Chapter 405: All This Chaos Was Just for a Woman!

The Heavenly Court.

The Jade Emperor and the Queen Mother stared at each other, watching Gu Qing, Yang Jian, Sun Wukong, and the sharp Pangu Axe charge in; though they were Golden Immortals, they felt utterly trapped.

They hadn’t even lifted a finger, and it was already over.

The Jade Emperor looked at Gu Qing, at the Pangu Axe in his hand, moved his lips, and his expression turned warmly familiar: “Son-in-law!”

The Pangu Axe could not only cleave heaven and earth, but also shatter this miserable barrier.

Yaoji stood behind Gu Qing, gazing at the Jade Emperor seated in the Jade Pool; their sibling bond had been severed when Yang Tianyou died. Now Yaoji prevented Gu Qing from overturning the court because toppling the Jade Emperor would trigger massive celestial law reforms, drawing all Golden Immortals into a scramble for dominion over the Three Realms—a disaster for all living beings.

“Qi’er married you, Yang Chan married you—we’re all one family now.”

The Queen Mother also forced a smile.

Golden Immortals could control celestial laws and principles, but the Pangu Axe could destroy them.

Gu Qing now held the power to destroy the Heavenly Court along with himself; the Jade Emperor and the Queen Mother had no choice but to show restraint and negotiate properly with Gu Qing.

“But our marriage is forbidden by celestial law.”

Gu Qing’s tone carried a hint of amusement.

The Jade Emperor wore a conciliatory smile: “Son-in-law, we established celestial law to make immortals and gods emotionless precisely to ensure fairness in the Three Realms. When immortals and gods develop desires and selfishness, they trample order. The Heavenly Court would become like mortal dynasties—after a period of divine expansion, a great upheaval would be needed to restore peace.”

Immortals and gods, devoid of emotion and desire, enforcing celestial law, actually protected fairness in the Three Realms.

“Take Yang Jiao and Yang Jian—they braved the Eighteen Layers of Hell and stormed the Heavenly Court to find their father, committing unforgivable treason.”

The Queen Mother pointed at Yang Jiao and Yang Jian as examples: “In desire, emotion is giving, desire is taking. If immortals and gods cannot control this limit and sink into desire, they suffer endless torment—just like Yang Jian.”

Yang Jian frowned; he sensed this was not simple.

“Second Brother Yang.”

Nezha pulled out a small scroll from among the immortals and handed it to Yang Jian: “I meant to show it to you first, but there was too much to handle...”

Yang Jian took the scroll and saw it was written by the Kitchen God, detailing every quarrel in Yang Jian’s household, submitted to the Heavenly Court. The Queen Mother had printed copies and distributed them to all immortals as a cautionary example.

Yaoji and Yang Jiao stepped forward, glanced briefly, saw the contents, and turned their faces aside to spare Yang Jian’s dignity.

Yang Jian infused his palm with power and shattered the scroll, coldly saying: “If the Kitchen God dares speak out again, I’ll gouge out his eyes, cut out his tongue, and plug his ears!”

For Yang Jian, having his private affairs turned into entertainment for the immortals was a great humiliation.

The Kitchen God, among the immortals, immediately shrank back and hid.

“You may think celestial law is unreasonable, but it has its reasons.”

Said the Jade Emperor.

“These unreasonable acts include you sending ten suns to scorch the mortal realm, and your plan to unleash the Weak Water against Yang Jiao and Yang Jian, regardless of the devastation it would bring to mortals.”

Said Gu Qing.

These two acts were the Jade Emperor’s irredeemable stains.

The immortals in the Heavenly Court whispered among themselves, constantly glancing at the Jade Emperor above.

The Jade Emperor lowered his eyes slightly; he could not easily admit fault here.

At this moment, immortals from all corners were arriving—the Supreme Elder from the Thirty-Three Heavens, the Primordial Heavenly Venerable who had just left Kunlun, the Treasure Heavenly Venerable who had lost the Investiture War, and the Western Buddha and others.

Seeing Gu Qing pressuring the Jade Emperor, most immortals watched silently.

“Will none of you speak a word?”

Gu Qing looked around at the immortals: “Are you all planning to stand aside and help whoever wins?”

Aside from the Golden Immortals, every other immortal lowered their eyes, silent.

“Fine.”

Gu Qing suddenly changed tone: “Since the Jade Emperor is also my father-in-law, we can negotiate a truce—then we both win.”

You want to make peace?

Instantly, the immortals near the Jade Pool grew uneasy. Gu Qing, wielding the Pangu Axe, was now the undisputed strongest force in the Three Realms. If he truly allied with the Jade Emperor, the Emperor’s weakness would vanish instantly, and the leaky Heavenly Court would become a solid iron block.

The Jade Emperor’s face brightened with joy; he clapped his hands repeatedly: “A win-win is good! A win-win is good!”

All the gods turned to Gu Qing; if the Jade Emperor and Gu Qing both won, they would be the biggest losers.

“Of course!”

Gu Qing nodded: “Since none of these immortals hold you accountable for your misdeeds, why should I quarrel with my father-in-law? If you agree to my terms, I’ll immediately stand down and return to the mortal world to live my quiet life—never meddling in Heavenly Court affairs again!”

Gu Qing then stated his terms.

“Good!”

The Queen Mother immediately agreed: “But this cannot violate celestial law.”

At least not on the surface!

“Of course!”

Gu Qing readily accepted and opened his mouth to speak: “I only ask the Queen Mother to grant me...”

“Cough! Cough!”

Two coughs echoed from the Jade Pool—soft, yet instantly silencing Gu Qing. All turned to see Wen Zhong, the Grand Master of Thunder, who had once served King Zhou in the mortal world; after his death, the Shang dynasty collapsed. Now he commanded the Thunder Department in the Heavenly Court, holding great power. He boldly spoke: “Gu Qing, under this Heavenly Emperor’s rule, ten suns scorched the heavens, killing over half the mortal populace. The cries of the dead in the Ghost City never cease. Such conduct surpasses even King Zhou. In my view, the Jade Emperor is unfit to govern the Three Realms.”

Many immortals in the Heavenly Court changed expression.

During the Investiture War, the immortals had all cursed Wen Zhong for aiding King Zhou. Now that King Zhou was gone, the same label was pinned on the Jade Emperor, making them feel Wen Zhong’s words were too sharp.

“Then according to Grand Master Wen, who is fit to be the Heavenly Emperor?”

The Little Golden Sun asked coldly, brimming with murderous intent.

“In my view, the only one fit to be Heavenly Emperor is our Jie Sect’s Patriarch.”

Grand Master Wen declared loudly.

All immortals turned to the Treasure Heavenly Venerable. They had heard the Jie Sect’s ambitions clearly—after the Investiture War, the Jie Sect had been leaderless and scattered, but now that it demanded dominion over the Three Realms, many immortals cheered.

After all, most of the Heavenly Court’s power came from the Jie Sect.

“But the Treasure Heavenly Venerable lost the Investiture War.”

Jiang Ziya hurriedly spoke: “He is utterly unsuitable for the Jade Emperor’s throne.”

All immortals in the Heavenly Court had been granted titles, except Jiang Ziya, who had been left out—he now sought to rise.

With hope and contention sparked, the immortals began lining up, rumors spreading everywhere. Gu Qing listened to the chaos, patted the Pangu Axe, and felt thoroughly satisfied. Having seized the Pangu Axe, he was meant to be the one listening to others negotiate. Seeing things unfold as he wished, the Queen Mother grew increasingly restless.

“Gu Qing.”

Yu Ding Zhenren suddenly called: “Gu Qing, we’ve known each other a long time—I can recite countless scriptures for you.” As he spoke, he poured out words in rapid succession, ignoring whether Gu Qing listened, only daring to impart his secrets.

Gu Qing immediately applied Good Deeds to memorize every word Yu Ding Zhenren uttered.

“Gu Qing.”

Jin Ling Shengmu had arrived in the Heavenly Court without notice and said to Gu Qing: “Back on the Eastern Sea, when our techniques clashed, you bested me. After that, you fell into the sea...” After a brief nostalgic exchange, she added: “You broke my Sword Array, which was impressive, but it still couldn’t match my Jie Sect’s Zhuxian Array...”

Jin Ling Shengmu unveiled the Zhuxian Array.

Yaoji had stayed by Gu Qing’s side all along. Hearing the Jie Sect’s terms, she gripped his arm tightly, fearing he might accept and become the Jie Sect’s top warrior with the Pangu Axe.

The immortals were arguing.

Gu Qing, meanwhile, took no initiative, gave no refusal, assumed no responsibility—only accepted benefits. The Heavenly Court gods fell silent, all turning to look at him.

“The Chan Sect’s techniques, the Jie Sect’s Sword Array.”

The Jade Emperor’s voice was hoarse: “Gu Qing, what is your decision?”

You can’t just take benefits and do nothing.

Gu Qing stepped forward, looked at the Jade Emperor and the Queen Mother, hesitated, then said: “I don’t care for the Chan Sect’s techniques or the Jie Sect’s Sword Array... Jade Emperor, Queen Mother, can you grant me Chang’e?”

The Jade Emperor and the Queen Mother were stunned. All immortals turned to Gu Qing, expressions varied. The tale of “Burning Beacon Fires to Amuse the Marquises” had not yet occurred, but everything Gu Qing had done felt like a grand joke—after all this commotion, was he still just chasing a woman?

All eyes fixed on the Cold Moon Immortal.

At that moment, the cold, elegant Cold Moon Immortal’s body glowed faintly, radiant and exquisite beneath her white robes.

Gu Qing’s actions seemed absurd, but to those involved, such feelings were priceless.

“Chang’e is a Cold Moon female immortal—how can she be granted to anyone?”

The Queen Mother’s face hardened; she glanced away from Chang’e, realizing her mistake. Had she known Gu Qing felt this way, she should have threatened him with Chang’e, just as she once forced him to swallow the Soul-Cutting Pill...

Gu Qing gripped the Pangu Axe tightly.

“Son-in-law, don’t rush.”

The Jade Emperor quickly soothed: “We can strip the Cold Moon Immortal of her divine status, take away her Elixir of Immortality. After that, where Chang’e goes—we the Heavenly Court will no longer interfere.”

In this way, the Jade Emperor and Queen Mother would not violate celestial law. As for Chang’e, though stripped of the Elixir, she still retained the divine power of the Pantao and the Ginseng Fruit—she remained an ageless female immortal.

The chains of centuries lifted at once. Chang’e’s eyes shimmered; she covered her mouth to stifle a sob, tears falling as she stepped to Gu Qing’s side, took his hand, and their fingers intertwined.

“Oh no!”

The Heavenly Marshal Tian Peng threw his rake down in fury, feeling utterly bored in the Heavenly Court.

The Jade Emperor, already furious, marked Tian Peng for punishment after this affair ended.

“Gu Qing!”

Yaoji sighed helplessly: “You really are something—going to such lengths for her.”

Gu Qing gripped Yaoji, sending a mental message: “When the ten suns scorched the heavens, the commotion I caused for you was no small thing.”

Yaoji shook off his hand, disbelieving. Back then, the commotion was all for Yang Chan.

“Then we’re leaving.”

Gu Qing feigned farewell to the Heavenly Court immortals: “I’m too young to shoulder great matters—I’m ready to retire after achieving my goal.”

The Three Pure Ones and the Buddha all glared at Gu Qing. His entire purpose in coming to the Heavenly Court had been achieved; now, none of the Three Pure Ones’ or the Buddha’s goals had been met.

“For the sake of all living beings, let us discuss the ten suns scorching the heavens and the Weak Water descending...”

The Primordial Heavenly Venerable spoke up.

The Three Pure Ones united, the Buddha watching on, with countless Golden Immortals pooling their strength to force the Jade Emperor to concede.

Gu Qing smiled, watching as the Golden Immortals jointly negotiated terms with the Jade Emperor: the West to the Buddha, the East to the Immortal Sages, the North to Zhenwu... Thus the Three Pure Ones and Four August Ones each fulfilled their duties; the Jade Emperor’s power was greatly diminished, no longer able to command the sun to blaze across the sky for ten days, or open the Celestial Gates at will, or obliterate an entire city simply because mortals showed disrespect.

Mount Hua.

Gu Qing, carrying the Pangu Axe, retired here with Yang Chan, the Seventh Princess, and Chang’e. The Three Realms seemed to have returned to normal—yet after twenty years of residence, Yaoji, having left the Yang household at Guanjiangkou, wandered idly and came to rest upon Mount Hua.

“How can a person be perfectly fine before marriage, yet change completely after?”

Yaoji sighed helplessly while sipping tea.

Cunxin hovered beside Yang Jian, scolding both his brothers and his Baidog; Yaoji could not bear to see her son torn between them, and only when she came to Gu Qing’s side did she feel the warmth of a normal family.

“Endure it slowly.”

Gu Qing could do nothing to help Yang Jian.

“Are you suffering too?”

Yaoji suddenly lifted her eyes and looked at Gu Qing.

Gu Qing extended his hand and led Yaoji deep into Mount Hua; they descended together, until Yaoji suddenly stiffened, staring at the misty, seven-colored expanse before her, exclaiming in astonishment: “The New Celestial Code is here!”

Gu Qing nodded.

Once the New Celestial Code emerges, the laws of the Three Realms will be rewritten.

“Do you want to be the Jade Emperor?”

Yaoji touched the Celestial Code before her and asked softly.

The Jade Emperor wrote the Celestial Code and became the sovereign of the Three Realms; though he has lately yielded to the Three Pure Ones and Four August Ones, the fundamental laws of the Three Realms still rest in his hands.

“Let me show you something.”

Gu Qing guided Yaoji’s gaze to a carved inscription on the Celestial Code; amidst the dense, intricate celestial script, under Gu Qing’s direction, Yaoji saw a painting within a painting, characters within characters—among countless cloud-script characters, Gu Qing had inscribed in an alien tongue: “The son-in-law of Yaoji may wed his mother-in-law...”

“Are you trying to die?!”

Yaoji’s mind exploded into white noise.

(End of Chapter)