Chapter 2949

He Lingchuan's eyes flickered: "Anyway, he's been idle lately, so I'll ask him to issue a joint invitation."

"The Demon Emperor will likely accept this invitation." The joint invitation from the Nine Abyss Great Emperor and the Wuhuan Great Emperor—what a grand gesture! How could the Demon Emperor possibly refuse? Du Shan laughed, "Once he receives the invitation, the Heavenly Demons will be on edge."

The meeting of the three great emperors of the human realm, especially at this particular time, is certainly not good news for the Heavenly Demons.

Such a summit is naturally a closed-door discussion on the Dao. The less the Heavenly Demons know about what the three discussed, the more they will worry that the Demon Emperor has reached some agreement with these two parties, which would be disadvantageous to them.

The Nine Abyss Great Emperor needs take no other action; simply sending out this invitation will divide the enemy camp and sow chaos in their ranks—why wouldn't that be "wonderful"?

"Let's do it that way." He Lingchuan slammed the table and went to contact the Wuhuan Great Emperor himself.

In casual conversation, they plotted world-shaking events; a single thought could stir up wind and clouds.

Twenty years ago, who would have dared imagine he could achieve such power today?

￥￥￥￥？

May 5, worship the Dragon God.

This is a major day for the Jia clan of the flood dragons and the dragon lineage; the Demon Emperor will also hold a grand ancestral ceremony on Ascending Dragon Mountain in the northern suburbs of Lingxu City, with minor rites every two years and major rites every five years.

For nearly the past six hundred years, this has been a grand event in Lingxu City, with countless demon tribes participating in worship together.

However, over twenty years ago, the Nine Abyss Great Emperor emerged from obscurity, proclaiming himself the "Reborn Dragon God," and established his vast empire overnight, instantly making the Demon Emperor's position somewhat awkward.

Everyone knows that the supreme ruler of Lingxu City is a descendant of the Dragon God. In an era when the dragon race has withered, this is one source of cohesion for the demon state. The Demon Emperor's identity and bloodline can prove that Jia received the Dragon God's blessing.

But after the "Reborn Dragon God" appeared, people no longer knew how to properly address the generational relationship between the Nine Abyss Great Emperor and the Demon Emperor of Jia. How should the latter refer to the former?

Logically, the Demon Emperor would not place himself in such a predicament; Jia would immediately launch troops to destroy that loud-mouthed impostor and uphold the orthodoxy of the Demon Emperor's bloodline.

Yet this person, Jia could not destroy, and could only watch helplessly as he remained active on the world stage for twenty years.

During these twenty years, the demeanor of contemporary rulers has been unmatched by anyone.

Therefore, when the Demon Emperor again holds the ancestral ceremony, he has intentionally simplified and streamlined the rites, no longer as elaborate and grand as before.

Formerly, the ceremony lasted three days, with the entire city celebrating; now it is merely the Demon Emperor leading a hundred officials to worship Ascending Dragon Mountain, taking only half a day.

He also no longer wishes to make a grand display.

In fact, over the past year, the Demon Emperor has rarely left his long-held stronghold on Heavenly Heart Island; the few times he did go out were hurried departures and returns. The situation is chaotic, and he does not wish to add unnecessary risks, so staying in his old nest is safest.

But no matter how simplified the ancestral ceremony becomes, he cannot avoid attending it. This concerns the entire Jia clan and the foundation of the Demon Emperor's rule in Lingxu City.

The Dragon Temple on Ascending Dragon Mountain is the most magnificent and splendid Dragon God temple in the world. Dashan towers high into the clouds, winding like a dragon, perpetually shrouded in clouds and mist, with immortal qi drifting about. The Dragon Temple occupies several peaks, connected by high-altitude walkways, mysterious and imposing.

There is only one shortcoming:

The Dragon Temple is not built on the highest peak; Lingxu City's external explanation is that the peaks are too steep and narrow to accommodate a temple complex.

But the real reason is actually that the Dragon Temple's elevation cannot exceed that of the Heavenly Palace!

Those who helped Jia establish his state and break free from the persecution of the Xian Sect were not the Dragon God, but the Heavenly God. Therefore, the Heavenly God's rank must naturally be higher.

Since the founding of Jia's state, this has been the requirement of the Heavenly Palace, unalterable.

Today is the fourth day of the fifth month; tomorrow is the grand ceremony. Now the Demon Emperor stands on Heavenly Heart Island, first gazing at the brilliant lights on Mount Xushan, then looking toward the more distant Ascending Dragon Mountain.

That mountain is likewise ablaze with lights. For the ancestral ceremony, the Dragon Temple began preparations a month in advance.

The Heavenly Palace is always lit up day and night, with countless devotees coming and going, a bustling place, unlike the Dragon Temple, which, though magnificent and grand, only sees such liveliness for this one month each year; at other times it is desolate and cold, like the heavenly palaces above.

The Demon Emperor let out a barely audible sigh. To the Jia people, the Dragon God has already degenerated into a mere symbol, unlike the Heavenly Palace, which forever thrives with incense.

Put plainly, it is merely the four characters "granting every wish" at work.

Even if the Dragon God once had the power to save the world, that gratitude is as distant as ancient history, while human foresight is too short-sighted and collective memory too fleeting; to this day, how many truly remember the Dragon God's contributions with sincerity?

The Heavenly God gives them faith and hope, whether true or false, and they will only worship the Heavenly God.

At this moment, footsteps sounded outside the main hall.

The other party deliberately stepped with sound—this is the rule for ministers entering the palace. Moreover, upon hearing these footsteps, the Demon Emperor immediately knew who it was.

Indeed, after a dozen or so breaths, the State Preceptor of the Qing Palace, Nie Xiaolou, hurried in and paid his respects.

"What is the matter?"

During the Demon Emperor's ancestral ceremony, he does not hold court, and ministers dare not come to disturb him—this has been the rule for hundreds of years. Therefore, on the eve of the ceremony, the Demon Emperor must work overtime.

"Your Majesty, a wild goose flies from the east. Cangyan has delivered a document from the Nine Abyss Great Emperor, inviting you to meet with the Wuhuan Great Emperor of Mu State by the Copper Waters at Bing Mountain." Having said this, Nie Xiaolou unfolded the document with both hands and presented it to the Dragon Lord.

The Demon Emperor glanced at it once. It was merely an official document, concise and to the point.

"Nineteen days from now, uh————" he fell into thought, "then there are still nine days; setting out from Lingxu City, we can make it in time."

Bing Mountain is a great mountain on the border between Jia and Mu State, with a winding stream beside it called Copper Water.

With the spiritual energy of heaven and earth so abundant, various divine powers of flying through the void can be used; there is no need to travel by land. Setting out from Lingxu City, if the Demon Emperor hurries, he can arrive in nine days.

Nie Xiaolou put away the document: "Then I will go reply to Cangyan."

The Demon Emperor agreed to join without much hesitation; Nie Xiaolou found this unsurprising. In his view, this summit should have been held long ago.

Not only are there external changes, but Jia's internal affairs are also in turmoil. Especially regarding the Heavenly Demon issue, the Demon Emperor and the other two great emperors have a pressing need to communicate.

Nie Xiaolou added: "In the process of the fall of Balin State and the battles on the Earth Mother Plains, these past few days we have also been compiling reports."

He first spoke of Balin State.

"The allied forces of Cangyan and Shen State invaded the capital of Balin State; the Balin King, knowing he could not resist, went out to surrender." Nie Xiaolou summarized briefly, "Zhao Huanrong and Zhao Shushu's uncle and nephew were both sent to the Shen King."

A few days ago, two tremendous bombshells appeared in succession, nearly stunning everyone:

The Jia Lou Heavenly Venerable, the Bai Zhan Heavenly Venerable, and the Tong Ming True Lord, all fell together in the Dragon-Subduing Excavation within Balin territory!

At that time, the Demon Emperor was also stunned into silence for a long while.

No wonder he was not composed; this truly was a earth-shattering, heaven-startling piece of news!

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