Houtu

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Houtu (后土)
Alias(es)	Empress Houtu Pingxin; Earth Mother; Houtu Empress of Earth; Earthly Pole Empress of Earth
Species/Race	Ancestral Witch; member of the Earthly Witch Race
Gender	Female
Affiliation	Twelve Ancestral Witches; Witch Race; Underworld; Earthly Dao; Heavenly Court
Occupation/Role	Former Spokesperson of the Earthly Dao; ruler of the earth and authority over the Underworld; guardian of the Six Paths of Reincarnation
Status	Active; becomes the Primordial World's third Chaos Realm expert after passing the Earthly Dao spokespersonship to Houji 242
First Appearance	Chapter 1 1

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Peak Golden Immortal of the Origin	32	Great Dao Merit elevates her origin to a top-tier Chaos Being origin.
Primordial Spirit awakened	77	Her newfound Primordial Spirit grants her insight into the Law of Creation.
Half-Sage	109	Her physical body and Primordial Spirit reach the Half-Sage realm simultaneously after sixty million years of cultivation.
Sub-Sage	109	She perfects the Sub-Sage realm over a further eighteen million years.
Hunyuan Realm	109	Becomes the second Ancestral Witch to attain Hunyuan and realizes her mission as controller of the Earthly Dao.
Origin Realm	111	Reveals Origin Realm strength alongside Zhu Jiuyin and Dijiang, shocking the Primordial World.
Mid-stage Hunyuan Third Heaven	140	Great Dao Merit restores her injuries, strengthens her foundation, and rapidly raises her cultivation.
Earthly Dao Sage, mid-stage Sage Sixth Heaven	144	Accepts the Earthly Dao Dao Fruit and becomes its first Sage and Spokesperson.
Early Origin Fifth Heaven	217	Her accumulated merit and fortune raise her cultivation; she can briefly draw on the Earthly Dao for Seventh Heaven-level power.
Early Origin Sixth Heaven	229	Can erupt with the strength of a Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal of the Origin Taiji by overlaying Earthly Dao power.
Early Origin Seventh Heaven	234	Becomes one of the Primordial World's only three Zenith Heaven Golden Immortals of the Origin.
Chaos Realm	242	Relinquishes the position of Earthly Dao Spokesperson to Houji and becomes the third Chaos Realm expert.

Background / History

Houtu is one of the Twelve Ancestral Witches and an orthodox descendant of Pangu. At the Witch Race's earliest recorded council, she ends a dispute among her siblings by affirming Zhu Jiuyin's authority to make final decisions for the race, demonstrating her trust in him and concern for collective unity 1.

Among the Ancestral Witches, Houtu is the least affected by Turbid Qi. After the Great Dao Merit received by the Witch Race tempers their origins, she reaches the peak Golden Immortal of the Origin and gains a top-tier Chaos Being origin, placing her among the strongest of her siblings 16 32.

Zhu Jiuyin recognizes that Houtu's eventual path is tied to the Earthly Dao. He explains that her future mythological fate—sacrificing herself to form the Six Paths—would have left her Primordial Spirit bound to the Underworld and her power severely restricted outside it. His efforts instead seek to ensure she can awaken the Earthly Dao without losing her freedom or cultivation 14 84 109.

Personality

Houtu is notably rational and farsighted. She identifies that the Heavenly Dao's hostility likely extends beyond the Witch Race to the Three Pure Ones, Di Jun, Tai Yi, and other Innate Demon Gods; Zhu Jiuyin explicitly praises her insight 51. She also understands that the Witch Race's future lies with the Earthly Dao and accepts the responsibility of becoming its spokesperson 52 53.

She is warm and protective toward those she considers family. During Nuwa's visit, Houtu insists that she be addressed as “Sister Houtu,” seeks to ease tensions between the Witch and Demon Races, and later dispels Nuwa's fears by invoking Pangu's wish for his children to coexist harmoniously 77 87.

Her compassion does not make her passive. Once she concludes that Jie Yin and Zhun Ti are natural enemies of the Witch Race, she bluntly advocates overwhelming force if they become a threat 43. In political matters, she supports Zhu Jiuyin publicly, then asks him direct questions in private rather than undermining him before outsiders 160.

Abilities & Skills

Law of Land and Law of Earth

Houtu possesses both the Law of Earth and the higher-order Law of Land. The Law of Land is associated with controlling continents, mobilizing ley-line energy, and near-invincibility while standing upon the earth 43.

• Can condense the Nine Heavens Breathing Soil, regarded as the Primordial World's foremost spiritual soil 45.
• Has a natural affinity for the Law of Creation due to earth's capacity to nurture all things 43.
• Her fundamental law is ultimately identified as the Law of Land; Earth and Reincarnation are described as its external manifestations 242.

Earthly Dao Authority

As the Earthly Dao's appointed Spokesperson, Houtu is empowered by the Underworld and the Earthly Dao itself 143 144.

• Becomes the first Sage of the Earthly Dao after accepting its Dao Fruit 144.
• Can combine Earthly Dao power with the Six Paths Reincarnation Pen to fight across three major realms, reaching mid- or late-stage Hunyuan Sixth Heaven strength 144.
• Can force the Earthly Dao to burn origin for up to a three-hundredfold increase in power, enough to cross two major realms 160.
• This desperate amplification permanently harms the Earthly Dao's foundation, reduces her cultivation by at least one major realm, and strips away part of her innate origin 160.

Authority over Reincarnation

The Six Paths of Reincarnation are solidified using Houtu's essence blood. Their core is formed from her blood, and every cycle of the Underworld rests upon her will 137 139.

• Governs the Six Paths of Reincarnation and holds authority over the Underworld 145 178.
• Her essence blood stabilizes the Six Paths and returns origin power to her, preventing her Hunyuan cultivation from collapsing 137.
• The Six Paths include the Heavenly Dao, Asura, Humanity, Animal, Hungry Ghost, and Hell Paths 137.

Chaos Merit Dao Body

Houtu uses the Great Dao Merit awarded for establishing the Underworld to strengthen her foundation and obtain a low-grade Chaos Merit Dao Body 140.

• Her physique becomes comparable to that of a low-grade Chaos Demon God 140.
• Her injuries heal instantly as her foundation improves 140.
• Her foundation is stated to surpass even Hongjun's at that point 140.

Equipment / Spiritual Items

• Nine Heavens Breathing Soil — Supreme spiritual soil condensed by Houtu; Nuwa seeks it as a required material for creating humanity 45 74.
• Kongtong Seal — Treasure of the Human Race entrusted to Houtu by Zhu Jiuyin because it can reach its full potential in her hands 51.
• Six Paths Reincarnation Pen — Mid-grade Chaos Spiritual Treasure bestowed by the Great Dao after the Underworld's creation; capable of harming or suppressing Hunyuan- and Sage-level opponents 140.

Relationships

• Zhu Jiuyin — Her Second Brother, closest strategist, and principal ally. He supports her path to the Earthly Dao, gives her the Kongtong Seal, protects her cultivation during the creation of the Underworld, and urges her to accept the spokespersonship 51 135 144.
• Dijiang — Eldest brother and fellow Ancestral Witch. He recognizes Houtu as the sibling least affected by Turbid Qi and expects her to be the first to develop a Primordial Spirit 16.
• Nuwa — Initially a political rival from the Demon Race. Houtu treats her warmly during negotiations for the Nine Heavens Breathing Soil, deduces her plan to create a new race, and proposes that Nuwa become Zhu Jiuyin's dao companion 77 78.
• Hongjun — A powerful political counterpart. Houtu later has the standing to address him as a fellow Daoist alongside Zhu Jiuyin 157.
• Houji — Great Witch who succeeds Houtu as Spokesperson of the Earthly Dao after Houtu enters the Chaos Realm 242.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Path of the Earthly Dao

When Zhu Jiuyin reveals the existence of the Earthly and Humanity Daos, Houtu quickly grasps the danger posed by the Heavenly Dao and identifies the Earthly Dao as the Witch Race's proper path. The other Ancestral Witches place their hopes in her as the figure ordained to awaken it 51 52 53.

Negotiations with Nuwa

Nuwa and Fuxi enter the Ancestral Witch Hall seeking Houtu's Nine Heavens Breathing Soil. Houtu immediately infers Nuwa's entire plan to use the soil, Three Lights Divine Water, and the Qiankun Cauldron to create a new race. Rather than accepting Nuwa's enormous offer of treasures and spiritual roots, Houtu demands that Nuwa become Zhu Jiuyin's dao companion 77 78.

Attainment of Hunyuan

After cultivating both body and Primordial Spirit to the Half-Sage realm, Houtu reaches Hunyuan and understands her destiny as the Earthly Dao's controller. She recognizes that Zhu Jiuyin's intervention has spared her from the future in which a weak Primordial Spirit would be forever confined to the Underworld 109.

Establishment of the Underworld

Houtu accompanies Zhu Jiuyin to the Blood Sea to establish the Six Paths and the Underworld. She provides half her essence blood, nearly losing her Hunyuan cultivation; Zhu Jiuyin freezes her timeline to stop her decline, then uses eighteen drops of her blood to solidify the Six Paths 134 135 137.

The creation of the Underworld awards Houtu forty percent of its Great Dao Merit. She uses it to form a Chaos Merit Dao Body and receives the Six Paths Reincarnation Pen 140.

Earth Mother and Earthly Dao Spokesperson

After the Underworld is upgraded to a supreme-grade Great Thousand World, the Earthly Dao awakens and appoints Houtu its Spokesperson. She accepts the Earthly Dao Dao Fruit, becomes the first Earthly Dao Sage, and is revered throughout the Primordial World as Empress Houtu Pingxin and the Earth Mother 143 144 145.

Empress of Earth

Hongjun appoints Houtu as the Earthly Pole Empress of Earth. Her authority includes governing the mountains, rivers, and lands of the Primordial Star Domain; overseeing yin and yang and the growth of all things; and ruling the Underworld 178.

Final Ascension

Over tens of thousands of Yuanhui, Houtu's merit, fortune, and Earthly Dao authority raise her into the highest tier of Primordial experts. She eventually passes the spokespersonship to Houji and becomes the third Chaos Realm expert 217 229 234 242.

Notable Quotes

“The Earthly Dao!” 52

“You can call me Sister Houtu!” 77

“My Witch Race wants nothing else; you need only become my second brother's dao companion.” 78