Father-Daughter Bond Without Blood Ties

That chaotic-colored Heavenly Dao Backlash Thunder.

It carried irresistible, majestic heavenly might, ignored the Taiji Diagram's layers of defenses, and struck straight at Yuanshi's brow!

Yuanshi felt his Nascent Soul quake violently, as though it would be crushed apart by that terrifying heavenly might in the next instant!

The Jade Purity Immortal Light around him erupted to its limit on its own, and the Pure Qi Crystal between his brows flashed madly. Yet he still felt as tiny and helpless as an ant before the heavens!

"Freeze!"

At the critical moment, Laozi's cold shout rang out.

The Taiji Diagram that had been suspended above their heads suddenly erupted with an unprecedented radiance!

The yin-yang fish on the scroll spun madly at an unprecedented speed. They were no longer sorting through the workings of fate.

Instead, they transformed into two tangible streams of black-and-white qi. Like two eternal divine dragons, they entwined as they charged toward that chaotic thunderbolt!

There was no earth-shattering explosion, only the violent sound of collision and attrition at the level of Laws!

The chaotic thunderbolt was tightly bound by the Yin-Yang Qi. Its terrifying destructive power was forcibly drawn by the Taiji Diagram into the endlessly cycling flow of yin and yang, where it was constantly broken down, transformed, and dissipated!

However, this lightning of heavenly punishment had originated from the Heavenly Dao's backlash. How could it be easily dealt with?

Though the Taiji Diagram was an Innate Supreme Treasure and Laozi was driving it with all his strength, it still trembled wildly. Even the Prehistoric Phantoms flowing across the scroll dimmed somewhat.

But in the end, it blocked most of the attack's power!

Ultimately, only a much weaker thread of residual lightning, still carrying the Heavenly Dao's fury, pierced through the Yin-Yang Qi's blockade.

It struck beside Yuanshi's feet, instantly turning a reef beneath his Auspicious Cloud into dust!

Yuanshi let out a muffled groan, his face paling slightly. Though he had not been directly injured.

His Nascent Soul had been fiercely battered by the Heavenly Dao Pressure, leaving his mind in turmoil and breaking him out in a cold sweat.

Tongtian stared in dumbfounded shock. Only after the thunder faded did he finally suck in a breath, patting his chest in lingering fear.

"That scared me to death! Was Lord Heavenly Dao really going that far? It was just a divination! Why such a terrible temper?!"

Laozi slowly withdrew the Taiji Diagram. His expression was slightly solemn as he looked toward Yuanshi.

"Fate must not be lightly pried into, especially when it involves the highest concealment. This was a warning. Second Brother, do not act rashly again."

There was a trace of reproach in his tone, but even more concern.

Yuanshi was still shaken. In that moment just now, he had truly felt the Heavenly Dao's inviolability.

Yet before he could recover from the fright, before he could even regulate his breathing, the scene he had glimpsed in that fleeting instant—

The Immortal Island, the pool, and the Girl Child sleeping soundly.

Along with the vague information formed by the Taiji Diagram's Dao Patterns in the final instant before the Heavenly Dao Backlash struck, which had flooded into his mind during the forced deduction, surged back into his heart like a tide!

And just then, as if responding to his thoughts.

And as if to completely confirm this surprise.

The lingering Dao aura of the Taiji Diagram, not yet fully dispersed, combined with the violently evolving workings of fate from its battle against the Heavenly Thunder. It actually intertwined and condensed on its own in the air before him into a line of incomparably clear Dao Proclamation formed from Dao Runes!

Every word radiated an ancient, majestic, unquestionable aura!

[There is a spirit in the East Sea, Root of World Purification. Its Fate with you, Yuanshi, runs profoundly deep. Not a blood descendant, but a Heaven-ordained father-daughter bond.]

The proclamation was displayed as clearly as a brand before the Three Pure Ones.

Yuanshi: "!!!"

It was as if a Nine Heavens Thunderbolt even fiercer than the last had struck him directly on the crown of his head!

He turned to stone on the spot!

His expression completely cracked, shifting from shock to bewilderment, then disbelief, before finally freezing entirely!

It was as though he had witnessed the most absurd, most inconceivable thing since Heaven Opening—something that challenged everything he knew!

A... father-daughter bond?!

With him, Yuanshi?!

With a little girl?!

And it was... Heaven-ordained?!

Without blood ties?!

How was that possible?!

He, Yuanshi, Pangu Orthodox, Daoist Yuqing, a born sacred being of noble character who strictly observed rites and rules.

He had not even formally established his Dao Field, and there was not a single disciple under his banner. How could he suddenly have a daughter out of nowhere?

And one forcibly assigned to him by the Heavenly Dao?!

His mind went blank.

His normally methodical mind, so skilled at deduction, completely crashed. Only the four words "father-daughter bond" kept flashing madly in his head.

Sect Master Tongtian, standing nearby, was initially just as dumbfounded. He stared wide-eyed at the line of Dao Proclamation for a full three breaths.

Then—

"Pfft—Hahahahahaha!!!"

His earth-shaking laughter exploded, nearly scattering the Auspicious Cloud beneath his feet!

Tongtian laughed so hard that he bent forward and backward, clutching his stomach as tears nearly flew from his eyes. His trembling finger pointed at the completely petrified Yuanshi as he gasped for breath.

"A... a father-daughter bond?! Hahahaha!

Second Brother!

You... you, you, you... when did you secretly have a kid outside?!

And... and without blood ties?

Tell us! What happened?!

Which Prehistoric goddess was it?

No, no, without blood ties... so you adopted her?

You actually secretly adopted a daughter?! Hahahahaha!

I knew it! You wear that stern face all day, but you were hiding such a huge secret inside!

This is killing me! A father-daughter bond! Hahahahaha!"

He laughed without a shred of dignity, as though he wished he could roll around on the Cloud Top. This was the funniest thing he had heard since his birth.

It was even more thrilling than the time he had provoked ten Prehistoric Beasts at once and been chased by them.

Even Laozi, who had always remained detached from worldly matters and incomparably composed, was completely stunned at this moment.

Those clear eyes that seemed to see through all things were filled with unprecedented shock and deep confusion.

He looked at the Dao Proclamation, then at his Second Brother, whose face had turned pale and livid as though even his Dao Heart were collapsing.

Then he thought of Tongtian's absurd guess about "secretly having a kid."

Even with his state of Non-Action, an extremely strange ripple rose in his heart at this moment.

This... this was simply an unheard-of marvel in the Prehistoric World!

However, just as Tongtian was laughing his loudest, Yuanshi was about to collapse out of his petrified state, and Laozi had no idea how to react.

The Dao Proclamation lingering in the air flashed faintly.

As if dissatisfied with Tongtian's absurd interpretation, and as if to further explain this inconceivable Karma.

The words upon it quietly changed, becoming more specific—and even more... terrifying!

[There is a spirit in the East Sea, Root of World Purification. Its Fate with you Three Pure Ones runs profoundly deep. Not a blood descendant, but a Heaven-ordained father-daughter bond.]

The proclamation displayed it with absolute clarity.

—"You Three Pure Ones"!

Not Yuanshi alone!

It was the three brothers of the Three Pure Ones!

A shared... Heaven-ordained father-daughter bond?!

Tongtian's booming laughter stopped as if someone had grabbed him by the throat!

His eyes widened abruptly, and the smile on his face froze completely, leaving only boundless astonishment and confusion.

"W-wait?! The Three Pure Ones? The... the three of us?! A shared... daughter?!"

He pointed at his own nose, then at Laozi and Yuanshi. Even his words became a stammer.

"W-what kind of Prehistoric joke is this?! This can be a group thing?!"

Laozi's hand, which had been stroking his beard, dropped completely. On his usually tranquil face.

His astonishment deepened. He even subconsciously performed a calculation with his fingers, only to find Chaos.

He looked at Yuanshi and Tongtian, his gaze becoming even more difficult to describe.

Yuanshi seemed to suffer another heavy blow. He staggered and nearly lost his footing.

A "father-daughter bond" with one person had already shaken his Dao Heart. Now he was being told that it belonged to all three brothers together?!

How... how could this be proper?!

How could there be such a thing in the Prehistoric World?!

Just as the Three Pure Ones collectively sank into unprecedented bewilderment, shock, helplessness, and absurdity.

As though to completely confirm this Heaven-ordained Fate.

And as though to warn them not to keep calculating blindly, but to hurry up and accept reality and go adopt her!

A not particularly loud but perfectly clear clap of thunder sounded once more above the Nine Heavens!

Crack!

A thin bolt of Silver-white Lightning struck with flawless precision beside Yuanshi's feet again.

It shaved off another small piece from the edge of his Auspicious Cloud, sparks crackling.

It carried an obvious Heavenly Dao Intent that was practically embarrassed fury mixed with impatient urging.

Got it? Then you got it! What are you shouting for!

Hurry to the East Sea and find her!

Stop calculating! If you calculate again, it won't strike beside your feet next time!

The Three Pure Ones: "..."

Tongtian subconsciously Shrink Neck, swallowing back the rest of his laughter and complaints.

Yuanshi's expression could no longer be described as merely ugly. It was an incomparably complex mixture of shock, bewilderment, resistance, humiliation, anger, and a trace of stifled grievance at being forcibly sold something by the Heavenly Dao.

Laozi took a deep breath and slowly exhaled.

He seemed to want to say something, only to find himself speechless.

The wind from the East Sea blew past, carrying a salty, damp scent.

Yet it could not disperse the utterly strange, awkward, and absurd atmosphere among the Three Pure Ones.