461: The Three Musketeers of Nantianmen

Beneath Lotus Peak of Mount Hua, deep within a dark, secluded cave, lay layer upon layer of Restrictions.

There was no light here, only cold stone walls and eternal silence.

Yet at the core of the Restrictions, a faint, soft halo of light never extinguished.

Right in the center was the Third Holy Mother, Yang Chan, who was suppressed there.

The figure of Erlang Shen appeared silently outside the Restrictions.

He watched the figure within the Seal quietly, his cold expression melting. "Third Sister."

"Second Brother, you've come! How is Chenxiang doing now?"

"Chenxiang... is sixteen years old. He has experienced an Awakening of his magic power! He left Liu Family Village to come and save you!"

"Uncle knows about your situation. He has ordered me... to keep him in check."

"The Jade Emperor was at the Hall of Miraculous Mist today. On the surface, he asked me to 'discipline' Chenxiang and sent Nezha and Bajie to 'assist' me, but in reality, he is warning me and testing me."

"He knows everything. He is deliberately muddying the waters, dragging more people into this, just to ensure this matter can no longer be kept hidden."

Within the Seal, the Third Holy Mother, Yang Chan's voice trembled slightly: "Second Brother... Chenxiang... is he really..."

"He is fine," Erlang Shen said immediately, his tone resolute: "He is doing very well, even better than we imagined."

"He left Liu Family Village and set off on his own. Although he is naive, he has a tenacity—like you, and a little bit... like me back then."

He spoke the last few words very softly.

"He intends to save you; this is inevitable."

"His magic power has already begun its Awakening. This is the power of divine blood; it cannot be suppressed, nor does it need to be."

"The problem now is how he will walk this path, and... how many pairs of eyes are watching him, waiting for him to make a mistake, or waiting to use him."

Yang Chan fell silent.

After a long while, her voice rang out again, tinged with bitterness: "Second Brother, what do you intend to do? Does His Majesty's intent... imply tacit approval, or..."

"It is both indifference and a test."

Erlang Shen interrupted her, his gaze sharp as a blade, as if it could pierce through the layers of Restrictions to see the throne beyond the Nine Heavens:

"Uncle... is unfathomable. I cannot guess what he is thinking. He seems to be fanning the flames; he seems to know everything, yet he has not intervened."

"Not intervening is, in itself, a stance."

"Second Brother, I am worried about Chenxiang..."

"He must walk his own path." Erlang Shen interrupted his sister's worry: "What we can do is pave the way, guide him, and give him a hand at the edge of the cliff, not walk the path for him."

"Third Sister, trust me, and trust him."

Within the halo, Yang Chan remained silent for a long time, finally letting out a very soft sigh: "I trust you. Second Brother, take care."

"Hmm." Erlang Shen took one last deep look at the Seal, flicked his black cloak, and his figure vanished from the spot.

Inside the Hall of Miraculous Mist, Lu Jiuyuan dismissed Venus. With a flicker of his thought, his imperial robes quietly changed, transforming into an ordinary moon-white robe with cloud patterns. The imperial crown vanished, replaced by a simple jade hairpin to tie his hair.

In an instant, that Haotian Golden Supreme Jade Emperor who dominated the Three Realms became a Loose Immortal with a refined and noble air.

With one step, without alerting any immortal officials or guards, his figure appeared at the edge of the boundless sea of clouds plaza outside the South Heaven Gate.

The South Heaven Gate, the gateway to the Heavenly Court, was usually bustling with immortal officials coming and going and Heavenly Soldiers on patrol.

Today, however, it seemed exceptionally quiet, perhaps due to the previous summons at the Hall of Miraculous Mist, which had been filled with hidden barbs, causing the atmosphere of the entire Heavenly Court to appear somewhat tense.

Heavenly King Virudhaka, Mo Liqing, who was guarding the gate, saw this strange yet familiar-looking Loose Immortal approaching. He intended to step forward and inquire, but was stopped by a single look from Lu Jiuyuan.

There was no pressure in that gaze, yet it made Mo Liqing's heart jump violently. He inexplicably felt a sense of awe and obedience originating from the depths of his Soul, so he immediately kept his eyes on his nose and his nose on his heart, stepping back half a pace and pretending not to see him.

Lu Jiuyuan walked leisurely, his gaze sweeping over the standing ornamental columns, the churning sea of clouds, and the looming immortal palaces and pavilions in the distance.

The scenery of the Heavenly Court was certainly magnificent and eternal, but after looking at it for too long, it was inevitable to feel it was monotonous.

"Lu... Old Nine?"

Lu Jiuyuan stopped and looked in that direction.

Near the Ascension Platform, a Heavenly General was looking at him with some excitement. Beside him were two others, both looking quite agitated.

"Brother Lu, is it really you?" A Fei was very excited. It had been three hundred years; who knew how he had spent these three hundred years? Now, he was actually here, seeing Lu Jiuyuan.

"Ximen Chuixue? A Fei? Shen Lang? Why are you three here? And dressed like this?" Lu Jiuyuan was also surprised; he had not expected to meet acquaintances here.

"We achieved Ascension to the Heavenly Realm three hundred years ago. At that time, we were just Heavenly Soldiers, but now we are guards of the South Heaven Gate. People call us the Three Swordsmen Under the South Heaven Gate!" Shen Lang said with a smile.

"How did you three end up together? How are Lu Xiaofeng and You Longsheng?" Lu Jiuyuan asked.

"Before I achieved Ascension, Lu Xiaofeng died on a woman's belly," Ximen Chuixue said indifferently.

"Thirty years after you achieved Ascension, I achieved Ascension from the Peak of Mount Tai."

"That trash Lu Xiaofeng couldn't live without wine and women. He was still visiting brothels at seventy and died on the belly of a courtesan, becoming the joke of a generation."

Lu Jiuyuan looked at A Fei again.

"Ten years after Brother's Ascension, You Longsheng danced in red on the Jade Emperor Summit of Mount Tai, then jumped off the cliff to his death... Old Han lived quite well. When I achieved Ascension, he was still alive, surrounded by his children and grandchildren."

"After you left, the Old Sect Leader fathered twenty-two sons and eighteen daughters. Then, because of excessive loss of essence and Qi, he passed away after You Longsheng died!"

Lu Jiuyuan was momentarily silent, then looked at Ximen Chuixue: "How is Little Xue'er?"

Ximen Chuixue shook his head: "There might have been news in the Jianghu, but then it disappeared. Perhaps she achieved Ascension, or perhaps she has long since vanished into smoke."

"How have you been all these years?"

"Our world was just a Small World. In the human realm, we reigned Supreme and were the top Geniuses of the world."

"After achieving Ascension, we realized we were frogs in a well. Under the rule of the Heavenly Court, there is no telling how many such Small Worlds there are."

"Achieving Ascension to the Heavenly Court just meant becoming a small soldier under Heavenly King Virudhaka at the South Heaven Gate. With a slight advantage, we spent a hundred years improving our strength and became minor generals. Among the Heavenly Soldiers, we can be considered to have some reputation." Shen Lang explained.

"The origins of the Heavenly Soldiers and Generals are quite complex. They include heroic Souls from the human realm of this great world, those who achieved Ascension from Small Worlds, practitioners from the human realm, and those transformed from Ghost Kings of the Underworld."

"Let's go, let's walk around the Heavenly Court together and chat as we go!" Lu Jiuyuan said.

Lu Jiuyuan walked side by side with Ximen Chuixue, A Fei, and Shen Lang. The sleeves of his moon-white robe brushed against the swirling immortal clouds; they truly looked like old friends who had been reunited after a long time.

"After we parted back then, I thought our mortal ties had come to an end. Who would have thought we would reunite outside the South Heaven Gate today."

Lu Jiuyuan sighed with emotion, his gaze sweeping over the three former swordsmen of the human realm. Although they were now clad in armor and holding halberds, the unique arrogance and sharp spirit between their brows had not been completely worn away.

"Under Heavenly King Virudhaka... it is a waste of your talents."