Kunpeng's Flawed Foundation, Nuwa's Shy Misunderstanding

At the northern foothills of Mount Buzhou, within an unnamed secluded valley, Innate spiritual aura swirled and flowed.

The Innate Gourd Vine rooted in the Nine Heavens Breath Soil swayed gently in the wind, its emerald leaves glinting with gold. Of the three remaining treasure gourds upon the vine, two—the Purple-Cyan and Purple-White Gourds—had already matured, their bodies wreathed in rosy radiance. Only the last Purple-Green Gourd remained unripe, its spiritual glow dim.

Nuwa wore a plain Creation immortal gown. With a human head and serpent body, her dark hair cascaded like a waterfall. Her eyes held the clear brilliance of innate Lesser Yin and the spiritual charm of the Creation Dao. The spiritual energy around her merged seamlessly with the valley's innate aura, without the slightest obstruction.

She lifted her eyes toward the Purple-Cyan Gourd on the vine. It stood nine inches and six fen tall, lustrous throughout like cyan jade, its surface covered in Yi Wood life-giving Dao patterns. It contained boundless vitality of creation, making it a treasure perfectly suited to her Lesser Yin Dao and Creation Dao.

With a light lift of her slender hand, the Purple-Cyan Gourd seemed to possess a spirit of its own as it flew into her palm.

This was an exceptionally precious Supreme-Grade Innate Spiritual Treasure.

—In the original course of fate, this had been the Demon-Summoning Gourd renowned throughout the Primordial World. After the War of Liches ended, it was meant to house the Demon Race's supreme treasure, the Demon-Summoning Banner, and command the myriad demons of the Primordial World.

After plucking the Purple-Cyan Gourd, only the Purple-White Gourd, suffused with flowing golden light, and the unripe, dim Purple-Green Gourd remained on the vine.

"Tap, tap, tap..."

Suddenly, Nuwa raised her eyes toward the valley entrance. Her gaze shifted slightly as she saw three figures approaching slowly atop gilded rainbow light. They were Lingxiao, Xihe, and Changxi, who had come looking for her.

"Fellow Daoist Nuwa, I trust you have been well."

Lingxiao stepped forward and bowed to Nuwa from afar.

Xihe and Changxi likewise gathered their sleeves and offered their salutations. Xihe was cool and dignified in every movement, while Changxi was delicate and lively, each possessing her own unique grace.

Nuwa returned the salute with a gentle smile, pointing to the Calabash Vine before her. "Fellow Daoist Lingxiao, your arrival is quite timely. This Innate Gourd Vine has emerged and borne seven innate treasure gourds, yet it seems protected by the rules of the Great Dao. Each person may take only one; none may force the matter."

"These gourds are connected as one with the Earth Veins of Mount Buzhou. Even a Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal would find it difficult to shake them in the slightest by force."

She had already tested it. After plucking the Purple-Cyan Gourd, the moment she touched either of the remaining two, an innate restriction repelled her, leaving her unable to advance even an inch.

Now that the three had arrived, she wondered what Great Supernatural Being might next be drawn here by this soaring spiritual aura. She might as well do them a favor while she could.

Thus, she smiled again and said, "Since the three of you have come, you are fated with these treasure gourds. Why not give it a try and see whether you can obtain the remaining opportunities?"

Yet she did not know that this secluded valley was wrapped in layers upon layers of spatial-temporal folds. Only those fated ones whose Dao aligned with it could see through the illusion and enter; not every great power could be drawn here by its spiritual aura.

"Thank you, Fellow Daoist."

Lingxiao nodded at her words. Extending his divine sense, he carefully swept over the entire Calabash Vine and the spatial-temporal barrier surrounding the valley. He had already formed a clear conjecture regarding the emergence rules of this Supreme-Grade Innate Spiritual Root.

—The seven gourds borne by this Innate Gourd Vine corresponded to Yin-Yang and the Five Elements Dao, while the vine itself carried the most fundamental Creation and Life Dao of all living things.

Thus, only Innate Sacred Beings aligned with Yin-Yang, the Five Elements, Life, or Creation Dao—or legitimate inheritors of Pangu's Primordial Spirit such as the Three Pure Ones—could obtain the opportunities here.

For the former, it was alignment with the Dao and fate decreed by Heaven;

For the latter, it was sheer strength shattering ten thousand methods—the Primordial World had been opened by Pangu, and the Three Pure Ones inherited the supreme fortune Pangu had left behind. Naturally, there were few opportunities between Heaven and Earth with which they had absolutely no affinity.

Hong Yun cultivated the Cloud Dao, where water, fire, and wind merged, and was suited to the Purple-Red Gourd;

Nuwa possessed the innate Lesser Yin Dao and Creation Dao, and was fated with the Purple-Cyan Gourd;

Lingxiao himself had the foundation of a Great Sun Golden Crow, naturally attuned to the Sun Dao and Fire Dao;

Xihe and Changxi were Lunar Yin Primordial Lords, attuned to the Lunar Dao and Water Dao. Therefore, they too could enter this valley's space-time and behold the true form of this Spiritual Root.

As for Kunpeng, who had pursued Hong Yun here, he possessed a wind-water foundation, yet he lacked a measure of fortune. Wind and water belonged separately to the two forms of Giant Kun and Great Peng, never attaining perfect unity. When he arrived, he had pursued Hong Yun at extreme speed in his Great Peng form, corresponding only to the Wind Dao. Naturally, he could not see through the spatial-temporal illusion and could only pass this supreme opportunity by.

Not to mention that among the many Great Supernatural Beings of the Primordial World, Kunpeng alone was the most peculiar:

After Dao Ancestor Hongjun's three lectures, whether he could truly sever all Three Corpses aside, the other Great Supernatural Beings at least all possessed a sliver of possibility to sever them completely;

Kunpeng alone possessed neither the qualification nor the possibility. At most, he could sever two corpses, corresponding to the dual forms of Giant Kun and Great Peng.

His innate foundation was flawed, his fortune and blessings damaged. Thus, he was the poorest of all and found everything going against him...

Having understood this, Lingxiao raised his eyes toward the Purple-White Gourd.

The gourd was lustrous and white throughout like mutton-fat jade, marked with faint violet-gold Dao patterns of slaughter. Within it dwelled a strand of incomparably sharp innate Geng Metal killing aura. It was precisely the Immortal-Slaying Gourd that should have belonged to Eastern Emperor Taiyi before eventually falling into Lu Ya's hands.

In the original course of fate, after the nine Golden Crows perished, Eastern Emperor Taiyi had flown into a rage. Nourishing it with Kuafu and Dayi's Sha Qi, Killing Intent, and Resentment, he had forged the Immortal-Slaying Flying Dagger.

The words, "Please, treasure, turn around," became infamous for their ferocity during the Apotheosis Calamity, rivaling the Western Two Saints' phrase, "You are destined to have affinity with our West."

Now that Lingxiao had taken this gourd, and was also the Primordial World's sole remaining Golden Crow who had no desire to contend for supremacy, the future tragedies of ten suns hanging in the sky, Kuafu chasing the sun, and Dayi shooting down the suns would naturally never occur.

In that case, the Immortal-Slaying Gourd's fearsome reputation might not emerge in that fashion either;

As for what form he would refine it into in the future, that would depend entirely on the arrangements of his subsequent Dao path.

Lingxiao did not hesitate. With a casual wave of his hand, the Purple-White Gourd broke free from the vine and landed steadily in his palm, cool to the touch.

"Elder Sister, you should try too." Changxi tugged at Xihe's sleeve and spoke sweetly.

"Very well." Xihe gave a slight nod, her cool, beautiful eyes falling upon the unripe Purple-Green Gourd.

Though this gourd had yet to mature and was only an Upper-Grade Innate Spiritual Treasure, it contained the Lunar Ren Water Origin, perfectly aligned with her Dao.

"Hum."

She gently raised her slender hand, and the Purple-Green Gourd drifted softly into her palm. The instant it landed in her hand, its unripe spiritual glow brightened slightly, as though after drifting for countless years, it had finally found its true master.

Once all seven treasure gourds had been plucked, the Innate Gourd Vine instantly lost the support of its spiritual light. Its cyan-jade tendrils shrank and yellowed at a visible rate, its vitality rapidly draining away until it was reduced to the level of an Upper-Grade Innate Spiritual Treasure.

"Ah, the Calabash Vine has withered." Changxi blinked, then skipped forward. Carefully pulling the withered vine from the Nine Heavens Breath Soil, she cradled it in her arms and smiled sweetly. "The vine contains life spiritual aura. It will be perfect to take back and nurture the Spiritual Roots in Lingxiao Palace's spirit garden."

All that remained was the Nine Heavens Breath Soil in which the Calabash Vine had rooted, along with the Three Lights Divine Water accumulated nearby.

The three exchanged smiles with Nuwa. Without favoring anyone, they divided the two treasures equally and tucked them away into their sleeves.

Holding the Nine Heavens Breath Soil and Three Lights Divine Water in his hands, Lingxiao felt somewhat apologetic—

He had originally come to ask Nuwa to act as a matchmaker, yet he had inadvertently taken the Calabash Vine and many opportunities that should have belonged to her. Though opportunities of the Great Dao belonged to those fated to receive them, he had ultimately accepted Nuwa's favor, and he wished to make amends somehow.

After all, each person could take only one gourd, but the Calabash Vine itself could be taken away in passing.

After pondering for a moment, he tactfully said to Nuwa, "Fellow Daoist Nuwa is attuned to the Creation Dao. Creation is the mother of all spirits in the Primordial World. This poor Daoist has a thought, though I do not know whether it should be spoken."

"Please consider: among the Great Supernatural Beings of Heaven and Earth, most take on human-form Dao bodies after transforming, yet few are born with innate human forms like Great God Pangu. Why not use this as a foundation to create a race born naturally in this form?"

"If this succeeds, Merit will surely descend upon the world. If Fellow Daoist is willing, this poor Daoist would gladly lend a hand so that we may accomplish this together."

At these words, Nuwa was first stunned. Then rosy clouds instantly spread across her lovely face, and even the serpent tail hanging at her side curled ever so slightly.

Earlier, seeing Lingxiao travel together with Xihe and Changxi, their eyes and brows brimming with tender affection, she had already felt a trace of envy.

Now, hearing Lingxiao say that he wished to "create a race together" with her and was willing to "lend a hand," her thoughts immediately went astray.

She assumed Lingxiao meant to join Yin and Yang with her, to reproduce and multiply endlessly as the various races of the Primordial World did, and together create a race.

Lowering her eyes, her ears red to their tips, she softly reproached him:

"Fellow Daoist Lingxiao, you... how could you say such things?"

"You wish to create a race with me, like the Dragon Clan of old, and let it reproduce without end?"