This Was the Most Glorious-and Cruelest-Era of the Primordial World

After Wanda finished reading Long Zang's copy, she was left utterly dazed.

She kept asking herself: Who am I? What am I doing? How could my future self end up like that?

That day, she spent nearly all of it in a daze, her mind shrouded in fog. She felt as though she were on the verge of breaking down.

Great Desolation World.

Long Zang's gaze was deep, and as his eyes shifted, countless worlds appeared and vanished in them.

Suddenly, he sensed something and looked toward the Immortal Volcano in the Southern Region.

Something there felt unusual. It was worth his personal attention.

He crossed the endless void and appeared before the Immortal Volcano.

When Yuan Huang saw Long Zang, she finally let out a quiet breath of relief.

For some reason, as long as Long Zang was by her side, even the greatest difficulties seemed insignificant.

"What happened?" Long Zang asked calmly, his voice carrying an air of authority.

Yuan Huang didn't answer at once. Instead, she said quietly, "Come with me."

She led Long Zang into a sealed Small World.

Within the Small World, demonic flames soared as Dark Crows shrieked.

Terrifying birds of prey roosted there, dark flames burning in their eyes.

At the front, a Fallen True Phoenix spread its wings and lunged straight at Yuan Huang!

Black Phoenix Flame poured down, setting entire worlds ablaze. A boundless sea of fire engulfed the surroundings.

The scene was utterly unbelievable.

Yuan Huang was the Phoenix Clan's progenitor and its Supreme leader, yet this True Phoenix dared to attack her.

By all reason, such a thing should have been impossible!

Yet it had happened.

Long Zang's gaze turned cold. He reached out and clenched his hand.

The Fallen True Phoenix was immediately suppressed, and the violent Phoenix Flame between heaven and earth died down in an instant.

He stared at the demonized True Phoenix and asked coolly, "When did this happen?"

"Within the past several hundred thousand years," Yuan Huang replied slowly.

She looked into the True Phoenix's blood-red eyes, her heart heavy.

The divine bird that had once symbolized peace and good fortune now embodied nothing but savagery and slaughter.

Long Zang's brow furrowed. "Luohu's handiwork."

Golden patterns flickered in his eyes as his gaze pierced the True Phoenix's body. He saw a deeply rooted mark of Demonic Nature.

Yuan Huang's heart stirred. "How did you recognize it?"

"Because it bears his unmistakable mark," Long Zang replied.

Yuan Huang's expression turned cold. She had thought that the Karma accumulating on the Phoenix Clan's fortune was a minor matter and hadn't paid it any attention.

But as the Karma grew, she began to suspect something was wrong. After investigating, she discovered these hidden agents who had been corrupted by demonic power.

If she had been competing for supremacy in the Primordial World, slaughter would have been inevitable, and she would never have noticed that Karma.

But the Phoenix Clan had never involved itself in the struggle for supremacy. That extra Karma was what made her realize something was amiss.

Long Zang looked at the demonized birds before them. They weren't only members of the Phoenix Clan; there were also Rocs, True Phoenixes, and Luan Birds.

Most were between the Golden Immortal and Grand Unity Golden Immortal realms. The strongest among them was the Fallen True Phoenix in his grasp, already at the Da Luo realm!

They had all once been pillars of their clans, the backbone of their people.

Now, all of them had been consumed by Demonic Nature. To Yuan Huang, it was no different from having the Phoenix Clan's foundations dug out from beneath her.

Long Zang said gravely, "Luohu has hidden himself well. Finding him now will be nearly impossible."

At his words, Yuan Huang felt even more stifled, with nowhere to vent her anger.

She was neither skilled at divination nor able to track a monster like Luohu.

All she could do for now was remain vigilant and wait for an opportunity.

Long Zang continued, "Be more careful from now on. These aren't the only agents Luohu has planted. His target is the entire Primordial World."

Yuan Huang nodded, her gaze resolute. "I've already ordered the clan to increase its vigilance."

She looked toward the demonized birds again and asked quietly, "What should we do with them?"

Long Zang's gaze was cold. He pondered for a moment. "Leave them here for now. Let them fend for themselves. Perhaps one day they'll break free of Demonic Nature's chains and find a new path."

Yuan Huang let out a quiet breath of relief.

Even the slightest hope was better than wiping them out completely.

After all, Demonic Nature was, at its core, simply a kind of power. If it could be controlled, it might yet become the foundation of a new Dao.

Somewhere in the unknown darkness of the Primordial World.

Luohu's eyes snapped open, his expression cold.

"Have I been discovered?"

His voice was low, and a chill gleamed in his eyes.

Those hidden agents had only ever been a minor ploy of his.

If it worked, the Phoenix Clan would be dragged into the conflict and forced to take part in the struggles of the Primordial World.

If it failed, he wouldn't lose anything.

At the thought, a cold smile tugged at his lips. "The Primordial World has been quiet for too long... It's time to liven things up."

Great Desolation World.

Long Zang continued to cultivate in seclusion within the Phoenix Clan's Small World, living a peaceful life with an undercurrent of danger.

Sometimes he spoke with Yuan Huang; other times he pondered alone, as if cut off from the world.

But he knew in his heart... this peace couldn't last.

And today, that peace was finally shattered for good.

The void trembled. A colossal figure stretched across heaven and earth, Yin Yang Two Qi surging and blanketing the entire Primordial World.

A majestic voice rang out in all directions, like the tolling of the Great Dao's bell:

"I am Yin-Yang Ancestor! Today, I establish the Yin Yang Divine Dynasty and use the Taiji Diagram to suppress its fortune. Heavenly Dao, bear witness!"

As soon as the words fell, the Heavenly Dao roared and thunder crashed, acknowledging his vow.

Heavenly might descended, announcing to all beings that the Yin Yang Divine Dynasty had been established!

Long Zang opened his eyes slightly and calmly watched the Ancestor standing between heaven and earth.

"Yin-Yang Ancestor... a Da Luo Supreme Expert, wielding the supreme treasure, the Taiji Diagram. His strength is no less than that of Ancestor Dragon, Yuan Huang, or First Kirin."

He sighed inwardly. The Taiji Diagram, Laozi's life-bound supreme treasure in later generations, was still in Yin-Yang Ancestor's hands.

But he also knew that this glory would be short-lived. Yin-Yang Ancestor was destined to die in this calamity. Otherwise, how would Hongjun obtain the treasure?

And this was only the beginning.

"Ancestor Wu Xing establishes the Five Elements Holy Land, using the Five Elements Flags to suppress its fortune. Heavenly Dao, bear witness!"

"Qiankun Ancestor establishes the Qian Kun Divine Dynasty, using the Qiankun Cauldron to suppress its fortune. Heavenly Dao, bear witness!"

"One of the Three Heavens, Azure Heaven! I establish the Heavenly Dao Alliance and use the Eye of Heavenly Punishment to suppress its fortune. Heavenly Dao, bear witness!"

In a single day, countless ancient factions emerged throughout the Primordial World.

The Yin Yang Divine Dynasty, the Five Elements Holy Land, the Qian Kun Divine Dynasty, the Heavenly Dao Alliance... Countless other factions, great and small, established themselves across the Primordial World.

Heaven and earth roared. The ancient, barbaric era had burst into life!

Inside the Phoenix Small World, Yuan Huang furrowed her brow, worry in her eyes. "Will the Phoenix Clan be caught up in this?"

Long Zang's expression was calm, but his answer was firm. "Yes."

His gaze turned somber as he added coldly, "This Great Calamity will be even more brutal than the Ferocious Beast Calamity. Because this time, it involves... the Spokesperson of the Heavenly Dao!"

Yuan Huang's heart trembled.

She remembered Long Zang telling her that the Heavenly Dao was incomplete and needed a spokesperson to make up for its shortcomings.

And that spokesperson would decide which Dao Lineage the Primordial World followed in the future!

"If Luohu wins, the Primordial World will follow the Devil Dao. If Hongjun wins, it will follow the Immortal Dao."

Long Zang's voice was low, edged with cold steel.

"This is a struggle over the greater trend. No clan can stand apart from it. The Phoenix Clan is no exception!"

Yuan Huang remained silent for a long while before finally nodding.

She understood that, as the leaders of the flying beasts, the Phoenix Clan was fated to be swept into this catastrophe of the Primordial World.

Long Zang gazed into the boundless void, Battle Intent surging in his eyes, his heart pounding.

At that moment, his blood seemed to boil.

"No one can stand apart from this struggle over the greater trend."

"This was the most glorious—and cruelest—era of the Primordial World!"