Ripple Effects

Deep within the blood pool of Pangu Hall, Dijiang had already fallen completely into deep seclusion.

Outside the great hall, the eleven Ancestral Witches sat around beneath the spiritual rain cascading from the Creation Jade Disk, yet none immediately entered cultivation.

After enduring the cruel baptism of the outside world, their states of mind had undergone earth-shaking changes.

"Big Brother was right. The waters of this Primordial World run far too deep."

Zhu Jiuyin sighed and broke the silence first, recounting in detail how they had encountered a Late Daluo elder of the Phoenix Clan in the Southern Continent and nearly lost their lives.

Hearing of that heart-stopping instant between life and death, and how their big brother had resolutely burned his blood essence without hesitation to save them, the other Ancestral Witches all sucked in a cold breath. The atmosphere grew somewhat heavy.

"Hmph, those feathered beasts of the Phoenix Clan merely relied on their numbers!"

Qiang Liang snorted, lightning flickering all over his body. "We also ran into some scum from the Qilin Clan at Thunder Marsh in the north."

"Oh? You encountered people from the three clans as well?" Gonggong raised a brow.

"Indeed." Xi Zi took over. "We discovered a Primordial Lightning-Attracting Bamboo on the verge of maturity at the edge of Thunder Marsh and were about to collect it when we ran into a Qilin Clan patrol."

"The leader was an Ink Jade Qilin at the Early Zenith Heaven stage, accompanied by four subordinates at the peak of Primordial Unity Golden Immortal. They were arrogant as could be and immediately told us to get out of the Northern Continent."

She Bishi, the Weather Ancestral Witch, sneered. "Naturally, we did not indulge them. Qiang Liang directly summoned countless Purple Firmament Divine Thunders and smashed that Great Principal Qilin's head apart with one punch. The remaining Primordial Unity Golden Immortals were shredded by my poisonous rain and Xi Zi's lightning net. Not even their Primordial Spirits escaped."

"Wonderful!" Zhu Rong slapped his thigh. "That's exactly how they should be killed!"

Gonggong grinned as he toyed with the three Sea-Calming Divine Pearls in his hand. "By the Eastern Sea as well, we slaughtered a Dragon Clan sea patrol. There were two Early Great Principal cultivators and over a dozen Primordial Unity Golden Immortals. Ru Shou, Jumang, and I chopped every last one into pieces."

The others exchanged glances, then suddenly all fell silent.

After a moment, Zhu Rong stroked his chin and said with an odd expression, "By that count... on this trip, us brothers seem to have offended the Dragon, Phoenix, and Qilin Clans from beginning to end?"

"So what if we offended them? Could it be that we, the Pangu Orthodox Lineage, fear them?" Ru Shou's eyes were cold and sharp, his body radiating the murderous aura of geng metal.

"We do not fear them, but if they attack with their entire clans, the twelve of us alone may find it difficult to withstand them." Zhu Jiuyin frowned slightly. Since he commanded the Time Law, he always looked farther ahead than the others.

"The three clans are currently at war. Because Mount Buzhou bears Father God's pressure, ordinary cultivators find it difficult to approach, so it has remained relatively peaceful."

Zhu Jiuyin's gaze was profound. "But once the three clans determine a victor, no matter which clan becomes the ruler of heaven and earth, their next target will surely be Mount Buzhou. When that time comes, our Pangu Hall will bear the brunt of the storm."

At these words, all the Ancestral Witches' expressions darkened.

How terrifying was the foundation of the three clans?

Before this, they had merely heard bits and pieces while within Pangu Hall. But after personally traveling through the Primordial World, they had gained a tangible understanding of just how terrifying the three clans truly were.

They had armies numbering in the hundreds of millions, Daluo Golden Immortals emerging one after another, and it was said that the clan leaders stood even above Daluo Golden Immortals. They were absolutely not opponents the current Ancestral Witches could contend with.

"Since they possess armies of hundreds of millions, why can't we?"

Zhu Rong, who had remained silent all this while, suddenly spoke. Excitement gleamed in his eyes. "Our bloodlines contain an inheritance. By combining our blood essence with the blood pool, we can create clansmen. Since the Dragon, Phoenix, and Qilin Clans can establish clans and vie for supremacy over heaven and earth, why can't we establish a clan of our own to guard Mount Buzhou?!"

"Establish a clan?"

"Zhu Rong's idea is a good one!"

Jumang clapped his hands in approval. "We have the blood pool Father God left behind. As long as we supplement it with our blood essence and the Killing Intent between heaven and earth, we can nurture clansmen bearing our bloodlines. They can then serve as a force to guard Mount Buzhou!"

Zhu Jiuyin pondered for a moment before nodding heavily. "This plan is feasible. With a clan, we will no longer fight alone. Moreover, although Big Brother has purified most of the Killing Intent in Pangu Hall, the bottom of the blood pool still holds an immense accumulation of World-Opening Turbid Qi. It can be used to nurture our clansmen."

"However, this matter is of great importance. We should wait until Big Brother emerges from seclusion and let him make the final decision," Zhu Jiuyin added.

"Of course!" all the Ancestral Witches answered in unison.

Once they had tentatively decided to establish a clan, a flame blazed in the hearts of the eleven Ancestral Witches.

They delayed no longer and scattered, each finding an excellent position within Pangu Hall.

With these vast resources and the pure spiritual energy transformed by the Creation Jade Disk, they were confident they could undergo an immense transformation in a short time.

The great hall returned to deathly silence. Only the hum of the rotating Creation Jade Disk and the occasional pop of bursting bubbles from the blood pool remained.

Just as the Twelve Ancestral Witches sealed Pangu Hall and entered deep seclusion, the outside Primordial World erupted into no small disturbance because of their previous actions. It even became the fuse that ignited conflict among the three clans.

Daluo Golden Immortals, even during the Dragon, Phoenix, and Qilin Clans' heyday, were unquestionably the pillars of their clans—top-tier forces capable of suppressing an entire region.

If hundreds or thousands of ordinary Golden Immortals died, the three clans would not so much as blink. But the fall of a Daluo Golden Immortal would trigger a massive upheaval within the clan every single time.

Yet this time, in an extremely short span, elders at the Daluo Golden Immortal level had successively had their life tablets shatter in all three clans!

The first to fly into a rage was Ancestral Dragon of the Eastern Sea Dragon Palace.

Looking at the two shattered life tablets belonging to Early Great Principal elders in the Life Tablet Hall, he laughed in extreme fury. "Good! Very good indeed! Whoever dared kill Dragon Clan elders by the Eastern Sea—other than those motley-feathered birds of the Phoenix Clan and the beasts of the Qilin Clan, who else would have the nerve?!"

At almost the same time, Primordial Qilin let out an earth-shaking roar atop Qilin Cliff in the Northern Continent.

"Investigate! Investigate this for me! An Early Great Principal Ink Jade Qilin died in Thunder Marsh without a sound, not even its Primordial Spirit escaping. Other than those loaches of the Dragon Clan and the Phoenix Clan, who could possess such means?!"

Yet the most furious and crazed of all was Origin Phoenix.

The terrifying Southern Bright Flame nearly set the void alight.

Origin Phoenix wore a crimson imperial robe, but her peerless face was twisted like that of a vengeful ghost as she stared fixedly at the two dim, lusterless life tablets in her hand.

"Late Daluo Golden Immortals... Two entire elders at the Late Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal stage died instantly in the Ten Thousand Mountains!"

Origin Phoenix's voice carried piercing coldness and madness.

Those had been Late Daluos!

Looking across the entire Primordial World, aside from old-ancestor-level beings like them, who could accomplish such a clean, decisive instant kill?

They had not even had time to send out a plea for help!