207: Chapter 207 The West and the Human Race Learn of What Happened at the Peach Banquet

Time flowed slowly, and nearly a hundred years passed; the Peach Banquet finally came to an end.

Haotian sat high upon the imperial throne, speaking faintly to issue the decree for the conclusion.

As soon as his golden words fell, the celestial music within Lingxiao Palace faded, the auspicious light receded, and the immortals and gods rose one after another to take their leave.

The moment the imperial decree was issued, the Western Sect Disciples, led by Maitreya, could no longer suppress the panic and torment in their hearts. Like frightened birds, they fled without stopping toward the Hall of Wealth.

Celestial light flashed erratically along the way, and they were in such a sorry state that there was no longer any sign of the superiority they once held as Disciples of a Saint sect.

Inside the Hall of Wealth, the doors were tightly shut, isolating it from external surveillance.

Dozens of Western Sect Disciples surrounded Maitreya, and the hall was filled with endless complaints and sighs.

"This Heavenly Court... is no longer a place to stay!"

"We're done for, we're done for, we're done for... His Majesty is trying to drive us to extinction!"

"Those Southern Quasi-Saints are all eyeing us like tigers, especially that Quasi-Saint in the rock-patterned Daoist robe who was sitting beside me—it felt like needles on my back! His Majesty clearly intends to suppress our Western Sect!"

Complaints rose one after another; some beat their chests and stamped their feet, others had ashen Faces, and some Disciples even had tears in their eyes. The once-coveted positions of deities in the Heavenly Court had now become hot potatoes.

Maitreya sat in the main seat, his plump body trembling slightly. Listening to the grievances of the Disciples around him, he let out a long sigh, his brow filled with exhaustion and complexity.

The hall fell silent for a moment, and all eyes turned toward him, their Senior Brother with the highest cultivation.

A Disciple stepped forward and pleaded with a tearful voice: "Senior Brother Maitreya, you have the highest cultivation and are highly valued by the Teachers in the Western Sect. You should rush back to the Western Sect now and ask for the Teachers' opinions. We really cannot stay in this Heavenly Court anymore... If we stay any longer, I fear we will be toyed to death by those Southern Quasi-Saints!"

That group of Quasi-Saints were Innate holy beings from the same era as Zhunti, and they felt they were no match for them.

The other Disciples echoed:

"Senior Brother, please make the decision for us!"

"If we don't leave now, it will be too late!"

Upon hearing this, Maitreya's expression grew even uglier.

To be honest, he did not want to leave the Heavenly Court from the bottom of his heart. The Spiritual Qi here was far richer than in the Western Sect, his Luck was bolstered, and Heaven And Earth Treasure were bestowed from time to time; it was far more comfortable than bitter cultivation in the Western Sect.

Moreover, over these years, by leveraging his position as the Deity of Wealth, he had secretly accumulated a massive amount of gray resources, such as Spiritual Root and Spirit Treasure... his cultivation progress far exceeded his time in the Western Sect.

But now, with the Southern Quasi-Saints entering the game and Haotian clearly intending to borrow a knife to kill, his authority as the Deity of Wealth was crumbling and could be stripped away at any moment.

Staying behind meant fearing he would become fish on the chopping block; leaving... meant he was reluctant to give up this bright future.

After much deliberation, Maitreya nodded with an ugly expression and said in a deep voice: "Very well... I will rush back to the Western Sect immediately to meet the Teachers and ask for their advice. If the Teachers have a decision, we can prepare early."

As soon as these words were spoken, the surrounding Disciples were instantly invigorated, and they bowed in unison:

"We wish Senior Brother a triumphant return!"

"Take care, Senior Brother!"

"Everything is entrusted to you, Senior Brother!"

Maitreya gave a light "Hmm," forcefully suppressed the irritation in his heart, turned into a long rainbow of golden light, instantly broke through the Restriction of the Hall of Wealth, and sped off toward the West.

Behind him, the Western Sect Disciples watched the fleeing light as it moved further and further away, their eyes filled with both anticipation and deep anxiety.

...

Mount Sumeru, Western Sect.

Maitreya continuously tore through space, arriving travel-worn. The sounds of Sanskrit chants were constant, yet they could not hide the burning anxiety within him.

He could not spare time for rest and headed straight for the Eight-Treasure Merit Pond to seek an audience with the two Saints, Jieyin and Zhunti.

In the space of the Eight-Treasure Merit Pond.

The figures of the two Saints sat above the Merit Pond, still absorbing the power of the Heavenly Dao to recover from their injuries.

Maitreya knelt on the ground and recounted the events of the Heavenly Court: the Southern Quasi-Saints entering the Heavenly Court to take up positions, the petition from the myriad spirits of the South... Haotian's desire to restrict the Saints from converting living beings, and the situation where his own authority as the Deity of Wealth was about to be lost.

After listening, Saint Zhunti frowned slightly and said faintly:

"The brat Haotian finally couldn't sit still."

Saint Jieyin sighed long:

"Our Western Sect intended to use the momentum of the Heavenly Court to grow, so the authority of the orthodox gods cannot be lost. Maitreya, have you left any handles in Haotian's hands regarding your wealth-gathering activities over the years?"

Cold sweat beaded on Maitreya's forehead, and he lowered his head:

"Disciple... acted secretly, but the Heavenly Emperor is a Saint, so one cannot be too sure."

The hall was silent for a moment.

After a long while, Zhunti spoke, his voice carrying a trace of determination:

"In that case, return to the Heavenly Court immediately and have all the Disciples under your wealth-deity lineage resign from their posts and be recalled to the Western Sect!"

"Sacrifice a portion of the god positions to preserve your own deity status."

"I believe Haotian will not make things too difficult for you... After all, he has also become a Saint, and he understands the rules of the Saints."

Upon hearing this, Maitreya instantly understood the meaning of Zhunti's words.

Within the Heavenly Court system, the Western Sect was showing weakness, and the Heavenly Court would give some Face, so that should be enough.

As for matters outside the Heavenly Court, such as the conversion of living beings, that was a game between Saints; it should not involve the Disciples.

He kowtowed to accept the order and rose to prepare to return to the Heavenly Court.

Meanwhile, in the Heavenly Court.

The Southern Quasi-Saints had firmly established themselves, and their palaces were arranged next to the Hall of Wealth.

Meeting every day, with gentle smiles on their Faces, yet it made the Western Sect Disciples feel like they were sitting on pins and needles.

The Heavenly Emperor Haotian sat high on the imperial throne, his gaze deep, as if he had already seen through all the layouts.

...

Meanwhile.

At the boundary between the space of Three Immortals Island and the East Sea space, in a piece of Chaos in the Void Realm.

Shi Yan and Fuxi stood side by side, each holding a jade fishing rod, lazily fishing in the surging waves below.

The sea breeze blew, carrying a faint salty, damp scent. In the distance, waves crashed against the shore, and the sound of a Dragon's roar echoed faintly, but it dared not approach this place by even half a step.

Shi Yan wore a white Daoist robe, his long hair draped loosely, his posture extremely leisurely.

He cast his gaze toward the vast ocean in front, his fishing rod trembling occasionally, yet no fish ever took the bait. After a long while, he spoke slowly, his voice carrying a trace of nonchalance:

"Fuxi, how did the divination turn out? Are the Heavenly Court's recent actions related to the Great Tribulation?"

Just a short while ago, the Deity of the Water Department had also informed the Human Race of everything that happened at the Peach Banquet.

Because the general trend of the Primordial World had developed in a new direction.

Therefore, Shi Yan asked Fuxi to calculate the Heavenly Secrets.

Fuxi was dressed in a Bagua Daoist robe, his demeanor calm and profound.

He nodded slightly, tossed the supreme treasure emitting rich profound yellow Qi of humanity—the kongtong seal—in his hand, and it landed steadily back in Shi Yan's palm.

"Although the Heavenly Secrets were obscured by the Heavenly Dao, with the help of the power of humanity, I still calculated some things." Fuxi said in a grave tone, speaking slowly,

"This Great Tribulation is unprecedented in scale and will envelop all living beings in the Primordial World; almost no place will be spared."

Upon hearing this, Shi Yan raised his eyebrows slightly, but he was not too surprised.

He flicked his fishing rod violently, pulling the hook up, and watching the empty hook draw an arc in the air, his expression turned toward Fuxi inadvertently, a glimmer of sharpness flashing in his eyes:

"Does it include the Human Race?"