Nüwa's expression shifted slightly. No one knew what she was thinking.
"Fellow Daoist Xuanqing." Nüwa bowed slightly to Xuanqing. "I have learned much from your words today."
Xuanqing hurriedly stepped aside, not daring to accept such a grand gesture.
"Lady, you flatter me. I was only rambling."
Nüwa shook her head and gave Xuanqing a long, searching look.
"I've had a sudden insight and must enter seclusion at once to contemplate it. I'll repay your kindness another day. If I have the chance, I'll visit you in person, Fellow Daoist, and discuss the Great Dao with you again."
With that, she didn't linger. Her form became a streak of light and vanished from the valley in an instant, flying toward the summit of Phoenix Mountain.
Watching Nüwa leave, Fuxi's expression was wonderfully varied. First came astonishment, then a flash of delight.
"Hahahaha!"
Fuxi couldn't help clapping his hands and laughing aloud. His voice rang through the valley.
"Fellow Daoist Xuanqing, you really are my lucky star!"
Xuanqing was a little confused. "What do you mean, Fellow Daoist Fuxi?"
Fuxi walked over and patted Xuanqing on the shoulder, his expression animated.
"You may not know this, but my younger sister has spent tens of thousands of years sitting in meditation over the matter of becoming a Sage. Her heart was burdened, and her cultivation had stalled. Watching her, I could only fret helplessly."
"She was so troubled that I couldn't even calm my mind enough to deduce the Innate Bagua. I've been unable to complete it for ages. After hearing your words today, seeing her reaction, I'm certain she's found the key to breaking through!"
The more Fuxi spoke, the happier he became.
"Now that she's resolved the knot in her heart, I feel clear-minded too. I also gained some insights from our discussion just now. I feel that my Bagua Diagram can advance another step!"
Xuanqing understood. It seemed that his words had inadvertently helped both siblings.
Fuxi cupped his hands toward Xuanqing, his manner even warmer than before.
"Fellow Daoist Xuanqing, great kindness needs no thanks. I should return and work through my deductions as well, so I won't keep you. Once my sister and I emerge from seclusion, we'll certainly visit Jade Void Palace on Kunlun Mountain and pay you a proper call!"
Xuanqing smiled and returned the salute. "I'll be waiting."
Fuxi laughed heartily, then turned into a streak of clear light and followed the direction Nüwa had gone.
In the blink of an eye, only Xuanqing and one beast remained in the valley.
"Ah, they left in such a hurry."
Xuanqing rubbed his chin, feeling a little helpless.
He'd meant to get closer to the siblings and ask about the inner workings of the Yao Clan's Heavenly Court.
It seemed there wouldn't be a chance now.
Still, this trip had exceeded its purpose. He had not only earned Nüwa and Fuxi's goodwill, but also planted the seeds of an immense merit that would come to fruition in the future.
Xuanqing lowered his head and looked at Xiao Hei by his feet.
Xiao Hei looked up at him too, its round, black eyes full of innocence.
"You really are full of surprises." Xuanqing tapped its forehead. "How did the Crown Prince of the Ink Qilin Clan end up in such a sorry state?"
Xiao Hei whimpered pitifully and rubbed its head against his trouser leg.
Xuanqing smiled and picked it up.
"Never mind. Now that this matter is settled, it's time we got down to business."
He lifted his head and gazed toward the distant pillar at the center of Honghuang, the colossal structure that propped up the heavens and earth.
Mount Buzhou!
When Hongjun Dao Ancestor had distributed treasures at Zixiao Palace, he had bestowed seven strands of Primordial Purple Qi in all, the Foundation of Sagehood.
Six had gone to the six future Sages, but the last one hadn't gone to Hong Yun as the legends in Xuanqing's previous life claimed. Instead, it had vanished into the void, its whereabouts unknown.
Xuanqing suspected that this might have been a butterfly effect caused by his transmigration.
Whatever the case, he was determined to obtain that unclaimed strand of Primordial Purple Qi.
Though Primordial Purple Qi was formless and intangible, and difficult to find, it had to be attached to a place where spiritual qi was densest and the laws of the Great Dao most manifest.
Across all of Honghuang, what place could fit the bill better than Mount Buzhou, aside from the Heavenly Dao, which had already merged with the Dao?
Mount Buzhou had been formed from Pangu's Spine. It was the center of heaven and earth, the source of all the world's veins.
More importantly, Great God Pangu had earned merit by creating the world, and the traces of his aura left on Mount Buzhou also contained boundless merit.
For Xuanqing, a Merit Spiritual Root with Double Merit Fortune, this was practically the perfect place for him.
Five hundred years later.
Xuanqing finally reached the foot of Mount Buzhou.
The closer he came, the more he felt the pressure left behind by Great God Pangu.
The mountain was so tall that its summit was nowhere in sight, as if it reached all the way to the heavens.
The mountain wasn't wreathed in ordinary clouds and mist, but in Innate Spiritual Qi.
A day of cultivation here was worth a hundred years of practice in a blessed grotto-heaven for an ordinary immortal.
But the pressure on Mount Buzhou was just as extraordinary.
From the foot of the mountain onward, an invisible pressure bore down on everything. Those with insufficient cultivation could barely stay on their feet.
Xuanqing, however, barely felt it.
He temporarily stored Xiao Hei in his Sleeve Universe, took a deep breath, and stepped onto the mountain path.
As soon as he set foot on the mountain, a pressure as heavy as a mountain pressed in from every direction.
Xuanqing's expression didn't change. He circulated his magical power and easily countered the pressure.
He climbed slowly, leaving one footprint after another.
Mount Buzhou was protected by Forbidden Seals. The higher one climbed, the stronger the restriction on flight became. Besides, walking allowed one to better comprehend the Dao Rhyme left behind by Great God Pangu.
Time passed amid the monotonous climb.
The Merit Golden Wheel within Xuanqing began to turn of its own accord. Waves of pale golden light enveloped him, shielding him from most of the pressure.
He continued climbing like this.
Before he knew it, another five hundred years had passed.
Xuanqing had reached the mountainside of Mount Buzhou.
He had climbed higher than the Three Pure Ones had in their day. Beyond this point lay a region no living being had ever set foot in.
The pressure around him had become terrifying, but with the Merit Golden Wheel surrounding him, he suffered far less harm.
Fine beads of sweat had begun to form on Xuanqing's forehead.
Just then, he felt something stir within him and stopped.
Several hundred li to the front-left, he sensed an unusual fluctuation of aura.
"Something's off."
Xuanqing grew curious. He immediately changed direction and headed toward the source of the aura.
Soon, he arrived before a secluded cliff face.
A pitch-black opening gaped in the rock. The chilly aura came from deep within the cave.
Xuanqing sent out his divine sense to investigate, only to find that the moment it entered the cave, some strange force shattered it, preventing it from going any deeper.
He thought for a moment, then stepped inside.
The cave was dim, its passage uneven.
He had gone less than a hundred meters when something changed!
"Whoosh! Whoosh!"
Two clumps of pitch-black Demon Qi shot out of the darkness without warning, one from the left and one from the right, both aiming straight for Xuanqing's face!
The two clumps of Demon Qi moved incredibly fast, and the power within them was fierce and domineering.
Xuanqing's pupils contracted. Without a moment's hesitation, he raised a hand and unleashed his innate divine ability—Purification Divine Light.
But when the Purification Divine Light struck the two clumps of Demon Qi, it only dimmed them slightly. Their speed didn't diminish at all.
"So strong?"
Xuanqing was taken aback and didn't dare be careless. Jing Shi Sword appeared in his hand in an instant. With a flick of his wrist, he traced two arcs with the blade and met the attacks.
"Clang! Clang!"
A tremendous force rebounded from the sword. Xuanqing's arm went numb, and his whole body stumbled backward several steps before he could stop himself.
The two clumps of Demon Qi were knocked away too. They circled through the air, radiating an even more savage aura.
Xuanqing steadied himself and stared at the two clumps of Demon Qi, his expression grave.
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