From the Carp that Brings Children to the Celestial Officials

Chapter 147 This is the Heavenly Court

This was You Ming's second time entering the Heavenly Realm, but his first time entering the Heavenly Court.

These are two concepts.

The Red Phoenix Star he entered last time was not within the Heavenly Court, but rather one of the many celestial stars.

Youming and Zaobo walked along the smoke-filled path. After passing through a thick fog, the view suddenly opened up, and a bright and brilliant light shone in all directions. Everything in sight was white.

Directly in front of them stood a majestic heavenly gate, its entire body a deep crimson color, as if it were supporting the sky, vast and awe-inspiring.

Before the Heavenly Gate stood a three-hundred-zhang-long staircase, each step carved from crystal jade, seemingly echoing the prayers of millions of mortals.

On either side of the long staircase stood two towering statues of celestial generals, each a hundred feet tall. Their eyes were fixed straight ahead, their golden armor was frosty and cold, and they carried divine wheels on their backs, exuding an awe-inspiring presence.

At this very moment, the gods of the four directions of the celestial realm, like rivers and seas converging, are passing through the South Heavenly Gate via the Myriad Manifestations Passage.

The person who walked through the door at that moment must have been a wind god.

His body was enveloped in a whirlwind of blades, his robes billowing, his long hair flowing like willow branches. Without even touching the clouds, he had already arrived in an instant. Wherever he passed, even the golden patterns on both sides of the south gate rustled softly in the wind.

Following closely behind was a goddess, dressed in fiery divine robes, riding a golden-eyed, crimson-feathered kite, which spread its wings for a thousand miles in an instant, with lightning flashing beneath the clouds.

Each time the divine bird landed, it stirred up a crimson glow and ignited waves of fire.

And there was that divine being, riding in a four-wheeled jade chariot, with embroidered curtains blocking out the sun, and heavenly soldiers clearing the way on both sides; in front and behind were twelve divine maids, holding golden tablets of heavenly books and incense cups of ruyi.

As time went on, more and more deities arrived.

They rode the wind, rode beasts, carried divine chariots, or walked through the void; some were noble and refined, some were solemn and austere, and some were strange and mysterious... but all of them carried a grand and majestic air.

You Ming was overwhelmed by the sights, feeling as if he were standing on the edge of a divine scroll, watching countless gods step into it.

Even from a distance, I couldn't help but hold my breath and feel nervous.

At that moment, he truly felt like a country bumpkin visiting the city.

As You Ming watched the gods enter, he wanted to follow them in, but the Kitchen God grabbed him.

"Hey, we can't go through the Heavenly Gate, we can only go through the side gates on the sides. Be careful not to get scolded by the gatekeepers."

The Kitchen God led Youming to a side gate, which, although several feet high, looked rather shabby compared to the magnificent Heavenly Gate.

"To pass through the Heavenly Gate, one must be at least a fifth-rank official."

The hierarchy of deities is very strict, and this is especially evident in the Heavenly Court.

Although he couldn't leave through the Heavenly Gate, You Ming was still quite excited. He looked around and found everything new and interesting.

He and the Kitchen God walked through the side door, and soon they saw a dazzling curtain of light slowly being lifted.

At that moment, the previously empty void seemed to have its invisible veil gently lifted.

You Ming saw the real Heavenly Court.

It was a boundless divine realm floating in the void, with a layered divine palace like nine lotuses supporting a cauldron suspended high in the air, the top of which was the "Purple Heaven Palace", like the Heavenly Emperor, in charge of the heavenly order.

Beneath the celestial palace, there are 3,600 temples of all sizes, arranged neatly according to divine office, rank, and lineage. The temples are not physically connected, but rather linked by colorful bridges, cloud belts, floating boats, and star pillars, creating a solemn and orderly scene, yet radiating divine light, as beautiful as a dream.

Even the most detailed game graphics cannot compare to even a fraction of its beauty.

Looking up at this endless divine realm, You Ming felt as insignificant as a speck of dust. The surrounding clouds and mist were the purest condensation of spiritual energy; even the most ordinary place had a spiritual energy concentration far exceeding that of a blessed land.

You Ming stood on the sacred path, slowly following the Kitchen God. What he saw shook his very soul. ...

“Your temple of the Department of Fertility is right next to our Temple of Fate. Come with me. The road is complicated. If no one leads the way, we’ll have to go to the temples of other departments.”

The Kitchen God led Youming through ribbons of clouds and colorful bridges. Although both were deities capable of flying on clouds, they still flew for quite some time. The two temples that looked very close in the distance were actually hundreds of miles apart.

"That's your [Department of Fertility] over there. You can go there yourself."

The Kitchen God patted You Ming on the shoulder and pointed to the temple in front of him.

Having said that, a cloud of black smoke rose from beneath his feet and soared away in an instant.

You Ming then turned to look at the temple of the so-called Department of Fertility.

Although called a temple, it is actually a series of islands in the divine realm, shaped like an egg when viewed from afar. Scattered within are countless government offices of all sizes, and occasionally one can see divine light soaring through the air, which are countless gods rotating between different government offices.

The floating island cluster is surrounded by twelve "Heavenly Embryo Floating Lanterns," which slowly rotate year-round, enveloping the entire divine realm and symbolizing the twelve months of embryonic transformation.

You Ming stood before the sacred path of the island, looking around blankly, unsure of where to go or what to do.

Suddenly, a ray of warm, spring-like rosy light flowed from the other side of the cloud bridge, and a goddess emerged from the rosy light, wearing apricot-yellow wide sleeves and a red sash around her waist, with a vermilion dot between her brows and a gentle, loving face.

“You Ming, head of the Fetal Origin Bureau, from Yuanling Mountain, greets the Supreme God.”

Given You Ming's official rank, which was at the bottom of the entire Department of Fertility, he saw that the other party had an extraordinary demeanor, so he quickly paid his respects first.

As he spoke, he presented the jade token of his identity.

"Hmm? You're You Ming?"

The goddess looked at You Ming with a strange gaze, as if she had heard of this name before.

"Then come with me."

She smiled and nodded, and a fragrant ribbon flew out from her sleeve, like a floating ladder or bridge.

You Ming followed the goddess into the cloud path, and after traveling only a dozen miles, they arrived near the floating island in the blink of an eye.

It was a temple system composed of floating islands, with twelve main halls, thirty-six platforms, and countless cloud bridges surrounding it.

"Little carp, you must remember that in our Heavenly Court, there are 1 Heavenly Principles, 8 Pillars, 10 Laws, 24 Heavenly Constants, 72 Mortal Connections, and 360 Blessings."

"My Department of Fertility is one of the seventy-two mortal affairs, and its duties mainly involve the fortunes, misfortunes, life and death, marriage, and prayers of ordinary people."

Seeing that You Ming had never been to the Heavenly Court before, the goddess introduced him to everyone.

The Heavenly Court has many departments of gods, but it also has a strict hierarchy.

The highest is naturally the [Heavenly Net], which is the highest divine authority center. Below it are the [Eight Pillars], which are the eight famous departments: Thunder, Fire, Water, Plague, Fighting, Grand Duke Jupiter, Smallpox, and Wealth.

Next are the Ten Laws, which govern rules, regulations, and divine mandate; then come the Twenty-Four Heavenly Stems, responsible for the operation of heaven and earth and the management of natural functions.

The next level up is the "Seventy-two Mortal Realms," including the "Department of Fertility."

Finally, there are the "Three Hundred and Sixty Blessings," which are the lowest-ranking divine positions in the Heavenly Court. They are in charge of temple sacrifices, incense offerings, and blessings, and are closely related to local deities.

Because the Department of Fertility and Reproduction is not a very important department, it naturally ranks low among the numerous seats.

(End of this chapter)