Jiang Yun followed the Great Witch Xiang Liu deep into the Northern Primordial World.
They flew for a long while.
"We're here. Ahead is where our Witch Race now resides."
There was a trace of unconcealable desolation in Xiang Liu's voice.
Jiang Yun looked up.
At the foot of the rolling black mountain range stood an exceptionally rugged tribe.
There was none of the auspicious splendor of immortal sanctuaries, nor the bustling prosperity of Human Race cities.
There were only crude stone houses piled from massive rocks, along with huge fire pits burning beast oil and belching thick black smoke.
Throughout the tribe, Witch Race clansmen clad in animal hides and boasting robust physiques could be seen everywhere.
Some were polishing bone weapons, while others wrestled in pairs. The dull thuds of flesh striking flesh rose and fell, making the ground tremble faintly.
Though the environment was harsh, the savage spirit of battling heaven and earth carved into their bones had not diminished in the slightest!
Only—
There were too few of them!
Jiang Yun swept the area with his divine sense. Among these tribal settlements spanning tens of thousands of miles, there were merely a million Witch Race clansmen!
"A million..."
Jiang Yun sighed inwardly.
At the height of the Witch-Demon Calamity, the Witch Race had ruled the earth.
Back then, the Witch Race could be found everywhere across the land. All races submitted to them—what glory that had been!
Now, only this mere million remained, huddled in this bitterly cold land and barely surviving.
"Little brother, do you find it unbelievable?"
Seeing Jiang Yun's expression, Xiang Liu gave a self-mocking laugh. "In those days, the sons of the Witch Race covered the Primordial World. How majestic we were! Yet now, we can barely preserve even this much of our bloodline."
"Since the Witch-Demon Final Battle, we have lived in seclusion here. Later, after Great Witch Chiyou failed in his bid for the title of Human Emperor, the Witch Race's Fortune plummeted to rock bottom."
"In recent years, fewer and fewer children have been born among our people, and the purity of their bloodlines has declined with every generation."
"If this continues, the Witch Race will likely be erased from the Primordial World before the next Epochal Tribulation even arrives!"
As he spoke, sorrow appeared in the eyes of this once-feared Great Witch.
After a moment of silence, Jiang Yun asked, "Senior, forgive my presumption, but how many Great Witches like you remain in the Witch Race?"
Xiang Liu raised a thick finger and gestured a number.
"Seventeen!"
"Only seventeen remain!"
"Back then, our Witch Race had nearly a thousand Great Witches. What a glorious age that was! Now..."
Seventeen Great Witches!
Jiang Yun calculated silently.
Great Witches were existences comparable to Grand Unity Golden Immortals!
Top-tier Great Witches such as Xiang Liu and Xingtian possessed combat strength comparable to Peak Great Luo!
Seventeen Grand Unity Golden Immortal-level combatants!
And that was not counting the more than ten thousand Golden Immortals and several hundred Taiyi Golden Immortal-level Witch Race members Jiang Yun had roughly sensed along the way.
If placed in the current Primordial World, this force would undoubtedly qualify as an overlord-class power, second only to the lineages of Saints!
A starving camel was still bigger than a horse!
Even after declining to this extent, the Witch Race's foundation remained astonishing!
"Come. I'll take you to meet someone important."
Xiang Liu composed himself and led Jiang Yun through the tribe to its center.
There stood an ancient and majestic black hall.
It emanated a desolate, ancient, terrifying aura, as though it had crossed through time itself.
Pangu Hall!
No, more precisely, it was a side hall of Pangu Hall.
The true Pangu Hall had been formed from the heart of Pangu. It was the Witch Race's supreme holy ground and had long since vanished into the void, appearing only in the event of a calamity threatening the race's extinction.
It was the Witch Race's final trump card!
When Xiang Liu led Jiang Yun before the hall, his expression became respectful.
"Xiang Liu requests an audience with the Ancestral Witch!"
"Bring the guest in."
A cold, indifferent female voice came from deep within the hall.
Jiang Yun's heart jolted!
An Ancestral Witch?!
Other than Lady Houtu, who had transformed into Reincarnation, there was actually another surviving Ancestral Witch in the Witch Race?!
He followed Xiang Liu into the hall.
The hall was dimly lit, with only two rows of ever-burning lamps quietly flickering.
At the very front of the hall stood a woman in an icy blue gown, her back facing them and her hands clasped behind her.
She was tall and slender. Even from behind, she radiated a terrifying chill that seemed capable of withering all things!
A name instantly flashed through Jiang Yun's mind!
Aside from Houtu, only one of the Twelve Ancestral Witches was female!
Jiang Yun did not dare be negligent and immediately stepped forward.
"Jiang Yun, third-generation disciple of the Interception Sect, pays respects to Ancestral Witch Xuanming!"
Xuanming's ice-blue eyes fell upon Jiang Yun, and a trace of surprise flashed through them. "You know my identity?"
Jiang Yun replied neither humbly nor arrogantly, "For Senior Xiang Liu to show such respect, and with such pure ice aura emanating from you, this junior can think of no other candidate besides Ancestral Witch Xuanming."
"However, this junior had believed that, apart from Lady Houtu transforming into Reincarnation, all Twelve Ancestral Witches had perished in the Witch-Demon Calamity."
"I never expected Ancestral Witch Xuanming to still be alive!"
At those words, a trace of reminiscence appeared in Xuanming's eyes as she sighed. "Alive? That was bought with the blood of countless clansmen..."
"During the final battle, my brothers all chose to self-destruct and perish alongside the Demon Race."
"My fifth brother even sought to destroy the world and begin anew!"
"I should have gone with them."
"It was my little sister who secretly protected me at the final moment, allowing me to survive."
Jiang Yun sighed inwardly upon hearing this.
So that was how it had been!
Back then, Ancestral Witch Houtu had been compassionate. Seeing that the souls of Primordial World beings had nowhere to go after death and could only dissipate between heaven and earth, she comprehended the Heavenly Dao and sacrificed herself to create the Six Paths of Reincarnation!
This was one of the greatest Merits since the creation of heaven and earth!
The Heavenly Dao responded and bestowed boundless Merit!
Not only did it allow Houtu to give birth to a Primordial Spirit at the moment of her fall, it also elevated her to Peak Quasi-Sage in a single stroke. Within Reincarnation, she could even wield power comparable to that of a Saint!
Unfortunately, once Reincarnation was established, Houtu was no longer a Witch!
Having lost her Ancestral Witch True Body and become trapped in Reincarnation, she took the name Lady Serenity. Dao Ancestor Hongjun decreed that she guard Reincarnation and not leave freely!
Yet though her Ancestral Witch True Body was gone, the sibling bond between the Twelve Ancestral Witches, forged over countless ages, remained.
That was why she had saved Xuanming at the final moment.
It also explained why the Witch Race, despite its decline, had never been completely wiped out.
With a living Ancestral Witch presiding over them, as well as Lady Serenity of the Underworld secretly watching over them, who would truly dare exterminate the Witch Race?
After his sigh, Jiang Yun did not beat around the bush and went straight to the point. "This junior has come to make a deal with the Witch Race."
"Great Witch Chiyou once refined a set of Profound Yin Banners, eighty-one in total!"
"This junior already possesses forty-nine and still lacks thirty-two to complete the formation!"
"Furthermore, this junior needs top-grade Innate Five-Element Essence of the metal, wood, and fire attributes to break through in cultivation!"
"In exchange, if Ancestral Witch Xuanming requires any pills, magic treasures, or other resources, this junior will certainly do everything in his power to obtain them!"
"Of course, if the Witch Race faces any difficulties, so long as they are within this junior's capabilities, this junior will never refuse!"
Jiang Yun spoke sincerely, keeping his posture exceedingly humble.
Before you continue