"Why would there be a problem with the Hongmeng Purple Qi?"
As soon as Nu Wa finished speaking, cries of alarm rang out.
"What?"
Before Hong Jun could speak, the others who had received Hongmeng Purple Qi began discussing it among themselves.
"How could this be?"
"Could the claim that Hongmeng Purple Qi can help us attain the Dao have been a lie?"
"Would a Saint really speak nonsense?"
"Then how do you explain Saint Nu Wa's words?"
"This, I..."
Yuanshi, Tongtian, Hong Yun, Zhunti, and the other six all wore expressions of disbelief. One moment someone had doubted it, and the next, someone else had raised a question.
Taishang, on the other hand, remained silent at the side, seemingly lost in thought.
Hong Jun coughed lightly. After drawing everyone's attention, he slowly began to speak.
His expression was grave, and the others could not help growing tense as well.
After pondering for a moment and arranging his words, Hong Jun looked at Nu Wa and said, "Alas, this mistake is mine!"
Nu Wa froze at his words. She had considered that Hong Jun might tacitly admit it, that he might take action, or that he might push everything onto the Heavenly Dao... She had considered countless possibilities, but never that Hong Jun would voluntarily take responsibility.
For a moment, Nu Wa simply stared blankly at Hong Jun, not knowing what to do next.
When Yuanshi and the others heard Hong Jun's words, they cried out in alarm, "What? There really is a problem with the Hongmeng Purple Qi?"
After all, the Hongmeng Purple Qi was not merely connected to their chances of attaining the Dao.
For the past several hundred thousand years, they had constantly nurtured the Hongmeng Purple Qi within their bodies. If the purple qi went out of control, the consequences would be unimaginable.
Seeing Nu Wa fall silent, Hong Jun knew his goal had been achieved. Only then did he turn to face the others.
"You need not be nervous!" Hong Jun reassured them. "The very reason I came here was because of the Hongmeng Purple Qi!"
Hong Jun's words left everyone tense. They could think of nothing else as they stared at him, waiting for an explanation.
The only one who remained clear-headed now was Liu Mang.
[The actors are in place! Master manipulator mode activated. Please begin your performance!]
He knew this sort of maneuver far too well. It was all stuff he had already played out.
After making a mistake, never shoulder the big blame, but never completely shake off the small blame either. That was the basic professionalism of a hooligan.
Confession might earn leniency, while resistance would only bring severity. But how much one confessed was entirely up to oneself.
[Next, it should be time to enter flashback mode!]
Hong Jun gazed into the distance and slowly said, "This matter must begin with the time I merged with the Dao."
"When I merged my body with the Dao, the Heavenly Dao's origin separated into seven strands of Hongmeng Purple Qi. Because merging with the Dao allowed me to control part of the Heavenly Dao's authority, I knew that anyone who obtained Hongmeng Purple Qi would have a chance to attain the Dao and become a Saint."
As Hong Jun spoke, his gaze swept across the six people, yet deliberately skipped over Hong Yun.
"That was also why I distributed the Hongmeng Purple Qi to you. I hoped that you could become Saints of Hong Huang."
"The three lectures were both to spread the Dao throughout Hong Huang and to pave the way for your attainment of the Dao."
"Many thanks, Dao Ancestor!" Yuanshi and the others were deeply moved by his words and hurriedly bowed in thanks.
Hong Jun slightly raised his hand and continued, "I had only just merged with the Dao. After the three lectures, I no longer had the strength to attend to anything else. I could only focus entirely on merging with the Dao, stabilizing the operation of Hong Huang."
[Keep bluffing! Keep on bluffing!]
"However, the problem arose here." Hong Jun paused after speaking. Only when he had drawn everyone's attention did he open his mouth again.
"Because I had only just merged with the Dao, I did not understand the Heavenly Dao's arrangements. I originally believed that it had separated the Hongmeng Purple Qi merely to nourish Hong Huang, with no other hidden purpose."
"Alas, the Heavenly Dao's schemes were simply too deep, while I was still too naïve."
Hearing Hong Jun claim that he was too naïve, Liu Mang nearly laughed out loud.
The last time he had heard those words was when he had invited two young ladies over to play cards.
Thinking about it now... Mm, he had to admit, the cards were so white—no, the card game had been played quite wildly.
[Pfft! Hahahahaha, I'm dying! An old bastard who has lived for hundreds of millions of years calling himself naïve—what a dung beetle wearing a mask, shameless and stinking!]
"As my integration with the Heavenly Dao deepened, I came to know more and more. Only then did I discover that things were nothing like what I had imagined."
"Hong Huang originally possessed three Daos: the Heavenly Dao, the Earthly Dao, and the Human Dao. The Heavenly Dao..."
"Wait." Just as Hong Jun was getting into the flow of his story, Ming He suddenly interrupted him.
Although Hong Jun was somewhat displeased, he said nothing. He merely looked at Ming He with a puzzled expression.
Ming He did not realize there was anything inappropriate about speaking up. Instead, his face was full of unconcealed excitement. "Dao Ancestor, does that mean there are twenty-one Saints in total?"
Di Jun and Tai Yi were also stunned when they heard Ming He's words, but immediately afterward, delight surged within them.
That was right. There were seven Heavenly Dao Saints, and with seven each from the Earthly Dao and Human Dao, that made fourteen more Saints.
Did that mean there were still fourteen Saint positions for them to divide among themselves?
Having figured it out, everyone looked at Hong Jun with expectation in their eyes.
[The ideal is full, but reality is skinny! How could Hong Jun possibly allow Saints to emerge from the Earthly Dao and Human Dao?] [Even if Saints emerged, they could only be pseudo-Saints, still nothing more than nourishment for his transcendence beyond Hong Huang.]
Seeing everyone's reactions, Hong Jun sneered inwardly. How could he not understand what they were thinking?
That might indeed have been how Hong Huang was originally meant to develop, but how could he allow the Earthly Dao and Human Dao to produce Saints? Otherwise, how could he transcend?
Hong Jun looked at Ming He and coldly mocked, "You think the Heavenly Dao is too simple."
"Ming He, you are also a major figure within the world of Hong Huang. Could you tolerate another person emerging from the Blood Sea who could stand against you as an equal?"
Ming He's expression stiffened, and he gave an ingratiating laugh. "This... of course I would not."
Although the Blood Sea had been formed from Pangu's navel and endlessly gave birth to filth, a child did not despise his mother for being ugly, nor did a dog despise its home for being poor.
Ming He had been formed from the placenta nurtured by the Blood Sea. Asking him to give up the Blood Sea was no different from asking him to get out of his own home. Naturally, he was unwilling.
Hong Jun said as though it were only natural, "Exactly so! As the saying goes, one mountain cannot hold two tigers."
"If even you would not do such a thing, do you think the Heavenly Dao would be so kind as to bring the Earthly Dao and Human Dao to fruition?"
Hearing this, everyone repeatedly nodded, feeling that Hong Jun's words made sense.
[The Heavenly Dao is emotionless. It is just a piece of running code. Where would it get good intentions or bad ones?]
Liu Mang lay on the ground, marveling at how easily these people could be fooled.
It was not that they were easy to fool. They had merely formed preconceived notions.
Hong Jun had given three lectures, become a Saint, and merged with the Dao. He had long since left an unfathomably profound impression in everyone's hearts.
Naturally, few people doubted what Hong Jun said.
It was like when Liu Mang had first deceived Di Jun. Di Jun had believed him to be the reincarnation of a great power, and coupled with Di Jun's excessive imagination, that was why he had been taken in.
In the end, it was much like picking up girls. First impressions were important!
Hong Jun gave a bitter smile and sighed. "It was only after Nu Wa became a Saint, when she shattered the Hongmeng Purple Qi, that I was able to glimpse a trace of the Heavenly Dao's purpose."
He paused for breath, then looked at everyone. "The Heavenly Dao's purpose in doing this is to destroy the Earthly Dao and the Human Dao!"
"Hiss!"
As soon as Hong Jun said this, everyone sucked in a sharp breath. Temperatures noticeably rose in certain areas.
Before you continue