October. The autumn wind begins to rise, sweeping across the land.
With the unified settlement gone and the Demon City lost, no more weapons lie hidden beneath green leaves or tents. Under the moonlight, Blossom Mountain is as serene and beautiful as a young maiden coming of age.
No one knows how long this beauty will last.
After a long standoff with the South Heaven Gate Fleet, Blossom Mountain has become a banner for demonkind. Countless demons—even those whose lands have not yet been invaded by the Celestial Army—are willing to pack up and journey far to reach Blossom Mountain.
Perhaps it is to vent the anger of ten thousand years, or to witness a miracle, or simply to embrace the life of their dreams.
Every day, countless demons line up at Blossom Mountain, racking their brains for a name just to complete the most basic registration.
Here, this patchwork race called 'demons' has found its only glimmer of hope in over ten thousand years.
Though this brief peace seems almost unreal, it shines like a ray of sunlight through the clouds, illuminating the faces of demons deep in the abyss, making them willing to stake everything on this Monkey.
Let him lead them forward through hardship, to challenge the gods above, to live with pride—or to die with dignity.
That night, the Azurewave Dragon King conveyed the final decision to Belle Whitebone, the envoy, though he dressed up the message a little.
In short, Blossom Mountain now has enough alchemical materials and does not need to trouble the Demon Kings for assistance. As for the alliance, it was not mentioned.
But that was enough; after all, Belle’s purpose in coming was not really the alliance.
Early the next morning, Belle Whitebone reluctantly bid farewell to the Azurewave Dragon King and set off for the Southern Lands with the demons who had accompanied her.
This trip was, without a doubt, a heavy blow to her.
She had resolved to forget the past and truly become a demon, leaving the Southern Lands for Blossom Mountain with great enthusiasm—only to prove herself nothing more than a disposable pawn to the Six Demon Kings. Otherwise, why hadn’t they even told her about the blood feud between Blossom Mountain and the Six Demon Kings?
A task that seemed so simple at first had ended in failure, like a bucket of cold water poured over her head, extinguishing all her passion in an instant. She no longer even knew what to do next.
But what could she do? With nowhere else to go, she could only return to the Southern Lands.
With help from her fellow demons, Belle left Blossom Mountain, crossed the sea, and entered the Southern Lands. Suddenly, she remembered something, took out the Jade Tablet, hesitated briefly, and finally pressed it to her lips.
"You said you... have elixirs?"
...
At this moment, in Heaven above the Sixth Heaven—
Grandmaster White strode quickly down the long gallery, dust-brush in hand, his white beard bristling with anger and his face twisted in displeasure.
A single Imperial Court Session should have taken only a few hours, but how long had this one dragged on? Two days—an entire two days!
On earth, two years had already passed…
During those two days, he had used every ounce of influence to block the High Sky Throne Hall from passing the decision to allow the Heavenly Fleet to support Blossom Mountain, even invoking the Queen Mother’s name. Normally, such a decision would never have passed.
But for some reason, the Jade Emperor was also going all out this time.
For a while, both sides engaged in endless political maneuvering, intrigue and plotting stretching on and on with no resolution.
If the Jade Emperor kept pressing like this, he himself probably wouldn’t be able to hold out much longer. After all, the Queen Mother—his greatest support—wasn’t truly invested in this issue.
Though Grandmaster White was skilled at maneuvering, the Jade Emperor simply had far more bargaining chips to trade with the other immortals.
Most crucially, General Lee—the key figure—had sent the High Sky Throne Hall a memorial saying, "Leave it to the Jade Emperor’s judgment…"
What was that supposed to mean? Was the emperor more anxious than his ministers?
Even if the South Heaven Gate agreed, Grandmaster White would never simply stand by and do nothing!
"Marshal Silver has only just returned to the mortal realm, and now they want to let him join the fight at Blossom Mountain? What is this Handsome Monkey King anyway? Just some unheard-of demon king! In the end, it’s nothing but an excuse for Marshal Silver. If he uses this chance to expand his power, what then? Ambition! Pure ambition!"
Suddenly, he remembered Marshal Silver holding Nisha Song in his arms, standing in the High Sky Throne Hall and rebuking all the immortals—a scene that made him even angrier.
"He’s a disaster—he wants to make it impossible for anyone to survive!"
Fuming, he flung his sleeves aside and cursed loudly as he walked, caring nothing for his image.
But for all his frustration, what could he do besides curse?
Marshal Silver held the military power, and with the Jade Emperor unwilling to send Heaven’s trump cards to deal with this threat, Grandmaster White could only vent his anger in the Heavenly Court. Now, it seemed even that right was about to be stripped away.
"If things keep going like this, won’t he just ignore all us immortals even more in the future?"
Muttering to himself the whole way, Grandmaster White felt his blood boiling, nearly ready to burst.
In a blink, he arrived at the Taibai Pavilion.
From afar, his young attendant rushed out in a panic, bowing and saying, "Master, Lord Lao has been waiting in the main hall for some time."
"Lord Lao?"
Of course, that could only mean the Supreme Elder of Heaven—Lord Lao! Wasn’t he supposed to be away on his travels? How had he suddenly appeared at the Taibai Pavilion?
Grandmaster White’s expression shifted, and all the chaotic thoughts in his mind vanished instantly.
"Why didn’t you inform me sooner?" Grandmaster White scolded on the spot.
"Lord Lao instructed me not to disturb you, Master, since you were busy with affairs of state."
"Lord Lao said so?" Grandmaster White paused, stroking his beard and pondering for a moment, then asked quietly, "Did Lord Lao say what he came for?"
The attendant slowly shook his head. "He did not mention it."
Grandmaster White stroked his beard and pondered for a long while, unable to make sense of it. At last, he raised his dust-brush and said, "With Lord Lao here, we must not be negligent."
Bowing deeply, Grandmaster White entered the main hall and saluted: "Grandmaster White greets Lord Lao!"
He bowed his head and did not raise it again.
Before him, seated at the guest seat in the hall, Lord Lao leisurely sipped a cup of tea.
Giving Grandmaster White a faint glance, Lord Lao waved his sleeve and said, "I have never held any official post in the Heavenly Court. You and I are peers—no need for such formalities. Sit."
"Lord Lao, you oversee the teachings and safeguard the Heavenly Dao, bearing the welfare of all living things. No courtesy could ever be too great."
At this, Lord Lao laughed softly, giving Grandmaster White a gentle look. "Enough, enough, no need for flattery. If you’re so stiff, how can we talk?"
Only then did Grandmaster White straighten up a little, though he did not dare take a seat, but stood beside Lord Lao and asked respectfully, "Lord Lao, what brings you to my humble abode today?"
Lord Lao took a slow sip of tea, then asked quietly, "What orders could I possibly give? But tell me, why has this Imperial Court Session dragged on so long?"
"Well... it’s a long story." Grandmaster White gave a dry laugh. "Lord Lao, do you know that Marshal Silver has already..."
Lord Lao did not answer, but simply nodded lightly.
Seeing this, Grandmaster White continued, "This Imperial Court Session was convened to discuss sending the Heavenly Fleet to assist Blossom Mountain. For reasons unknown, His Majesty insists on deploying the Fleet. Blossom Mountain sits in Eastrealm, and the demon-suppression campaign was originally assigned to the South Heaven Gate. South Heaven Gate has simply not found the right opportunity yet—no need for all this fuss. Besides, Marshal Silver only recently violated the Heavenly Law; letting him continue as Fleet commander has stirred much resentment among the immortals. If not for... he would have been demoted long ago. To favor him so heavily now is just fueling his arrogance! Who will take the Heavenly Law seriously after this?"
Lowering his voice, Grandmaster White said, "That Heavenly Law was set jointly by the Three Pure Ones and the Jade Emperor. His Majesty, taking advantage of Lord Lao's absence and the other two Pure Ones in seclusion, just... Chang-geng did his utmost to oppose, but His Majesty is blinded by obsession!"
At this, Grandmaster White fell silent, eyes narrowed as he furtively watched Lord Lao’s expression. But that ancient face betrayed not a hint of emotion.
After sipping his tea and pondering for a while, Lord Lao finally said, "Demon-suppression is long-standing Heavenly policy. I’ve heard South Heaven Gate is struggling, so His Majesty’s decision to send the Fleet is understandable. In my view, each matter should be judged on its own merits. Since His Majesty has already closed the Emotion Case, let it rest. Now to tie it to the demon-suppression campaign—this is inappropriate."
At these words, Grandmaster White’s expression shifted several times. He quickly bowed and smiled obsequiously: "You are right, Lord Lao. Chang-geng is dull-witted and nearly made a grave mistake. Thank you for your guidance, thank you for your guidance."
Lord Lao pressed his lips together, set the teacup on the table, and spoke softly again: "However, if the demon-suppression campaign fails, that’s another matter entirely."
Eh? There’s hope!
Grandmaster White craned his neck and bowed, saying, "Chang-geng is dull-witted... I beg Lord Lao for enlightenment..."
That night, Grandmaster White had the best sleep he’d had in days.
At the next morning’s court session in Heaven, the Jade Emperor—who had spent a sleepless night rallying support—again raised the issue of sending the Heavenly Fleet to Blossom Mountain, preparing to make a political sacrifice to force the decision through.
Unexpectedly, Grandmaster White, who had fiercely opposed the plan for days, remained silent.
Without Grandmaster White’s resistance, the other immortals who had opposed the measure also fell silent.
After a brief discussion, the matter that had dragged on for days was settled. The imperial edict, sealed with the Jade Seal, was handed directly to General Curtain and rushed to Cloudrealm Sky Harbor for public announcement.
By this time, it was already the second month of the following year in the mortal world.
No one had expected that such a simple matter, even without opposition from South Heaven Gate, would take nearly three years to pass the High Sky Throne Hall’s review.
Clutching the long-delayed edict, the Heavenly Fleet—already fully prepared—mobilized at once.
News of this major event naturally reached Blossom Mountain, where the defenders had also spent years preparing for war.
In an instant, both sides were on edge—a full-scale, all-out battle was about to erupt.
Yet before the Heavenly Fleet could even set sail, Marshal Silver received a message that was unexpected, yet perfectly logical.
"What? You say our spies in the Southern Lands intercepted a shipment of elixirs?"
Standing before Marshal Silver, General Ward bowed slightly and laid a bamboo slip on the desk.
Marshal Silver braced his hands on the desk, staring at the military report; his expression grew steadily more grave.
He lowered his head and pondered for a long while, then asked, "How many?"
"Approximately a thousand Blood-Seal Pills and five hundred Regrowth Pills. They are being rushed to Cloudrealm Sky Harbor for the alchemists."
Blood-Seal Pills and Regrowth Pills are the most basic battlefield elixirs.
As the name suggests, Blood-Seal Pills stop bleeding and are the most commonly used medicine on the battlefield. Regrowth Pills can restore lost limbs, like a lizard regrowing its tail.
In the battle at Dragon’s Pool, Shortbeak lost an eye and used a Regrowth Pill to recover.
Neither pill is considered precious; a novice cultivator at the Spirit-Refining Stage can produce them with a basic furnace and readily available ingredients.
If it’s just one or two pills, any cultivator above the Spirit-Refining Stage would carry them—nothing odd about that.
But if there are a thousand or more...
Staring coldly at the bamboo slip, Marshal Silver murmured, "So the Six Demon Kings really have joined forces with Blossom Mountain?"