This Merit Golden Light was dazzling, pure, and flawless, containing the supreme reward bestowed by the Great Desolation World for the greatest achievement since Heaven and Earth Creation: the creation of the human race!
Its quantity was unprecedented, and its quality was incomparable!
The moment the Merit Golden Light appeared, it instantly drew the attention of every great power in the entire Great Desolation World!
Kunlun Mountain, Jade Void Palace.
The Three Pure Ones were discussing the Dao.
Laozi sat upright upon the Wind Fire Cushion, the Heaven and Earth Mysterious Yellow Exquisite Pagoda above his head pouring down countless streams of Mysterious Yellow Qi. His expression remained as calm as an ancient well.
Primordial Heavenly Venerate held the Three Treasures Jade Ruyi. His face was as refined as jade, three wisps of long beard drifted beneath his chin, and his bearing was profoundly majestic.
Sect Master Tongtian carried the Green Ping Sword on his back. With sword-like brows and starry eyes, he cut a dashing figure, while the sword qi around him remained hidden and unspent.
At that moment, all three sensed something. Their gazes pierced through endless space and fell upon the direction of Buzhou Mountain.
A trace of understanding and satisfaction appeared on Laozi's placid face. He nodded slightly. "Junior Sister Nuwa has finally attained the Dao."
A glint flashed through Primordial Heavenly Venerate's eyes, carrying a hint of complicated emotion. "Creating the human race is a merit beyond measure, and it has actually drawn such favor from Heaven! We, the true descendants of Pangu, must also rise up!"
Sect Master Tongtian clapped his hands and laughed loudly, sword qi soaring into the heavens. "Haha! Excellent! What an outstanding Junior Sister Nuwa! The Dao of Creation possesses such power! My Dao is not alone!"
In the west, Spirit Mountain.
Beside the Eight Treasures Merit Pool, Daoist Jieyin looked sallow and thin, the sorrow on his face even deeper as the Twelve-petal Merit Golden Lotus bloomed with boundless golden light.
Daoist Zhunti held the Seven Treasures Wonderful Tree, his eyes filled with shock and barely concealed envy.
"Senior Brother! Junior Sister Nuwa actually attained sainthood through creating the human race! This merit... this merit..." Zhunti's voice trembled.
Daoist Jieyin let out a long sigh, his expression full of compassion for the world. "Infinite Life Buddha! Junior Sister Nuwa possesses great compassion and great wisdom. Such boundless merit is only rightfully hers. The West is barren, and our path is arduous. We must cultivate even more diligently!" His tone carried deep longing.
Sun Star, Demon Emperor Palace.
Dijun and Taiyi sat high above.
The River Diagram and Luo Book floated before Dijun, evolving the Stars of the Heavens.
The Chaos Bell rose and fell in Taiyi's hand, suppressing primordial chaos.
At that moment, the two brothers rose to their feet at the same time, unable to contain their wild delight!
"Heaven blesses the Demon Clan! Heaven blesses the Demon Clan!" Dijun's voice trembled with excitement. "Empress Nuwa has become a Saint! This is the supreme glory of our Demon Clan! From this day onward, our Demon Clan has a Saint! Why should we fear the Witch Clan?!"
Taiyi stroked the Chaos Bell, battle intent blazing in his eyes. "Brother! With Empress Nuwa becoming a Saint, the destiny of our Demon Clan will surely soar! The Witch Clan's end is near! Summon all demons at once to celebrate the Saint!"
Pangu Hall.
The Twelve Ancestral Witches had gathered.
Dijiang, Zhu Jiuyin, Empress Houtu, and the other Ancestral Witches all wore grave expressions.
"Nuwa has become a Saint..." Dijiang spoke in a low voice as spatial power rippled faintly around him. "She is the Demon Clan's Wa Emperor. This Saint position is unfavorable to our Witch Clan!"
The River of Time flowed through Zhu Jiuyin's eyes, and his tone carried concern. "The human race has only just been born and appears weak, yet it has received Heaven's favor... The future holds unpredictable variables."
Empress Houtu furrowed her delicate brows slightly. Looking at the newborn humans, a trace of compassion and contemplation flashed through her eyes. "This race... has a balanced nature... perhaps..."
The Sea of Blood's Nether River, Wuzhuang Temple's Zhenyuanzi, Northern Sea's Kunpeng...
Great powers cultivating in seclusion throughout the Great Desolation, whether righteous or evil, regardless of faction, were all shaken by the vast Merit Golden Light and the Saintly Pressure that followed!
Some were startled, some delighted, some worried, some fearful, some envious, some jealous... Their emotions were varied beyond count.
Buzhou Mountain Valley.
The boundless Mysterious Yellow Merit descended with a thunderous crash, like the Milky Way bursting through a dam!
Seventy percent of it poured into Nuwa's body without the slightest suspense!
Buzz!
Boundless saintly light bloomed around Nuwa!
A supreme aura that stood above Heaven, Earth, and all living beings—eternal, indestructible, and immune to all calamities—erupted with a roar!
The auspicious cloud above her head churned. Three Flowers Gathering at the Crown and Five Qi Facing the Origin all transformed into a chaotic auspicious cloud, containing the mysteries of creation and evolving a Great Thousand World!
The Primordial Chaos Dao Fruit was achieved at this moment!
Empress Nuwa had attained the Dao and become a Saint!
Saintly Pressure instantly swept across the entire Great Desolation!
Heaven and Earth became solemn, and all things bowed their heads!
At that moment, every living being in the Great Desolation World, no matter where they were or how high or low their cultivation, felt instinctive reverence and submission rise from the depths of their lives!
Unable to restrain themselves, they bowed toward Buzhou Mountain!
"Greetings, Saint Nuwa!"
"May the Saint enjoy boundless longevity!"
Thoughts like roaring mountains and crashing seas converged into a torrent that resounded throughout the Great Desolation!
Nuwa stood amid saintly light, her face compassionate and solemn as she accepted the worship of all beings.
Feeling the endless, unfathomable power of a Saint within her, her heart became utterly clear.
The remaining thirty percent of the merit did not disperse.
Five percent transformed into a dazzling golden torrent and poured into the gourd vine in Nuwa's hand, still covered in Divine Creation Clay!
Buzz!
The gourd vine trembled violently!
Its originally verdant body was instantly dyed Mysterious Yellow. Countless Merit Runes flowed across it and branded themselves into its surface!
A heavy aura of resilience, creation, protection, and the bearing of Human Race Destiny spread outward!
The Houtian Merit Supreme Treasure—the Human-Creating Whip—was formed!
Another ten percent of the merit transformed into a smaller yet equally pure pillar of golden light that fell directly upon Dao Xuan!
Dao Xuan had long been prepared. He immediately sat cross-legged and fully circulated the orthodox Xuanmen cultivation method!
Vast merit entered his body!
He had already reached the perfected realm of Grand Unity Golden Immortal, only one step away from severing a corpse.
Now, this incomparably pure merit from creating the human race was like the sharpest blade of Dao laws and the most fitting guiding lamp!
In an instant, it illuminated the solid mystic barrier deep within his primordial spirit!
"The path of the Three Corpses lies in understanding one's heart and nature, entrusting one's obsessions!"
Dao Xuan's thoughts became clear, and enlightenment came naturally.
Within his primordial spirit, a point of pure, flawless spiritual light containing all of his thoughts of "good" suddenly separated under the envelopment and propulsion of merit power!
"Sever!"
Dao Xuan shouted softly in his heart!
Buzz!
That point of good-intent spiritual light, carrying a great amount of merit, instantly surged out of his primordial spirit!
At the same time, Dao Xuan did not hesitate to bring forth his Supreme-grade Innate Spiritual Treasure—the Four Symbols Banana Fan!
The good-intent spiritual light and merit seemed to find the most perfect vessel, instantly sinking into the Banana Fan!
Boom!
The Banana Fan erupted with unprecedented dazzling light!
The source powers of earth, fire, wind, and water surged, intertwined, and sublimated madly!
Under the catalysis of merit power and the pull of Dao Xuan's corpse-severing Dao laws, four phantom figures gradually condensed upon the fan's surface. Their faces bore a seventy to eighty percent resemblance to Dao Xuan's, yet their temperaments differed greatly!
One figure wore an earthen-yellow Daoist robe, with an honest face and an aura as steady as a mountain, controlling the source of earth!
One figure wore a crimson Daoist robe, his brows soaring and his aura blazing like fire, controlling the source of fire!
One figure wore a pale-green Daoist robe, his form elegant and unrestrained, his aura nimble as the wind, controlling the source of wind!
One figure wore a dark-black Daoist robe, his gaze deep and his aura vast as water, controlling the source of water!
All four figures were formed from the source of Dao Xuan's Good Corpse, entrusted to the Four Symbols Banana Fan, a special Supreme-grade Innate Spiritual Treasure containing the source powers of the Four Symbols!
The Good Corpse was severed!
And it had been severed into four!
The four figures bowed in unison toward Dao Xuan's Main Body. "Greetings, Main Body!"
They then transformed into four streaks of light and entered Dao Xuan's auspicious cloud, concealing themselves within the Three Flowers as they silently comprehended the Dao of the Four Symbols and tempered their origins.
Dao Xuan's aura instantly surged!
A mysterious Dao rhyme that surpassed Grand Unity Golden Immortal and stood above ordinary early-stage Quasi-Saints spread outward!
The Quasi-Saint realm had been achieved!
And he had entered it through such a unique method!
Dao Xuan opened his eyes. Divine light was contained within them, deep as an abyss, adding another trace of detachment from the mortal world to his bearing. Feeling the completely different power within his body and his clearer control over the laws of Heaven and Earth, joy filled his heart.
Just as Dao Xuan successfully severed his corpse and the Merit Golden Light was about to dissipate completely—
That remaining thread of merit did not return directly to Heaven and Earth. Instead, as if drawn by some unseen force, it transformed into a fine yet equally pure rain of golden light and drifted down upon Gourd Baby, who stood behind Dao Xuan with wide eyes, curiously watching everything!
Gourd Baby only felt warmth spread through his entire body!
A stirring from the depths of his bloodline was instantly awakened!
The gourd vine Nuwa had used to create humans was precisely the mother root that had nurtured his Seven-Colored Gourd!
The mother root had absorbed the merit of creating humans and advanced into the Houtian Merit Supreme Treasure, the Human-Creating Whip. Its source aura was connected to Gourd Baby's bloodline, sharing the same origin and root!
At this moment, that thread of merit from creating humans was Heaven's additional reward for the mother root's nurturing contribution, as well as a natural gift arising from their connected bloodline!
Buzz!
Dazzling seven-colored radiance erupted around Gourd Baby!
The innate origin within his body circulated, grew, and sublimated at an unprecedented speed under the nourishment of merit power!
The bottleneck that had restrained him at the late Golden Immortal stage was pierced as easily as thin paper under the impetus of this pure merit and bloodline resonance!
A stronger, more complete aura rose from Gourd Baby's small body!
Seven-colored treasure light circulated endlessly within him, faintly showing signs of evolving a small world of its own!
Grand Unity Golden Immortal, early stage!
"Ah!" Gourd Baby felt his whole body brimming with strength. He cried out in comfort, his little face flushed red and his large eyes filled with delight. "Teacher! I feel... I feel so powerful! It's like I can hold even more delicious food!"
Seeing this, Dao Xuan's eyes flashed with surprise and understanding.
"Good! This is the merit of your mother root's creation, blessed by Heaven. You should indeed have this opportunity!"
Golden Peng and Six-Eared Macaque stared from the side, dumbfounded, their envy written all over their faces.
Six-Eared Macaque in particular looked at the seven-colored treasure light flowing around Gourd Baby and the aura of an early-stage Grand Unity Golden Immortal, then glanced at his own early-stage Celestial Immortal cultivation. All six of his ears drooped as he thought to himself:
"Sure enough, being reborn into the right family... no, being rooted in the right place is a technical skill!"
"Congratulations, Nephew Disciple, on severing your Good Corpse and entering the Quasi-Saint realm! And congratulations to Gourd Baby for receiving such fortune and advancing to Grand Unity Golden Immortal!"
Saint Nuwa's voice arrived with a trace of praise. She had naturally seen the uniqueness of Dao Xuan's corpse severance and the reason behind Gourd Baby's advancement.
"It was entirely due to Uncle-Master's creation. This disciple was merely fortunate." Dao Xuan hurriedly rose and bowed respectfully.
At this point, the vast Merit Golden Light finally dissipated completely.
Only solemn Saintly Might remained in the valley, along with the 129,600 newborn humans.
They stood there in confusion, their pure eyes filled with boundless affection for Nuwa and bewilderment toward this unfamiliar world.
After looking at these newborn humans, Nuwa's delicate brows furrowed once more after her initial joy.
With a single thought, a Saint could comprehend countless realms.
She instantly understood the frailty of the human race.
This newly born race was weak and powerless, without divine abilities, unaware of the Five Grains, and ignorant of the Timing of the Heavens. How could they survive in this perilous Great Desolation, where the strong devoured the weak?
Although she had become a Saint, even Saints could not excessively interfere with a race's development beneath the Heavenly Dao. The human race, in particular, had arisen in accordance with destiny and possessed its own path of growth.
If she kept the humans by her side and protected them, it would instead be inappropriate and might deprive them of their chance for Constant Self-Improvement.
"Alas..." Nuwa sighed softly. Her Sage's Heart was full of compassion as she looked upon the humans, who were like her own children. For a moment, she found herself at a loss.
Dao Xuan observed her expression and immediately understood.
He stepped forward once more and bowed deeply to Saint Nuwa. "Uncle-Master has attained the Primordial Chaos Dao Fruit and should establish a Daoist temple in chaos to comprehend the supreme Great Dao.
"This newborn human race is born of Uncle-Master's painstaking efforts and is also the hope of the Great Desolation's future.
"This disciple is untalented, but I am willing to watch over the human race for Uncle-Master for a time, guide them in multiplying and living, and teach them the ways of survival, so that they may gain a foothold in the Great Desolation and not fail Uncle-Master's grace of creation!"
Nuwa's beautiful eyes lit up at his words!
Dao Xuan's proposal was exactly what she desired!
Dao Xuan was the First Disciple of Xuanmen, Laozi's direct disciple, and now he had severed a corpse and entered the Quasi-Saint realm. His cultivation was profound, his character upright, and he had considerable ties to the human race's birth. No one could be more suitable to care for them!
"Good! Very good!" Nuwa smiled brightly, saintly light shining around her. "Nephew Disciple, you are thoughtful! This is the human race's fortune!"
She raised her jade-like hand, and the Human-Creating Whip, which had just advanced into a Houtian Merit Supreme Treasure, transformed into a streak of Mysterious Yellow light and flew into Dao Xuan's hand.
"This whip followed me in creating humans and gained boundless merit. It has become a Houtian Merit Supreme Treasure, incomparably resilient. It can strike evil demons, and it is connected to Human Race Destiny.
"Today, I grant it to you. First, to help you protect the human race. Second, to spur the human race toward Constant Self-Improvement. Third... consider it Uncle-Master's gift of thanks to you."
Dao Xuan accepted the Human-Creating Whip. It felt warm and smooth in his hand, and he could faintly sense its connection to Human Race Destiny. He could also feel the resonance of the Dao flowing within it—unyielding resilience and the vitality of creation. Great joy filled his heart.
"Thank you, Uncle-Master, for bestowing this treasure! This disciple will certainly not fail your trust!"
Nuwa nodded with a smile, then looked toward the bewildered humans. Her voice was gentle yet carried a saintly decree, resounding within every human heart:
"You have only just been born. You must strive for Constant Self-Improvement, revere Heaven and Earth, and respect your teachers and the Dao.
"From this day onward, Nephew Disciple Dao Xuan will guide you. You must follow his teachings as though you were honoring me."
"We obey the Holy Mother's decree!" The 129,600 humans all knelt before Nuwa and Dao Xuan. Though their voices were childish, they converged into a newborn strength.
Nuwa's heart eased somewhat.
Just then.
A clear and melodious phoenix cry came from the horizon!
Screech—!
A magnificent azure luan appeared, surrounded by azure divine light and trailing long, splendid tail feathers as it flew in from beyond the Ninth Heaven!
It seemed drawn by the boundless saintly light and aura of creation surrounding Nuwa. It flew directly into the valley, circling and dancing around her with graceful movements full of joy and submission.
Looking at this highly spiritual azure luan with its pure bloodline, Nuwa's Sage's Heart stirred.
"You are fated with me. Are you willing to become my mount and accompany me into chaos?"
Upon hearing this, the azure luan gave a cheerful cry, folded its wings, and landed obediently before Nuwa, lowering its noble head.
Nuwa lightly stepped onto the blue luan's back.
The blue luan let out a long cry, spreading its wings to take flight.
Nuwa gave Dao Xuan and the human race one final look, her voice ethereal and carrying Saintly intent. "Nephew-disciple, I shall establish the 'Wa Imperial Palace' in the Deep Chaos. Once my Daoist sanctuary has been successfully established, I will lecture on the Great Dao of Creation. When that time comes, you may bring your disciples to witness the ceremony and hear the Dao."
"This disciple respectfully sees off Martial Aunt! I will certainly go to the Wa Imperial Palace to hear your Saintly teachings!" Dao Xuan said, bowing in farewell.
The blue luan flapped its wings, carrying Nuwa Saint as it transformed into a streak of azure light. In an instant, it pierced through the Thirty-Three Heavens and vanished into the boundless Deep Chaos.
The Saintly Might gradually faded.
Only Dao Xuan and his three disciples, the Five Spirit Qilin, and the 129,600 newly born humans remained in the valley.
Holding the Human-Creating Whip, its black-and-yellow radiance flowing, Dao Xuan gazed at the vast group of newborn humans before him, ignorant yet full of hope. Feeling the surging power of his early Quasi-Saint cultivation, heroic ambition rose within him.
Gourd Baby bounced excitedly at his side, seven-colored divine light flowing around him. Though his Grand Unity Golden Immortal aura was immature, his potential was limitless.
Golden Peng and Six-Eared were equally filled with drive.
The great trend of the prehistoric world was upon them—the human race was destined to rise!
And he, Dao Xuan, would be the first guide upon the path of their rise!
"Come, children." Dao Xuan's voice was gentle yet firm, echoing through the valley. "Follow your master and find a place where we can settle and survive."
He gently patted the qilin.
The Five Spirit Qilin gave a low roar, and auspicious clouds lifted Dao Xuan aloft.
Gourd Baby rode the Seven-Colored Gourd, its precious light growing even brighter.
Golden Peng assumed his true form as the Golden-Winged Great Peng.
The Six-Eared Macaque followed close behind.
With a sweep of the Human-Creating Whip, Dao Xuan released a gentle force that enveloped the 129,600 humans.
Led by Dao Xuan, the mighty procession slowly left the legendary valley where the Saint and the human race had been born, heading toward a future that belonged to them—one filled with the unknown and with hope.
The legend of Buzhou Mountain gained another bold, brilliant stroke.
Before you continue