Merit Reflects the Primordial Wilderness, Sacred Might Arrives in Heaven and Earth

No earth-shattering momentum—only a strike that embodied the ultimate simplicity of the Great Dao.

A blow refined to the extreme, imbued with the artistic conception of tracing origins, as if ignoring the barriers of time and space, it met the world-destroying Ten Thousand Evils Fallen God claw head-on.

At the same time, merit manifested behind Donghua. There was no anticipated stalemate, no violent explosion of energy, no frenzied clash of laws.

Before the Yang Yuan Dao Jie, which contained the power to trace all things back to their origins, the giant claw formed from ten thousand ages of sin and Sha Qi seemed to encounter its natural nemesis.

Where the attack passed, the wailing phantom shadows of Chaos Demon Gods silently annihilated like bubbles; the vast Sha Qi, potent enough to defile all laws, was utterly purified by the supremely pure and yang power of origin-tracing; the sharp claw light that tore through time and space, along with the violent will it carried, was all returned to nothingness, resolved by the Dao into the most primordial Chaos Qi.

Qiongqi's desperate, all-out strike, before this ruler light that seemed to symbolize ultimate purity and yang, could not halt it even a fraction—it was split apart from the middle and completely scattered!

The unspent force of Yang Yuan Dao Jie, like a great sun purifying the world, did not pause after shattering the Ten Thousand Evils Bone Claw, but continued to surge toward Qiongqi's true body.

In an instant, Qiongqi's massive beast form suddenly froze.

There was no earth-shattering explosion, no tragic, bloody fragments.

Before the power of Yang Yuan Dao Jie, which touched the very source of existence, its very being began to be "erased."

Its protective Sha Qi melted like snow before this light; its indestructible hide, flesh, and blood disintegrated inch by inch, as if erased from the level of existence by an irresistible law.

Its roar, mixed with shock, fury, and unwillingness, still echoed between heaven and earth, yet its source had already ceased to exist.

In but a moment, the once-overwhelming, storm-stirring beast king Qiongqi—every trace of its existence was thoroughly and cleanly erased from this world by the supremely pure and yang, all-ending power of Dao Jie.

Form, Primordial Spirit, and true spirit all returned to nothingness.

In the void, only the pure nothingness left behind by that ruler light remained, along with the briefly purified, bright world below.

Donghua stood with his hands behind his back, gazing into the distance at the place where Qiongqi had been annihilated. The Sha Qi between heaven and earth had completely dispersed, returning to clarity.

He felt the Dao rhythm flowing unceasingly through this world and sighed softly:

"When fortune comes, heaven and earth lend their strength; when fortune departs... even a hero is not free."

As his words fell, the clouds thinned and the wind was light.

That once-rampaging beast Qiongqi had ultimately become nothing more than a wisp of tribulation ash under this capricious fate.

Without attaining the Dao, one is but an ant. No matter how peerless your grace, how overwhelming your might, when the Great Tribulation descends, you still cannot escape the fate of "when fortune departs, even a hero is not free."

Donghua's gaze grew deeper and more resolute. The dormant Magic Power within his body began to flow and resonate in ways never before seen.

The path he would walk was by no means the ordinary Quasi-Saint path.

Only Hunyuan!

Only by treading the Hunyuan Path of becoming a Dao unto oneself could he sever all karmic bonds, truly control his own destiny, attain great freedom, great liberation, and prove great transcendence!

With this thought, his Dao Heart became clear and pure, with no further hesitation.

Just as Donghua's mind turned and his Dao Heart grew ever firmer, the heavenly reward for slaying the primordial beast arrived as scheduled.

Perhaps because among the slain beasts was the primordial Qiongqi, a being of immense karmic sin, the merit descending from heaven this time was even more vast than Donghua had anticipated.

The boundless heavenly might descended from the void, and the entire sky of the Extreme North Land was instantly shrouded in endless golden auspicious light.

Layers upon layers of merit-gold clouds surged and gathered; streams of auspicious energy poured down like the Heavenly River in reverse, illuminating this desolate land, which had been shrouded in Sha Qi for countless kalpas, with a brilliant, clear radiance.

This magnificent merit phenomenon instantly stirred the entire Primordial World. Countless Innate Divine Beings were jolted from their cultivation, their divine thoughts breaking through the void to probe this sudden, earth-shaking change in the north.

The boundless golden merit light scattered down. Seventy percent of it formed a single, most majestic golden torrent, completely engulfing Donghua's figure.

Another twenty percent flowed like a gentle stream into Taizhen beside him. The final ten percent silently seeped into the dry, shattered earth veins of the Extreme North below, nourishing this long-suffering land.

And as the power of merit cleansed the void, the thick, pervasive Sha Qi was briefly dispersed. Several ancient Innate Great Arrays, hidden deep within the Sha Qi and exuding an archaic aura, revealed their faint outlines.

Donghua stood still, bathed in the dense Merit Golden Light, a sacred aura flowing powerfully around him.

He did not rush to absorb this heavenly merit. With a mere thought, he stored the vast amount of merit deep within his body, to be used in the future.

"Perhaps, in the future, I can use this to condense a Golden Wheel of Merit." Donghua's mind stirred, and his gaze turned to the several Innate Great Arrays that had been revealed by the cleansing merit.

Donghua was about to move and collect the spirit treasures within those arrays, but at that very moment!

An indescribably vast, oppressive pressure descended from beyond the endless heavens, instantly enveloping the entire Primordial World Heaven and Earth!

Time and space seemed to freeze; all things fell silent. Mountains and Rivers bowed their heads, rivers ceased to flow. The Billions of Living Beings of the Primordial World, whether immortal or mortal, all felt from the depths of their souls a reverence as tiny as a speck of dust, an uncontrollable urge to kneel and prostrate.

Donghua and Taizhen also felt their bodies sink, the pressure like the nine heavens collapsing, crashing straight down.

Fortunately, the Merit Golden Light around them had not yet dissipated, circulating unceasingly, resisting this overwhelming, irresistible saintly might, so they did not lose their composure.

The next moment, ethereal yet clear Dao Sounds, seeming to resound from both the past and the future simultaneously, echoed through every inch of void, shaking the endless Primordial World:

"Reclining high on nine-layered clouds, on a mat I comprehend the true Dao."

"Beyond the realm of Heaven and Earth, I am the Lord of the Teachings."

"Pangu gave birth to the Supreme Ultimate; Two Forms and Four Symbols follow."

"One Dao passed to three friends; two teachings, Chan and Jie, divide."

"Leader of the Mystic Gate, one Qi transforms into Hongjun."

The Dao Sounds lingered, their echoes unending.

Then, that grand voice resounded once more through heaven and earth, proclaiming to all the Primordial World:

"This Seat is Hongjun. Today I have attained the Way and become a sage. Ten thousand years hence, beyond the heavens in the Chaos, I shall expound the Great Dao within the Purple Cloud Palace. All who are fated may come and listen."

As the final word of the Dao Sound fell, the terrifying pressure that had shrouded heaven and earth receded like a tide, slowly fading away.

Heaven and earth returned to stillness, as if all that had passed was but a dream.

Only the Dao Sound echoing in the hearts of all beings, and those three words—"Purple Cloud Palace"—were deeply engraved into the consciousness of every living creature.

Taizhen let out a soft breath, her beautiful eyes filled with solemnity. She gazed toward the heavens beyond, her voice light yet carrying a trace of understanding: "Is this the realm above Daluo? Like the vault of heaven collapsing, making us realize that a firefly is but a mote before the Bright Moon."

She exchanged a glance with Donghua, and both saw the shock in each other's eyes—and the deeper longing for the Great Dao that had been kindled within them.

Donghua looked into the depths of the Chaos, his gaze profound. "It seems the matter of acquiring the spirit treasure must be set aside for now. Attending the sermon at the Purple Cloud Palace is the urgent priority."

He brushed his sleeve lightly, his tone grave: "Ten thousand years pass in the blink of an eye, and the Chaos is fraught with peril. We must set out at once."