diskusbooks Chapter 450 Invitation
Chapter 450 Invitation
Shangjing City, the Night Watch's residence.
Lin Qiye was sitting on the sofa in the dormitory living room, holding a cup of hot tea. The backlash from the Buddha-Demonic Form had stabilized, but a trace of demonic flame still flashed in his right eye from time to time.
Baili Pangpang was sprawled on the beanbag chair next to him, munching on a bucket of fried chicken with grease dripping from his mouth. He mumbled indistinctly, "Seven Nights, do you think Old Yuan will make us train new recruits again tomorrow? Those rookies looked at us like we were gods yesterday..."
"Aren't you a god to begin with?" Shen Qingzhu pushed up her sunglasses and sneered, "'The True Man of Half an Incense Stick' Baili Fatty."
"Get lost!" Baili Pangpang angrily threw a chicken bone at Shen Qingzhu, who easily dodged it.
Cao Yuan sat by the window, silently wiping the black blade. He had suppressed most of the deathly aura on the blade, but occasionally a few wisps of black mist would still seep out.
An Qingyu sat in the corner, her mechanical arm dismantling a fragment of divine essence that had been plucked from an Egyptian god, data streams flashing wildly on her lens.
While everyone was chatting—
"boom--!!!"
The dormitory door was kicked open!
"Who?!" Lin Qiye stood up instantly, drawing his black box sword half an inch from its sheath.
Everyone turned to look at the doorway—
A boy with a topknot and wearing a red tracksuit stood there, a lollipop in his mouth and a fire-tipped spear in his hand... a plastic toy version?
"Oh, everyone's here?" The boy grinned, revealing two small tiger teeth. "Let me introduce myself—my name is Li Nezha, a special envoy from Heaven, sent to escort you to Heaven."
Everyone: "...?"
"Wait... what did you say your name was?" Baili Pangpang's eyes widened, and he even forgot to chew his fried chicken.
"Li Nezha." The boy rolled his eyes. "What, never heard of him?"
"No..." Baili Pangpang stammered, "You, you are that... three-headed, six-armed, wind-fire-wheeled, and wreaking havoc in the East Sea... Nezha?!"
“Yeah.” The boy shrugged. “But that was in my past life. In this life, I just awakened my memories not long ago and I’m still adjusting.”
Everyone: "..."
Lin Qiye slowly sheathed his sword, but his eyes remained wary: "Prove it."
"Proof?" The boy raised an eyebrow, then suddenly snapped his fingers—
"Shua——!!!"
Three illusory figures suddenly appeared behind him—
His left arm was wrapped in the Hun Tian Ling (a magical ribbon), his right arm was encased in the Qian Kun Huan (a magical ring), and he was standing on... two hoverboards?
"The Wind Fire Wheels are still under repair, so we'll have to make do with this for now." The boy (Li Nezha) chuckled. "How about that, is that enough proof?"
Baili Pangpang: "..."
An Qingyu's glasses flashed wildly: "The energy reading... it is indeed at the level of a supreme god, but the vessel is a mortal body?"
“That’s right.” Li Nezha nodded. “I was born into the Li family in this life, and I only awakened my memories of my past life at the age of sixteen. My physical body is still that of a mortal, so my divine power has not recovered much.”
He paused, then added, "But beating up a few of you... should be enough."
Everyone: "..."
"So..." Lin Qiye frowned, "What does the Heavenly Court want with us?"
"Oh, I almost forgot the important matter." Li Nezha pulled a crumpled piece of paper from his pocket and read aloud:
"By the decree of the Jade Emperor, we hereby specially invite the Night Watchers Lin Qiye, Zhang Yun, Baili Pangpang, Cao Yuan, Shen Qingzhu, and An Qingyu..."
Uh,
The rest of the names are too long to read, but anyway, it's you few who are to immediately proceed to the Heavenly Court to attend the Peach Banquet and the Three Realms Joint Defense Meeting.
"The Peach Banquet?!" Baili Pangpang jumped up suddenly. "Is that the one where eating one peach can make you live for nine thousand years?!"
“That’s right.” Li Nezha nodded. “But don’t get your hopes up too high. This year’s Peach Banquet is all about frugality. Each person will only get… half a peach.”
Everyone: "..."
"Why us?" Shen Qingzhu asked calmly.
“Because you’ve been doing well lately,” Li Nezha shrugged. “You destroyed the Egyptian pantheon, guarded the national monument, and almost made Ra cry… The Jade Emperor thinks you’re qualified to sit at the table for a meal.”
Cao Yuan: "...We didn't kill La Shen."
"Pretty much!" Li Nezha waved his hand. "Anyway, are you guys going or not? If not, I'll go back and report."
"Go!" Baili Pangpang grabbed his arm. "You have to go! I've been wanting to try the peaches for ages!"
Lin Qiye and the others exchanged glances and nodded: "Okay, we'll go with you."
Half an hour later, in the outskirts of Beijing.
Li Nezha stood in an open space and took out a... QR code from his pocket.
"Come on, scan the code to get on the bus."
Everyone: "???"
“This is…?” An Qingyu pushed up her glasses.
“A direct train to the South Heavenly Gate!” Li Nezha said matter-of-factly. “Now the Heavenly Court is also going digital. Traditional cloud-riding is too slow. We can just scan a code to send it.”
Everyone: "..."
Baili Pangpang shakily pulled out his phone: "Is this QR code... safe?"
"Don't worry, it's officially certified by the Heavenly Court, no deception whatsoever." Li Nezha patted his chest. "I even used it to order takeout last month!"
Everyone: "..."
With a skeptical attitude, the group scanned the QR code to pay (using merit points), and the next second—
"Shua——!!!"
A golden light descended from the sky, enveloping everyone!
"Welcome aboard the 'Heavenly Express'! Our destination is the South Heavenly Gate. Have a pleasant journey!"
An electronic voice sounded, and everyone vanished instantly.
"boom--!!!"
The group crashed heavily onto a sea of clouds.
"Ouch... this teleportation experience is terrible..." Baili Pangpang rubbed his butt and got up, then suddenly froze, "Holy... shit..."
Before them stood a majestic golden gate tower amidst the clouds, the three large characters "South Heavenly Gate" on the gate plaque shining brightly. Dozens of golden-armored heavenly soldiers stood on both sides, holding long halberds, exuding an awe-inspiring presence.
Even more shocking is—
Behind the gate, the celestial palaces stretched out in a continuous line, bathed in radiant light, with countless cranes and mythical birds soaring among them. In the distance, one could also see the floating Peach Garden and the glittering Lingxiao Palace!
"This... is the Heavenly Court?" Lin Qiye's pupils contracted slightly.
"How about that, impressive, right?" Li Nezha said smugly, hands on his hips. "Come on, let me take you to see the Jade Emperor!"
He had just taken a step when he suddenly stumbled—
"Ouch!"
When everyone looked down, they discovered that his hoverboard... had run out of power.
Li Nezha scratched his head awkwardly: "Um... the Wind Fire Wheels are still charging, shall we... walk over?"
Everyone: "..."
Lingxiao Palace.
The Jade Emperor sat on a golden chair with nine dragons, flanked by a forest of immortals and gods.
When Lin Qiye and his group stepped into the main hall, all the gods turned their gazes toward them.
"Ahem..." Li Nezha whispered a reminder, "Please bow!"
Just as everyone was about to clasp their hands in greeting, Baili Pangpang suddenly knelt down with a thud and shouted, "Greetings, Jade Emperor—!!!"
Everyone: "..."
The Jade Emperor's lips twitched slightly: "Rise..."
Baili Pangpang got up and muttered under his breath, "Isn't that how it's always portrayed on TV..."
Lin Qiye sighed, stepped forward, and said respectfully, "Lin Qiye, the Night Watchman, and his team pay their respects to Your Majesty."
"No need for formalities." The Jade Emperor nodded slightly. "You have all rendered meritorious service in protecting the Great Xia Dynasty. I have specially invited you to this banquet today to discuss the joint defense of the Three Realms."
No sooner had the words been spoken than a furious roar suddenly came from outside the hall:
"Li Nezha—!!!"
"Shua——!!!"
A golden light shot into the main hall, transforming into... another Nezha?!—riding on wheels of fire and wielding a fire-tipped spear!
"You dare steal my Wind and Fire Wheels?! And you even used them until they ran out of power?!"
Everyone: "???"
Li Nezha (modern version) chuckled awkwardly: "Uh... Big brother, it's a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding..."
"Who's your older brother?!" Nezha (the official version) roared in fury, "Take this—!!!"
"Shua——!!!"
The Fire-Tipped Spear came hurtling towards him, and Li Nezha (modern version) slid in behind Lin Qiye, yelling, "Help—!!!"
Lin Qiye: “…”
Jade Emperor: "..."
The gods and immortals: "..."
ten minutes later.
Li Nezha (modern version) was dragged away by the ear by Nezha (traditional version), and before leaving, he shouted to Baili Pangpang, "Remember to leave me half a peach—!!!"
Baili Pangpang: "..."
The Jade Emperor rubbed his temples and said helplessly, "Please forgive me, everyone... that child has just awakened his memories and is still in his rebellious phase."
Lin Qiye: "I understand..."
"To get back to the main point," the Jade Emperor said solemnly, "the real reason I invited you all here today is to deal with the Cthulhu catastrophe."
He raised his hand and waved it, and an image appeared in the center of the hall—
In the depths of the sea, a pitch-black realm slowly rises, with countless tentacles entwining the world's barrier, and scarlet eyes opening in the darkness.
"Cthulhu's true form... is about to awaken."