Red Cloud of the Past, a Remnant Soul Today

"May I ask who you are, Senior?" Yuan Ming cupped his hands, remaining on guard.

The remnant soul sighed, his voice carrying endless vicissitudes. "I... am Red Cloud."

Redcloud Ancestor!

Yuan Ming's heart shook violently.

"Senior Red Cloud, then."

Yuan Ming's expression turned solemn. This was a figure of the same generation as the Three Pure Ones and Nuwa.

Red Cloud's remnant soul continued, a trace of pleading in his tone. "Young friend, you bear the Human Race Fortune. Your foundation is deep, and your blessings are profound. I have a matter to request of you..."

He earnestly asked Yuan Ming to deliver this wisp of his remnant soul to Five Villages Temple on Longevity Mountain in the Western Ox Continent.

He frankly admitted that Zhen Yuanzi, the master of Five Villages Temple, was his sole intimate friend—one who could be called his Dao companion.

"Zhenyuan the Great is the Ancestor of Earth Immortals, with vast divine abilities. Only he... may be able to protect this final wisp of my origin from perishing."

At those words, Yuan Ming's heart jolted.

Zhen Yuanzi!

Another great power from the same era as the Three Pure Ones, one who possessed the Primordial Spiritual Roots, the Ginseng Fruit Tree. His cultivation was unfathomable; he was at least in the Quasi-Sage Realm.

He had not wished to involve himself in the karmic chessboard of these top-tier powers of the Primordial World so soon.

He was merely a True Immortal now. In the eyes of those great powers who could command laws and create worlds with a wave of their hands, how was he any different from an ant?

Recklessly becoming entangled in the grudges between Red Cloud, Kunpeng, Minghe, and the others would be no different from setting himself on fire.

What he needed most now was to keep a low profile, develop steadily, and accumulate strength.

Seeing the hesitation on Yuan Ming's face, Red Cloud understood his concerns.

In his state as a remnant soul, he did not have much time left. He had to seize this final hope.

A flash of red light appeared, and before the remnant soul emerged a gourd roughly a foot tall. Its entire body was dark red, with profound cloud patterns flowing across its surface.

"Young friend, this is my former magic treasure, the Nine-Nine Soul-Scattering Gourd."

Red Cloud's voice carried a trace of reminiscence and resolve. "If you can fulfill my long-cherished wish and deliver this remnant soul to Five Villages Temple, into the hands of my fellow Daoist Zhen Yuanzi... then this magic treasure shall be yours."

The Nine-Nine Soul-Scattering Gourd!

Yuan Ming's pupils abruptly constricted, and even his breathing stalled.

This was the famed Supreme Primordial Spiritual Treasure!

Born from the Buzhou Immortal Vine, it contained endless Soul-Dispersing Red Sand. Once activated, the red sand would blanket heaven and earth, specifically wounding cultivators' Primordial Spirits and souls. It was vicious beyond measure.

Rumor had it that even a Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal, if lacking a supreme protective treasure, would suffer soul scattering and Dao dissolution should this red sand touch them. Its terror was truly unparalleled.

The value of a Supreme Primordial Spiritual Treasure was enough to drive any great power mad!

Not only could it greatly increase one's combat strength, it was also tied to one's comprehension of the Great Dao.

If he could obtain this treasure...

Yuan Ming's heart began pounding uncontrollably.

His earlier concerns began to seem pale and powerless before the six words "Nine-Nine Soul-Scattering Gourd."

If the Nine-Nine Soul-Scattering Gourd was the reward, then Yuan Ming truly had to weigh the matter carefully.

This might be the key bargaining chip that would allow him to gain a foothold in the Primordial World—and contend with the great powers of the heavens in the future!

He drew a deep breath, suppressing the excitement in his heart, and frankly told Red Cloud's remnant soul, "Senior Red Cloud, it is not that this junior wishes to decline. It is only that I currently have an urgent matter and must first make a trip to the ancestral land at the Shore of the East Sea."

Rather than being disappointed, Red Cloud's remnant soul seemed to let out a sigh of relief, his tone becoming calm.

"No matter. The Shore of the East Sea... that is where fellow Daoist Nuwa created the Human Race, is it not? I can temporarily reside within this Nine-Nine Soul-Scattering Gourd and travel east with you. Once your business is finished, we can turn westward and head for Longevity Mountain."

With that, the dark-red gourd transformed into a streak of light and lightly fell into Yuan Ming's arms. It felt warm and smooth to the touch, yet he could faintly sense the destructive energy contained within.

Immediately afterward, Red Cloud's faint remnant soul also turned into a wisp of red smoke and entered the gourd.

"Young friend, relax your mind. I will help you initially refine the first restriction of this gourd. That way, you will be able to use it in a preliminary fashion and gain another means of self-protection."

Yuan Ming did as instructed and sat down cross-legged.

A wisp of soul power, weak yet incomparably pure and carrying an ancient Dao rhythm, flowed from the gourd. It guided his mana and divine sense, carefully probing into the gourd's unimaginably complex innate restrictions.

Who knew how much time passed before Yuan Ming sensed a subtle connection forming between his divine sense and the Nine-Nine Soul-Scattering Gourd.

Though he remained far from fully controlling it, he could already faintly sense and draw upon a trace of the Soul-Dispersing Red Sand within.

Once the preliminary refinement was complete, Yuan Ming solemnly tied the Nine-Nine Soul-Scattering Gourd at his waist.

He gave the Red Maple Tree a slight bow, then transformed into a streak of light and shot out of Red Maple Valley, continuing at full speed toward the east and the ancestral land of his memories.

One man and one soul journeyed through the mountains and rivers of the Primordial World.

Though only a remnant soul remained of Red Cloud, his knowledge and experience were as vast as a sea of mist and clouds.

Seeing that Yuan Ming's foundation was solid and his comprehension exceptional, he would often discuss the Dao with him through divine sense whenever Yuan Ming rested.

"Young friend, this Formless Scripture is truly wondrous. It treats the body as the seed and seeks nothing outside itself. Yet after the first level reaches completion, though the Divine Bridge is erected, the Other Shore has not been reached. You still need the slow grinding work of water wearing through stone..."

Red Cloud's guidance often struck at the heart of the matter, making Yuan Ming's understanding of his own Dao Path ever clearer.

Even more astonishingly, Yuan Ming seemed to be favored by the Heavenly Dao throughout their journey.

Upon reaching a secluded valley, he happened upon a Pure Heart Glazed Fruit capable of tempering the soul. Passing through a mountain ravine, he discovered Stellar Cold Iron that could be used to forge an immortal sword.

Sometimes, he merely stopped to rest, only to find a ten-thousand-year spiritual herb growing from a crack in the rocks.

Even the well-traveled Red Cloud clicked his tongue in wonder at such heaven-defying fortune. "This old man traveled the Primordial World for ten thousand years, yet I have never seen an Innate Being with blessings as profound as yours, young friend. Your fortune rivals even us Primordial Divine Saints!"

"It seems the Heavenly Dao has not treated the Human Race poorly, and you are the one who bears the Human Race Fortune!!"

Yuan Ming merely smiled faintly at this.

He knew full well that this was both the effect of his [Great Fortune] Entry and the result of traveling alongside the remnant soul of Red Cloud, the greatest good man of the Primordial World. This senior's merit and virtue had run deep in life; even after death, his remnant soul could influence the flow of fortune around him.

Under Red Cloud's careful guidance and his own unceasing cultivation, Yuan Ming finally cultivated the first level of the Formless Scripture to perfection.

At that moment, the Physical Bitter Sea within his lower dantian was as vast as a starry sky, while the Life Spring at its center surged with crimson-gold essence of life.

A dazzling Divine Bridge spanning the Sea of Suffering had completely solidified. Dao patterns densely covered its surface, pointing directly toward the hazy, unknown Other Shore.

He could feel that the strength of his body and the purity of his mana now far surpassed those of an ordinary peak True Immortal. He was fully capable of contending with a late-stage Golden Immortal.

However, the second level of the Formless Scripture remained shrouded in heavy mist.

"Senior, I fear the further derivation of the Formless Scripture must wait until I break through to the Golden Immortal realm and gain a deeper understanding of the Great Dao before it can continue."

"Good!" Red Cloud said approvingly. "Only with a firm foundation can one build a tower ten thousand zhang high. Your accumulation is already sufficient to challenge the Golden Immortal realm. You merely lack an opportunity."

Yuan Ming nodded and turned his gaze toward the eastern horizon.

He vaguely sensed that this opportunity might lie somewhere in the not-too-distant east.