The Palace of Supreme Purity.
The Supreme Lord Lao Zi had been standing at the door early in the morning, for he knew that there would surely be honored guests coming today.
When Yang Xue and Sun Wukong appeared in sight, he suddenly burst into laughter. "So it's you two who are the honored guests today!"
Yang Xue clasped her fists in salute. "Yang Xue pays respects to the Heavenly Lord."
Now that she took a closer look, wasn't he the old man who had once given her advice and told her fortune?
In that case, he was the matchmaker between her and the Great Sage.
"I was about to pay you a visit, but I didn't expect you two to come in person. I'm really sorry for not greeting you properly." He knew that the situation of the journey to the West was already settled, and the most important thing at present was related to Yang Xue.
Seeing the expression on the Supreme Lord Lao Zi's face, Yang Xue guessed that he must have something else to tell them.
It seemed that she had come at just the right time.
It turned out that the Jade Emperor was going to offer amnesty and enlistment to rebels.
Since the journey to fetch the scriptures was temporarily suspended, the Jade Emperor naturally couldn't just sit back and do nothing. If Yang Xue was really going to be the next Saint, he must recruit her to the Heavenly Court.
The Supreme Lord Lao Zi, however, knew that Yang Xue's identity was far more than just a Saint. He also understood that she was not willing to be on the roster of the celestial officials. So he prepared a speech, intending to persuade her to change her mind.
Sure enough, Yang Xue was tempted after hearing it.
Because she didn't want to be regarded as an outcast. If she and the Great Sage could openly let the Three Realms witness their perfect match, why not?
Most importantly, she heard that the rewards from the Heavenly Court were quite generous, and she could get some benefits from it.
Hehe, she had always been a money - grubber, so she naturally had to plan for the future.
The Supreme Lord Lao Zi didn't know what she was thinking. Seeing her serious expression, he thought she was not satisfied.
"Although I don't know your real identity, Xuan You is now a mountain bandit. The Bai Xue beside him is the real White Bone Demon. The Heavenly Court has already known about this, and we had many misunderstandings about you before. If you have the protection of the Heavenly Court, you will have someone to look after you when you face them in the future." The Supreme Lord Lao Zi tried hard to persuade them.
Sun Wukong gave a faint smile and raised his eyebrows. "May I ask what the official title will be? It won't be the keeper of the Peach Orchard, will it?"
The Supreme Lord Lao Zi stroked his long beard. "The Great Sage is still concerned about what happened back then. But times have changed. For someone who can stand on equal footing with the Tathagata, how could the Jade Emperor give such a low - ranking official title? Please rest assured, Great Sage."
"I think it's feasible," Yang Xue readily accepted. "I wonder if I can ask for an imperial edict for marriage when I see the Jade Emperor today. It can also be an announcement to the world. It will be a good story for me and the Great Sage."
"Of course," he waved his whisk and lowered his voice, looking a bit mysterious. "May I ask, miss, where are you from? And why have you reached the level of a Saint in such a short time?"
"Um..." Yang Xue was a bit distressed. It wasn't that she didn't trust the Supreme Lord Lao Zi, but she didn't trust his ability to accept the truth.
"Supreme Lord Lao Zi, I know about this." Saying so, Sun Wukong patted his shoulder. "How about we drink wine, play chess and have a competition?"
"Um, this..."
Just then, a young disciple came in to report.
"Miss Yang, the Jade Emperor requests your presence." The person who came was a charming female celestial, leaving lotus flowers with every step. "I heard that you entered the Southern Heavenly Gate, and the Jade Emperor sent me to invite you to have a face - to - face talk with him."
Yang Xue's eyes turned cold. She thought to herself that the Jade Emperor was really well - informed.
"Great Sage, I'll go see the Jade Emperor. You can chat with the Heavenly Lord slowly. I'll be back soon." Saying so, she blinked her eyes and said to the Supreme Lord Lao Zi, "Heavenly Lord, I still want to ask you for some beauty pills when I come back."
"I've already prepared them," he said, then turned his gaze to Sun Wukong and smiled meaningfully. "I've prepared a big gift as a wedding gift for you two."
Sun Wukong averted his gaze and said uncomfortably, "Come on, come on. You're so stingy. You don't even offer us some tea."
Yang Xue was about to ask something else, but the celestial maiden began to urge her.
People are in high spirits when happy. Yang Xue couldn't help but sigh that her luck had been extremely good recently.
When she arrived at the Hall of Miraculous Mist, in front of all the court officials and celestial beings, the Jade Emperor had not only prepared the imperial edict but also a big gift for the two of them.
He also readily promised that on their wedding day, the Heavenly Court would present a grand gift and confer an official title on her.
However, before that, the Jade Emperor asked her to go down to the mortal world to solve a thorny problem as a test.
Yang Xue readily accepted the order. "I obey the imperial edict."
"Yang Jian will assist you in this matter. He knows everything about it. If you can solve this problem, I've prepared a big gift that Sun Wukong will surely be satisfied with." The Jade Emperor was beaming. He had thought she would refuse, but since things went so smoothly, he was also relieved.
"Please rest assured, Your Majesty. I will surely solve it perfectly." She thought to herself that she was in possession of the Heavenly Book now, so how could she not be able to subdue a monster.
But why did she have to be assisted by Yang Jian? She didn't like someone interfering with her plan.
After they left the Hall of Miraculous Mist, Yang Jian learned that she was going to the Palace of Supreme Purity, so he went there with her.
Yang Xue observed his expression and casually asked, "Why do you look so pale, God of War? Do you have something on your mind?"
"Yeah, a bit." He looked melancholy and in a bad mood. He didn't seem to want to talk more. "I'll tell you in detail about the monster we're going to subdue. It's in the Eastern Continent of Superior Body, within the territory of the Tang Dynasty."
"Okay." Yang Xue wasn't interested in his private affairs, so she listened attentively as he introduced the deeds of the big snake demon.
It turned out that deep in an unnamed mountain near a remote town, there was a snake demon that had been cultivating for a thousand years. Usually, this snake demon didn't eat humans, but some humans took risks. In order to cure a disease, they went into the deep mountains to catch the snake demon and get its gallbladder.
The snake demon had given birth to a bunch of little snakes, but when it went out, the little snakes were all captured by the humans who went up the mountain.
From then on, the snake demon committed all kinds of evil deeds, killing people and massacring villages to avenge its children.
Recently, the snake demon had become extremely arrogant. It captured human children for cultivation, which had made the common people cry in groups and weep in front of the temples of the celestial beings.
This matter was of great importance. Yang Xue felt numb all over after hearing this.
Although the snake demon was pitiful, it had committed so many evil deeds and used such cruel means that it was really unforgivable.
The reason why the celestial beings were at a loss was that the snake demon had somehow obtained a precious treasure, and it was very difficult for ordinary celestial beings to get close to it. Even if they wanted to subdue it, they had a hard time finding its trace.
After the introduction, they had already arrived at the door of the Palace of Supreme Purity.
Yang Jian stopped. "I heard that there is a woman beside Xuan You who looks very much like you."
"Yeah, I've met her."
"Zhao Gongming has gone to look for her. Maybe this time, he will fight with Xuan You for her." He frowned and finally asked, "I'd like to ask you to find him and bring him back. He can't continue to be so stubborn."
"You..." Her intuition told her that something unpleasant had happened between them.
"We've been working together for many years. We're all celestial beings in the Heavenly Court. I just don't want him to make more mistakes. Not just anyone can be the God of Wealth. That's all." After saying that, he glanced coldly at the Palace of Supreme Purity. "Since I've finished talking about the matter, I won't accompany you in."
Yang Xue gave a faint smile. "Sure. I'll surely go. He's also my friend."
It's a pity that the God of Wealth was originally a straight - laced man.