Only True Immortals have the capacity to forge True Immortal Artifacts, and most people in their lifetimes manage to craft only one.

Other than the Jade Emperor and the Buddha, both top-tier Great Powers, who else could possess multiple True Immortal Artifacts?

Controlling the Qiankun Treasure Tower, alongside a myriad of peculiar spells, Song Lin was evenly matched in battle with Guanyin.

The Thirty-two Heavens, Palace of the Polestar.

Their clash alarmed the Jade Emperor.

He glanced downward, his eyes widening. "A True Immortal Artifact?"

"Is this one of Lord Lao Zi's treasures?"

"A True Immortal-level Magic Artifact—what other cards does this person have up his sleeve?"

With this, the Jade Emperor chose to remain an observer, curious to see what else Song Lin had hidden.

Song Lin and Guanyin crossed blows for hundreds of rounds.

The capabilities displayed were shocking.

Chiefly, Song Lin's ability to predict attacks—each time accurately evading lethal strikes using the Innate Eight Diagrams—coupled with the Pagoda that rivaled the Jade Purifying Bottle and Heavenly Immortal Water equally strong as the Bottle's essence.

And there was also the Innate Yang Qi and the Time-Space Dao.

The merger of the Eight Diagrams with the Time-Space Dao made it impossible for Guanyin to so much as graze Song Lin's robes.

At this rate, even a hundred years of fighting wouldn't yield a result.

"Guanyin's cultivation is at the initial True Immortal stage. Xuandu, with four Tao Golden Pills, boasts strength akin to that same level. If this man ascends to True Immortal, what then?"

The Jade Emperor muttered to himself.

The Star Lord System was clearly growing unwieldy and increasingly problematic.

Originally, he had planned to wait until all Star Lords were fully in position and possess significant power before attempting to seize authority from them.

But now, he had to accelerate his plan. If Song Lin managed to break into True Immortal Realm, with four Tao Golden Pills backing him, he might not surpass the Jade Emperor, but he could certainly rival him.

"Perfect, an opportunity arises."

The Jade Emperor decided to capitalize on the Taixue Mountain God affair, while leveraging the moles he had planted within the ranks of Star Lords to further stir matters.

With this, he could probably ensure Song Lin's fall—leaving him a figurehead with no real power.

Then, he would seize the chance to empower his own fragmented souls to take control.

Meanwhile, below, the fight between Guanyin and Song Lin raged on.

Despite trying every method, Guanyin could not subdue Song Lin.

On the contrary, Song Lin managed to humiliate Guanyin several times.

This battle shook the Three Realms once again.

"Him again?"

Huang Lao, a True Immortal among the Five Directions Five Elders, expressed his surprise: "This brat simply cannot fight without everyone in the Three Realms watching, can he?"

Every time the Three Realms trembled, eight out of ten times it involved this guy.

"Huh? Guanyin?"

"How is this possible? Guanyin is a True Immortal, just a notch below me. Xuandu's cultivation… is he at the True Immortal level?"

"Being the disciple of Lord Lao Zi, nothing is impossible."

"Surely, that True Immortal Artifact must also have come from the Old Lord."

From the Five Directions Five Elders in the clouds to the Earthly Immortal Patriarch Zhen Yuanzi, every major True Immortal of renown paid attention to this grand battle.

Song Lin's stellar performance had already secured his claim to the title of the Heavenly Court's First War God.

To hold the title of War God wasn't necessarily about cultivation level—it was about battle records and techniques.

In the past thousand years, the person with the most victories in the Heavenly Court was none other than Song Lin.

The two combatants fought for the better part of a day, concluding with Guanyin's retreat.

On the surface, it seemed like the two were equally matched. But to those with discernment, it was evident that Song Lin held a decisive upper hand—Guanyin was forced into a defensive position, unable to mount an effective offense due to being outmatched despite their cultivation levels.

Guanyin Bodhisattva and her entourage vanished into the horizon.

Song Lin watched them leave.

"If I could use the Black Lotus, I would've subdued Guanyin," he murmured.

But of course, he couldn't reveal the Wutian Dharma—it was purely demonic. Once exposed, he would become the enemy of all under heaven.

Once again, the North Pole emerged victorious from this battle.

This would likely cause all factions to grow wary of them.

Especially…

"The Jade Emperor has decreed: Summon all Central Heaven Ziwei Star Officials to the palace!"

A minister of the Jade Emperor arrived, issuing the decree.

"Understood!"

The group exchanged glances as Song Lin led them to accept the decree.

"Everyone's summoned? What have we done wrong?" Xuanhuang muttered discontentedly.

"You go back first and gather all the others," Song Lin ordered.

Song Lin had already anticipated this moment, and the Jade Emperor's reaction was within his expectations.

Xuanhuang returned to Ziwei holding his lantern, while Song Lin led the remaining group to the Thirty-two Heavens' Palace of the Polestar.

The entourage followed the minister to the palace.

The grand hall bore a close resemblance to that of the Donghua Heavenly Court.

Song Lin noticed that both sides of the hall were lined with Immortal Dharma Forms.

The Eight Immortals, the Eight Heavenly Masters, Overseas Loose Immortals, the Thirty-two Heavenly Emperors, Thunder Department, Fire Department, Plague Department, and officials from various factions including the Five Mountains and the underworld had all gathered there.

With such an array, it seemed the Jade Emperor was truly intent on settling something serious.

"Greetings to the Heavenly Emperor."

Song Lin led the Ziwei Star Officials in saluting him.

The Jade Emperor nodded but did not invite them to sit, instead leaving them standing in the center.

The assembled ministers stood silent, their dharma images glaring fiercely at the Ziwei faction.

Soon, Xuanhuang arrived with the rest of the team.

Many noticed that the Ziwei faction brought quite a sizable group.

The Thirty-six Heavenly Gang, the Seventy-two Earthly Fiends, Seven Luminaries and Four Remnants, Beidou Seven Elements, Left and Right Assistants, Three Star Lords, Southern Dipper Six Departments, Qingyang and Tuluo Two Envoys, Twelve Yuan Chen Star Lords, and Sixty Jiazi Star Lords…

Even though most were there just to boost numbers, the positions had been established.

"Click, click, such a crowd. It seems the parade of this Ziwei Emperor greatly surpasses even that of the Jade Emperor," mocked an immortal with a sarcastic tone.

At that moment, Guanyin and the other members of the Buddhist Sect entered the hall.

"Your Majesty, this humble monk greets you on behalf of the Buddha," Guanyin said.

"Take your seats…" The Jade Emperor smiled.

Both the Daoist and Buddhist factions were now assembled in full.

The Jade Emperor turned his gaze to Song Lin's entourage. "Do you know why I summoned you here today?"

"This humble servant does not know."

"Hmph! You truly don't know? Or are you pretending?"

The Jade Emperor let out a cold snort.

"Yushu Prime Minister, explain it to them," he commanded.

A white-haired, purple-robed official stepped forward, holding a jade scroll.

"Taixue Mountain God, Divine Generals Jia Guang and Yiding, Immortal Official Cao Yang, Mountain God Song Lin, Yang Banzhi, City Lord of Liushang, Elder Monk Zhiyun, Taoist Liu Rong, Demon General Chiyou, Black Mountain Devil God, Azure Water Beast, Dark Cloud Beast…"

As the list of names was read out one by one, many immortals in the hall glared at Song Lin with deep hatred.

These mentioned individuals were all demons, ghosts, and wicked cultivators whom Song Lin and his disciples had slain.

"Now, do you understand?"

The Jade Emperor's face was solemn as thunder rolled through the skies, the faint echoes of tiger roars and dragon cries resounding.

"Ah, so it's about this. Your Majesty, those were acts of punishing evildoers. These individuals exploited the chaos for personal gain. If they weren't slain, how could justice be served to the people? Xuanhuang, present the evidence," Song Lin replied calmly.

"Yes."

Xuanhuang swung his wide sleeves, and a pile of jade scrolls and storage bags appeared on the ground.

"Your Majesty, please examine these. They are all evidence of their crimes. Not one was unjustly killed," Song Lin stated with confidence.

The Jade Emperor felt a headache brewing.

The Mountain God of the Five Peaks immediately stepped forward.

"Who knows if your evidence was fabricated? They're all dead and gone; you can claim whatever you want," he argued.

"Then how do you propose we prove it?"

Song Lin countered calmly.

"Fine, let's say your evidence is genuine. What about Taixue? Taixue merely sought an explanation but…"

At this, the Mountain God's face grew sorrowful.

"He killed a million mortals. Who dares to call him innocent?" Bian Zhuang couldn't help but chime in.

"Silence! It's not your place to speak, you demon. If not for your corruption of mortals, Taixue wouldn't have taken such harsh measures. What is your guilt then?"

At this, the immortals erupted in protest, each accusing the Central Heaven Ziwei faction of reckless behavior and unjust killing.

They claimed that those killed were inherently virtuous and upright, while the Ziwei faction was painted as unforgivably guilty.

"Is there anyone else willing to step forward? Testify, and I shall pardon your transgressions," the Jade Emperor proclaimed, turning his gaze toward the Star Officials.

"I'll testify. Some evidence is indeed fabricated," came a voice.

Among the Twelve Yuan Chen, the Star Lords of the Rat, Rooster, Monkey, Rabbit, and Dragon—more than half—stepped forward.

Among the Seventy-two Earthly Fiends, over twenty rose. From the Thirty-six Heavenly Gang, ten did so as well.

Scattered individuals from other Star Lord factions joined the chorus.

With such a lineup of witnesses, Song Lin could no longer overturn the predicament.

"You traitors!" General Black Evil fumed with rage.

"Degenerates, shameless scum!" Tianyou roared.

Xuanhuang clenched his fists, muttering internally about the deceit and dishonor of these acts.

Bian Zhuang remained expressionless, but his eyes flickered with demonic intent. Kill, kill, kill—they all deserved to die!

"With irrefutable evidence, do you confess? Miao Le Heavenly Venerate, what more do you have to say?"

The Jade Emperor spoke slowly.

He didn't even address him as Ziwei Emperor anymore.

Beneath the towering shadow of the Jade Emperor's masterful tactics, even the famed and celebrated Song Lin was about to be branded a ruthless butcher—tarnished with the crime of unjust killing.

"I'm the one who killed them…" Xuanhuang stepped forward but was stopped by Song Lin.

"Your Majesty, I can confess. But before I do, may I ask one question?"

(To be continued in next update)

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