A Sparring Partner Without Knowing It

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Perhaps because he had been the first to attain the Dao and become a Primordial Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal, Hongjun was inevitably somewhat inflated now, and instead overlooked certain details.

With a mere wave of his hand toward the Primordial World, he directly carved open a path through chaos leading from the Primordial World to the Purple Cloud Palace.

Though violent chaotic currents still raged along this path, they were not enough to harm Zenith Heaven Golden Immortals. But for anyone below the Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal realm, setting foot upon this path meant certain death.

Of course, if any blind Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal strayed from the route Hongjun had laid out, they would surely be torn to pieces by the chaotic currents. Even if they survived by sheer luck, they would become lost within chaos.

But the living beings of the Primordial World knew none of this. They were now making their way toward Mount Buzhou. After all, to pass through the Primordial World's barrier and enter chaos, the summit of Mount Buzhou was the only route.

Thus, tens of thousands of Primordial World cultivators had already gathered atop Mount Buzhou. Yet no one dared be the first to enter chaos.

The stalemate lasted for several hundred years before someone bold finally took the first step. This person was none other than the Primordial World's renowned good man, Ancestor Hong Yun.

After entering chaos, Ancestor Hong Yun did not feel the chaotic currents harming him at all. He immediately laughed and said,

"Fellow Daoists, the Dao Ancestor has already opened a path for us to the Purple Cloud Palace. You may all proceed there without fear."

Having said that, Ancestor Hong Yun and his friend Zhen Yuanzi headed directly toward the Purple Cloud Palace deep within chaos.

Seeing that Ancestor Hong Yun and Zhen Yuanzi were indeed unharmed, the Primordial World cultivators also entered chaos one after another.

However, some cultivators who overestimated themselves, despite not having reached the Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal realm, still attempted to enter chaos. The result was that they instantly turned to ashes.

This made those Primordial Unity Golden Immortals who had wanted to try their luck completely abandon any thoughts of taking chances, and they turned around and headed down Mount Buzhou.

In the blink of an eye, roughly half the cultivators on Mount Buzhou had left. Including those who had entered chaos, only three or four thousand remained.

As he watched these people, an utterly inconspicuous Daoist merely sighed and shook his head. He could not help muttering inwardly,

"It seems that nearly a thousand Zenith Heaven Golden Immortals will still perish in chaos on their way to the Purple Cloud Palace. Hongjun, Hongjun, you truly are ruthless."

This person was none other than Chen Xuan, who had altered his appearance using the laws of nature.

Chen Xuan was naturally faster than the Three Pure Ones, and had long since arrived at the summit of Mount Buzhou. He quietly observed the Primordial World cultivators.

Chen Xuan clearly remembered that the Purple Cloud Palace had a total of three thousand destined people. In the future, these three thousand destined people would also become the ceiling of the Primordial World's combat power.

Yet that would last for only one calamity. Once the Witch-Demon Calamity began, how many of those three thousand destined people could remain untouched?

After all, others might not know, but Chen Xuan understood better than anyone. The so-called Heaven and Earth Calamities were nothing more than the Heavenly Dao cleansing the Primordial World.

The earliest Fierce Beast Calamity had been a cleansing of the surviving Chaos Gods and Devils. The Dragon-Han Calamity had cleansed those races blessed with immense fortune.

As for the Witch-Demon Calamity, it was meant to eliminate everything connected to Pangu—unless they submitted to the Heavenly Dao.

The following Investiture of the Gods Calamity would completely trap Primordial World cultivators within a cage, allowing the Heavenly Dao to successfully seize control of the entire Primordial World.

Thus, in Chen Xuan's eyes, those three thousand destined people were not much different from the dead. After all, they were merely chess pieces in the Heavenly Dao's hands.

Just then, Chen Xuan saw two streaks of fire flying toward the summit of Mount Buzhou. They soon transformed into two handsome men.

One held the River Chart and Luo Writing in his hand, while the other bore the Chaos Bell above his head. With domineering force, they parted the crowd of Primordial World cultivators and prepared to step into chaos.

Though everyone was deeply displeased, no one dared provoke them. They could only unwillingly make way.

Seeing the two domineering men, Chen Xuan could not help smiling. "So these must be Dijun and Taiyi, the two three-legged Golden Crow brothers born from the Sun Star."

Yet before stepping into chaos, Dijun and Taiyi stopped. They looked toward the summit of Mount Buzhou, and a sharp gleam flashed in their eyes.

At that moment, a discordant voice rang out. "You two flat-feathered beasts, what gives you the right to be so arrogant?"

"If you have the guts, come fight me, Zhu Rong, for three thousand rounds. Let's see whether this Ancestral Sorcerer can pluck every last feather from your bodies."

Immediately afterward, ten men and two breathtakingly beautiful women strode onto the summit of Mount Buzhou.

They directly aimed their hostility at Dijun and Taiyi. By the look of things, they would not rest until they had fought here and determined who stood higher.

When Taiyi saw Zhu Rong provoking him, fury immediately surged within him. Raising the Eastern Sovereign Bell, he charged at Zhu Rong.

Although Dijun and Taiyi were only at the early Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal realm, they had always looked down on the Twelve Ancestral Sorcerers because of their companion spiritual treasures, the River Chart and Luo Writing and the Eastern Sovereign Bell.

After all, with the River Chart and Luo Writing suspended above their heads, the two brothers could stand invincible. Combined with the Eastern Sovereign Bell's attacks, they truly could trade blows with the Twelve Ancestral Sorcerers.

Of course, that was on the condition that Houtu did not intervene. If Houtu, a Primordial Golden Immortal, took action, Dijun and Taiyi would have no chance of victory.

Yet Dijun and Eastern Sovereign Taiyi knew nothing of this. They still believed that the two of them could fight the Twelve Ancestral Sorcerers to a draw.

Little did they know that the Twelve Ancestral Sorcerers had long regarded the two brothers as sparring partners, using them to deepen their own understanding of battle.

After all, the Twelve Ancestral Sorcerers cultivated their physical bodies, and the best way to increase their strength was through combat. Having finally found two sparring partners, how could they possibly let Houtu take action?

And now, Dijun and Taiyi wished to establish an image of strength before the Primordial World cultivators, so that they could command the Primordial World in the future. Naturally, they were even less willing to tolerate Zhu Rong's provocation.

At that moment, Fuxi arrived at the summit of Mount Buzhou with Nuwa. Fuxi immediately said,

"Fellow Daoists, the Purple Cloud Palace is about to begin its teachings. Do you truly wish to miss such a great opportunity over a momentary clash of pride?"

When Houtu saw Nuwa arrive, she immediately went forward with a smile. Taking Nuwa's hand, she asked her question after question, paying no attention at all to the other matters.

Meanwhile, Fuxi wanted the two sides to let the matter rest. After all, if they truly began fighting, it would likely take thousands or even tens of thousands of years before it ended.

But Zhu Rong did not care in the slightest. "Listening to the Dao is unimportant. What matters is being able to beat these two flat-feathered beasts. It makes me happy from the bottom of my heart."

As he spoke, two fire dragons soared into the sky and charged directly at Taiyi's Eastern Sovereign Bell.