The Beasts Are Shocked (Seeking Follow-up Reads)

Crossing the mountain gate of Wuzhuang Temple, which appeared simple yet subtly aligned with the Heaven and Earth Ultimate Truth...

A group of newly arrived beings—whether Immortal Cranes, Descendants of Sacred Beasts, Kirin, or Black Tortoises—all unconsciously halted their steps, as if an invisible force had gripped their minds, and even their breathing instinctively stopped.

The scene before them was completely different from any Blessed Land they had imagined or ever witnessed. It was a shock that reached the origin and shook the soul.

The first and most dazzling sight was the colossal creature coiled in the very center of the courtyard, occupying nearly their entire field of vision—a Nine-Clawed Golden Dragon radiating Immeasurable Merit and Xuanhuang Golden Light!

The dragon's body meandered, not stiff like a dead thing, but carried a strange, surging vitality as if it might soar into the sky at any moment.

Each dragon scale was as large as a millstone, with naturally formed patterns that seemed to flow slowly, constantly absorbing and exhaling the spiritual energy of the world, emitting a vast, abyss-like Dragon Might that was also majestic and righteous.

This Dragon Might was not deliberately released but was the natural pressure of its very existence, causing the descendants of the Azure Dragon, who inherited a reverence for the Dragon Clan in their blood, to tremble involuntarily, and other beings to instinctively want to kneel down—a tremor from the absolute gap in life levels.

"This... this is..." The Nine-Headed Lion's eighteen eyes bulged wide, its nine mighty heads lowered in unison, its voice trembling with disbelief. It could feel that even a trace of the aura from this golden dragon was purer and nobler than the oldest Elder in its clan.

Zhenyuanzi stood to the side, his simple and unadorned face showing no ripple, as if the dragon coiled in the courtyard was just an ordinary ornament. He spoke calmly, his voice calm but clearly reaching every being's ears:

"This is no mortal creature. It was formed when Father God Pangu opened the world and fell from exhaustion. His final breath of Origin Aura mixed with Immeasurable World-Opening Merit and Xuanhuang Mother Qi.

Though, by chance and fate, it has not yet nurtured a complete spiritual light of wisdom, it is still a unique treasure in heaven and earth, bearing part of the World-Opening imprint."

These few words exploded like thunder in the minds of all beings! Pangu's Legacy! World-Opening Merit! Xuanhuang Mother Qi!

These terms—they might have only heard a hint of them in fragments of their oldest inherited memories. They were the source of the Primordial World's opening, the foundational power that formed this realm, legendary supreme existences!

Now, so vividly presented before them, the ancient, vast, righteous, and majestic aura contained in the golden light could not be faked.

For a moment, the minds of the demon beings wavered. Their gazes at the golden dragon were filled with indescribable awe and shock, as if they were venerating a living epic of world-opening.

Once their minds slightly pulled away from the shock of the Nine-Clawed Golden Dragon, they could carefully observe the full view of the Wuzhuang Temple courtyard.

This look brought another wave of heart-pounding astonishment. On one side of the courtyard, a divine plantain tree stood gracefully.

Its trunk was a warm azure-jade color, with only four massive leaves, each displaying a fundamentally different origin hue: azure, red, yellow, and blue.

The four leaves moved without wind, swaying slowly, clearly drawing in and circulating the four primal energies of Earth, Water, Fire, and Wind among the branches and leaves, colliding and merging to form a subtle and stable Four Symbols cycle. This resonated with the Five Elements spiritual energy permeating the courtyard, evolving into infinite mysteries.

The Four Symbols Power was so pure that the four named Descendants of Sacred Beasts—Azure Dragon, Vermilion Bird, White Tiger, and Black Tortoise—felt their blood surge with immense familiarity and longing.

Next to the Four Symbols Plantain Tree, another spiritual root drew all eyes—a climbing gourd vine, its vines a vivid green, as if carved from the finest jade, with thick leaves and spiritual light flickering in their veins.

But the most eye-catching were the seven gourds hanging from the vine. These seven gourds varied in size and slightly in shape, but each shimmered with treasure light and Dao Charm Natural:

The Red Gourd, its body like burning sunset clouds, with cloud-like patterns faintly appearing and disappearing on its surface, emitting an aura of both scorching heat and ethereal mystery;

The Orange Gourd, its color thick and warm, giving a feeling as steady and reliable as the great earth, as if it could bear all things;

The Yellow Gourd, with its sharpness hidden within, faintly emitting sounds of metal clashing, its keen edge seeming able to cut through the void;

The Green Gourd, bursting with the most vitality, as if containing a spring, breathing in the joy of plant growth with every inhale;

The Azure Gourd, with fine wind swirls naturally forming around it, cloud and mist entwined, carrying a Dao charm of freedom and change;

The Blue Gourd, shrouded in water vapor, its surface seeming covered by a flowing film of water, with faint sounds of tides rising and falling;

The Purple Gourd, the most mysterious, its color deep, with occasional flashes of lightning across its surface, emitting a heart-stopping aura of intertwined destruction and new birth.

Seven gourds, seven colors, seven kinds of Dao charm, like seven brilliant stars adorning the jade-like vine, forming a profoundly mysterious painting.

And the entire space inside Wuzhuang Temple was itself a world unto itself.

The Innate Wu Tu Essence Qi, so dense it nearly materialized, wrapped around every being like a warm mother, making them feel grounded and at peace;

At the same time, a fresh, vibrant Wood Qi, full of life, originating from Lord Wanshouyuan and the other spiritual plants in the courtyard, flowed like a gentle stream within the Wu Tu Essence Qi, merging with it.

These two seemingly different types of Qi achieved a perfect balance and symbiosis here.

Thus, beings cultivating here could both feel the heavy support of the earth, drawing infinite power, and bathe in the thriving vitality of life, nourishing their spirits and comprehending the path of growth. With every breath, their magical power seemed to spontaneously condense and increase.

Just as the demon beings were immersed in this unimaginable cultivation sanctuary, Zhenyuanzi spoke again, breaking the silence:

"Since you have entered my sect, you are destined. From today onward, you all may freely enter and leave the inner and outer courtyards of Wuzhuang Temple, using this Blessed Land to cultivate."

As his words fell, he lightly flicked his sleeves. Several fine yet condensed earthen-yellow spiritual lights shot out, precisely entering the Cinnabar Field between the brows of each newly initiated being.

The demon beings only felt a slight tremor in their Sea of Consciousness. A profound technique was clearly imprinted—one that included how to sense, identify, and safely pass through the key nodes of the Innate Great Earth Formation surrounding Wuzhuang Temple, and how to use the formation's aura to conceal themselves, avoiding detection by external enemies.

This technique was not complex, but it directly pointed to the core operation of the formation. If not personally taught by Zhenyuanzi, outsiders would find it impossible to glimpse its path.