Chapter 734: Upholding Justice

Along with Old Ancestor Hongjun's words, a heavenly dao pressure spread out.

Under this pressure, all the Dragon Clan and Demon Clan ceased fighting.

Zu Long, like Di Jun, looked toward Old Ancestor Hongjun, his eyes flashing with a complex expression.

He had heard of Di Jun's havoc in the Heavenly Court, knowing Old Ancestor Hongjun would not allow him to completely destroy Spirit Mountain and would surely intervene to stop it, so he was not surprised by Old Ancestor Hongjun's appearance. He merely sighed at the changes of the world.

Back then, Old Ancestor Hongjun and he were merely at the Quasi-Sage cultivation level.

However, now, after merging with the Dao, Old Ancestor Hongjun surpasses the Heavenly Dao Sage and is a powerhouse of the Half-Step Heavenly Dao Realm.

But he remains stuck in the Quasi-Sage Realm.

"Hongjun, even though your strength now surpasses mine, once I join the Holy Court I will obtain an opportunity far surpassing yours!"

"One day, my strength will surely surpass yours completely, leaving you far behind!"

Seeing the long-awaited Old Ancestor Hongjun finally appear, the Tathagata Buddha hurried forward to complain:

"Patriarch Hongjun, the Dragon Court and Demon Court are excessively arrogant, relying on their numbers to oppress my Buddhist Sect and destroy Spirit Mountain beyond recognition!"

"Disciple Tathagata, I earnestly implore Patriarch to uphold justice for my Buddhist Sect!"

As the Tathagata Buddha's words fell, the Ancient Buddha Ran Deng, Maitreya Buddha, Guanyin Bodhisattva, and the other Buddhas all echoed in unison, shouting:

"Please, Founding Master Hongjun, decide for my Buddhist Sect!"

Seeing the Buddhist Sect's people behave like children who, after losing a fight, ask their parents for help, Zu Long and Di Jun felt disdain.

Zu Long opened his mouth to say to Old Ancestor Hongjun:

"Hongjun, we are old acquaintances; surely you will judge this matter fairly!"

"The Buddhist Sect not only seized my Dragon Transformation Pool but also enslaved my dragon descendants, oppressing them to the point of unbearable suffering!"

"I came to Spirit Mountain today merely to seek justice, yet the Tathagata Buddha has turned black and white, slandering us as oppressors of the Buddhist Sect!"

"You say, is this matter not justified for me?"

Hearing this, Patriarch Hongjun frowned slightly, pondering silently.

As Zu Long said, although the Buddhist Sect appears to be oppressed now, the root cause is indeed the Buddhist Sect's fault.

Just like Di Jun's havoc in the Heavenly Court before, to make Zu Long cease, the Buddhist Sect likely needs to pay a price and give him certain compensation.

After a moment's thought, Old Ancestor Hongjun said to Zu Long:

"Zu Long, I know the Buddhist Sect once oppressed the Dragon Clan, but now the heavenly dao trend favors the Buddhist Sect's rise; you must not cause trouble in Spirit Mountain anymore!"

"You have already reclaimed the Dragon Transformation Pool and taken many treasures from Spirit Mountain; shouldn't you be satisfied?"

Zu Long hearing this, let out a cold snort:

"Hongjun, this is far from enough!"

"Although the Dragon Transformation Pool has been reclaimed, the Buddhist Sect has used it for years; how could it be free?"

"Although the Buddhist Sect's dragon followers have been rescued, they were enslaved for years; the Buddhist Sect ought to give compensation!"

"I am not a difficult person; let the Tathagata Buddha give me a hundred Innate Spiritual Treasures, and this matter will be settled."

"Furthermore, the Buddhist Sect cannot suffer this insult for free; also have the Tathagata Buddha write three self-reproach edicts!"

Upon hearing Zu Long's lion-sized demand, the Tathagata Buddha immediately felt the stifled frustration of the Jade Emperor of old.

Zu Long has reclaimed the Dragon Transformation Pool, yet now he wants the Buddhist Sect to pay usage fees?

The Buddhist Sect spent countless treasures to raise those dragon followers, yet has not asked Zu Long for training fees, but he now demands compensation? Worse still, he even wants the Tathagata Buddha to write a self-reproach edict?

The Tathagata Buddha knows well that after the Jade Emperor wrote a self-reproach edict, his prestige suffered and he faced widespread criticism.

This self-reproach edict, he will absolutely not write!

The Tathagata Buddha immediately argued:

"Patriarch Hongjun, although the Buddhist Sect once owed the Dragon Clan, today the Dragon Clan has destroyed Spirit Mountain to this extent, which can be considered mutual cancellation!"

"With Zu Long making such a lion-sized demand, this disciple cannot possibly agree!"

In the end, after much debate, Old Ancestor Hongjun still compromised.

He not only agreed to cancel the Buddhist Sect's dragon followers, but also painfully produced a hundred Innate Spiritual Treasures as compensation for Zu Long.

Having received the Innate Spiritual Treasures compensated by the Tathagata Buddha, Zu Long was quite satisfied.

Thus, after exchanging a few pleasantries with Old Ancestor Hongjun, he led the Dragon Clan back to the Dragon Court.

Seeing the matter settled, Di Jun also led tens of thousands of the Demon Clan away together with Zu Long.

After respectively returning to the Dragon Court and Demon Court, Zu Long brought the Heaven-Overturning Seal, Human Seed Bag, Five Direction Bright King Formation Diagram, and over a hundred Spirit Treasures obtained from the Tathagata Buddha; Di Jun brought the Azure Lotus Treasure Color Flag and Kong Xuan, and they all entered the Holy Court World!

Zu Long reached the Holy Court one step ahead of Di Jun.

He first turned in the "Dragon Rise" mission, earning abundant point rewards.

Afterward, Zu Long contributed the recently harvested Heaven-Overturning Seal, Human Seed Bag, Five Direction Bright King Formation Diagram, and over a hundred Innate Spiritual Treasures entirely to Wu Meiniang.

Although it appeared that Wu Meiniang collected the treasures, in fact they all ended up in Ye Qin's hands.

Ye Qin received the treasures contributed by Zu Long, casually playing with the Heaven-Overturning Seal forged from half of Mount Buzhou, his mood excellent.

Many people have a collecting habit, and Ye Qin is no exception.

The difference is, Ye Qin likes to collect various treasures.

At least, whatever catches his eye must be of Spirit Treasure grade.

Like the Innate Spiritual Treasures Zu Long obtained from the Tathagata Buddha, Ye Qin plans to, after gathering enough ordinary Innate Spiritual Treasures, begin refining a Myriad Treasure River.

As for the famous treasures such as the Heaven-Overturning Seal, Human Seed Bag, and Five Direction Bright King Formation Diagram, they qualify to become Ye Qin's solitary collection.

"Creating an organization is indeed good; with so many treasures, if I were to collect them myself, I wouldn't know how much time and effort it would take."

"And with an organization, simply issuing a task and giving them some Holy Court points can easily reap many treasures!"

"In the future, perhaps all the treasures of the Journey to the West World will end up in my hands!"

Ye Qin smiled at the freshly harvested treasures, full of anticipation for the future.

Outside the Holy Court hall, Ancestral Dragon willingly contributed treasures such as the Heavenly Seal and the Five Directions Bright Kings Formation Diagram because he valued the Holy Court's enhancement function.

He intended to exchange for one bodily enhancement, but his Holy Court points were insufficient.

After contributing these treasures, he just had enough points to satisfy the requirement for one enhancement.

Ancestral Dragon valued his own abilities more than external power.

In his view, no matter how powerful a magical treasure, it is not as useful as his own body.

As long as Ancestral Dragon's true form is strong enough, it can surpass any magical treasure!

After obtaining enough points by contributing magical treasures, Ancestral Dragon immediately sought Wu Mei Niang's help to strengthen his body.

After deducting the corresponding points, Wu Mei Niang waved her hand, and three profound heavenly dao patterns wrapped Ancestral Dragon's body.

Ang——

Ancestral Dragon involuntarily reverted to his true form.

His body, stretching ten thousand li, lay before the Holy Court hall, awe-inspiring.

Each scale and each inch of his bones underwent transformation under the influence of the heavenly dao patterns.

After a moment, the enhancement was complete.

Looking again at Ancestral Dragon's body, on scales that seemed cast of gold, the heavenly dao patterns' motifs could faintly be seen.

At this moment, the strength of Ancestral Dragon's scales had reached an unimaginable level.

In the absence of any sage, only the word "invincible" can describe it!

When Ancestral Dragon's enhancement finished, Emperor Jun happened to arrive at the Holy Court.

Witnessing the astonishing might of Ancestral Dragon after his enhancement, Emperor Jun secretly gasped:

"I never expected Ancestral Dragon's strength to increase so much!"

"I was already inferior to him, and now the gap between us has become even more apparent!"

"The reason Ancestral Dragon could grow stronger is that he recently harvested many spiritual treasures and exchanged them for Holy Court points. I too must gather more spiritual treasures, striving to surpass Ancestral Dragon as soon as possible!"

Emperor Jun secretly made up his mind, and immediately offered the hundred formation-diagram magical treasures he had just obtained in the Western Buddhist Realm, together with the Azure Lotus Treasure-Colored Banner, to Wu Mei Niang.

Actually, Emperor Jun originally wanted to keep the Azure Lotus Treasure-Colored Banner, but since this banner was refined by the Welcoming Daoist and bears a sage's imprint that cannot be erased, he simply offered it as well.

After offering the treasures, Emperor Jun released Kong Xuan from the Hetu Luoshu space.

As soon as Kong Xuan emerged from the space, he was shaken by the mighty pressure emanating from the Holy Court hall.

He never imagined that the world could have such an inconceivable structure!

The great dao patterns engraved on the Holy Court hall left Kong Xuan deeply shaken.

He could not imagine what kind of being could create such a miracle!

Just as Kong Xuan was shaken by the Holy Court hall, Wu Mei Niang spoke:

"Are you Kong Xuan?"

Kong Xuan turned his head at the sound, saw it was Wu Mei Niang, and was instantly stunned.

Although he had never met Wu Mei Niang before, he inexplicably felt extremely familiar.

It was as if Wu Mei Niang were his own kin!

"What... is going on?"

Kong Xuan's heart was filled with shock.

As a top-tier quasi-sage, he would not have this feeling for no reason.

This undoubtedly indicates that there must be a special connection between him and Wu Mei Niang!

Then, what exactly is Wu Mei Niang to him?

Kong Xuan carefully recalled, and suddenly his body trembled.

He remembered!

The sense of familiarity that Wu Mei Niang gave him was exactly like the familiarity he felt toward his mother, Yuan Feng.

"Could it be... she is the reincarnation of my mother?"

A startling thought flashed through Kong Xuan's mind.

At the same time, Ye Qin inside the Holy Court hall, seeing Kong Xuan's shocked expression upon seeing Wu Mei Niang, couldn't help but laugh:

"I never expected that Kong Xuan would remember his mother's aura so deeply!"

"Wu Mei Niang is merely a fragment of Yuan Feng's spirit reincarnated; Ancestral Dragon, despite meeting her many times, failed to recognize her, whereas Kong Xuan, based on a single encounter, identified her identity!"

Actually, Ye Qin initially knew nothing about Wu Mei Niang's origin.

He never expected that Wu Mei Niang would have such an extraordinary origin.

But upon careful thought, he felt it was reasonable.

After all, the eternal emperor Ying Zheng is a fragment of Ancestral Dragon's spirit reincarnated, and the sole female emperor in human history, Wu Zetian, is a fragment of Yuan Feng's spirit reincarnated—what is so surprising about that?

After Ye Qin sighed, he immediately sent a mental transmission to Wu Mei Niang:

"Wu Mei Niang, I almost forgot to tell you: you are a fragment of Kong Xuan's mother Yuan Feng's spirit reincarnated..."

"At this moment, Kong Xuan has already recognized the Yuan Feng aura on you, hence his astonishment."

"Please handle your relationship with Kong Xuan as you see fit..."

"Am I the reincarnation of a fragment of Kong Xuan's mother Yuan Feng's spirit?"

Upon hearing Ye Qin's transmission, Wu Mei Niang was shocked.

She had always thought she was merely an ordinary person; if not for meeting Ye Qin, she might have lived an ordinary life.

Who would have thought she had such an extraordinary origin!

What kind of being was Yuan Feng?

One of the three hegemons of the ancient Honghuang continent!

When the Primordial Phoenix roamed Honghuang, humanity had not yet been born!

She is actually the reincarnation of such an existence?

Wu Meiniang was shocked for a moment, then calmed down.

Though the Primordial Phoenix is strong, before Ye Qin it is insignificant!

As Ye Qin's maidservant, she has already followed Ye Qin into the Immortal Seclusion Realm.

It can be foreseen that achieving sainthood in the future will also be no difficulty!

As for her connection with the Primordial Phoenix, although she is indeed a reincarnation of a wisp of the Primordial Phoenix's divided spirit, from the moment she received Ye Qin's enlightenment, was promoted to Great Luo Golden Immortal, and jumped out of the river of time of this realm, she has already become an independent individual.

At this moment, she is herself, no longer a wisp of the Primordial Phoenix's spirit.

After figuring it out, Wu Meiniang's expression became calm.

She looked at Kong Xuan, whose face showed shock, and spoke:

"Kong Xuan, you must be wondering why seeing me feels familiar, right?"

When Wu Meiniang said this, Kong Xuan's body trembled.

He rarely became nervous, hesitated a moment, then asked:

"That's right, I indeed sensed my mother's aura from you!"

"I really want to know who you are, and why you carry my mother's aura."

The Holy Maiden actually has Kong Xuan's mother's aura?

Upon hearing this, Di Jun and Zu Long were both startled.

Especially Zu Long!

He and the Primordial Phoenix were once enemies, as incompatible as water and fire.

If Wu Meiniang really is the Primordial Phoenix, the consequences would be unthinkable!

Zu Long's gaze locked tightly onto Wu Meiniang, eagerly wanting an answer.

Only seeing Wu Meiniang smile slightly, she said to Kong Xuan:

"Kong Xuan, in fact, this palace originally was a reincarnation of a wisp of the Primordial Phoenix's divided spirit……"

When Wu Meiniang said this, everyone present was deeply shocked.

A Holy Maiden of the Holy Court is actually a reincarnation of a wisp of the Primordial Phoenix's divided spirit!

Doesn't this mean she can be considered Kong Xuan's mother?

Kong Xuan and Di Jun were shocked beyond measure, while Zu Long was even more astonished to the extreme!

Wu Meiniang is an administrator of the Holy Court!

Given her relationship with the Primordial Phoenix, what will happen in the future?

Under the shocked gazes of the three, Wu Meiniang continued:

"However, from the moment this palace attained the Dao of Great Luo, it has become a completely independent individual, severing ties with the Primordial Phoenix!"

"Therefore, Kong Xuan, you need not regard this palace as your mother……"

"Of course, we are fated; since you are valued by the Holy Lord and have come to the Holy Court, this palace will naturally take care of you."

"If you wish, you may call this palace 'older sister'……"

Upon hearing Wu Meiniang's words, Di Jun and Zu Long both cast envious glances at Kong Xuan.

With a Holy Maiden looking after him, Kong Xuan's days in the Holy Court will surely be fine!

Why don't they have such an opportunity?

And Kong Xuan felt slightly disappointed.

At this moment he has not yet realized the significance of the Holy Court, feeling disappointed only because Wu Meiniang is not his mother.

You should know, Kong Xuan is actually an extremely lonely person.

Since his birth, he has never seen his mother's figure.

His impression of his mother, the Primordial Phoenix, relies entirely on the vague aura he sensed while still in the eggshell.

Although it is merely such a vague memory, Kong Xuan has deeply imprinted it in his heart, unforgettable to this day.

However, after the brief disappointment, Kong Xuan thought: although he has not found his mother, he now has an older sister.

Having an older sister's care also seems like a good thing!

At least, he will no longer be alone as before. Thus, Kong Xuan nodded and sincerely said to Wu Meiniang:

"Kong Xuan, greetings, older sister!"

Wu Meiniang, hearing this, happily smiled and said:

"Very well, Kong Xuan, from today onward, you and I are older sister and younger brother!"

Then, Wu Meiniang again said to Kong Xuan:

"Kong Xuan, I fully understand your situation." (End of chapter)