"Senior brother, should we still make a move?"
Outside the Purple Heavens Palace, amid the mists of Chaos, Zhunti looked toward that vast, white expanse of emptiness, instinctively swallowed, and asked Jieyin beside him.
"With the Dao Ancestor above, I believe we had best think twice about this."
An expression uglier than crying appeared on Jieyin's sallow face.
Earlier, when they saw Daochen fighting the Three Pure Ones, they had considered stepping in to help the Three Pure Ones deal with him.
They could forge a friendly bond with the Three Pure Ones.
But now, it seemed fortunate that they had not acted.
Otherwise, their fate really would have been...
Hard to say!
"Yuanshi, you brat! I came to the Purple Heavens Palace merely to attend this grand gathering, yet you provoked me again and again. Did you really think I wouldn't dare lay a hand on you?"
Daochen pointed at Yuanshi and unleashed a torrent of abuse. The Heaven Measuring Ruler gave another clear hum.
He brought it straight down on Yuanshi.
Bang!
Yuanshi went flying backward, his chest covered in crimson.
Clearly, Daochen had not held back this time.
As for Hongjun?
Forget it!
The Three Pure Ones were indeed Hongjun's disciples, but Daochen had only struck today because Yuanshi had provoked him first.
Had Yuanshi not provoked him, Daochen would not have bothered lifting a finger.
Besides, no matter how fiercely Daochen and Yuanshi fought, this was a matter between peers.
If Hongjun intervened, he would be bullying the younger generation. Once word spread, he might as well give up being the Dao Ancestor.
He would lose every scrap of dignity.
Who would respect Hongjun then?
That was precisely why Daochen dared attack Yuanshi so brazenly right outside the Purple Heavens Palace.
I'm in the right anyway. You can't fault me for anything, Hongjun.
Unless you have no shame!
As for Yuanshi, after being cursed right to his face and taking a solid blow from the ruler, he did not dare let out so much as a peep.
Even Laozi, who wielded Heaven and Earth's Yellow Exquisite Pagoda, had suffered at Daochen's hands.
Yuanshi only had the Three Treasures Ruyi, a Supreme Xiantian Spiritual Treasure. Trying to act tough now would be courting death.
"Yuanshi, you brat, hear me well! If you ever dare provoke me again, I'll beat you every time I see you."
With right on his side, Daochen refused to relent. He pointed at Yuanshi's nose and gave him another vicious tongue-lashing.
Don't you care so much about your dignity, Yuanshi?
Today, I'll grind it into the dirt.
Let's see whether you dare provoke me again!
Pfft!
Seeing Daochen's arrogant, overbearing manner, Yuanshi felt blood and fury surge toward his heart. He opened his mouth and spat out a mouthful of blood.
Since taking form, when had he ever been berated in public?
Yuanshi trembled with rage, his gaze darkening to the utmost. He wished he could devour Daochen's flesh and bones alive.
Yet there was nothing he could do.
Because he truly could not defeat Daochen!
Watching Daochen take on all three and utterly trounce the Three Pure Ones, the mighty figures of the Primordial World present were shaken to their cores.
They did not know how today's battle would have ended if they had been the ones facing him.
Almost at that very moment, Daochen had become one of those in the Primordial World whom no one dared provoke!
"Fellow Daoist Daochen, you've already beaten the Three Pure Ones. Why not do me, Hongyun, a favor and let this matter end here?"
Just then, Old Ancestor Hongyun strode over casually in his red robes, wearing a seemingly harmless smile.
The moment he opened his mouth, he asked Daochen to lower his banners and still his drums, so everyone could go home and find their mothers.
"Get lost! What do my affairs have to do with you, Hongyun?"
The sight of a sanctimonious do-gooder like Hongyun sickened Daochen, so he made no effort to spare Old Ancestor Hongyun's dignity.
If you haven't endured another person's suffering, don't urge them to be forgiving!
If you want to play the good man, Hongyun, go ahead. Just stay out of my affairs, or I'll beat you too.
"You!!!"
After Daochen cursed him out, Old Ancestor Hongyun bristled with anger and glared, just about to erupt.
But a large hand had already caught hold of him.
Old Ancestor Hongyun turned to look. It was none other than his best buddy, Zhen Yuanzi.
"Zhen Yuanzi, why are you stopping me?"
Hongyun was still seething. Seeing Zhen Yuanzi hold him back, he immediately wanted to lash out.
"Look."
Zhen Yuanzi said nothing more, merely pointing toward Laozi and Yuanshi nearby.
His meaning was obvious: couldn't Hongyun see that even the Three Pure Ones had been beaten flat?
Why go sticking his nose into things now?
Was standing too comfortable? Did he insist on lying down instead?
"Sorry to bother you, sorry to bother you..."
Hongyun jolted to his senses. Without another word, he grabbed Zhen Yuanzi, turned, and left.
This was no place to linger.
Stay too long, and he would get beaten!
Watching Old Ancestor Hongyun vanish in a flash, all the mighty figures of the Primordial World present offered Daochen apologetic smiles, then turned and left.
There was no other reason.
They were afraid that staying too long would get them beaten too...
After all, they had offended Daochen earlier.
Who knew whether this fellow might decide he was in a bad mood and beat them up as well...
As the mighty figures of the Primordial World departed one after another, Laozi's and Yuanshi's expressions grew utterly grim.
Today, the Three Pure Ones had lost every last scrap of dignity.
Yet when they looked at Daochen, who seemed as though nothing had happened, they still did not dare let out a peep.
They plainly could not beat him. Provoking him again would be like the god of longevity swallowing arsenic-tired of living too long.
"Let's head back!"
Seeing that the Three Pure Ones had lost all their fight and could only stare at him in silent fury, Daochen sneered, then flew toward the Sun Star with Dijun and Eastern Emperor Taiyi.
He had already squeezed two Supreme Xiantian Spiritual Treasures out of the Three Pure Ones. If he now seized his precious disciples' bonded treasures right in front of Hongjun...
That old man Hongjun might truly cast aside all shame and attack him.
So, of the thirty-six stratagems, retreat was best!
As for the Three Pure Ones, it would not be too late to slaughter them once they had fattened up.
In any case, Daochen was confident he could keep them beneath him until they became sages.
And after they became sages?
He would deal with that when the time came...
After Daochen left, two figures stood quietly amid the endless currents of Chaos outside the Purple Heavens Palace. Though those currents surged with overwhelming power, they could not harm the pair in the slightest.
"Eldest brother, what did you think of that Daoist just now?"
One of the two figures, a young woman in palace attire whose beauty was in no way inferior to Nüwa's, spoke.
"He has a fine temperament. Just to my liking."
The other figure paused at her words, then answered with a smile.
These two were none other than Dijiang and Houtu.
"But those Three Pure Ones are asking for a beating too. We were born from Father God Pangu's bloodline. What right do they have to call themselves Pangu's orthodox heirs?"
"Once we return to the Witch Clan, we must seek out the Three Pure Ones and ask them who Pangu's true orthodox heirs really are!"
Before Houtu could speak, Dijiang continued in his brash manner.
"Eldest brother..."
At his words, Houtu's expression darkened.
What does that have to do with anything?
That wasn't what I was asking at all!
"Hmph! Look what you've done!"
Outside the Purple Heavens Palace, Laozi had mostly recovered from his injuries. He put away Heaven and Earth's Yellow Exquisite Pagoda, snorted coldly at Yuanshi, then turned and left.
Tongtian looked at Laozi, then at the grim-faced Yuanshi. In the end, he picked up the Green Duckweed Sword and followed Laozi without a word.
He did not dare stay here now, or Yuanshi would inevitably give him a vicious scolding!
The Three Pure Ones being accepted as the Dao Ancestor's disciples should have been a joyous occasion worth celebrating. But now?
Just a few words from Yuanshi had offended someone they should never have provoked. One man had beaten all three of them, turning them into the laughingstock of the Primordial World.
They had best never mention being Pangu's orthodox heirs again.
Pangu could not afford that humiliation!
Before you continue