Hongjun Unifies with Dao

The crowd inside the hall erupted once more!

"This... this actually works?"

"Cry and make a scene, and you get the Hongmeng Purple Qi?"

"If I'd known, I would've cried too!"

"Why them! Those two barbarians from the West, what have they done to deserve this!"

Envy, jealousy, and resentment nearly solidified into something tangible.

With the "successful precedent" of Jieyin and Zhunti, how could anyone else sit still?

Whoosh!

A large swath of people dropped to their knees.

"Please, Teacher, in your mercy, take me as your disciple!"

"Teacher, this disciple is willing to serve at your side!"

"Teacher, look at me! My bone structure is excellent!"

For a moment, Zixiao Palace was like a marketplace, filled with pleas and vows of loyalty rising and falling.

Hongjun's brow furrowed almost imperceptibly, then returned to indifference.

"You and I share no master-disciple fate."

His voice was not loud, yet it reached each person's ears clearly, like a bucket of cold water poured over their heads.

The crowd fell silent, their faces etched with disappointment and resentment.

Hongjun continued, "Under the Heavenly Dao, there are nine Saint positions."

"The ninth Saint will not emerge until the Boundless Tribulation."

"I hold the Jade Disc of Creation and am fated to govern seven strands of Hongmeng Purple Qi."

"Now, six strands of Hongmeng Purple Qi have already been bestowed."

Everyone's hearts leaped into their throats.

Six strands?

That meant there was still one left!

Instantly, all eyes blazed with fervor, fixed intently on Hongjun.

"Teacher! There remains one strand of Hongmeng Purple Qi—please bestow it!"

"Teacher, in your mercy, give us a chance!"

"Teacher, grant our wish!"

Hongjun gazed at the myriad expressions below, silent for a long time.

Finally, he seemed to let out a faint sigh.

"Very well."

"This last strand of Hongmeng Purple Qi shall depend on each of your own karmic fate."

As his words fell, he raised a hand and waved.

Swish!

The final streak of purple light shot out, like a swimming fish, circling within Zixiao Palace.

Everyone's hearts rose and fell with that purple light, tense to the extreme.

"To me!"

"It's mine!"

"Come here!"

Countless people screamed in their minds, praying.

The Hongmeng Purple Qi seemed to hesitate for a moment, looping through the air a few times.

Then, under the stunned gaze of all, it suddenly accelerated, shooting straight toward one direction.

Its target—Patriarch Hongyun!

Thump!

The Hongmeng Purple Qi instantly plunged into Hongyun's body.

The entire Zixiao Palace fell into a dead silence.

Everyone was dumbfounded.

How could it be him?

Hongyun himself was bewildered, standing there dazed, feeling that profound and vast aura within him, unable to react for a moment.

Who am I?

Where am I?

I... am about to become a Saint?

After a brief daze, a surge of overwhelming joy flooded my heart!

Hongmeng Purple Qi!

The foundation of Sainthood!

I, Hongyun, am also going to become a Saint someday?

Haha!

However, the joy did not last long.

He suddenly recalled what Wu Ming had said to him in Pangu Hall.

The smile on Hongyun's face froze.

He subconsciously looked toward a certain corner of the hall.

There, Kunpeng was staring at him with a gaze that could almost devour a person.

The venom, the rage, the killing intent in that look—unconcealed, bone-chillingly cold.

Hongyun's heart sank heavily.

He understood.

This strand of Hongmeng Purple Qi was the key to resolving the karmic debt with Kunpeng.

Hongyun's face alternated between pale and green, his mind a tangled mess.

In the end, all his emotions dissolved into a single, heavy sigh.

"Ah—! Hongyun!"

Kunpeng roared madly in his heart. Damn you, Hongyun, it's you again.

If you hadn't given up your seat, that Cushion should have been mine!

Now, the Cushion is gone, and even the last strand of Hongmeng Purple Qi has been snatched away by you!

You've cut off my path! Ruined my future!

This enmity is irreconcilable!

Hongyun, just you wait!

From now on, I, Kunpeng, will fight you to the death, with no end until one of us falls!

Anyone could feel the overwhelming killing intent radiating from Kunpeng, nearly scorching everything in its path.

The atmosphere within Zixiao Palace, due to the final ownership of the Hongmeng Purple Qi, became unbearably oppressive and strange.

There were those who envied, those who were jealous, those who harbored resentment, and those who gloated.

On the high platform, Hongjun seemed unconcerned with the undercurrents below.

Once the last strand of Hongmeng Purple Qi had settled, his gaze swept over his six disciples.

"Taiqing."

"You are the first disciple of my Mystic Gate, and it is your duty to teach all living beings and uphold the Destiny of the Mystic Gate. Today, I grant you the Innate Supreme Treasure, the Taiji Diagram, to suppress Destiny."

"Disciple thanks Master!" Taiqing bowed respectfully.

"Yuanshi."

"The Pangu Banner is formed from the blade of the Heaven-Opening Divine Axe, containing boundless Heaven-Opening Fiendish Energy. It can break Chaos and recreate Earth, Water, Wind, and Fire. It too is an Innate Supreme Treasure, so I bestow it upon you."

"Disciple thanks Master!" Yuanshi accepted the Pangu Banner, a rare hint of excitement showing on his face.

"Tongtian."

"I grant you the Four Swords of Zhu Xian and the Zhu Xian Formation Diagram."

"Once this sword formation is laid, it cannot be broken unless four Saints join forces. It is unmatched in slaughter. I hope you use it well."

"Disciple thanks Master!" Tongtian was overjoyed and quickly put them away.

Hongjun then looked at Nuwa.

"Nuwa, you bear great merit. I bestow upon you the Map of Mountains and Rivers, the Red Embroidered Ball, and the Creation Cauldron. Use them well."

"Disciple thanks Master!" Nuwa accepted them with delight.

After distributing to his four direct disciples, Hongjun paused.

Zhunti and Jieyin exchanged a glance, instantly putting on expressions full of "grievance" and "longing," staring at Hongjun with eager eyes.

The meaning was obvious: Master, what about us?

Everyone in the hall couldn't help but twitch their mouths.

These two from The West had truly mastered the art of shamelessness.

Hongjun seemed somewhat helpless, but he said nothing more. With a wave of his hand, three more treasures flew out.

He casually waved again.

"This is the Twelve-grade Golden Lotus of Merit, unmatched in defense. This is the Green Lotus Precious Banner, one of the Five Directional Flags of Primordial Times. This is the Blessing Divine Pestle, capable of subduing demons and vanquishing fiends. I bestow them upon you."

"Thank you, Teacher! Thank you, Teacher!"

Jieyin and Zhunti were overjoyed, hastily kowtowing in gratitude as they carefully put away the treasures, their faces beaming with delight.

At this, the other great beings in the hall who had not received any treasures grew restless.

Why should this be?

The direct disciples had theirs, and even the nominal disciples had theirs!

And what about us, who had listened to the Dao three times and trudged all the way here to Chaos, only to get nothing?

"Pray, Teacher, in your mercy, bestow upon us one or two protective treasures!"

"Teacher, this disciple's cultivation has not been easy!"

"Teacher..."

Another chorus of pleas arose.

Hongjun raised his hand, cutting off the crowd's entreaties.

"I have already placed all the numerous spiritual treasures I obtained in ages past upon the Treasure Distribution Rock beyond the Thirty-Three Heavens."

"After the preaching of the Dao is concluded, you may go there on your own, each taking according to your own fate and fortune."

Upon hearing this, the crowd finally quieted down, their faces filled with anticipation.

The Treasure Distribution Rock! That was the place where the Dao Ancestor stored his treasures!

Though they might not match the Innate Supreme Treasures, there were certainly plenty of fine things to be had!

Hongjun looked down at the assembly below and spoke for the last time.

"The three preachings of the Dao are now complete."

"I shall Unify with the Dao."

"The Heavenly Dao is incomplete; I must use my body to mend it, to govern creation and order the Primordial Wilderness."

"Henceforth, the workings of the Primordial Wilderness shall follow fixed destiny."

"Unless a great Tribulation of Heaven and Earth descends, Hongjun shall not emerge."

"You may all go your own ways."

"Henceforth, unless a great Tribulation of Heaven and Earth descends, Hongjun shall not emerge."

"You may all go your own ways."

Upon the high platform, the figure of the Dao Ancestor Hongjun gradually grew ethereal, transparent, and finally vanished completely, as if he had never existed at all.

Only the empty platform remained, along with a group of Primordial Wilderness great beings who had yet to fully digest this earth-shattering news.

Rumble—

The ancient and heavy gates of Zixiao Palace slowly swung open at that moment.