The hall fell silent for a moment, accompanied only by the faint sound of the ocean waves outside the island and the spiritual energy flowing within.
On Empress Nuwa's exquisite face, the Sacred Radiance seemed to be covered by a thin layer of frost.
Her jade-like fingers, hidden in her sleeve, clenched slightly before slowly relaxing, and a subtle ripple of Daoist energy emanated from her body.
"What?!"
A suppressed question, tinged with shock and anger, finally broke the silence.
Nuwa's gaze flashed like lightning, shooting straight at the composed Qing Huan.
The River Mountains Diagram contains a vast world within it. It is a top-grade Top-grade Innate Spiritual Treasure, powerful enough to suppress the Luck of a major sect!
In addition, there was the White Jade Pure Gourd that subtly resonated with her Dao of Creation, nurturing countless Kalpa existence, whose wondrous powers and applications she had not yet fully comprehended!
In her view, this price was already quite generous, even generous.
However, the other side was still not satisfied! They dared to covet the Luck of that "future race" that had not yet been born!
What kind of ethereal and elusive thing is that?
She herself only knew, through the perception of the Hongmeng Purple Qi, that her path to enlightenment lay in "Creation and Rebirth." As for the form of this "rebirth," its potential, and whether it could bear Luck, everything was still unknown.
This Qing Huan seemed certain of something, immediately demanding two-tenths of the Luck! How is such behavior any different from taking advantage of someone's misfortune?
She Heaven-Appointed Sage, bestowed with the Primordial Hongmeng Purple Qi by the Dao Ancestor Hongjun, making her incomparably noble. How could she have ever been manipulated and schemed against like this?
A burning anger, stemming from her Innate Deities dignity, raged within her heart.
"Fellow Daoist Qing Huan"
Nuwa's voice returned to calm, but it was colder than before, like the eternal ice and snow Kunlun Mountain.
"Isn't your request a bit too presumptuous, too... greedy?"
Faced with Nuwa's almost undisguised anger, Heavenly Venerate Qing Huan simply smiled calmly.
His aura was perfectly harmonious, reaching the peak of Quasi-Sage. Standing before the threshold of the Saintly Path, he naturally had enough confidence.
He gently brushed away non-existent dust from his sleeves, his tone calm, yet each word struck a chord deep within Nuwa's mind:
"Fellow Daoist, you flatter me. I'm not greedy at all; it's just a matter of mutual benefit."
His gaze was profound, as if he could see through the trembling of the purple aura deep within Nuwa's primordial spirit.
"The opportunity to become a saint is extremely rare throughout history. Countless exceptionally talented individuals have stopped here, leaving with lifelong regrets."
Now that the opportunity is right before us, fellow Daoist, are you really going to give up the only path to the summit for some worldly possessions and a 'possibility' that is still in the realm of nothingness?
Leaning slightly forward, her voice carried a seductive power:
"The Hunyuan Dao Fruit is indestructible through countless eons, living as long as heaven and earth, and walking alongside the Great Dao."
In comparison, a spiritual treasure, a gourd, and even 20% of the Luck of a race whose future is uncertain and whose existence is far from certain... which is more important, fellow Daoist? Do you truly have no idea?"
He paused, observing Nuwa's shifting expression, then lightly added the final straw, his gesture perfectly executed:
"If you truly feel it's not worth it, and think Qing Huan's demands are excessive, then this matter... can be dropped. Please do as you see fit; Yingzhou Island welcomes you to visit at any time."
Having said that, he actually adopted the posture of serving tea and seeing the guest off, as if the treasure that was related to Nuwa's path to sainthood was nothing more than a dispensable plaything to him.
This completely cornered Nuwa.
Silence descended once more.
Nuwa stood still, her spiritual light flickering slightly, revealing the intense internal struggle between heaven and man within her.
Angry? Of course I'm angry.
Qing Huan's actions were tantamount to setting up a barrier on her path to enlightenment that she could only overcome by paying a heavy price.
This feeling of being manipulated and controlled made her extremely uncomfortable.
However, deep within her primordial spirit, the tremors of that Hongmeng Purple Qi grew clearer and more rapid, like the beating of a drum, urging her onward.
The Creation aura emanating from the Innate Gourd Vine and the Nine Heavens Breathing Soil resonated with her own Dao like never before, making her absolutely certain—it was them!
If this opportunity is missed, who knows when the next chance to sense the path to sainthood will come, or perhaps there will never be another chance! Although the Dao Ancestor said it was ordained by Heaven, even "ordained by Heaven" requires "human effort," and once missed, it is missed forever.
On one side is the tangible, attainable Primordial Saint Position; on the other are known spiritual treasures and unknown Luck...
After a period of intense swaying, the scales of reason finally tipped irrevocably.
"... snort."
A cold snort, tinged with complex emotions, escaped from Nuwa's lips.
She raised her eyes, the anger in them now gone, replaced by a cold resolve, and a hint of indescribable helplessness and self-mockery, as if being pushed forward by fate or by the person before her.
"You really are... good at scheming."
She spoke almost word by word, each syllable seemingly squeezed out from between her teeth.
"So be it! It's fate, it's destiny. I'll do as you say!"
She took a deep breath, as if trying to suppress the pent-up anger in her chest, and her voice regained its usual clear and melodious quality, yet carried an undeniable firmness:
"The River Mountains Diagram, the White Jade Pure Gourd, in exchange for the Innate Gourd Vine, the Nine Heavens Breathing Soil, and... twenty percent of the future race's Luck!"
When she finally uttered the words "two-tenths of her Luck," she felt a strange sense of relief, as if she had unloaded some kind of burden, or as if she had signed a contract with no turning back.
In her current understanding, exchanging an uncertain, future, and perhaps even negligible promise of Luck for an undeniable foundation for sainthood is a deal that, even if it's calculated against her and she feels unwilling, must be made and is still considered "worth it."
That bit of anger at being schemed against seemed so insignificant under the immense temptation of becoming a saint. She didn't ponder what earth-shattering secrets and boundless power were hidden behind this "two percent of Luck."
"Fellow Daoist is indeed straightforward!"
A smile blossomed on Qing Huan's face, like a spring breeze brushing across a frozen lake, carrying a sense of satisfaction at the success of his scheme.
Without the slightest hesitation, with a wave of her sleeve, the Innate Gourd Vine, radiant with countless rays of light and auspicious colors, and the Nine Heavens Breathing Soil, exuding a profound and majestic aura that nurtures all things, transformed into two streams of light, steadily flying towards Nuwa.
At the same time, he guided the laws of Heavenly Dao with his fingertips, and in the void, a profound contract condensed from pure Dao patterns and the power of Karma was instantly generated.
The contract terms were crystal clear, explicitly stating the agreement to exchange two spiritual treasures for two items and 20 Luck of the future fortune of the newborn race. The Heavenly Dao responded spontaneously, runes flowed, and it exuded a solemn and irresistible aura.
Nuwa reached out and took the Gourd Vine and the soil, scanning them with her Spiritual Sense to confirm that they were correct.
The Creation energy emanating from the same source soothed her primordial spirit, and the Hongmeng Purple Qi resounded joyfully.
She took another deep look at the Karma contract suspended in the air, sensing that there were no traps within it, only clear terms of the Heavenly Dao's witness.
Without further hesitation, he flicked his finger, and Spiritual Sense imprint containing his own primordial aura and the will of Sage landed on the contract.
"Buzz--"