"Damn!"
"This is coming for me!"
Long-buried memories suddenly surfaced in Xuan Qing's mind. He remembered that, in the legends, Kuafu had drunk dry the waters of the Yellow River and Wei River when chasing the sun out of thirst.
The reason he was so flustered was that he was currently holding the "Mountain River Cauldron" and refining the water transport of the entire Yellow River basin within the Yellow River Water Mansion.
Under normal circumstances, water transport was continuous and unending. But if someone were to sever rivers and cut off their flow, the process of refining it would come to nothing.
At that thought, Xuan Qing immediately confirmed it with Suiren Shi, then took out the "Map of Mountains and Rivers" for comparison. He finally determined that the Ten Golden Crows and Kuafu were heading toward him, and he could not help letting out a deep sigh.
"If it is a blessing, it is no disaster. If it is a disaster, it cannot be avoided!"
During this period, Xuan Qing had used the "Map of Mountains and Rivers" to locate Wuyi Mountain successfully, claiming the "Treasure-Dropping Coin" and a high-grade Innate Spiritual Root, the Enlightenment Tea Tree. He had been brimming with satisfaction, yet just as he prepared to refine the Yellow River basin's water transport, disaster had fallen from the sky.
"Looks like my fortune can no longer suppress so many opportunities!"
Xuan Qing frowned deeply and sighed. "My teacher once said that everyone's fortune is limited, as are the opportunities they can bear!"
"Previously, I used my merit and fortune to bear the karmic ties of Lei Ze, Yu Jiang, and the Dragon Clan. Then I obtained the Heavenly Gu Yuan Yu Banner, the King Pan Yuan Gu Sword, the Yin-Yang Two Qi Bottle, the Mountain River Cauldron, and several other spiritual treasures. The fortune I gained from drilling wood to make fire and evolving the Innate Eight Trigrams has long since been nearly exhausted!"
"Now, after taking the Treasure-Dropping Coin and the Enlightenment Tea Tree from Wuyi Mountain, I have completely worn away the immense fortune brought by those two instances of Heavenly Merit!"
"Blessing rests beside disaster, and disaster conceals blessing. To resolve my lack of fortune, there are only two paths: break through to the Great Golden Immortal realm, or accumulate merit!"
A person's fortune was limited, but it was not fixed. When cultivators broke through in realm or did something beneficial to the Heavenly Dao, the Heavenly Dao would bestow merit, increasing their fortune. This was one of the foundational laws of the Great Desolation Heavenly Dao.
Generally speaking, no cultivator could be like Xuan Qing, possessing the opportunity to wield so many Innate Spiritual Treasures and Innate Spiritual Roots while still in the Grand Unity Golden Immortal realm.
This was also why Sect Master Tongtian, despite being known as Lingbao Tianzun and possessing more than a hundred Innate Spiritual Treasures, had not gathered them all and bestowed them upon one disciple.
Of course, Daoist Duobao was an exception.
He had transformed from Treasure Distribution Rock and was inherently meant to bear countless spiritual treasures. Acquiring spiritual treasures would not consume his fortune; instead, it would increase it.
"A breakthrough?"
Xuan Qing shook his head.
Once one attained the Great Golden Immortal realm, one would remain one forever. It was an extremely crucial realm in cultivation, and the Dao flower one bloomed would determine the limit one could reach in the future.
That was why Duobao, Nan Ji, Jin Ling, Yunxiao, and the others—including Xuan Qing himself—had clearly been able to break through but had kept suppressing it!
Even Xuan Qing, as he was now, did not dare guarantee that he could bloom a ninth-grade Dao flower like the Three Pure Ones.
He still wanted to temper himself further.
After thinking for a moment, he immediately withdrew the "Mountain River Cauldron" and gave up refining the Yellow River Water Transport.
Once Kuafu chased the Ten Golden Crows here, the refinement process would inevitably be interrupted. It was better to abandon it first than suffer backlash from the water transport.
Very soon, the Ten Golden Crows, wrapped in "True Sun Fire," flew to the vicinity of the Yellow River.
Kuafu followed close behind, gripping a "Peach Wood Staff" as he fiercely smashed it toward the Ten Golden Crows. The immense force made the void tremble violently.
"Die!"
At the sight of the Yellow River, Kuafu was overjoyed. His body suddenly expanded to ten thousand zhang, and he swallowed the Yellow River's waters in a single gulp before spraying them toward the Ten Golden Crows as a spiritual rain.
Clearly, he intended to use water to restrain fire and extinguish the "True Sun Fire" surrounding the Ten Golden Crows.
It was not a bad idea, but he had clearly underestimated the "True Sun Fire." As one of the greatest divine flames in the Primordial Wilderness, how could mere Yellow River water possibly extinguish it?
Crossing the Yellow River, the two sides fought farther and farther away. In the blink of an eye, they had already gone several million li.
"Should I save him, or not?"
At this moment, Xuan Qing, concealed in the void with the "Golden Cloud Crown," could not help hesitating. "If Kuafu dies, Hou Yi will certainly shoot down nine suns. And if those Young Golden Crows die, the Witch Race and Demon Clan will inevitably erupt into war!"
Xuan Qing held the "Map of Mountains and Rivers" bestowed by Nuwa. Its power was boundless, and with this spiritual treasure, he could interfere in this battle.
But if he carelessly altered the greater course of events, he could easily bring disaster upon himself.
He now stood at an extremely important turning point.
To save or not to save—it all came down to a single thought!
If he saved Kuafu later, he might gain the Witch Race's friendship, but he would also invite the enmity of the Ten Golden Crows and the many Demon Clan members behind them!
If he did not save Kuafu, then when Hou Yi arrived and shot down nine suns, he could save those Young Golden Crows. Perhaps he would gain the Demon Clan's friendship and even Di Jun's gratitude, but he would also incur the Witch Race's hostility!
Of course, he could also choose to do nothing and quietly watch the Witch Race and Demon Clan erupt into war.
"Wait!"
"What I should be considering is not whether to save him, but how to maximize my gains without changing the Heavenly Dao's greater course!"
Suddenly, a plan came to Xuan Qing. He directly used the divine ability "Soaring Golden Light," transforming into a streak of rainbow light as he chased after Kuafu and the Ten Golden Crows' battlefield.
By the time he arrived near the battlefield, the Ten Golden Crows were activating the "Ten Suns Patrol Formation," evolving "True Sun Fire" and madly sweeping it toward Kuafu.
Ten suns hung across the sky, transforming into a massive spinning wheel of light that trapped Kuafu within the great formation. Endless flames surged forth from all directions between heaven and earth.
At this moment, Kuafu had already fallen into a disadvantage. His Great Witch True Body was covered in marks left by the scorching "True Sun Fire."
"Damn feathered bastards!"
Kuafu cursed loudly and continually swung the "Peach Wood Staff," but it had no effect whatsoever.
Seeing that Kuafu was about to be burned to ashes, Xuan Qing's thoughts stirred. He activated the "King Pan Bead," creating an invisible, colorless, bizarre illusory qi.
This illusory qi was formless and intangible, possessing no destructive power whatsoever. Its sole effect was to make the ten Young Golden Crows hallucinate for three breaths.
During those three breaths, Xuan Qing's Other Self Incarnation used the divine ability "Submerging Abyss Shrinking Earth" to slip into the formation, collecting Kuafu's true spirit and a portion of his essence blood into the "Mountain River Cauldron." He then nourished Kuafu's true spirit with "Tianyi True Water."
The Witch Race had no primordial spirits, but they possessed true spirits. As long as the true spirit did not perish and some essence blood remained, it was possible to be reborn from a drop of blood.
Of course, Kuafu had temporarily lost consciousness. All that remained was a "Peach Wood Staff," which transformed into a peach grove under the activation of Xuan Qing's Qi of Creation.
When the ten Golden Crows awoke from their hallucinations, Kuafu was already nowhere to be seen.
"He should be dead, right?"
A Young Golden Crow asked timidly.
"Of course!"
The Great Golden Crow was brimming with confidence. "He was merely a Great Witch. How could he withstand our formation?"
Xuan Qing merely smiled at that.
At the same time, he could not help marveling at the profundity of King Pan's Dharma Gate. It had silently caused the Ten Golden Crows to fall into an illusion, yet they had not noticed anything unusual at all.
Of course, that was also because the Ten Golden Crows were still in the Grand Unity Golden Immortal realm. They had not broken through to the Great Golden Immortal realm, and their primordial spirits had not undergone transformation.
"Among the Three Thousand Great Daos, evolution is supreme. Next, it is time to stage the second act!"
Xuan Qing smiled faintly and concealed himself once more. He had already sensed an aura far stronger than Kuafu's rushing toward the Ten Golden Crows.
Hou Yi!
And an enraged Hou Yi at that!
He had no intention of changing the Ten Golden Crows' fate. He only planned to wait until nine Golden Crows had fallen, then act to save the Young Golden Crow that had originally escaped disaster.
"The matter of making the Witch Race owe a favor can be left to Xuan Qing, who slew the Demon God Xiao Mang!"
"And the matter of making Demon Emperor Jun owe a favor can be left to Wa Palace's successor, who holds the 'Map of Mountains and Rivers' and has countless ties to the Demon Clan!"
"Perfect!"
Xuan Qing was extremely satisfied with his plan.
Dear readers, please follow along. Thank you!
Before you continue