Not That Much

Once Nuwa successfully creates humans with the Gourd Vine, Heavenly Dao Merit will descend, and it will be completely absorbed by the Gourd Vine.

You must understand that originally, the Gourd Vine only absorbed a portion of the Heavenly Dao Merit, becoming a Postnatal Merit Supreme Treasure.

But now...

The Gourd Vine, re-refined by Hongyun with the Qiankun Cauldron, is different.

It will only swallow all the Heavenly Dao Merit, but it won't automatically absorb it to become a Merit Supreme Treasure.

Instead, it will be stored within the Gourd Vine, allowing Hongyun to extract it whenever he wishes in the future.

Furthermore, the current Gourd Vine has been completely refined by Hongyun.

Once Nuwa finishes creating humans and absorbs the Heavenly Dao Merit, Hongyun only needs a single thought to retrieve the Gourd Vine into his personal spatial dimension.

This is the contingency plan Hongyun left behind to counter Nuwa.

At this moment, Nuwa has already arrived before Hongyun.

"Fellow Daoist Hongyun, I have a request, and I hope Fellow Daoist Hongyun will assist me!"

Nuwa said, glancing at Hongyun.

Currently, as a powerful being at the peak of the Quasi-Saint realm, her ability to speak so politely to Hongyun, who is only at the peak of Grand Unity, is already quite remarkable.

Nuwa didn't even bother with pleasantries.

"Fellow Daoist Nuwa, what is it you need?"

Hongyun replied indifferently.

"Fellow Daoist Hongyun, you previously obtained the Gourd Vine and Nine Heavens Breathing Soil at Buzhou Mountain. Are these two treasures still with you?"

"Yes!"

"Then I hope Fellow Daoist Hongyun will lend these two treasures to me."

Nuwa said again.

"Oh? And what benefits would I receive for lending them to Fellow Daoist Nuwa?"

Hongyun raised an eyelid. Nuwa's demeanor was clearly not that of someone merely borrowing treasures.

She didn't mention any benefits at all. He's not her father or mother, why should he lend them to her?

And these are two treasures, not two blades of grass.

"Fellow Daoist Hongyun, I am a disciple of the Dao Ancestor, a cultivator at the peak of the Quasi-Saint realm, and I am destined to become a Saint. Do I still need to seek benefits when borrowing two treasures from you?"

Nuwa's expression turned cold.

She, a proud disciple of a Saint and someone destined to become a Saint herself, was already doing him a favor by borrowing treasures from him.

And now, Hongyun was asking for benefits?

He was simply courting death!

"No benefits, no lending!"

Hongyun waved his hand, appearing impatient.

"Hongyun, you are seeking death!"

Upon hearing Hongyun's words, Nuwa let out an angry roar.

Buzz!

Immediately, she unleashed her terrifying aura.

Peak Quasi-Saint!

It's important to note that there are very few beings at the peak of the Quasi-Saint realm in the entire Great Desolation.

Perhaps besides Taishang and Yuanshi, even Tongtian, Jieyin, and Zhunti might not have reached the Quasi-Saint realm.

As for Dijun, Taiyi, the Twelve Ancestral Witches, and others, they are currently only at the late stage of Quasi-Saint.

The peak of Quasi-Saint is just one step away from becoming a Saint.

The terrifying aura of such a powerful being, if felt by other great powers in the Great Desolation, would likely send them trembling with fear.

However... the person Nuwa is facing now is Hongyun.

"Fe-Fellow Daoist Nuwa, let's talk things through calmly."

At this moment, Hongyun appeared to have weak knees, his speech even stuttering.

As a mere peak Grand Unity, he should react this way when facing the aura of a peak Quasi-Saint.

"If you know what's good for you, hand over the Gourd Vine and Nine Heavens Breathing Soil immediately, or I'll show you the laws of survival in the Great Desolation!"

Seeing Hongyun's reaction, Nuwa sneered and said coldly.

Her objective was the Gourd Vine and Nine Heavens Breathing Soil; she wouldn't necessarily kill Hongyun.

Unless, of course, Hongyun refused to hand over the two treasures.

After all, Nuwa was no saint. To become the Wa Empress of the Demon Clan, and even to remain indifferent to the Witch-Demon Tribulation, was not something an ordinary person could do.

Even the Human Race, which she would later create with her own hands, would face great tribulations, yet Nuwa would remain indifferent, letting them live or die as fate dictated.

This showed that Nuwa was also a formidable figure.

"I... I'll give you the gourd vine and the Nine Heavens Breathing Soil!"

Hongyun appeared respectful as he took out the gourd vine and the Nine Heavens Breathing Soil and handed them to Nuwa.

Swish!

Nuwa reached out and snatched the two treasures, a look of joy appearing on her face.

With these two treasures, creating a new race would be no problem for her.

However, at that very moment, Nuwa's expression changed.

"Hmm? You've refined this gourd vine before?"

Just as she was about to refine the gourd vine into her own treasure, Nuwa discovered that the restrictions on the gourd vine had already been refined by Hongyun.

Hongyun nodded.

It was his treasure, so what was strange about refining the restrictions on it?

This meant that Nuwa would have to erase Hongyun's Primordial Spirit from it if she wanted to re-refine the treasure.

But erasing the Primordial Spirit of the original owner of a treasure was not an easy task; it would consume a great deal of time...

Unless, of course, the original owner was killed.

Nuwa glanced at Hongyun, her eyes turning somewhat cold.

However, after a full moment, Nuwa still did not make a move.

In the end, she abandoned the idea of killing Hongyun.

Forget it, I just want to create humans anyway. Does it matter if this treasure is mine or not?

Nuwa thought to herself.

Then, she returned to the foot of Shouyang Mountain, took out the gourd vine and the Nine Heavens Breathing Soil, and began to create a new race.

Seeing this, Hongyun breathed a sigh of relief.

If Nuwa had intended to make a move against him, Hongyun had already prepared two plans.

One was to kill Nuwa with a single palm strike.

After all, a mere peak Quasi-Saint cultivator was no different from an ant in Hongyun's eyes.

But if he did that, his entire plan would be ruined.

He wouldn't be able to obtain any Heavenly Dao Merit either.

The other plan was to directly flee with the Myriad Heavens Auspicious Cloud.

After all, the Myriad Heavens Auspicious Cloud was the fastest flying treasure in the Great Desolation, and Nuwa would absolutely not be able to catch up to him.

Then, he would quietly return when Nuwa was creating humans.

Hongyun felt the second method was more reliable.

As for Nuwa spending a lot of time erasing his Primordial Spirit from the gourd vine, that was simply impossible.

Because he cultivated the Mythical Grand Unity Method, even a Saint would not be able to erase the Primordial Spirit he left on his treasures.

But in the end, neither plan was needed.

Nuwa gave up on killing him.

Hongyun remained seated on the summit of Shouyang Mountain, quietly observing Nuwa create humans.

Crack!

Nuwa held the gourd vine and swung it like a whip, producing a crisp sound.

This whip strike directly hit the Nine Heavens Breathing Soil on the ground.

The Nine Heavens Breathing Soil, which was originally nine-colored, scattered and splashed as it was struck.

At the same time, Nuwa's law power enveloped the scattered mud droplets of the Nine Heavens Breathing Soil.

Then, an incredible scene unfolded.

The mud droplets, which were originally lifeless, transformed into human-shaped beings the moment they landed on the ground.

"Innate Human Race!"

Seeing this, Hongyun's heart stirred.

Nuwa had actually created the Innate Human Race.

Although he already knew the outcome, seeing it with his own eyes, Hongyun was still perplexed.

He had created humans in the same way, so why hadn't he succeeded!

"Greetings, Holy Mother!"

The first Innate Human to arrive in the world bowed to Nuwa, whom he saw before him.

Nuwa's eyes flashed with inspiration as she witnessed this scene.

"It's correct after all! This is the path for me to achieve the Dao!"

Nuwa thought to herself.

After creating the first Innate Human, she felt as if she had taken a step closer to becoming a Saint.

This progress wasn't an increase in power, but rather...

That mystical, profound feeling.

Nuwa couldn't quite explain it.

She didn't yet know that creating an entire race would earn her the reward of Heavenly Dao Merit, but she had a premonition that she was on the right track.

Immediately, Nuwa raised the gourd vine in her hand again.

Crack! Crack!

She lashed out with two more strikes.

The nine-colored Nine Heavens Breathing Soil splashed once more under Nuwa's whip.

At the same time, buzz!

Nuwa released her aura, and a power of the Great Dao enveloped the specks of mud.

Swish! Swish!

Soon, two mud figures took shape, transforming into Innate Humans.

"Greetings, Holy Mother!"

"Greetings, Holy Mother!"

The two Innate Humans approached Nuwa and bowed before her.

Nuwa nodded.

She didn't stop, but continued to brandish the gourd vine, whipping it fiercely.

She knew that having only created three beings so far was far from enough for a race.

She had to create many more.

Crack, crack, crack, crack...

The sound of the whip striking echoed, and countless specks of Nine Heavens Breathing Soil flew through the air.

Time flowed by, and a hundred years passed in the blink of an eye.

Now, before Nuwa stood three thousand beings.

All of these beings were created by Nuwa using the Nine Heavens Breathing Soil.

"Greetings, Lord Nuwa!"

"Greetings, Holy Mother!"

"Salutations, Great Holy Mother!"

The three thousand Innate Humans paid their respects to Nuwa, forming a considerable gathering.

"Not enough, still not enough!"

Nuwa murmured.

A vast race is counted in the hundreds of millions.

With only three thousand now, how could it be enough?

Crack!

Nuwa lashed out with another whip, but this time, she froze.

"Huh? The Nine Heavens Breathing Soil is gone!"

Nuwa was dumbfounded.

Without the Nine Heavens Breathing Soil, she couldn't create any more Innate beings.

Whoosh!

Nuwa's figure flickered, and she reappeared before Hongyun.

"Hongyun, hand over all the Nine Heavens Breathing Soil!"

Nuwa said to Hongyun, her tone devoid of any politeness.

After all, she had already half-extorted and half-begged the gourd vine and the Nine Heavens Breathing Soil from Hongyun before.

There was no need to show him any more courtesy this time.

"Fellow Daoist Nuwa, I've already given you all my Nine Heavens Breathing Soil!"

Hongyun said with a bitter expression.

"You saw how much Nine Heavens Breathing Soil I got at Buzhou Mountain last time. There's no more!"

Hongyun explained.

Nuwa stared intently at Hongyun for a moment, a powerful pressure emanating from her.

Sensing that Hongyun wasn't lying, Nuwa became flustered again.

Without the Nine Heavens Breathing Soil, she couldn't create such innate beings anymore.

Now, Nuwa felt she was only half a step away from becoming a Saint.

The path of creating a brand-new race was definitely the right one.

But without enough beings to create, a race couldn't be formed, and then she couldn't become a Saint.

"Fellow Daoist Nuwa, I noticed you previously created a brand-new type of being. Now that you're out of Nine Heavens Breathing Soil, can't you use ordinary soil as a substitute!"

Hongyun reminded her.

He naturally also hoped Nuwa would complete the meritorious deed of creating humans sooner and obtain the Heavenly Dao Merit bestowed from above.

This way, his gourd vine magic treasure could devour this Heavenly Dao Merit.

And his own plan could be completed sooner.

Upon hearing Hongyun's words, Nuwa's eyes lit up.

"Well said!"

Nuwa nodded, no longer looking at Hongyun, and flew back down to Shouyang Mountain.

After Hongyun's suggestion, Nuwa realized she had been too fixated on one idea.

Creating a brand-new race didn't necessarily require all of them to be innate beings.

Without the Nine Heavens Breathing Soil, beings created from ordinary soil might just be acquired beings.

But what did that matter!