Donghua had no one to share his frustration with. At a crucial moment, the Dao Ancestor had let him down.
Yuanfeng sighed. "If I'd had your temperament back then, I wouldn't have ended up like this, and the Phoenix Clan wouldn't be in its current predicament."
Donghua shook his head. "What's the point of talking about that now? The important thing is to deal with this situation. From what I can tell, this formation can hold out for at most another five hundred years."
"Do you have any insight, Phoenix Ancestor? Is there a way to resolve this?"
Yuanfeng's voice came through. "I have a rough idea of what needs to be done, but the time isn't right yet."
"Hmm?"
"After Hongjun refused to help, Vermilion Bird and I each made our own calculations. We determined that there's still a glimmer of hope, and that all we need to do is wait for the right person to come along."
Donghua's eyes widened. "You're not going to tell me I'm that right person, are you?"
"The Heavenly Secret is unclear. I don't know. Before meeting you today, I thought you might be the one. But now that I've met you, I feel as though you are—and aren't."
That was the sort of thing that sounded like wisdom but said nothing at all.
Donghua didn't press further. There was no point.
He turned to study the formation.
He didn't know its name. It was laid out according to Yin-Yang, the Two Modes, the Three Talents, the Four Symbols, and the Five Elements.
Each part linked with the others, forming an endless cycle.
Donghua immersed his mind completely in the formation. The power within him surged, moving of its own accord through the formation.
Wuji gave birth to Taiji, Taiji gave birth to the Two Modes, and the Two Modes gave birth to the Four Symbols. Heaven, Earth, and Man formed the Three Talents, while Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth—the Five Elements—were arranged within it.
The formation worked with the momentum of the eruption. Using the principle of Wuji giving birth to Taiji, it guided the initial outbreak of the Volcano of Immortality, pushing it along while keeping it within the bounds of Taiji.
Taiji gave birth to the Two Modes. The formation transformed the volcanic onslaught, as powerful as a flood, into the Yin-Yang Two Modes. In an instant, the attack was split in two, yet remained under control.
Combining the Yin-Yang Two Modes with the Three Talents of Heaven, Earth, and Man, it transformed the attack into the Four Symbols, splitting it once more into four streams.
Then it used the Five Elements Spiritual Objects and the principle of mutual generation and restraint among the Five Elements to completely suppress the surging Volcano of Immortality.
After studying the formation, Donghua clapped his hands in admiration. "A work of genius! Who could have set up such a brilliant formation?"
The formation's true genius lay in how its component arrays blended and complemented one another. It could adapt to the situation, break down an enemy's attack, and keep doing so until the threat was eliminated.
It was a peerless defensive formation.
But Donghua was thinking about something else. If he used the same principle to set up a formation that turned defense into offense, could he gather everyone's power in one place?
"Myriad Immortals Formation?"
The thought made Donghua cry out in surprise.
Yuanfeng asked, "Hmm? What Myriad Immortals Formation?"
Donghua shook his head. "Nothing. You still haven't said who set up this formation, Senior. It truly is a work of genius."
"This formation wasn't the work of one person. Back then, Yin-Yang, Five Elements, Hongjun, and I devised and set it up together."
Donghua nodded in approval.
The formation's brilliance wasn't in its sheer power, but in the way its component arrays complemented and integrated with one another.
As far as Donghua knew, all the formations in the Primordial Wilderness were fairly simple. Nothing this comprehensive had appeared before.
"Senior Yuanfeng, forgive my boldness, but why don't you show yourself?"
For a long while, Yuanfeng didn't answer. Only then did Donghua realize that his question had been rather presumptuous.
A moment later, Yuanfeng's furious voice rang out. "You think I don't want to come out? My body is suppressing the Volcano of Immortality, and the Heavenly Dao has sealed my primordial spirit inside this world to guard it."
"Do you know what it's like to be stuck in one place for more than ten kalpas?"
"Do you know what it's like to do only one thing for more than ten kalpas?"
"Do you know what it's like to be unable to cultivate for more than ten kalpas?"
"If I didn't have my clan members with me, I'd have gone mad long ago!"
The sudden, shrewish outburst startled Donghua, and he took a step back. He thought, This old woman's temper is as fiery as ever. No wonder she got herself locked up.
The world fell quiet. Donghua didn't know what to say. Whatever he said would be awkward.
After a long while, Yuanfeng's voice came again, once more as cool and composed as before.
"I was careless just now. I was corrupted by demonic qi and said some nonsense. You won't repeat it to anyone, will you, fellow Daoist?"
Donghua was taken aback. "Uh, I'm not sure what you mean, Senior. I was studying the formation just now and didn't hear a thing. Did you say something?"
Yuanfeng thought, Good lad. You know how to play along.
The two fell silent again. Neither spoke. Finding the atmosphere unbearably awkward, Donghua lowered his head and resumed studying the formation.
As he studied it more deeply, Donghua understood that the hardest part was connecting and integrating its various arrays.
That required a profound understanding of the Great Dao of Taiji, the Yin-Yang Two Modes, the Three Talents, the Four Symbols, and the Five Elements. Without that, the formation could never have been completed.
As his study continued, Donghua began to recreate the formation inside his Purple Mansion World.
The world of the Volcano of Immortality grew quiet. Only the volcanic magma beneath the land kept pounding against the formation.
More and more red lines appeared across the ground, then were gradually suppressed by the formation. But every impact inflicted damage on it that could never be undone.
Studying the formation improved not only his understanding of formations; his comprehension of the Great Dao Law was advancing by leaps and bounds as well.
Time passed, little by little.
Southern Primordial World.
"Little sister, the Primordial World Continent is practically under the Witch Clan's control now. We should be cultivating diligently. How could you come here so casually? Zhu Rong isn't Houtu. We barely know him."
"Especially you. The Dao Ancestor accepted you as his disciple and bestowed Primordial Violet Qi upon you. You should be comprehending the Hunyuan Great Dao. Why have you suddenly decided to travel around the Primordial Wilderness?"
Two figures approached in the distance, walking lightly without touching the ground.
The man wore a simple blue Daoist robe, and his hair fell loose around his shoulders. He went on and on about something.
The woman wore a bright red robe and red silk stockings, and even her boots were red. A crown adorned her head, giving her a dignified and splendid air.
They were Xi Emperor Fuxi and Empress Nuwa.
"Brother, you've been nagging me the whole way. Are you ever going to stop? I'd been cooped up for too long and suddenly felt the urge to go out. Is that so wrong?"
"Would Zhu Rong even dare cause trouble for me?"
Nuwa looked impatient.
She'd only decided to travel because she couldn't take her brother's nagging anymore. She hadn't expected Fuxi to come along too.
"Look at you. How can a cultivator be so impatient? I've told you so many times—you need to calm your mind, steady your qi..."
Fuxi kept talking, while Nuwa silently used the Art of Closed Hearing. Every so often, she nodded as if to say he was right.
After talking for a while, Fuxi finally stopped, satisfied. He thought his sister had recognized her mistake. As a female cultivator, she shouldn't be so belligerent.
When Nuwa saw that Fuxi had stopped, she ended the Art of Closed Hearing.
"Brother, look—we've traveled all this way, and have I attacked anyone? Don't worry."
What was it like to create a spell just so you wouldn't have to listen to someone nag?
Nuwa knew all about it.
Her brother was wonderful in every way except that he nagged far too much around her. She couldn't understand how someone so refined and gentle with others could be so long-winded with her.
She had left home this time partly to escape his nagging, but she truly had felt a sudden urge to travel too.
Fuxi had also sensed Heaven-Man Induction, but he hadn't expected to run into his sister just as she was sneaking out.
With her current strength, Zhu Rong would be no match for her. Fuxi was confident of that.
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