Time was merciless, Gu Yuena's growth

When she felt stifled, all she had to do was go hack at Hongjun.

The Witch Clan had never liked Hongjun in the first place.

That fellow had rallied the hearts of the Primordial World's living beings under the banner of preaching the Dao.

No matter how you looked at it, we were all beings of the Primordial World. You were the outsider.

Especially after becoming a Sage, she had come to understand Hongjun's origins: a Chaos Fiendgod, an existence of the same generation as Father God Pangu.

The other fiendgods had either died or disappeared without a trace. Only this fellow remained, clinging to the Primordial World for who knew what purpose.

He even acted under the banner of the Heavenly Dao.

Before, she could do nothing about her displeasure.

But now that she had become a Sage, if she still had to swallow it, wouldn't she have become a Sage for nothing?

The next instant, she tossed most of the Witch Clan into the Underworld.

Of course, not every member of the Witch Clan had fallen in battle. Just like the Demon Clan, quite a few survivors remained. Houtu thought it over.

She couldn't be so cruel as to finish them off herself and send them to the Underworld.

She simply let them remain on the Primordial Continent.

In any case, once they died, she could pull them into the Underworld.

But before leaving, her figure flashed.

The next instant, she arrived in the Rain Tribe.

Naturally, she had come to find Xu You, but she still took human form and wandered among the mountains and waters to clear her mind.

While she was at it, she could put a little pressure on Hongjun and give her a scare.

For every day she stayed out of the Underworld, Hongjun would have to remain wary of her.

Of course, Houtu understood that Hongjun was certainly not afraid of her, but of Father God Pangu.

Perhaps this was why Hongjun wanted the Witch Clan to enter the Underworld. Without the Ancestral Witches' blood essence, they could no longer activate the Twelve Heavenly Gods and Fiends Great Formation to summon the Pangu Phantom.

That would completely eliminate what could threaten him.

Damn it!

Houtu couldn't understand why Father God Pangu hadn't taken him away with a single swing of his axe back then.

Wouldn't it have been nice to have some company?

Houtu shook her head as she walked along the Rain Tribe's field ridges.

She watched these members of the Human Clan curiously.

She had noticed the Human Clan before. They were weak and should never have been able to survive in the Primordial World.

After all, Nuwa hadn't sheltered them.

Yet, miraculously, they had carried on through the generations.

But when he saw that the Rain Tribe had not only hunting, but farming, fishing, brocade weaving, and even that... what was it?

Writing?

Only then did Houtu understand why the Heavenly Dao favored the Human Clan.

Civilization.

The Witch Tribes each fought on their own, their attributes often clashing, as incompatible as fire and water.

The same held true for the Demon Clan, whose members were bound by the food chain.

Only the Human Clan embodied the utmost simplicity of the Great Dao, persevering without yielding and passing down civilization.

Compared to the Human Clan, the Witch Clan was simply far too barbaric.

"Not bad."

"But this little fellow actually noticed the Human Clan so early."

"He even started making plans for them."

Houtu gradually came to understand Xu You's thoughts.

With light steps, she passed the tribespeople. Along the way, the people of the other tribes seemed not to see her at all.

By now, the Rain Tribe had long since shed its former impoverished, primitive appearance.

Under the protection of Ying Long Xu You, this place already qualified as a blessed grotto-heaven.

Although the Human Clan had yet to embark on the path of cultivation.

Strengthening their bodies posed no problem at all.

Otherwise, how could the Human Clan hunt and kill powerful wild creatures?

Moreover, as their dealings with the surrounding tribes increased, the passing down of civilization brought new changes to the tribe every day.

They had shed their former crude savagery of eating raw flesh and drinking blood, learning to farm, build huts, and rear livestock.

But time was the most merciless of all.

Chief Yu, once the tribe's strongest warrior, now had graying temples and a hunched back.

He had stepped down as chief many years ago.

Qing, the witch's descendant who had once wanted to take back the house, had also become a mother.

Seas became mulberry fields; a mortal's hundred years passed in the flick of a finger.

And there, in that witch's house.

A graceful beauty retained her youth, forever looking like that peerlessly beautiful, slender young maiden.

Her silver hair was like snow, and every morning she practiced boxing atop the roof beams.

She was quite a lovely sight within the tribe.

Of course, quite a few people in the tribe had once entertained designs on Gu Yuena.

After all, someone so beautiful would naturally draw admirers.

But the result was that, without a single exception, Gu Yuena sent every one of them flying.

What a joke. Humans actually dared entertain designs on her, the future Dragon God?

They already had a path to their own deaths.

Over time, after witnessing Gu Yuena's abilities and her eternally youthful appearance.

Everyone came to understand what was special about this witch appointed by the Dragon King, and abandoned all such thoughts.

But these days, each morning, besides Gu Yuena practicing boxing atop the roof beams.

Quite a few children and youths stood in the nearby square, watching Gu Yuena practice above them and copying her movements with some semblance of skill.

Unfortunately, Gu Yuena had never personally taught anyone these skills.

After all, she practiced boxing because her toilet master had told her to.

He said it would bring her closer to the Great Dao.

What was it called?

Tai Chi?

In any case, Gu Yuena didn't understand, but after learning it, she came to grasp its mysteries, practicing day after day without ever stopping.

Fortunately, in the end, Chief Yu persuaded her to teach her former little follower, Wan, who then taught the other tribespeople.

For Gu Yuena, this was cultivating the Great Dao.

But for these humans, it was merely strengthening their bodies.

Of course, after having a little follower around for so long, affection had developed.

In any case, Gu Yuena found her quite agreeable, and even went to her toilet master to ask whether humans could cultivate.

After sending her flying, her toilet master tossed her a copy of the Dragon Transformation Art.

Hmm?

Humans could transform into dragons too?

But then she thought, since Soul Beasts could turn into humans, why couldn't humans turn into dragons?

A wild idea suddenly came to her. I cannot subdue the Primordial Dragon Clan for now, but if I simply turn the entire Human Clan of the Primordial World into dragons...

Wouldn't that...?

Then, no sooner had the idea formed than she received another savage beating from her toilet master.

As a result, she only passed it on to Wan, even bestowing a drop of her dragon blood upon her.

She told Wan that she would cultivate the Great Dao, live forever without aging, and retain her youthful looks.

Of course, living forever without aging seemed a little difficult.

But compared to a human lifespan, it was still very long.

At least Wan could keep her company for a long time. Gu Yuena would never admit that she was a little lonely in this world.

Unfortunately, after learning of this, Wan chose to refuse.

Gu Yuena couldn't understand it. With a chance to cultivate, attain the Dao, and live forever without aging right before them, how could anyone refuse?

On the Douluo Continent, people would go mad over a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast's Soul Ring.

Let alone a chance at eternal life.

Wan said, "I know you're special, Sister Na'er, but eternal life isn't what I seek. I only want an ordinary life, supporting my husband and raising children."

This was the first time Gu Yuena became angry.

She even forced Wan to cultivate, threatening to throw her to the fish otherwise.

Wan continued tending to her daily needs as usual, but even after drinking that drop of dragon blood, she never once cultivated of her own accord.

For the first time, Gu Yuena had acted out of kindness, even suffering two savage beatings, yet the other party refused to appreciate it.

In the end, she simply drove Wan away. She didn't need anyone to look after her.

"I certainly don't need some lowly human looking after me."