Hongjun's Admonition, the Three Lectures Begin

Hongjun's eyes flickered with a trace of approval. "Your talent is not lacking to begin with; there is no need to rush for quick gains. After the third lecture concludes, perhaps an opportunity will arise."

He paused, his tone growing somewhat more solemn.

"Disciple Haotian, Disciple Jade Pool, I summoned you back today because there is something I must tell you. After the third lecture, you will likely not see me for a very long time."

"Master, what do you mean by that?"

Jade Pool's heart tightened, the smile on her face vanishing instantly, her voice trembling slightly.

Though Haotian had anticipated it, his heart still sank, and he watched Hongjun in silence.

"After the third lecture ends, I will merge with the Dao."

Hongjun spoke slowly, his voice calm yet carrying the weight of a thousand jun.

"Since the opening of the Primordial Wilderness, order has been established, yet hidden dangers remain—remnants of the demonic path linger, and conflicts among races never cease."

"I once received a charge from Pangu to integrate into the Heavenly Dao, using my own Dao resonance to stabilize the foundations of the Primordial Wilderness and avert the calamity of annihilation."

"Merge with the Dao... Master, will you vanish completely like dissolving into the Dao?"

Jade Pool could no longer hold back her tears; her eyes reddened, and her voice choked with emotion.

Seeing this, Hongjun comforted her gently. "Foolish child, merging with the Dao is not dissolving into it."

"Though I will integrate into the Heavenly Dao, I will not dissipate from the world."

"However, most of my energy hereafter will be devoted to maintaining the Heavenly Dao's operation, making it difficult to meet with you as I do now."

"But it is not a complete severance. When I have free time or matters to discuss, I can still gather with you here."

He raised his hand, brushing Jade Pool's cheek to dry her tears.

"You are both core members of the Mystic Gate. In the future, you must bear the responsibility of guarding the Primordial Wilderness. Do not be overly sorrowful."

Jade Pool sniffled and nodded firmly. "Disciple understands. Master, rest assured, I will cultivate diligently and not let you down!"

Haotian also bowed deeply. "Disciple will not fail Master's trust and will guard the order of the Primordial Wilderness."

Hongjun nodded in satisfaction, then turned his gaze toward the hall's entrance.

"Enough. The time for the third lecture approaches, and those who will listen are nearly here. Go to the palace gates and welcome them."

Haotian and Jade Pool acknowledged, straightened their Daoist robes, transformed into streaks of light, and flew out of the Purple Firmament Palace. They sat cross-legged, quietly waiting.

Before long, a pale cyan streak of light was the first to cut through the chaos.

The Three Pure Ones strode through the void. Laozi, clad in a white robe and holding a white jade crooked staff, exuded the Dao resonance of Pure and Non-Action, his steps steady. Venerable Yuanshi followed closely, his brocade robe embroidered with the Three Treasures Jade Ruyi pattern, his brow carrying a hint of majesty. Sect Master Tongtian, wielding the Qingping Sword, wore a black Daoist robe that fluttered, his eyes revealing a free and unrestrained spirit.

As the three landed, they nodded slightly to Haotian and Jade Pool. "Fifth Junior Brother, Sixth Junior Sister."

"Three Senior Brothers." Haotian returned the greeting with cupped hands, while Jade Pool also offered a polite greeting.

As their words faded, two more gentle spiritual lights arrived in succession.

Nuwa, dressed in a pink skirt, radiated the warmth of the Law of Creation, while Fuxi beside her exuded a gentle temperament.

"Fifth Junior Brother, Sixth Junior Sister, long time no see." Nuwa spoke with a smile, her gaze sweeping over the Purple Firmament Palace, a hint of anticipation for the final lecture in her eyes.

"Senior Sister Nuwa, Daoist Fuxi!" Haotian and Jade Pool returned the greetings.

After exchanging pleasantries for a while, everyone sat cross-legged, some waiting, some cultivating.

Thus, after several hundred years passed, waves of starlight rippled from the depths of chaos.

It was Dijun and Taiyi leading the core members of the Demon Race.

Dijun was surrounded by the spiritual light of the River Diagram and Luo Book, while Taiyi held the Chaos Bell, the True Sun Fire on its body flickering faintly. Kunpeng followed closely behind, and after him came a host of Demon Race great powers, their spiritual energy interweaving, forming a considerable momentum.

Next, Zhenyuanzi, Hongyun, and a host of other top-tier great powers arrived one after another over the following millennia.

Interspersed among them were many great powers at the Primordial Unity Golden Immortal and Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal levels, traveling alone or in groups, gradually arriving outside the Purple Firmament Palace.

"Almost everyone is here." Sensing the surrounding auras, Haotian raised his hand and formed a hand seal. The pale golden barrier around the Purple Firmament Palace slowly unfurled.

The barrier flowed with Hongjun's Dao resonance, like a transparent film of light, isolating the Chaos Airflow.

"Everyone, please enter." His voice was gentle yet carried authority.

The great powers nodded in acknowledgment and entered according to the seating order from the previous two lectures: the Three Pure Ones, Nuwa, Jieyin, and Zhunti sat in the first row.

Dijun, Taiyi, Kunpeng, Zhenyuanzi, Hongyun, and other top-tier great powers sat in the second row, while the rest were arranged by cultivation level in the rows behind, all in orderly fashion.

The moment everyone took their seats, Hongjun's figure slowly materialized on the high platform of the Purple Firmament Palace.

He still sat upright on the cushion, his Dao resonance heavier than in the previous two lectures. His gaze swept over the assembled great powers, his tone indifferent yet carrying an unassailable authority.

"This is my final lecture, lasting four thousand years."

"After the lecture ends, I will merge with the Dao to maintain the order of the Primordial Wilderness. From now on, the Heavenly Dao is Hongjun, but Hongjun is not the Heavenly Dao."

"Dao Ancestor! You must not!" No sooner had the words fallen than a chorus of weeping and cries arose from below.

Many great beings rose to their feet, their faces filled with grief, and some even knelt and kowtowed, begging Hongjun to rescind his decree.

Yet if one observed closely, there was little genuine sorrow in their eyes.

Jieyin and Zhunti pressed their palms together, but the corners of their mouths held a faint, barely perceptible trace of anticipation.

Dijun and Taiyi wore expressions of reluctance, yet in their hearts, they calculated that once the Dao Ancestor merged with the Dao, the Demon Race would face fewer constraints.

Even some Zenith Heaven Golden Immortals merely feigned agreement, secretly rejoicing that with no absolute authority above them, the future might hold more opportunities.

Only Haotian, Jade Pool, and the other direct disciples felt a measure of genuine sadness.

Hongjun took in all of this, a flicker of gentleness passing through his eyes, but he did not expose their pretense. He merely raised a hand and pressed it down.

"There is no need for this. My merging with the Dao is not an extinction. If a great calamity befalls the Primordial Wilderness in the future, I will still protect it through the Heavenly Dao Will."

Hearing this, the crowd quieted, and Hongjun slowly began to speak of the path of sages.

His voice was no longer indifferent but carried the weight of the Great Dao. Every syllable transformed into golden law runes that swirled through the air.

"A sage inherits the breath of the Great Dao, uses the Primordial Violet Qi to draw upon the Heavenly Dao Power, and entrusts their Primordial Spirit to the void of the Heavenly Dao. This is called 'Entrusting the Primordial Spirit to the Void.'"

"From then on, as long as the Heavenly Dao is not destroyed, the sage is immortal. Yet a sage must uphold the balance of the Heavenly Dao, must not meddle arbitrarily in the conflicts of the Primordial Wilderness, and must not actively trigger a world-ending calamity. This is the duty of a sage."

As the Dao Sounds cascaded down, heavenly phenomena descended within the Purple Firmament Palace.

The lingering violet qi suddenly boiled, transforming into golden Dao chains that coiled around the crowd, aiding their comprehension.

From the ground, twelve-petal golden lotuses surged forth, their petals engraved with the patterns of sage laws, exuding a dense aura of enlightenment.

From the sky, seven-colored celestial flowers drifted down, their petals dissolving upon touching the ground, merging into the Primordial Spirits of the crowd and sorting out their chaotic insights into the laws.

Spirit birds flew in from the chaos, carrying Innate Spiritual Grass in their beaks, placing it at the edge of the high platform.

The fragrance of the spiritual grass stabilized the Dao Heart, preventing the crowd from falling into demonic possession during their enlightenment. Such phenomena were even more magnificent than the previous two lectures, a testament to the preciousness of the path of sages.