Houtu

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Houtu (后土)
Alias(es)	Lord of Reincarnation; Lord of the Netherworld; Lord of the Earth Dao; Empress Houtu, Sovereign of the Earth
Species/Race	Ancestor Witch; later a Primordial Spirit-bearing Divine Being aligned with the Earth Dao
Gender	Female
Affiliation	Witch Race; Netherworld Underworld; Earth Dao
Occupation/Role	Founder and guardian of the Six Paths of Reincarnation; ruler of the Netherworld; Earth Dao Saint
Status	Active
First Appearance	Chapter 185

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Embodiment of Reincarnation	244–246	Understands the Dao of Life and Death Reincarnation through Pangu's will, suppresses Minghe, and sacrifices her Ancestor Witch body and bloodline to establish the Six Paths of Reincarnation.
Peak Quasi-Saint / Primordial Chaos Golden Immortal	247, 287	The Earth Dao reshapes her True Spirit, Primordial Spirit, and physical body through Reincarnation Merit. Her power reaches the peak Quasi-Saint realm and is described as peak Primordial Chaos Golden Immortal; the Heavenly Dao prevents her immediate ascent to Earth Dao Sainthood.
Earth Dao Saint	311	The revival of the Earth Dao removes her confinement to the Netherworld. She attains the Earth Dao Saint Position and can openly protect the Witch Race.
Hun Yuan Grand Unity Golden Immortal	505	By this point, her true cultivation has advanced beyond the initial stage of Hun Yuan Grand Unity Golden Immortal, with her presence compared to the will of heaven and earth.

Background

Houtu was one of the Ancestor Witches and a descendant of Pangu. As the Witch Race confronted its inability to reproduce normally, she sought Cihang's counsel; his suggestion that the Human Race might offer a solution gave her hope for her people's survival 185.

At the Sea of Blood, Houtu encountered countless wandering souls being destroyed or left without consciousness. Her compassion restored their awareness, while Pangu's will within her Witch bloodline emerged and revealed her Dao: the establishment of Reincarnation 244. She declared that she had been guided by the Great Dao to establish Heaven and Earth Reincarnation, then defeated and suppressed Minghe when he tried to stop her 245.

Houtu accepted that establishing Reincarnation would cost her physical body and bloodline. Before acting, she entrusted a drop of her vital blood to Cihang for delivery to her elder brother, Di Jiang 246. She then merged herself with billions of souls and formed the Six Paths of Reincarnation, receiving immense merit from heaven and earth for a sacrifice acknowledged even by the Saints 246.

The Earth Dao preserved and rebuilt her True Spirit, granting her a new Primordial Spirit and body. Though the Heavenly Dao blocked her from immediately becoming an Earth Dao Saint, Houtu returned as the Lord of Reincarnation and Lord of the Netherworld, bound to the Netherworld to stabilize its newly formed cycle 247.

Appearance

Houtu's bearing changes sharply after she comprehends Reincarnation: the fierce aura associated with an Ancestor Witch is replaced by boundless compassion and pity for wandering souls 244.

• In the Netherworld, her Merit manifests as a nine-layered Merit Golden Wheel 248.
• She can manifest an imposing Wheel of Life and Death or the Six Paths of Reincarnation behind her in battle 286 293.
• After gaining a Primordial Spirit, she is recognized by Pangu Hall, which appears behind her as both a legacy and a defense 287 288.
• Her later presence carries the weight of the Earth Dao itself, making Cihang feel as though he faces the will of heaven and earth 505.

Personality

Houtu is compassionate, dutiful, and deeply protective of the Witch Race. The sight of lost souls at the Sea of Blood moves her to restore their consciousness, and she accepts becoming Reincarnation because she believes it is her mission as Pangu's descendant 244 246.

Her sacrifice leaves her conflicted. After losing her original body and bloodline, she considers herself unworthy of being called Pangu's descendant and becomes detached from power over the Netherworld 249 250. Cihang's encouragement gradually restores her resolve, leading her to seek the Venerable Seat of the Earth Dao for both herself and the Witch Race 250.

Houtu does not submit easily to outside authority. She refuses the Saints entry into the Netherworld, rejects their attempts to divide its authority, and later seals the Heavenly Court's divine position granted to her rather than allow the Heavenly Dao to appropriate Earth Dao authority 247 313. Her compassion does not prevent wrath: when the Three Pure Ones endanger the Witch Race and Reincarnation, she attacks them without restraint 302 303.

“This is my duty and mission as a descendant of the Father God. It's just a little reluctance!” 246

Abilities & Skills

Dao of Life and Death Reincarnation

Houtu commands the Great Dao of Life and Death Reincarnation, an authority born from her merger with the Six Paths of Reincarnation.

• Restores awareness to wandering souls, allowing them to depart peacefully rather than dissipate in the Sea of Blood 244.
• Forms the Six Paths of Reincarnation and governs the cycle of life and death for all beings 246 247.
• Can dissolve divine abilities, Spiritual Power, laws, and even aspects of the Great Dao through the principle that all things undergo life, death, and rebirth 287.
• Wields the Six Paths of Reincarnation Disk as a devastating weapon; attacks against her Reincarnation authority risk backlash from heaven and earth 293 303.
• Her use of Reincarnation's Origin can exhaust her magical power and destabilize her form after major battles 294.

Netherworld Authority

As Lord of the Netherworld, Houtu possesses absolute local authority over its barriers, order, and Reincarnation.

• Prevented Saints and other major powers from entering the newly formed Netherworld 247 248.
• Within the Netherworld, her strength can rival a Saint due to the world's support and her integration with Reincarnation 248.
• Can make attacks on herself inflict severe Karma and Karmic Debt upon the attacker, since harming her threatens the Six Paths 248.
• Was initially unable to leave the Netherworld freely because she was bound there to stabilize Reincarnation 247 284.
• Escaped this restriction after the Earth Dao revived and she attained its Saint Position 311.

Earth Dao and Pangu Legacy

Houtu's authority derives from Pangu's will, the Earth Dao, and her status as the Mother of the Earth.

• Pangu's will within her bloodline enabled the otherwise impossible creation of Reincarnation 245.
• Can summon earth power and the laws of life and death to oppose Saint-level attacks 245 286.
• Received fragments of Pangu's residual Primordial Spirit when the Earth Dao reshaped her, bringing her origin closer to that of the Three Pure Ones 288.
• Protected Zhenyuanzi's enfeoffment of the Earth Gods and helped awaken the Earth Dao 284 286.
• As Earth Dao Saint and later Lord of the Earth Dao, she can defend the Witch Race from decisions imposed by the Saints 310 311.

Healing and Restoration

Houtu can reverse life and death energies to restore others.

• Healed the surviving Witch Race members after emerging from the Netherworld 311.
• Works with the Earth Dao to reshape True Spirits and physical forms, as demonstrated by her own resurrection 247.
• Plans to reshape the Ancestor Witches' Primordial Spirits into twelve Divine Beings of the Earth Dao rather than grant them individual Saint Positions 506.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Pangu Hall — The ancestral land and heart-derived legacy of Pangu. It recognizes Houtu as its master after she gains a Primordial Spirit, protects her against the Three Pure Ones' supreme treasures, and grants access to Pangu's remaining Destiny 287 288.
• Empress Houtu Divine Seal — The divine position of “Empress Houtu, Sovereign of the Earth, who upholds and emulates the heavens,” which Houtu seals into a Spiritual Treasure rather than permit the Heavenly Court to divide Earth Dao authority 313.
• Book of Life and Death — Bestowed by Houtu upon Cihang to support his rule of the Underworld and its Reincarnation order 249.
• Judge's Brush — Granted alongside the Book of Life and Death to strengthen Cihang's authority over the Underworld 249.

Relationships

• Cihang — Close ally and trusted confidant. He witnesses her transformation, delivers her vital blood to Di Jiang, helps establish the Underworld, supports her Earth Dao path, and later safeguards the hope of reviving the Ancestor Witches 246 250 337.
• Di Jiang — Her elder brother and a leading Ancestor Witch. Houtu entrusts Cihang with her vital blood for Di Jiang before becoming Reincarnation 246.
• The Twelve Ancestor Witches — Her kin and central motivation. Their deaths drive her efforts to gather their scattered True Spirits and reshape them as Earth Dao Divine Beings 336 506.
• The Witch Race — Her people. Though she initially feels she failed them by becoming Reincarnation, she repeatedly protects their future, eventually ordering their integration into the Human Race to alter their destiny 250 360.
• Zhenyuanzi — Earth Dao ally. Houtu supports his Earth God enfeoffment, protects his path against the Three Pure Ones, and later works with him to perfect the order of heaven and earth 284 286 427.
• Minghe — Initial opponent in the establishment of Reincarnation. Houtu suppresses him for a million years after he attacks her at the Sea of Blood 245.
• The Three Pure Ones — Rivals over Pangu's legacy, Earth Dao authority, and control of the Netherworld. Houtu battles all three at Buzhou Mountain and repeatedly defends Reincarnation from their interference 286 288 291 303.
• Hongjun — A distrusted authority figure whose connection to the Heavenly Dao conflicts with Houtu's Earth Dao interests. She resents his past restrictions and refuses to yield Netherworld authority to him 289 313.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Establishment of Reincarnation

Houtu's transformation into the Six Paths of Reincarnation is a defining event for the Great Desolation. By giving up her original Ancestor Witch body, she provides all beings with a destination after death and creates the foundation of the Netherworld 244 246.

Lord of the Netherworld

After her resurrection, Houtu protects the Netherworld from the Saints and entrusts much of the Underworld's administration to Cihang's Fengdu incarnation. Her decision is intended to preserve both Reincarnation's independence and a path of survival for the Witch Race 247 250.

Revival of the Earth Dao

Houtu supports Zhenyuanzi's Earth God enfeoffment, personally confronting the Three Pure Ones to prevent the Heavenly Dao from suppressing the Earth Dao's revival. Pangu Hall's recognition of her establishes her as a major claimant to Pangu's legacy 284 288.

Earth Dao Sainthood and Witch Race Protection

Following the collapse of Buzhou Mountain and the Earth Dao's revival, Houtu attains the Earth Dao Saint Position. She heals the Witch Race, relocates them to the Netherworld, and rejects the Saints' right to determine their fate 310 311.

Resurrection of the Ancestor Witches

Houtu entrusts the Fiend God Banners to Cihang because he has the greatest chance of gathering her brothers' fragmented True Spirits. Later, as Lord of the Earth Dao, she chooses to reshape the Ancestor Witches into twelve Earth Dao Divine Beings and revitalize the Pangu Blood Pool 337 506 507.

Trivia

• Houtu's merit from establishing Reincarnation is stated to exceed Nuwa's merit from creating humanity, second only to Pangu's creation of heaven and earth 287.
• Although she was originally an Ancestor Witch without a Primordial Spirit, the Earth Dao rebuilt her with one after she became Reincarnation 247 288.
• She sealed her Heavenly Court divine position because its authority over life, death, mountains, and rivers belonged to the Earth Dao rather than the Heavenly Dao 313.