Third Lecture at Zixiao Palace

When Nuwa finished repairing her Nascent Soul, there were only a little over a thousand years left until Hong Jun's Third Sermon.

So after Nuwa left the Three Lights Divine Water Pool, Qing Xuan and the others were already preparing to head to Zixiao Palace to hear the Dao Ancestor's final lecture.

Before they left, however, Qing Xuan still gave the other three a few simple instructions. After all, this lecture at Zixiao Palace was the truly critical moment.

Qing Xuan had considered having Nuwa refuse the Primordial Violet Qi. After all, later generations all said that the Primordial Violet Qi was the key Hong Jun used to control the Six Sages of the Heavenly Dao.

But if Nuwa refused to accept the Primordial Violet Qi at Zixiao Palace, she would surely arouse Hong Jun's suspicion. More importantly, Qing Xuan couldn't be certain whether the Primordial Violet Qi was a virus.

So he simply told Nuwa that whatever she received at Zixiao Palace, she should first store it inside the Mountain River Society Map.

After he had finished explaining everything, the four of them set out for Zixiao Palace. When they arrived, its gates were already open, and the cultivators who had come to listen had long since entered.

The four exchanged nods, then headed inside Zixiao Palace. They found their seats, sat cross-legged, and waited for the Dao Ancestor to arrive.

At the same time, Qing Xuan noticed that not a single one of the cultivators who had originally been without a cushion had come this time.

This struck Qing Xuan as rather strange. Even if they couldn't understand the Path of the Sages that Hong Jun taught, cultivating in Zixiao Palace would still have been twice as effective.

So naturally, no one would willingly pass up such a great opportunity. They wouldn't skip the lecture at Zixiao Palace just because they couldn't understand it.

That left only one possible explanation: Hong Jun had used some kind of method. The cultivators without cushions simply couldn't find where Zixiao Palace was.

It seems the Three Thousand Purple Cloud Palace Guests refers to the number who attended the final lecture. Later generations weren't accurate when they thought three thousand was just a figurative number.

Just then, Haotian and Yaochi closed the gates of Zixiao Palace. That meant the number of attendees would not increase any further.

At the same time, Hong Jun appeared on his cushion. Without a word of unnecessary preamble, he began expounding the Path of the Sages.

For a time, everyone listened as if entranced. Only they knew how much of it they had actually understood.

In the blink of an eye, three thousand years passed, and Hong Jun finally stopped expounding the Path of the Sages. The wondrous phenomena inside Zixiao Palace vanished as well.

"After this Third Sermon ends, I will join my body with the Dao. From now on, the Heavenly Dao is Hong Jun, but Hong Jun is not the Heavenly Dao."

"If there is anything you do not understand, you may ask. I will do my best to answer your questions. After this, Hong Jun will not appear again unless an Immeasurable Calamity comes."

As soon as Hong Jun finished speaking, Laozi hurriedly asked, "Dao Ancestor, may I ask how many methods there are to become a Saint?"

"There are three methods to become a Saint. Besides the Path of Severing Three Corpses that I taught you, there are also Proving Dao by Force and Proving Dao by Merit."

"Proving Dao by Force means gathering the laws of the myriad Great Daos into oneself, forcibly breaking through the barriers, and attaining the Dao as a Hunyuan Great Golden Immortal."

"Although Proving Dao by Force gives one the greatest strength, the Great Dao is now hidden while the Heavenly Dao has emerged. The chance of succeeding on this path is already vanishingly small."

"Though the Path of Severing Three Corpses is inferior to Proving Dao by Force, it is stronger than the final method, Proving Dao by Merit. To prove the Dao through merit, one must do things that benefit the Primordial Wilderness and earn the Heavenly Dao's Merit as a reward."

"Moreover, the amount of merit required to prove the Dao is beyond your imagination. So I do not wish for you to take this path."

Hearing this, Qing Xuan couldn't help but think, One path is impossible, and you don't want us to take the other. In other words, you just want every cultivator in the Primordial Wilderness to follow your Path of Severing Three Corpses, don't you?

Though he grumbled inwardly, Qing Xuan's expression didn't change in the slightest. He simply watched quietly to see what would happen next.

Laozi thanked Hong Jun, then sat back down on his cushion. At the same time, Yuanshi Tianzun rose and bowed to Hong Jun before asking,

"Dao Ancestor, may I ask who in the Primordial Wilderness can prove the Dao and become a Saint?"

Yuanshi Tianzun had asked the question more directly, without beating around the bush. Hong Jun, however, was not displeased. Instead, he said,

"In the Primordial Wilderness, nine is the Extreme Number, so there should be eight Sages under my tutelage. I will leave one Saint Position for the Primordial Beings, giving them a Chance of Survival."

"The Sanqing were formed from Pangu's Three Souls. From the moment they underwent Form Transformation, they possessed Heaven Opening Merit, so they can become Sages."

As he spoke, Hong Jun simply waved his hand, and three strands of violet qi flew from his palm and landed before the Sanqing.

"This is the Foundation of the Great Dao, the Primordial Violet Qi. Those who obtain the Primordial Violet Qi can prove the Dao and become Sages."

The Sanqing couldn't help showing delight. They hurriedly accepted the Primordial Violet Qi, then bowed deeply to Hong Jun again to thank him.

Hong Jun nodded, then waved his hand toward the Sanqing again. The Taiji Diagram appeared before Laozi, while the Pangu Banner appeared before Yuanshi Tianzun. Before Tongtian appeared a Formation Diagram wrapped around four swords.

"Laozi is the Head of the Three Pure Ones. In the future, he will establish a Great Teaching and instruct the Primordial Wilderness. He may become my Head Disciple. I grant you the Innate Supreme Treasure, the Taiji Diagram, to stabilize the fortune of your Great Teaching."

Laozi hurriedly accepted the Taiji Diagram and respectfully performed the rites of a disciple to Hong Jun, calling himself a disciple and greeting his master.

Hong Jun nodded, then turned his gaze to Yuanshi Tianzun. "Yuanshi, as my Second Disciple, you will also establish a Great Teaching in the future. I grant you the Innate Supreme Treasure, the Pangu Banner, to stabilize your Great Teaching's fortune."

Yuanshi Tianzun likewise performed the rites of a disciple to Hong Jun, then happily accepted the Innate Supreme Treasure, the Pangu Banner.

"Tongtian, you may become my Third Disciple. You will also establish a Great Teaching in the future. I grant you the Immortal Slaying Four Swords to command slaughter in the Primordial Wilderness. The Immortal Slaying Four Swords can form the Immortal Slaying Formation. If a Saint deploys it, it is Unbreakable by Four Saints."

The moment Tongtian heard this, all of Zixiao Palace erupted. What did it mean that if a Saint deployed the formation, it was Unbreakable by Four Saints?

Didn't that mean that as long as Tongtian deployed the formation, the Immortal Slaying Formation would be invincible? And if Laozi and Yuanshi Tianzun joined him, wouldn't the Sanqing be able to dominate the Primordial Wilderness?

Hong Jun paid no heed to the stunned looks around him. He simply waved his hand toward Nuwa, and a strand of Primordial Violet Qi along with a great cauldron flew straight toward her.

"Nuwa will earn Great Merit in the future and can prove the Dao and become a Saint. She may become my Fourth Disciple. Today, I grant her the Foundation of the Great Dao, the Primordial Violet Qi, as well as the Innate Supreme Treasure, the Universe Cauldron."

Nuwa respectfully bowed to Hong Jun as well, calling herself his disciple and greeting her master. Then she stored the Universe Cauldron and the Primordial Violet Qi directly inside the Mountain River Society Map.

When Hong Jun fell silent, the Two Sages of the West grew anxious. They wondered if only the cushions on the left came with Saint Positions, while those on the right got nothing at all.

Daoist Zhun Ti immediately fell to his knees. With tears streaming down his face, he said, "We beg the Dao Ancestor to take pity on us. The West is barren. If it has no Saint to protect it, it will become a wasteland."

"We beg the Dao Ancestor to grant us Saint Positions, so that my senior brother and I may prove the Dao and become Sages. We will better tend to the West's ley lines and strive to restore its Great Prosperity as soon as possible."