Chapter 145: What on Earth is Going On?

Chapter 145: What the Hell is Going On?

The puppy dashed back into Tu Zhe's arms, looking entirely aggrieved as if it had been severely harassed, with tears welling up in its eyes.

Suppressed laughter, Tu Zhe comforted the puppy, saying it was nothing, absolutely nothing, and that being loved by a dog was a form of happiness, hehe.

The puppy stiffened its neck in protest, declaring it was far from happiness—it was pure torture, wouldn't you say? Just look at that perverted dog's obscene face, it was enough to disgust a dog to death, wuuwuuwuu...

At that moment, the Celestial Hound had trotted back, looking with eager puppy-dog eyes as it mumbled, "I was being completely sincere..."

After grunting in disgust for a long while, the puppy dove straight into the Sumeru Ring, choosing the out-of-sight, out-of-mind approach.

Feeling that he had lost face, the Celestial Hound slunk back in dejection and retreated into Erlang Shen's sleeve.

This unexpected bout of laughter and bickering closed the emotional distance between them quite a bit. Tu Zhe's perception of Erlang Shen also underwent a slight shift.

Probing cautiously, Tu Zhe asked, "Second Brother, there's something I'm wondering whether I should ask or not."

Erlang Shen said, "Go ahead and speak."

Choosing his words with utmost care, Tu Zhe asked, "Well, a long time ago, didn't you and a certain monkey have a bit of a brawl?"

Frowning as he pondered, Erlang Shen replied, "You must be talking about that Great Sage Equaling Heaven. What about it?"

Tu Zhe rubbed his nose and said, "Actually, the way I see it, regardless of everything else, that monkey was quite the talent, wasn't he? The Heavenly Court shouldn't have played games with him by tossing him some trivial title like Piermawen—wasn't that just bullying the guy? Naturally, he had to raise a massive ruckus; would you expect him to be all grateful and kowtow?"

Erlang Shen paused in stunned silence for a long moment before letting out a bitter laugh. "Brother, you don't understand how things work in the Heavenly Court. It's not as simple as having vast divine powers guaranteeing you a promotion and a prime position.

Let me put it this way: look around, inside and outside the Heavenly Court, there are hundreds of millions of immortals, and princes and nobles are everywhere. But how many official positions are there in the Heavenly Court?

He was just a monkey demon from the lower realms; despite his considerable magical powers, his background was subpar, right? Giving him a spot on the imperial payroll was already generous of them—yet he expected to be enfeoffed as a king or appointed as a prime minister.

Demand outstrips supply, you understand, hehe..."

Tu Zhe nodded in realization. Turns out the Heavenly Court wasn't all that different from the world of his past life. If a grassroots nobody without money, power, or backing wanted to rise to prominence—even if you were a true talent—the question was: did they even lack talent?

You bloody mud-legged peasant actually dreaming of turning your fortunes around?

You must have been dreaming about Sister Lin from the Dream of the Red Chamber!

Seeing Tu Zhe's expression of "so that's how it is," Erlang Shen chuckled and said, "Brother, don't feel too disgruntled. The world is just the way it is. Do you really suppose your Mount Sumeru hands out official titles and peerage purely based on magical prowess? I rather doubt it, hehe."

Lowering his head, Tu Zhe sipped his sullen wine in silence.

***

Noticing the atmosphere threatening to turn frosty, Little Su stepped in. "Well, anyway, Second Brother, we're planning to take a stroll through Beiju Luzhou shortly. Since you don't seem to have anything pressing on your hands, why don't you tag along for some fun?"

Erlang Shen laughed and shook his head. "That won't do at all. Not to mention that I can't easily slip away from the Hall of Miraculous Mist, even if I could, joining you two would just make me a massive third wheel, wouldn't it? Hehe."

Little Su playfully punched Erlang Shen on the shoulder. "Second Brother only knows how to tease us girls."

Just as Erlang Shen was preparing to stand up and return to the Jade Capital of Godly Heavens to report on his mission, he suddenly frowned and said, "Someone is coming."

In the distance, a group of figures tore through the void riding on clouds. At the fore was a figure radiating arrogant indifference—none other than Tang Youyou, who had previously gone missing.

Erlang Shen's brow furrowed deeply. He felt that this Tang Youyou was vastly different from before, as if she had been replaced by a completely different person. He sat back down, picked up a cup of fine wine, took a small sip, and waited to see what kind of trick Tang Youyou intended to pull.

Right at that moment, an issue arose with Tu Zhe. Cupping his fists toward Erlang Shen, Tu Zhe said, "Second Brother, please help me hold off Tang Youyou for a moment. Something has come up with my retainers and my spiritual altar."

Erlang Shen shot Tu Zhe a look of surprise.

It wasn't that he thought Tu Zhe was afraid of Tang Youyou, but rather that the timing of these events was preposterously coincidental to the extreme.

Tang Youyou had arrived;
A disturbance had surfaced in Tu Zhe's spiritual consciousness;
A problem had broken out with the retainers inside Tu Zhe's Sumeru Ring.

The timing was simply too impeccable, hehe!

At this moment, Erlang Shen remained completely leisurely and unhurried as he sat beside the blue jade table, sipping his wine. His eyes watched the approaching Tang Youyou, a faint smile carrying a hint of contemplation playing on his lips.

As for Little Su, she felt not a shred of panic. With Erlang Shen here, the idea that Tang Youyou could stir up any monumental trouble was something absolutely no one would believe.

However, Little Su couldn't help but worry about Tu Zhe's condition.

Tu Zhe was currently sitting there with his eyes closed and his expression completely blank. She had no idea whether the situation he spoke of was critical or not.

By past convention, whenever Erlang Shen was present, Tang Youyou would generally avoid him if possible. The heaven-defying methods of this butcher-like cousin meant that no matter how much Tang Youyou threw a tantrum for a lifetime, it would be utterly futile.

Yet today's Tang Youyou was entirely different. Not only did she exude an imposing and formidable aura, but she also acted as if she didn't place this cousin in her eyes at all. With her hands clasped behind her back in the manner of an aloof master, she stopped a few hundred feet away from Erlang Shen, Little Su, and Tu Zhe. Raising her chin slightly, she signaled her subordinate—a Heavenly Sovereign named Tang San—to step forward and speak.

This Tang San was the very same Heavenly Sovereign who had pursued Tang Youyou and subsequently been left utterly shaken by her unfathomable divine powers.

At this juncture, he couldn't afford to puzzle over what had happened to Tang Youyou. Even if he wanted to figure it out, given Tang Youyou's current state, would he dare to make a peep?

If she accidentally reached out, grabbed his spiritual consciousness, and snuffed it out, who could he cry to?

***

Upon seeing that one of the three figures opposite him was Erlang Shen, Tang San felt his scalp go completely numb.

Bloody hell, why did it have to be this supreme deity stationed here?

Yet he didn't dare refuse to approach. After countless eons of bitter cultivation, he had finally managed to scrape his way into the Heavenly Sovereign realm, and claiming he wasn't afraid of death would be lying to ghosts.

Fearlessness was only a form of bravery displayed when facing those inferior to oneself. Against beings far more powerful, such as Erlang Shen or Tang Youyou, both of whom possessed the ability to snuff him out with a single slap of the hand, which one of them dared Tang San defy?

Thus, Tang San first offered a sweeping, formal bow of deep respect to Erlang Shen, then stammered nervously, "Ah... Sovereign, please understand. Heavenly King Tang sent me to inquire whether the minor extraterritorial celestial lord named Qin Lei and the demoness named Tricia are still here."

"If they are, the Heavenly King's intention is... um, cough... this and that..."

Erlang Shen couldn't be bothered to entertain him. Casting a sidelong glance at Tang Youyou, he drawled, "Oh, oh! Heavenly King You has really grown quite bold these days, haven't you? You didn't even bother to greet your cousin when you saw him. What's the meaning of this? Your abilities have grown so vast that you want to butt heads with your cousin of mine?"

With a cold, detached cupped-fist salute, Tang Youyou replied, "Trust you have been well since we last met, Cousin?"

Having asked that, she said nothing more, fixing a chilly gaze upon Tang San.

Tang San felt a sharp pain in his teeth. *Bloody hell, I can't afford to offend either of you kinsmen! What kind of a situation is this? When immortals go to war, could you please leave a wretched, unlucky fellow like me out of it?*

With no other choice, Tang San had to resume bowing and scraping as he addressed Erlang Shen, "Sovereign, look at this matter..."

Erlang Shen wiped the residual jade nectar from the corner of his mouth with his hand and asked, "Does your intention mean you want to take away the extraterritorial celestial lord and that what's-her-name demoness?"

"Oh, Sovereign, my dearest lord, I truly didn't dare voice these words aloud. You speaking them out loud has given me a face-saving way out!"

Bowing repeatedly, Tang San fawned, "Your discernment is brilliant, Sovereign, your wisdom is..."

Erlang Shen waved a hand, cutting off Tang San's flattery before it could return to his stomach, and smiled as he asked Tang Youyou, "Is that your intention as well?"

Without a word, Tang Youyou simply gave a slight nod and fell silent once more.

Frowning deeply, Erlang Shen thought to himself: *Something isn't right. This Tang Youyou has problems.*

Consequently, Erlang Shen directly opened his third eye on his forehead. A thin beam of brilliant light shot straight toward Tang Youyou's spiritual altar, attempting to forcefully breach her sea of consciousness and investigate what on earth was going on.