The Wise Recognize Opportunity

The Duke of the East's heart was set on Yang Hui, that cold and noble Lord of Innate Ultimate Yin who presided over West Kunlun.

At this moment, she was actually massaging a golden beast lying upon a cloud.

The Duke of the East felt a surge of blood rush to his head, and Pure Yang Fire nearly erupted from his eyes.

He stepped forward, pointing at Tianlu and questioning him angrily.

"Fellow Daoist Yang Hui, you are an innate sacred being with a noble origin; why would you stoop to perform such menial tasks for this beast? You..."

However, the Duke of the East's words were not yet finished.

"BOOM!"

A terrifying pressure that made the entire Purple Heaven Palace tremble suddenly erupted from that soft cloud.

Tianlu's previously half-closed golden eyes snapped open, a flash of tyrannical coldness glinting in their depths.

Before the Duke of the East could react, Tianlu swiped out, his right forepaw tearing through the void and leaving a golden afterimage in its wake.

The formidable cultivation of a Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal in the late stage, infused with a trace of the Law of Devouring and the Law of Space, transformed directly into a massive golden claw that blotted out the sky, slamming fiercely into the Duke of the East's chest.

"BANG!"

A dull, heavy thud echoed through the great hall.

The Pure Yang Qi protecting the Duke of the East's body offered no resistance against this absolute power.

He was sent flying instantly, crashing heavily onto the floor of the Purple Heaven Palace and vomiting a mouthful of pale golden origin blood.

Tianlu stood up at once, his four limbs planted firmly on the cloud, and looked down at the disheveled Duke of the East, cursing him angrily.

"You dare call this master a beast? Who do you think you are?!"

This sudden turn of events was like a thunderclap on a clear day, instantly shattering the oppressive silence within the Purple Heaven Palace.

Yang Hui, standing beside the cloud, was also startled by the sudden incident.

Her eyes followed the direction of Tianlu's strike, and upon seeing that the one lying on the ground was the Duke of the East, no ripples of concern stirred in her heart; instead, a flash of displeasure crossed her face.

She had only had brief dealings with the Duke of the East in West Kunlun, and they could hardly be considered familiar with one another.

As for the Duke of the East's self-indulgent fantasies, she was completely unaware.

Currently, she was held captive by this overbearing and unreasonable Pixiu, her very life in his hands.

For the Duke of the East to run out and make such a scene—if he angered Tianlu and implicated her, it would be an unprovoked disaster.

Meanwhile, the Duke of the East, lying on the ground, finally recovered from the intense pain.

He struggled to his feet and looked up at Tianlu. When he truly sensed the terrifying aura of the late-stage Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal radiating from Tianlu, the rage in his heart was instantly doused by a bucket of cold water, and he couldn't help but swallow hard.

Late-stage Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal.

In this early era of the Primordial World, where the early stage of Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal could dominate a region and the middle stage could look down upon the masses, the late stage was undoubtedly the pinnacle of existence.

He, the Duke of the East, was only in the early stage; the gap between them was like heaven and earth, and he was in no position to provoke such a being.

"This fellow Daoist, it was my rashness. My eyes were blind, and I failed to recognize your true stature. I hope you can be magnanimous."

The Duke of the East forcibly suppressed the humiliation in his heart, lowered his proud head, and hurriedly cupped his hands in apology.

Seeing the Duke of the East bow his head so sensibly, Tianlu merely snorted and curled his lip in indifference.

"Consider yourself wise. Get lost and don't disturb this master's mood."

With that, Tianlu lazily flopped back onto the cloud and continued to let Yang Hui do her work.

The Duke of the East retreated silently to the edge of the crowd, his lowered eyes filled with resentment.

Though he spoke those words, in reality, the Duke of the East was already harboring extreme dissatisfaction toward Tianlu, and a cold, murderous intent was quietly taking root in his heart.

He considered himself the manifestation of Innate Pure Yang Qi, with an incomparably noble origin.

To be so humiliated by a beast in front of over two thousand innate sacred beings—if he did not avenge this, his Dao heart would never find peace.

Yet, he had no idea that the very moment he birthed murderous intent toward Tianlu, the rules of the Great Dao were already quietly in motion.

Tianlu was the darling of the Great Dao, the Child of the Great Dao.

One of his innate divine abilities was that any creature harboring malice toward him would suffer from cultivation deviation, unstable luck, and might even face punishment from the Heavenly Dao.

At this very moment, the thick, sun-like pillar of Pure Yang luck above the Duke of the East's head developed a crack, and wisps of misfortune began to quietly entwine around him.

He was now loathed by the Great Dao, and his luck had already begun to destabilize.

The surrounding sacred beings, witnessing this scene, were filled with astonishment and began whispering to one another.

"Hiss... a late-stage Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal! Such cultivation is likely second to none among us."

"What is even more surprising is that this fellow Daoist possesses such profound cultivation, yet why has he not taken human form?"

"A Primordial anomaly, truly a Primordial anomaly!"

Zhenyuanzi, Red Cloud, and the others were also secretly shocked, etching Tianlu's appearance deep into their minds and resolving never to provoke him lightly in the future.

Beyond this, on the other side of the great hall.

Di Jun and Taiyi, brothers leading the ten great exotic beasts and divine beasts including Baize and Jimeng, stared across the space at the Twelve Ancestral Witches.

Although the Demon Race had not yet been formally established at this time, nor had the Heavenly Court been built.

In reality, however, due to territorial disputes and an inherent incompatibility of auras, the two sides had already forged significant enmity across the Primordial World.

Di Jun wore a golden Daoist robe, his gaze profound.

Seeing Tianlu act with such ferocity and possessing strength as formidable as the late stage of the Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal—while the two brothers themselves were only at the mid-stage—his mind immediately became active.

A sharp glint flashed in Di Jun's eyes as the intention to recruit him took root in his heart.

Baize, standing to the side with his keen intuition, instantly perceived Di Jun's thoughts.

He waved the feather fan in his hand and quietly transmitted his voice.

"Venerable God, that golden beast has an extraordinary origin; it is the auspicious beast, the Pixiu."

"Though I do not know why it has not transformed into human form despite possessing late-stage Zenith Heaven cultivation, judging by its actions outside the main hall earlier, it seems to be acquainted with fellow Daoists Nuwa and Fuxi, and their friendship is not shallow."

Upon hearing this, Di Jun's heart stirred slightly, and he replied via voice transmission.

"Whether it transforms or not is unimportant."

"What matters is that they are acquainted."

"Fellow Daoists Nuwa and Fuxi are both powerful beings at the mid-stage of the Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal. If we can recruit all three into our camp, our influence in the Primordial World will surely increase greatly, and suppressing those brutes will be an easy task."

"Once the sermon concludes, we shall go to recruit the three of them."

That was what Di Jun and Taiyi were thinking, but the Twelve Ancestral Witches across the hall, having seen Tianlu swat Duke of the East away with a single blow, had only one other thought in mind.

Zhurong, the most hot-tempered among them, grinned and spoke to Di Jiang beside him in a voice like a booming bell.

"Big Brother, look at that golden fellow. Its physical strength is quite good; it sent that so-called Duke of the East vomiting blood with a single claw."

Di Jiang nodded slightly, his gaze deep.

"Is this the fierce beast Pixiu that the creatures of Mount Buzhou speak of? It is rumored to be greedy for wealth and treasures, plucking feathers from every passing goose. Seeing it today, it is indeed overbearing."

"However, as long as it does not provoke our Witch Race, let it be."