"Tsk, they say the Ancestral Witches have no primordial spirits and cannot sense heavenly treasures. It seems that is not entirely true."
Qing Huan instantly understood the key.
Though the Ancestral Witches had no primordial spirits, they were born with complete mastery over Laws.
They might be unable to sense the spiritual essence contained within spiritual treasures, but they could clearly perceive powers that shared the same origin as their own Laws!
"Fellow Daoist Houtu."
A hint of amusement lingered on Qing Huan's face.
"You blocked my path like this. Could it be that you intend to kill me and seize my treasure?"
His tone carried a touch of teasing.
Qing Huan was not being arrogant. With Houtu alone, defeating and killing him was nothing more than a fool's dream.
"Fellow Daoist, you misunderstand!"
Houtu hurriedly explained, and the tension between her brows became even more apparent.
"I did indeed rashly stop you because my own Law was reacting strangely.
I meant no harm.
My Witch Clan is willing to exchange spiritual treasures from our Treasure Vault for what you need. What do you say?"
The sight of Qing Huan attaining Transformation as a Great Luo ten thousand years ago remained vivid in her mind. Kill him and seize his treasure? She truly had little confidence that she could win.
"Oh?"
A sharp glint flashed through Qing Huan's eyes, and his interest was thoroughly piqued.
The Witch Clan Treasury! This was truly like finding a pillow just when he was sleepy!
Aside from the Innate Supreme Treasure, the Seven Symbols Treasure Umbrella, he did not have a single other spiritual treasure. He was utterly destitute...
If he could trade some of the surplus Central Wutu Soil in his possession for a few Innate Spiritual Treasures from Houtu, it would be an enormous profit no matter how he calculated it!
"Ah, Fellow Daoist Houtu."
Qing Huan immediately put on an expression of extreme difficulty and reluctance.
"Do you know just how precious this treasure of mine is?
How could ordinary Innate Spiritual Treasures compare? This thing is one of a kind in the Primordial Wilderness, and its value is immense!"
Seeing Qing Huan act this way, Houtu's expression visibly wavered.
The power of the earth-element Law emanating from Qing Huan held an attraction deep within her own Law. Its importance went without saying.
She clenched her small hands, momentarily unsure what to do.
"How about this!"
As though she had made up her mind, Houtu gritted her teeth and said:
"As long as you are willing to part with it, you may choose any spiritual treasure from my Witch Clan Treasury! What do you say?"
She could not give up this opportunity.
Although the Witch Clan could not use Innate Spiritual Treasures, to ensure that the clan would not be threatened,
they had gathered and seized quite a few across the Primordial Earth over the years.
But now, for that powerful pull from the Law, she was willing to pay the price.
Qing Huan fell "reluctantly" silent for several breaths.
His expression shifted repeatedly before he finally gritted his teeth as though painfully parting with something precious.
"...Very well! In light of your sincerity, Fellow Daoist...
However, this is the origin that nurtured my Transformation—Central Wutu Soil!
It is incomparably precious! I can only give you half of it. How about that?"
Qing Huan deliberately emphasized "half," making himself appear immensely pained.
"Good! It's a deal! We shall do as you say, Fellow Daoist!"
A great weight lifted from Houtu's heart. Joy appeared on her face as she nodded without hesitation.
The wind at the foot of Buzhou Mountain still carried the desolation of eternity.
Qing Huan sat cross-legged atop a slab of bluestone, his aura seemingly merged with the endless mountain range of the Primordial Wilderness beneath him.
"I shall remain here and await your good news, Fellow Daoist."
The corners of Qing Huan's lips lifted slightly. His smile was faint, yet carried an unquestionable detachment.
The Witch Clan Ancestral Land? Pangu Temple was the core of the Twelve Ancestral Witches, gathering the strongest baleful aura and Luck in the Primordial Wilderness.
The other eleven Ancestral Witches all had different temperaments. If he encountered one or two as violent and stubborn as Gonggong or Zhurong, then this attempt to "exchange for spiritual treasures" might leave him without any treasures and covered in trouble instead.
Houtu did not press him and merely nodded lightly.
"Fine! Rest assured, Fellow Daoist. I will return to the Witch Clan Treasury at once and bring many spiritual treasures and spirit roots for you to choose from."
Before her words had even faded, Houtu's figure flashed and melted into the earth, vanishing in an instant.
Watching the direction in which Houtu had disappeared, an imperceptible sigh flashed through Qing Huan's eyes.
The Witch and Demon Races possessed soaring Luck and dominated heaven and earth, yet they were ultimately no more than passersby on the chessboard of heaven and earth.
The reason was nothing more than their excessive slaughter and plundering of the world's origin to strengthen themselves, while begrudging any effort to nourish and repay the Primordial Wilderness.
The Heavenly Dao was utterly impartial. How could it tolerate such prolonged exploitation?
Even the later Western Sect knew to put on a hypocritical show of kindness and preach hollow grand doctrines to deceive living beings, thereby earning a share of Merit and Luck.
The Witch and Demon Races knew only how to contend for supremacy. They did not understand enlightenment or restraint. In the future, they were destined to be settled by the Heavenly Dao and fade from the stage in disgrace.
...Within Buzhou Mountain, Pangu Temple...
It was dark and solemn, suffused with Pangu's pressure.
Houtu returned with hurried steps, passing directly through the grand halls toward the Treasure Vault deep within.
"Eh? Our little sister returned today and headed straight for the Treasure Vault? That is quite unusual."
In one corner of the temple, the figure of Zhu Jiuyin, the Time Ancestral Witch, emerged from distorted light and shadow. It was as though a river of time flowed within his pupils.
Di Jiang, seated in the place of honor, opened his eyes, and spatial ripples faintly appeared around him.
"Haha, our little sister is the least affected by the turbid and baleful qi of heaven and earth among the Ancestral Witches, and her disposition is the purest.
Perhaps she has reached a critical point in her cultivation and needs some external spiritual treasures to aid her. It is nothing strange."
A smug smile, as though he understood everything, appeared on the face of the Witch Clan's leader.
As the eldest brother, he naturally knew his younger brothers and sisters best.
"Forget it. They are merely useless objects anyway. I should continue comprehending the true meaning of time. This path is vast; even exhausting my entire life, I may not grasp even one ten-thousandth of it."
Zhu Jiuyin nodded thoughtfully, then disappeared once more into ripples of time.
Deep within Pangu Hall, the doors of the Witch Clan Treasury stood wide open.
What met Houtu's eyes were heaps of all kinds of objects. Treasure light mingled with baleful qi. Most of the sabers, spears, swords, and halberds had been formed from fragments of Primordial Wilderness fiendgods, their vicious aura pressing down on her.
There were also all kinds of strange spirit roots and ores containing the essence of earth, but because the Witch Clan did not cultivate primordial spirits, most had been left to gather dust.
Houtu's delicate brows furrowed slightly. She had always focused on comprehending the Dao of earth and held no interest in these instruments of slaughter. Nor did she know what Qing Huan truly needed.
"Forget it. Rather than hesitate here, I might as well take more and let him choose for himself."
Having made up her mind, she waved her fair hand. Nearly half the dimly glowing spiritual treasures and spirit roots in the Treasure Vault rose into the air and flowed into an ordinary-looking gray cloth bag at her waist—the Myriad Things Bag, which contained a universe within and could store mountains and rivers.
This bag did not require a primordial spirit to control. Magic Power alone was enough.
Just as she finished gathering them and turned to leave, Di Jiang's deep voice sounded behind her, carrying a trace of inquiry:
"Little sister? Why have you suddenly taken an interest in this 'useless junk' today? And why are you in such a hurry?"
Di Jiang's tall figure blocked the entrance to the Treasure Vault. Space trembled faintly, invisibly sealing off her path.
"Eldest Brother, while cultivating in the tribe at the foot of Buzhou Mountain, I sensed an origin aura that was exceptionally compatible with my Earth Law.
Its source was Daoist Qing Huan, who attained Transformation there ten thousand years ago and once triggered eighty-one Yin-Yang Tribulation Lightning bolts!"
Houtu felt slightly anxious, but she answered frankly, deliberately mentioning Qing Huan.
"Daoist Qing Huan?"
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