“Ding! Congratulations, host, you have triggered a side quest: [Sign in at the Hall of Divine Mists]. Quest reward: Affinity with the female immortals of the Heavenly Court, +100 to magic power.”

  Just as Xu Fang stepped into the Hall of Divine Mists, the system's voice suddenly rang out, leaving him both amused and perplexed.

  He had no idea how the system calculated the rewards for signing in, but receiving affinity with the female immortals for signing in at the Hall of Divine Mists was certainly unexpected!

  However, Xu Fang thought it was a good opportunity, so he proceeded with the sign-in.

  Then, he turned his attention to the crowd of immortals.

  When he first arrived at the Heavenly Court, Xu Fang had assumed that the deities would be rigid and pedantic, but to his surprise, upon entering the Hall of Divine Mists, he was met with a warm welcome from the immortals.

  In fact, the immortals held no significant prejudice against Xu Fang, but there was also no particular fondness. The reason for their enthusiasm stemmed from two main factors.

  First, Xu Fang's impressive display of strength when he had forcibly slain the avatar of the Heavenly Waves Demon, Tianbo Xun, despite being just a Golden Immortal, earned their respect.

  After all, the Jade Emperor had clearly intended to cultivate Xu Fang as a trusted subordinate, so the other immortals naturally sought to build a good relationship with him. Moreover, Xu Fang had kept to himself, which made it easy for them to extend a personal favor.

  Second, there was the connection to Master Bodhi.

  Xu Fang’s background was well-known among the immortals!

  There were very few direct disciples of quasi-saints in the Three Realms, and just having that status alone elevated Xu Fang significantly!

  As Xu Fang looked at the group of immortals, he politely nodded and cupped his hands in greeting.

  Among the crowd, he spotted two familiar faces.

  Erlang Shen Yang Jian!

  Goddess of Huashan Yang Chan!

  Yang Jian often resided at Guanjiangkou, while Yang Chan dwelled in Huashan. Their presence in the Heavenly Court was likely to welcome Xu Fang to the celestial ranks.

  Their concern for him touched Xu Fang.

  “I, Xu, am unworthy but have received the decree from the Jade Emperor to ascend to heaven. I hope you all will take care of me in the days to come!”

  Xu Fang bowed to the crowd of immortals, maintaining a humble and courteous demeanor.

  Coupled with his handsome looks and ethereal aura, the immortals couldn’t help but admire him.

  Especially the Flower Fairy, the Seven Fairies, and even the palace maidens in attendance felt a rising fondness for Xu Fang.

  After all, powerful, good-looking, and cultured immortals like him were rare to come by.

  However, Yang Chan couldn’t help but curl her lip slightly at the sight, subtly moving two steps forward to position herself in front of Xu Fang.

  Erlang Shen glanced sideways, letting out a quiet sigh, somewhat helpless.

  ……

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  “His Majesty (Lady Queen Mother) is arriving! All immortals, welcome—”

  At that moment, a high-pitched voice echoed, and the Hall of Divine Mists instantly fell silent.

  “Roar—”

  A dragon's roar suddenly resonated from the heavens!

  Then, nine five-clawed golden dragons appeared, riding on auspicious clouds, accompanied by countless auspicious symbols, drawing the majestic Nine-Dragon Golden Palanquin to the Hall of Divine Mists!

  “Welcome, Your Majesty, welcome, Lady Queen Mother…”

  Amidst the cheers of the immortals, the Jade Emperor and Lady Queen Mother stepped forward.

  These two were the most revered figures in the Three Realms, one with a commanding presence, looking down upon all, and the other exuding grace and dignity, embodying maternal virtue!

  As the immortals bowed in reverence, the Jade Emperor and Lady Queen Mother ascended to their golden thrones.

  “Immortal friends, rise! No need for formalities!”

  The Jade Emperor waved his hand lightly, and after the collective thanks from the immortals, they divided into two lines.

  At this moment, Xu Fang stepped forward, cupping his hands in respect to the seated Jade Emperor and Lady Queen Mother. “Xu Fang of Mount Fangcun pays his respects to Your Majesty and to Lady Queen Mother.”

  “Xu, please be at ease…”

  The Jade Emperor immediately called for Xu Fang to rise, a hint of humor in his tone: “Xu, coming to heaven must have been quite the hassle for you. Taibai has made countless trips just to summon you.”

  This playful remark was clear to everyone.

  The gazes of the other immortals turned towards Xu Fang, filled with envy.

  No other deity in the Heavenly Court had ever received such treatment from the Jade Emperor.

  “Your servant is remiss. I was in closed-door training and didn’t realize Taibai had to run back and forth so many times.”

  Xu Fang smiled and cupped his hands again. The Jade Emperor didn’t take offense, as Xu Fang was a rare find he had managed to bring to the court.

  Next followed the ceremony to confer Xu Fang as the Demon-Slaying General.

  The Jade Emperor spared no effort to win Xu Fang over, bestowing upon him the title of Demon-Slaying General, granting him a mansion adjacent to the Garden of Immortal Peaches.

  Additionally, there were thirty thousand direct heavenly soldiers under his command, one thousand female immortal attendants, three hundred Golden Elixirs, and an uncountable number of immortal peaches and spiritual fruits!

  Hearing these rewards, all the immortals present were filled with envy, especially Li Jing.

  Even he, as the illustrious Pagoda Bearer Devaraja, had only eight thousand soldiers directly under his command!

  Only during times of war would the Jade Emperor personally allocate additional soldiers to him.

  And here was Xu Fang, newly appointed as the Demon-Slaying General, already commanding thirty thousand direct soldiers, not to mention his mansion and the female attendants, along with the immortal fruits!

  The other deities in the Hall of Divine Mists fully understood that a great figure would soon rise in the Three Realms!

  Even the veteran deities like Pagoda Bearer Devaraja Li Jing and Marshal of the Heavenly Reeds would find themselves eclipsed!

  Once the conferral was complete, the immortals hurried forward to congratulate Xu Fang, and he graciously thanked each of them with a smile.

  Just as he was about to take his leave, a commotion suddenly erupted from outside the Southern Heavenly Gate!

  “Your Majesty, you must help this old dragon…”

  As the voice trailed off, the immortals saw a figure stumbling in from the Southern Heavenly Gate.

  It was the East Sea Dragon King, Ao Guang!

  The immortals were familiar with him, but they wondered why he had arrived at the Heavenly Court in such a disheveled state.

  Only Xu Fang felt his heart sink.

  Given Ao Guang’s appearance, it was likely that he had come to report on Sun Wukong!

  After all, before Xu Fang ascended, he had witnessed the tumultuous waves in the Eastern Sea, where Sun Wukong seized the Ruyi Golden-Hooped Rod.

  During the time Xu Fang was conferred as the Demon-Slaying General, a day in heaven equated to a year on earth, giving Ao Guang plenty of time to arrive.

  This visit from Ao Guang was clearly an attempt to get the Jade Emperor to take action and punish Sun Wukong.

  ……

  “What on earth has happened? What kind of behavior is this?”

  The Jade Emperor’s expression darkened as he shouted, “Speak quickly!”

  “Reporting to Your Majesty, the monkey demon Sun Wukong from Flower-Fruit Mountain, which borders my East Sea, has stormed into my Dragon Palace. Not only did he steal the Sea-Calming Needle that suppresses the spring, but he also looted the treasure vault of my East Sea Dragon Palace and forcibly seized our dragon clan’s treasures!”

  The Dragon King Ao Guang wailed as he recounted the events, claiming that Sun Wukong had stolen the Ruyi Golden-Hooped Rod and demanded the dragon clan’s treasures, including the Golden Chainmail Armor, Lotus-Thread Cloud-Walking Boots, and Phoenix-Winged Purple-Gold Crown. He even exaggerated, saying that Sun Wukong had plundered the entire Dragon Palace!

  “Such audacity!”

  The Jade Emperor slammed his palm on the throne, his face filled with fury!

  However, Xu Fang keenly noticed that there seemed to be a hint of amusement at the corner of the Jade Emperor’s mouth.

  “It seems this old fox, the Jade Emperor, is up to something.”

  Xu Fang pondered quietly to himself.