Incarnation in reincarnation is Houtu's destiny and her way.
But this time, Houtu had Primordial Spirit.
She is no longer just the Ancestral Witch who carries Earth Dao with Physical Body.
She is a Witch Clan who possesses Primordial Spirit, a being who can comprehend Heavenly Dao and practice Great Dao.
The change is that after having Primordial Spirit, how far will Houtu's understanding of "Tao" go?
Will she still go down that road?
When the lich fights, both sides suffer.
Sun Star took back Star Banner, Pangu Hall took back Dutian Divine Fiends Formation.
The highest combat power of both sides returned to their respective positions, leaving behind the devastated Primordial Wilderness land and countless homeless undead.
Those Witch Clan warriors who died in the war did not practice Primordial Spirit, and their souls had nowhere to go after death and could only wander around the earth.
Those Demon Clan soldiers and generals who died in battle, although they practiced Primordial Spirit, no one saved them, and their souls also had no refuge.
There are also countless creatures affected by the war, including spirits in the mountains and forests, Water Tribe in the river, and even innocent cultivators who happen to be passing by the edge of the battlefield.
Their souls are mixed together, wandering in the wilderness, hovering over Blood Sea.
Now Primordial Wilderness has no reincarnation, no Underworld, and there is only one destination for the dead: Blood Sea.
Blood Sea is located in the deepest part of Primordial Wilderness. It is the place where all the filth and evil spirits in the world since Creation of Heaven and Earth have gathered. It is also the dojo of Ancestor Minghe.
Those dead souls were attracted by the evil aura of the Blood Sea and floated there involuntarily, like pieces of gray fallen leaves being swept into the abyss.
Some weak-willed souls have dissipated and turned into nothingness on the way to the Blood Sea;
Some were swallowed up by Blood God Avatars of the Edge of the Blood Sea and became part of Minghe's cultivation;
Only a very few can resist the erosion of the evil spirit and wander around the Blood Sea, wailing silently.
Houtu stood on the top of a barren mountain, looking at the scorched earth under the mountain that had been burned by the flames of war, silent.
The wind blows from the south, carrying a faint smell of blood and the wail of the dead souls.
Those weak whines cannot be heard by ordinary monks, but Houtu can hear them.
They don't know where they are floating, and they don't know why they are like this. Some souls have not even realized that they are dead, and are still calling the names of their companions in vain.
As both descendants of Pangu, the souls of the Witch Clan war dead were mixed with the souls of the Demon Clan, making them indistinguishable.
They were mortal enemies in life, but after death they drifted together into the bottomless abyss.
The hatred, stance, glory and humiliation during life all vanished in the face of death.
After Houtu returned to the Pangu Hall, he told Dijiang and other Ancestral Witch about the idea of saving the souls of the dead.
Her voice was not loud, but her tone was extremely firm.
She talked for a long time, talking about the wails of the dead souls, the devouring of the Blood Sea, and the tragic situation of countless living beings having no place to turn to after death.
Dijiang is silent, and other Ancestral Witch are also silent.
They never cared about the world after death.
Witch Clan If they don't practice Primordial Spirit, where their souls will go after death is never within their scope of consideration.
A glorious warrior dies on the battlefield, which is the best destination. As for what happens to his soul after death, what does it have to do with them?
This is what most Witch Clan think. Houtu has no intention of convincing them.
If Witch Clan does not practice Primordial Spirit, he cannot understand the method of salvation and cannot help her complete this matter.
She just explained her decision to her brothers, and then prepared to leave for West.
Before leaving, Dijiang stopped her.
"Are you going to West?" Dijiang's voice was still low and rough, but there was a hint of concern in those deep eyes that was not easily noticed by others, "Looking for Xuande and the others?"
Houtu nodded.
Dijiang was silent for a moment and nodded slowly. "Go ahead. Brother Xuande helped you give birth to Primordial Spirit. This favor Witch Clan has not yet been repaid.
If you can learn the method of salvation from West this time, it will be considered a big thing Merit. Pangu Hall I am here."
Houtu did not speak, but saluted to Dijiang, then turned around and drove Escape Light, flying in the direction of West.
Along the way she saw countless dead souls.
In those places that were once battlefields, gray souls shrouded the earth like mist, and some of them had completely dissipated, leaving only a wisp of residual thoughts that were about to collapse;
Some are still struggling Edge of the Blood Sea and are being bitten away by Blood God Avatars;
Some have been completely lost, turning into a ball of Chaos resentment, infesting all nearby creatures regardless of friend or foe.
Everywhere she passed, she tried to use her Earth Dao to appease the souls of the dead.
She could sense the quietness and depth in the depths of the earth, and she wanted to convey this quietness to them, but the effect was extremely limited.
She could make the dead souls no longer struggle in pain and no longer scream silently, but she could not change their fate.
They will still be attracted by the evil spirit of the Blood Sea, and they will still drift towards the abyss.
She needs a way to fundamentally solve this problem.
She needs a way to transcend.
Escape Light of Houtu passed through the West Sea. When approaching Western Continent, the Bodhi Tree leaves on Mount Sumeru shook slightly.
Xuande opened his eyes.
He is playing against Fuxi under Bodhi Tree.
Mount Sumeru rarely gets quiet these days. Jieyin and Zhunti both retreated to understand Primordial Violet Qi. West's affairs were temporarily taken care of by him and Fuxi.
There were black and white on the chessboard, and the two of them played for a long time, but no one could gain the upper hand.
Xuande holds white, moves very slowly, every step seems to be done casually but it coincides with a certain pattern;
Fuxi holds black, and Bagua's deduction unfolds silently on the chessboard. Each step has been carefully deduced, but the rhythm is disrupted by Xuande's carelessness.
At this moment, Xuande Luozi's hand paused slightly.
The breath was thick and deep, with the unique warmth and weight of Earth Dao. It slowly approached from the edge of the Western Continent in the direction of Mount Sumeru. It was Houtu.
Xuande put down the chess pieces and stood up. "Houtu Fellow Daoist is here, and I am going to greet him."
Fuxi also felt the breath and nodded without asking any more questions.
Xuande did not disturb the disciples in the mountain, and drove Escape Light alone, flying towards the direction of the breath.
Houtu saw the golden Escape Light flying out from Mount Sumeru from a distance.
She slowed down, stopped a few miles away from Xuande, and bowed.
Xuande Seeing that her face was calm but her brows were slightly furrowed, she already had some guesses in her mind.
He didn't ask any more questions. He just made an invitation gesture sideways and said, "Fellow Daoist Houtu is coming from afar. Let's have a cup of tea under Bodhi Tree first."
There are only three people under Bodhi Tree: Xuande, Fuxi and Houtu.
The tea is the Wu Dao tea that Wu Zhen picked a few days ago. The fragrance of the tea rises when the hot water is poured into the cup.
Houtu took the tea cup but did not drink it. He just held it in his hand and looked at the leaves rolling in the tea soup, and was silent for a long time.
She came to West with a clear purpose, but when she actually sat here facing these two Daoist friends who had helped her give birth to Primordial Spirit, she didn't know where to start.
"Fellow Daoist Houtu," Xuande saw that she had been silent for a long time and took the initiative to break the silence, "Is there something going on during this trip?"
Houtu raised his head and recounted the tragic situation of Primordial Wilderness's dead souls on the earth with no place to go after the Lich War.
Her voice was not loud and she tried to keep her tone as calm as possible, but at the end of the sentence, she could not hide the faint pain in her eyes.
"When I was listening to the sermons of three Daoist brothers at Mount Sumeru, I remembered that there was a paragraph in Western Wondrous Dharma about the method of saving the dead."
Houtu looked at Xuande with sincere and firm eyes, "I want to learn this method from three Tao brothers and do something for the undead who died in the Lich War."
Xuande was silent for a moment after listening.
Of course he knows what the method of saving the dead is, which is a branch of Seven Emotions and Six Desires Severance Marvelous Method.
Although it is not the core method, it is the part that best embodies the essence of West's way of "taking compassion as the heart".
Back then, he, Jieyin, and Zhunti organized this method into a system when they discussed it on Mount Sumeru. However, West was busy with Human Race affairs after the war and has not promoted it on a large scale.
"Jieyin Daoist brother and Zhunti Daoist brother are in retreat to comprehend Primordial Violet Qi. It is inconvenient to disturb them."
Xuande put down the teacup, "But Pindao is also familiar with the method of transcending the dead. If fellow Daoist Houtu doesn't mind it, Pindao can teach it to you on behalf of the two Daoist brothers."
A hint of surprise flashed in Houtu's eyes, and he put down his teacup and bowed solemnly. "Thank you, Brother Xuande!"
Xuande raised his hand to support her, indicating that she didn't need to be polite. Then he closed his eyes, and a faint golden light shone on his fingertips.
The golden light is not dazzling, just like the softest wisp of the rising morning glow, dancing gently among the branches and leaves of Bodhi Tree.
He slowly pointed the golden light towards Houtu's eyebrows.
Houtu did not dodge, closed his eyes and relaxed his mind.
The golden light penetrated her Sea of Consciousness and turned into a gentle flow of information, which was the complete method of transcending the undead.
From how to sense the dead soul Obsession, to how to guide Obsession to disperse; from how to appease the resentment of the dead soul, to how to let the dead soul return to the world Origin Essence.
Every step is clear and detailed, and every key is clearly marked.
Houtu and Primordial Spirit feel this inheritance carefully.
After a long time, she opened her eyes and saluted Xuande again.
This time she didn't speak, but expressed her gratitude with her eyes.
Xuande nodded, then turned to look at Fuxi. "Brother Fuxi, Pindao and fellow Daoist Houtu are going on a long trip. I would like to ask Brother Tao to take care of the affairs of West and Human Race for the time being."
Fuxi waved his hand and looked down at the undecided chess game on the chessboard. "Human Race has me.
It's you, saving the dead doesn't happen overnight. The souls of the dead after the war in Primordial Wilderness are scattered in all directions. Where are you going on this trip? How long will it take?"
"It doesn't matter where you go," Xuande said, "It takes as long as you walk."
At this time, Randeng came from the mountainside.
He originally wanted to ask Xuande for some questions about his practice, but when he heard that Xuande was going to save the dead together with Houtu, he put aside his request in advance.
He stood under Bodhi Tree, was silent for a moment, and then said, "Xuande Daoist brother, I also want to go with you."
Xuande looked at him, his eyes slightly condensed. Randeng didn't explain much, just said:
"Pindao witnessed Saint Nuwa's enlightenment with his own eyes, and he also meditated on Mount Sumeru for many years.
The path of spiritual practice does not lie in Numinous Treasure, it does not lie in following your feet, but in the act itself. I am willing to contribute to this kind act of saving the souls of the dead."
Xuande looked at Randeng's eyes that were no longer cloudy and were much brighter, and nodded slowly.
So the three of them drove up Escape Light and left Mount Sumeru, leaving that peaceful and peaceful land.
When passing West Sea, Houtu flew in front. She has the strongest perception and can detect the faint fluctuations of dead souls hundreds of miles away.
Xuande is in the middle, holding the magic formula in his hand, always ready to activate the method of salvation.
Randeng follows at the end, his Escape Light is not the color of a bright light, but like a weak candle in the middle of the night, not dazzling, but stable enough.
Their first stop was at the foot of Buzhou Mountain. The northern battlefield of the Lich War was nearby.
When Houtu landed at the foot of the mountain, the land beneath his feet still retained the tragic traces of the war.
The ground is cracked like a cobweb, and occasionally evil spirits surge up from the bottomless cracks, making a low hissing sound.
Countless dead souls linger in this land, some still retain the vague outlines of their lives, and some have been twisted into a ball of Chaos resentment.
Houtu stopped, closed his eyes, and used Primordial Spirit to feel all the dead souls on this land.
Then she raised her hand, and the power of Earth Dao surged out from her palm, like countless warm ribbons, gently encircling the dead souls one by one, preventing them from wandering unconsciously.
Xuande stood behind her, forming a seal with his hands.
The golden light of the method of salvation lit up from his hand, like countless tiny lights, covering the entire scorched earth.
Wherever the golden light passed, the resentment of the dead souls began to dissipate, and Obsession began to disintegrate. They no longer struggled painfully, but calmed down, as if they had finally found their destination.
The whole process lasted for a long time.
When the last wisp of the dead soul dissipated in the golden light and returned to the world Origin Essence, Xuande and Houtu completed their power at the same time.
Houtu turned back to look at Xuande. He just nodded without saying anything more, then turned around and flew towards the next destination.
Houtu and Randeng follow closely behind.
From north to south, from east to west.
They walked through the scorched earth that was burned by Zhurong Southern Bright Li Fire, walked on the road of the past, and walked through those places that were once fertile wilderness, but now only the cracked wasteland remains.
Randeng followed at the end. He rarely spoke and only occasionally took the initiative in front of some weak dead souls.
Those dead souls were too fragile to withstand the power of Xuande and Houtu, but they happened to be guided by the weak light of Randeng.
It's been a long journey.
Houtu is becoming more and more proficient in the method of salvation. It took a long time to brew at the beginning, but later he could appease the souls of the dead with just a raise of his hand.
Her Earth Dao gradually merged with the method of salvation, forming a unique power.
It is not the pure power of Western Wondrous Dharma, nor the pure power of the Witch Clan, but something new after the integration of the two.
It has both the gentleness and tolerance of Earth Dao, and the compassion and liberation of the method of salvation.
Xuande saw it and had some kind of premonition in his heart, but he didn't say it out loud.
They went farther and farther, deeper and deeper.
Houtu's persistence in transcendence is deeper than he expected.
She is not simply pitying these dead souls, but treats each soul as a life that once existed, and treats their disappearance solemnly.
This nature of mind has gone far beyond the category of "good deeds", but is close to a deeper state.
At that level, Xuande had some vague guesses, but he couldn't be sure at the moment.
He just turned his gaze to Houtu's calm but compassionate eyes after each salvation, and then continued to move to the next destination.