Grand Unity Peak

Five hundred years were naturally an extremely short time in the Hong Huang World.

Many Grand Unity Golden Immortals spent tens of millions of years in a single enlightenment session. Five hundred years truly was not enough to cultivate anything noteworthy.

However, the changes in Hong Huang over these five hundred years had been tremendous.

Because over these five hundred years, those who had gone to Zixiao Palace to hear Hongjun preach had basically all made breakthroughs in their cultivation.

Hongjun's preaching was like spreading fertilizer and watering these Grand Unity Golden Immortals, raising all their cultivation realms by a level.

Five hundred years ago, a Grand Unity Golden Immortal who reached the middle stage could basically be considered a powerhouse in one region of Hong Huang. Most Grand Unity Golden Immortals were still at the early stage.

But five hundred years later, as the Grand Unity Golden Immortals who had heard the teachings emerged from seclusion one after another, people discovered that the middle stage of Grand Unity Golden Immortal had become ordinary. Powerhouses throughout Hong Huang had generally reached the late stage of Grand Unity Golden Immortal.

Some exceptionally gifted Grand Unity Golden Immortals had even begun striving toward the peak of Grand Unity Golden Immortal.

As the Grand Unity Golden Immortals broke through, Hong Huang's overall strength also rose to a new level.

Beyond that, the power structure of Hong Huang was also changing.

With the end of the Dragon-Han Primordial Tribulation, the Dragon, Phoenix, and Kirin clans had suffered devastating losses and gradually retreated into the corners of Hong Huang to recover and rebuild.

However, the withdrawal of those three clans did not mean that heaven and earth had lost their protagonists. Some powerful races gradually began to emerge in Hong Huang.

Among them, the Witch Clan and Demon Clan, which possessed top-tier Hong Huang powerhouses and powerful racial talents, began stepping onto Hong Huang's grand stage.

The Witch Clan's foremost powerhouses were the Twelve Ancestral Witches, born from Pangu's Essence Blood.

Though they were not skilled in Dao techniques, their powerful bloodlines made their physical bodies nearly unmatched throughout Hong Huang.

And the Witch Clan had a full twelve such physically powerful experts.

With the Twelve Ancestral Witches holding the fort, the weaker races of Hong Huang naturally did not dare provoke the Witch Clan. Instead, they might be hunted by the Witch Clan and turned into food.

In Hong Huang, any living being of flesh and blood that did not maintain good relations with the Witch Clan might be targeted, hunted, slaughtered, and used to fill the Witch Clan's stomachs.

Yet there was one complex race that did not fear the Witch Clan: the Demon Clan.

The Demon Clan's composition was exceedingly complex, and its numbers far surpassed those of the Witch Clan.

Moreover, the Demon Clan had no fewer powerhouses than the Witch Clan.

Setting aside Eastern Emperor and Di Jun, two supreme experts who had already reached the late stage of Grand Unity Golden Immortal, the Demon Clan also had mighty figures such as Bai Ze, Kunpeng, and Jiu Ying.

Chapter 12: Grand Unity Peak

No matter which level they were compared at, the Demon Clan did not fall short of the Witch Clan.

In fact, if the Twelve Ancestral Witches fought the Demon Clan one-on-one, they might suffer badly. After all, Di Jun and Eastern Emperor, both possessing supreme treasures, were monstrously powerful.

After the Dragon, Phoenix, and Kirin clans faded from view, the Witch and Demon Clans gradually developed and expanded into powerful forces spread throughout Hong Huang.

Naturally, the two races experienced many frictions and conflicts during their development.

And those frictions and conflicts continued escalating, becoming sharp contradictions.

The two races had conflicts even on an individual level.

They were natural enemies, hunting and killing one another, creating much hatred.

Some Great Witches could capture and kill hundreds of demons in a single hunt, while some great demons could swallow an entire small Witch Clan tribe in one bite.

Matters concerning the food chain caused frequent battles between the two races, and their scale grew larger and larger.

The seeds of hatred in both races' hearts had already taken root and flourished.

Buzhou Mountain, beneath the Gourd Vine.

A seated stone statue stood beneath the Gourd Vine, looking ancient and weathered.

The Gourd Vine was lush with branches and leaves, brimming with vitality.

Beside the Gourd Vine was a small pool that shimmered brilliantly. The water within flashed with red, yellow, and blue light, making it exceptionally miraculous.

The small patch of soil in which the Gourd Vine had rooted also appeared most extraordinary.

Nuwa sat beside the stone statue with her eyes closed, quietly sensing the valley's peace and serenity.

Suddenly, a gentle breeze blew in from afar, stirring Nuwa's hair.

The breeze brought clouds and rain, but these dark clouds were extremely peculiar. They lingered only above the stone statue and rained down upon it.

As the stone statue was drenched by the rain, three small golden flowers unexpectedly sprouted from its crown, though their species could not be identified.

The three small flowers gradually bloomed from their buds. Traces of chaotic aura and dazzling divine light flowed from the flowers, cascading onto the stone statue.

Wind and rain raged around the stone statue, while flowers bloomed and swayed atop it. Nuwa, seated beside the statue, was utterly captivated by the sight.

When the rain stopped and the dark clouds dispersed, the three small golden flowers atop the stone statue gradually drew together.

The golden flowers' petals began to wither, falling one after another onto the stone statue, which absorbed them.

Crack!

A breaking sound rang out. The ancient stone statue seemed unable to withstand the erosion of time and was about to collapse.

Yet as the statue's outer layer continually shattered, a fair-skinned young man emerged from within.

When the young man opened his eyes, a strange phenomenon appeared behind him.

Within that vision, upon a vast yellow-brown land, water and fire began merging and circling under the force of wind, gradually forming a circle.

Seeing this, Nuwa's face filled with delight as she clasped her fists toward the young man. "Congratulations, Brother, on breaking through and becoming a peak Grand Unity Golden Immortal!"

Fuxi brushed the stone fragments from his body, rose to his feet, and stretched before looking at Nuwa with a smile. "I should congratulate you as well, little sister, on reaching the late stage of Grand Unity Golden Immortal."

Nuwa said excitedly, "Naturally, I am still far inferior to you, Brother."

"How could that be?"

Fuxi walked to Nuwa's side and gently stroked her hair. With complete confidence, he said, "My little sister will definitely become a Saint in the future!"

"Brother, did you calculate that too?"

Nuwa's eyes shone with excitement.

"Of course..."

"No."

Fuxi deliberately drew out his voice, teasing Nuwa.

"Brother, you're making fun of me!"

Nuwa pretended to be angry.

Fuxi smiled. "Whether you become a Saint depends on your own efforts. Though I have faith in you, there are some things you must fight for yourself."

Fuxi's words were deeply earnest.

Nuwa nodded as if she understood. "I understand."

"Mm, keep cultivating! Move forward one step at a time."

After saying that, Fuxi once again entered an enlightenment state resembling deep sleep.

Unwilling to fall behind, Nuwa also began cultivating.

It had to be said that Fuxi and Nuwa's cultivation advanced far faster than usual.

Besides Hongjun's teachings, the Chaos Gourd Vine had also played a part.

The Chaos Gourd Vine possessed the creation of heaven and earth, and countless Great Dao transformations occurred around it. It was exceedingly miraculous and made it easier for Fuxi and Nuwa to attain enlightenment.

Cultivating beneath the Gourd Vine was even faster than cultivating upon Hongjun's meditation cushion.

After glancing at the growth of the small gourds on the Chaos Gourd Vine, Fuxi estimated that the gourds would need another two or three hundred years to mature.

Since maturity still required time, Fuxi continued focusing on cultivation as he waited for the battle to protect the gourds after they ripened.

At the very moment Fuxi broke through to the peak of Grand Unity Golden Immortal, powerful figures everywhere, whether on Kunlun Mountain or Buzhou Mountain, in the east or the west, sensed it.

In the sky above Buzhou Mountain, the scene of water and fire merging that had just appeared behind Fuxi also manifested in the heavens, drawing the attention of countless powerhouses.

"What is this phenomenon?"

"Who caused this phenomenon?"

"From this phenomenon, I can sense the supreme principles of the Great Dao."

"Was it caused by a cultivator, or by a heavenly treasure?"

As the phenomenon appeared, all of Hong Huang was drawn to it.

This phenomenon brought enlightenment to many lower-level cultivators, and some even broke through in their cultivation.

However, the phenomenon gradually faded away and ceased to exist.

The Witch Clan, being the largest race throughout Buzhou Mountain, was naturally alarmed by this phenomenon.

The Twelve Ancestral Witches emerged from seclusion one after another and began searching for its source.

If it was merely a powerhouse making a breakthrough, that would be fine. But if a rare treasure had emerged, they would certainly claim a share.

Unfortunately, the twelve Ancestral Witches searched everywhere for more than a decade, yet still failed to discover the source of the phenomenon.

Among the Twelve Ancestral Witches, a female Ancestral Witch with a human head, snake body, and animal-hide garments frowned. "Could another race be trying to provoke or harm the people of our Witch Clan?"

An Ancestral Witch whose hair blazed with flames and whose beard and hair were entirely red shouted, "Our Witch Clan is powerful and its might shakes Hong Huang. Who would dare plot against our people? Whoever dares act, I'll burn them to ashes!"

This was Zhu Rong, the Witch Clan's Ancestral Witch of Fire!

"Hmph! If there truly is some petty villain plotting against us, then I should be the one to act. You are the weakest among the twelve of us—how dare you boast so shamelessly!"

A blue-haired Ancestral Witch whose body was wrapped in flowing water spoke.

He was Gong Gong, the Witch Clan's Ancestral Witch of Water.

His words were like oil poured directly onto Zhu Rong's fiery temper.

Zhu Rong stomped the ground and roared, "Gong Gong, what nonsense are you spouting?! My blazing flames can burn heaven and destroy earth. Who dares say I am weak?"

Gong Gong had always clashed with Zhu Rong by nature, and he mocked, "You are the weakest. Stop making excuses."