Chapter 2542: Ask for a Leave of Absence for Me

Tai Gong has always been as elusive as a dragon, appearing and vanishing without a trace—who knows where he is? Si Ming Xing Jun shrugged. "Not even we small Xing Jun can find him, and even Yu Di would struggle to locate him. He's far too mysterious."

"Maybe he's in self-seal mode," Ye Chen muttered under his breath, stroking his chin. After all, the divine positions of the heavenly gods, including Yu Di's, were all granted by Jiang Tai Gong. That alone speaks volumes about his immense prestige! With such a status, he must know about the existence of Zu.

Ye Chen was certain that in the heavenly realm, anyone aware of Zu's existence was likely in self-seal mode right now. Even if not, they were probably sealed by Dao Zu Hong Jun. Hong Jun had made things so mysterious for a reason.

"Do you know about Tian Mo?" Ye Chen asked again.

"I've heard of it, but I've never seen it with my own eyes."

"Really? Tian Mo has never invaded your heavenly realm?" Ye Chen raised an eyebrow.

"Invaded?"

"Yeah, like a massive black pillar that shoots up from the sky, standing tall and imposing with a loud crash. Then, a horde of dark, shadowy figures swarms out, all boastful and eager to show off."

"I've seen the black pillar before—it shakes the heavenly realm every time it appears." Si Ming Xing Jun stroked his chin. "But as soon as it stands, some mysterious force shatters it."

"In that case, I get it," Ye Chen said, taking a deep breath.

Clearly, that mysterious force Si Ming Xing Jun mentioned must come from Dao Zu Hong Jun. He strikes down the Tian Mo pillar before it can fully manifest, so it's no wonder Si Ming Xing Jun has never encountered Tian Mo—the pillar is gone before anything happens.

Thinking about it this way, Di Huang and Ming Di are cut from the same cloth. They don't bother destroying the pillar; they just wait for the Tian Mo emperor to emerge and then team up to take him down. After all, the underworld had two supreme beings back in the day.

Not to brag, but if they had moved Di Huang to the heavenly realm, Dao Zu Hong Jun would have put up an even bigger fight than Ming Di did. He might have ended up as another lively great emperor.

As dawn approached, Si Ming Xing Jun stretched lazily and stood up, letting out a huge yawn.

"Time for the morning court session."

Seeing Ye Chen still sitting there lost in thought, Si Ming Xing Jun couldn't resist kicking him lightly.

"Please take a leave for me," Ye Chen said casually.

"Take a leave for you? You just got here and already want to break the heavenly rules?"

"Speaking of heavenly rules, let me have a look."

"That'll take you several days to read through." Si Ming Xing Jun pulled out a scroll.

Ye Chen reached for it, but his grip slipped, and the scroll rolled away, tumbling from one end of the purple bamboo grove to the other. It didn't look that big at first, but when unrolled, it stretched on for hundreds of feet, covered in neatly arranged rows of dense golden characters.

This thing is way longer than any group rules.

Ye Chen rubbed his eyes—even with his sharp vision, the text was overwhelming. Reading it properly would indeed take several days. The people of the heavenly realm must have a strange sense of humor, making the rules so long. They could have engraved it into divine consciousness, but no, they had to use physical text.

"Let's go." Si Ming Xing Jun grabbed Ye Chen and started walking.

Ye Chen, ever the eager one, dragged the massive scroll along as he walked, reading as he went. The more he read, the more his mouth twitched. The rules were listed one after another, crystal clear—from capital crimes like murder to minor ones like harassing virtuous women. It was all so meticulously detailed, whoever wrote this must have had a lot of time on their hands.

No wonder the great gods from the lower realms don't want to come to the heavenly court as officials. With all these restrictions, they'd be stifled to death. Ye Chen couldn't help but sympathize with the people here, bound by these heavenly rules—they were probably holding back internal injuries.

"If these heavenly rules were implemented in Da Chu..."

Ye Chen pondered that thought but didn't finish it, just kept sighing and clicking his tongue. If they were introduced in his Da Chu, there'd likely be a rebellion by the second day.

Compared to this heavenly realm, the heavenly court in Da Chu was much more rugged and free-spirited.

Before leaving, Si Ming Xing Jun sent a sound transmission to Ye Chen as a warning. "Keep an eye on your guards and attendants. They're all loyal to Ba Tai Zi."

"Do you think I'm new to this world?" Ye Chen laughed. He had figured that out last night. Those guards and attendants acted respectful on the surface, but their intentions were dubious. He might not always be serious, but that didn't mean he was foolish.

Once again, they arrived at the Ling Xiao Bao Dian.

By the time they got there, the place was already crowded with people, all waiting for the morning court. More than half of them carried dusters, and over eighty percent were yawning, looking utterly listless.

"Kid, did you sleep well last night?" Tai Yi prodded Ye Chen with his duster.

"Pretty good."

"Prepare some drinks for tonight—we'll come to your place for a drink." Tai Bai stroked his beard thoughtfully.

"Sure thing." Ye Chen agreed verbally, already thinking about the special Da Chu products he had ready. They'd enter standing and leave crawling. Even in the heavenly realm, Da Chu's specialties needed to shine.

As they chatted, Ye Chen suddenly felt a chill.

Yawning, he glanced subtly in that direction and spotted the source—a man in purple robes, the elder from Ba Tai Zi's palace, a high-ranking official known as Zi Yang Xian Jun.

Ye Chen wasn't surprised. Yin Ming had probably obtained the Dao Jing and was in seclusion studying it. Yesterday's events, including the attack on the Yang family, were likely connected to him. Losing Ba Tai Zi's Kong Dong Yin must have left him furious.

Ye Chen quickly averted his gaze.

Meanwhile, Zi Yang Xian Jun's eyes grew even deeper, convinced that the Kong Dong Yin was with Ye Chen. And the team he had sent out yesterday had been completely wiped out, which was probably linked to Ye Chen as well.

"He might bring you up in front of Yu Di," Si Ming Xing Jun said casually.

"If he does, then he's not thinking straight," Ye Chen sneered.

The Kong Dong Yin was a heavenly treasure—losing it and then admitting it in court would provoke Yu Di's wrath, leading to utter destruction. Anyone who became an Xian Jun wasn't stupid enough to publicize that.

Si Ming Xing Jun said no more, and even the chatty Tai Yi and Tai Bai fell silent. The group of old-timers all turned their heads in unison, their eyes lighting up as if they'd spotted a beauty.

Ye Chen looked over and, well, it really was a beauty.

Bi Xia Xian Zi had arrived, her face exquisitely beautiful and her figure graceful, truly the top beauty of the heavenly realm. Compared to her, Hua Shan Xian Zi paled in comparison. Who could resist admiring such loveliness?

Ye Chen kept quiet, already planning to visit Bi Xia Xian Zi's residence after court. He wanted to check on her precious disciple, whose appearance reminded him of someone from Da Chu. She might even be a reincarnated soul from there.

"If I could marry her, what more could a man want!" came a deep voice.

Ye Chen glanced sideways at the speaker.

It was Ju Ling Shen. Ye Chen had to look up to see him properly—that massive build was no joke. For such a burly figure to say something so scholarly was impressive.

"You'd better forget it—things could get fatal in the bridal chamber."

That was exactly what Ye Chen's sidelong glance implied, especially focusing on Ju Ling Shen's... well, let's just say it would need a big pot to handle.

Dong! Dong! Dong!

Just then, the long bells began to toll.

This was the "morning bell" part of the saying. With the bells, the court session started. The immortals lined up by rank, from first-grade at the front to ninth-grade at the back, and filed in orderly.

If people from Da Chu saw this scene, they'd find it fascinating—so many quasi-emperors and powerful beings, all gathering at dawn not for drinking, tea, or flirting, but for court. They had truly mastered the ways of mortal dynasties!

In the hall, Yu Di sat solemnly, his aura vast and commanding.

Seeing Yu Di again, Ye Chen narrowed his eyes slightly. Strangely, today's Yu Di seemed different from yesterday—there was a faint black aura at his brow, gone in a flash.

"Tian Mo Qi."