Xuandu continued:
"Those whose names appear on the Investiture of the Gods List must die, their True Spirits entering the list."
"Only then will they truly answer the tribulation."
"Only then will it be Heavenly Dao's Predetermined Number."
"Only then will it fall within a realm Dao Ancestor Hongjun cannot interfere with."
"When the Investiture of the Gods officially begins, when the great tribulation truly descends."
"Then, each will rely on their own abilities, and life or death will be left to fate."
"Even if they are killed, their True Spirits must still enter the list."
"Even if Dao Ancestor Hongjun comes in person, he will have nothing to say."
"But now..."
He paused, his gaze turning faintly cold:
"Now is not the time."
Fuxi bowed.
"This disciple understands."
"Master has thought far ahead. This disciple cannot compare."
Xuandu gently shook his head.
"It is not foresight."
"It is necessity."
"Though Dao Ancestor Hongjun has withdrawn, his eyes have never left this place."
"He is waiting."
"Waiting for me to make a mistake."
"Waiting for the Interception Sect to reveal a flaw."
"Waiting for an excuse to act."
"I cannot give him one."
Fuxi nodded and said nothing more.
Xuandu lifted his gaze toward the west.
His eyes pierced through the void and through the clouds.
They fell upon the Emperor Ku Tribe.
Upon that mass of pitch-black mist hidden among the clouds.
Upon those two golden figures.
Medicine Master.
Maitreya.
They were still there.
A smile slowly curled across Xuandu's lips.
"There should be a result on Taotie's side as well."
West, Emperor Ku Tribe
Dusk was blood-red, the setting sun sinking westward.
Emperor Ku stood before a wooden hut, barefoot in the mud and clad in coarse linen.
He watched the two golden figures on the horizon with