The Investiture: Unlimited Blade Works Nezha
Chapter 143 - 142 Jin Jiao and Silver Horn

Chapter 143: Chapter 142 Jin Jiao and Silver Horn

Arriving at the Palace of the Polestar, two burly young men from the Demon Clan—disciples of Bai Ze the Demon Saint—who had snuck into the Heavenly Court by pulling strings with Nezha, immediately prepared to salute. Nezha swiftly cast an immobilization spell and froze them in place.

Clearing his throat, he announced, "Li Nezha, Thundering General of the Thunder Department, has matters to report and requests an audience with the Great Venerable!"

The burly young demons instantly realized their mistake. Once Nezha released the immobilization spell, they began the formal procedures.

After running through the protocols for a while, Nezha finally met Hao Tian. As usual, Hao Tian was preoccupied with his endless administrative duties. Anyone unaware of the truth might genuinely think he was an extraordinarily diligent Heavenly Emperor.

After waiting for a moment, Hao Tian raised his head, as if only just noticing Nezha’s arrival, and asked, "Li Minister, what brings you here?"

Nezha: "..."

He figured that the moment he arrived in the Heavenly Court, Hao Tian must’ve already been aware of his presence. Honestly—weren’t you the one who ordered me to come and go through these tiresome procedures? Now you’re pretending like you didn’t know?

"I have come, Your Majesty, to report on the earlier thunderstorm and demon-slaying mission."

"Did you encounter another demon, Minister?"

With a solemn expression, Nezha responded, "As the main god of the Thunder Department, I bear the responsibility to purge demons and uphold justice. As long as I harbor concern for all sentient beings, where there is injustice, there lies a demon!"

Hao Tian: "..."

"Such noble deeds, Minister!"

"During this demon-slaying mission, I exhausted countless magical treasures and spirit pills, and even summoned the gods of the Thunder Department for support. Your Majesty, do you think perhaps..."

Hao Tian: "..."

Could you not? I watched the entire event live on the Hao Tian Mirror—you practically did nothing but shout twice from the skies, and now you dare come here asking for reimbursements?

Resisting the urge to magically zap him twice, Hao Tian gritted his teeth and forced a smile, "Minister, such actions are indeed blessings for all sentient beings. As the Great Venerable, I naturally won’t be stingy. Submit your list of immortal materials, and I’ll cover the expenses."

Nezha, appearing as if he had encountered a wise ruler, looked at Hao Tian with excitement. "Your Majesty’s righteousness is unparalleled! I swear to dedicate myself fully, even until my death!"

He then inflated the list of ingredients needed for refining the Houtu Essence Blood elixir—originally requested from his teacher—by five times and submitted it.

Hao Tian glanced at it briefly, his eyelid twitching uncontrollably. It wasn’t that the Heavenly Court couldn’t afford it; thanks to the legacy left behind by the previous Demon Court, their coffers were far from empty.

It’s just that being extorted like this by a scoundrel like Nezha would rub anyone the wrong way. Still, he couldn’t refuse.

Purge demons? You didn’t even bother putting in effort. Are you Daoist Ancestor’s disciple or Demon Ancestor’s errand boy?

Without any guilt, Nezha accepted the materials, thinking to himself: Demon Chiyou—would you say you are a demon? Because I sure would!

Armed with the freshly obtained materials, he made his way to Doushuai Temple in Li Hen Heaven, located among the thirty-six layers of heaven. This stuff was far too advanced, and Nezha doubted his own abilities to pull this off.

His teacher’s advice was straightforward: rely on yourself. If you can’t make it work, you might as well eat it raw.

After some thought, Nezha decided to try his luck at the Doushuai Temple of Lord Lao Zi. Who knows—perhaps fortune would be on his side.

Adjusting his robes, he respectfully saluted as he entered: "Disciple of Lady Nuwa, Li Nezha, humbly requests an audience with Lord Lao Zi!"

After waiting for a long while without a response, two childish voices began chirping behind the grand doors. Shortly afterward, the temple doors cracked open a sliver, and a curious child peeked his head out to look at Nezha.

Nezha leaned forward to get a better look—the child appeared to be seven or eight years old, round and adorable, reminiscent of Nezha himself at that age.

"Lord Lao Zi isn’t home right now."

Nezha had a sudden idea. Taking out a golden yoyo, he performed a few tricks, spinning it elegantly and demonstrating a series of moves. Instantly, the child’s eyes were glued to the yoyo, his gaze filled with longing.

"Outer Heaven Golden Dragon!"

At once, a golden dragon materialized from the yoyo, leaving the child—Jin Jiao—utterly dumbfounded.

Nezha retrieved the golden yoyo and produced a silver one, placing it in a pouch before tossing it to the child.

The child pointed at the pouch and then himself. Seeing Nezha nod, he gleefully picked up the pouch and dashed back inside. Behind the door, cheerful voices burst forth.

"Outer Heaven Golden Dragon!"

"Outer Heaven Silver Dragon!"

Nezha listened intently to their delighted shouts, relaxing at last. The yoyos, while crafted by him as experiments, were anything but ordinary. Their bodies were made from the twin eyes of Ghost Car—the Ancient Demon Saint—while the string was spun from thousand-year ice silkworm silk.

The matter at hand could wait; establishing connections came first. At least next time, Nezha figured he wouldn’t be locked out of the temple.

Just as Nezha was about to leave, the temple doors swung open again—this time, revealing not one but two nearly identical heads.

The two children vigorously waved at him, gesturing for him to come inside.

Nezha didn’t hesitate. He walked in with them.

"I’m Jin Jiao, and this is my younger brother, Silver Horn!"

"I’m Silver Horn, and this is my elder brother, Jin Jiao!"

The two children introduced themselves proudly.

Nezha held no disdain for anyone associated with these great figures. He lightly bowed and said, "Disciple of Lady Nuwa, Li Nezha, greets the two junior brothers."

Jin Jiao scrutinized Nezha for a moment before speaking, "Ah, so you’re a disciple of Lady Nuwa? You must be here to request elixirs, I assume?"

Silver Horn quickly added, "But Lord Lao Zi isn’t home right now; you’ve made the trip for nothing."

Nezha wasn’t overly disappointed, as refining elixirs was ultimately up to him. "It’s not exactly to request elixirs; I simply came across a rare ingredient and hoped to refine it into an elixir. I’m just not very confident in my own abilities, so I thought I’d try my luck here."

Having pocketed Nezha’s gifts yet feeling they hadn’t helped much, Jin Jiao immediately proposed, "Why not refine it here, then?"

Silver Horn chimed in, "Yes, yes! We can help stoke the fire. Even Lord Lao Zi has us assist him in alchemy!"

Nezha was tempted but hesitated, worrying the suggestion might seem impolite.

Jin Jiao noticed Nezha’s concern and tugged at his sleeve reassuringly, patting his chest, "Relax, Brother Zha! Lord Lao Zi is very generous. My brother and I use the Furnace of Eight Trigrams to refine elixirs even when we have nothing better to do."

Silver Horn grabbed Nezha’s other sleeve and added, "Besides, all the materials here belong to Doushuai Temple. Even if the elixirs turn out badly, Lord Lao Zi has never made us compensate!"

Nezha: "Do you think I can treat this like child’s play, the way you two do...?"

Dragged toward the Furnace of Eight Trigrams, Nezha circled it curiously, examining every detail.

Jin Jiao and Silver Horn whispered and giggled as they watched Nezha inspect the furnace.

After Nezha had finished his examination, the two brothers explained its operation in detail. They also inquired about the medicinal properties of the intended elixir, the required level of heat, and the time needed for refinement—displaying surprising expertise.

Although Nezha understood only part of the elixir recipe, he eventually surrendered and showed it to them. Jin Jiao and Silver Horn pored over it for quite some time before teaching Nezha how to proceed with the alchemy.

Nezha: "..."

Although Nezha was versatile—a true hexagonal immortal—his alchemical prowess was evidently pale by comparison.

Jin Jiao and Silver Horn mocked him mercilessly while trotting around on their short legs to fetch reference materials to share additional tips and tricks.

Fine! Let them laugh. I’ll accept my shortcomings for now.

With Jin Jiao and Silver Horn’s tutelage and assistance, Nezha finally commenced the elixir refinement.