700: Are you also an immortal?

With a thunderous boom!

Samadhi True Fire bloomed like a fiery lotus.

The dim Sea of Annihilation was instantly illuminated crimson, like a scorching Hell.

Under the reflection of two fiery lights, two figures floated in the air.

One wore white battle robes and held a Three-Pointed Double-Edged Blade.

The other rode a Wind Fire Wheel and wielded a Fire-tipped Spear.

The arrivals were none other than Erlang Shen, Yang Jian,

and Marshal of the Central Altar, Nezha.

Seeing the two T0 enforcers of the Heavenly Court arrive, Jiang Ziya and Arctic Immortal exchanged glances, both sneering and shaking their heads.

Normally, they would still hold a measure of respect for Yang Jian and Nezha.

But now, the Heavenly Venerate had authorized them to activate the investiture of the gods to suppress the rebellious members of the Chan Sect.

Although Yang Jian and Nezha had achieved Immortal Ascension with their Physical Bodies, they were still bound by their divine positions.

And as long as they were bound by divine positions, the investiture of the gods, recognized by the Three Realms, could control them.

At this moment, both Yang Jian and Nezha were suppressed, their strength greatly diminished.

With Arctic Immortal also present, Jiang Ziya didn't even put the two of them in his eyes.

He pursed his underbite, stepped forward, and said arrogantly, "Yang Jian, Nezha, you two assisted the Evil Emperor in his return, which is a betrayal of the Three Realms. Instead of waiting for us to apprehend you, you dare to deliver yourselves to our doorstep. Do you wish to taste my God-Beating Whip?"

"Do you even deserve to beat a God?"

Yang Jian stared intently at Jiang Ziya with his Heavenly Eye, saying, "To prevent the Human Emperor's return, your Chan Sect disregarded the Heavenly Dao and massacred Mortals. What difference is there between such Heaven-Defying acts and those of demons?"

"The Heavenly Dao is unkind, treating all beings as straw dogs."

Jiang Ziya held the God-Beating Whip in his hand and said with an arrogant tone, "We Immortals, when we act, it's inevitable that we stir up storms and floods. Even if some Mortals are drowned, that is merely their fate..."

Boom!

Before Jiang Ziya could finish his sentence,

the Fire-tipped Spear, engulfed in raging flames, struck.

Amidst the roaring ascent of flames, Nezha's angry curses were also heard.

"Old dog Jiang!"

"Have you forgotten who the Hell you are?"

"Go back and ask your Heavenly Venerate when he ever considered a talentless waste like you, with no Immortal fate, to be an Immortal?"

Compared to the Fire-tipped Spear, which swept with towering flames,

Nezha's words were clearly more aggressive.

The phrase "talentless waste with no Immortal fate" instantly froze Jiang Ziya in place; he didn't react even when the Fire-tipped Spear was right in front of his face.

Indeed.

The Heavenly Venerate had long said that Jiang Ziya had no Immortal fate and could not achieve Immortal Ascension.

Don't be fooled by Jiang Ziya's constant travels between the Heavenly Court and Jade Void Palace, making him seem like a carefree Immortal who had achieved Dao.

In reality... to this day, he was merely a Cultivator with considerable cultivation and one or two Immortal-grade Magical Artifacts.

Nezha's words had already pierced Jiang Ziya's heart, even before the Fire-tipped Spear.

"Junior Brother, be careful."

Seeing Jiang Ziya about to have his head pierced by the Fire-tipped Spear, Arctic Immortal flicked his whisk, pulling Jiang Ziya behind him.

Then, with a gentle palm strike, he unleashed formless and colorless Boundless True Fire to clash with the Samadhi True Fire.

The moment they met, both dissipated instantly.

"Damn it! Am I really this weak?"

Nezha, seeing his Samadhi True Fire vanish, immediately withdrew his attack and retreated quickly.

At the same time, he was astonished at how overbearing the suppression of the investiture of the gods was.

"So now you know why I want to tear up the list, right?"

Yang Jian took a deep breath and said to Nezha, "With this thing here, we Immortals are like cattle and horses. Saints can easily manipulate us with the investiture of the gods."

Nezha nodded thoughtfully, saying, "So, you want to recruit Qin Yang. He, like the Great Sage, won't be affected by the investiture of the gods."

"Yes, Qin Yang and the monkey are the main force; we need them to tear up the list."

Yang Jian looked at Nezha, "And, I now feel that Zhang Bainian also thinks this way. His several moves have all held back, which can't help but remind me of back then..."

"You mean, the Great Sage of Balancing Accounts?" A hint of realization flashed in Nezha's eyes.

Yang Jian nodded slightly, saying, "Yes, haven't you noticed that regarding the Human Emperor's return, the Chan Sect is already desperate, but the Heavenly Court has been indifferent? Even when I rebelled, the Heavenly Emperor didn't show up, and sending you and Li Jing to apprehend me also felt very off."

At this point, Yang Jian corrected himself, "Not that you're not strong, but we have a good relationship, and... if someone needed to be captured, wouldn't the Thunder Department be more suitable?"

Nezha shrugged, saying, "Maybe he's being protective, just like you, using the Howling Celestial Dog's bedsheet to catch Chen Xiang, and the Gray Sky Cloak? That name sounds awkward; you probably made it up on the spot, didn't you?"

Yang Jian's mouth twitched, and he frowned, "Be serious; we're talking about important matters."

"Just a joke."

Nezha grinned and said, "If the Heavenly Emperor is on our side, isn't that a good thing?"

"It was a good thing..."

Yang Jian nodded then shook his head, sighing, "But we were still a step too late. If Qin Yang sees his subjects being refined into Medicinal Pills, he will be like the monkey back then; he will get serious with the Heavenly Court."

Hearing this, Nezha's pupils constricted, recalling a past event.

During the battle of Mount Huaguo, the Great Sage was ambushed and defeated, then captured and taken to the Heavenly Court.

Before the hundred thousand Heavenly Soldiers returned to their camp, they were originally supposed to slaughter all the monkeys on Mount Huaguo.

After all, the Great Sage was a demon monkey going against the Heavenly Dao at that time; regardless of whether he had the mission of "balancing accounts," the process still had to be followed.

According to law, none of his monkey descendants should have been left alive.

But Yang Jian had an extra thought at the time. Before the hundred thousand Heavenly Soldiers made their move, he first set a fire, burning down the entire Mount Huaguo.

The Heavenly Soldiers and Generals, seeing that Yang Jian had already acted, abandoned their plan to slaughter the mountain and all retreated to the Heavenly Court.

And it was precisely this fire that saved those monkeys.

Although Mount Huaguo was burned down, the monkeys hid in wells and caves, escaping the calamity.

If it had been the Heavenly Soldiers and Generals, hiding anywhere would have been useless.

Therefore, not only did the Great Sage not resent Yang Jian, but they also became close friends.

But that was all later.

Before knowing Yang Jian's good intentions, when the Great Sage saw Mount Huaguo burned, he truly entered the Demonic Path.

This led to the Great Sage's combat power exploding during the balancing of accounts, striking everyone with lethal force and causing the situation to spiral out of control.

The Heavenly Emperor at the time also got a bit carried away and almost had to intervene.

Fortunately, in the end, it was Tathagata who suppressed him, which led to the subsequent events.

Thinking of these things, Nezha also understood.

If Qin Yang, like the Great Sage, entered the Demonic Path, then the Heavenly Emperor would have no choice but to intervene.

After all, tearing up the list was about seeking new development, but maintaining stability in the Three Realms was the Foundation.

"No wonder these dogs of the Chan Sect want to go to such extremes; they want to force the Human Emperor into becoming a demon!"

Nezha gritted his teeth and asked Yang Jian, "So what do we do now? Under the suppression of the investiture of the gods, we might not be able to take down that evil peach."

Yang Jian said, "We have to take him down even if we can't. I see that Qin Yang's imperial city is intact, which means his Foundation is still there, and there's still room for maneuver."

As Yang Jian was speaking, he suddenly noticed a wisp of rosy light appearing in the distance, faintly revealing three massive illusory figures.

Yang Jian opened his Heavenly Eye to look, was startled, and then broke into a smile.

Nezha couldn't see what was behind the rosy light and, seeing Yang Jian smiling inexplicably, anxiously asked, "At a time like this, you can still think of something to be happy about?"

Yang Jian, however, shook his head and said with a smile, "Qin Yang's reinforcements have arrived; how can I not be happy?"