Lu Chen's Warning, Deliberations in Pangu Hall

Houtu looked at Lu Chen with a complicated expression.

He had said that the Witch Clan would lose. Though she found it difficult to believe, even a battle going smoothly could still overturn in a ditch.

Perhaps the Demon Race had some hidden trump card, but what she could not understand was that the Demon Race had not won either.

When two clans fought, there had to be a victor, didn't there?

"There had never been victors in the struggle for supremacy in the Primordial World. Think of the Dragon-Han Cataclysm. Back then, the Dragon, Phoenix, and Qilin Clans each occupied the earth, the sky, and the seas, with countless subordinate races under their command. Ancestral Dragon, Origin Phoenix, and Primordial Qilin—there was no such thing as Sages in those days. Every one of them stood at the pinnacle of the Primordial World, and every one of them brimmed with lofty ambitions. But what was the result?

"The Dragon Clan guarded the Four Seas, burdened by towering karmic sin, and gradually declined. The Phoenix Clan guarded Southern Li Volcano. As for the Qilin Clan, traces of it were now rarely seen in the Primordial World.

"Tell me, which of them could be called a victor?"

Houtu fell silent.

Of course, they knew the fate of the three clans. At the time, the three clans' power had spread throughout the Primordial World. Had they not fallen, she and her brothers and sisters would probably still be huddled inside Pangu Hall.

Not to mention carving out such vast territory as they possessed now.

If the three clans had not been defeated, those two three-legged crows on the Sun Star would likely now be members of the avian race, charging into battle for the Phoenix Clan.

"The times were different. Back then, three clans contended for supremacy. If one clan surpassed the other two in strength, the remaining two would join forces, and the three clans kept one another in check. But now, there are only our two clans, the Witch Clan and Demon Race... Wait. If both of us lose, then could the final victor be the Asura created by Styx?"

As Houtu spoke, a possibility suddenly surfaced in her mind. She murmured to herself, becoming more convinced that her guess was right.

"Then before the war begins, we must first destroy Styx's Asura Clan."

Lu Chen fell completely silent. She would rather believe that the Asura Styx had created in imitation of the Human Race could dominate the Primordial World than believe the Human Race personally created by Nuwa could do so?

"Thank you for your warning."

"No, that's not—"

"If it isn't the Asura, then who else could it be? Don't tell me it's the Human Race. Although the Human Race had recently founded Martial Dao, discovered fire, made clothing, and built houses, causing quite a stir, they had even somehow awakened the Human Dao.

"But the Human Race's foundation is far too poor. Moreover, after several generations descended from the innate Human Race, the innate qi within their bodies had already been completely exhausted. The most recent generations were all acquired Human Race members, with even their lifespans fixed. How could they dominate the Primordial World?"

Houtu raised a brow as she laid out the Human Race's many limitations and flaws.

The limit on lifespan was indeed the Human Race's great enemy, but it could be increased through cultivation. What truly made the Human Race powerful had never been its individuals, but the formidable reproductive ability of the entire race.

However, Lu Chen would not tell Houtu that.

"Enough. Thank you for your warning. I will keep it in mind. As thanks for your reminder, take this as a token of gratitude."

Houtu pointed a finger at Lu Chen's brow, and a scripture appeared within his mind.

"Many thanks. I shall take my leave."

Seeing that Houtu did not wish to continue the conversation, Lu Chen said no more. He cupped his hands, turned, and departed.

He had said all that he could. If Houtu did not wish to listen, that was her own problem. In any case, the favor from when she had gifted him Xi Rang on Buzhou Mountain was now repaid.

"Little fellow, thank you for saying all that..."

Houtu watched Lu Chen's departing figure, narrowing her eyes. An unfathomable smile appeared on her face.

"He cultivated Father God's Nine-Turn Origin Art, and now he has our Witch Clan's Nine-Turn Strength Art as well. Tsk, tsk..."

The expression on Houtu's face returned to normal as she slowly spoke.

"Xing Tian."

As Houtu's voice fell, a burly man holding a shield in his left hand and a huge axe in his right walked in. He dropped to one knee.

"What are Ancestral Witch's orders?"

"Send a group of our clansmen to make contact with the Human Race. See what is unusual about them."

"By your command!"

Xing Tian turned and left. After watching his back disappear, Houtu turned and departed as well.

Pangu Hall.

"Younger sister, why did you have Big Brother summon us here?"

The hot-tempered Zhurong immediately spoke.

Gonggong, who had always been at odds with Zhurong, unusually did not mock him this time. He too looked at Houtu with an anxious expression.

He had originally been drilling the Great Witches of his tribe and helping them improve their strength. Upon receiving Dijiang's summons, he had thrown aside what he was doing and hurried over.

"Younger sister, speak."

Seeing that everyone had arrived, Dijiang looked toward Houtu, his eyes filled with confusion and inquiry. Even he did not know what Houtu wanted to discuss after urgently gathering them all.

After all, he had been actively preparing for war as well, hoping to wipe out the Heavenly Court in one stroke.

"It's like this. I think our plan should be changed. The Heavenly Court banquet is not a good opportunity to strike."

"What!"

The other Ancestral Witches all stared at Houtu in shock.

"Houtu, tell us what you think. If you want to stop the war, then convince us."

Zhu Jiuyin stared deeply at Houtu and spoke in a low voice.

"That's right."

"If we strike on the day of the Heavenly Court banquet, can we truly destroy the Demon Race in one stroke?"

Houtu countered with a question. Then, before the other Ancestral Witches could speak, she answered it herself.

"No. We simply cannot defeat the Demon Race in a single battle. We will only expose our trump cards and put the Demon Race on guard."

????

Dijiang, Zhurong, and the other Ancestral Witches looked at one another, their heads full of question marks.

They recognized every word. So why did they become so hard to understand when strung together?

If they did not understand, they asked.

"Why?"

"Because if our Witch Clan defeats the Demon Race and becomes the sole overlord of the Primordial World, it will not serve certain people's interests. They will not sit by and watch us destroy the Demon Race. They will certainly intervene. Only when the Witch Clan and Demon Race stand opposed and wear each other down does it serve their interests."

Because Pangu Hall naturally concealed the secrets of Heaven, making it impossible even for Sages to investigate, Houtu had no reservations about speaking here.

"Mm..."

Other than Zhu Jiuyin, all the Ancestral Witches were utterly bewildered. Zhurong subconsciously scratched his head.

His brain itched.

It felt like a brain was about to grow.

All the Ancestral Witches turned their gazes toward Zhu Jiuyin in unison.

"Who told you these things?"

Zhu Jiuyin ignored the looks from the other Ancestral Witches. He stared directly at Houtu and asked in a low voice.

"Second Brother, you glimpsed all this in the River of Time too, didn't you?"

"No."

Zhu Jiuyin shook his head.

"I had previously examined the Space-Time River, but I could not capture any scenes after the war began. I did not pay much attention to it at the time, since the fragments within the Space-Time River were intermittent to begin with. But now it seemed that someone had interfered with the River of Time, preventing me from seeing that portion."

Zhu Jiuyin did not examine the Space-Time River at every moment. Though he was known as the Ancestral Witch of Time, his comprehension of the laws of time was still a long way from attaining the Dao. Opening the River of Time consumed a great deal of his strength, so he only inspected it when planning major affairs.

"So what now? We're not fighting this war?"