Ten thousand years later, Qing Ling rose to his feet, and the four guardian envoys arrived.
"Greetings, Dao Master."
Qing Ling glanced at the four and said, "The Queen Mother of the West has invited me to observe the Dao. The time is near, and it is time to set off. Bei Xu, You, you two will stay behind in Duguang. Hei Bao, Bai Fu, you two will accompany me to the West Kunlun."
All four bowed in assent.
Qing Ling took a step and ascended into the clouds.
Bai Fu and Hei Bao quickly followed.
Bai Fu cheerfully stepped forward to stop him, "Dao Master, we can't just walk there, can we?"
Qing Ling glanced at him, "What else?"
Bai Fu chuckled and winked at Hei Bao, who suddenly realized. "Oh, right, right, right, Dao Master, you are now one of the top powers in the world. This sort of grand display is essential."
Bai Fu also said, "The Queen Mother invited you, perhaps she intends to bolster her influence. Dao Master, why don't you see what we've prepared for you?"
Qing Ling was speechless with laughter, and not wanting to dampen their spirits, he said, "Then let me see."
The two were overjoyed. They quickly beckoned, and a swarm of black bats spread their wings and flew over. From within the clouds, a hundred purple leopards suddenly emerged, along with hundreds of Heavenly Tier and Golden Immortal Venerables who bowed respectfully, "Greetings, Great Dao Master!"
Qing Ling glanced at the two and said, "It seems you two were prepared long ago. Then why are we waiting?"
Bai Fu quickly replied, "Alright!"
With that, he waved his hand again, and a cloud chariot a hundred zhang tall flew out, with a wide cloud bed placed in the center.
Qing Ling took a step, and his person was already seated on the cloud bed.
Hei Bao and Bai Fu stood on either side of the cloud chariot and said, "Ascend!"
A hundred purple leopards stepped from the clouds, ten thousand spirit bats served as a canopy, celestial attendants carried spiritual treasures, a glazed plate held Taiyi pills, divine maidens held precious fans, immortal generals wore brocade cloud robes, and guardian divine attendants possessed high cultivation, their majestic might filling the firmament.
Below, cultivators saw this grand spectacle and dared not disturb the procession of the great figure, retreating one after another. Even some savage beasts knew to avoid misfortune.
In the West Kunlun, the immortal realm was bustling. They emerged from the clouds to the mountain peaks in the morning and watched the sun hang among the trees in the evening. The flowing water murmured like jade pendants, and the stream's drips sounded like a zither. Before the mountain were steep cliffs, and behind the mountain were lush flowers and trees. It connected to the Jade Maiden's Hair Washing Basin above and the Heavenly River splitting the waters below. The union of heaven and earth was more beautiful than Penglai, and the separation of the turbid and the clear formed a true cave dwelling.
When Qing Ling arrived, there were already many cultivators in the West Kunlun, with dense figures, numbering no less than several thousand!
However, most of them were female cultivators.
In the West Kunlun, the Queen Mother of the West, surrounded by many female immortals, came to greet Qing Ling.
At this moment, the West Kunlun was truly a place where immortal great powers reached the True Saint realm, and worldly mortals were in the illusionary immortal realm!
On this day, the Queen Mother's demeanor was majestic, accompanied by her authority, like the mother of all immortals. All the immortals bowed to her and regarded her as their sovereign.
The Queen Mother smiled and said, "Daoist friend, you have finally arrived. I was wondering if you were intentionally trying to put me off with this blue bird."
The immortals by her side were curious. Who was this person who was on equal footing with the Queen Mother of the West? And could call her "Daoist friend"!
Qing Ling rose and performed a half bow, smiling and saying, "Your Majesty worries too much. Since I agreed, I would naturally come. I was just thinking on the way what gift I should give you to match your joyous occasion today!"
In the past, he called the Queen Mother "Senior." Now that they were both supreme powers, even though the Queen Mother was five heavens higher than him, he could still address her as "Daoist friend."
The Queen Mother smiled and said, "Your Daoist friend's arrival is the greatest congratulation. What need is there for other things?"
Qing Ling smiled and said, "This gift is indispensable. However, as a fallen Daoist, I have nothing to show off. I have only brought a few fruits to offer as congratulations."
Beside him, Bai Fu held up a glazed jade plate, on which were four Yellow Origin Fruits, emitting an extremely alluring aura of the Great Dao!
"Huang Zhong Li!"
Someone unknown blurted out the name of this spiritual root, causing the Queen Mother's heart to stir.
"Daoist friend has truly put much thought into this."
Qing Ling smiled and said, "Not at all. I must repay the kindness you showed me in the past, Your Majesty."
Beside the Queen Mother, an elegant woman in palace attire smiled and said, "Your Majesty, let us not miss the auspicious time."
Qing Ling looked at the woman, his eyes subtly moved, and he smiled, "May I ask who this Daoist friend is?"
The Queen Mother smiled and said, "Look at me, I'm so busy I'm muddled. This is the Mother of All Stars, Dou Mu Yuan Jun, who resides among the stars."
Qing Ling was shocked. Dou Mu Yuan Jun! This was an extremely high-ranking deity in Taoism.
"I am Qing Ling, Lord of the Eastern Desolation. I greet Dou Mu Yuan Jun!"
Dou Mu Yuan Jun returned the greeting with a faint smile, "You are too kind, Daoist friend. Today is the day of the Queen Mother's ascension. We are all guests here."
The Queen Mother smiled again and pointed to a gentle woman beside Dou Mu Yuan Jun, saying, "This is Bi Xia Yuan Jun, the main deity of Mount Tai!"
Qing Ling also bowed respectfully and smiled, "Qing Ling greets Bi Xia Yuan Jun."
Bi Xia Yuan Jun smiled and said, "Daoist friend, please don't be so polite, or the Queen Mother's auspicious time will be missed."
All the female immortals covered their mouths and chuckled.
Qing Ling stepped aside and smiled, "Then please, Your Majesty, ascend the altar!"
Dou Mu Yuan Jun said, "Please, Your Majesty, ascend the altar!"
Bi Xia Yuan Jun said, "Please, Your Majesty, ascend the altar!"
The Blue Bird Fairy said, "Qing Niangniang, please ascend the altar!"
A crowd of immortals all said, "Please, Niangniang, ascend the altar!"
All the immortals bowed, ten thousand immortals paid homage, and the immortals revered her.
At this moment, the Queen Mother's spirit was in harmony with the divine, the divine with the momentum, and the momentum with the supreme position of all immortals, the head of all immortals in the world!
The Queen Mother's expression was solemn. She pointed her finger, and a plain cloud banner rose from the West Kunlun, summoning the clouds of the ten realms and alarming all the great powers in the world.
But just as the Queen Mother was about to make her vow to heaven and earth, the East Sea raged, and a secret realm appeared in the world.
A Daoist priest, neither too early nor too late, neither too close nor too far, appeared precisely at the moment before the Queen Mother of the West could complete her vows, proclaiming to heaven and earth.
"Today, I, Mu Gong, acting under the will of the Heavenly Dao and the command of the Dao Ancestor, shall rule all immortals in the Primordial World on behalf of heaven. Mount Penglai shall be the palace for all immortals in the world, the Ding Hai Divine Pearl shall suppress the luck of Penglai, and the authority of the Heavenly Dao shall transform into the Immortal Scepter, to govern all immortals in the world. I shall henceforth be the Eastern King, Gong!"
As his words fell, the Heavenly Dao was already prepared.
Vast fortune and merit converged on Penglai Island in the East Sea. With a single word, "Cut!" the sound reverberated through the heavens, and a good corpse emerged and fell onto Penglai, overseeing the immortal path there.
Mu Gong, with the help of the world's merit, had cut off his two corpses!
Subsequently, he continued, "Following the decree of Dao Ancestor Hongjun, I shall teach all beings in heaven and earth a Dao scripture, named the Yellow Court Scripture, which can guide all beings to the Great Dao.
Under the Heavenly Dao, those beings who achieve cultivation shall be called immortals! Above the Immortal realm, there shall be seven realms: first, Earth Immortal, second, Heavenly Immortal, third, Profound Immortal, fourth, Golden Immortal, fifth, Taiyi, sixth, Great Luo Golden Immortal, seventh, Quasi-Saint, and eighth, Saint, which is the Hunyuan Wuji Great Luo Golden Immortal!
All who seek the Dao may come to my Penglai to cultivate longevity together and seek逍遥!"
As his words fell, the Queen Mother's face turned ashen.
Even Bi Xia Yuan Jun and Dou Mu Yuan Jun had darkened expressions.
These two, who were invited by the Queen Mother, must have had a deep relationship with her. More importantly, they were both extremely powerful beings, hidden magnates in the Primordial World!
Both of them were at the twenty-fourth or twenty-fifth heaven of the Great Luo Golden Immortal realm!
The Queen Mother of the West sneered and looked eastward, saying, "Well said, Hongjun. You have schemed against me! Hypocritical scheming, the actions of a villain, how dare you claim the title of Dao Ancestor?"
All the immortals were shocked, all beings were shocked, and all the great powers were astounded.
The Queen Mother's words, without reservation, resounded through heaven and earth. With the heavens above her and standing straight and majestic, she pointed to the sky and cursed Hongjun!
This was a powerhouse who dared to curse even Hongjun!
Dark clouds gathered in the sky, and the will of the Heavenly Dao converged.
The Queen Mother snorted, "Back then, a fragmented will that hid its head and tail, and now you dare to act so high and mighty!"
Qing Ling could only smile bitterly. Cursing Hongjun was not enough; now that the Heavenly Dao had shown itself, he had cursed it as well!