Chapter 81

After the other immortals left, only Yang Zhen, the Jade Emperor, and Tai Bai Jin Xing remained in the Lingxiao Hall.

Although what happened in the Lingxiao Hall today was unexpected by the three of them, this outcome was still better than doing nothing. At least the chances of Yang Zhen obtaining the position of Marshal Tianpeng had increased significantly.

Early this morning, due to the provocation of the Heavenly Gang Great Sage, Yang Zhen had a chance to act. Not only did he severely injure the Heavenly Gang Great Sage, but he also made him lose face. If the Beihai incident had not occurred, the Heavenly Gang Great Sage, who had lost face, might not have been so insistent on becoming Marshal Tianpeng. At that time, if Yang Zhen threatened him in secret, the position of Marshal Tianpeng would have been his with a high probability.

However, the complaint from the Beihai Dragon King gave the Heavenly Gang Great Sage another chance to regain his face. If the Heavenly Gang Great Sage really defeated the Dragon King of the Beihai, it would affirm his strength. At that point, Yang Zhen would have no chance at all.

Of course, because Yang Zhen knew that the Heavenly Gang Great Sage was no match for the Dragon King of the Beihai, he suggested to the Jade Emperor that the Heavenly Gang Great Sage be ordered to go to the Beihai for support.

However, the Great Emperor Zizhui proposed that Li Jing, the Four Heavenly Kings, Nezha, Yang Jian, and others assist the Heavenly Gang Great Sage. This greatly increased the chances of the Heavenly Gang Great Sage's success.

Indeed, the world is unpredictable, and plans often don't keep up with changes.

"Minister Yang, do you think the Heavenly Gang will succeed in this mission?" the Jade Emperor asked Yang Zhen. Although it was a question, the Jade Emperor clearly wanted Yang Zhen to come up with a plan.

Shaking his head, Yang Zhen said, "It's hard to say. The strength of the Dragon King of the Beihai is undeniable, but Yang Jian is definitely stronger than him. Whether other demon kings will come to the Dragon King's aid, I can't be sure. However... even if the Dragon King of the Beihai hasn't informed his sworn brothers, we can inform them."

"We inform them...?" Tai Bai Jin Xing's eyes lit up, and he smiled. "That's a good idea. We can send someone to pretend to be the Dragon King's subordinate and inform his sworn brothers. If several great demons gather in the Beihai, even if Yang Jian is very strong, he won't be able to protect the Heavenly Gang Great Sage."

"However, this must be done secretly, without leaving any traces," Yang Zhen said.

The Jade Emperor nodded and ordered, "Tai Bai, I'll leave this to you."

"Understood!" Tai Bai Jin Xing replied.

"Only two or three demon kings need to be informed. If all six great demons gather in the Beihai, even we won't be able to easily resolve the situation," Yang Zhen reminded.

...

A new day, a new beginning. For Yang Zhen, although this day wasn't a major turning point, it was still an important day.

It had been two days since the Heavenly Gang Great Sage led the troops to the Beihai for support. Last night, Guangmu Tianwang brought back the Heavenly Gang Great Sage with dozens of celestial soldiers. If it weren't for the elixirs of Laozi, the Heavenly Gang Great Sage would have died on the way back to the Heavenly Court.

According to Guangmu Tianwang, after they descended to the mortal world, the Dragon King of the Beihai soon came to challenge. As Yang Zhen had predicted, the Dragon King of the Beihai did not come alone but brought his three sworn brothers: the Leveling Heaven Great Sage Niuhuang, the Wind-Blowing Great Sage Mihouwang, and the Mountain-Moving Great Sage Shituo.

With four great demon kings gathering in the Beihai, all of them at the level of Golden Immortals, even the combined forces of the Heavenly Court's 200,000 troops and the Four Seas' armies were forced to retreat, unable to match them.

The Heavenly Gang Great Sage was only the deputy of Marshal Tianpeng, and the previous Marshal Tianpeng was only at the level of a Great Immortal. How could the Heavenly Gang Great Sage's cultivation be much higher?

Although Yang Jian and Nezha could gain the upper hand in one-on-one battles, the other two great demon kings were unstoppable. Li Jing and the Four Heavenly Kings could barely hold off one of them, but the last great demon could wreak havoc in the Heavenly Court's army, with almost no one able to match him.

In a recent battle, the Mountain-Moving Great Sage Shituo used his mountain-moving technique to manipulate two mountains and smash them into the area with the most Heavenly Court soldiers. This single move severely injured the Heavenly Gang Great Sage, almost killing him on the spot. Due to the heavy losses on the Heavenly Court's side, Li Jing sounded the retreat and planned to report to the Heavenly Court before engaging the demons again.

The Mountain-Moving Great Sage Shituo is not the same as the leader of Lion Camel Ridge in the Journey to the West. The blue lion of Lion Camel Ridge is the mount of Manjushri Bodhisattva, while the Mountain-Moving Great Sage Shituo is a native demon with no powerful backing.

Although the demon race has lost its status as the main characters in the world, there are still many formidable demons. In the Journey to the West, the pipa demon dared to cause chaos on Ling Mountain, the Yellow Brow dared to impersonate the Buddha, and the Golden-Winged Great Peng dared to attack the Buddha. Each of these is a bold and powerful being.

In short, the Heavenly Court suffered heavy losses in the Beihai battle. Not only did they lose tens of thousands of celestial soldiers, but the Heavenly Gang Great Sage was severely injured and would not recover in the short term.

Listening to Guangmu Tianwang's report, Yang Zhen felt a bit uneasy. Although he knew that most of them could reincarnate and continue their cultivation, in a major battle, many would be completely destroyed, disappearing from the world of Hongmang.

All of this could have been avoided.

Yang Zhen didn't know if what he did was right or wrong. However, the benefits to him were obvious. As the saying goes, a general's success is built on the bones of many. The path to enlightenment is the same. The resources in the world are limited. The amount of merit, magical treasures, and elixirs is finite. Whoever gets more will have an easier path.

While Yang Zhen was deep in thought, the Jade Emperor had already finished discussing with the other immortals. Sending reinforcements was necessary, as it also concerned the face of the Heavenly Court. If they continued to lose, the Heavenly Court's rule over the Three Realms would certainly weaken.

However, who to send and how many to send was a big problem.

The people sent by the Great Emperor Zizhui had already failed. The next group sent would definitely be the Jade Emperor's people. Yang Zhen, who was competing with the Heavenly Gang Great Sage for the position of Marshal Tianpeng, would definitely go, but the other selections were difficult to decide.

In the end, the Jade Emperor decided to send the Twenty-Eight Constellations to accompany Yang Zhen to the Beihai for support.

After receiving the order, Yang Zhen flew out of the South Gate of the Heavenly Court with the Twenty-Eight Constellations, heading for the Beihai.

Although the Twenty-Eight Constellations varied in strength, there were no shortage of experts among them. Kuimu Lang, Jiaomu Jiao, Jingmu An, Doumu Xie, Kangjin Long, and Angri Ji were all rare talents in the Three Realms. Each of them was just one step away from reaching the level of a Golden Immortal, with extremely high combat power.

After flying out of the South Gate, Kuimu Lang introduced his brothers to Yang Zhen and congratulated him, "Brother Yang, after returning from the Beihai, the position of Marshal Tianpeng will definitely be yours. Congratulations in advance."

"Hehe, it's hard to say. It still depends on the Jade Emperor's decision," Yang Zhen humbly replied. But from the smile on his face, it was clear that he was very pleased with Kuimu Lang's words.

"Heh! As long as Brother Yang uses the 'Illusion Sword' and 'Blade Storm' techniques, I'm sure the battle will be quickly decided," Kuimu Lang laughed.

(Two updates will resume tomorrow. Apologies for the past two days.)

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