The Heavenly Court wants to try me, accusing me of misdeeds at Flame Mountain.

However, they can't find any evidence of my wanton killing. So, they attributed all those displaced people to me, claiming that the commoners near Flame Mountain became displaced and hungry because of my abuse of power.

I refuse to accept it. I said it was the Monkey King who kicked the Old Gentleman's furnace, causing all this. If they want to hold someone accountable, it should be the Supreme Old Gentleman because the Eight Trigrams Furnace belongs to him.

The Jade Emperor accused me of twisting the truth, saying that during my cultivation in the human world, I absorbed the essence of heaven and earth and should have brought blessings to the people. Instead, I oppressed the commoners around Flame Mountain.

Once again, I objected. I cited Phoenix Immortal County and said that the commoners there unintentionally offended the Jade Emperor. As a result, the Jade Emperor set up a mechanism in the warehouse, creating a mountain of rice and a mountain of noodles, having dogs lick the noodles and chickens eat the rice. He even let candles burn chains, saying that if these conditions were not met, Phoenix Immortal County would never receive rainfall. I said, "I may be indifferent to Flame Mountain, but the Jade Emperor is the one truly 'taking lives for granted' when it comes to Phoenix Immortal County."

At that time, there were many immortals at the Southern Gate of Heaven. They were all dumbfounded after hearing my words, and the Jade Emperor stared at me for a while. Then he suddenly sighed and said, "This demon is despicable to the extreme, beyond redemption!"

In the Jade Emperor's view, he wanted me to be executed in a cruel manner, but Li Jing and Nezha opposed it.

"Why?"

"I promised the Rakshasi that I would go easy on him and give him a lighter punishment," Li Jing said. "After all, the Rakshasi used her own cultivation to extinguish the fire at Flame Mountain, which is a great merit. However..."

Li Jing noticed the displeasure on the Jade Emperor's face and quickly added, "However, that great merit belongs to the Rakshasi. But the Bull Demon King is the Rakshasi's husband, so he should also share a small portion of the merit. Therefore, I think he should be punished leniently, not tortured to death. Sentencing him to be beheaded at the Demon-Slaying Platform should suffice."

After looking at Li Jing for a long time, the Jade Emperor finally agreed to Li Jing's suggestion. As a result, a group of immortals cheered and praised the wisdom of the Jade Emperor.

Later, they brought me to the Demon-Slaying Platform to be executed.

I stood on the Demon-Slaying Platform, already indifferent to everything.

"Kneel!"

The celestial soldiers guarding beside me shouted loudly.

"Kneel? Kneel to whom?" I looked at him, puzzled.

"This is the Demon-Slaying Platform. Those who are executed here are those who violate the heavenly laws. What you should kneel to is Heaven!"

"Are you joking? Your so-called Heaven is just the laws you have set. You huddle under a seemingly divine order and use it to tame the world. If someone doesn't comply, you say they've violated the heavenly laws! Hmph, all things in nature are born free. Why should we follow your so-called rules? Is Heaven as shallow as you claim? Today, the old bull may have lost, but the winner takes all. If I violate any so-called heavenly laws, so what? Hmph, what can you do to the old bull for breaking your heavenly laws?"

"Kneel!"

"I haven't done anything wrong. Why should I kneel?"

The celestial soldier became furious and tried to force me to kneel using his magic. Their magic was torturous, causing me intense pain, but I endured it and remained standing.

"Why aren't you kneeling?" Nezha walked over and asked me.

"Why should I kneel?" I looked at him. "You are the ones who are wrong, not me. But you are the winners. What fault do I have?"

I don't know who my parents are. The only time I ever kneeled was when I married the Rakshasi. I have done too much wrong to her in this lifetime.

And now, the only thing I can do is to never kneel again in thislife.

Nezha looked at me with a complicated expression. He seemed to understand something but didn't say anything.

Finally, the executioner stepped forward with a sword in his hand. He raised it high and prepared to behead me.

But just as the sword was about to come down, a voice echoed through the air.

"Stop!"

Everyone turned to see the Jade Emperor standing there, his face filled with uncertainty.

"What is the meaning of this, Your Majesty?" the executioner asked, confused.

The Jade Emperor looked at me and said, "I have been pondering your words, Bull Demon King. You may have a point. Perhaps Heaven is not as infallible as we believe."

He turned to the crowd and continued, "We have always held ourselves above mortals, claiming to be the righteous judges of their actions. But have we ever truly understood their suffering? Have we ever considered the consequences of our own actions on their lives?"

There was silence as the immortals listened intently.

"Bull Demon King, you have shown me that there may be flaws in our divine order. You have challenged the established norms and made us question our own righteousness. For that, I commend your courage."

He looked at me with a mix of admiration and regret in his eyes.

"Therefore, I have decided to spare your life. You shall be banished from Heaven and forbidden from returning. Go and live among the mortals, learn from them, and perhaps one day, you may find a way to bridge the gap between Heaven and Earth."

I was stunned. I never expected such a turn of events.

The Jade Emperor's decision was met with mixed reactions from the immortals. Some were outraged, while others were relieved that the execution was called off.

Nezha approached me and said, "You're lucky, Bull Demon King. The Jade Emperor rarely shows such mercy. Make good use of this opportunity."

I nodded, still processing the sudden turn of events. As I left the Demon-Slaying Platform and descended back to the mortal realm, I couldn't help but wonder what fate awaited me among the humans.

But one thing was certain: I would never kneel again, not to Heaven, not to anyone.