The Fourth Pure One of Kunlun Mountain (Gentlemen, please bookmark and keep reading, ╰(￣ω￣ｏ))

In the primordial world, years went uncounted. In the blink of an eye, more than a dozen yuanhui had passed since Pangu cleaved open Heaven and Earth.

Layers upon layers of clouds wreathed Kunlun Mountain, while clear light within its peaks rose slowly from the earth veins like water.

After the great god Pangu opened Heaven and Earth, his Primordial Spirit transformed into the Three Pure Ones, giving birth to three innate beings upon Kunlun Mountain: Grand Pure One Laozi, the Jade Pure One Yuanshi, and the Supreme Pure One Tongtian.

Grand Pure One Laozi spent his days with his eyes closed in contemplation, his aura so faint it was nearly imperceptible.

The Jade Pure One Yuanshi sat upright before Jade Void Peak, his robes and crown immaculate, immortal light suffusing his entire body. Whenever spirit birds of the mountain passed by, none dared stir up trouble.

The Supreme Pure One Tongtian was the most free-spirited by nature. With a sword on his back, he wandered among mountains and rivers, watching clouds gather and scatter, and observing the myriad forms and vibrant life of the world.

This was Kunlun Mountain's usual daily life—quiet and peaceful, utterly unlike the slaughterous scenes beyond, where the dragon, phoenix, and qilin clans waged war against one another.

But on this day, to the north of Kunlun Mountain, a wisp of clear qi shot into the heavens, startling the mountain's grasses, trees, and spirit birds into scattering in panic.

Grand Pure One Laozi opened his eyes from contemplation and rose to look toward that stream of clear qi in the north.

At the same time, the Jade Pure One Yuanshi stood up as well, his gaze fixed warily upon that clear light.

The Supreme Pure One Tongtian, meanwhile, charged straight toward the clear qi at the rear mountain.

"Still so rash." Yuanshi watched Tongtian's retreating figure, his brows knitting slightly as he shook his head. Yet he too took a single step forward.

Seeing that his two younger brothers had already set out, Grand Pure One Laozi rose as well.

The three appeared at the northern foot of Kunlun Mountain almost simultaneously.

Before their eyes lay an unnamed valley. Deep within it seeped an exceedingly faint white glow. The light was not brilliant, but it was pure and spotless.

"What an utterly pure aura." After sensing that white light, surprise appeared in Tongtian's eyes.

Yuanshi said nothing. Raising a hand, he pointed, and a streak of Jade Pure immortal light flew forth, striking the rock wall deep within the valley in an instant.

Boom! After a thunderous crash, the mountain wall split open, revealing a white lotus before them.

The lotus bloomed in twelve ranks, every petal as smooth and immaculate as jade, while layers of innate purifying light flowed around it.

"A twelve-rank lotus throne?" The smile vanished from Tongtian's face at the sight.

"At the very least, it is a top-grade innate spirit treasure."

Yuanshi stared intently at the lotus throne before him.

After gazing at it for a long while, Grand Pure One Laozi slowly spoke four words.

"It is the World-Purifying White Lotus."

As those words fell, the valley instantly sank into silence. The Twelve-Rank World-Purifying White Lotus—such a treasure formed from an innate spiritual root—was no ordinary opportunity even in the vast primordial world.

But just as the Three Pure Ones prepared to claim the World-Purifying White Lotus, its petals unfolded layer by layer, and purifying white light instantly swept through the entire valley.

As the petals spread open, an innate Dao embryo appeared before the three of them. Dense clear qi swirled around it, as though protecting this innate being that had yet to take form.

"The aura of the Father God?" Tongtian cried out in shock the moment he sensed that familiar presence within the clear qi.

"That's right. The aura surrounding this Dao embryo is the Father God's clear qi, sharing the same origin as us."

Yuanshi was also somewhat stunned. The Three Pure Ones had been formed from Pangu's Primordial Spirit and born from the clear qi of Creation. How could there be a fourth being in the primordial world who carried Pangu's Pure Qi?

Grand Pure One Laozi said nothing. Closing his eyes, he began to divine.

"The heavenly secrets are obscured."

A moment later, Grand Pure One Laozi opened his eyes. Looking at the Dao embryo before him, he shook his head and spoke.

"Even you cannot calculate it, Elder Brother?"

Tongtian was deeply shocked when he saw that even after his elder brother brought forth the Taiji Diagram, he still could not divine the origin of the Dao embryo before them.

Grand Pure One Laozi did not answer. A wisp of Grand Pure immortal light appeared in his palm. With a raised hand, he sent it forth, and the light instantly sank into the Dao embryo.

Boom!

The entire Kunlun Mountain trembled faintly. Above the peaks where the three cultivated, clear qi rose at the same time. The three auras of the Grand Pure, Jade Pure, and Supreme Pure Ones were unexpectedly drawn by a strand of clear qi not yet fully formed upon the Dao embryo, briefly converging as one.

"It is indeed of the same origin," Grand Pure One Laozi said softly.

"Then does that mean we are about to gain a younger brother?" Tongtian suddenly smiled.

"This matter cannot be treated lightly." Yuanshi's brows remained tightly furrowed.

Tongtian was about to speak again, but Grand Pure One Laozi raised a hand to stop them both.

"This Dao embryo's aura is still very weak. Let us protect him first."

With those words, the dispute in the valley came to a halt.

Grand Pure One Laozi looked at the Dao embryo within the lotus, and a rare gentleness appeared deep in his eyes.

"He has yet to take form, and his origin is protected by the World-Purifying White Lotus. Since he shares our origin, he shall remain in Kunlun for now and be nurtured jointly by the three of us."

The smile on Tongtian's face deepened.

"Good. Then he shall be our Fourth Brother from now on."

Yuanshi remained silent for a moment before finally voicing no further objection.

"Since he has entered Kunlun, he must abide by Kunlun's rules."

Tongtian laughed. "He hasn't even taken form yet, and Second Brother is already setting rules?"

Yuanshi gave him an indifferent glance.

"Better than having you take him around causing trouble everywhere in the future."

Deep within the white lotus, an awareness awakened amid excruciating pain.

Zhou Heng felt as though he had been torn apart and pieced back together.

No hands, no feet—not even eyes.

He could only sense boundless clear qi enveloping him. Beneath him, an incomparably gentle force supported his Primordial Spirit, so immaculate it seemed to be washing away the lingering impurities within him bit by bit.

Yet the pain remained.

Seeping outward from the depths of his soul.

Who knew how long passed before sounds from the outside world filtered into his awareness in broken fragments.

"Father God's clear qi?"

"Same origin?"

"Kunlun?"

"Three Pure Ones?"

Zhou Heng's consciousness gave a violent shudder.

Three Pure Ones? Kunlun? Father God's clear qi?

In his previous life, he had merely been an ordinary person. His greatest hobby had been reading Primordial World novels, but no matter how familiar he was with the Primordial World, that did not mean he was willing to actually come to this godforsaken place.

This was no ordinary cultivation world. This was the Primordial World, where Great Luo were everywhere and Golden Immortals were worth less than dogs.

More importantly, he had heard the voices of the Three Pure Ones: Grand Pure One Laozi, the Jade Pure One Yuanshi, and the Supreme Pure One Tongtian.

Zhou Heng knew better than anyone what these three would become in the future.

Saints. The orthodox lineage of the Mystical School. Formed from Pangu's Primordial Spirit. Yet they were also three brothers whom the Heavenly Dao and the West would gradually tear apart during the Investiture of the Gods calamity.

The Three Pure Ones split apart, the Exposition Sect and Interception Sect battled, the Myriad Immortals Formation was broken, Tongtian was imprisoned in Purple Cloud Palace, and the Interception Sect was nearly annihilated.

The Exposition Sect's Twelve Golden Immortals had their Three Flowers atop their heads cut away, and in the end, quite a few of them were even pried away by the West.

The Grand Pure One seemed detached from worldly affairs, but in truth, after the Investiture of the Gods, more than half of the Mystical School's destiny was divided away by the West.

The more Zhou Heng thought about it, the colder his heart became.

If he had merely been a roadside blade of grass or a stone, perhaps he could have found somewhere to lie low.

But what had those people outside just said?

Same origin, fourth brother, Kunlun.

In other words, not only had he transmigrated into the Primordial World, he had directly become the Three Pure Ones' youngest brother.

It sounded like the most blessed possible start.

Yet Zhou Heng could not feel happy at all.

The Three Pure Ones would turn against one another in the future. As this so-called "fourth brother," trapped between them, what good ending could he possibly have?

Should he side with the Grand Pure One? With Yuanshi? With Tongtian?

No matter whose side he chose, he would ultimately be swept into the chess game between Saints.

More terrifying still, there had never been a Fourth Pure One in the Primordial World. His very existence was something that should not be.

Outside, the Grand Pure One seemed to have sensed the disturbance of the Dao embryo within the white lotus.

He lowered his head to look.

"He's awake."

Tongtian immediately moved closer.

"He already has consciousness?"

Yuanshi raised a hand to stop Tongtian.

"Do not startle him."

Tongtian glanced at Yuanshi and, for once, did not argue.

Listening to the voices outside, Zhou Heng felt a surge of complicated emotions.

This was the Three Pure Ones. At this time, they had not yet split apart; there was no struggle over their Dao lineages, nor the cold indifference they would show each other during the Investiture of the Gods.

They were still brothers—true brothers.

A thought suddenly arose in Zhou Heng's mind.

Now that he had come, would the Three Pure Ones still walk that path?

The instant that thought appeared, the Purifying White Lotus beneath him gave a faint tremble.

A wisp of exceedingly pale gray qi emerged from the depths of the lotus heart, as though stirred by some unspeakable word.