Golden Crow Taiyin

The Taoist transformed into its true form, a Three-legged Golden Crow covered in flames. It let out a long, clear cry to the heavens, spewing forth a sea of fire that burned the void.

Seeing this, Heavenly Witch Poison Old Man recalled the stream of poison, swirling it around himself. With each rotation, a small amount was burned away.

With the two of them fighting, Pangu and Xuanhuang were left in peace.

The Golden Crow intensified its flames, making Heavenly Witch Poison Old Man gasp for breath. Fortunately, the poisonous energy also made its opponent wary. It continuously swung its scorpion tail for physical attacks. Its two large pincers were also incredibly powerful, left and right, forcing the Golden Crow to dodge frantically. However, the Golden Crow had the advantage of the air and was far more agile than Heavenly Witch Poison Old Man, maintaining a clear edge. It would occasionally peck fiercely with its beak or slash with its sharp claws, each strike inflicting damage.

Heavenly Witch Poison Old Man became enraged. His body transformed into five venomous creatures: a jade-green toad, a spotted python, a black and red scorpion, a centipede, and a gecko covered in sharp spines. The five poisonous creatures eyed the Golden Crow menacingly.

"Five Poisons Great Array, Seal!" Dense fog instantly appeared. The mist, like layers of flowing silk, drifted and billowed, enveloping the Golden Crow. For ordinary gods and demons, entering such a space filled with poisonous air would lead to suffocation, if not death.

The Golden Crow felt as if it had entered a soft tunnel. Poisonous liquid flowed beneath its feet, emitting a hazy white vapor. On the surrounding stone walls, foul-smelling black liquid dripped, along with corrosive water droplets.

The Golden Crow looked at it all and said, "This is still child's play. I won't play with you anymore."

"Heavenly Incineration!"

A blazing sea of fire, accompanied by scorching heat, appeared out of nowhere. It instantly burned away the water, the smoke, and the seemingly indestructible tunnel.

"Impossible!"

The Golden Crow soared into the sky, using the rules of fire. A vast phantom of the Golden Crow appeared, gradually solidifying. It resembled the sun in Chaos, bathing everything in gold.

The Golden Crow opened its mouth and spat out a fireball, which struck the misty array. It was incredibly simple. The array shattered, and the five venomous creatures immediately withered and collapsed in the Chaos.

The Golden Crow pecked lightly at each of the five poisonous creatures, instantly breaking them in half.

Heavenly Witch Poison Old Man cried out, "Why?"

"Foolish. Like conquers like; one thing suppresses another. It's that simple."

Saying this, it swallowed the severed bodies, transforming them into pure primal energy to replenish its expended divine abilities.

"Haha, exhilarating! Pangu, you'll be my next delicious meal."

The enormous Golden Crow shot towards Pangu like a cannonball, generating fireballs in its mouth. These fireballs whistled with the low roar of exploding flames, their terrifying heat capable of burning through all matter.

"Nine Dragon Heavenly Fire Great Array!"

The fireballs collided with Pangu and Xuanhuang. Each fireball transformed into nine fiercely burning pillars of fire. One pillar directly covered Pangu and Xuanhuang, while the other eight circled the central pillar in a specific trajectory, forming a Nine Palaces formation. Within these pillars, countless fire dragons seemed to lurk, baring their fangs and claws, writhing everywhere. Sparks flew from the outer edges, each one burning a patch of Chaos.

The Golden Crow circled above them, watching the blazing pillars of fire. It chirped joyfully above the pillars.

Pangu pondered amidst the flames. This fire was a Supreme Yang entity, immensely beneficial for his cultivation of the Nine Revolutions Golden Body Art. He had reached the ninth revolution but could not achieve perfect completion, no matter how he tempered himself. Nine represented the extreme, the culmination.

At this moment, a cool sensation emanated from the Chaos Green Lotus, and Pangu gained a profound understanding. He realized he had been lacking a crucial element: his physical body needed tempering by Supreme Yang energy. The Chaos Golden Body Art sought a perfect, supremely strong physique, requiring various methods of tempering, such as repeated hammering, constant combat, or cultivation in extreme environments. He had always adhered to the principle of "breaking and then establishing," allowing his golden body to improve through repeated damage and resistance. However, he could never achieve the perfect rebirth akin to Nirvana. He had thought the Chaos Golden Body Art had limitations, but the key was here.

Seeing the two struggling to resist in the sea of fire, the Golden Crow occasionally spat out more fireballs, increasing the array's power, intending to refine them. It felt immensely proud, thinking they were nothing special.

Pangu, within the fire, experienced heat akin to a volcanic eruption and the collapse of the heavens and earth. Simultaneously, the Supreme Yang energy was continuously integrating into his cracked flesh, altering its fundamental substance. The Golden Body Art operated frantically, like consuming a potent tonic, absorbing the Supreme Yang energy from the sea of fire. This Yang energy gathered and condensed into a miniature fire dragon. Under the summons of the Chaos Golden Body Art, this fire dragon joyfully returned to its origin. The Chaos Golden Body Art was the cultivation divine ability of Cang Dui, who was the first dragon-shaped divine-demon in Chaos, with all other dragon spirits paying homage to him.

After absorbing the nine dragon spirits, Pangu transformed into a colossal golden body, standing tall in the sea of fire. With a tear of his hands, the Nine Dragon Heavenly Fire Array was ripped apart like paper. He roared at the Golden Crow.

The Golden Crow felt a jolt of panic. Its Primordial Spirit was struck a heavy blow. Seeing Pangu soar into the sky, it was greatly alarmed, knowing something was amiss. Its greatest reliance had been so easily shattered. At this moment, a massive hand descended, roaring as it approached, as if to crush it. It frantically summoned the fire dragons from the array, only to find them nowhere to be seen. Summoning fire dragons from the array was also one of its divine abilities.

The palm, carrying immense pressure, descended upon it. If struck, its Golden Crow form would be scattered. It secretly resolved to split off half of its Primordial Spirit, quickly forming another firebird, and roared, "Explode!"

Whether it was inherently explosive or not, the explosion of Supreme Yang fire was devastating. The sky-covering hand was half destroyed, and the Golden Crow seized this opportunity to escape quickly.

Xuanhuang bowed to Pangu, "Congratulations, fellow Daoist. You are one step closer to the Great Dao."

Pangu looked at his right hand, which had just been repaired by the Chaos Golden Body Art, and said, "This battle has indeed been very rewarding. Although there were many twists and turns, the insights gained were profound, especially the realization during the illusionary realm of Tai Xuan. It almost allowed me to touch my own Great Dao."

Pangu pondered for a moment and said, "Fellow Daoist Xuanhuang, do you find this Chaos too monotonous? Should this Chaos not change, with myriad things, diverse forms, and endless wonders? A scene of boundless vitality and vastness."

Xuanhuang lowered his head and slowly said, "I know this is a step for the Great Dao to perfect itself. This step is taken upon the corpses of us gods and demons. It is a tribulation, but also the result of evolution and development. The Great Dao evolved us, found that we could not conform to the general trend of development, and thus required us to continue evolving."

Pangu sighed to the heavens, "Indeed. We are pawns of the Great Dao, yet we must sacrifice ourselves, willing to become part of the evolution of heaven and earth. This is our mission, and also our inescapable fate. I already know the mission of Sky Opening: to eliminate the gods and demons that could threaten the future execution of heaven and earth, and to break open this Chaos. But I am not yet clear about the next step."

Xuanhuang said calmly, "You actually know. The next step is to create all things. Your Dao is the Path of Creation. How to comprehend its Dao, I do not know."

He continued, "After Sky Opening, heaven and earth will change. All things in Chaos will face tribulations, which are also opportunities. Those who overcome the tribulations can survive in the new heaven and earth. This is the impartiality of the Great Dao, leaving a sliver of hope."

Pangu murmured, "The Great Dao leaves us a sliver of hope."

Xuanhuang also fell silent, comforting him, "Perhaps it will continue in another form. But if it does not meet the requirements of the Great Dao, it will still be erased."

Pangu and Xuanhuang continued to ponder the Dao in their hearts. Pangu would often frown unconsciously, and the surrounding Chaos energy would fluctuate with his state of mind, appearing very turbulent.

Xuanhuang closed his eyes and said, "Fellow Daoist, your heart seems restless."

Pangu sighed, "My body is always filled with surging Yang energy. No matter what, I cannot suppress this restlessness. My mind cannot be calmed. I always feel a vague sensation surfacing in my heart."

Xuanhuang quietly began to deduce, "Fellow Daoist, you have absorbed the Nine Yang energy. Now you are like solitary Yang, unable to give birth. Perhaps an opportunity has arrived. Since you are not inclined to cultivate, let us go and see."

Pangu and Xuanhuang followed the feeling, their path aligning with the direction the Golden Crow had fled.

The Three-legged Golden Crow fled in disarray. Injured, it could only muster less than half of its peak strength. However, its realm had not fallen. It could have found a hidden place to recuperate.

But it did not. It knew it had to go to a place it had been observing for a long time.

The aura of that place made it extremely disgusted. It was a place filled with Yin energy, incompatible with its cultivation method. However, the god and demon there, Taiyin, was the best tonic for its healing.

Taiyin was detached from worldly affairs and had few friends. She was one of the few female gods and demons. Her personality was gentle and she lacked guile. Compared to her in terms of schemes, it undoubtedly had an immense advantage.

Looking at the injured Golden Crow, Taiyin asked with concern, "Brother Dao, how did you sustain such severe injuries? It seems your Primordial Spirit has been wounded."

The Golden Crow coughed and said, "I was ambushed by two wicked Taoists. They wanted to take my Nine Yang energy. I fought with all my might..."

Taiyin said indignantly, "Seven tenths of us three thousand Chaos God Demons have already fallen due to selfish desires, and we still keep fighting amongst ourselves."

Golden Crow also sighed, "We were originally of the same root, yet we slaughtered each other for our own selfish desires. The controller of this Great Dao is the virtuous one, and it cannot be seized by force."

Taiyin chimed in, "Indeed, this is a kind of destiny. If it's meant to be, you don't need to seek it; if it's not meant to be, you shouldn't force it, or you'll only end up burdened."

Golden Crow shook its head, "We can't be so passive either. Fate cannot be changed, but circumstances can. Though fate is not in my control, I must still fight."

Taiyin nodded, "We are indeed different. I choose to live in seclusion, only hoping to safely avoid this great tribulation."