Chapter 265: Internal Strife in the Heavenly Dao Faction! What Mischief is Lu Yun Up to Now?

Just as Lu Yun and the others were watching Fuxi and his group training within the Thunder Pool while discussing how to hold the First Primordial Genius Competition, Zhenyuanzi's spreading of the Earth Immortal Dao also achieved some new progress.

Zhenyuanzi was standing on a towering mountain peak outside of Hongyun's dojo, the Fire Cloud Cave, his gaze looking into the distance.

He could feel that ever since he successfully pioneered the Earth Immortal Dao and taught it to the living beings of the Great Desolation, more and more beings had begun to attempt to open up their own Blessed Land and Cave Heaven, and a wave of cultivation fervor had emerged throughout the Great Desolation.

Zhenyuanzi could not help but smile slightly, his heart filled with satisfaction and pride.

At the same time, he was also filled with gratitude toward Lu Yun. After all, all of this was inseparable from Lu Yun's guidance and help. If not for Lu Yun's pointers, he might still be groping in the Chaos, unable to comprehend the mysteries of the Earth Immortal Dao.

Just at this moment—

"Boom!"

A loud noise suddenly came from within the Fire Cloud Cave.

Immediately following, a streak of light flew out from inside the Fire Cloud Cave and landed in front of Zhenyuanzi; it was none other than Hongyun.

He said with a face full of excitement: "Fellow Daoist Zhenyuan, I succeeded! I have already opened up my own Blessed Land and Cave Heaven!"

Upon hearing this, Zhenyuanzi hurriedly stepped forward to check.

He saw a magnificent cave dwelling emerging behind Hongyun; the spiritual energy within the cave dwelling was dense, and the laws were intertwined—it had indeed become a world of its own.

Zhenyuanzi could not help but exclaim in admiration: "Fellow Daoist Hongyun, congratulations! The growth potential of this Blessed Land and Cave Heaven of yours is also extraordinary."

Hongyun was incredibly moved and thanked him repeatedly: "If not for Fellow Daoist Zhenyuan teaching the Earth Immortal Dao, how could I have so quickly comprehended and opened up my own Blessed Land and Cave Heaven? All of this is the merit of you, Fellow Daoist!"

Zhenyuanzi waved his hand and said modestly: "Fellow Daoist Hongyun, you overpraise me. That you could successfully open up a Blessed Land and Cave Heaven is entirely due to your own comprehension and effort. This poor Daoist only gave a slight hint."

The two looked at each other and smiled, the atmosphere very harmonious.

Just at this moment, several more streaks of light flew over; it turned out to be other cultivators who were about to try opening up their own Blessed Land and Cave Heaven, coming to congratulate Hongyun.

They gathered around Hongyun and Zhenyuanzi one after another, exchanging their respective experiences and insights on opening up cave heavens.

Seeing this, Zhenyuanzi's heart stirred, and he said loudly: "Fellow Daoists, today Fellow Daoist Hongyun has successfully opened up a Blessed Land and Cave Heaven, which is truly a great joyous event for my Earth Immortal Dao. Next, this poor Daoist will once again explain the mysteries of the Earth Immortal Dao to everyone, hoping that you all can benefit from it."

Upon hearing this, everyone was incredibly excited.

If they could listen to Zhenyuanzi's explanation once more, it would undoubtedly be of huge help to their own cultivation of the Earth Immortal Dao.

Thus, everyone gathered their focus to listen to Zhenyuanzi's explanation, hoping to comprehend more mysteries from it.

Under Zhenyuanzi's explanation, everyone had a deeper understanding of the Earth Immortal Dao. They also officially began to attempt to open up their own Blessed Land and Cave Heaven, evolving more laws and order in the hope of being able to further improve their cultivation.

In the Chaos, within Zixiao Palace.

Inside the magnificent great hall, the atmosphere was solemn and grave.

The scene of Zhenyuanzi explaining the mysteries of the Earth Immortal Dao to everyone was clearly manifested.

Hongjun Daozu sat high upon the cloud bed, his gaze like torches, sweeping across the Saints of the Heavenly Dao Faction below.

Laozi, Yuanshi, Tongtian, Jieyin, Zhunti, as well as the newly joined Kunpeng and Minghe, all sat upright, watching Zhenyuanzi preaching, their expressions grave.

They knew that today, since Hongjun Daozu had summoned them to come and shown them this scene, he must be intending to discuss countermeasures with them.

Hongjun spoke slowly, his voice majestic and profound: "Everyone, since the Heavenly Dao Saints opened their dojos and Zhenyuanzi passed down the Earth Immortal Dao, the structure of the Great Primordial Three Realms has already changed. I wonder if you have any countermeasures?"

As his voice fell, the entire great hall fell into a silence, and for a long time, no one uttered a word.

Clearly, Laozi and the others did not have any countermeasures.

Regarding this, Hongjun did not feel surprised, so he continued with a calm expression: "Since everyone has no ideas, then let us follow this poor Daoist's idea! This poor Daoist intends to carry out the matter of God Conferment during the Heavenly Tribulation, to determine the divine offices of the Heavenly Court and maintain the order of the Heavenly Dao."

Once these words were spoken, all the Saints revealed expressions of surprise.

The matter of God Conferment that Hongjun spoke of was quite unfamiliar to them, and for a moment, they all felt somewhat lost.

Yuanshi took the lead and asked: "Dao Ancestor, what is God Conferment? We have never heard of it, and we do not know what the specific intention is?"

Hongjun nodded slightly and explained: "God Conferment is to canonize those among the living beings of the Great Desolation who have merit and virtue, to enter and take charge of the Heavenly Court, hold divine offices, and maintain the order of the Heavenly Dao. Those who are conferred as gods will receive the protection of the Heavenly Dao, and under the blessing of the divine office, their magic power will also greatly increase. Of course, at the same time, they must also shoulder the responsibility of maintaining the peace of the Heavenly Court."

Hearing this, the Saints each had their own calculations in their hearts.

They naturally understood that although those who were conferred as gods could receive the protection of the Heavenly Dao and even have their magic power greatly increased, they would likewise be bound by the Heavenly Court and lose their freedom.

For a time, all the Saints fell into silence.

If they could, they naturally would not want their own disciples to lose their freedom and be conferred into divine offices of the Heavenly Court.

Seeing this, Hongjun did not say more, directly taking out a golden, shining Investiture of the Gods and placing it on the cloud bed.

He said: "This object is the Investiture of the Gods; it requires you to sign it together. You only need to write down the names of your respective disciples, and it will take effect. As for the matter of God Conferment, Yuanshi shall be responsible for presiding over it."

Having said that, Hongjun rose and left, leaving the Saints looking at each other in dismay.

Yuanshi also did not expect that Hongjun would actually assign this difficult task directly to him.

Could it be that the Dao Ancestor hoped for him to serve as an example and be the first to send his own disciples to ascend the Investiture of the Gods? Looking at the Investiture of the Gods, he was also indecisive in his heart.

The matter of God Conferment was of great importance; once the Investiture of the Gods was signed, his disciples would also lose their freedom.

However, as a Heavenly Dao Saint, he could not go against the will of Hongjun Daozu.

Therefore, he suddenly raised his head, looked at the others, and said: "I wonder what everyone thinks?"

The other Saints also fell into deep thought. They naturally were both unwilling to let their own disciples be conferred as gods and afraid to openly violate the order of Hongjun Daozu.

For a time, the atmosphere inside Zixiao Palace became even more tense and awkward.

Seeing that no one was speaking, Yuanshi could only look at his elder brother, Laozi, and ask: "Eldest Brother, I wonder what you think about this matter?"

Laozi's expression was calm, like an ancient well without ripples, and he said: "This poor Daoist's Ren Sect has always had few disciples, with only Xuandu inheriting my mantle, so naturally it is not suitable to be on the list for God Conferment. However, this poor Daoist can send out my Good Corpse, Taishang Laojun, to preside over the Heavenly Court. As for the other divine offices, you all shall be responsible for them!"

After finishing, he actually stepped forward directly to open the Investiture of the Gods and wrote down the name of Taishang Laojun.

As the name went on the list, his Good Corpse, Taishang Laojun, also manifested directly from his body, bowed to everyone, and then drifted away, rushing toward the Heavenly Court.

Seeing this scene, everyone was momentarily at a loss.

Laozi had actually sent out his own Good Corpse for the sake of his disciples. But even if these people wanted to imitate him, they could not.

After all, except for Laozi, no one else had only one disciple under their tutelage.

Yuanshi quickly calmed his mood, his gaze sweeping around, and finally landing on Jieyin and Zhunti.

He said: "Jieyin, Zhunti, among us Three Pure Ones, Eldest Brother has already expressed his attitude. I wonder what your Western Sect has to say?"

Regardless of whether it was Jieyin or Zhunti, their complexions could not help but darken upon hearing these words.

This Yuanshi was truly too shameless; he actually twisted the concept, framing Laozi's stance as the attitude expressed by the three of them, the Three Pure Ones!

Yet, they had nothing to say in response to this.

After pondering for a moment, Jieyin signaled for his junior brother Zhunti, who was more adept at glib talk, to be responsible for responding.

Zhunti had a flash of inspiration and quickly calculated in his heart, yet he deliberately revealed a look of difficulty on his face, sighed, and said: "Senior Brother Yuanshi, it is not that we are unwilling to contribute to the Heavenly Dao, but the West is truly barren, the Qi is thin, and the disciples of our Western Sect find cultivation difficult and are few in number. If we were to force the God Conferment, I fear it would cause our Western Sect's vitality to be severely damaged."

Yuanshi frowned slightly but did not speak, clearly waiting for Zhunti's follow-up.

Seeing this, Zhunti's heart stirred, and he continued: "However, our Western Sect has always regarded compassion as our foundation and has always been respectful toward the Heavenly Dao. Since the Dao Ancestor has given the order, we shall naturally comply. It is just that we hope other fellow Daoists can first contribute to the matter of God Conferment; when the time comes, if there are still vacancies for positions in the Heavenly Court, our Western Sect will naturally fill them."

Once these words were spoken, the other Saints in the Heavenly Dao Faction all furrowed their brows.

Naturally, they were unwilling for their own disciples to be conferred as gods and lose their freedom, but now that Zhunti had said this, they found it difficult to directly refuse his request.

Yuanshi's expression sank slightly, and his gaze swept toward Kunpeng and Minghe as he said: "Since the Western Sect has difficulties, then you two fellow Daoists, Kunpeng and Minghe, you have newly joined the Heavenly Dao Faction and have yet to make any contributions; are you willing to first contribute to the matter of God Conferment?"

Upon hearing this, the complexions of Kunpeng and Minghe immediately darkened. They knew that since the two of them had just joined the Heavenly Dao Faction, if they did not show something now, they would likely end up being ostracized. But if they agreed to the God Conferment, the Demon Race and Asura Race under their command were indeed not suitable to become Righteous Gods of the Heavenly Court.

Minghe forced a bitter smile in his heart, but he had to squeeze a smile onto his face and said: "Everyone, you should all know about the Asura Race of my Nether Blood Sea; they have always been unruly and difficult to tame. If we force the God Conferment, I fear it would ruin the rules of the Heavenly Court, which would be far from beautiful."

Kunpeng also hurriedly chimed in: "Yes, yes. Most of the Demon Race tribesmen I have gathered are heavy with sin, and their numbers are few. If they are conferred as gods, I fear it would be difficult to convince the masses."

Hearing the words of Kunpeng and Minghe, the various Saints of the Heavenly Dao Faction looked at each other, but in their hearts, they were cursing incessantly. They knew that Kunpeng and Minghe were finding excuses to shirk responsibility, but at this moment, it was not easy to directly flare up.

Zhunti suddenly rolled his eyes, looked at Tongtian, and said: "Senior Brother Tongtian, your Jie Sect has many disciples; why don't you set an example and first make some contributions to the Heavenly Dao Faction?"

Tongtian's expression sank, and he was about to flare up.

But before he could speak, his second brother Yuanshi, who should have been in the same faction as him, actually nodded in approval and said: "Zhunti is right. Tongtian, the disciples under your tutelage are of mixed quality, and among them are not a few with mediocre potential; why not let them enter the Heavenly Court to serve as Righteous Gods? It can be considered as securing a share of good fortune for them!"

Tongtian looked at Yuanshi in disbelief, seemingly unable to accept that his second brother would treat him this way.

However, since Yuanshi was heartless, he naturally could not be blamed for being unrighteous.

He said directly: "Second Brother, these words are wrong. Since the Dao Ancestor has entrusted this matter to you to be responsible for, it must be to let your Chan Sect set an example. How about this: for every disciple Second Brother sends to the Investiture of the Gods, I, this poor Daoist, will do the same as you, how about that?"

Now it was Yuanshi's turn to have an ugly expression.

In Yuanshi's view, every one of his disciples was carefully selected and possessed deep virtue; let alone a one-for-one trade with Tongtian's disciples, even a one-for-ten trade would make him feel he was at a loss.

Thus, these Saints argued back and forth for a long time, yet they could not reach any conclusion at all.

Seeing this, Laozi, having already completed his task, simply left early, stating that he was returning to the Taiqing Sacred Realm to refine pills, leaving them to make their own decisions.

Finally, after arguing for a long time, they finally reached a method that everyone could barely accept.

That was to hang the Investiture of the Gods directly above the Nan Tian Men, and then inform their disciples of the pros and cons, letting them decide for themselves whether they wanted to become Righteous Gods of the Heavenly Court.

Seeing them act in such a way, Hongjun was naturally very dissatisfied.

But he was not in a hurry to do anything, because no matter what, this group of Heavenly Dao Saints would eventually have to gather the various gods of the Heavenly Court for him!

By comparison, he was more concerned about what Lu Yun and the others were doing on the Primordial Land right now.

At this moment, he could not help but pay a bit more attention.

And just as Hongjun was observing the Primordial Land, this trial in Leize City happened to officially end.

Fuxi won first place in this trial without any suspense, so he also received the reward personally delivered by Lu Yun—the *Hunyuan Human Emperor Scripture*! However, Lu Yun did not tell Fuxi the true name of this cultivation technique, but temporarily changed the name to the *Hunyuan Scripture*, and most of the content of the technique was temporarily sealed by him, requiring Fuxi to reach the corresponding realm before it would be unsealed.

Even so, Fuxi was still incomparably excited.

And after ending this award ceremony, Lu Yun also officially announced: "This trial is just a beginning! Next, the Humanity and Earthly Faction will jointly hold the First Primordial Genius Competition. Everyone who passed this trial has obtained the qualification to participate! This is the surprise I want to give you!"

Once these words were spoken, whether it was the young members of the Human Race like Fuxi or the other members of the Human Race in Leize City, all were somewhat stunned.

Clearly, they did not quite understand what the so-called Honghuang Genius Competition meant.

Hongjun in Zixiao Palace also did not quite understand, but his heart suddenly tightened, and he could not help but frown and ponder: "What kind of trick is this Lu Yun playing again?"

He always felt that Lu Yun seemed to be plotting some earth-shattering major event again! (End of chapter)