Chapter 391 - This Is Concrete Evidence. The Heavenly Palace Really Exists!
On that day, the sky was slightly darker. The entire event was packed with people. The line that was queuing up for the show had filled the entire space. The people were even shoving and nudging each other to the entrance of the Eastern city, blocking up the gates of the city.
Some of them gave up and chose to watch the show from the City God Temple of the Fallen Town. Yet, when they arrived at the City God Temple, they realized it was also jam-packed with people. There was not even a tiny space for them to squeeze in.
It was a pity for the City God who brought a few of his underlings to control the order of the situation.
He was being kind by advising the crowd with a loud voice, “Everyone, please, stop pushing around. Listen to me, the projection this time is personally done by Houtu Empress, and it’s very huge, just like the moon in the sky. You guys will be able to view it from any place in the Fallen Town. You all don’t have to come to my temple and squeeze here to get a place.” Amongst the crowd, a sudden shriek was heard all of a sudden, “I’m not buying it! Everyone, follow me and rush into the temple! Let’s squeeze ourselves into the City God Temple!”
Then, a group of people started causing a commotion among the crowd. “Let’s go!”
However, very soon, this group of people ceased their actions because the show that they had anticipated did not show up. Instead, they became mysteriously quiet. Even the people around them shifted their attention over to this group of people. They were staring hard at them, giving them goosebumps.
“Why are you guys looking at me? Rush into the temple! We need to act fast!”
“City God, this is the person who wants to squeeze into the City God Temple!”
“Over here, too. This person also wants to do the same thing.” “This guy, too!”
Then, people from a few spots started pointing out the culprits who were causing the commotion simultaneously. Besides, they were also putting up a disdainful expression and keeping their distance, causing that group of people to be terrified and feel utterly embarrassed.
The City God immediately waved his hand. “Someone drag this group of people out of here.”
The Onis who were hiding in the shadows showed up soon and led the group of people out of the scene.
The City God smiled with his eyes squinted and stood on top of the City God Temple. He then said, “Thank you, everyone. What I said earlier was indeed the truth. You guys will be able to see it from any location within the Fallen Town. So, there’s no need for you guys to squeeze around.”
The crowd immediately replied with a smile.
“City God, we all believe in your words.”
“Hehe, one look and we knew that group of people aren’t good people. They even thought of squeezing into the City God Temple till things went out of order. City God, you shouldn’t easily forgive them.” “Naive! Does he think he’ll be able to influence our relationship with the City God? Do they think we’re fools by causing such a commotion?”
In the meantime.
Those Onis were escorting the souls of the group of people and arrived at Underworld. Black and White Impermanence had long ago been waiting there.
The Oni reported, “Sire, this group of people were already dead but their souls are still sealed in their physiques, just like a puppet. We’ve checked their corpses and realized their necks had markings of being bitten by some bugs.”
“I already know about this matter.” Bai Wuchang nodded his head, with his face darkened. “There are still a few places in the Immortal Realm where such a similar incident occurred as well. Who’s the one plotting a scheme in my Underworld?”.
Hei Wuchang put on a dark expression and said coldly, “It’s a problem if they’re plotting a scheme in the Underworld. I’m just afraid they’re targeting the expert, and if his mood is affected, that’s going to cause huge trouble!”
Bai Wuchang said with gratitude, “Thank god the expert reminded us to get into good terms with the crowd. From the crowd, we got to know that the City God has received good remarks. Or else, if there really was a commotion, it’ll be hard to resolve it.
“There’ll be more advantages than disadvantages if we heed to the expert’s advice.” Hei Wuchang burst into laughter. Then, he said seriously, “Send someone to reinforce the patrol, especially nearby the Fallen Town. don’t let a single bug slip through!” “Roger!”
In the Immortal Realm.
Apart from the huge crowd of people beneath, there were numerous sparkling stars in the sky. They looked like sparkling meteors flying through the night sky.
People were riding on jet clouds, and others riding along with their swords to the scene. Some even rode on spiritual boats and came to a halt mid-air, enjoying the show carefreely from the top.
As the first-ever entertainment activity within the Immortal Realm at such a grand scale, with also great Immortals participating in the act, it was beyond imagination just how much that show would be welcomed. Even those Elders who usually stayed within the caves also rushed out to attend the event.
There were some enemies who had not seen each other for thousands of years that bumped into each other once again at that moment. They immediately put on their fighting stances and brawled.
Apart from human beings, it also included the demon races.
At the East entrance of Fallen Town, the old Locust tree that was initially more than a human’s height started growing taller after its trunk trembled faintly. Very soon, its height was beyond 10 meters, and there was a group of elderly and children of the Fallen Town sitting on the branches. They were all putting on a smiley face and were looking down curiously.
Then, the demons came to join the event as well.
Lord Demon had two demon servants flanking both his sides. They mingled amongst the human crowd and shouldered along with the group.
One of the demon servants was being cautious and looked at the surroundings. Then, he said softly, “Lord Demon, do you have any plans for this event?”
Lord Demon was stunned. “What plan?”
“The plan to conquer the human race!” The demon servant’s eyes were sparkling, and he added, “This is a rare chance for us. There are so many humans right here. If they can all progress into demons, we’ll gain tremendously.”
“Since when do we have so many plans? This time, we’re just here to watch the event, that’s all.”
Lord Demon frowned and was very unhappy. “Entertainment remains to be entertainment. Work is work. You’ve got to know the lines between them. Aren’t you feeling even tired at all? Besides, there are so many powerhouses right here. I’d advised you two to be more careful about concealing yourself. If we’re spotted, I’ll definitely choose to run away, and I won’t be able to save you two.” It was at that moment, amongst the layers of clouds from far away, a few outlines suddenly showed up. In the meantime, a majestic aura like a waterfall came raining down. It was mainly targeting those groups of humans that were floating mid-air.
Xiao Chengfeng, Ao Cheng, Ao Yun, Pei An, and the others gradually revealed their figures mid-air. They all had straight faces and carried out their job to maintain peace.
Xiao Chengfeng faced the surroundings and expressed his respect, then said happily, “Attention everyone. I, Xiao Chengfeng, will be taking full responsibility for this year’s public safety for the end-of-year event. Everyone, please spare me some face and not cause any trouble. To those who have personal grudges against others, please, back off a hundred thousand miles away and settle your issues outside. Also…no one’s allowed to float mid-air within thousands of meters!”
Very soon, the lights from the surroundings went further away, one after another.
“Thank you. Thank you for everyone’s cooperation!” Xiao Chengfeng suddenly felt proud and had a delighted expression. That was the peak moment of his entire lifetime. He then continued to add on, “If there’s an accident, everyone, please shout out for my name at the very first instance. Please, recognize carefully, the Sword Immortal, Xiao Chengfeng. Three million sword Immortals from above have to be humble when they see me!”
At the most front row of the crowd, the person occupying the golden seat to enjoy the event, Li Nianfan, lifted his head to look at Xiao Chengfeng who was telling lies despite being awkward. He could not help but let the corner of his mouth curl into a smile.
The Jade Emperor who was beside him could not tolerate it and said while laughing, “Mr. Li, this friend of yours is quite interesting.”
Li Nianfan said, “I guess trying to act smart is what a Sword Immortal’s good at.”
The Jade Emperor continued saying with a smile, “His spiritual cultivation’s quite good as well. He could easily surpass the Heavenly Guards of my Heavenly Palace.” Li Nianfan raised his brows. “Your Highness, are you already planning on developing the Heavenly Palace?” “Just as a precaution. I’ll eventually need to accept talented people if I want to develop it,” the Jade Emperor said with a smile. “This person really loves acting smart which in fact, is quite beneficial in building up the image of the Heavenly Palace.”
Speaking of it, the Jade Emperor was facing Li Nianfan with utmost gratitude as he said, “Lately, this is all thanks to you, Mr. Li. It is as you had said. You’ve implanted a great image of the Heavenly Palace in the minds of all humans. In just more than one month, you’ve managed to spread the fame of the Heavenly Palace. Adding on to tonight’s performance, it’ll be pretty easy to make everyone believe in the existence of the Heavenly Palace!”
Within half a month, apart from arranging the performance schedule, Li Nianfan had also specifically arranged for other line ups. He intended to fill the hearts of all humans with the fame of the Heavenly Palace. With that, only the image of the Heavenly Palace would be embedded in their minds.
First of all, it would be about spreading some fiction regarding the Heavenly Palace. With the Xia Kingdom promoting it with all their means, stories of the Heavenly Palace would be well known by everyone. The characters within the Heavenly Palace were getting well known as well. Next up, they even allowed the dragons to display their ulterior skills under the name of the Heavenly Palace, and this allowed many mortals in many areas to ‘coincidentally’ notice their existence.
One event after another made everyone hold on to their breath as they witnessed it. Also, those stories, some of them were made up while some were modified according to true stories. However, all of them were very attractive and logical. Some even made the Jade Emperor, who was a person involved in the story, fail to identify which of them was fake.
Li Nianfan smiled and said, “Setting up the image of Heavenly Palace is very important.”
The Jade Emperor put on a straight face and said sternly, “That’s a given. Remember what’s the slogan of my Heavenly Palace? ‘The dominance of the heavens’. If I lose my face, then what’s the meaning of being alive?”
Yet, at that moment, there was a babble of talk coming from behind the mortals…
“Why isn’t the show starting? If I knew this would happen, I should’ve brought my Lotus Lantern that I’ve treasured along.” “You’re also reading Lotus Lantern? Chen Xiang really is too pitiful. His granduncle’s the Jade Emperor, his uncle is God Jiro. Both of them are so powerful, yet they want to kill him.”
“I know, right? These two people are too cruel. They’re far worse than a beast!” Another person from beside added, “Let me tell you this, the book titled ‘How To Cultivate by the Jade Emperor’ is a great book to read. That book describes the Jade Emperor going through ninety-nine lifetimes of being a good person before becoming the Jade Emperor. However, in every life cycle he went through, he’d also wet his bed till the age of ten years old. Hahaha…”
“There’s such a thing? Indeed the Jade Emperor. What a great skill of wetting his bed.”
Li Nianfan remained silent. So did the Jade Emperor.
Both of them looked at each other. Jade Emperor let out a soft cough and with a usual expression, he waved his hand and said, ” Actually, my temperament’s quite tame. I don’t emphasize my personal image. It’s just a trivial matter.” Li Nianfan praised while replying, “Your Highness, you’re truly generous. You’re very open-minded.” Clatter!
At that moment, the stage straight ahead that was entirely carved from crystals suddenly flashed with an eye-catching ray. Following that, those Luminous Pearls surrounding the stage that was bigger than a human’s head also started to beam brightly, casting rays in all directions.
Everyone’s heart was beating fast. They were all looking forward to it and kept staring at it.
In the Underworld, there was a pearl placed in front of Meng Po. The situation of the stage was being reflected on it.
Her eyes glittered seriously, yet the corner of her mouth was curled into a smile. She raised her hands and made a gesture, casting a spell. Then, she pointed at the pearl.
It was just a brief moment, but those within the City God Temple were feeling scared. Then, in the sky above the City God Temple, a huge item appeared, floating in the air. It was displaying the image of the stage.
Du du du… The loud sound of conches suddenly appeared, and it hyped everyone up. It came with an indescribable force, making the crowd that was waiting for a long time suddenly feel energetic.
The sound of the conches was accompanied by a weird tempo, making those who heard it feel more hyped up. As for Li Nianfan, he was silently saying it within him, following the tempo, ‘Surging tide of cross-strait, rise and fall with the waves…’
The magnificent opening song was able to immediately bring up the emotions, alerting everyone. ‘Don’t tell me this isn’t as great as watching those pretty ladies dancing around?’
Following the music, a few figures of the Sea Race started to appear on stage. Apart from the pretty ladies from the Sea Race, there were also lots of strong men holding onto steel forks in their hands. They presented their strengths through their performance.
Even though they had watched it plenty of times during the rehearsal, the Jade Emperor and the few other people were still mesmerized when watching it. This performance…is way too interesting. Talented people indeed know a lot of skills. There are too many things that are worthwhile for us to learn from them. Instead of just being together, if we don’t have a strong mentality, we’ll be shameful because we’re not as good as others, and ultimately, we’ll isolate ourselves from the world.’
At that moment, regardless of the location, as long as it was within the area where the performance was being displayed, it was dead silent. At every corner of the City God Temple, the crowd that was watching were lifting their heads to watch the show with a blank face, as if they had opened up the door to a brand new world.
Each performance ended, one after another. Li Nianfan was also watching very seriously, enjoying the fruits of his hard work.
Without him realizing it, eight performances were done. When it was announced that the performances had come to an end, the crowd of people snapped out of it like being awakened from their dreams. Each of them had an expression as if they had yet to get enough of it.
No doubt, this year’s end-of-year event would definitely be the most exciting one in the history of mortals. Also, it would be the most energetic event for the Immortal Realm and Immortal Land.
‘We were just starting to get into the good part, and it’s already finished?’ Just when everyone was feeling let down, a domineering voice of a lady was suddenly heard from the sky, “Weaver Girl, do you admit to your crime?”
Then, two bright lights appeared, forming a beam of light that accurately pointed at a designated corner amidst the crowd. It was just like a spotlight, and outlines of a male and female figure appeared.
The camera of the live broadcast also turned accordingly and fixated on the male and female.
Just when everyone was lost in their thoughts, wind and clouds suddenly gathered together. The wind was strong with the sound of a phoenix and tens of thousands of birds coming forth. A golden outline slowly appeared in the sky. The face was not visible yet, but a prestigious aura rushed over them, making everyone want to worship that outline. The Weaver Girl, who appeared to be Ziye, immediately got down on her knees. “Greetings from Weaver Girl to the Empress.”
“Hmph, how dare you. As a Goddess, to be in love with a mortal? You’re committing a grave crime, and you can’t be forgiven!” After saying that, she lifted her hand and waved. She immediately grabbed the Weaver Girl and headed to the sky. The Cowherd, who was transformed by Cheng Yi, immediately shrieked pitifully, “Weaver Girl!”
Li Nianfan was commenting deep in his heart. ‘This is aggravating. Their expressions are way too aggravating. I guess they won’t be able to obtain the S card.’
Moo!
Yet at that moment, an ox suddenly came rushing to them from far away. Its eyes were overflowing with tears. It was crying after being beaten up. “Cowherd, I’m that ox that you reared. I’ve already cultivated to become a demon. To repay my debts to you, please, hurry and ride me. We’ll chase after Weaver Girl!”
Then, Cowherd rode the ox, rushing up into the sky as they chased after them. “You’re just a mortal, yet you have the courage to chase after us?” The Empress smiled coldly. She took off her hairpin and lifted her hand to wave. Her mana was endless. Under the attention of the crowd, that hairpin had become a galaxy. In the meantime, with the force of the stars spinning around them, the two stars were moving in the sky at a speed visible to the naked eye. At the two edges of the galaxy, Weaver Girl and Cowherd were both trapped in those two stars.
The stars that were held in the Empress’s hands were not accompanied by any elements of the performance. It was all a genuine act. Not only Li Nianfan was stunned, the mortals and the cultivators were also dumbfounded when they watched it play out.
That made their minds replay a single phrase, ‘This is concrete evidence. The Empress really exists in this world. The Heavenly Palace really exists!’
“You’ve committed a crime stated in Heaven’s laws. Today, I shall make the galaxy as a border, and entrapping the both of you forever in this area. You two will never meet again!”