"What a vile scoundrel!"
"That old thief Hongjun actually stole the protective treasure Father God left for us. Truly hateful!"
"That shameless old thief! If we get the chance someday, we'll give him a nasty surprise!"
The Ancestral Witches seethed with indignation.
"As for the other two treasures, one is the Heaven Suppressing Coffin and the other is the Six Souls Banner. Both can threaten a Heavenly Dao Saint, but I don't know where they are right now." Xuanyuan sighed.
Every ruler had their limits; he wasn't omnipotent.
Still, although he didn't know where the Heaven Suppressing Coffin was, the Six Souls Banner was destined to be connected to Tongtian.
During the future Investiture of the Gods Calamity, this Heavenly Dao's sinister treasure had appeared in the Ten Thousand Immortals Formation, only to be stolen by the traitor Long-ear Dingguang Immortal, causing Sect Master Tong Tian's plans to fail at the last moment.
"Actually, becoming a Primordial Grand Unity Golden Immortal isn't so bad. As long as we're strong enough, who could kill us?" Tongtian chuckled softly, brimming with confidence.
He didn't believe he was incapable of proving Dao Hunyuan.
"That's true."
"Hongjun follows the Heavenly Dao. We can follow the Earth Path and the Human Path." Xuanyuan nodded.
He himself followed the Great Dao of Chaos, but he still had to consider the Twelve Ancestral Witches.
Aside from the Five Elements Ancestral Witch, whose bloodline power had greatly increased after gaining an opportunity, the other seven Ancestral Witches would reach their limit at the Primordial Grand Unity Golden Immortal realm unless they found other opportunities. At most, they could advance to the threshold of the Heavenly Dao level.
But if they became masters of a Dao, like Hongjun in the future, they could even touch the Dao level.
The Great Dao was a lonely path. Xuanyuan still hoped his brothers and sisters could walk it to the end together and ascend to its peak together.
"What do you mean by the Earth Path and the Human Path?" Di Jiang asked.
The other Ancestral Witches all perked up their ears.
"Where the will of living beings is directed, where their hopes and aspirations lie; the rewarding and punishing of life and death, sin and reincarnation—this is the Human Path."
"Where the Primordial World's land lies, where mountains, rivers, lakes, and seas circulate; that which bears all living beings and spiritual roots, the material world—that is the Earth Path."
"There are viable paths for both the Earth Path and the Human Path."
Xuanyuan simply sat cross-legged and began expounding on the Dao.
In truth, his concept of the Earth Path and the Human Path differed from the Earth Path and Human Path as they operated in the Primordial World. He had modified them to better suit the Ancestral Witches.
Otherwise, the Earth Path should have encompassed the Six Paths of Reincarnation and the earth's ley lines, while the Human Path would have been nothing more than the myriad races competing for supremacy and then gathering the wishes of all races.
The Ancestral Witches didn't establish a clan or fight for supremacy, so they couldn't follow the conventional path.
Still, the Great Dao had no shape; it gave birth to Heaven and Earth. The Great Dao had no name; it constantly nurtured all things.
The Dao was everywhere. It had no absolute boundaries. People could overcome Heaven; everything depended on what they did.
At the beginning of the Primordial World, Xuanyuan, Tongtian, and the Twelve Ancestral Witches had all been part of Pangu's Orthodox Lineage. They possessed Heaven-Opening Merit and fortune, and were, in a sense, among the shareholders of this Primordial World Heaven and Earth.
In terms of status and origin, Xuanyuan had the right to guide the Earth Path and the Human Path in the direction he envisioned.
Just as Hongjun had integrated with the Dao and shaped the Heavenly Dao into what he wanted.
If Hongjun could do it, why couldn't Xuanyuan?
Besides, without someone like Xuanyuan—a man beyond the established board of fate—to push things from the outside, the Earth Path and the Human Path would never truly emerge.
Gonggong's Angry Collision against Buzhou Mountain, Tongtian recreating Earth, Water, Fire, and Wind, Sun Wukong toppling the Ginseng Fruit Tree... In one Kalpa Tribulation after another, the foundations of the Earth Path were shaken. As a result, it never emerged, not even in the Age of Ending Dharma.
The same was true of the Human Path.
During the Fierce Beast Calamity, just as the fierce beasts had become dominant, before they could gather the people's aspirations, the Heavenly Dao had driven the Hundred Innate Races to attack them. The same had happened during the Dragon-Phoenix Calamity and the Witch-Demon Tribulation.
By the Investiture of the Gods Calamity, humanity had become the protagonist of the Primordial World and qualified to rule. Then came King Wu's campaign against Zhou, supposedly to confer titles of the gods. The Human Emperor was reduced to a Son of Heaven, and from then on, the Human Path never had another chance to sprout.
The Primordial World had always been a place where the Earth Path and Human Path were suppressed, with the Heavenly Dao reigning supreme.
It was precisely because Heaven, Earth, and Humanity—the Three Powers and Three Paths—were unbalanced that, after one Immeasurable Calamity after another, everything had eventually fallen into the Age of Ending Dharma.
The Heavenly Dao, the Earth Path, and the Human Path were unbalanced. As a result, all beings in the Primordial World, and even the Primordial World Origin, were constantly wasting their strength on internal strife. Their decline had therefore become inevitable.
Only by having humanity follow the Earth, the Earth follow Heaven, Heaven follow the Dao, and the Dao follow Nature could balance and healthy cycles be established.
Put simply, they needed to fight among themselves less and turn their attention toward the boundless Chaos—to explore and expand. That way, the Primordial World would grow stronger and stronger.
Establishing the Human Path and the Earth Path would unquestionably benefit the Primordial World as a whole and earn great merit.
Of course, the merit bestowed then wouldn't be Heavenly Dao Merit. The Heavenly Dao had no authority to grant it. It would be Merit of the Great Dao.
But that was a matter for later.
"In my view, the Human Path should be the main path, with the Earth Path as its support."
"When the time is right, Sister Houtu can enter Guixu Land and use the remains and tortoiseshells of the Six Golden Ao to establish the Six Paths of Reincarnation."
"As for the Earth Path, you all know that I've made the acquaintance of Zhen Yuanzi, the master of the Essence of Innate Wutu. The Earth Book and the Ginseng Fruit Tree are both key to establishing the Earth Path." Xuanyuan spoke with great confidence.
He had been planning the Earth Path and the Human Path in his mind for a long time. Now, as he explained them to the Ancestral Witches, he was also refining and organizing those plans.
Originally, Houtu would have had to transform herself into reincarnation. Now, that wouldn't be necessary.
There was nowhere in the Primordial World better suited to establishing the Six Paths of Reincarnation than Guixu Land.
Of course, because of the Asura Path, Ancestor Minghe, who had been born in the Netherworld Blood Sea, was also destined to gain this opportunity. They might be able to make some plans then.
And so, after a brief discussion, the brothers decided to ignore Hongjun and discuss the Earth Path and the Human Path in Pangu Hall.
As for Great Witches like Kuafu and Da Yi, who were outside, they could decide for themselves whether to go to Purple Cloud Palace to listen to the Dao.
They had established the Witch Ancestor Tribe and had to consider all the Great Witches and Lesser Witches, so their circumstances naturally weren't the same as those of the Twelve Ancestral Witches.
Xuanyuan merely reminded them that listening to the Dao was fine, but what mattered was exchanging insights with the mighty cultivators, not practicing Hongjun's methods.
Put simply, Severing Three Corpses was a dead end. Aside from the trap Hongjun had left—without treasures of the same origin to sever the corpses, the Three Corpses couldn't be united...
This method of proving Dao was ultimately one Hongjun had created for himself. It suited him, but that didn't mean it suited everyone else. And who knew whether Hongjun had left any other traps in it?
"I wonder whether Eldest Brother and Second Brother will go." Tongtian sighed.
Though he sighed, he had no intention of seeking out his two elder brothers to persuade them not to go to Purple Cloud Palace to hear the Dao.
He didn't plan to go because he trusted Xuanyuan. But what about Laozi and Yuanshi?
Since they had emerged into the world after taking form, they had never been close to him. If he tried to persuade them, they might even accuse him of begrudging them a good opportunity...
Tongtian had come to terms with it. His two elder brothers had never looked after him or Xuanyuan anyway.
In truth, they were familiar strangers. There was no need to risk leaving Pangu Hall while Hongjun's attention was on the Primordial World.
He would let go of the urge to help and respect the choices others made.
"Let things take their course. Do nothing, and all will be well." Xuanyuan smiled, then continued discussing the Earth Path and the Human Path.
The atmosphere in Pangu Hall was lively. Yet across the vast, boundless Primordial World, there was another mighty cultivator who hadn't knelt beneath the pressure of that Heavenly Dao Saint's power.
That mighty cultivator was the Hollow Willow, one of the Ten Great Top-grade Innate Spiritual Roots, formed when the Space Demon God was reborn in the Primordial World. He was...
Old Ancestor Yang Mei!
After Luohu wreaked havoc and Old Ancestor Five Elements died in battle, Hongjun had joined forces with Qiankun, Yin Yang, and Old Ancestor Yang Mei to push the Demon Dao Struggle to its climax.
Old Ancestor Yang Mei had died in battle alongside Qiankun and Yin Yang, but he had left himself a way back. By destroying himself and starting anew, he had advanced beyond his former Primordial Golden Immortal realm.
By that reckoning, he had actually proved Dao earlier than Hongjun.
Moreover, Old Ancestor Yang Mei hadn't become a Heavenly Dao Saint. Drawing on the legacy of the Space Demon God's origins, he had opened Heaven and Earth within the Hollow Willow's inner space, proved Dao by Force, and become a carefree, unrestrained Primordial Grand Unity Golden Immortal.
Now, as Hongjun announced his sainthood with the voice of the Heavenly Dao, he had also drawn Old Ancestor Yang Mei's attention.
Learning that Hongjun had become a Saint, this mighty cultivator—who had proved Dao earlier—was delighted to discover another powerhouse on his level.
Without alarming anyone, he immediately left the Primordial World and found Purple Cloud Palace, deep within Chaos, to have a match with Hongjun.
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