Of Pangu's nine Divine Hearts, eight shattered when he opened the heavens and split the earth. Only this one remained, suspended alone in Pangu Hall, concealed in the void as it awaited its moment.
Pangu's Heart Blood had dripped continuously, and only after countless Yuan Hui had passed had it gradually formed this enormous Blood Pool. Born alongside Pangu Hall, the Blood Pool absorbed the world's Malevolent Qi during the Dragon-Han Tribulation, giving rise to the Twelve Ancestral Witches. Only then was the Witch Clan able to come into being.
Thus, compared with the other top-tier Innate Divine Demons who had cultivated their primordial spirits, Dijiang and the others had been born much later. For instance, the Three Pure Ones, also Descendants of Pangu, had taken form far earlier, thanks to the Merit of Opening the Heavens.
East King Duke brought out the Eighteen-grade Yin-Yang Dao Lotus and sat upon it, then immediately began his cultivation. Earlier, when he had left his Mount Fang Island dojo, his only intention in visiting the Witch Clan had been to investigate the situation and make some plans for the coming Witch-Demon Calamity. He had also perhaps intended to befriend Houtu Ancestral Witch.
But when he had arrived outside Pangu Hall and seen those three mysterious Dao Scripts, something else had stirred within his primordial spirit. That was why he had asked Dijiang about Pangu's Divine Heart.
He had asked to pay his respects to Pangu's Divine Heart, first because he was following the prompting of his primordial spirit, and second because he wanted to comprehend Pangu's True Meaning. The three Dao Scripts on Pangu Hall had retained Pangu's might; how much more so would this Divine Heart?
Moreover, the Malevolent Qi inside Pangu Inner Hall was astonishing. It was also an ideal place to temper his body.
He had only ten years to cultivate, so he could not afford to waste any of them. East King Duke sat steadily on the lotus platform and immediately entered meditation.
Supreme Yang Power drew in streams of Malevolent Qi, tempering his body as he pondered the artistic conception of Pangu's Dao through the beating of the Divine Heart.
"Thump, thump!"
"Drip, drip!"
Pangu's Divine Heart beat without pause, as though it carried a wondrous artistic conception that drew East King Duke's heartbeat along with it. Little by little, their rhythms became one. Guided by the Divine Heart, his Spiritual Sense seemed to seep into that vast artistic conception, diminished though it was to less than one ten-thousandth of its original size.
For several years, he sat with his eyes closed, his mind focused, and his Dao body motionless. Yet one mysterious Divine Pattern after another continually appeared and took shape around him. Suddenly, Pangu's True Meaning manifested within the Divine Heart, and Dao Scripts flew out, straight into East King Duke's primordial spirit.
The Dao Scripts kept rearranging themselves, gradually forming line after line of Dao Words. Before long, a Pangu Divine Method appeared within East King Duke's primordial spirit.
"Illusion, Suppress, Shatter, Annihilate!"
The Four Character Pangu Great Dao True Seal was etched into his primordial spirit and could not be erased.
East King Duke was overjoyed. This was what he had gained over the past several years: an unsurpassed Dao Seal comprehended from Pangu's True Meaning. Dao Intent Spiritual Power took the form of a sealing art, and these Four Character True Seal were Pangu Dao Intent Spiritual Power, possessing extraordinary might.
To have gained such a harvest in only a few short years could only be a blessing from Great God Pangu. He was completely satisfied. And that was not all: the Malevolent Qi transformed from Pangu's Heart Blood had been incredibly pure. With its help, he had raised his physical body to match the Late-stage Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal realm of his primordial spirit.
He had now achieved everything he had set out to do. There was still some time before the ten-year agreement ended, but East King Duke decided to leave early.
Just as he was about to put away the Dao Lotus, he felt the Yin-Yang Two Qi beneath him surge, as if something had drawn them out. The treasure suddenly slipped from his control and carried him toward the Divine Heart in the Blood Pool.
East King Duke was horrified. He was about to cast a spell to steady himself, but discovered he could not resist at all. He was aghast, and soon found himself flying above the Divine Heart.
Suddenly, an inexplicable Dao Sound came from within the Divine Heart. A formless consciousness surged into his sea of awareness. In an instant, his vision went black, and he lost consciousness.
Perhaps it was only for a moment; perhaps a long time had passed. When East King Duke regained consciousness, he found himself in a pitch-black place, surrounded by chaos.
Suddenly, he noticed a speck of light ahead. Instinctively, he flew toward it. The light grew brighter and brighter. He did not know how long he had flown before he saw a burly man spanning the darkness, gripping a gleaming giant axe in both hands.
The burly man let out a mighty shout.
"My Great Dao is clear!"
With that, he swung the giant axe in his hands and struck. One blow, then two... The surrounding chaos slowly shattered...
"This is the scene of Pangu opening the heavens!"
East King Duke suddenly realized that he was in the chaos before Heaven and Earth had been created, and that the figure before him was none other than Pangu. Yet even though he was so close, Great God Pangu seemed completely unaware of his presence.
He soon understood, more or less. This was not a real scene, but one conjured from Pangu's True Meaning within the Divine Heart. But why had Pangu's artistic conception shown him the scene of the heavens being opened? He had no idea.
By then, Pangu had completely split apart the chaotic space. Clear Qi rose, forming a vast sky, while turbid Qi sank, forming an endless earth. The Primordial World gradually took shape.
The newly formed Heaven and Earth were ravaged by Earth, Fire, Wind, and Water, which sought to reunite them and return them to chaos. Pangu tossed his giant axe into the air and breathed a stream of clear Qi onto it. In an instant, it transformed into three supreme treasures.
The Taiji Diagram evolved into an endless Golden Bridge, stabilizing the sky. The Pangu Banner hung in midair, waving again and again to dispel the baleful Qi that filled the heavens. The Chaos Bell fell to the ground and rang nine times, forcefully stabilizing the Earth Veins. Earth, Fire, Wind, and Water were instantly subdued.
Pangu landed in the newly opened world, planted his feet on the earth, and held up the sky. Then he shouted, and his body grew even taller. With each passing day, the sky rose a zhang, and the earth grew a zhang thicker. After who knew how many years, Heaven and Earth had been fully separated and settled into their final form. Thus, the act of opening the heavens was complete.
Up to this point, the scene of Heaven and Earth being opened was exactly as the rumors described. Watching from the sidelines, East King Duke felt his primordial spirit tremble, and was overcome with excitement.
But soon, the scene changed. It became entirely different from the legends. When he heard what Pangu was murmuring, East King Duke was stunned.
East King Duke's Dao body shuddered, and he suddenly opened his eyes. He found himself once again beside the pool of Pangu's Heart Blood. The scene of the heavens being opened, conjured from Pangu's True Meaning, had lasted countless years, but when he returned and calculated the time, only an instant had passed.
"So this is the truth behind the Mystery of Heaven Opening!"
Staring blankly at Pangu's Heart, restored to its former state before him, East King Duke remained shaken for a long time.
They had been wrong. The legends about the opening of the heavens were wrong, both in his previous life and this one!
The truth behind Pangu's opening of the heavens, the true reason he had transformed into all things, was even more astonishing than the legends claimed.
Considering the truth behind the opening of the heavens, East King Duke felt that he might need to make a slight adjustment to the Dao Path he had planned. In this life, his journey would surely reach beyond this Primordial Great Land.
East King Duke remained in Pangu Inner Hall for the full ten years. When he left that space, Houtu was already waiting outside.
"Fellow Daoist, you're out."
"Ten years have passed. I haven't overstayed my welcome, have I?"
East King Duke's expression was now completely calm. He had long since decided to keep this encounter, and all he had heard and seen, buried deep within himself.
"Your timing is perfect. Our Witch Clan has decided to adopt your method. My brothers and sisters are waiting in the front hall, and they'd like to ask you for some guidance."
East King Duke returned to the front hall of Pangu Hall, where he met up with Queen Mother of the West. He and the Twelve Ancestral Witches did not talk for long. In less than a hundred years, the two of them took their leave.
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