Pure Rebel, Confirmed

But if he didn't strike Tongtian, setting aside fairness, Qing Xuan himself felt it would be incomplete. So he directly said one word, "Deserves punishment."

Then he swung the ruler once, striking Tongtian so hard he fell to his knees. Two more "Deserves punishment" followed, accompanied naturally by two more strikes.

Kneeling on the ground, Tongtian felt nothing but grievance. He thought to himself, When you hit Eldest Brother and Second Brother, at least you had an excuse. How come when it's my turn, it's just those two words, "Deserves punishment"?

After striking each of the Sanqing three times, Qing Xuan put away the Hongmeng Liangtian Ruler. Holding his folding fan, he spoke.

"Remember, it wasn't I, Qing Xuan, who struck you today, but the great god Pangu. I hope you can take this as a warning and understand what the Pangu Orthodox should be doing."

Having said this, Qing Xuan turned and walked toward Nuwa and Houtu. He gave the two women a relaxed smile and said, "Let's go."

Those two casual words carried an air of effortless grace. Then, under the stunned gazes of Houtu and Nuwa, he strode down Buzhou Mountain.

Watching the retreating figures of Qing Xuan and the other two, the Sanqing remained kneeling in place, unmoving. Only when the figures were no longer visible did they snap back to their senses.

The force Qing Xuan used on Tongtian was lighter than what he'd used on Laozi and Yuanshi Tianzun. So Tongtian was the first to speak.

"Two elder brothers, who exactly is this Qing Xuan? What right does he have to punish us? And what did we even do wrong?"

Tongtian's words nearly made Laozi and Yuanshi Tianzun's noses twist with anger. They thought, What did you do wrong? Didn't he already make it clear?

At most, it's only you who doesn't know why you were hit. The other two understood perfectly well.

After all, every word Qing Xuan spoke struck straight at their souls. How could they not know that the Sanqing and the Twelve Ancestral Witches were all direct descendants of Pangu?

It was their own pride that made them unwilling to acknowledge these twelve brothers. To some extent, they even wanted to eliminate them.

So Laozi and Yuanshi Tianzun didn't answer Tongtian. They just stared blankly at the summit of Buzhou Mountain.

"Elder Brother, as the Pangu Orthodox, isn't it right for us to be proud? Those lowly beings—what right do they have to be compared to us?"

Yuanshi Tianzun's words made Laozi sigh, but he said nothing. Because deep down, he too didn't believe other beings could match them.

After a long pause, he finally spoke. "Return to Kunlun Mountain. Refine the spiritual treasures. Do not miss the Dao Ancestor's sermon under any circumstances."

"As the Pangu Orthodox, only by possessing invincible strength in the Primordial World can we have the right to look down on the Ten Thousand Races."

That was what Laozi thought. He didn't believe he was wrong. He only believed that his strength was insufficient, which was why he suffered today's humiliation.

If they could easily suppress Qing Xuan, how would Qing Xuan dare act arrogantly before them? How would he dare borrow Pangu's name to punish them?

Yes, borrow Pangu's name. Because in the Sanqing's hearts, they were transformed from Pangu's three souls, so they were Pangu.

This was also why the Sanqing always called themselves the Pangu Orthodox and never once referred to Pangu as "Father God."

At the same time, a worry gnawed at Laozi's heart: how did Qing Xuan know about him plucking strands of the primordial spirits from Yuanshi Tianzun and Tongtian?

After all, even Yuanshi Tianzun and Tongtian themselves had no awareness of it. Could it be that Qing Xuan had personally witnessed Pangu transforming into the Primordial World?

This matter stuck in Laozi's heart like a thorn. It only strengthened his resolve to eliminate Qing Xuan.

As for Yuanshi Tianzun and Tongtian, they had also heard what Qing Xuan said. But they subconsciously ignored it, since they hadn't noticed any loss in their own primordial spirits.

Meanwhile, Qing Xuan and his two companions had already arrived near the Ancestral Witch Hall. Houtu warmly invited them to visit the hall.

Qing Xuan naturally didn't refuse. After all, the Ancestral Witch Hall was formed from the heart of the great god Pangu. Since he was already here, he might as well broaden his horizons.

As soon as he stepped into the Ancestral Witch Hall, Qing Xuan felt a powerful pressure. This pressure was identical to that on Buzhou Mountain, carrying a dense aura of Pangu.

The source of this pressure was the blood pool in the center of the hall. The blood in the pool churned, emitting waves of bloody, baleful energy.

The layout of the entire Ancestral Witch Hall was very simple. Besides the central blood pool, there were only twelve stone platforms arranged around it.

At that moment, eleven of the stone platforms each held a seated Ancestral Witch. The empty platform naturally belonged to Houtu.

While Qing Xuan was observing the hall, Houtu had already spoken. "Elder brothers, Sister Xuanming, look who Little Sister has brought."

The Twelve Ancestral Witches opened their eyes simultaneously. Their gazes first fell on Nuwa, then shifted to Qing Xuan.

They were no strangers to Nuwa, after all, she had stayed in the Ancestral Witch Hall for two hundred years. So their attention naturally lingered longer on Qing Xuan.

Houtu quickly introduced Qing Xuan to the Eleven Ancestral Witches, then recounted how Qing Xuan had beaten the Sanqing.

This earned Qing Xuan admiration from the other Ancestral Witches, and their attitude warmed considerably. Zhu Rong directly spoke up.

"Well struck! I've long wanted to teach those three unfilial sons a lesson. It's just that I've never found the opportunity."

Gonggong, standing nearby, curled his lip. "Zhu Rong, keep boasting. With your strength, you'd struggle to beat even one of the Sanqing, let alone all three."

Zhu Rong immediately flew into a rage. Rolling up his sleeves, he was ready to fight Gonggong to show him just how strong he really was.

Houtu didn't take it seriously. After all, this was standard behavior for Zhu Rong and Gonggong. So she directly asked Qing Xuan.

"Little Hu... Qing Xuan, you said earlier that before Laozi took form, he seized a strand of his brothers' primordial spirits. What exactly happened?"

"Did you witness it yourself? But at that time, you hadn't even sprouted yet. How could you know what happened when Father God transformed into the Primordial World?"

Qing Xuan didn't hide anything. He recounted to Houtu and the other Ancestral Witches how he had obtained the Pangu Marrow in Buzhou Mountain.

At the same time, he took out the Hongmeng Liangtian Ruler and activated the Pangu Imprint on it. He let all the Ancestral Witches truly feel the suppression of that Pangu Imprint.

This convinced all the Ancestral Witches of Qing Xuan's words. Zhu Jiuyin directly said, "According to what Qing Xuan says, doesn't that mean there are still eleven drops of Pangu Marrow in Buzhou Mountain?"

Qing Xuan nodded. "That's right. They were left for you by the great god Pangu. Unfortunately, you were too eager to seize the Heaven Opening Merit back then, and you missed this great opportunity."

Seeing everyone sigh, Houtu spoke. "Actually, it's not entirely our fault. At that time, we had no consciousness. Everything we did was by instinct."

Houtu's words finally stopped the other Ancestral Witches from blaming themselves. They began to discuss how to find the remaining Pangu Marrow.