Houtu was one of the Twelve Ancestral Witches.
She was also the Ancestral Witch who disliked fighting the most, gentle by nature.
In the original story, Houtu took pity on all living beings during the Great Witch-Demon Catastrophe. Unable to bear the sight of lonely souls and wandering ghosts drifting everywhere, she transformed her body into the Dao and created the Six Paths of Reincarnation!
From then on.
The Underworld and Yellow Springs came into being.
All malevolent spirits and resentful ghosts had somewhere to reincarnate.
Because of this, Houtu established great merit for the Primordial World and rose to become a Sage of Merit.
Strictly speaking, she was the only Ancestral Witch to attain sagehood.
Mu Chen ran through Houtu's deeds in his mind.
Then he looked at the two options the system had given him.
The corner of his mouth could not help twitching again.
Although the Taiji Diagram was very tempting, having formed from one-third of the Pangu Axe.
Killing Houtu was simply an impossible task.
Because although Houtu disliked fighting the most out of the Twelve Ancestral Witches.
She was still one of the Twelve Ancestral Witches!
One of the most powerful beings in the entire Primordial World.
He was merely a clone right now. Sneak up on her with his Primordial Unity True Immortal cultivation? Was this a joke?
Even if Houtu stood still and let him hack at her, he could not hurt her.
If he really acted in a moment of hotheadedness, he would absolutely be killed instantly by Houtu with one hand.
And he would make an enemy of the Witch Race, too.
In Mu Chen's words.
This was a death-trap question with only one possible choice!
Fortunately, Mu Chen had been matching wits and courage with the system ever since arriving in the Primordial World, so he had not let the Taiji Diagram cloud his mind.
Since the second option would not work, then... he would choose the first.
Seeing the bewilderment all over Houtu's face, Mu Chen felt it necessary to fool... pfft, guide her a little.
Mu Chen gave two dry coughs.
Standing a short distance away, he spoke in a weathered yet steady voice.
"The tide of events has brought the great tribulation upon us. Since we cannot hold it back, perhaps we can do something in other areas."
Houtu turned her head curiously.
She had long since noticed Mu Chen behind her.
But she had naturally ignored a mere Primordial Unity True Immortal and a little monkey with some spiritual aptitude.
She had never expected... that he could say something containing such profound principles of the Dao.
"What do you mean by that?"
Houtu asked patiently.
Mu Chen said with a smile.
"Living beings are plunged into misery, and the dead are everywhere. Yet countless lonely souls and wandering ghosts drift through the Primordial World, adding to its balefulness and keeping the war going."
"If someone could build a place for these lonely souls and wandering ghosts to go, allowing all things to pass through reincarnation, this balefulness would naturally be dispelled."
"Once the balefulness disperses and the Primordial World is clear again, naturally no one will wish to slaughter others."
Houtu looked thoughtful.
She found that these words made a remarkable amount of sense.
Then she looked closely at Mu Chen and discovered that he was actually only a clone.
Wait.
A clone?
A Primordial Unity True Immortal?
Shock and a trace of disbelief gradually took over Houtu's expression.
She asked quietly.
"May I ask, Senior, during the First Dragon-Han Tribulation, did you happen to encounter the Dao Ancestor beside a cliff and discuss the Dao with him?"
The Dao Ancestor?
Discuss the Dao?
Mu Chen thought for a moment.
"Oh, you mean Old Jun. We did run into each other twice."
Old Jun?
Houtu could not help trembling, but her face was filled with excitement.
During Hongjun's three lectures on the Dao, and even when Saint Nuwa imparted the Dao, they had all mentioned a mysterious young fellow Daoist.
His cultivation realm was unfathomable, yet he was cautious by nature, traveling the Primordial World through a clone with weak cultivation. His understanding of the Great Dao, however, had even surpassed that of Hongjun's six disciples back then!
Moreover, it was said that Nuwa had distinguished herself among Hongjun's six disciples precisely because she had received this person's guidance.
By now, word of this mysterious figure had long since spread throughout the Primordial World.
Even the Twelve Ancestral Witches knew his name like thunder in their ears and admired him greatly.
After all, no one could resist the temptation of becoming Hongjun's first disciple.
Senior... Senior actually came specifically to guide me?
Of course, Senior must also be unable to bear seeing all living beings suffer, so he came specifically to show me the way out of confusion.
An opportunity to attain the Dao! This is my opportunity to attain the Dao!
But... what exactly does reincarnation mean? What is reincarnation? Can all things truly reincarnate?
As Houtu thought to herself, she unwittingly sank into comprehending the Dao.