I am a fairy in Journey to the West

A clear and melodious celestial melody rang in Zhuang Yan's ears. With a casual flick of his wrist, a Heavenly Profound Jade Talisman appeared in Zhuang Yan's palm.

Then Zhuang Yan pressed his finger on the word 'Start', and the next moment, golden light shone, and an emperor in a twelve-patterned imperial robe and a twelve-tasseled imperial crown appeared in the golden light.

Zhuang Yan held the Heavenly Profound Jade Talisman in mid-air and bowed to the emperor in the golden light, saying, "Zhuang Yan pays respects to His Majesty the Great Emperor An Tian Xuan Sheng."

The Great Emperor of the Northern Peak, bathed in golden light, returned the greeting with clasped hands and then said with a smile, "The True Lord of the Spirit Platform truly possesses supernatural powers and ingenuity, having actually been able to refine such a convenient divine object."

Zhuang Yan smiled and said, "Your Majesty flatters me. This is just an ordinary object."

The Great Emperor of the Northern Peak laughed and said, "True Lord Lingtai is too modest." Then the Great Emperor of the Northern Peak changed the subject and said, "True Lord Lingtai, the situation in the Northern Continent is complicated. Demons and monsters are everywhere, and the righteous path is not working. Many immortals are now trapped in it. This is beyond the control of my Northern Peak Divine Palace. We hope that True Lord Lingtai will come to our aid when you have time. We, the entire Northern Peak Divine Palace, will be eternally grateful."

Zhuang Yan said solemnly, "Your Majesty is too kind. As the Grand Master of Destiny who oversees all human affairs, I am here to protect the human world on behalf of Heaven. Now that the Northern Mountain Divine Palace is in trouble, my Grand Master of Destiny Palace will naturally provide assistance."

After a moment's thought, Zhuang Yan said, "Your Majesty, please wait a few days. I will arrive in one or two days at the shortest, and three or four days at the longest."

"Very well." The Great Emperor of the Northern Peak nodded slightly and said, "Then I will prepare delicacies and fine wines and await the arrival of the True Lord of the Spirit Platform."

Zhuang Yan smiled and said, "Then thank you very much, Your Majesty."

Then the Great Emperor of the Northern Mountain took the initiative to disconnect from the image connection, put away the Heavenly Profound Jade Talisman, and walked out of the Hall of Fate.

After leaving the Hall of Fate, Zhuang Yan took a step in the direction of the Western Mountain Divine Palace. He activated 'Instant Teleportation' and appeared outside the gate of the Western Mountain Divine Palace in an instant.

Hua Yue Erlang Jin Minghou had been waiting there for a long time. As soon as he saw Zhuang Yan appear, Jin Minghou immediately came forward to greet him.

"Welcome, True Lord Lingtai. My father has specially ordered me to be here to greet you," Marquis Jinming bowed and said.

Zhuang Yan nodded and said, "Thank you for your trouble. His Majesty sent a letter to summon me here. Is there something important?"

Marquis Jinming hurriedly said, "There are some matters concerning Xiniu Hezhou that I need to discuss with you, True Lord Lingtai, which is why I sent this letter to you. My father originally planned to come to Buzhou Mountain in person, but you, True Lord Lingtai, said you would come in person, so..."

Zhuang Yan laughed and said, "It doesn't matter who comes. Your Majesty is of inestimable worth, so I should take it upon myself to come to the Western Mountain Divine Palace."

As they spoke, the two arrived outside the 'Golden Heaven Palace'. The Minister of the Western Mountain Divine Palace was already waiting outside the palace. Upon seeing Zhuang Yan, he hurriedly stepped forward and said, "I am Zhi Du, Minister of the Western Mountain, paying my respects to the True Lord of the Spirit Platform."

Zhuang Yan reached out to help Zhi Du up and said with a smile, "Minister, there's no need for such formalities."

Zhi Du stepped back and gestured, saying, "His Majesty is waiting for the True Lord inside the hall. Please invite the True Lord Lingtai into the hall."

Zhuang Yan nodded, then stepped into the Golden Heaven Palace. Upon entering the palace, Zhuang Yan first paid his respects to the Great Emperor of the Western Mountain. The Great Emperor of the Western Mountain rose to return the greeting and then invited Zhuang Yan to sit down.

Zhuang Yan bowed in thanks and took his seat, and Zhi Du and Hua Yue Erlang also took their seats.

After the fairy attendants served fragrant tea, Zhuang Yan said to the Great Emperor of the Western Mountain, "Your Majesty, in the future, if there are political matters to discuss, there is no need to use the method of sending letters. You can use the 'Heavenly Profound Jade Talisman' to communicate."

The Great Emperor of the Western Peak laughed and said, "I also wish to use the 'Heavenly Profound Jade Talisman' to contact the True Lord of the Spirit Platform, but unfortunately I do not have your Dharma Seal."

Upon hearing this, Zhuang Yan immediately said, "This was my oversight. I will now exchange the Dharma Seal with His Majesty."

Seeing this, the Great Emperor of the Western Mountain also took out his own Heavenly Profound Jade Talisman. Afterwards, the two exchanged magical imprints, put away the Heavenly Profound Jade Talisman, and began to talk about serious matters.

The Great Emperor of the Western Peak said to Zhuang Yan, "True Lord of the Spirit Platform, I intend to issue an edict to clean up redundant officials in Xiniu Hezhou."

"Redundant officials?" Zhuang Yan was taken aback and asked, "Which divine positions does Your Majesty mean?"

The Great Emperor of the Western Peak said, "The positions of Mountain God and Water God are now too redundant. I have decided to clean them up first, so I have invited the True Lord of the Spirit Platform to come and discuss this matter."

Zhuang Yan instantly understood. The Western Mountain Divine Palace had probably already made this decision and plan, but it still needed his statement.

Zhuang Yan pondered for a moment, then said, "It is only right for Your Majesty to govern Xiniu Hezhou and uphold the principles of divine order."

The Great Emperor of the Western Peak laughed and said, "I just wonder what your opinion is, Grand Master of Fate?"

The Great Emperor of the Western Peak did not address the True Lord of the Spirit Platform here, but directly called Zhuang Yan's divine title "Great Master of Fate," making the Great Emperor of the Western Peak's meaning all too clear.

You are the Grand Master of Fate in the human realm. To put it bluntly, our Five Sacred Mountains Emperors only manage one continent in the human realm, while you govern the entire human realm. In terms of rank, you are lower than our Five Sacred Mountains Emperors, but in terms of authority, you are the top superior of our Five Sacred Mountains Divine Palace. Of course, we must ask for your opinion.

Zhuang Yan understood what the Great Emperor of the Western Mountain meant. Seeing that he had made his point so clear, he stopped beating around the bush and said, "If the Western Mountain Divine Palace has already made plans, then our Great Master of Fate will naturally support this matter of clearing out redundant officials."

“However,” Zhuang Yan said, “the divine office in the human world is of great importance. Many deities have governed the local area for many years and have accumulated considerable merit and prestige. Cleaning up redundant officials will require a complete set of procedures.”

At this moment, Hua Yue Erlang spoke up and said, "Please rest assured, Lingtai Zhenjun, since my Xiyue Divine Palace moved to Xiniu Hezhou, I have been ordered by His Majesty to thoroughly investigate all the local deities in Xiniu Hezhou."

Zhuang Yan smiled and said, "Simply investigating is probably not enough. They started from the ninth rank and worked their way up to their current level. Suddenly saying they want to clean up redundant officials, I'm afraid it won't be so easy." At this point, Zhuang Yan asked the Great Emperor of the Western Mountain, "How will Your Majesty clean up the redundant officials?"

The Great Emperor of the Western Peak's gaze fell upon Minister Zhi Du, who immediately stood up and said, "True Lord Lingtai, I will now report to you the preliminary plan of the Western Peak Divine Palace to clean up redundant officials."

Zhuang Yan nodded and said, "Okay."

Zhi Du then began to give a brief account, “Our Western Mountain Divine Palace has been investigating the main local deities of Xiniu Hezhou in recent days and found that the problem of redundant officials is very serious. For example, in ‘Shendu Prefecture’, there are twelve mountain gods and twenty-six water gods in this prefecture alone, far exceeding the number of mountains and water systems in this prefecture.”

"Therefore, our plan for the Western Mountain Divine Palace is to set up as many mountain gods as there are main mountain ranges in each prefecture, and as many water gods as there are main water systems."

"Let's take Sindhu Province as an example again. This province has six main mountain ranges, so we only need to appoint six mountain gods. It also has two main water systems, so we only need to appoint two water gods."

"In this way, not only can the priesthood be clearly defined and redundancy eliminated, but also a lot of salary expenditure can be saved."

At this point, Zhuang Yan recalled something: now that the Five Emperors have governed the regions, the salaries of the local deities and the annual expenses of the local temples are all borne by the Five Sacred Mountains Temples.

No wonder the Western Mountain Divine Palace wanted to clean up redundant officials; it turns out they wanted to "cut costs." Of course, the issue of redundant officials is also true.

Zhi Du wanted to continue, but Zhuang Yan quickly stopped him, saying, "Minister Zhi Du, you don't need to say anything more."

Upon hearing this, Zhi Du immediately bowed and stepped aside. Then Zhuang Yan said to the Great Emperor of the Western Mountain, "The Western Mountain Divine Palace wants to clean up redundant officials and gods, which my Great Master of Fate supports. However, this matter is of great importance and cannot be rushed. It is better to proceed slowly, make a clear judgment, and then make the necessary cuts."

The Great Emperor of the Western Peak laughed and said, "You can rest assured, True Lord Lingtai, my Western Peak Divine Palace will not be so hasty."

Zhuang Yan nodded and said, "In that case, I have no objection. The Great Master of Fate will fully support the Western Mountain Divine Palace in its efforts to clean up redundant officials and gods."

Upon hearing this, Zhi Du and Hua Yue Erlang exchanged a glance, a hint of joy appearing in their eyes.

The Great Emperor of the Western Peak laughed and said, "Very well, then thank you very much, True Lord Lingtai."

At this point, the Great Emperor of the Western Peak instructed Hua Yue Erlang to announce the preparation of a banquet, but Zhuang Yan stood up and said, "Your Majesty, please wait. This banquet etiquette is unnecessary. I still need to go to Beiju Luzhou."

"Oh?" the Great Emperor of the Western Peak exclaimed in surprise, "To Beiju Luzhou?"

Zhuang Yan nodded, and then told the story of the trouble the Northern Mountain Divine Palace had encountered and its request for help. After listening, the Great Emperor of the Western Mountain said, "Although I have never been to the Northern Continent, I have heard about the things that happen there. It is indeed a bit troublesome."

Zhuang Yan said, "Since the Northern Mountain Divine Palace has come to ask for help, it must be in great difficulty. I need to get there as soon as possible, so I cannot stay here any longer."

Upon hearing this, the Great Emperor of the Western Peak expressed his understanding and, after Zhuang Yan took his leave, personally rose from the hall and escorted Zhuang Yan out of the Golden Heaven Hall.

After leaving the Western Mountain Divine Palace, Zhuang Yan returned to Buzhou Mountain and told Chi Ling, Wang Shu, and others about his trip to Beiju Luzhou. He gave them some instructions and then officially set off for Beiju Luzhou.

Mount Buzhou is not far from Beiju Luzhou; it is separated only by the vast North Sea.

Zhuang Yan used 'Instant Teleportation' and in the blink of an eye, he crossed most of the North Sea from Buzhou Mountain and arrived at the border of Beiju Luzhou.

Zhuang Yan stood in mid-air, looking towards the land of Beiju Luzhou. He saw towering mountains within the continent, majestic and magnificent. On the border of Beiju Luzhou, a black line stretched endlessly, encircling the entire continent.

That must be the 'Black Boundary Line', Zhuang Yan thought to himself. He then descended from the clouds and used the Cloud Riding Technique to fly directly towards Beiju Luzhou.

Zhuang Yan crossed the 'Black Boundary' smoothly without any incident. But the instant he crossed the Black Boundary, the cloud beneath his feet suddenly sank, and his magical power instantly became stagnant and slow.

Just as Zhuang Yan was about to fall, his own ability was activated, and the 'Soaring Cloud' state was automatically added to his body. Then, Zhuang Yan's falling body rose up again and flew into the sky.

"Indeed, something is strange," Zhuang Yan said slowly.

However, although the laws of Beiju Luzhou made the 'magic power' in his body slow down and stagnate, his own great power, that is, the various functions of him as a cheat, were not affected at all.

But Zhuang Yan already knew this, because his own abilities were above all laws, and the only thing that could suppress him was the power of the Heavenly Dao.

After personally experiencing the strange laws of heaven and earth in Beiju Luzhou, Zhuang Yan did not linger and directly used 'Instant Teleportation'.

With a flash of light that seemed to shift the stars, when Zhuang Yan reappeared, he had instantly traversed millions of miles of space and land, arriving before a majestic, beautiful, and boundless mountain.

Among the countless towering peaks, palaces and pavilions gleam with golden light, jade palaces and celestial palaces radiate divine light, mountains and peaks are shrouded in clouds and mist, gods and immortals ride on colorful auspicious clouds, divine deer gallop, cranes fly and cry, and rare flowers and precious herbs bloom everywhere.

Zhuang Yan stood atop the clouds, gazing at this celestial scene, then slightly clasped his hands behind his back.

We've arrived at the Antian Divine Palace on Mount Heng, the Northern Peak. (End of Chapter)