The End of the Lecture!

Within Purple Cloud Palace...

The supreme truths of the Grand Dao flowed from Dao Ancestor Hongjun's lips! In an instant, the people below displayed all manner of reactions!

Some looked delighted, some contemplative, some pained, some burst into laughter—there were too many to count, each different from the next!

After lecturing for 2,900 years, Dao Ancestor Hongjun suddenly stopped. He swept his gaze over the mighty cultivators, each with their own insights, and said indifferently, "This lecture has lasted 2,900 years. For the remaining hundred years, whatever questions you have, you may ask them all!"

At those words, all the mighty cultivators rejoiced inwardly. During this time listening to the Dao, they had understood much, yet there was even more they did not understand. Now, they could finally ask!

"May I ask, Teacher, what paths are there to becoming a Saint?" Laozi Li Er's eyelids twitched slightly as he asked respectfully!

This question also voiced the thoughts in every mighty cultivator's heart!

Indeed, which of the mighty cultivators present did not wish to attain the indestructible Primordial Chaos Saint? Yet though they had the desire, they lacked the method. All they could do was sigh helplessly!

"There are three thousand Grand Daos, and every one may lead to Primordial Chaos!" After pondering for a moment, Hongjun replied, "But generally speaking, they are divided into three ranks: superior, middle, and inferior!"

"What three kinds?" Yuanshi could not help but interject.

This time, Hongjun did not need to think at all before speaking. "The superior choice is Proving the Dao through Force: using immense magical power to shatter the shackles of the Heavenly Dao, placing one's true spirit upon the Grand Dao, so that as long as the Grand Dao remains unbroken, one oneself remains undying. The middle choice is the Three Corpses Severing Method: using one's will to place the three corpses of good, evil, and self-obsession upon innate spirit treasures, then using great perseverance to sever them and seek one's true self, placing it upon the Heavenly Dao, so that as long as the Heavenly Dao remains unbroken, one oneself remains undying! The inferior choice is Merit Proving the Dao: rendering great merit unto heaven and earth, causing the Heavenly Dao to bestow boundless merit, wrapping one's true spirit and placing it upon the Heavenly Dao, so that as long as the Heavenly Dao remains unbroken, one oneself likewise remains undying!"

After Dao Ancestor Hongjun finished speaking, the mighty cultivators below all fell into their own thoughts. Before long, Tongtian respectfully asked again, "May I ask, Teacher, which method of proving the Dao did you choose?"

Hearing this, Hongjun gave Tongtian a deep look and replied indifferently, "The Three Corpses Severing Method."

The moment Dao Ancestor Hongjun spoke those words, all the mighty cultivators below were startled. They all thought, Even Hongjun, the first Saint since the creation of heaven and earth, merely chose the Three Corpses Severing Method. We had better know our own limits and not covet Proving the Dao through Force! Otherwise, if our magical power is insufficient and we are abandoned by the Heavenly Dao, billions of years of cultivation will become nothing but a painted cake to satisfy hunger—truly not worth the attempt!

The mighty cultivators were exceedingly intelligent. With only a little thought, they understood the meaning behind it and naturally did not dare covet Proving the Dao through Force. Not to mention that they lacked such magical power—even if they possessed it, the Heavenly Dao was not so easily shattered. Was Pangu not a failed example before their very eyes?

Yet there were still those unwilling to give up, such as the Demon Race emperors Dijun and Taiyi, who both harbored such thoughts!

At this moment, Taiyi, the Demon Race emperor, rose from his seat and respectfully asked, "May I ask, Teacher, why do you not use Proving the Dao through Force?"

The moment they heard this question, the mighty cultivators were startled again. They secretly thought, Taiyi, you truly dare ask anything. Is this not questioning Teacher's strength?

Though they thought so in their hearts, they could not help wanting to hear Hongjun's explanation. Not daring to covet Proving the Dao through Force did not mean they did not wish to covet it. Moreover, everyone held a trace of luck in their hearts—perhaps they themselves might have the possibility of proving the Dao through force!

"Proving the Dao through Force is far too difficult. Even if Pangu had not fallen after opening heaven and earth, he would still have needed to shatter the Heavenly Dao. Once the Heavenly Dao shattered, heaven and earth would all be destroyed, leaving only one person amid chaos. In the end, he would again be compelled to carry out the duty of opening heaven and earth. Repeating this cycle over and over, he would ultimately perish and his Dao would vanish!" Hongjun did not mind in the slightest. His expression remained unchanged through the ages, as though Taiyi's questioning had not angered him at all!

Upon hearing this, the mighty cultivators were greatly shocked. At last, they wiped away that final trace of luck in their hearts. With a method of proving the Dao through force like this, it was better not to prove it at all!

Thus, the mighty cultivators turned their minds toward the Three Corpses Severing Method. The questions that followed one after another were all related to the Three Corpses Severing Method!

And so, a hundred years flashed by!

That day, after Hongjun answered a mighty cultivator's question, he did not sit quietly as usual and wait. Instead, he continued, "The hundred years have passed. The three-thousand-year lecture has reached completion. You may all return. Three thousand years from now, I will open the altar for the second lecture!"

Hearing this, the mighty cultivators did not dare say more and prepared to rise and take their leave. At that moment, they suddenly saw a woman with a face full of compassion stand from her seat. She was none other than Lady Houtu of the Twelve Ancestral Shamans!

Houtu bent slightly and bowed respectfully. "May I ask, Teacher, our Witch Race does not cultivate the Primordial Spirit. Is there a method by which we may become Saints?"

Houtu was also a person of great perseverance and great wisdom. When she heard that Saint Hongjun was opening an altar to lecture on the Dao, her heart stirred at once. She called upon the other eleven Ancestral Shamans, intending for them all to ascend to Purple Cloud Palace with her and listen to the words of a Saint. Yet the eleven Ancestral Shamans were all arrogant individuals who respected neither heaven, earth, nor Saints, and worshipped only Pangu. Upon hearing Houtu's words, they all dismissed them with disdain. Left with no choice, Houtu could only ascend to Purple Cloud Palace alone!

Yet after finally arriving at Purple Cloud Palace and hearing the Saint's Dao, she discovered that she could not understand it at all and gained nothing. She could not help feeling deeply disappointed. Even so, she had not forgotten her mission. She forced herself to listen to the Dao for three thousand years, and just as everyone was about to depart, she finally voiced the urgent longing in her heart!

"I already know what you seek. In the future, there will naturally be a destined opportunity. You may withdraw!" After speaking, Hongjun did not wait for the mighty cultivators to bid him farewell. With a flash, he vanished, leaving only Houtu standing there with a deeply troubled expression!

After Hongjun left, the mighty cultivators were no longer as quiet as before. They began discussing among themselves, each harboring their own calculations!

From then on, Hongjun passed down the Three Corpses Severing Method, and the Primordial Wilderness was never peaceful again. Mighty cultivators without innate spirit treasures all began leaving their seclusions in search of treasures. Naturally, conflict became unavoidable.

Thus, before the chaos between the Witch Race and Demon Race began, the mighty cultivators had begun fighting among themselves first!

There was no need to say more of these later events. Once the Dao Ancestor left, Mu Jizi and Kunpeng rose from their purple jade cushions. After exchanging pleasantries with several innate mighty cultivators they knew, they left Purple Cloud Palace with Xihe and Yuehua, chatting and laughing along the way!

Outside Purple Cloud Palace, the mighty cultivators emerged in groups of three or five, like people hurrying to a market!

After all, opportunities for mighty cultivators like these to gather together were few. If they did not make more acquaintances now, there might never be another chance!

One had to know that there was strength in numbers. Whether seizing magic treasures or fighting others, once everyone rushed forward together, who would dare contend against them!

...Today's second update is here! Please continue supporting with every kind of vote! Lastly, an early wish to everyone: Happy National Day!!!

Notice: Starting tomorrow, there will be three updates every day throughout the seven days of National Day. The exact times will be announced to all fellow Daoists tomorrow. I sincerely hope for your strong support, fellow Daoists!!!