Tianlu had left the Kunlun Mountain range and flown toward Mount Buzhou for less than half an hour.
The pitch-black Tribulation Clouds in the sky suddenly churned and contracted without warning, vanishing without a trace in the blink of an eye.
The deafening thunder also came to an abrupt halt, and warm sunlight once more shone upon the Primordial World.
This sudden change made Tianlu stop Cloud Treasure.
He froze for a moment, then raised his head and looked suspiciously at the azure sky.
"Could it be that old Heavenly Dao bastard gave up?"
Tianlu curled his lip, and a trace of disappointment unexpectedly rose within him.
Whatever. Heavenly Dao had suddenly stopped providing special effects, and he was not used to it.
Without Purple Heaven Divine Lightning as accompaniment, this treasure-hunting journey somehow felt far less impressive.
Shaking his head, Tianlu prepared to continue controlling Cloud Treasure toward Mount Buzhou.
Just then, a somewhat weathered yet calm and upright voice suddenly rang out behind Tianlu, reaching his ears with perfect clarity.
"Young friend, please stay!"
Those six light, airy words sounded in Tianlu's ears like the most terrifying curse in the Primordial World.
Tianlu instantly reacted, every strand of his golden fur standing on end.
Please stay?!
As a transmigrator who had devoured countless Primordial World novels in his previous life, he was intimately familiar with that phrase.
During the Investiture of the Gods, Shen Gongbao's single line, "Fellow Daoist, please stay," had slain gods who blocked him and killed Buddhas who stood in his way.
He had personally sent the myriad immortals of the Jie Sect onto the Investiture of the Gods, causing countless Daluo Golden Immortals and mighty Quasi-Sages to perish.
And now, out here in the middle of nowhere, someone was actually shouting "please stay" at him?!
Whoever it was, even if Heavenly Dao itself had manifested, he had to run first and ask questions later!
The Law of Space within Tianlu erupted in an instant, and the magic power of his Middle Daluo Golden Immortal Stage poured forth without reservation.
Behind him, above the sea of clouds, an old Daoist in a black robe and holding a Whisk watched Tianlu flee in panic, his expression immediately turning as dark as the bottom of a pot.
He lowered his head to examine his attire, which gave him every appearance of an immortal master, then stroked the long beard beneath his chin, his heart filled with frustration.
Did he really look like some Primordial World fiend who killed without batting an eye?
His entire body radiated peaceful, righteous energy. Why had this little Pixiu, upon hearing him ask him to stay, acted as if he had encountered the most terrifying murderous fiend in heaven and earth, running faster than anyone else?
It made no sense!
But the Creation Green Lotus was of immense importance. He absolutely could not allow this variable to take it away. Hongjun shook his head, stopped dwelling on it, and lightly waved his Whisk.
In an instant, the space before him was effortlessly torn apart like a sheet of thin paper. Hongjun stepped into the spatial rift, and his figure vanished from where he stood.
Elsewhere, Tianlu was flying madly with his head down, driving the Law of Space to its limit. The space behind him crumbled inch by inch as he transformed into a brilliant silver streak of light.
Even as he fled, he kept looking back, secretly congratulating himself on how quickly he had run.
Yet the instant he turned back around, an enormous rift suddenly tore open in the void ahead of him without warning.
Hongjun had only stepped halfway out of the rift and had not even had time to steady himself.
Tianlu's massive Pixiu true form, carrying the terrifying momentum of the Middle Daluo Golden Immortal Stage, crashed straight into him like a fallen primordial star.
"Boom!"
A heaven-shaking explosion erupted in midair. Violent waves of magic power swept in all directions as tangible ripples, instantly shredding the sea of clouds within a radius of ten thousand miles.
Amid the dust filling the sky and fragments of space, a golden figure hurtled toward the earth below like a meteor.
Accompanied by tremors that shook the mountains and earth, the hard land of the Primordial World was smashed into an enormous crater. Cracks spread across the ground for thousands of miles.
Tianlu lay sprawled at the bottom of the crater, dazedly shaking his fluffy head.
"Strange. How did such a violent collision not hurt at all?"
"Not only does it not hurt, but it's soft underneath me, like I landed on something cushioned."
As Tianlu muttered in confusion, an elderly voice gritted through clenched teeth rose from beneath him.
"Because you're sitting on me!"
Immediately afterward, a gentle yet vast force erupted from beneath Tianlu, directly flipping his heavy Pixiu true form away.
Tianlu somersaulted through the air, landed steadily on all four paws, and kicked up a cloud of dust.
He raised his head, warily examining the ash-covered old Daoist with a long nose who was dusting off his Daoist robe.
Though the old Daoist looked somewhat disheveled, his unfathomable cultivation was as deep and boundless as an abyss and sea. Even Tianlu's divine sense at the Middle Daluo Golden Immortal Stage could not discern its limits.
Tianlu's heart tightened, but he put on a puzzled expression.
"Who are you? Don't you watch where you're going? Didn't you know this master was in a hurry?"
Hongjun adjusted his appearance and regained his unfathomable bearing before speaking calmly.
"This poor Daoist is Hongjun."
The moment that name was spoken, the surrounding air seemed to freeze for an instant.
Upon hearing it, Tianlu's heart was immediately thrown into turmoil.
Hongjun?!
This old Daoist whom he had rammed into the ground was actually the legendary Dao Ancestor Hongjun?!
Tianlu had not been in the Primordial World for very long, but this name was one he knew as clearly as thunder.
The man before him was the ultimate victor of the War of Dao and Demon, the Primordial World's first Sage who merged with Heavenly Dao, and the future Heavenly Dao Spokesperson.
However, Hongjun should not yet have become a Sage at this time, though his strength was undoubtedly already among the very pinnacle of the Primordial World.
But wasn't he supposed to be attempting Three Corpses Unity right now?!
Why had he appeared before him?!
Though Tianlu was puzzled, he immediately put on a smiling face and spoke respectfully.
"So it is the Immortal Ancestor himself. My apologies for the disrespect! May I ask why the Immortal Ancestor chased all this way after a little Pixiu like me? Is there some urgent matter?"
Tianlu addressed Hongjun as the Immortal Ancestor because, in this era, that was how the beings of the Primordial World honored him.
During the Tribulation of Ferocious Beasts, Shen Ni led the Ferocious Beast Clan in wreaking havoc across the Primordial World, seeking to destroy heaven and earth.
It was Hongjun, Ancestor Yin-Yang, Ancestor Five Elements, Ancestor Qiankun, and other innate mighty beings who joined forces with the myriad races of the Primordial World. After countless bloody battles, they finally wiped out the Ferocious Beast Clan.
Because of this heaven-shaking Law of Merit for saving the Primordial World, heaven and earth bestowed Law of Fortune upon them. All beings sincerely submitted and granted them honorable titles.
Hongjun was revered as the Immortal Ancestor, Luo Hou as the Demon Ancestor, while the other mighty beings each had their own titles.
However, during the War of Dao and Demon, aside from Hongjun, Luo Hou, who transformed into an outer-domain celestial demon, and Yang Mei, who had fled without a trace, most of the other ancestors had perished.
Seeing that Tianlu's attitude was reasonably respectful, Hongjun's expression softened slightly. He gently swayed the Whisk in his hand and spoke amiably.
"Young friend Tianlu, the Twenty-Four Petal Creation Green Lotus you obtained earlier at Kunlun Mountain is an object whose fate has long been determined by heaven and earth."
"Such a supreme treasure has long been destined for its future owner and mission. By taking another's destined opportunity without permission and disrupting the heavenly order, you will inevitably become entangled in immense karma."
"This poor Daoist has come to persuade you to hand over the Creation Green Lotus, lest karma bind you in the future and bring disaster upon you."
Before you continue