Transformation

Deep within Pangu Hall.

Inside the blood cocoon, Zhou Ming's form had long since solidified. He sat cross-legged, his mind fully immersed in cultivation.

Refining fiendish energy, strengthening his Primordial Spirit! Comprehending the Law of Strength, fortifying his own body!

This had become the sole melody of his endless years.

Zhou Ming cultivated methodically, unaware of how many kalpas had passed.

As he trained day after day, year after year, his Primordial Spirit grew increasingly solid, radiating an Immortal Radiance.

At the same time, his understanding of the Law of Strength left behind by Father God Pangu evolved from initial ignorance to a gradual grasp of its principles—he had truly stepped through the door.

On this day, Zhou Ming was guiding the Dao Origin Divine Pearl to absorb energy from the Blood Pool, refining the fiendish energy that invaded his Primordial Spirit.

Suddenly.

Hum—!

A wondrous sensation surged into his heart, as if some unseen shackle had been broken.

His Primordial Spirit was clear and transparent, more complete than ever before.

Within his flesh, blood and qi surged like dragons, and the accumulated power reached a critical threshold.

A strange feeling washed over him, as if an invisible voice told him: The time has come.

"About to undergo Transformation?" Zhou Ming's heart stirred, and he fully mobilized the power stored within his body.

Rumble!

The blood cocoon he was in began to tremble!

Countless mysterious patterns surfaced on its exterior—the Brand of Pangu's Bloodline, the Nascent Manifestation of the Law of Strength!

Crack—

A crisp sound of shattering rang out, especially clear in the depths of the silent Pangu Hall.

Crack! Crack, crack!

The crisp shattering continued, and fine cracks appeared on the blood cocoon's surface, spreading rapidly.

A surging tide of blood and qi, mixed with an overwhelmingly powerful pressure from his physical body, burst violently from the fissures!

"Break... open!"

Zhou Ming roared inwardly, and the power accumulated over countless ages erupted fully in that instant!

Boom!!!

A thunderous sound!

The massive blood cocoon that had enveloped him for endless years exploded!

Countless blood-red fragments scattered in all directions, then quickly merged back into the churning Blood Pool.

A figure slowly rose from the center of the shattered cocoon.

It was not the towering, heaven-supporting giant one might imagine, but a youth who appeared to be around twenty years old.

His features were handsome, his face flawless—far more striking than his previous life's appearance—and his aura had undergone a complete transformation.

This was him, Zhou Ming, the newborn form in the Primordial World!

He looked down at his hands, moved his limbs, and felt the terrifying power contained within this body forged from Pangu's essence blood.

"So this is... the Ancestral Witch Body?"

His Primordial Spirit and flesh were perfectly aligned, and an unprecedented sense of strength welled up within him.

"So this is... the power of Early Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal?" Zhou Ming clenched his fist, sensing the strength within him capable of shaking mountains.

Along with the rhythm of the Law flowing through his Primordial Spirit, he murmured to himself.

Upon Transformation, he already possessed the cultivation of Early Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal!

"As expected of Father God Pangu's heart essence blood—this foundation is simply heaven-defying!" Zhou Ming marveled inwardly.

Of course, he also understood that this was not solely due to Pangu's essence blood. It was also because he had refined the Heaven-Opening Fiendish Energy and condensed his Primordial Spirit.

Moreover, the Dao Origin Divine Pearl, an Innate Supreme Treasure, had suppressed his Destiny and aided his cultivation, while that thread of insight into the Law of Strength had laid a solid foundation.

The combination of these heaven-defying factors had brought him to his current achievement.

Feeling the surging power within him, Zhou Ming felt no trace of complacency.

"Hah..." Zhou Ming let out a long breath, adapting to his new body and strength.

His gaze swept over the other twelve blood cocoons still dormant in the Blood Pool, and his eyes softened with determination.

"Next, I need to think about how to help these Twelve Younger Siblings."

Thinking of their tragic fate to come, Zhou Ming's heart grew heavy.

He absolutely could not let the Twelve Ancestor Witches repeat the mistakes of history, becoming nothing but a bunch of mindless brutes who only knew how to fight and kill.

The key to helping them still lay with the Dao Origin Divine Pearl.

This Innate Supreme Treasure, refined by Father God Pangu himself, was his only remaining reliance.

With a thought, a pearl, dark-yellow in color and radiating a warm Dao resonance, slowly emerged from between his brows and hovered before him.

It was precisely the Dao Origin Divine Pearl, formed from the System Core.

"I have to fully refine it first," Zhou Ming said, studying the Dao Origin Divine Pearl.

Within this pearl lay forty-nine Innate Restrictions, representing the pinnacle of Innate Supreme Treasures.

With his current cultivation at the Early Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal realm, fully refining it was utterly impossible.

"I'll refine as much as I can."

Zhou Ming hesitated no longer. He immediately sat cross-legged, sinking his Primordial Spirit into the Dao Origin Divine Pearl, and began to pour all his effort into refining its restrictions.

One restriction, two restrictions, three...

The refining process was no easy task. Each restriction contained the profound principles of the Great Dao, demanding immense mental energy to comprehend, communicate with, and control.

Fortunately, the Dao Origin Divine Pearl had already fused with him, sharing a common origin, making it far easier to refine than an unclaimed spiritual treasure.

An unknown span of time passed. When Zhou Ming had refined up to the eighteenth restriction, he felt a clear resistance.

His Primordial Spirit energy was heavily depleted, and pushing further was beyond his reach.

"Early Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal... the limit is eighteen restrictions?" Zhou Ming opened his eyes.

He sensed a tighter connection with the Dao Origin Divine Pearl, along with more esoteric information flowing from it.

Though he had refined less than half, he could already begin to wield some of the pearl's power.

He tried to activate the Dao Origin Divine Pearl, bringing it close to one of the Ancestral Witch Blood Cocoons.

Hum!

The Dao Origin Divine Pearl trembled lightly, emitting a gentle, pulling force.

A wisp of the violent, chaotic Sha Qi within the blood cocoon was drawn out, slowly merging into the pearl.

The pearl rotated slightly, its light swirling. That wisp of Sha Qi was quickly decomposed, purified, and finally returned as a stream of pure energy.

"It works!" Zhou Ming's eyes lit up.

The Dao Origin Divine Pearl could indeed absorb and refine Sha Qi!

But before he could celebrate for long, his brows furrowed tightly once more.

He realized that the efficiency of the Dao Origin Divine Pearl in refining Sha Qi was... far too slow!

The wisp of Sha Qi just absorbed and refined was a mere drop in the bucket compared to the vast, ocean-like total within the blood cocoon!

Moreover, this was only while the Ancestral Witches inside the cocoons had yet to develop consciousness and were merely absorbing energy instinctively.

Once they awakened and began actively devouring the energy of Pangu Hall and the Blood Pool Essence, the rate at which Sha Qi would generate would far exceed the current refining speed of the Dao Origin Divine Pearl!

"This efficiency... there's no way to keep up!" Zhou Ming's expression turned grim.

Relying on the Dao Origin Divine Pearl to "vacuum" the Sha Qi clean for each of his twelve younger siblings was nothing short of a fantasy.

"It seems the direct approach of absorbing and refining with the Dao Origin Divine Pearl won't work," Zhou Ming muttered, stroking his chin as he sank into thought.

"I need to find a more efficient method—preferably one that lets them refine the Sha Qi on their own..."

His gaze once again fell upon the twelve blood cocoons, his eyes flickering.

"Pangu bloodline... Law of Strength... Dao Origin Divine Pearl..."

Ideas clashed in his mind.

"Perhaps... I can start with a cultivation technique?"