Houtu: I'm Just a Soil Digger! Xuanzheng: No, You're the Great Earth Purifier!

At a newly opened, massive fissure on Buzhou Mountain, the engineering project was reaching its most critical stage.

"Pangu Divine Concrete, pour!"

Following Zhurong's command, freshly produced blocks of Divine Concrete, glowing with Xuanhuang light, were precisely placed into the fissure by the immensely strong Witch Clan giants.

[RUMBLE--!]

Just then, a world-shattering roar erupted from the deepest part of the fissure!

A surge of pitch-black Malevolent Qi, carrying bone-chilling cold and endless resentment, shot skyward like a volcanic eruption!

"Ah!"

The dozens of Witch Clan warriors at the forefront didn't even have time to scream before they were engulfed by the black energy. Their tall, robust bodies instantly shriveled, their eyes turned blood-red, and they began to frantically attack their companions.

"Careful! This Malevolent Qi can corrupt the mind!"

The supervising Great Witch roared a warning, but the Malevolent Qi spread at a speed far beyond imagination.

Wherever it passed, the surface of the just-poured "Pangu Divine Concrete" emitted a "sizzling" corrosive sound, and faint cracks appeared on its solid structure.

The project was forced to a halt.

Manual displayed a line of blood-red text before Xuanzheng's eyes: [Discovered regional minor BUG: Pangu_D019, Geomantic Malevolent Qi Accumulation Point.]

"Everyone, get back!"

Zhurong was the first to arrive. Seeing his corrupted kin and the damaged construction, he was furious.

Southern Bright Lihuo transformed into a sea of fire, raining down upon the source of the Malevolent Qi.

However, the flames, capable of melting metal and iron, were easily swallowed by the black energy the moment they touched it, sinking like a stone into the sea without even a ripple.

"What?!" Zhurong froze.

"Let me!"

Gonggong followed closely behind. Nine Heavens Weak Water transformed into a colossal tidal wave, attempting to wash away and dilute the Malevolent Qi.

Upon contact with the Weak Water, the black Malevolent Qi not only failed to disperse but instead stained the pitch-black water with an ominous hue of decay, and an aura of rot permeated the air.

"This thing can corrupt my Origin Water!" Gonggong's expression changed drastically, and he immediately withdrew his Spiritual Power.

"Watch this!"

Qiangliang descended from the sky, his myriad lightning bolts forming a thunderous net that fiercely struck into the Malevolent Qi.

[BOOM! CRACKLE!]

Lightning flashed, and the Malevolent Qi was indeed scattered to some extent. However, the dispersed black energy transformed into countless tendrils, spreading even faster in all directions, thus expanding the scope of contamination.

Several Ancestral Witches took turns, but all were helpless.

This source of Malevolent Qi was formed from the resentment, malevolence, and defeated destinies of countless powerful beings who perished here during the Dragon-Han Calamity, accumulating over billions of years. It was utterly foul and bone-chillingly cold, like an unhealable festering sore on the Primordial World.

Zhurong's face was losing its composure. "Damn it, I don't believe this!" He was about to activate his Origin True Fire again.

"Don't waste your effort," Gonggong stopped him. "This thing is rooted in the earth; it cannot be burned away or washed away."

"Then what do you suggest we do? Just watch?" Zhurong's fiery temper flared.

Xuanzheng slowly walked to the edge of the Malevolent Qi source. He glanced at his brothers, who were at a loss, then turned his gaze to Houtu, who had just arrived and was observing with a frown.

"Elder Sister Houtu."

Houtu turned her head, her gentle face filled with worry. "Thirteenth Brother, this Malevolent Qi is too foul; it has already damaged the very roots of the earth veins."

"This is not a malevolent spirit, but the accumulated ills of the Great Earth," Xuanzheng's expression remained "innocent." He pointed to the constantly spewing black gas from the deep pit. "The root of the illness lies in the earth, and the cure naturally lies within the earth. I have a method that might transform this waste Malevolent Qi into Spiritual Earth Treasure Qi, but... it requires your intervention, Sister."

"Oh?" Houtu was somewhat surprised. "What can I do? My power can only temporarily suppress it, not eradicate it."

"Sister only needs to suppress and guide it."

Xuanzheng was confident. He turned and cupped his hands towards Jumang, who was nearby. "Brother Jumang, please cooperate and cultivate a batch of 'Malevolent Qi Devouring Vines' to surround this source and absorb the overflowing toxins."

Jumang looked at the terrifying source of Malevolent Qi, then at Xuanzheng, and nodded. Although he had to exert himself again, the matter was of great importance, and he did not refuse.

"And then?" Houtu pressed.

"Then, the crucial step," Xuanzheng's tone became solemn. "Sister, please draw upon the 'Great Earth Mother Qi' from the depths of Buzhou Mountain's earth veins."

"Great Earth Mother Qi?!" Houtu's expression changed. "That is the essence of the Origin of the Great Earth, how precious! To use it against this foul substance, wouldn't that be a terrible waste?"

"Has Sister forgotten the 'Pangu Divine Concrete'?" Xuanzheng countered. "Metal and stone are opposed, yet they can be integrated with the power of wood and fire. This Malevolent Qi and the Great Earth Mother Qi, tracing back to their origins, both evolved from Father God Pangu's pure and impure energies. Why can't Malevolence be transformed into Spirit?"

His voice was not loud, but it stunned all the Ancestral Witches present.

Transforming Malevolence into Spirit?

This idea was too preposterous, almost a fantasy.

Xuanzheng continued to "persuade": "Let us treat this Malevolent Qi as a special 'auxiliary material.' With the Great Earth Mother Qi as the main body and Sister's Earth Origin as the 'furnace,' we will conduct a brand-new 'fusion refinement.' If it is refined well, this barren land will become a Spiritual Earth Spring Eye that nourishes all things."

Houtu's heart trembled violently.

She looked into Xuanzheng's clear eyes, then at the bottomless source of Malevolent Qi.

The risk was immense, but if it succeeded...

She felt the earth's mournful cries and a sense of innate mission surged within her.

"Good! I believe you!"

Houtu no longer hesitated. She flew up and hovered above the Malevolent Qi Accumulation Point, forming seals with her hands.

"Uphold virtue and carry all things; Origin of the Great Earth, suppress!"

A heavy, boundless, earth-yellow divine light descended from her, like an invisible divine mountain, forcefully pressing back the violently surging malevolent qi.

At the same time, Jumang waved his hand, scattering countless emerald seeds. The seeds took root upon landing, rapidly growing into a circle of strange, dark green vines that completely encircled the Malevolent Qi Accumulation Point, greedily absorbing the escaping black energy.

"Thirteenth Brother, what's next?" Houtu's voice was strained, clearly indicating that suppressing this massive amount of malevolent qi had taken a significant toll on her.

"Introduce the Great Earth Mother Qi, like peeling silk from a cocoon, slowly inject it! Envelop the malevolent qi, rotate, and grind it!" Xuanzheng directed loudly from the side, the Script Mirror rapidly calculating the optimal energy ratio.

Houtu followed his instructions.

A wisp of earth-yellow energy, purer and more fundamental than the Yellow-Black Mother Qi, was drawn by her from the depths of Buzhou Mountain's earth veins. She carefully guided it into the malevolent qi.

[Buzz--!]

The moment the two forces touched, the inside of the Malevolent Qi Accumulation Point vibrated violently!

The rampant malevolent qi retaliated ferociously, Houtu's body swayed violently, and a trickle of blood seeped from the corner of her mouth.

"Steady yourself! Treat it like a disobedient, stubborn rock; you only need to smooth its edges, not shatter it!" Xuanzheng's voice was like a great bell, striking Houtu's heart.

Houtu gritted her teeth, her divine sense sinking into the earth. The Law of Earth operated in an unprecedentedly exquisite manner.

She no longer resisted forcefully. Instead, she transformed the Great Earth Mother Qi into a massive spiral grinding disc, gently yet firmly enveloping the malevolent qi, grinding it down layer by layer, and slowly assimilating it.

Time ticked by.

The once pitch-black malevolent qi began to slowly lighten in color, from ink black to dark gray, then to light gray... Finally, threads of pure spiritual energy began to precipitate from it!

It worked!

Under the astonished gazes of all the Ancestral Witches, the Malevolent Qi Accumulation Point, which had been defiled for countless eons, was actually completely transformed!

A spring eye, gushing forth pure spiritual earth energy, appeared before everyone.

Wherever the spring water flowed, the withered ground regained its vitality, and Immortal flowers and spiritual grasses bloomed in abundance.

[Boom!]

From the Nine Heavens above, an incomparably pure and vast golden light of Heavenly Dao Merit descended thunderously, entering Houtu's body entirely!

Houtu trembled, feeling her understanding of the Great Dao of Earth instantly elevate to an entirely new level, her cultivation bottleneck subtly loosening.

She felt the comfort of merit enveloping her, slowly opened her eyes, and looked at Xuanzheng below, her gaze filled with unprecedented shock and conviction.

"Thirteenth Brother, your ability to turn trash into treasure... it's truly divine!"