I must lie low!

"Reclining high above nine layers of clouds, upon a cushion I realized the truth of the Dao. Beyond heaven and earth, beyond the dark and yellow, I shall reign as the supreme teacher. Pangu brought forth the supreme ultimate; the two principles and four manifestations followed in turn. I am Hongjun. Today, I have attained sagehood and established my sanctuary, the Purple Cloud Palace, within chaos. I am willing to teach the Great Dao to all living beings. All those with the destined affinity may come and hear my teachings!"

The vast, majestic voice resounded throughout the entire Primordial World.

On Kunlun Mountain.

At the Jade Void Palace.

At Qilin Cliff, Xu Tong abruptly opened his eyes!

"What the hell? Hongjun? The Purple Cloud Palace?"

While Xu Tong sat there in a daze, countless fragments of memory suddenly surged into his mind, crashing over him like a tide!

After a long while, the fragments gradually melded together, and clarity slowly returned to Xu Tong's eyes.

"I actually transmigrated into the Primordial World-and became Tongtian, one of the Three Pure Ones, before he attained sagehood!"

A gleam of joy appeared in Xu Tong's eyes. Before transmigrating, he had read plenty of novels about the Primordial World, so he was naturally very familiar with the Six Heavenly Sages.

"Holy shit, Sect Master Tongtian! One of the future sages, with a lifespan equal to heaven and earth! He single-handedly founded the Interception Sect, with ten thousand immortals paying homage, revered by countless living beings... wait. The Interception Sect? Investiture of the Gods! Fuck me!"

Xu Tong had initially been beside himself with excitement at becoming Tongtian, but his happiness soon evaporated.

He had suddenly remembered that, while becoming Tongtian, a future sage, was certainly wonderful, Tongtian's eventual fate was utterly miserable!

He would hear the teachings in the Purple Cloud Palace, become Hongjun's disciple, and receive primordial violet qi!

Then he would establish the Interception Sect and use its fortune, along with the primordial violet qi, to attain the Dao and become a Heavenly Dao Sage!

It sounded fantastic, but all of it was a scheme laid by the Heavenly Dao and Hongjun!

The Interception Sect might seem infinitely glorious with ten thousand immortals paying homage, but the Investiture Calamity would swallow the entire sect. Even Tongtian himself, the Jie Sect Leader, would be locked in the Purple Cloud Palace, forced by Hongjun to swallow a Saint-Slaying Pill, and imprisoned there for life!

At that thought, Xu Tong could no longer smile.

"But in the novels, Tongtian's miserable fate seemed to begin with founding the Interception Sect. What if I simply don't establish it?"

Xu Tong rubbed his chin and pondered carefully, but soon rejected that plan.

According to the course of the Heavenly Dao, his trip to the Purple Cloud Palace to hear the teachings was the greatest trigger. And the basic requirements for sagehood were primordial violet qi and the merit earned by establishing the Interception Sect!

Only with both could he attain the Dao!

In other words, if Xu Tong wanted to attain sagehood, he had no choice but to establish the Interception Sect!

In fact, the moment he set out for the Purple Cloud Palace, he would fall into the Heavenly Dao's scheme!

"If I remember correctly, there are at least three ways to attain sagehood in the Primordial World: prove Dao by force, prove Dao by beheading corpses, and prove Dao by merit!"

Thoughts raced through Xu Tong's mind. "Great God Pangu apparently cultivated the method of proving Dao by force. Of the three methods, that's the only one that can truly transcend heaven and earth and escape the Heavenly Dao's control!"

"If Pangu could attain sagehood by proving Dao by force back then, why can't I?"

A fierce gleam flashed through Xu Tong's eyes. He had finally gotten a chance to transmigrate, so why should he wade into the muddy waters of the Purple Cloud Palace and burden himself with karmic ties?

"I don't care how the Heavenly Dao and Hongjun scheme. I simply won't stick my neck out or take the bait. Let's see how you scheme against me then!"

With his thoughts settled, Xu Tong felt a rush of relief!

The teachings at the Purple Cloud Palace? Whoever wanted to go could go!

Primordial violet qi? Whoever wanted it could have it!

Even the Interception Sect-whoever wanted to establish it could establish it!

As the saying went: I won't enter hell; whoever wants to enter can go right ahead!

In short, he had no intention of getting involved in anything in the entire Primordial World, not even the future Interception Sect.

Wasn't it better to lie low in peace and quietly build up his strength?

He refused to believe that, if he stayed out of the Primordial World's affairs, anyone could force him to participate!

"Ding! Fluctuations detected in the host's mental state. The Top-Tier Choice System has activated."

"Ding! Daoist Hongjun has attained sagehood and will teach the Dao at the Purple Cloud Palace. Host, please make your choice."

"Option one: follow the course of the Primordial World and go to the Purple Cloud Palace to hear the teachings. Reward: one strand of primordial violet qi, sage seat*"

"Option two: go to the Purple Cloud Palace to hear the teachings, but refuse a meditation cushion and reject a sage seat. Reward: Merit Points*1 billion."

"Option three: remain on Kunlun Mountain and lie low. Reward: Heaven-Earth Origin Art."

The voice that suddenly rang out in his mind stunned Xu Tong for a moment, then filled him with overwhelming joy.

Transmigration comes with a system! The novels didn't lie to me. I have a cheat too!

Once his excitement subsided, Xu Tong looked at the three options before him and made his choice almost without thinking!

"This damn system! The first two choices look the easiest, and the first could even make me a sage outright, but I'd still end up shackled by the Heavenly Dao. Don't even think of tempting me! I choose option three!"

What a joke. He had already made up his mind to stay out of all the Primordial World's affairs. Naturally, he would not go to the Purple Cloud Palace to hear the teachings!

After all, once he arrived at the Purple Cloud Palace, whether he sat on a meditation cushion might no longer be up to him!

That was Hongjun's territory!

Besides, there was more to the three options' rewards than met the eye.

The first offered primordial violet qi and a sage seat-completely unnecessary!

If he truly chose to hear the teachings, he could follow the course of the Primordial World and attain sagehood even without the system's reward.

As for the second option, its reward of one billion merit points would be enough for him to prove Dao by merit!

But that method produced the weakest sages and offered no escape from the Heavenly Dao's fetters.

Xu Tong wanted more than a mere sage seat!

As for the third option's reward, he could vaguely sense that it was precisely the cultivation method Great God Pangu had left behind!

The Heaven-Earth Origin Art absorbed the spiritual essence of heaven and earth, opened the gate to profound mysteries, and led to attainment of the primordial chaos Great Dao!

It was a method of attaining sagehood through the physical body, proving Dao by force!

Xu Tong had just decided to quietly build up his strength and prove Dao by force when the system presented this choice. It truly was a pillow arriving just as he started to doze!

"Third Brother, the sage is about to teach the Great Dao. Let us set out at once!"

Just then, the doors of his cultivation abode opened, and two figures flew toward him. They were Laozi and Yuanshi, the other two of the Three Pure Ones, who cultivated in seclusion on Kunlun Mountain alongside Tongtian.

After all, to them, hearing the teachings at the Purple Cloud Palace was an unparalleled opportunity!

Looking at the two men before him, Xu Tong inwardly snorted.

These two were on good terms with him for now, but they would cause him no end of trouble in the future. Yuanshi in particular would clash with him repeatedly after attaining sagehood, ultimately bringing about their rupture!

During the Investiture Calamity, these two would even join forces with the western sages to strike him underhandedly!

Had he not transmigrated, that would have been that. But now that he was here, how could he tread the same old path?

"I gained some insights during this seclusion and am now at a critical point in my breakthrough. I won't attend the teachings this time. You two should go."

Xu Tong refused without hesitation, leaving Laozi and Yuanshi momentarily stunned.

"Third Brother, since the Primordial World came into being, the Beast Calamity and the Dragon-Han Calamity have both ended, and the paths of cultivation between heaven and earth have been cut off. Despite cultivating painstakingly for countless years, we have only reached the Daluo Golden Immortal realm. Now that a sage is finally teaching the Dao, wouldn't it be a pity to miss it?"

Yuanshi offered the reminder with good intentions, but Laozi stepped forward and signaled for him to say no more. "Second Brother, Third Brother's insights offer him an opportunity to break through. Let him remain in seclusion during these teachings. You and I can go and see just what the sage realm is like!"

As the eldest brother, Laozi naturally carried weight. Yuanshi nodded as well and said, "In that case, Third Brother, cultivate in peace and await our return."

Xu Tong also nodded and cupped his hands. "Then let me wish you both fruitful instruction in the Dao and further advancement in your cultivation."

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