Chapter 871: The Enemy of the Heavenly Court!

Having served in the Heavenly Court means nothing; even the former 'duty personnel' present have no good impression of the Heavenly Court.

Yang Jian always listens to the tune but not the proclamation. What, the Jade Emperor is my uncle? Great, I'll shave my head first in the new year.

The rest, all of Tang Luo's disciples have been screwed over by the Heavenly Court.

On the contrary, when narrowed to personal scope, there are still some old acquaintances with decent relationships inside the Heavenly Court, but this definitely does not include the Jade Emperor.

Not to mention the newcomers of the Jade Emperor's New Heavenly Court; even if they are old acquaintances, they are still old acquaintances of the Great Thunder Sound Temple.

The Tang Luo who was supposed to be converted has also converted quite a few.

Upon careful thought, Dizang died at Tang Luo's hands, and the two, Great Strength Bodhisattva and Wonderful Virtue Bodhisattva, also died at Tang Luo's hands.

Of the Five Great Bodhisattvas, three have been converted.

Besides Ananda and Kasyapa, oh, these two aren't dead; they share one body with two souls, one mad and one gravely injured, and no one knows how long they can still hold on.

But this has nothing to do with Tang Luo; it's their own bad luck—the world they ended up in after the Mountain Sea Realm shattered is excessively pitfall-ridden.

As for the Heavenly Court side, the number of people killed by Tang Luo is only more, not less—those who changed their appearance to become the Heavenly Star God Lord's Hook Thread Great Emperor, the Four Heavenly Kings, several of the Twenty-Eight Mansions, and a large heap of remnant souls transformed into the 'King in Yellow'.

Tang Luo pondered carefully and suddenly realized he seemed to have become an 'old acquaintance killer'.

When encountering his old acquaintances, hardly any are not unlucky.

Hmm, definitely the world's fault, unrelated to him.

Having converted the Master of Fate, Tang Luo said, 'I'm not deceiving anyone; my appearance should have been "sent" to the Heavenly Court.'

'What about us?' Sun Wukong asked curiously.

'Unclear.' Tang Luo looked at Yang Jian and asked him.

'It seems the surrounding scene was all "transmitted" over.' Yang Jian said.

'Forget it, not important.' Tang Luo waved his hand, 'As long as it can be transmitted back, it's fine; maybe we'll run into an old acquaintance sometime.'

'Running into your old acquaintances brings misfortune.' Yang Jian resumed his aloof cool-guy persona, voice cold, 'I think they won't come looking for your trouble; instead, they'll avoid you at all costs.'

'You.' Tang Luo full of confidence, 'You're still too young; do you know the saying "No tears until seeing the coffin, no giving up until reaching the Yellow River"? The only lesson humanity learns from history is that they never take any lesson. Madly probing the edge of self-destruction is basic operation.'

Yang Jian didn't speak, seemingly indeed having that meaning.

Even though he, as the Erlang Shen of Guangjiangkou, is mighty famous, when he previously subdued the grassroots deities, many 'people' still harbored hopeful expectations.

What if Yang Jian isn't that strong? What if Yang Jian won't cause us trouble?

What if... there is no 'what if'; the final outcome is quite miserable.

After Tang Luo carved a bloody path in the later stage of the Journey to the West, monsters still pop up as 'roadblock tigers'; why?

Because maybe, if luck is good, they could get a bite; maybe those rumors aren't that true.

Give it a try; if it really doesn't work, just run away—can the other side still pursue me to the death?

And then there was no afterwards.

At this very moment, somewhere in the chaos spacetime beyond the world, an incomparably vast palace complex floats, white mist swirling about, a scene of immortal splendor.

This immeasurably huge palace complex resembles a continent, high in the center, low around the edges, slightly like a gentle hill.

In the four directions, each has a towering gate; respectively, they are the East, South, West, and North Four Heavenly Gates.

In the swirling mist, countless specks constantly flicker, forming a galaxy that encircles the palace complex—these are the 13,500 worlds controlled by the Heavenly Court.

Of course, not every flickering 'star' is a world.

Among them, the brightest 13,500 are the worlds governed by the Heavenly Court; the other specks, part of them are being built up, leading to passages toward already discovered valuable worlds.

The other part is purely 'decoration'.

But sooner or later, the galaxy encircling the Heavenly Court palace complex will be 'filled' by endless worlds, becoming a true 'world river'.

This galaxy connects the Four Heavenly Gates and also serves as a barrier for the Heavenly Court palace complex.

Only the Four Heavenly Gates allow entry and exit to the Heavenly Court.

At the center of the Heavenly Court, in the 'sky' just below the highest palace, there is a bright yellow silk ribbon winding around, above which brilliant gold names appear and disappear faintly, as if floating in a river.

Gods' Ranking List! Different from before, a new Gods' Ranking List.

It lacks any function to preserve the indestructible true spirit; the names on it are like 'Soul Lamps' and such, disappearing from the list after death.

The names listed on the Gods' Ranking List total one hundred and eight, and only one hundred and eight.

The total number will not change; those listed are all the elite of the Heavenly Court.

The brand-new Gods' Ranking List is not a form of protection and restraint, but honor and greater benefits.

The Gods' Ranking List, which had remained unchanged for a long time, suddenly changed today; one name burst forth with brilliant light, then faded and vanished without trace.

At the same time, a beam of light projected from the surrounding Gods' Ranking List, forming a light curtain.

A scene gradually appeared on the light curtain.

As the light curtain visible to the entire Heavenly Court emerged, the people and immortals within the Heavenly Court all stopped whatever they were doing and looked up.

The appearance of the light curtain means that the powerhouse listed on the Gods' Ranking List has fallen!

And the content of the light curtain is precisely the scene of the 'Venerable' on the Gods' Ranking List before their death.

In the scene, there are five figures; at first rather blurry, they gradually become clearer.

The images of three of them are constantly being 'tugged'; after a few breaths, it's as if some disguise gradually fades away, revealing their true appearance.

Although they are still somewhat blurry compared to the other two, their appearance can still be made out.

Among these five people, the two without disguise: one is a black-clad, stern youth, handsome, most noticeable is his brow, bearing a faint red vertical line, seemingly hiding a power that makes one's heart palpitate.

Beside him stands a person with hair standing on end, a rebellious face, baring teeth at that stern youth, faintly revealing a wildness; the impression is not of a human but more like a certain transformed great demon.

On the other side, the three who have revealed their true forms.

One is a tall, sturdy man with prominent wind-catching ears and an upturned nose, his eyes narrowed, smiling warmly.

The second is an idle youth in flowing white robes, peerlessly handsome; placed among the crowds of immortals in the Heavenly Court, he can outshine the 'beauty crowd'.

The last, at the center of the view, is a white-haired youth clad in a blood-colored gold-patterned robe, gazing toward the 'camera'.

Strictly speaking, they were looking at the deceased Fortune Venerable.

Everyone then saw the boy in the image raise his hand, reach for the Fortune Venerable; next, the palm took over everything, darkness descended, and then the light curtain faded.

This meant that the number of names on the Investiture of the Gods List changed formally from one hundred eight to one hundred seven.

Shortly afterward, the vast Heavenly Court faintly echoed with some clamorous sounds.

The death of the Venerable on the Investiture of the Gods List was undoubtedly a major event for the Heavenly Court.

Many people speculated about who those five individuals were, as they possessed such strength that they could kill the Fortune Venerable.

You should know that the Fortune Venerable, too, ranks among the strong on the Investiture of the Gods List.

Although the Investiture of the Gods List has no official ranking, privately the Heavenly Court's immortals believe the Fortune Venerable's strength is at least within the top thirty on the list.

One capable of killing the Fortune Venerable should not be a nobody.

Moreover, three of them deliberately disguised themselves, but the Investiture of the Gods List saw through their false forms and revealed their true appearances.

Theoretically, they might be people with old grudges against the Heavenly Court.

Yet, many people still found their true appearances utterly unfamiliar, with no impression at all.

Instead, the pattern on the forehead of that stern youth reminded people of the Heavenly Court's Manifest Sage True Lord's heavenly eye.

It seemed similar to how the Manifest Sage True Lord's heavenly eye looked when unopened?

Unfortunately, the Investiture of the Gods List can only show what the Fortune Venerable saw before death, without sound; otherwise, we might gain more information from their dialogue.

A group of "newcomers" were discussing, while the elders from the Mountain Sea Realm nearly popped their eyeballs out.

What the hell! What the hell?!

The (former) Manifest Sage True Lord Yang Jian, the Great Sage Equal to Heaven Sun Wukong, and the Fighting Victory Buddha (monk) Tang Xuanzang—why did these three guys gather together?

And they even killed the Fortune Venerable!

Could it be that the havoc in Heavenly Palace will happen again, this time not just Sun Wukong's minor scuffles but a joint effort of three dangerous individuals?

The old-timers of the Mountain Sea Realm well know that the Fortune Venerable is not someone who would rather die standing than live kneeling, who would rather be shattered jade than intact tile.

When faced with an unbeatable enemy in a life‑or‑death crisis, he would surely bring out his backing, the Heavenly Court.

From the situation in the image, it seems the pastry wasn't something that made the Fortune Venerable blurt out words in a surprise attack; the Fortune Venerable also wasn't easily killed in one strike—his survival skills are high.

Then, given that they already knew the Heavenly Court's situation, why did the three still kill the Fortune Venerable?

Having disappeared for a long time, even being thought completely dead and gone, the three appeared together, announcing their "return to the mortal world" in this way—what deeper meaning lies behind it?

Tang Xuanzang seemed to smile at the end—what does that mean, a provocation?

Are we going to wage war against the Heavenly Court?

Has Yang Jian finally betrayed the Heavenly Court and defected to the Great Thunder Sound Temple?

But the Great Thunder Sound Temple and the Heavenly Court merely avoid each other's affairs, with only occasional minor friction.

"The world is big enough" for two colossal beings to toss about.

There's truly no need for a big conflict; even in a smaller Mountain Sea Realm, it would be peaceful competition.

The "Mountain Sea Realm elder" immediately thought of many things, feeling that something major would happen, somewhat anxious.

Actually, this really is just a simple greeting.

Just a Fortune Venerable—Tang Luo truly didn't regard him as an important figure of the Heavenly Court, and even if he were, Tang Luo wouldn't care.

There's no hidden meaning behind the action.

The expressed meaning is actually just one sentence: "Hey, how's everyone? Long time no see."

That's it.

"Hey, you say the master is just simply giving a greeting, announcing they're not dead."

"Yeah, I think they're overthinking it."

In a corner of the Heavenly Court, a pair of sneaky men huddled together, whispering.

Qianliyan, Shunfenger.

The two "informants" who provided a great deal of material for Tang Luo's writing—although they were often unwilling—have definitely had plenty of dealings with Tang Luo.

Having some understanding of Tang Luo, they guessed the truth.

"I don't know how His Majesty will respond."

"It's lively, it's lively. These three have returned, it's lively." Qianliyan said.

"In a hundred years, open the Investiture of the Gods Platform!"

From the central Heavenly Court, within the highest palace, a grand heavenly sound resounded.

It made many people's expressions turn solemn, instantly filling them with awe.

On the Investiture of the Gods Platform lies a dueling arena; it opens once every thousand years, and when it does, one may ascend the platform to challenge the Venerables on the Investiture of the Gods List.

The victor rises, the defeated falls.

If a Venerable on the Investiture of the Gods List encounters some mishap and perishes, there will be two scenarios.

First, if there is no "killer" (at least the Investiture of the Gods List shows none), then the Investiture of the Gods Platform will soon open, allowing all Heavenly Court immortals to vie for the vacant spot.

Second, if there is a killer, whoever avenges the slain Venerable can ascend the Investiture of the Gods List and inherit the deceased Venerable's lineage "inheritance."

Now the Supreme August Heavenly God Emperor has decreed that the Investiture of the Gods Platform will open only after a hundred years.

This means he set a deadline even in the second scenario.

Within the next hundred years, Tang Xuanzang and his disciples, Yang Jian, and the like will be enemies of the Heavenly Court!