Three thousand years passed.
The Primordial Wilderness.
Deep within an unknown mountain valley.
Inside a Cave Mansion shrouded by an Innate Grand Array.
Su Ming sat cross-legged, Daoist aura flowing around him, his presence as unfathomable as the sea.
His cultivation had long since reached the peak of the Grand Unity Golden Immortal realm. With a single thought, he could roam the river of time and see through the past and future.
However, the final threshold leading to the Primordial Golden Immortal realm was like an insurmountable chasm, firmly barring him outside the gate.
For thousands of years, he had secluded himself in arduous cultivation, using the Heart of Pangu to comprehend the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth and the supreme cultivation method of the Wu Clan to temper his physical body and primordial spirit. He had attempted the breakthrough countless times.
Every time, he could sense the existence of that thin membrane. Yet no matter how he urged his magic power or evolved the Dao laws, that membrane remained unimaginably tough and completely unmoving.
"Crack."
Su Ming slowly opened his eyes. There was not the slightest trace of discouragement in them, only profound tranquility.
He knew this was not a matter of insufficient accumulation.
In terms of Origin, he had inherited Pangu's legacy and possessed the Heart of Pangu entry. He should have been number one in the Primordial Wilderness.
In terms of cultivation method, he practiced a supreme technique that surpassed even the Twelve Ancestral Magi.
In terms of resources, the Destiny of the entire Wu Clan was concentrated upon him alone.
And yet, he simply could not break through.
"I'm missing an opportunity."
Su Ming understood this in his heart.
Shutting oneself away to work blindly ultimately had its limits. The Primordial Wilderness was an age of great contention, and opportunities often came with battles and trials.
Continuing to sit in seclusion would only waste time.
He slowly rose and took one step forward, instantly appearing atop the mountain outside the Cave Mansion.
The mountain wind howled, stirring his black hair.
With a thought from Su Ming, his vast and unmatched Divine Sense surged out like a tide, instantly covering countless millions of miles of mountains and rivers!
In that instant, the breathing of the mountains, rivers, grass, and trees; the reproduction of birds, beasts, fish, and insects; and even every subtle flow of spiritual energy between Heaven and Earth all appeared clearly in his mind.
This was the might of a peak Grand Unity Golden Immortal: roaming the void with one's spirit and surveying the Primordial Wilderness.
At that moment, his expression shifted slightly.
At the edge of his Divine Sense's range, three powers at the Grand Unity and Early Taiyi Golden Immortal levels were colliding fiercely.
One of them was an Early Grand Unity Golden Immortal, its aura cold and domineering, filled with the intent of plunder and devouring.
The other two were much weaker.
One was an Early Taiyi Golden Immortal, while the other was a Middle Taiyi Golden Immortal.
At that moment, those two Taiyi Golden Immortals were being pursued by the Grand Unity Golden Immortal, perilously close to death at any moment.
Su Ming had not intended to concern himself with a struggle between weaklings. In the Primordial Wilderness, scenes of the strong preying on the weak played out every moment. He was no savior and could not manage everything.
But when his Divine Sense probed further and he saw the methods used by those two Taiyi Golden Immortals, a strange look flashed through his eyes.
The Taiyi Golden Immortal at the peak was a proud-looking young man. With every move, Five-Colored Divine Light flowed out and swept toward the void, its power extraordinary.
The other had sharp features and an impatient temperament. Black and white energies coiled around him with every gesture, evolving the Great Dao of Yin and Yang and slicing through all things.
Five-Colored Divine Light?
Yin-Yang Energy?
Two names instantly surfaced in Su Ming's mind.
The first peacock in Heaven and Earth, and his brother, the Golden-Winged Great Peng!
The future Buddhist powerhouse, Kong Xuan!
These two were renowned ruthless figures in the Primordial Wilderness, especially Kong Xuan. His Five-Colored Divine Light was said to sweep away anything, leaving him almost invincible beneath the Saints.
He had not expected that they had only recently transformed and were still at the Taiyi Golden Immortal level.
Moreover, it seemed their use of their innate abilities was still quite crude. Otherwise, with the profundity of Five-Colored Divine Light, even if they could not defeat that Grand Unity Golden Immortal, they would not have been in such a sorry state.
"Interesting."
The corners of Su Ming's lips lifted slightly.
His figure blurred, and he vanished from the spot, silently heading toward that battlefield.
Above a barren mountain valley.
An old man in a black robe with a withered face looked mockingly at the two young men he had driven into a desperate situation.
"You two little fellows have quite good Origins."
The black-robed old man spoke hoarsely, his voice like the cry of a night owl. "This Ancestor happens to be short of mounts. Judging by your extraordinary Origins, one a peacock and the other a Golden-Winged Great Peng, you can barely be considered worthy of this Ancestor's status."
"Submit to me and become my mounts. This Ancestor can spare your lives and even guide your cultivation. How about it?"
Before him, Kong Xuan and the Golden-Winged Great Peng stood back-to-back, panting heavily. Their bodies were covered in wounds, and more than half their magic power had been depleted.
Kong Xuan's expression was cold and proud. Even in this desperate situation, his innate arrogance had not diminished in the slightest.
He stared coldly at the black-robed old man. "Foolish delusion! The two of us are divine birds born of Heaven and Earth. How could we associate with a wicked fiend like you, much less become your mounts!"
"Bah!"
The Golden-Winged Great Peng was even more direct. He spat out a mouthful of saliva. "You old bastard, you want us to become your mounts? Are you worthy? If you have the ability, then kill us! Eighteen myriad years from now, we brothers will still be a pair of true heroes!"
Since transforming, the two brothers had roamed the Primordial Wilderness with lofty and proud spirits. When had they ever suffered such humiliation?
"You refuse a toast only to drink a forfeit!"
The black-robed old man's patience was finally exhausted, and murderous intent surged in his eyes.
"Since you're seeking death, don't blame this Ancestor for being ruthless!"
"Once I devour your Origins, perhaps it will help this Ancestor's cultivation advance another step!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly opened his mouth and spat!
A pitch-black jade bottle covered in strange runes flew out of his mouth. It expanded in the wind, instantly becoming as large as a small mountain, its mouth aimed at the two brothers, Kong Xuan and the Golden-Winged Great Peng.
"Buzz—"
A terrifying devouring force erupted from the mouth of the bottle!
In an instant, the winds and clouds changed color, and the void twisted!
The rocks and vegetation in the valley were all dragged by that force, crumbling into dust and surging into the bottle.
Kong Xuan and the Golden-Winged Great Peng felt their primordial spirits and Origins being crazily dragged by an irresistible force, as though they were about to be forcibly torn from their bodies alive!
"Not good! It's a supreme-grade acquired spirit treasure, the Heaven Swallowing Demonic Bottle!"
Kong Xuan's expression changed drastically.
He urged his Five-Colored Divine Light with all his strength, forming a curtain of light to protect the two of them. Yet before that devouring force, the curtain was like a flickering candle in the wind, swaying precariously as its light rapidly dimmed.
The Golden-Winged Great Peng also revealed his true form, transforming into a gigantic divine bird with a wingspan of ten thousand zhang. His wings beat, stirring up endless astral winds as he tried to break free of the suction force.
However, the black-robed old man had already used the power of the Grand Unity Golden Immortal's laws to seal this space. They had nowhere to escape!
"Hahaha! Before this Ancestor's Heaven Swallowing Demonic Bottle, all struggles are futile!"
The black-robed old man threw his head back and laughed, his expression manic.
He seemed to have already seen the scene of these two little fellows with extraordinary Origins being refined into Origin power, allowing his cultivation to surge.
Despair enveloped the hearts of the brothers, Kong Xuan and the Golden-Winged Great Peng.
They exchanged a glance, and both saw a trace of resolve in the other's eyes.
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