ao Feng looked closer and slowly realized it was extraordinary. He was about to reach for it to take it when Ao Shu hurriedly put the orange aside. "You saw, right? This orange is a Spiritual Fruit!"

"It's a Spiritual Fruit?!" Ao Feng was bewildered. He looked jealous. "Elder Ao Shu, did you find a Spiritual Plant that grows oranges like that?!"

Ao Shu nodded. "Ha, that's right."

Ao Feng widened his eyes. He was excited and also full of regret. He said with shame, "Elder Ao Shu, I'm truly sorry! That day, I left you behind. Now, you found an opportunity and the first thing you thought of is to share it with me. I'm ashamed!"

Ao Shu slightly teared up from that. He said with affection, "Prince, don't say that! You're the future of the Southern Sea Dragons. I'm willing to do it for you no matter what!"

Ao Feng was teary from being emotional. He was touched. He said, "Elder Ao Shu, don't say anything anymore. From now on, you're my foster father!"

"Alright, Feng. Let's not delay. Hurry up and come with me."

"Yeah, you're right, father. We can't let others get to it first!"

They immediately sped up and swam further.

After an hour, they arrived at a small island. Then, they slowly came out from the water.

"Father, are we there yet?" Ao Feng was flushed from excitement. It was as if he could already see the Spiritual Plant.

Ao Shu nodded, "Yeah, Feng. We're here."

"Then what are we waiting for? Spiritual Plant, here I come!"

Ao Feng yelled and burst out from the sea. He caused a huge splash. Then, he jolted and realized he was trapped in an ambush.

The four cultivators levitated in the air in a square. He landed right in the middle of the ambush. His smile instantly faded away.

Daji had the little fox in her arms. She looked cold. The Fire Phoenix smirked mockingly. Her long red hair flowed with the wind. Ao Cheng and Ao Yun were on standby, ready to attack.

Ao Feng was alarmed and he instantly yelled. He dived back into the sea, "Father, there's an ambush! Retreat!"

Kaboom!

However, when he dived back into the sea, the seawater exploded. A terrifying aura formed a tornado and burst into the sky. He was pushed out from the sea by a strong force as he groaned.

Then, Ao Shu teared up as he blocked his path to the sea. He said, "Feng, I'm sorry. Father disappointed you."

Ao Feng was mind blown. He could not understand what was going on. He yelled in disbelief, "Father! Why?!"

Ao Shu replied, "Feng, I'm doing what's good for you!"

"How can you say that? You're clearly trying to kill me!"

Ao Feng shook and transformed into a Black Dragon. He roared and turned around. He was ready to escape.

He knew what he had to do. He knew that it was impossible to win against them but he still had hope to escape.

"Did we say you could leave?"

The Fire Phoenix licked her red lips. She waved and the Immortal Trap Rope shot out like a snake. It went towards Ao Feng.

Ao Feng knew how powerful the Immortal Trap Rope was. He frantically turned around and spat out an emerald green dragon scale. The scale grew with the wind and turned into a Dragon Scale Shield. It shined and stopped the Immortal Trap Rope.

Just when he was about to sprint, a giant handprint landed on him like a mountain!

He heard Ao Shu say, "Feng, father suggests you quit."

Spurt!

Ao Feng did not take the hit. However, he was panicking and he was livid. He spat out blood from anger.

Ao Cheng and Ao Yun attacked at the same time. Huge waves surrounded Ao Feng and turned into a water ball in the blink of an eye, trapping Ao Feng inside it. He struggled but he could not escape.

Daji took out the Golden Gourd and cast a spell. Light instantly beamed on Ao Feng as it forcefully absorbed his spirit.

The Fire Phoenix took out an orange at the side and simply tossed it to Ao Shu. "Here, this is your reward."

Ao Shu immediately said, "Thanks, Goddess Fire Phoenix."

2

Ao Feng saw that from within the water ball. He glared hard. He could not believe what was happening in front of him at all. His voice was extremely agonized when he said, "Ao Shu, you sold me out for an orange?!"

"Feng, I did this for your own good. You'll understand why in the future."

"Nah! Aren't you ashamed? You animal! You're the embarrassment of the Southern Sea Dragons!"

Suddenly, two Kirins casually walked over and saw the scene. They stopped in their tracks and watched with shock.

One of the Kirins panicked. "Not good, Elder Kirin. Something isn't right! The opportunity you speak of has been taken by someone else."

"Don't panic. As long as you know what to do, we'll still have opportunities." Then, the Elder Kirin immediately attacked the Kirin without any warning.

1

Bam!

The Kirin was knocked over without any warning. It landed near Daji and the others.

Ao Cheng and the others smiled coldly. The tension was in the air.

The Kirin was horrified. It looked at the Elder Kirin in disbelief. "Elder Kirin, you...you..."

"I'm a spy!"

1

...

On that day.

A cloud flew in and landed gently at the bottom of the Fallen Immortal Mountain.

Then, four figures slowly appeared. It was the Jade Emperor and the others.

They hesitated for a long while and finally decided to visit the expert as a family.

Mainly because they needed to know how to break the seal. They could not take it anymore so they rushed here.

Ziye had to ask, "Empress, do you think the expert will tell us the solution?"

The Empress shook her head. "I don't know. Let's try as best as we can. Did you bring the items I told you to prepare?"

Ziye nodded. She smiled and said, "I did. It's a great idea, Empress, giving the Rainbow Garment as a gift."

The Rainbow Garment was made from clouds in the sky. Not just any ordinary clouds, it was made from clouds that were shined on by the first rainbow in thousands of years. Then, it was carefully weaved by Goddesses. Although it was not a Spiritual Treasure, it was still beautiful, luxurious, and regal. It was a sign of status to wear the beautiful garment. It could even accentuate gracefulness.

Girls could ignore their defense skills or whatever, but they could not ignore their beauty. Therefore... The Rainbow Garment was a legendary item that attracted girls. No one could resist it.

The Empress brought out the treasured Rainbow Garment without hesitation after knowing about Li Nianfan. On top of that, she took out four sets. One for Daji, one for the Fire Phoenix, one for Nanan, and one for Dragin!

"Ha, this is a reverse tactic. The expert wouldn't be impressed by whatever we give him, but we can please those around him. That's halfway to success." The Jade Emperor smiled. "I thought of that idea!"

3

"Wise idea, Emperor."

Chapter 386: Nice, What a Nice Idea

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

The four of them arrived at the four-part architecture while they chatted. They all tensed up and hurriedly composed themselves. They reminded themselves and adjusted their attitudes. They were cautious.

Ziye walked forward and knocked three times on the door with respect.

"Coming."

Li Nianfan could be heard. Then, with a 'creak', he peeked his head out from the door.

"Huh? Lady Zi, Lady Cheng?"

Li Nianfan looked weirdly at the visitors. Then, he said with shock, "Lady Cheng, you're able to leave the Heavenly Palace?"

He then looked at the man and the woman behind them and felt his heart thump. Their auras felt extraordinary so he guessed who they were.

They did not look old but their eyes were filled with stories and they had a regal vibe. They must be someone of high status. Ziye and Cheng Yi were like their servants.

Cheng Yi smiled and said, "Mr. Li, we got lucky. We were able to get out of the trap. This is the Jade Emperor and Empress."

'They really are the Jade Emperor and Empress!

'These two bigshots also escaped? And why are they here?

'Awesome. It's only been a few days and they managed to escape together.

'I have to be steady. The bigger the bigshot, the less humble I need to act. Otherwise, I will be looked down upon by the big shots. I'm the Deluxe Merit Saint, what am I afraid of?'

Li Nianfan widened his eyes. His mind was running fast. Then, he took a deep breath and said, "Rare guests, what rare guests. Greetings from Li Nianfan to the Jade Emperor and Empress. Please, come in."

"We'll be intruding then," saluted the Jade Emperor. Then, he said with seriousness, "Greetings from Hao Tian to the Deluxe Merit Saint."

Li Nianfan was startled. He immediately said, "Emperor, you're too courteous."

The Jade Emperor said, "Mr. Li, a Deluxe Merit Saint has never appeared before. You're approved by the realm. You're on the same level as I am."

Li Nianfan felt ashamed of himself. He said in embarrassment, "I just got lucky. I don't deserve it, and I didn't do anything to help the realm at all. I got all the Deluxe Merit out of nowhere. I was confused, too."

Li Nianfan was being honest. He wanted to say it was just because of his golden touch.

The Jade Emperor and the Empress went silent.

Before they arrived, Ziye and Cheng Yi reminded them thrice that the expert loved to play-pretend, and that it would hurt especially when he would say something significant so casually. Although they were warned, they still felt hurt when it happened.

1

'You already made the Human Sovereign, changed the realm, rebuilt the Underworld, and started to fix the Heavenly Palace. What do you mean you didn't do anything to help the realm?

'No one allows you to be this humble!

'You're confused about having Deluxe Merit?

'I want to be that kind of confused, too. Instead, I truly am freaking confused!'

2

The Emperor calmed his broken heart. He smiled and said, "Ha, no matter what, Mr. Li, you should be respected by everyone in the realm since you're the Deluxe Merit Saint."

"That's an over compliment," laughed Li Nianfan. He instantly felt more comfortable with the Jade Emperor.

'People with high status are truly different. They know how to socialize and be approachable. They're nice to get along with.'

He immediately showed them into the house. He shouted, "Xiao Bai, important guests are here. Hurry up, bring out the new milk tea and some fruit plates."

"Yes, my Master," said Xiao Bai.

Li Nianfan continued, "Sit. Come on, sit. My place is lousy compared to the Heavenly Palace. Please, forgive it."

"Ha, no, not at all," the Empress and the Jade Emperor waved it off at the same time. They slightly freaked out.

'You have a house full of Spiritual Treasures. Even the chairs under our butts are made from Spiritual Plants. My throne, the throne of the Jade Emperor, isn't even as luxurious as this. You're telling me this is lousy?

'How can the Heavenly Palace compare?! You must be joking.'

Soon, Xiao Bai came out with a tray of milk teas and fruits.

Compared to the wine and tea, the milk tea looked impure. It was too intense and it was not transparent. It had a bright color and seemed to be boiling hot.

Li Nianfan smiled and said, "This time, it's grape-flavored. It's a bit sour, I hope everyone can get used to it."

The Empress took the milk tea. It was warm. She smiled and said, "Mr. Li, Zi never stopped complimenting the delicious food here. We'll like it for sure."

Then, she looked at the straw in the cup. It was a thick straw. It looked great. She sucked on it.

The aroma of the milk tea instantly surprised her. A smooth sensation that she never felt before coated the tip of her tongue. The texture was velvety smooth as it flowed into her mouth. Every drop was delicious and intense in flavor. It played with her taste palette.

It was hard to imagine that something so delicious could exist in the realm. It was extremely delicious.

Then, she had to suck on the straw twice.

The second time, she sucked a little harder than the first. A solid item was suddenly sucked into her mouth. It was soft and slippery. It tasted sour and sweet.

She bit on it and realized it was a grape.

Not just any ordinary grape. It was a Spiritual Fruit!

The Empress jolted. She was pleasantly surprised like she hit the jackpot.

'Delicious. More importantly... Extremely valuable!'

If she placed this milk tea together with the Flat Peaches, the Empress had no doubt most people would choose the milk tea.

1

'Good tea, good grapes, good milk!'

Li Nianfan observed their facial expressions. He noticed that they were pleasantly surprised and instantly knew they liked it. He smiled and asked, "How's the taste?"

The Jade Emperor genuinely said, "Delicious. To be honest, I've been the Jade Emperor for countless years, but I've never eaten anything this delicious before. Mr. Li, you're truly talented!"

The Empress smiled and said, "If only we knew you earlier, Mr. Li. We could've asked for your expert advice before my Flat Peach Ceremony."

Li Nianfan was in a great mood. "Haha, as long as you like it. Don't just drink the milk tea, have some fruits. They're freshly plucked from my backyard, absolutely fresh."

The Jade Emperor and Empress nodded at the same time.

They felt kind of awkward looking at how he treated his guests.

Back when the Heavenly Palace was at its prime, they only treated important guests with ambrosia. Compared to the expert, they did poorly!

'Why am I the Lord of the Heavenly Palace? I should just spend my days here and eat free food. What a tough life I have!'

Everyone got along well. The Empress threw Ziye a look. Ziye instantly understood it and took out the Rainbow Garments. She said, "Mr. Li, this is a token of appreciation from the Heavenly Palace. Please, accept it."

Li Nianfan looked at the clothes. He was kind of surprised.

The four sets of garments were shining. Two were small, and two were large. The colors seemed to be changing with the light, like a rainbow in the sky. It felt soft and light. Anyone could tell the clothes were extraordinary and expensive.

Aesthetically, it looked extremely cool.

Expensive, beautiful, and high-end were not enough to describe those garments.

The first reaction of Li Nianfan was to reject it. He shook his head and said, "It's too rare and expensive, I can't take it."

Cheng Yi said, "Mr. Li, these are just clothes. They aren't even considered Spiritual Treasures, so they're not that rare. Also, they suit Lady Daji and the others very well. I bet they'll like it."

Li Nianfan raised his brow and looked at Daji and the others.

Daji looked at the Rainbow Garment calmly. Although she was calm, she kept staring at it. That meant something was up. The acting skills of the Fire Phoenix were not as good as Daji. Her eyes were filled with admiration. Nanan and Dragin were different. They astoundingly widened their eyes. Their mouths mouthed 'wow'. You could tell that they wanted to touch the garments.

'Women... So troublesome!'

"This..." Li Nianfan struggled. He could not accept any rewards without doing anything. It was easy to accept things but it felt wrong.

He had an idea. He asked probingly, "You're too courteous but may I ask if there's anything I need to do?"

The Empress sighed and replied, "Mr. Li, you're too smart. We did have something we wanted your help with."

"Mr. Li, Zi and Cheng previously heard about the solution to remove the seal from your kids..." the Jade Emperor gulped. He asked nervously, "May I know what the solution is?"

The Jade Emperor and the others did not dare to breathe. They avoided eye contact and did not dare to look at Li Nianfan. Seconds passed by like years. Their hair stood on ends as they waited for his reply.

They thought about it a lot and finally decided it was best to be straightforward.

"This..."

Li Nianfan looked like he realized something. Then, he felt troubled. He had to glare at Nanan and Dragin.

'These two immature brats! They spoke nonsense and now they've caused me trouble.'

The solution to remove the Heavenly Palace seal was naturally very important to the Jade Emperor and the Empress. No wonder they came to visit and even prepared expensive gifts.

'But the problem is... The 'solution' is nonsense!'

He forced himself to smile as he said, "To be honest, the kids were just talking nonsense, you can't take them seriously. I'm sorry to disappoint you."

Cheng Yi clenched her small fist. She anxiously looked at Li Nianfan and said, "Mr. Li, no matter what it is, we're willing to try it."

Sigh...

Li Nianfan had no choice. He groaned for a moment and said, "Actually, this solution... It... Nanan, you and Dragin did this. Tell them yourselves!"

It was too idiotic. He could not say it. He blamed it on Nanan and Dragin.

Nanan and Dragin could not wait. They instantly chimed in.

"Sister Cheng Yi, there's only one way to revive the stone statues, which is to become a being a light!"

"Yeah, as long as everyone believes in the Immortals, there will be light!"

"The world fell into darkness because a lot of people don't believe in Immortals anymore."

...

Li Nianfan painfully shut his eyes. He pretended he did not hear anything.

However, the Jade Emperor and the others were very serious. Their eyes widened as they breathed harder. Then, their faces were flushed from excitement.

They looked like they realized something, as if someone woke them up.

"I see, I see!"

The Jade Emperor kept nodding. He looked like he had learned something. He exclaimed in a trembling voice, "Nice, what a nice idea!"

Chapter 387: Preach, Household Tale

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

'Nice?

'Nice how?'

Li Nianfan thought he heard it wrong.

He opened his eyes. He saw the Jade Emperor and the others standing from excitement. They all looked like they were hopeful.

'No way, do you really think there's nothing wrong with the solution? Are you serious?'

The Jade Emperor analyzed, "It's just like how the markings of the realm got wiped out when the Heavenly Palace ceased. If everyone knows the Heavenly Palace is still here and believes in the Heavenly Palace, we'll have Deluxe Merit from the Faith of the people. We can use it to break the seal!"

The Empress kept nodding. She said with understanding, "That's right, it's a great plan. Why didn't we think of it before?"

'Awesome. We got this!'

They were irrecoverably excited. 'The expert's truly the expert. This hard situation is just a small case to him, he easily found the solution. If it were us, we won't even know how long it'll take before we can think of that!'

Li Nianfan had to gently cough. He said, "Everyone, I think you should all calm down."

The Jade Emperor and the others instantly jolted. They hurriedly stopped smiling and adjusted their attitudes. 'How could we forget our composures in front of the expert? We shouldn't have done that!'

They hurriedly sat back down with caution. "Sorry about that."

Li Nianfan saw how excited they were, and they were convinced that it would work. He did not want to say anything that would hurt them, so he asked, "What do you all think about the solution?"

The Jade Emperor said, "It's spot on. It'll probably work!"

Li Nianfan nodded and asked, "What are you planning to do then?"

"Um..." The Jade Emperor was stumped. He looked confused. He had to look at the Empress and ask, "Empress, what do you think?"

The Empress slightly frowned and groaned. She said, "Since we need the people to believe in the Immortals of the Heavenly Palace, the most important thing would be to spread the news."

Soon, the four of them looked at each other. They were a bit clueless.

They knew the solution but when it came down to specifics, they did not know what to do.

'How?'

The Jade Emperor and the Empress fell into deep thought. They frowned. 'Are we going to give out flyers on the streets?'

1

Ziye at the side said, "It's kind of like preaching... The Buddhists would know what to do, maybe we should pay them a visit?"

Cheng Yi suggested at the side, "We can also ask for help from the Underworld."

At that moment, they realized that Humans were very important. The Humans were directly related to the Deluxe Merit they needed. They were truly the elites of the realm.

Li Nianfan noticed that they looked troubled. He hesitated for a moment and finally said, "If you're sure that you want to carry on with this solution, I might be able to help."

He did not know whether it would work. However, since everyone made up their minds to accept the solution, Li Nianfan felt like he had to help. After all, the Jade Emperor and the Empress were so courteous. He should do something for them, too.

"You have methods, Mr. Li?" The Jade Emperor was overjoyed. He hurriedly saluted and said, "Please, teach me, Mr. Li."

Li Nianfan smiled and said, "It's not that deep, but I'm an ordinary man after all. I'm more familiar with ordinary people."

Everyone nodded in agreement. If the bigshot said he was an ordinary man, then an ordinary man he was.

Li Nianfan structured his sentence and said, "Um... If you want to let the people know about the Heavenly Palace, let the people be familiar with it. The best way to do so is through stories. Stories will be passed on. It's best to create a household tale."

"Household tale?"

Ziye had a thought. She asked without thinking, "Mr. Li, do you mean like 'Journey to the West' kind of story?"

"You could say that," nodded Li Nianfan.

Cheng Yi asked curiously, "But... 'Journey to the West' is already well-known. Why aren't there any signs of the Heavenly Palace's revival?"

"I think it might be because of the characters. 'Journey to the West' simplifies the Heavenly Palace in the story. The main focus is on Wukong. It's not quite powerful enough." Li Nianfan put it nicely. Truthfully, the 'Journey to the West' TV series also focused on Wukong.

"Hmph, if it wasn't for the orders from the Buddha, I wouldn't have backed down and gone along with it!" The Jade Emperor and the Empress did not look happy at all. Their Flat Peach Ceremony was ruined and it was a huge embarrassment for the Heavenly Palace.

Li Nianfan instantly looked curious. He asked casually, "Can you tell me the details?"

"Back then, the Buddha was fighting with Luohou. Luohou ruined the Western areas, which caused the Westside to be poor. The people didn't have faith. Jie Yin and Zhun Ti made up their minds to help the people in the West to have faith again. Therefore, they gained Deluxe Merit and were able to become Saints."

The Jade Emperor reminisced. He continued, "It could be said that the Deluxe Merit was borrowed from the realm. The two Western Saints wanted to fulfill their wishes as soon as possible, so they did anything they could. Their methods were too extreme, but the people were indeed poor, so the Buddha naturally helped them. During the investitures of the Gods, the Heavenly Palace gained the most benefits. The Western religion did not benefit as much as we did. During the journey to the West, the West got to improve and grow speedily!"

Li Nianfan nodded. He knew about the legendary stories but he did not know the context. He learned something new.

The Empress smiled and said, "It's a shame that the West was destroyed by Luohou in the end. That is how it goes. There's no smoke without fire. I can only say that karma has its own ways."

1

"I see."

Li Nianfan nodded. He paused, then said, "I think that if we want the people to believe in the Heavenly Palace, the important focus shouldn't be on the Heavenly Palace. It should be on the characters instead!"

"Characters?"

The Jade Emperor and the others looked confused. They felt like they could learn something new with each moment around the expert. They asked, "Why so?"

Li Nianfan smiled and replied, "People only recognize one thing. The fastest way for people to recognize something is through characters. You can list out the characters in the Heavenly Palace and choose the ones that can best represent the Heavenly Palace. It's better if they went through struggles, and it's even better if they have a tragic backstory. Then, make it a household tale. People will have a deep impression on the Heavenly Palace by then."

"Choose representative characters of the Heavenly Palace?" The Jade Emperor immediately went serious. He asked, "Mr. Li, what do you think about me and the Empress? We served the Buddha for countless years and we slew a lot of evil Demons. We're the Jade Emperor and Empress of the Heavenly Palace. I would say that leaves quite an impression."

"Obviously not."

Li Nianfan shook his head without hesitation. "You two did leave an alright impression. But that's not the point. There's no emotional backstory, no tear-jerking incidents. The character development's poor, it won't leave an impression on the people. It'll be doomed to fail."

1

The Jade Emperor and the others struggled to think of anyone.

Li Nianfan decided to give them some hints. He said, "You can think of more examples around you, especially the ones with a romantic story."

The Jade Emperor and the others started to recall their memories. Some incidents were similar to legendary stories. Li Nianfan had not heard of them, but they were not a big deal. Li Nianfan also realized that the Seventh Princess, Ziye, had not met Dong Yong yet. She had not experienced The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl love story.

Maybe it had not happened yet, or maybe there was a mix-up with reality and the legendary stories, but it was none of his business.

Suddenly, the Empress had an idea. She said, "Jade Emperor, do you remember your sister and..."

"This... Really? It's a shame in our family." The Jade Emperor looked troubled. He looked at Li Nianfan and said, "Back then, my sister, Yao Ji, married an ordinary man and gave birth to a son and a daughter. Their names are Yang Jian and Yang Chan. Years later, Yang Chan also married an ordinary man and gave birth to a son."

The Jade Emperor sighed heavily. It was hard for him!

His sister and his niece both liked ordinary men. Their tastes in men were troubling. He did not see it coming.

"What about you guys? Didn't you stop them?" Li Nianfan cared more for that question.

"Of course, we did. We also fought. They don't see that I'm just looking out for them."

The Jade Emperor sighed. Then, he said, "I understand the mind of an Immortal. Back then, the Buddha created marriage that was all about Yin and Yang, all about harmony. It's just the way it is. How can an Immortal and an ordinary person last forever? They don't have the same bodies! Years will pass by in the blink of an eye. You haven't even enjoyed it yet and that part will already be old and useless."

1

Li Nianfan processed that phrase and felt like the Jade Emperor made a dirty joke.

His point of view was quite fascinating.

Li Nianfan felt like an Immortal should not be with an ordinary person because one would grow old and die. Their ages were not compatible. However, the Jade Emperor had a different angle, he considered 'that' part of compatibility.

'What did he experience to have such a unique state of mind?'

However, Li Nianfan confirmed that there were mix-ups in legendary stories and reality. The Jade Emperor was not as extreme in opposing their love as how the legendary stories described. Nothing bad happened to his sister. Every problem she faced was reasonable.

The Jade Emperor was a Lord, and he was the student of the Buddha. His sister fell in love with an ordinary man, so he had to oppose it. However, he was not as violent as described. No idiot would attack his sister either.

"This is a nice setting. There's an ordinary man in the story so it's relatable. But it still won't work, there aren't enough obstacles."

Li Nianfan started to help them fill in the story. "You should oppose their love strongly, send someone to hunt him down. Then, banish your sister or your niece to the ends of the world. Let them go through struggles..."

Li Nianfan told the story while everyone went serious because he was talking about them. They could fully immerse themselves in the stories, it was fascinating.

A Goddess and an ordinary man fell in love because of a coincidental meeting. Their love was opposed. In the end, they had a happy ending. Li Nianfan finished the story without thinking about it.

By the end of the story, Cheng Yi and Ziye had tears streaming down their faces. Their shoulders slightly trembled from the sobbing. Their romantic teenage girl hearts were enslaved by the tragic love story.

1

Nanan and Dragin were also touched. They said with sympathy, "I feel like this love story's more touching than Sister Yiyi and Jiese's love story."

Li Nianfan analyzed, "Because this story has three parts. The happiness when they were in love, the pain when they were separated, and the hard work they did to get back that happiness. Plus, the emotional incidents along the story make people feel something."

The Jade Emperor snapped out from the story. He started to question his life. "I can't believe I'm such an animal."

1

Li Nianfan said awkwardly, "It's necessary to add in some opposing elements in the story. If you feel like it's inappropriate, we can change it, Jade Emperor."

The Jade Emperor said, "No need. It's indeed a good story. It's also your hard work, Mr. Li. We can't waste it."

Li Nianfan added, "Apart from that, we need to have positive stories, too. Like how the Jade Emperor saved the people from Demons, or how he supervised the realm and made sure everything was alright..."

Everyone listened closely with a serious face. They were fearful with respect. They felt like they could fully immerse themselves in his stories. They did not grow impatient at all. Subconsciously, they also learned a lot.

They chatted. The sky turned dark before they realized it.

Li Nianfan ate an orange that Daji passed to him. Then, he smiled and said, "There's something more important than the story!"

The Jade Emperor naturally saluted and said with respect, "Please, teach me, Mr. Li."

That was the eighth time he did that.

The honorable Jade Emperor was like a repetitive machine.

"Stories exist in people's hearts but they aren't convincing enough. The best deal is for them to see it!"

Li Nianfan held his chin and groaned for a moment. "That requires a live performance. We need a script and proper actors. The location should be suitable, too. Goddess Gu Xirou invited me to an end-of-the-year cultivators event last time. Maybe you should use that as a reference."

Ziye was instantly intrigued. "Can we use the end-of-the-year event?"

Li Nianfan shook his head. "It's a cultivators' event. How many ordinary people will be there? It won't be powerful enough."

"We can invite more Humans!" said the Empress. She chimed in, "We can change the event into an ordinary end-of-the-year event. What do you think, Mr. Li?"

"That...could work!"

Li Nianfan nodded. He was suddenly looking forward to the event. It would probably be nice and crowded.

He had to suggest, "We have an audience. As for the performance script... How about I write it for you?"

Chapter 388: End-of-the-Year Event Discussion, Borrow Us Your Spear

1

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

The Jade Emperor and the others immediately said, "Thank you so much."

Li Nianfan smiled. He had too many legendary stories in his mind, any one of them could be turned into a script. However, he had very few stories that could be an impressionable performance.

"Your performance will be different from the usual performance. You have to bring out your acting skills." Li Nianfan paused. He said, "This story is The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl..."

He immediately told the story. As expected, everyone cried again.

Everyone had to present the story well.

Li Nianfan asked, "Oh, are there any objections on the 'hairpin transforming into the galaxy' part? Are we able to do that?"

The Empress was slightly stumped. She asked, "Objections? It's not hard. Why would we object to it? Is there anything we need to take notice of?"

'Alright, I see that being weak and puny limits my imagination.

'They can transform any galaxy at will.

'Immortals are awesome!'

Li Nianfan was super envious. He coughed softly, "No, I was just asking. Nevermind."

The Jade Emperor stood up and said, "Mr. Li, thanks for solving our problems. It's getting late, we won't disturb your rest anymore. Goodbye."

Li Nianfan also stood up. He smiled and saluted, "Safe travels."

He paused. He smiled and said, "Oh yeah, if the plan is confirmed, let me know. I can check out how the event will be prepared and decorated. I'll also participate."

Li Nianfan was not surprised that the Jade Emperor and Empress would easily decide to change the end-of-the-year event. Who in their right mind would oppose the two bigshots?

The Jade Emperor immediately said, "Don't worry, Mr. Li. We will, we will!"

They walked out of the four-part architecture. The Jade Emperor and the others naturally did not need to rest. They rushed to the Linxian Palace.

Soon, they were on top of the Linxian Palace.

The Linxian Palace at that moment was still bustling.

Music could be heard, too. A lot of disciples gathered at the field in unison. They had zithers in front of them. They worked hard to practice. The zither music was like a fresh summer breeze. It was very enjoyable.

Gu Xirou, Yao Mengji, and Qin Manyun supervised and directed them at the side. They all looked serious. They were responsible for choosing and eliminating the candidates. While they were giving directions and advice, they would also point out what was lacking.

Yao Mengji could be heard. He said with seriousness, "Be aware, this event has to be greater than a cultivator battle event! It's a great honor for you to be able to perform for a bigshot!"

"Work hard. Ensure that nothing goes wrong when you're on stage. Be attentive!" said Gu Xirou at the side. "This is a legendary tune given to us by the expert. This is his trust in us! We can't let it go to waste!"

Suddenly, Qin Manyun shouted, "Change the music!"

Jam, jam!

The disciples lifted their hands at the same time. They plucked the zither strings with their fingers and the music turned serious. Tension filled the air.

Ziye flew in from afar. She smiled and greeted, "Goddess Gu, it's so late and you're still rehearsing."

Gu Xirou, Yao Mengji, and Qin Manyun were startled at the same time. Then, they all flew to the air and welcomed her.

"Don't stop, continue with your practice. I want to see your effort!" Gu Xirou scolded. Then, she greeted Ziye, "Goddess Ziye, why are you here at this hour?"

She looked at the Jade Emperor and the others. She instantly felt overwhelmed. A terrifying aura came over her and she could not breathe. It was as if she was an ordinary person meeting the King. She instantly looked horrified.

Ziye smiled and said, "Don't panic, Goddess Gu. They're the Jade Emperor and Empress. This is my sister. They escaped because the expert helped."

Gu Xirou and the others panicked harder. They hurriedly bowed and said, "Greetings to the Emperor and the Empress!"

They were the Lords of the Heavenly Palace. They were in charge of all the Immortals, and they were bigshots who had a Flat Peach Garden. Although things were not like what it once was, it was still unimaginable for them.

If ordinary cultivators got on their good side, they would be instantly successful.

"No need to be so courteous," said the Empress gently. She gracefully glanced at the band. She said, "The music of this cultivation sect is so extraordinary. The tunes are so fresh."

Gu Xirou said, "Empress, the two songs, 'High Mountains and Flowing Rivers', and 'Ambush', were all given by the expert. We got lucky."

"I see. No wonder." The Jade Emperor and Empress nodded understandingly. They said, "It's your blessing to be given something by the expert. It's the expert's approval and your breakthrough."

"You're right, Empress. We're truly lucky."

Goddess Gu asked carefully, "Emperor, Empress, do you want to have a seat in our sect?"

The Jade Emperor nodded. "Sure. We have business to discuss, too."

1

Everyone sat in place. Gu Xirou looked agonized. She clenched her jaw and decided to bring out the most valuable treasure in the Linxian Palace.

It was...the limited fruits and tea given by the expert.

1

"Ha, we just got back from the expert's place. You don't have to do that, Goddess Gu." The Empress immediately laughed. Then, she asked, "I heard from Zi that you guys are planning the end-of-the-year event for the expert?"

Gu Xirou nodded, "Yes, Empress!"

The Empress said, "We just got some assignments from the expert. We plan to change the end-of-the-year event, so we came here to discuss it."

"Feel free to say so, Empress." Gu Xirou and the others instantly sat up straight. They did not dare object to anything that relates to the expert and the Jade Emperor.

Everyone immediately started to present and discuss their opinions. They all looked serious. The aura was very tense, too. It was very strict and serious, as if they were having a meeting about a realm-changing war.

1

Finally, the Empress concluded, "Firstly, the previous end-of-the-year event was too low class. Most performers were ordinary cultivators. It isn't enough, and we have to improve it. I'll be handling that. Secondly, the final performance will be a performance from the Heavenly Palace. The performance has to be well-planned. Thirdly, the location. The expert suggests we do it in the Immortal Realm."

"The location part was neglected on our side."

Yao Mengji sighed. He suddenly started to reflect. "The expert lives as an ordinary man. The end-of-the-year event originated from Humans, too. We should've held it in the Immortal Realm. It was truly a bad choice on our part!"

Gu Xirou asked, "Mengji, where do you think we should have the event?"

Yao Mengji replied, "Naturally somewhere with Immortals. I think we can choose somewhere near the Fallen Town, but not at the Fallen Immortal Mountain because that's the expert's peaceful home. We can't allow anything to go wrong there."

Ziye nodded and said, "It's a nice suggestion, and it shouldn't be hard for people like us to create a performance space near the Fallen Town. What do you think, Emperor?"

The Jade Emperor nodded and smiled, "Yes. And the expert said that he wanted to participate in the event decorations. Setting it nearby would be convenient for the expert."

"The expert wants to participate in the event decorations?" Gu Xirou was pleasantly surprised. She hurriedly said, "We have to prepare it well then! It'd be best if we can see some results by tomorrow!"

"So, we confirmed our initial planning. We shall see what the expert has to say in the future." The Empress smiled and said, "We won't be delaying you. We'll contact the others and create a variety of performances."

"Farewell, Emperor, Empress."

They left the Linxian Palace. The Jade Emperor and the others headed straight to the Eastern Sea.

"What? An end-of-the-year event for the expert?!"

Ao Cheng widened his eyes and jumped up from his throne. "Such a big event. Why didn't you tell me sooner? You have to count me in. My sea creatures are ordinary except when it comes to performing. We're born naturals."

"Tortoise Chancellor, Tortoise Chancellor!" Ao Cheng could not wait to start planning. "Spread my orders. Gather for an emergency sea meeting. Clam Demons, Mermaids, and Snake Demons should all be candidates for singing and dance performances!"

Ao Yun glared from the side. He had to sigh.

'My Western Sea Dragons are gone. Otherwise, I would've planned a good performance for the expert, too.'

Then, the Jade Emperor and the Empress visited the trusty Human Sovereign.

At that time, Zhou Yunwu and Meng Junliang were discussing the end-of-the-year event. They were choosing and eliminating various performances. At the same time, they were thinking of how to invite the expert to attend the event.

They suddenly received the news and immediately scrapped their initial plan. They passionately joined in.

...

That night was fated to be a non-peaceful night.

Big Lord Demon was kneeling somewhere facing a dark hole.

He had injuries all over. Even his face was slightly disfigured. He cried, "I don't mean to disturb you, Lord Demon God. However... Lord Demon's dead. The Kirins were boastful, they dared to attack us! The realm's changing, and the Demons are in danger. Please, give us some advice, Lord Demon God."

The Demons quietly waited for a response.

However... It was silent.

"The Lord Demon God's an expert sleeper. We called several times but there are no signs of him waking up."

Big Lord Demon sighed. He stood up and said, "Let's go. We failed again. The Lord Demon God's still in his slumber."

Suddenly, a Demon disciple rushed in. "Big Lord Demon, there are Asura people outside that came to visit."

Big Lord Demon raised his eyebrow. "Bring them to the lobby."

Soon, he arrived at the lobby. A lady in a red dress stood at the center. She smiled as she looked at Big Lord Demon. She said, "The Lord Demon's dead. Big Lord Demon is now the leader of the Demons. Congratulations."

Big Lord Demon looked defensive. He said coldly, "No need! You came from the Bloody Sea, what do you need?"

The lady in the red dress moved closer and wrapped her thin arms around Big Lord Demon. She said seductively, "Please, Big Lord Demon... Borrow us your spear!"

Chapter 389: Maybe You Misunderstood Performances

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Big Lord Demon backed up. He did not look happy at all. He alarmingly shook his head and said, "No way! This spear is the basis of the Demons. We won't lend it to others!"

The lady in red smiled and said, "Those were the words of Lord Demon. Lord Demon's dead now, so you get to decide who borrows it. Moreover... Borrowing us the spear is beneficial for both of us."

Big Lord Demon sounded determined, "I get to decide, and I still decide not to lend it to you!"

He furrowed his brow. He had to sigh because he could not make up his mind.

That was a moment that showed the importance of good leadership. Back then, no matter what the Asura kind had to say, Lord Demon would confidently reject them. Even if Lord Demon God was in deep slumber, Lord Demon would never allow the Asura kind to become powerful.

However...things had changed. More importantly, Lord Demon passed away too suddenly. He did not even leave his will. It was a troubling situation for Big Lord Demon.

"Big Lord Demon, the situation now is detrimental for you Demons!"

The lady in red chuckled. She said, "Demons are supposed to rise when Buddhism falls. You finally waited till the day came but now, you have all these unnecessary changes. All these failures, even your Lord Demon died for no reason. What else can you do next?"

The simple question left Big Lord Demon stumped.

The lady in red noticed that Big Lord Demon did not respond. She continued, "So... How about you borrow the God Killing Spear to us Asuras. Help us remove the seal of our Master. We can change things around. It'll be good for both of us."

Big Lord Demon hesitated. "What's in it for the Demons if we free your Master?"

"My Master's acquainted with your Lord Demon God. We'll help you out if you run into trouble. Also...the people that the Demons aren't able to attack, we're able to!"

The lady in red paused. Then, she said, "This is the best solution by far. You Demons have Lord Demon God. Are you seriously worried that the Asura kind will attack the Demons?"

Big Lord Demon felt conflicted. His mind was running in circles. In the end, he nodded and said, "Okay. You made quite some sense! But I need you to help us attack the Kirins!"

The Demons were weak at the moment. He had a grudge with the Kirins, too. He also had no other choice.

The lady in red naturally agreed. She asked, "Hehe, of course. Where's the spear?"

"This is an important matter. Follow me."

...

The next day.

The warm sun peeked its head out from the clouds and chased away the darkness. Light was brought to the realm.

It was early in the morning. Ziye visited Li Nianfan to invite him for the event preparations.

The end-of-the-year event was located at the Eastside. It was a huge space. When Li Nianfan arrived, the venue had been cleared up. The roads were clean and tidy. A lot of familiar faces had gathered there, too. They were rehearsing in an orderly manner.

They all hurriedly greeted Li Nianfan when they saw him.

Cheng Yi passed him a golden piece of paper with tidy words printed on it. "Mr. Li, we followed your suggestion. I've listed the performances here."

Li Nianfan looked at the performance list with curiosity. The others tensed up. They nervously observed his facial expression. They were afraid that the expert would not be impressed by the performances.

There were not many performances, just eight in total. However, Li Nianfan knew that there was a ninth performance, the final performance.

"The first performance... Pageant Performance of the Three Sea Beauties." Li Nianfan looked at Ao Cheng. He smiled and said, "Brother Ao, this is the performance you prepared, right?"

"You know us so well, Mr. Li. It is," Ao Cheng said in response. Then, he said, "I brought the performers. We can show it to you now, Mr. Li."

He gestured with a wave and twenty figures jogged over. They were all ladies of the sea and they looked extremely beautiful. They were chosen beauties of the sea, too. They looked very anxious because they knew they were being assessed by the bigshot.

Ao Cheng said with seriousness, "Put some effort into the performance."

The twenty sea ladies immediately went into formation and started to dance.

The three species of sea ladies had different styles. However, their bodies were extremely great. Their dances were light and seductive, plus they were wearing very little clothing. It was fantastic to look at. They were truly the three beauties of the sea.

He had to say that the dance formation was a killer performance. If it appeared in his past realm, the performance would have gone viral on the Internet for sure.

However... Li Nianfan frowned.

He did not speak. He waited until the dance performance was over. Then, he said, "Brother Ao Cheng, I think this performance of yours is slightly inappropriate."

Ao Cheng instantly focused. He hurriedly asked, "Mr. Li, are there any dissatisfactions? Or are you displeased with someone among the performers?"

"The performance is good, the performers are beautiful, too. It's just the setting that's unsuitable."

Li Nianfan paused. He said, "Your performance should be focused on showcasing the sea people. It's not supposed to please the crowd. I think you can change your performance into a Sea People Showcase. You have beauty, but you also need strength."

The performance was a public show. To put it more straightforwardly, it was vulgar. Li Nianfan felt like Ao Cheng misunderstood what a public performance was. It was eye-catching, but would the people like it?

Ao Cheng immediately promised, "Don't worry, Mr. Li. I'll improve it."

"The second performance, a zither performance. 'High Mountains and Flowing Water'.

"The third performance, Water and Fire Battle."

Then, Li Nianfan watched the performances according to the performance list. He gave some suggestions and advice from time to time.

Truthfully, the performances were flawless for the Immortal Realm that lacked entertainment, especially when the crowd was ordinary people. Each performance was fantastic. Unless it was a misdirected performance like Ao Cheng's, Li Nianfan had nothing much to comment on.

Suddenly, several figures flew in from the Fallen Town's direction. Black and White Impermanence led the way. They looked flustered.

"Mr. Li, Emperor, Empress."

Black and White Impermanence said straightforwardly, "Why didn't you guys tell us about the big end-of-the-year event? If we weren't informed by the Fallen Town's City God Temple, we would've missed this."

White Impermanence moved aside. He introduced, "Mr. Li, look at the ghosts behind me, what do you think? They can all sing and dance. We found out about the event and instantly picked them. Count us in on that performance list."

Li Nianfan looked at the pale-faced ghosts. He smiled awkwardly and said, "Brother White, ghosts and Humans don't go well together. This...is unsuitable. It really can't be helped."

The audience would be full of ordinary people. The ghosts were willing to perform for the ordinary people, but would the ordinary people dare to watch?

The thought of it was chilling.

"Mr. Li, don't reject us so quickly. The ghosts of the Underworld are very talented." Black Impermanence hurriedly tried to fix it. He pushed out a ghost and said, "Perform a beheading for Mr. Li."

The ghost immediately plucked his head off without a second word.

Li Nianfan was a knowledgeable man but he was frightened by that unexpected action.

Black Impermanence continued, "And this too, perform a tongue trick."

Another ghost stepped out and opened her mouth. A bloody tongue fell out and rolled to the floor.

Black Impermanence was proud of it. "How is it? These performances are fresh, right? It'll entertain the people for sure."

Li Nianfan shut his eyes. He did not dare to look.

'This is a performance event, not a horror movie theatre.'

The Jade Emperor noticed that Li Nianfan did not look well. He hurriedly gestured, "Drag them away, hurry up and drag them away! What is this?"

Black Impermanence still said, "If it's not acceptable, we can improve it. Please, give us a chance."

Li Nianfan said, "No more chances. I think you guys have misunderstood what a performance is more than Brother Ao Cheng did. It's not suitable, it's really not. This isn't for you."

He was worried that if he allowed the Underworld to participate, a bunch of audiences would pass away with terror.

Black and White Impermanence looked down. They sighed and felt like they could not help the expert. 'Perhaps we ghosts just don't have performing talents in us?'

Suddenly, Li Nianfan thought of something. He said, "Emperor, Empress, I suddenly thought of something. Even if the end-of-the-year event is grand, it would only attract the nearby Humans to come watch it, right?"

The Jade Emperor was helpless about that. "Indeed so."

Li Nianfan asked, "Then, can we use spells to set up a television in each area so that other people from other cities could watch it?"

"Television?" The Jade Emperor and Empress did not understand.

Li Nianfan explained, "Our performances here could be projected to other areas at the same time."

The Jade Emperor and Empress jumped. They instantly understood it. They immediately had new ideas, followed by a joyful feeling.

"We can! We can do that with our powers!" The Jade Emperor immediately smiled. Then, he laughed and exclaimed, "In that case, we could save time and effort. We can get a lot of people to believe in the Heavenly Palace in a short amount of time! Nice, this is too nice! My powers are capable of doing so, why didn't I think of it?"

They could achieve their desired effect in one night when it originally needed hundreds of years.

The original ten thousand audiences could instantly become millions of audiences.

The Empress was also excited. She hurriedly thanked the expert, "Mr. Li, your idea's too important for the Heavenly Palace. Thank you."

"You're welcome, Empress. It was just a thought."

Li Nianfan smiled and said, "I only thought of it because I saw Black and White Impermanence. A lot of places have City God Temples now. The effect of projecting the event through City God Temples must be fantastic. However, I'm afraid we'll have to trouble the Underworld."

Black and White Impermanence instantly turned their frowns upside down. They said, "No trouble at all. Don't worry, Mr. Li. We got this."

Chapter 390 The Situation, The Current Villains

A month passed by in the blink of an eye.

Li Nianfan lived leisurely. He was the director of the Heavenly Palace, the Sea kind, the Underworld, and the Humans. He was responsible for giving directions. Even in front of all the big shots, it was an easy job for someone with his talents. He would return to the four-part architecture at night to rest. He would go to the venue and direct in the daytime. He would chat with the Jade Emperor and the others while he was free. It was nice.

Li Nianfan also felt vain whenever the actors would listen to his directions attentively.

It was hard to imagine that he came this far without noticing it. He must be considered a big shot in the realm.

Li Nianfan discovered interesting stories of the legendary characters through the many chats. He also had a clearer picture of the situation.

In conclusion, it was a replacement of an era.

To quote Wukong, "The Jade Emperor title takes turns, it's my turn this year."

The realm was changing. Hidden forces or ambitious people had appeared. Some liked to live in peace. They wished everyone could be happy. Some liked to see the world burn so they could benefit from it.

The Jade Emperor, the Underworld, and the Dragons became 'species of the past' who wanted to bring back their glory days. The opposers were 'defenders of the new era' who wanted to change the realm.

In other words, once they eliminated the Jade Emperor and the others, they could rule the world.

Li Nianfan had to say, "The situation in the realm still can't differ from battles."

He unconsciously befriended all the 'past bigshots'. Hence, he already chose sides without considering it. However, he was not worried.

First of all, Li Nianfan felt like the Jade Emperor was trustworthy. Combining his knowledge of the legendary stories, no one was more powerful than the Jade Emperor apart from the Saints. The Empress was also the second most powerful being in the realm. They were students of the Buddha. As for Houtu Empress in the Underworld, she was also quite powerful.

Moreover, he was a Deluxe Merit Saint. His defense was great. He could just sit by and watch.

Everyone drank alcohol at the venue.

The news of the event was out. Immortals promised that it would be good and everyone was exhilarated. The Fallen Town was bustling. However, the event venue was still on lockdown so no one dared to trespass. They were all very excited.

The Jade Emperor nodded and agreed, "You're right, Mr. Li. Since the beginning of time, the realm was always filled with battles among various species or clans. That's how the catastrophe started."

Zhou Yunwu also said, "It's too hard to avoid war. It's almost impossible."

He was the Human Sovereign. He only experienced a fraction of the war from the prehistoric world. Even Humans fought internally. It could not be helped. Li Nianfan had already let it be. Wars and battles were a constant occurrence. He cared more about protecting himself. He asked, "Emperor, do you know any powerful beings that still exist in this realm?"

The Jade Emperor groaned for a moment. He shook his head and sighed softly, "I'm not sure. After the catastrophe, Dao Zu said that those who were stronger than Daluo Golden Immortals would not be in the Immortal Realm anymore. Then, everyone either hid or they were sealed. But now... The Absolute Era seems to be over. I've been sealed for so many years, I'm not sure who's still alive."

Li Nianfan frowned. It was a difficult situation. There could be a lot of Saints, and there should be a lot of Daluo Golden Immortals.

He could confirm the enemies. The Demons, the Southern Sea Dragons, and the Kirins. The three clans were hard to deal with.

The Demons were more troubling. Their main target the Demons. They also had Luohou as their powerful and terrifying boss.

The Southern Sea Dragons had something called the Dragon Soul Pearl. It seemed to be a legendary treasure that would make them instantly powerful. Kind of like those ultimate bosses in his past realm novels. Maybe they would be the biggest threat.

The Kirins were unpredictable. He did not know how powerful they were but they were one of the strongest species in the realm. They must be difficult to deal with.

Suddenly, two figures flew in from afar. They were tall and buff and had an ox head and a horse face. They were easily identifiable.

Their voices were hoarse and ferocious. They bowed at everyone and greeted, "Greetings to Mr. Li, the Jade Emperor, and the Empress."

Then, they looked at the table behind everyone. They stared at it and almost salivated.

Black Impermanence said, "Brother Ox, Brother Horse, why aren't you guys guarding the Reincarnation area? What are you doing here?"

Ox-Head glared. He moo-ed angrily and said, "That's easy for you to say. Why don't you go and guard the Reincarnation area?"

"Black and White Impermanence, you two spend all day eating good food and drinking nice booze, living a leisurely life while we brothers work hard at the Underworld. Won't your conscience hurt?" Horse-Face pointed at Black and White Impermanence. He yelled and scolded, "Look at my sexy horse mane, it's almost bald!"

He said while brushing out his little braid. His hair flowed in the wind.

They felt bitter. Their jobs were already hard, but it was tougher to see Black and White Impermanence living so lavishly. They endured it for too long. They thought of the delicious food and finally snuck out from the Underworld.

Li Nianfan smiled and said, "Guys, take a seat since you're here."

"Thanks, Mr. Li. We'll be intruding then." Ox-Head and Horse-Face were instantly overjoyed. They did not try to be courteous either. They took a glass of wine after sitting down. "Sorry to intrude. We'll punish ourselves with a glass of wine."

Then, they drank it in one go. Ox-Head and Horse-Face instantly squinted in enjoyment.

'Nice, this is a nice life.'

Li Nianfan smiled and asked, "You two snuck out without permission. Will everything be alright?"

"It's fine. We trained some Onis recently. They know what to do. As long as it's not an emergency, they'll be fine."

Ox-Head looked at Meng Junliang. He said, "Mr. Meng, I know you're a teacher, too. You have to prep these students and make sure they're ready. We'll be waiting for their job applications down there."

Horse-Face also said, "King Zhou, Mr. Meng, we're workers of the Underworld. Hence, we have to give you a heads-up."

Zhou Yunwu and Meng Junliang said at the same time, "We appreciate further details."

"The realm works by its own laws. For an ordinary man, death and sickness are the natural paths of life. But for someone of your status, you can naturally elongate your life using cultivators' medicine. It's just a temporary fix, but if you forcefully try to buy more time, it'll be recorded on the Death Note. Unless you transcend into cultivation, it'd be... considered as bad karma."

Horse-Face paused. He continued, "All living beings will die. They have the chance to be hired by us. If they forcefully try to prolong their lives, they'll become sinners. Not only would we not hire them, but they'll also be punished for their crimes."

Black Impermanence was a straightforward speaker. He said, "The Underworld and the City God Temples are in desperate need of staff. We have a lot of open positions. It's an opportunity. You guys should talk some sense into those keen on being hired. Tell them to stop enduring and living. Hurry up and come to us!"

Zhou Yunwu and Meng Junliang felt awkward. They fake-smiled and saluted, "I see."

Ox-Head and Horse-Face raised their glasses again and said, "Cheers to King Zhou and Mr. Meng then!"

Li Nianfan noticed that they were much more relaxed. He smiled curiously and asked, "Is the Underworld back on track now?"

"It's all thanks to you, Mr. Li. Let me tell you, the City God Temples were a genius idea. Otherwise, it wouldn't be easy for us." Ox-Head and Horse-Face were grateful. They raised their glasses again and said, "We're two buff dudes and we're not good at sentimental words. All our thanks are in the wine. Cheers to Mr. Li!"

Li Nianfan finally realized that the ox and the horse were here to get free drinks. They had raised their glasses thrice in three sentences.

Ox-Head put down his glass and rubbed his head. He said, "By the way, the Styx of the Underworld is starting to wreak havoc again. Those Asuras are up to something. I'm afraid bad things are going to happen."

The Jade Emperor was intrigued. "The Styx?"

Li Nianfan was intrigued, too. He was familiar with the Styx. It was as famous as the Acheron.

In the legendary stories, the Styx was transformed from a puddle of blood. The blood puddle was from the body of Pangu. More importantly, it gave birth to a Deity named Styx Laozu. He had two Ultimate Heavenly Swords and they were named Yuan Tu and Abi. There was a saying that the Bloody Sea would not dry out and the Styx would not die.

If the saying was true, Styx Laozu was most probably alive.

The Styx was also most probably...their villain.

'Alright, we were just thinking about who might still be alive. Now comes a super-powerful Deity.

'Oh yeah, apart from the Styx Laozu, the Styx also birthed Liuchi Mosquito Taoist. He was also a bad*ss character. It was a shame that he sucked away three of the Golden Lotuses from the Saint.'

He was also most probably...a villain.

There were too many big shots. Each of them could destroy realms. No wonder the tribulations and disasters kept happening.

Ox-Head looked serious as he said, "Back then, the Underworld was ruined. We had no choice but to throw the countless ghosts into the Styx. Now that the Underworld's slowly recovering, the Styx is uncooperative."

The Empress frowned. She said in a deep voice, "Styx Laozu tried to imitate Goddess Nuwa so he could become a Saint. He created the Asuras in the end. The Asuras are a bunch of ghosts who'd devour anything. It seems like they're starting to cause trouble."

The Jade Emperor became worried when they talked about the situation. "I wonder if we can revive the Heavenly Palace."

"It depends."

Everyone lined up and chatted. Half a month passed by in the blink of an eye.

The highly anticipated end-of-the-year event...began.