Hongjun Bestows a Small Meditation Cushion

Zhunti did not answer directly. He merely said in a low voice, "This humble Daoist seeks only a sliver of the Great Dao."

Many gazes in the hall fell upon Kunpeng. Red Cloud had already yielded; if Kunpeng refused, he would seem cold and heartless.

Yet everyone knew this was coercion from the start. But those present were all shrewd old hands—no one was willing to speak a few words for Kunpeng.

Tongtian sat on the third meditation cushion, his brow faintly furrowed.

"How shameless."

His voice was not loud, but it was enough for several people nearby to hear.

Yuanshi's expression remained indifferent, and he said nothing.

Taiqing closed his eyes in silence.

Xuan Heng stood at the back, understanding more and more clearly.

This was the primordial world.

No one truly cared only about reason. The pitiful cries, the lofty righteousness—behind them all were disputes stirred up for one's own benefit.

Kunpeng clenched his hand within his sleeve, but in the end, he still rose to his feet.

Here in Purple Cloud Palace, he did not dare openly tear relations apart with the two from the west, much less stir up a major conflict before the Sage's lecture. Thus, he could only be forced to yield his seat.

"Good. Very good."

Kunpeng's voice was icy as his gaze first swept over Zhunti, then over Red Cloud.

"This humble Daoist will remember what happened today."

With that, he retreated to one side.

Without the slightest hesitation, Zhunti sat upon the sixth meditation cushion.

The six meditation cushions were finally settled.

Taiqing, Yuanshi, Tongtian, Nuwa, Receiving Guide, Zhunti.

Watching this familiar scene, Xuan Heng sighed inwardly. The original course of events had still arrived here.

Red Cloud yielded his seat, and Kunpeng lost his position.

The karmic slaughter tribulation of the future had been buried from this very moment.

Just then, Purple Cloud Palace suddenly fell completely silent.

A figure appeared soundlessly atop the Dao platform.

It was none other than Dao Ancestor Hongjun.

All the great powers felt their minds tighten at once and swiftly restrained their auras.

The Sage released no pressure, yet merely sitting there, he seemed to return all the Great Dao of heaven and earth to their proper places behind him.

Hongjun's gaze swept across the six meditation cushions. He said neither that it was right nor that it was wrong.

At last, his eyes fell upon Xuan Heng.

Xuan Heng's heart abruptly clenched. In but an instant, cold sweat burst across his back, soaking through his Daoist robe.

For that moment, he felt as though he had been seen through completely.

Pangu's Pure Qi.

The Purifying White Lotus.

Even that soul which did not belong to this primordial world.

Hongjun did not expose him. He merely raised a hand and pointed lightly.

Before the six meditation cushions, violet qi slowly gathered and formed a small meditation cushion.

That cushion was smaller than the other six and half an inch lower, yet its position lay before all six of them.

The entirety of Purple Cloud Palace instantly fell into dead silence.

Hongjun looked at Xuan Heng, his voice calm.

"Xuan Heng, take your seat."

Hongjun's voice was not loud, yet it was like an invisible decree, descending upon Purple Cloud Palace.

The entire hall instantly quieted.

Xuan Heng stood behind the Three Pure Ones, his fingertips twitching almost imperceptibly.

Looking at the small meditation cushion before the six others, he felt not the slightest joy. Instead, it was as if someone had gently pushed him from behind, shoving him straight to the edge of a ten-thousand-zhang cliff.

This meditation cushion should not have appeared. At least, in the primordial world's course of events that he knew, Purple Cloud Palace had only six meditation cushions.

Taiqing, Yuanshi, Tongtian, Nuwa, Receiving Guide, Zhunti.

The six meditation cushions corresponded to the six future Heavenly Dao Sages.

Beyond them, there was no seventh seat, much less a small meditation cushion placed before the six Sages.

Xuan Heng felt a chill creep down his back.

Since transmigrating to the Great Desolation, he had always relied on the little information advantage from his past life, treading carefully along the edges of the greater tide. Reminding the Three Pure Ones to seize the meditation cushions had been the first time he had truly interfered with the course of events.

Yet he had originally thought that, at most, he would hide behind the Three Pure Ones and use their status to listen through this sermon.

He had never expected Hongjun to call him out directly.

Still less had he expected Hongjun to grant him a seat before the six cushions, in full view of the many great powers of the Great Desolation.

Xuan Heng could clearly feel the gazes around him.

Nuwa seemed deep in thought.

A look of calculation flickered in Fuxi's eyes.

Red Cloud's face was filled with surprise.

As for Receiving Guide and Zhunti, there was no need to mention them. Their gazes rested upon him, carrying deeply concealed scrutiny.

And there were even more great powers—confusion, jealousy, wariness, greed, appraisal. As Hongjun's words fell, Xuan Heng became the absolute center of attention in Purple Cloud Palace, second only to Dao Ancestor Hongjun himself.

Xuan Heng had a feeling that, with that single glance just now, Hongjun had already seen through everything about him—even the soul of a transmigrator.

Yet Hongjun had not acted. He had even given him a small meditation cushion. At the very least, that proved Hongjun currently bore him no hostility.

With that thought, Xuan Heng no longer hesitated. He stepped out from behind the Three Pure Ones and slowly walked toward the small cushion before the six Saint cushions.

Xuan Heng's sleeves hung loose as he slowly sat down. The next instant, the Purifying White Lotus deep within his brow gave a faint tremble, and the aura of the Great Dao within Purple Cloud Palace abruptly became several times clearer.

Xuan Heng's heart shook, and he vaguely understood.

This cushion seemed fundamentally different from the other six. Once one sat upon the six Saint cushions, one would be bound to the Heavenly Dao, becoming one of the six Heavenly Dao Saints ordained by heaven.

But after sitting upon this small cushion, Xuan Heng could distinctly sense that he and the Heavenly Dao had been separated by a thread. Though faint, they had truly been separated by a thread.

Upon the dais, Hongjun lowered his eyes and glanced at him. No one knew what lay hidden within that look.

Sitting upon the small cushion, Xuan Heng realized for the first time that he, this anomaly, had likely long since been noticed by a Saint.

Hongjun simply had not exposed him.

And he could only pretend not to know.

Hongjun withdrew his gaze, and his calm voice rang out.

"Today's sermon shall begin with the path beyond Great Luo—the road to Hunyuan."

As Hongjun's voice fell, not even the slightest stray sound remained within Purple Cloud Palace.

Xuan Heng only felt Purple Cloud Palace gradually recede from before his eyes. The dais, the cushions, and the many great powers of the Great Desolation all seemed to blur, separated from him by a layer of clear light.

The next moment, he seemed to witness the opening of heaven and earth.

Clear qi rose, turbid qi sank, yin and yang divided, and the five elements revolved.

Countless laws of the Great Dao intertwined within chaos, at times transforming into mountains, rivers, and peaks, at times into the sun, moon, and stars, before gradually returning to order amid Hongjun's voice.

"Great Luo is one who condenses their own Dao Fruit and stands above the river of time."

"Hunyuan is one whose Dao Fruit is complete and harmonious, seeking nothing beyond itself and no longer bound by ordinary karma."

Every word that fell was like a strike directly upon the depths of the Primordial Spirit.

The Three Pure Ones, Nuwa, Receiving Guide, and Zhunti upon the six cushions each entered a state of enlightenment.

Behind Taiqing, yin and yang circulated. Jade Pure immortal light condensed around Yuanshi, while the sword intent between Tongtian's brows remained hidden, poised but unspent.

Behind Nuwa, the phantom images of myriad spirits seemed to be born and perish. Receiving Guide's expression grew ever more sorrowful, while flashes of brilliance constantly flickered through Zhunti's eyes.

As for Xuan Heng, the Purifying White Lotus deep within his brow slowly unfurled, cleansing and settling the Dao sounds pouring into his Primordial Spirit bit by bit.

Hongjun spoke of the Great Dao, but what Xuan Heng heard was more than merely the Great Dao.

Amid the interweaving countless Dao sounds, he vaguely heard an extremely soft sentence.

"The Great Dao lies ahead; the Heavenly Dao follows behind."

Xuan Heng's mind jolted violently, and he instinctively raised his head toward the dais.

Hongjun was still preaching with his eyes closed, his expression neither sorrowful nor joyful, as though those words had never appeared.

But Xuan Heng was utterly certain that he had heard them.

At that moment, he finally understood what this small cushion had truly given him: that thread of life beneath the crushing weight of the Heavenly Dao in the future!