Chapter 833: Audience

"Fellow Daoist Shi, now that the bell has rung, could it be...?" Han Li collected his thoughts and asked.

"Yes, Father has emerged from seclusion. He will likely summon us tomorrow, and we will proceed according to plan," Shi Chuankong nodded.

"Good," Han Li nodded, but his expression was somewhat grave.

"Fellow Daoist Li need not worry. Third Brother's plans are always foolproof; Father will surely agree," Shi Chuankong said, trying to reassure him upon seeing Han Li's expression.

Han Li smiled at this and said nothing more.

Shi Chuankong then gave Han Li some additional instructions on matters to be mindful of during the audience before dismissing his spatial clone.

Han Li cast a deep glance toward the sacred mountain, then turned and walked back into his room.

The night passed quickly.

Early the next morning, Han Li dressed neatly and went to the main hall.

Shi Pokong and Shi Chuankong were already there, both wearing purple ceremonial robes, jade belts, and purple-gold crowns, looking as noble as royal heirs in the mortal world.

Shi Pokong's crown was adorned with three gleaming pearls, while Shi Chuankong's crown was much duller in color and bore no pearls at all.

"Forgive me for keeping you both waiting," Han Li said, taking in their attire.

"No matter, we just arrived as well," Shi Chuankong laughed.

"Let's go," Shi Pokong said calmly, nodding slightly to Han Li before heading outside.

The three soon left the residence, where two beast-drawn carriages waited at the gate.

The first carriage was exceptionally ornate, entirely golden, pulled by a golden lion beast with thick, glossy golden fur, looking extraordinarily spirited. Above the carriage was a golden canopy fluttering in the wind.

The second carriage was much more ordinary, though larger in size. Beside it stood a man in red robes—none other than Blooddrop Marquis.

Just as Han Li looked at Blooddrop Marquis, the latter met his gaze and smiled, greeting him.

"Fellow Daoist Li, we are about to meet Father. He places great importance on the laws and rules of the Holy Domain, so we can no longer share a carriage. I'm afraid you'll have to ride in the rear one with Blooddrop Marquis," Shi Chuankong said to Han Li.

Han Li nodded and boarded the second carriage with Blooddrop Marquis.

"Let's go," Shi Pokong said as they stepped into the first carriage. At his command, both carriages sped forward.

"Fellow Daoist Blooddrop Marquis, it's been a while. I must thank you for leading away that Bone-Reflecting True Man back then; otherwise, Fellow Daoist Shi and I might not have returned safely to Yeyang City," Han Li said, smiling at Blooddrop Marquis.

"You're too kind, Fellow Daoist Li. Speaking of that time, I'm truly ashamed. Third殿下 sent me to escort you and Thirteenth殿下 back to Yeyang City, but I was of little use and was severely wounded by that old fiend Bone-Reflecting, spending a long time in seclusion recovering. I only recently fully healed. I heard that you later slew Bone-Reflecting True Man, Fellow Daoist Li. Your strength is truly unfathomable—I admire it," Blooddrop Marquis said with a hearty laugh.

"Killing Bone-Reflecting True Man that day was only possible through a series of coincidences. If it were to happen again, I would surely be the one to die," Han Li said with a chuckle.

"You're too modest, Fellow Daoist Li," Blooddrop Marquis laughed.

As the two chatted, the beast carriage sped along.

Han Li had rarely ventured out in recent years, mostly going to the Maha District to buy things or seek remedies for Ti Hun, so he was not familiar with the Luojia District.

Now, riding in the carriage, he gradually got a clearer view of the Luojia District.

Because of its proximity to the sacred mountain, the terrain of the entire Luojia District sloped upward from north to south.

The layout of the district was based on this, with layers of buildings stretching from the foot of the sacred mountain to the city walls, arranged in neat tiers like steps.

Moreover, the closer to the sacred mountain, the taller and more ornate the buildings became.

After turning a few corners, the two carriages came upon an extremely wide white jade avenue.

The avenue was a full hundred zhang wide, stretching straight ahead toward the sacred mountain.

Han Li's expression suddenly stiffened, and a look of surprise appeared in his eyes.

On both sides of the white avenue sat a dense crowd of people, extending all the way to the foot of the sacred mountain.

These people were all reverent, bowing in worship toward the sacred mountain, paying no attention to Shi Pokong and the others.

"Every time Father emerges from seclusion, a grand sacrificial ceremony is held. All the people in the city come to this sacred avenue to offer sacrifices and worship for an entire day," Blooddrop Marquis explained upon seeing Han Li's expression.

"I see," Han Li nodded slowly.

The two carriages did not stop but sped along the white jade avenue toward the sacred mountain.

After about half an hour, the carriages finally reached the foot of the sacred mountain and stopped before a vast complex of palaces.

The complex covered an area of several hundred mu, with over a thousand palaces standing, all built from a black crystalline stone.

The stone was smooth and translucent, like the finest black crystal, emitting a pure black luster—clearly an excellent material.

Every palace was adorned with reliefs and paintings of demons or mythical beasts, exquisitely crafted.

"This is the residence of the Holy Emperor—the Holy Emperor's Palace," Blooddrop Marquis explained to Han Li again.

Beside the palace complex was a huge white jade square, no smaller in area, with a massive altar at its center built from a bluish-black material, looking quite ancient.

The worshipping crowd extended from below all the way to this square.

The square was now filled with people, all bowing toward the altar, murmuring prayers and blessings.

"Let's go. According to the rules, we also need to pay our respects before we can go to the Holy Emperor's Palace for an audience with Father," Shi Pokong said as he stepped down from the carriage and walked toward the altar.

The others quickly followed and soon arrived at the foot of the altar.

Han Li looked up and saw nothing particularly remarkable about the altar, except for two tall statues standing on it.

Though the statues were very ancient and their features not sharply defined, they gave a lifelike impression, as if they were living beings rather than stone.

One statue was entirely white, depicting a woman with a kind face and a gentle smile, standing as if she were the mother of all beings, exuding immense peace.

The other statue was completely different—entirely black, with twelve heads and twenty-four arms.

The heads bore various expressions: anger, joy, indifference, sorrow—seeming to embody all the emotions in the world.

The hands also formed different gestures, some with fingers spread wide, others reaching out as if to seize, all extremely captivating.

Han Li's eyes flickered as he looked at the two statues.

Over the years, he had studied matters concerning the Demon Domain. These two statues represented the deities worshipped by the people of the Demon Domain: the Netherworld Holy Mother and the Heavenly Fiend Holy Emperor.

Legend had it that the entire Demon Domain was created by the Heavenly Fiend Holy Emperor, who shattered the endless void, while the Netherworld Holy Mother gave birth to the myriad creatures of the Demon Domain, making her the mother of all beings.

Han Li naturally did not believe this legend, but this was his first time seeing statues of these two deities, so he took a few extra glances.

His gaze lingered briefly on the Netherworld Holy Mother before shifting to the Heavenly Fiend Holy Emperor, where his brow suddenly furrowed.

He was certain he had never seen the statue of the Heavenly Fiend Holy Emperor before, yet it gave him a vague sense of familiarity, as if he had encountered it somewhere.

He couldn't help but scrutinize it more closely, a faint purple light flickering in his eyes.

Though he was still some distance from the top of the altar, with his eyesight, the two statues were clearly visible down to the smallest detail.

"Oh!" His expression changed again as he stared fixedly at the waist of the Heavenly Fiend Holy Emperor, where a jade belt was wrapped, inscribed with a line of peculiar characters.

Those characters were the same as those on the statue he had obtained from Bone-Reflecting True Man—clearly the same script.

Over the years, he had occasionally studied the characters on that statue but had never found any clues. Now, unexpectedly, he had discovered something here.

Han Li was secretly delighted and was about to examine the characters more closely.

Just then, the eyes of one of the Heavenly Fiend Holy Emperor's heads suddenly flashed with black light, looking straight at him. An endless, boundless darkness surged forth, instantly swallowing all light around.

Han Li's heart shook, and he felt his three souls and seven spirits violently stir, as if they were about to be sucked out and lost in the depths of the darkness.

His body felt as if it were pressed under billions of zhang of ice, everything inside frozen solid, unable to move an inch. He could only watch helplessly as it all happened, powerless to stop it.

But in the next moment, everything before Han Li vanished, and the surroundings brightened again. The black light in the eyes of the statue's head was also gone, as if everything just now had been an illusion.

Though it lasted only an instant, Han Li felt every hair on his body stand on end, his heart pounding like a drum, and he involuntarily took a step back.

"Fellow Daoist Li, what's wrong?" Blooddrop Marquis looked over.

Shi Chuankong also looked over, a puzzled expression on his face.

Judging by their expressions, neither seemed to have noticed the statue's anomaly.

"Nothing. I'm just a bit unsettled at the thought of meeting the Holy Lord," Han Li said after a moment of silence, barely calming his heartbeat.

"Fellow Daoist Li need not worry. Although Father is strict in temperament, he is not unreasonable," Shi Chuankong said with a smile.

Han Li forced a smile and secretly glanced again at the statue of the Heavenly Fiend Holy Emperor, but now it showed no further signs of change.

"Let's go," Shi Pokong said indifferently, stepping onto the altar stairs and ascending.

Han Li and the other two immediately followed and soon reached the top of the altar.

The top was a flat area several tens of zhang in size, with nothing but the two statues. The ground was etched with lines forming a large elliptical magic array.

Within the array sat dozens of figures in priestly robes, holding various ritual implements, chanting incantations toward the two statues.