My Dao Is Not Alone, the Dao Ancestor Keeps a Guest to Discuss the Calamity

"Ah!"

Changxi let out a delighted cry.

She hurriedly covered her cherry lips with her little hand. Her round almond eyes were wide open, sparkling with starlight, while her rosy cheeks resembled ripe Immortal Peaches from the Kunlun Ruins.

"Big Brother Lingxiao~"

The little girl hummed sweetly as she skipped closer to Lingxiao, tightly clutching his right hand. Her little head kept rubbing against the crook of his arm. Shy yet overjoyed, her eyes curved into crescent moons, unable to contain the happiness and excitement nearly spilling from her.

The moment Lingxiao's words fell, the hall erupted in an uproar.

Amid the crowd, Fu Xi immediately sent a hurried divine-sense message to Nuwa upon seeing this, earnestly trying to persuade her:

"Look, little sister! I told you this Golden Crow junior is no good! Holding one in each arm, he is marrying two Lunar Yin Sovereigns at once—he is plainly a frivolous, fickle-hearted fellow!"

"From now on, you must keep your distance from him. Do not let his honeyed words deceive you!"

The anxious way he sought to protect his sister made it seem as though he regarded Nuwa as a priceless treasure, unwilling to let her encounter the slightest danger.

Nuwa's pretty face flushed faintly. She gave a light spit and retorted through divine sense:

"Brother, do not speak nonsense. They are becoming Dao companions—what does that have to do with us?"

Yet when her gaze swept over Xihe and Changxi, seeing the blush upon their cheeks and the shyness and happiness in their eyes, a trace of envy arose in her heart. She sighed inwardly.

Brother only knew to condemn him for being fickle-hearted, yet he did not know that, as the lord of the Sun Star, Lingxiao had publicly announced the marriage before the three thousand Violet Firmament Guests, giving those two sisters a dignified and rightful standing. Such openhearted frankness, such sincere devotion—was that not a rare and wonderful match?

"Since Fellow Daoist has extended such a gracious invitation, this old man shall certainly attend the banquet. I shall trouble Fellow Daoist, then."

The first to speak was none other than Patriarch Candle Dragon.

Given his usual nature of living in seclusion and avoiding karmic entanglements, he would never have agreed had anyone else invited him. Yet Lingxiao had shown him the way—when Lingxiao established the Twelve Time Markers, setting the framework for years, months, days, and hours, Candle Dragon had been able to use it to perfect the Temporal Order of "moments," thereby receiving Merit bestowed by Heaven and Earth.

He naturally had to repay this karmic debt.

"Congratulations, Fellow Daoist Lingxiao! Congratulations to the two Lunar Yin Fellow Daoists! On such a fine day and joyous occasion, this humble Daoist will surely come to offer congratulations!"

The instant Candle Dragon finished speaking, Tongtian laughed heartily and was the first to echo him.

He had always been forthright by nature and most enjoyed befriending people of open and upright character. Lingxiao's establishment of the Twelve Time Markers had completed the Heavenly Dao, and they both shared in the legacy of Father God Pangu. Tongtian had long been curious about him.

Afterward, Eastern King Lord hurriedly cupped his hands in congratulations as well, his eyes filled with undisguised envy. "Congratulations, Fellow Daoist Lingxiao, on having your wish fulfilled. This humble Daoist will certainly come to offer congratulations when the time comes."

Inwardly, he secretly resolved to take the opportunity of this wedding banquet to seek Lingxiao's advice on the art of getting along with someone, so that he might move Queen Mother of the West's heart sooner and fulfill his long-cherished wish.

For a time, the three thousand Violet Firmament Guests in the hall all voiced their agreement, and congratulations rang out without end.

Although Lingxiao had remained deep within the Sun Star these past years, the boundless Merit from establishing the Twelve Time Markers had made his name known throughout the Primordial World. Moreover, he had always acted openly and honorably, never taking the initiative to forge bad karma with others. He had few enemies to begin with, so the great powers were more than happy to befriend him. Nearly everyone agreed to attend the banquet.

The Primordial World was not all fighting and killing; there were also human sentiments and worldly affairs.

In truth, Lingxiao had chosen this moment to announce his marriage for two reasons:

First, Hongjun had attained sainthood and opened the Violet Firmament Palace to teach the Dao. All the foremost great powers of the Primordial World had gathered here. This was the grandest gathering since the Dragon-Han Calamity had ended; only by announcing it here could he do justice to the two beauties.

Second, the first sermon had just ended, while the Witch-Demon Calamity was still brewing. All three thousand Violet Firmament Guests were present, and none had yet fallen.

—Once the three sermons concluded, the Calamity would sweep through the Primordial World. Many great divine powers would be drawn into it one after another, their bodies perishing and Dao vanishing. Holding a wedding banquet then would not only invite countless needless karmic entanglements, but also lose all sense of festivity.

"Lingxiao will sweep the couch clean in welcome and await the honored arrival of every Fellow Daoist."

Lingxiao held Xihe and Changxi, both flushed crimson with embarrassment, and repeatedly cupped his hands in thanks to everyone. This interlude of announcing the marriage also added a touch of mortal warmth to the solemn sermon that had lasted ten thousand years.

After the interlude, the many great divine powers bowed from afar toward the empty lotus platform, then departed in groups. Each returned to their Dao field to enter seclusion and digest the insights gained from this sermon.

"Little friend, please stay."

Lingxiao was just preparing to leave the Violet Firmament Palace with the two women and return to the Sun Star of the Primordial World when a familiar Dao voice suddenly rang out beside his ears.

His heart stirred. Without showing it, he slowed his steps and gradually fell behind all the great powers.

"Fellow Daoist Lingxiao, on this joyous day, this old man shall surely present you with a great gift!" As Candle Dragon, who had originally been walking at the rear, stepped through the palace gates, he turned and cupped his hands toward Lingxiao from afar with a hearty laugh. Then he transformed into a streak of light and vanished into Chaos.

Whoosh!

The instant Candle Dragon's figure dispersed, the surrounding space suddenly shifted.

Lingxiao only saw a flash of purple qi before his eyes. When he came back to himself, he was already deep within the great hall of the Violet Firmament Palace, before Dao Ancestor Hongjun's lotus platform.

At some point, an additional meditation cushion had appeared beneath him.

Xihe and Changxi, who had just been nestled at his side, were nowhere to be seen.

"Little friend, we meet again."

This unusual form of address from Dao Ancestor Hongjun left Lingxiao somewhat astonished.

All three thousand Violet Firmament Guests revered Hongjun as their master, yet from the Dao Ancestor's words, it seemed he faintly intended to associate with Lingxiao as an equal.

Lingxiao was not one to belittle himself. He knew that on his future Dao path, he might not be unable to stand shoulder to shoulder with the Dao Ancestor—or even surpass him.

But at present, he was merely a Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal. Before this first Saint of the Primordial World, the Dao Ancestor of the Profound Sect, he was like dust before Mount Tai. How could he deserve to be called "little friend"?

"The two Lunar Star Sovereigns have already been led by this humble Daoist's two mischievous attendants to the side hall for tea. Little friend, please set your mind at ease."

As though he had seen through the fleeting worry in Lingxiao's eyes, Dao Ancestor Hongjun stroked his beard and smiled faintly, speaking to reassure him.

Upon hearing this, Lingxiao immediately relaxed.

With a glance from the corner of his eye, he indeed saw that the two Dao attendants, Haotian and Yaochi, were no longer in the hall. In the vast depths of the Violet Firmament Palace, only he and Hongjun sat facing one another.

The Violet Firmament Palace must have contained a hidden heaven within it, with another secret realm elsewhere. Accommodating the two women was no more than a flick of the hand.

"Presumably, little friend must be wondering why this humble Daoist has kept you alone?"

Dao Ancestor Hongjun flicked the whisk in his hand. His plain Dao robe stirred without wind, and all the saintly might of the Heavenly Dao around him was completely withdrawn, leaving only a gentle, rich aura of Dao charm that made one feel as though bathed in spring breeze.

"I am indeed puzzled. I hope the Dao Ancestor will not begrudge me his guidance." Lingxiao composed himself and bowed to Dao Ancestor Hongjun with cupped hands, respectful yet neither servile nor overbearing.

He was also curious what medicine Dao Ancestor Hongjun was selling in his gourd.

"Guidance would be too strong a word." Dao Ancestor Hongjun nodded slightly and went straight to the point, speaking in an unhurried manner. "This humble Daoist has kept little friend behind because you and I walk the same path."

"Little friend established the Twelve Time Markers, perfected the Temporal Order of the Primordial World, and remedied the deficiency in the Heavenly Dao's laws of time. This was a great deed that benefited all living beings and stabilized Heaven and Earth. Heaven and Earth bestowed boundless Merit precisely because the Primordial World had flaws—and you personally filled those flaws."

As the Dao voice faded, a trace of genuine gratification flashed through Hongjun's eyes.

Ever since he had gathered the fragments of the shattered Creation Jade Slip and gained the favor of the Heavenly Dao, he had devoted himself to Dao Integration and mending the heavens, seeking to stabilize the Primordial World. Yet he had always felt the loneliness of one tree unable to make a forest.

Thus, when he had first seen Lingxiao establish the Twelve Time Markers, the sentiment that my Dao is not alone had arisen within him.

Whoosh!

Lingxiao's mind shook upon hearing this. Just as he was about to speak, Hongjun raised a hand and waved it.

The Creation Jade Slip floating overhead suddenly bloomed with boundless mysterious radiance, spilling down countless Dao patterns that formed a vast phantom of the Primordial World before the two of them.

The Dao voice rose again. As the phantom shifted and flowed, it laid out the origin of the Primordial World's Calamities word by word:

"Little friend, do you know why these Calamities of the Primordial World arise?"