Chapter 64

Above the great hall, the gazes of all the immortals were focused on Su Chen, this inconspicuous young Daoist.

The Jade Emperor, sitting high upon the imperial throne, looked down at Su Chen below and spoke slowly: "Su Chen, since you are the sworn brother of the Great Sage Saint Qitian and have ascended to Heaven with him, by rights, I should bestow upon you the position of an immortal official."

"I see that you have a steady temperament and a good sense of propriety, unlike that mischievous monkey. How about this: I shall find you a civil post here in the Heavenly Court, perhaps as an official in charge of drafting records. What do you say?"

Once the Jade Emperor said this, many immortal officials nodded slightly; this was indeed a decent position.

Although civil posts in the Heavenly Court did not have the glorious military achievements of generals, they were clean, noble, and comfortable duties.

Every day, one merely had to organize classics and record case files. Not only could one read through countless Daoist secrets and rumors of the Heavenly Court, but one could also occasionally listen to great beings expound on the Dao, which was of great benefit for improving one's cultivation base and realm.

For a Human Immortal who had just ascended to Heaven, this could absolutely be considered a tremendous gift.

Upon hearing this, Sun Wukong also felt happy for Su Chen.

He poked Su Chen's arm and urged him via telepathy: "Little brother, did you hear that? The Jade Emperor wants to make you an official. This is a good thing!"

However, unexpectedly, Su Chen did not accept.

In his heart, he already had his own plans.

"An immortal official of the Heavenly Court? It sounds decent. But my goal is to stay by Monkey Brother's side to prevent him from being schemed against and following the old path of the original story. If I become an immortal official and am separated from Monkey Brother, then what was the point of me coming up with him?"

"No, I must stay in the Great Sage's Mansion."

Su Chen made a decision in his heart.

He stepped forward and bowed deeply to the Jade Emperor once more.

"Your Majesty's great kindness, Su Chen is deeply grateful."

"However, Su Chen's cultivation is shallow and my virtue is meager. I am but a loose cultivator from the mortal world who luckily obtained some immortal fate to reach where I am today. The immortal officials of the Heavenly Court are established for those with virtue and talent. Su Chen asks himself, whether in virtue or talent, I am far from qualified to shoulder such a responsibility."

"If I were to forcibly accept this position, I fear I would not do it well, and furthermore, I would feel ashamed in my heart, which would hinder my Dao heart. Therefore, I beg Your Majesty to retract the order!"

He spoke these words with the utmost sincerity.

The immortals in the great hall were all stunned.

They had seen people scrambling for official positions, but they had never seen anyone voluntarily decline one.

And it was a position personally bestowed by the Jade Emperor at that!

Was there something wrong with this young Daoist's brain?

Sun Wukong was also anxious. He sent a telepathic message: "Little brother, have you gone stupid? An official position delivered to your doorstep, and you don't want it?"

Su Chen ignored him and just waited calmly for the Jade Emperor's reply.

The Jade Emperor looked at Su Chen, a trace of appreciation appearing in his eyes.

"Oh? You do not want the position of an immortal official, then what is it that you want?"

Su Chen raised his head and said neither humbly nor arrogantly: "Su Chen has no other requests. My only purpose in coming to Heaven this time is to accompany my elder brother, so as to prevent him from violating Heavenly laws due to his ignorance of them."

"Since Your Majesty has already built the 'Great Sage Saint Qitian's Mansion' for my brother, presumably the mansion also needs manpower to manage daily chores."

"Su Chen is untalented, but I am willing to serve in the Great Sage's Mansion to share my brother's burdens and manage the affairs of the mansion. In this way, I can fulfill my duty as a brother and also remind my brother at all times, so as not to let him violate Heavenly laws."

After finishing, Su Chen bowed deeply once again.

The Jade Emperor looked at Su Chen and clapped his hands, laughing aloud.

"Good! Knowing when to advance or retreat, understanding gains and losses—Su Chen, you are very good!"

"I like people like you!"

The Jade Emperor immediately issued an edict: "Since that is the case, I grant your request. I appoint you as the Chief Assistant Official of the 'Great Sage Saint Qitian's Mansion,' in charge of all affairs of the Great Sage's Mansion. This position does not enter the ranks of immortal officials and is responsible only to the Great Sage Saint Qitian himself!"

"Su Chen thanks Your Majesty for your Heavenly grace!" Su Chen was overjoyed; this was exactly what he wanted.

After the rewards were finished, the Jade Emperor ordered someone to lead Sun Wukong and Su Chen to the newly built Great Sage Saint Qitian's Mansion.

Su Chen and Sun Wukong, led by two immortal officials, arrived before an imposing palace.

Great Sage Saint Qitian's Mansion.

These five gold-plated characters hung in a dragon-flying, phoenix-dancing style above the main gate of the palace, looking extraordinarily imposing.

Inside the palace, it was even more carved and adorned with jade, surrounded by immortal Qi, with pavilions and towers, a new scene at every step, countless times more luxurious than that Water Curtain Cave.

"Hahaha! Good! Good! Good!"

As soon as Sun Wukong went in, he jumped up and down in the mansion, touching this jade pillar one moment and looking at that rockery the next.

"Little brother, come and see! This place is even more beautiful than the Crystal Palace of the Dragon King of the East Sea. The Jade Emperor is really decent!" He grabbed Su Chen's arm and shouted.

Su Chen also smiled and looked around, but his heart was not as excited as Sun Wukong's.

He knew that this magnificent mansion was just a cage.

The Jade Emperor gave Sun Wukong the empty title of "Great Sage Saint Qitian" and this mansion just to lift him up high and trap him here, so that he would walk into that upcoming great tribulation on his own.

"Monkey Brother, don't be impatient, we have plenty of time to look." Su Chen patted Sun Wukong's arm and swept his gaze over the dozen or so immortal officials and clerks standing by with their hands hanging down.

These people were all sent by the Jade Emperor to "serve" the Great Sage Saint Qitian.

They were each dressed in immortal official robes, their expressions solemn.

Sun Wukong played around for a while and also felt a bit bored.

Although this mansion was good, it was cold and cheerless, far less lively than his Flower-Fruit Mountain.

He sat down on the main chair with a thud and waved his hand at those immortal officials and clerks: "Hey, you all, what are your names? What do you do?"

The leading immortal official stepped forward, bowed, and saluted: "Reporting to the Great Sage, this little immortal is the Left Assistant Immortal Official of this Great Sage's Mansion, Zhang De. This is the Right Assistant Immortal Official, Li Ming. We follow His Majesty's edict to wait here for the Great Sage's orders, responsible for handling all documents and miscellaneous affairs in the mansion."

His words were neither humble nor arrogant, and his etiquette was perfect.

How could Sun Wukong have the patience to listen to this? He scratched his ears and said impatiently: "What Left Assistant, Right Assistant, I, Old Sun, can't remember. Alright, alright, I, Old Sun, have no interest in these pedantic things. From now on, all matters in this mansion, you all listen to my little brother."

He pointed at Su Chen and said to everyone: "This is Su Chen, my brother. From today on, he is the Chief Assistant Official of this Great Sage's Mansion, in charge of all affairs in the mansion. His words are my, Old Sun's, words. Do you all understand?"

"Yes, greetings to the Chief Assistant Official!"

Left Assistant Immortal Official Zhang De and Right Assistant Immortal Official Li Ming hurriedly saluted.

Su Chen stepped forward, a gentle smile on his face, and cupped his hands toward Zhang De and Li Ming.

"Two immortal officials, you have worked hard."

"Su Chen is a newcomer and does not understand the rules of the Heavenly Court, so I will need much guidance from you two in the future. However, there are some things I must say first: this Great Sage's Mansion is my brother's mansion, so naturally, there must be some rules..."

Although Su Chen only had the cultivation of a Human Immortal, because he practiced the "Thirty-Six Axes of Heavenly Gang," he naturally had a sharp, murderous aura on him.

Coupled with the will of opening the heavens branded deep in his spirit when he interpreted the two characters "Pangu," at this moment, a slight movement of it made the immortal officials present tremble in their hearts simultaneously.

They looked at Su Chen with suspicion and uncertainty.

How could this young Daoist, who seemed to have low cultivation, have such an astonishing momentum?

"We will strictly follow the orders of the Chief Assistant Official!" Zhang De reacted the fastest and hurriedly bowed to respond.

Seeing this, the others followed suit and saluted: "Strictly follow the orders of the Chief Assistant Official!"

"It is good that you all understand. Alright, go and get busy."

"Yes."

The immortal officials and clerks felt as if they had been granted amnesty and hurriedly retreated.

The days of settling down in the Heavenly Court were fresh at first.

But after a few days, Sun Wukong couldn't stay still.

Although this Great Sage's Mansion was large, in the end, there were only him and Su Chen. Those immortal officials and clerks all acted like wooden statues; when they saw him, they would bow and salute, and couldn't squeeze out a fart in a long time, which was truly boring.

He, this Great Sage Saint Qitian, had a name but no power, and every day, besides wandering around the mansion, he had nothing to do.

This day, he really couldn't hold it in anymore and did a somersault in front of Su Chen.

"Little brother, it's no good, I, Old Sun, am about to get moldy staying here! I, Old Sun, want to go out for a walk and find someone to drink with!"

Su Chen looked at his impatient appearance and said with a smile: "That's fine, staying in the mansion all day is indeed boring. I will accompany Monkey Brother out for a walk."

"Good, let's go, let's go!"

Sun Wukong pulled Su Chen up and rushed out of the Great Sage's Mansion like a gust of wind.