The Spirit-Washing Cauldron

A heaven-sent genius?

Oh, yes. In just one day, you've woken up and gone back to sleep, then slept and woken up again three times already. What else could you be but a genius?

In the void, Houtu thought this expressionlessly, feeling like an idiot for watching a bear snore away for half the day.

Meanwhile, elsewhere, after waking up, Gungun shook his head hard to clear it, then flexed his rump and sprang straight off the ground. With a thump, his two bear paws landed, and he actually stood upright.

Next, it took an enormous black cauldron out of the Minor World it carried with it. Called the Spirit-Washing Cauldron, it was a Limited-Time Special Offer he had bought from the system forty or fifty thousand years ago, a Supreme-Grade Innate Spirit Treasure. It had only one function: to wash away the memories of the living beings drawn into it, dissolve their magical power, and restore their primordial spirits to their original Three Souls and Seven Spirits.

I can't let karma stain me. There's no underworld in this world yet, so I'll do its work myself. Anyway, it's only one island's worth of demon souls. The workload shouldn't be too heavy, Gungun thought.

Then he raised his two thick bear arms and shouted at the Spirit-Washing Cauldron before him, "Open!"

Boom! At once, the lid of the black cauldron flew off, and a pitch-black pillar of light shot out of it, soaring into the heavens. It actually scattered the resentment hanging in the sky.

Gungun hopped left and right before the Spirit-Washing Cauldron, waving his arms and kicking his legs as though performing a shaman's dance, while muttering nonstop. A few moments later, a sight appeared that stunned Houtu in the void.

The resentment throughout Mount Xiaoyu, along with all the demon souls within it, actually flew toward the Great Cauldron before Gungun at incredible speed.

No, they're being sucked into it. What terrifying suction! When did Gungun get a magical treasure like this? I've never seen him use it before! Houtu's pupils contracted slightly in astonishment.

Regardless of her surprise, the events on Mount Xiaoyu continued. Gungun powered the Spirit-Washing Cauldron with his mid-stage Great Luo Golden Immortal magical power, frantically drawing in the resentment and demon souls here. The cauldron could only store the resentment; he would have to find another way to purify it. But it could act directly upon the demon souls.

More and more demon souls were sucked over. The sight of them crammed together as they surged into the cauldron's mouth was utterly terrifying. But who was Gungun? He was the first Iron-Eating Beast between heaven and earth, capable of punching great shamans and trampling demon gods. He had lived in this primordial world for over a hundred thousand years. Having survived until now, would he be frightened by this sight?

Ha, what a joke. He couldn't be bothered to be scared.

"Aaaah! Damn you, fat bear! I'll kill you!"

"Nooo!"

"Let me go, damn it!"

Many demon souls about to enter the Spirit-Washing Cauldron shrieked and howled, their voices painfully piercing. Gungun ignored every one of their cries and went about his own business.

In roughly the time it took to drink two or three cups of tea, Gungun cleared out all the resentment and demon souls that had entrenched themselves here for over a hundred thousand years. He could no longer sense any demon souls remaining here, but the work was far from finished.

Gungun stopped his shamanic dancing-no, his spellcasting-and flicked a finger toward the cauldron's opening. Instantly, the lid dropped back down, covering the Spirit-Washing Cauldron.

Then Gungun sat cross-legged again. Two balls of light, one black and one white, appeared in his hands, and he sat there making gentle gestures. In an instant, a soft, yin-aspected glow bloomed across the Spirit-Washing Cauldron's surface. The demon souls inside began to have their memories washed away and their magical power dissolved, returning to their original Three Souls and Seven Spirits.

In the void, Houtu noticed Gungun's actions and sensed what was happening inside the cauldron. Her delicate brows furrowed slightly. You aren't destroying them, and you're going to all this trouble. Gungun, just what are you planning?

With these doubts in mind, Houtu patiently continued watching.

Drawing living beings in was easy,

so it took very little time. But what followed could not be completed in an instant. After all, there were far, far too many demon souls, so Gungun would have to spend a relatively long time on it... Winter's chill gave way to summer's heat, spring departed and autumn arrived, and before anyone knew it, ninety years had passed.

On this day, the blazing sun hung overhead. Gungun had a sunshade set up above his head and held an ice pop in one hand, using it to cool himself down. Meanwhile, his other hand supplied magical power to drive the Spirit-Washing Cauldron, doing this and that to the demon souls inside.

It should not have taken this long, but...

Every so often, he needed a little nap, and every so often, he needed a longer one. Then, whenever the mood struck, he would leap into the sea to catch a few fish to bring back and roast, before climbing a tree to pick a few local fruits to try. All these things took time, so the work had dragged on until now.

"Mmm, the last one." With the ice pop in his mouth, Gungun sensed that only one demon soul remained inside the Spirit-Washing Cauldron. He immediately increased his output of magical power, and within a few breaths, its memories and magical power had also dispersed, its primordial spirit restored to its original Three Souls and Seven Spirits.

Once all this was done, Gungun lowered his raised arm and fell backward onto the ground with a thump, his limbs spread wide. "I'm so tired. Finally finished washing those souls. The great god Gungun has really worked hard all these years, all for one ginseng fruit. Sigh, this feels like such a bad deal!"

Houtu, who had spent ninety years in the void: "..."

Gungun lay there for a while, eating his ice pop and enjoying the gentle breeze. A few hours later, having rested enough, he sat up and calculated on his fingers, checking where living beings were about to give birth so he could send some souls their way.

"Mmm, the Dragon Race. Forget it. Getting too close to them isn't a good idea."

"The Phoenix Race? No. If Kunpeng discovers me, I'm dead."

"The Demon Race... won't work either. Their children will still be demons, and they'll still be enemies of the Shaman Race. I'm not that fellow Chiyou rides. How could I screw Houtu over?"

"Wait, the Soft-Bone Rabbit Race..."

Suddenly, Gungun's counting fingers stopped. He blinked and set his clever brain to work. Soft-bone rabbits are among the lower-ranking creatures of the primordial world. Their aptitude is so poor that even the Demon Race won't accept them, but they reproduce very quickly. Females go into heat over thirty times a year, and each litter can have hundreds of children. Quite a few females in the Soft-Bone Rabbit Race are about to give birth now. Their offspring won't equal the number of these demon souls, but they'll account for more than half. These demon souls carry plenty of karma, so reincarnating them as lower-ranking creatures would fit the underworld's rules. Yes, I'll send them over.

With that thought, Gungun dawdled for a while before his enormous bear body rose from the ground. With a wave of his great paw, he put away the Spirit-Washing Cauldron. Then white light flashed in his hand, and he conjured another ice pop. An auspicious cloud formed beneath his feet, carrying him farther south toward the territory of the Soft-Bone Rabbit Race.