Chapter 536 - The King and the Minister's Crosstalk
Chapter 536: The King and the Minister’s Crosstalk
‘What should I do?’
In the huge Purple Cloud Palace, apart from his Grand Pure One, all eyes were focused on his hand.
Intentionally or unintentionally, waves of pressure spread over. Although most of them were pushing against each other, there was still some Saint pressure that landed on Li Changshou, making his breathing a little stuffy.
At that moment, a figure flashed and stood in front of Li Changshou.
Although his expression was calm, he could not hide the smile on his lips. The image of the Taiji Painting appeared behind him and dissipated the pressure that was pressing on Li Changshou.
Great Daoist Master Xuan Du attacked in time.
The Jade Emperor, who had stood up late, sat up quietly.
He had lost the opportunity to increase his relationship with his subjects.
Li Changshou hurriedly reorganized his chaotic Dao heart and continued to pretend to be seriously injured as he lay on the ground. He held the God Striking Whip and the God roll tightly. Thoughts quickly circulated in his heart, but his mental strength was still full!
Forget it, hurry up and calculate!
How many levels did this Dao Ancestor mean?!
She was beating him up and scolding him because she loved him. She was coaxing a child. She believed him, ahem… Oh no, she was actually filled with gratitude.
However, the Dao Ancestor had given him such a “special treatment” in front of him. The Little Lightning Whip muttered softly. It was clearly expressing his support for the Heavenly Courts.
There were no hidden meanings.
“I want to revive the Heavenly Courts. No matter what you do in this great calamity, the Heavenly Courts’ Deity Positions must be filled.”
Then, he left the God roll and the God Striking Whip behind and left.
Li Changshou had imagined the scene of the God roll appearing countless times. Previously, he felt that the most likely scenario was the Dao Ancestor opening his mouth and saying a bunch of mysterious words before bestowing the God roll.
However, he did not expect…
His hands trembled and he dropped the roll which fell into his arms!
The Second Saint next door almost turned green.
However, he had been paralyzed by the Dao Ancestor’s Heavenly Punishment and his essence soul had been sealed. He could not reject it at all. It was useless to open his mouth!
If someone said that Grandmaster Hong Jun did not intend to make such an arrangement, Li Changshou would not believe it even if he beat Saint Zhun Ti to death!
In order to help the Jade Emperor or his teacher fight for the God roll today, Li Changshou had prepared a few excuses and more than ten plans. In order to destroy the Western Sect, he spared no effort to search for the “crimes” of the Western Sect.
In the end…
It was all useless.
The Dao Ancestor had given him more than he had expected.
It turned out that he only needed to suffer a beating and be scolded by the Dao Ancestor. He did not need to fight or snatch. He relied on the ancient mystical ability of the Dao Ancestor to “shake” his hand and forcefully stuffed the Heavenly Book into his hand.
All schemes, sowing discord, and forming factions were useless!
On the other hand, if the Dao Ancestor did not use such a method today, what would happen?
Li Changshou made some deductions…
The original Great God-Conferment Tribulation was controlled by the Heavenly Lord of Primordial Beginning. It was probably because the Heavenly Lord of Primordial Beginning had placed both bets and secretly discussed with the Western Sect.
Now, there were many variables in the Great God-Conferment Tribulation. Dao Ancestor Hong Jun had already made it clear that he wanted to hand the authority of the God-Conferment Tribulation to the Heavenly Courts.
Three years ago, the Heavenly Lord of Primordial Beginning met Daoist Jie Yin and they sat down to discuss something.
It was very likely that the two Saints of the Western Sect had supported the Heavenly Lord of Primordial Beginning to control the God roll. Then, they would target the disciples of Jie School in the future.
After thinking through that, Li Changshou gradually came up with a clear line of logic.
He had indeed become a key in the Dao Ancestor’s hand.
Although the key was not as heavy as a “lock”, its position and shape were just right.
Before entering the Purple Cloud Palace, Goddess Nuwa said, “If the human race does not compete for the destiny of the human race, who can we count on?” At that moment, it was really filled with deep meaning.
Goddess Nuwa was on the human race’s side, and the Great God-Conferment Tribulation was, in a sense, a mistreatment of the human race.
In other words, Goddess Nuwa was expressing that she stood on Li Changshou’s side.
In that case, when the Purple Cloud Palace discussed the God Conferment today, the six Saints would probably be in an awkward situation of three against three.
The Dao Ancestor was the master of the Six Saints. The Great Tribulation this time was the Great Tribulation of living beings that the Heavenly Dao had sent down. There had to be enough casualties to fill the tribulation.
If the six Saints of Chan School and Jie School were divided into two factions in the Purple Cloud Palace, the Dao Ancestor would probably find it difficult to resolve the situation.
In that situation, as long as the Dao Ancestor expressed his stance, he would hint at the direction of the Great Tribulation and affect the operation of the Heavenly Dao Tribulation.
Jie School owed the human race too much. They should have more casualties.
The Western Sect was outside the Dao Sect. It did not make sense for the Dao Ancestor to say that he did not have any objections.
Therefore, the Dao Ancestor used the question and pulled out Li Changshou, an ordinary authoritative god of the Heavenly Courts. He first beat him up until he lost consciousness. Then, he stuffed the God roll and the God Striking Whip down and left…
He did not express his support for Chan School or Jie School and suppressed the Western Sect. He even supported the Heavenly Courts and sold a favor to the Grand Pure One who did not want to see the three brothers fall out.
The Dao Ancestor was indeed much wiser.
As for the excuse of “beating you up just to feel comfortable, and casually throwing the God roll away”, how could Li Changshou believe it?
He was the strongest expert in the Primordial World who had merged with the Heavenly Dao. He was the creator of the Three Realms. How could he lower himself to the level of his little grand-disciple?
It was all a scheme!
Of course, he could not rule out the possibility of them beating him up while he was plotting.
Yes, I should not use the Heavenly Dao Oath in the future. Grandmaster has quite a strong opinion about this…
The problem now was that he had been kicked into the quagmire by his own Grandmaster.
Li Changshou originally wanted to hide behind the scenes during the Great God-Conferment Tribulation and make arrangements. At that moment, he grabbed the God roll and the God Striking Whip.
Although it seemed that he could directly interfere with the way the God-Conferment would play out and obtain a higher authority, he would have to face the expedition between the sects next. He would become the focus of the conflict!
It was really unstable.
“Changgeng… Changgeng?”
“Heh, 98%? ”
The Jade Emperor shouted a few times from the side. The last words he shouted made Li Changshou shiver. He subconsciously opened his eyes, and the chaotic thoughts in his heart quickly calmed down.
The Jade Emperor’s eyes were filled with concern.
Li Changshou lay there and suddenly laughed.
Goddess Nuwa could not help but ask curiously, “Could it be that your soul was destroyed by Teacher? Why are you laughing?”
Li Changshou hurriedly jumped up. His Dao robe trembled, and a layer of black ash fell.
“Uncle-Master,” Li Changshou smiled and said, “I’m happy to be trusted by Grandmaster and have such a huge responsibility! Grandmaster even specially explained to me why he did not mention anything about merit and personally addressed me as his grand-disciple.”
After saying that, Li Changshou looked at the livid Saint Zhun Ti and smiled.
“Don’t worry, Second Sect Master of the Western Sect. I will definitely work hard to do this task. According to Grandmaster’s request, I will do what I can for the Heavenly Courts!”
“Ahem!” The Jade Emperor cleared his throat and said, “Minister Changgeng, let’s talk about this later. Why don’t you… go out of the hall to change your clothes first. This is really inappropriate.”
Li Changshou was a little confused. He was about to take the opportunity to speak and hand the God roll to the Jade Emperor for safekeeping.
The Jade Emperor flicked his finger and sent out a gust of wind. It was the grand-disciple of an ordinary authoritative god of the Heavenly Courts, the controller of the God roll, and the Dao Ancestor…
Suddenly, he felt a cooling sensation on his buttocks!
Li Changshou turned around and blushed. Immortal light surrounded him as he bowed and apologized.
This is so embarrassing!
He asked for Teacher Taiqing’s permission and hid in the Taiji Painting beside him. He quickly changed into a light blue robe.
The damaged Daoist robe…
Treasure!
In the future, he would open a Primordial World Museum of Steadiness. That would be the best proof of the Dao Ancestor’s love and care for the Sect Master!
While he was changing his clothes, Li Changshou heard the conversation of the Saint from the hall.
First, Saint Zhun Ti sighed and said, “Teacher does not trust us after all.”
The Grandmaster of Heaven choked. “How can Teacher trust you?”
“Fellow Daoist, you’re wrong.” The Daoist who led the way said slowly, “The world is orderly. It’s not just the Dao Sect. Back then, Teacher could give the Primordial Violet Vapor to the two of us and say that the Western Sect should prosper. That is the principle of the Heavenly Dao. However, from the looks of it, the Great God-Conferment Tribulation is not a good opportunity for the Western Sect to prosper.”
The Heavenly Lord of Primordial Beginning said, “Teacher, your actions are a little childish.”
The Grandmaster of Heaven smiled and said, “Senior Brother, you didn’t hear it just now. Teacher said personally that the Heavenly Book is fated with Changgeng. Changgeng is ranked as the head minister of the Heavenly Courts and is the disciple that Eldest Senior Brother favors. He cultivates the Great Dao of Equalization and has done many outstanding deeds for the Heavenly Courts. What’s wrong with letting him control the Heavenly Book?”
The Heavenly Lord of Primordial Beginning said, “Changgeng joined the sect late. Although he does things steadily, he is still inexperienced.”
Goddess Nuwa smiled and said, “Senior Brother, I have to say something. Senior Brother, don’t forget that Changgeng is from the human race. The Great Tribulation this time is because the Saint’s sect owed the human race. That is why the main body of the Great Tribulation landed on the Saint’s sect. It’s best to let Changgeng, who is from the human race, preside over the Great Tribulation.”
The Great Daoist Master calmly walked back to the back of the Grand Pure One and tried his best to restrain his aura to be inconspicuous. He did not want to attract trouble and cause himself to have to do chores other than sleeping.
The Saints continued to debate. Li Changshou walked out from behind the Taiji Painting. Not only did he change his clothes, but he also changed his hairstyle and cleaned his charred body.
He really couldn’t jump into the God roll.
He appeared again. The Saints’ gazes gathered on him again.
Saint Nuwa was encouraging him with a hint of playfulness. The Grandmaster of Heaven was purely happy. The Heavenly Lord of Primordial Beginning’s gaze was a little complicated. The eyes of the Great Saints of the Western Sect were filled with kindness. The gazes of the two Saints…
That was not important.
The Grand Pure One had been resting with his eyes closed, as if everything had nothing to do with him.
However, at that moment, Li Changshou slowly walked in front of the Grand Pure One and bowed to his teacher.
“Teacher, I have something to report.”
“Speak.”
“Grandmaster trusted me and gave me the God Striking Whip Whip and the God roll. He ordered me to preside over the God-Conferment matter. I should not have declined. However, this matter is very important. Just as Second Uncle-Master said, I still lack experience and experience. Becoming a God is no small matter. I’m afraid that I might make a mistake and cause trouble.”
Li Changshou looked at the Jade Emperor and said loudly, “I want to ask Teacher to allow me to release the God roll to the Heavenly Courts. The Jade Emperor will personally manage the God roll. Your Majesty, there’s no need for you to personally work on the matter of becoming a god. I will use the power of the God Striking Whip to carry out the Dao Ancestor’s orders and plan carefully for the Heavenly Courts!”
When the Jade Emperor heard that, he could not help but smile.
The Grand Pure One pondered for a while and said, “Not bad.”
“Thank you for your permission, Teacher.” Li Changshou bowed and held the God roll with both hands. He quickly walked to the Jade Emperor’s seat and blinked at him.
The Jade Emperor said seriously, “Changgeng is in charge of the God roll. How is he different from me?”
Li Changshou also said seriously, “Your Majesty, you are the leader of the Three Realms recognized by the Heavenly Dao. You are the leader of the godhood of the world. The ascension of the gods is already a great undertaking for the Heavenly Courts. During this process, it is most appropriate for you to be in charge of the God roll.
I will definitely do my best to help!”
The Jade Emperor pondered for a while and looked at the scroll in front of him. He nodded slowly.
“In that case, I will temporarily manage the God roll for you, Changgeng. I will place this roll in the Lingxiao Treasure Hall. Changgeng can use it at any time.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty!”
Li Changshou held the God roll with both hands. The Jade Emperor stood up and took it with both hands. He slowly held it in his palm.
In an instant, golden light shone. Wisps of Heavenly Dao power surged in all directions. The image of a scroll appeared above the Jade Emperor’s head, and it was blank.
Seeing that, Li Changshou felt a huge weight being lifted off his chest. The God Striking Whip in his hand felt weightless.
He let the Jade Emperor take charge of the matter in name.
He would be the one to affect the actual controlling in detail.
Although the entire process caught Li Changshou off guard, causing him to think about pain and surprise, he still achieved the perfect outcome that he had expected.
At the same time, he also obtained some protection from the Dao Ancestor.
At the same time, the two Saints of the Dao Sect, who were in charge of the Tribulation Transcendence, and the two Saints of the Western Sect, felt enlightened.
The Heavenly Lord of Primordial Beginning said, “Junior Brother Hao Tian, how do we sign the God roll?”
The Jade Emperor answered, “There are a total of 365 vacancies on the God roll. They correspond to the 365 positions of the Heavenly Courts’ legitimate gods. They involve the eight vacancies of the Heavenly Courts, the vacancies of the mountains, and so on. There should be 365 living beings who will enter the Heavenly Courts’ Deity Position and enjoy the incense offerings of the Heavenly Courts.”
The Saint Nuwa smiled and said, “Although the Jade Emperor’s words are not bad, the Heavenly Dao has just appeared. If your name is written on the God roll and you die in the Great Tribulation, a wisp of your essence soul will enter the God roll and be bound by the God roll for life.”
The Grandmaster of Heaven frowned and pondered.
Li Changshou said, “Uncle-Master, this is a bad thing and a good thing.
If a person who is about to die in the Great Tribulation obtains the protection of the God roll and can be reborn with the power of the Heavenly Dao, it might not be a bad thing for that person.”
Saint Zhun Ti said coldly, “Since that’s the case, just find 365 in-name disciples to be on the rankings. This calamity can naturally be resolved.”
The Jade Emperor snorted and said, “In this Great Tribulation, apart from selecting immortals for the Heavenly Courts, 3,650 Longevity Immortals from the three sects should have died to balance the power of living beings. Senior Brothers, let’s discuss the God roll and decide on the spots that are destined to die.”
The Saints fell silent at the same time and looked at the Grandmaster of Heaven, the Saint of Jie School.
The Grandmaster of Heaven said calmly, “Everyone, distribute evenly.”
The Daoist guide said, “I don’t have many disciples. There are not many disciples in the Western Sect. If we distribute the spots evenly, I’m afraid the Western Sect will be wiped out.”
The Grandmaster of Heaven was about to retort when the Heavenly Lord of Primordial Beginning frowned and said, “There are only a few hundred immortals in the Jade Void Palace.”
Saint Zhun Ti smiled and said, “Jie School is known as the court of ten thousand immortals. Why don’t we compare them according to the number of disciples of the three sects and choose the corresponding number of deaths?”
The Grandmaster of Heaven’s expression turned cold. “Why? Is it a sin to have many disciples from Jie School?”
The Saint who received him said, “If there are ten causes for this Great Tribulation, Jie School will occupy eight.”
“In that case,” the Grandmaster of Heaven took half a step back and said, “I will accept three hundred of the Deity Positions of the Heavenly Courts. I will accept a thousand of them if they die. How about that?”
Li Changshou, who had been silent, sighed in his heart.
He could not retreat from this matter. If he was weak, he could only give the Western Sect a chance to attack.
Indeed, Zhun Ti smiled and said, “The ten thousand immortals of Jie School will not be injured even if they accept the three thousand.”
The Heavenly Lord of Primordial Beginning said slowly, “Not enough.”
Not enough?
The Grandmaster of Heaven was enraged. He stood up and asked calmly,
“300 is not enough. 1,000 is not enough! Senior Brother, are you going to destroy Jie School? Kill all my disciples!”
The Heavenly Lord of Primordial Beginning sighed softly and closed his eyes. The atmosphere in the Purple Cloud Palace immediately froze. The sword intent of the Immortal Vanquishing Sword Array behind the Grandmaster of Heaven hummed!
Suddenly, he heard the Grand Pure One say, “Sit down.”
The Grandmaster of Heaven flung his sleeves and sat down with a cold expression.
Then, the Grand Pure One looked at Li Changshou.
Li Changshou, who did not want to say anything else and tacitly agreed that the battle today would definitely end on an unhappy note, could only stand up.
He and the Jade Emperor looked at each other and smiled.
Li Changshou took half a step forward and smiled. “The Jade Emperor just said something that is a little vague. Everyone, don’t be anxious. Let me ask the Jade Emperor again. Your Majesty, the three sects that you mentioned don’t seem to have made sense.”
The Jade Emperor was thinking about the script that Li Changshou had given him decades ago.
“What I just said is the manifestation of the God roll. To be precise, there will be at least 3,650 longevity immortals from Chan School and Jie School who will die. It was not just the disciples of the Saints of the two sects, but also the Immortal Sects of the two sects. As for how many Longevity Immortals would die in this calamity… Actually, it’s impossible to measure.”
When he heard that, the Grandmaster of Heaven beamed. The Heavenly Lord of Primordial Beginning’s expression was still calm. The smiles of the two Saints of the Western Sect froze.
Li Changshou said, “Your Majesty, how do you want to deal with the 365 legitimate gods?”
“They are naturally living beings who are virtuous, scheming, intelligent, and moral.”
The Jade Emperor said word by word, “Actually, Senior Brothers, you don’t have to treat the God roll as a treasure of the Heavenly Dao. You can treat the God roll as a life-saving item for remnant souls.”
The Heavenly Lord of Primordial Beginning said, “If you enter the God roll, you will be driven by the tribulation. You will not be able to escape death.”
The Jade Emperor pondered for a while and could not refute.
The Grandmaster of Heaven said, “Senior Brother, why don’t we make an agreement first? The eldest personal disciple will not enter the God roll. How about that?”
“Junior Brother.” The Heavenly Lord of Primordial Beginning frowned and said, “I’m afraid it’s difficult to say.”
The Daoist guide interrupted, “According to the Jade Emperor, the position of the righteous god does not belong to the Western Sect?”
“That’s right,” the Jade Emperor said calmly.
Saint Jie Yin asked, “Is the God roll so obvious?”
“No.”
The Jade Emperor said calmly and sat cross-legged on the meditation cushion. His eyes were filled with light and his smile was gentle. He said slowly, “I set this matter.”
The guide frowned and said firmly, “The Jade Emperor is going too far!”
“Going too far?”
The Jade Emperor raised his eyebrows and said calmly, “Changgeng, help me explain to Senior Brother Jie Yin. I’m afraid that I can’t control my temper and will say something filthy in Teacher’s treasure land and insult the Saint.”
“Yes.” Li Changshou agreed and took a few steps forward. He bowed to the two Saints of the Western Sect with a troubled expression.
Li Changshou frowned and said, “Saints, don’t blame me. I’m just stating the truth. I didn’t mean to target you. Previously, the Heavenly Courts did not prosper, and the Western Sect was in trouble everywhere. The matters of the dragon race and the demons, the two Saints had condoned the disciples of the Western Sect and committed evil. They fought with the Heavenly Courts and caused the Burning Incense Sect. Their reputation was really… If a disciple of the Western Sect enters the Heavenly Courts and becomes the legitimate god of the Heavenly Courts during this Great Tribulation, what would the Heavenly Courts think? What should the dragon race think? What should the living beings of the Three Realms think? The Jade Emperor made such a decision for the stability of the Three Realms and the stability of the world. Please forgive him.”
Saint Zhun Ti said coldly, “What I have done cannot surpass the prosperity of the Western Sect. Many things are permitted by the Heavenly Dao.”
“I don’t dare to correct the mistakes in the Saint’s words.”
Li Changshou straightened his body with a cold expression. His eyes shone brightly, and the God Striking Whip in his hand flickered with golden light.
If he did not offend the two Saints of the Western Sect today, the two Saints of the Western Sect would destroy him if they had a suitable opportunity.
He could not think of currying favor with both the Western Sect and the Dao Sect!
What he had to do in the future was to do his best to protect the integrity of the Dao Sect. He had to let the internal conflict between Chan School and Jie School be controlled to the smallest extent. He had to protect the vitality of the three sects of the Dao Sect and take the opportunity to get rid of some of the chronic illnesses of the Dao Sect.
To the Western Sect, reasonable toughness was stability. A reasonable collision would make Teacher and the Grandmaster of Heaven stand behind him more firmly.
Hence, Li Changshou said, “However.”
“If you prosper for yourself, you can destroy other Dao heritage and willfully suppress the Heavenly Courts that have brought order to the Three Realms and protected the weak.”
“If you prosper for yourself, you can bully weak living beings at will. You can treat mortals who are living happily as livestock. If you want to prosper for himself and wantonly change the cycle of living beings, you would do anything to forcefully increase your foundation… What can you obtain after you prosper? The times have changed. ”
Li Changshou paused and said calmly, “Next, the Jade Emperor will be in charge of this place. We will discuss the matter of the Dao Sect entering the Tribulation and becoming a God. Do the two of you want to avoid it? After all, the Great Tribulation will be officially launched in the future. The Western Sect and the Dao Sect should be rivals.”
The Great Sage of the Western Sect closed his eyes and did not speak. However, the Little Saint frowned and stared at the Jade Emperor. He did not even look at Li Changshou, much less flick his sleeve and leave.
“What about me?”
Saint Nuwa asked with a smile.
Li Changshou immediately smiled and bowed to Saint Nuwa.
“Aunt-Master, you are the Goddess of the human race. This Great Tribulation began with the human race. The human race is the main character of the world. Naturally, Aunt-Master has to supervise the entire process. If the Heavenly Courts did anything wrong, Aunt-Master, please remind me in time. The Jade Emperor is very respectful to you.”
“Of course.” The Jade Emperor stood up and bowed to the Saint Nuwa. “Senior Sister, if the Heavenly Courts does anything inappropriate during this Great Tribulation, please point it out in time.”
Nuwa could not help but smile. She sat steadily in her seat.
The two of them echoed each other, causing the situation of the Saints to become chaotic.
The Grandmaster of Heaven sighed and said, “How do you want to sign the God roll, Senior Brother?”
The Heavenly Lord of Primordial Beginning slowly stood up and looked at the Grandmaster of Heaven.
“We’ll rely on our own abilities and luck. Let’s talk about this in the future.”
After saying that, he turned around and left. Guang Chengzi followed behind with his head lowered. His expression was calm and motionless.