With a straight punch, Duke took down the wounded Hongjun. He looted the magical treasures of the two big shots, then merged the three Creation Jade Plates into one, becoming the sole candidate for the Deva Path to preach to all living beings.
With fortune upon him, Duke faced no further obstacles on the path of cultivation. He did not follow Pangu's path of proving the Dao through strength, nor did he choose the later Saints' path of proving the Dao through merit. Instead, like the original Hongjun, he severed the Three Corpses and became a Saint.
Fortune was invincible!
Had it been anyone else, not even Pangu could have severed the Three Corpses to prove the Dao. Only Duke at this moment could do it, and no one else would ever succeed afterward.
That was just how absurd fortune was. First, Rahula incited the Dragon-Phoenix Calamity to fight for fortune. Then Hongjun established Daoist Xuanmen, also to fight for fortune.
By the same reasoning, this was why, during the later Investiture of the Gods calamity, Laozi, Yuanshi, Nuwa, Jieyin, and Zhunti joined forces to scheme against Tongtian and doom the Jie Sect beyond redemption. There was no other reason: the Jie Sect dominated the world, and Tongtian held too much fortune, blocking everyone else's path.
Duke severed the Three Corpses and became a Saint on the spot. He opened Zixiao Palace beyond the heavens, preached the Great Dao to all beings, and was respectfully addressed as the Dao Ancestor by his many students.
Much like the standard Primordial Era, everything in Zixiao Palace remained the same except that Duke had replaced Hongjun. The six who attained sainthood through merit were still the Three Pure Ones, Nuwa, Jieyin, and Zhunti.
There had to be Saints between heaven and earth. This