"The Three Thousand Great Dao can all lead to the Proving of the Dao!" Dao Ancestor Hongjun began, speaking aloud. "Generally speaking, they can be divided into three paths.
First, proving the Dao through sheer force! Great God Pangu used his boundless divine powers to split heaven and earth, following precisely the path of proving the Dao through sheer force. Alas, proving the Dao through sheer force is far too difficult, and it ultimately ended in failure when his body transformed into the Primordial World."
Hearing this, everyone in their hearts instantly dismissed this method of proving the Dao: even Great God Pangu failed and died, so who else could possibly prove the Dao through sheer force?
"Second is proving the Dao by slaying the Three Corpses—namely, the good corpse, the evil corpse, and the self corpse. When the three corpses finally merge into one, one can attain the Hunyuan Realm. My own method of proving the Dao was through slaying the Three Corpses, and furthermore, this is a method of proving the Dao that I created myself!"
Clearly, proving the Dao by slaying the Three Corpses was much easier than proving it through sheer force.
Moreover, this method was created by Dao Ancestor Hongjun himself. When mentioning it, a trace of pride inevitably appeared on Hongjun's face.
After all, creating a method to prove the Dao was something well worth being proud of!
"Third is the method of proving the Dao through Merit, using boundless merit to bless oneself, allowing one's cultivation to directly break through the bottleneck into the Hunyuan Realm. It is just that this method requires far too much merit, and the success rate is likewise not high!"
Hearing this, the crowd fell silent, until only Yuanshi Tianzun spoke up: "May I ask the Dao Ancestor, who among the Primordial World can become a Sage, and how many Sages are there in total?"
"Nine is the limit of numbers, yet when water is full it overflows, so there should be eight Sages in the Primordial World!" Hongjun paused for a moment, then continued, "Among my disciples, there shall be six Sages.
Taishang, Yuanshi, and Tongtian were transformed from Pangu's primordial spirit, and they enjoy the legacy of Pangu's opening of heaven; they shall become Sages!
Nuwa has several matters of great merit to accomplish in the future, and she can also become a Sage!"
With these words, four wisps of Grand Prime Purple Qi flew into the spiritual platforms of the Three Pure Ones and Nuwa.
Among the six prayer mats in Zixiao Palace, four had already been assigned Sage positions. Jieyin and Zhunti, left behind with burning anxiety, spoke up impatiently: "Dao Ancestor, our Western lands are barren, we beg the Dao Ancestor to show mercy!"
"Very well!"
Two wisps of Grand Prime Purple Qi flew into the spiritual platforms of Jieyin and Zhunti, and the final two Sage positions were thus completely distributed.
Seeing that Dao Ancestor Hongjun remained silent for a long time, the crowd bowed together and cried out in loud voices, "We beg the Dao Ancestor for mercy!"
Dao Ancestor Hongjun produced a wisp of Grand Prime Purple Qi and sighed, "This Grand Prime Purple Qi is the foundation of attaining the Dao. Take this last wisp as well!"
The Grand Prime Purple Qi circled the Zixiao Palace a few times, and finally flew straight into the spiritual platform of Taoist Hongyun!
Overjoyed to have obtained the Grand Prime Purple Qi, Hongyun beamed with delight, seemingly forgetting even to bow and thank the Dao Ancestor.
The six prayer mats in Zixiao Palace represented six Sage positions. Because of Hongyun, Kunpeng had missed his chance at a Sage position; he glared venomously at Hongyun, sneering secretly to himself.
"I am on the verge of merging with the Heavenly Dao. Once I merge with the Heavenly Dao, Hongjun will become the Heavenly Dao, but the Heavenly Dao will no longer be Hongjun!
The spiritual treasures I gathered while wandering the Primordial World in past years are of no further use to me. Today, I shall distribute them among you!"
"Taishang, Yuanshi, Tongtian, the three of you share a master-disciple affinity with me, and you may enter my sect as my direct personal disciples!"
A look of joy appeared on the faces of the Three Pure Ones as they stepped forward, knelt, and paid their respects: "Greetings, Master!"
"Taishang, this Taiji Diagram is one of the Three Treasures of Opening Heaven, and belongs among the Innate Supreme Treasures! This treasure possesses the mighty power to pacify earth, water, fire, and wind, the ability to transform yin, yang, and the five elements, the merit to untangle the profound mysteries of the Heavenly Dao, and the capacity to encompass all phenomena in the great universe. It can suppress Karmic Luck!"
"Many thanks, Master!"
Though Taishang was tranquil and inactive, an Innate Supreme Treasure still filled him with boundless joy.
Just think of Taiyi: although his cultivation could be considered superior, it could hardly be called top-tier!
Yet relying on the might of the Chaos Bell in his hands, Taiyi had carved out a resounding reputation!
From this, one could see just how terrifying the might of an Innate Supreme Treasure truly was.
"Yuanshi, this Pangu Banner is likewise one of the Three Treasures of Opening Heaven, and belongs among the Innate Supreme Treasures. This treasure possesses the might to tear apart grand prime chaos, the power to shatter the heavens and space, the way to interpret creation without limit, the merit to command the profound meanings of all dharmas, and the ability to open up heaven, earth, and the cosmos. Furthermore, it can manipulate the power of heaven and earth, and in terms of attack and offense, it ranks number one in the Primordial World. It can suppress Karmic Luck!"
Yuanshi received the Pangu Banner, bowed deeply, and expressed his gratitude.
Immediately afterward, Dao Ancestor Hongjun produced a treasure overflowing with a killing aura. The moment this item appeared, everyone felt their hair stand on end and their minds tremble with fear.
"Tongtian, this treasure is called the Immortal-Slaying Formation Diagram, and it was once an item belonging to Demon Ancestor Luohou. Although a single item alone is merely a top-tier innate spiritual treasure, when the four Immortal-Slaying Swords are combined with the formation diagram to set up the Immortal-Slaying Sword Array, its power is second to no Innate Supreme Treasure. If the Immortal-Slaying Sword Array is deployed by a Sage, it cannot be broken except by the united force of four Sages!
This treasure carries an excessive amount of murderous malice; you must use it with caution!"
Tongtian received the Immortal-Slaying Formation Diagram and expressed his thanks with a beaming face.
Inside Zixiao Palace, everyone looked at Tongtian's Immortal-Slaying Formation Diagram with eyes full of awe and reverence.
Dao Ancestor Hongjun had distributed a total of six Sage positions, and the Pangu Three Pure Ones had already claimed half of them; the Immortal-Slaying Sword Array could not be broken without the power of four Sages. Aside from the Pangu Three Pure Ones, how else could one gather those four Sages?
With the Immortal-Slaying Sword Array in his hands, Tongtian was practically invincible throughout the Primordial World!
Seeing Uncle-Master Tongtian holding the Immortal-Slaying Formation Diagram in utter delight, Xiaoxuan could only let out a sigh, thinking to himself, "Alas, Uncle-Master, did you really not notice that this Immortal-Slaying Formation Diagram cannot suppress Karmic Luck?"
Without a treasure to suppress Karmic Luck, wouldn't Jiejiao be destined to fall apart during the Gods-Conferring Battle?
Knowing full well that this move was presumptuous, Xiaoxuan could only bite the bullet, stand up, and bow deeply.
"May I ask Master Ancestor, can the Immortal-Slaying Formation Diagram suppress Karmic Luck?"
"It cannot!"
Seeing that the Dao Ancestor's expression remained normal, Xiaoxuan continued, "Uncle-Master Tongtian is one of the Pangu Three Pure Ones. We beg Master Ancestor to bestow a treasure capable of suppressing Karmic Luck, so as to complete the legacy of Pangu opening heaven inherited by the Pangu Three Pure Ones!"
Master Tongtian's Jiejiao, with its ten thousand immortals coming to court, was the greatest obstacle to the rise of the West, and its disintegration was decreed by the Heavenly Dao.
Therefore, Master Tongtian naturally should not have a supreme treasure to suppress Karmic Luck.
Yet Tongtian was, after all, one of the Pangu Three Pure Ones, enjoying the legacy of Pangu's opening of heaven. Now that Xiaoxuan had brought it up, Dao Ancestor Hongjun was quite willing to go with the flow.
After all, Hongjun had not yet merged with the Heavenly Dao at this time; his heart still favored the Xuanmen.
"Very well. This Qiankun Cauldron was transformed from the seed pod of the World-Creating Green Lotus, and belongs among the top-tier innate spiritual treasures. It has the function of refining qualities and transforming acquired things into innate ones, and it can suppress Karmic Luck. I shall bestow it upon you!"
Tongtian bowed to receive it, and once again thanked the Dao Ancestor.
Afterward, Tongtian cast a gratified glance at Xiaoxuan, marveling inwardly without stop: "I truly haven't spoiled Xiaoxuan in vain. This little Xuan'er really will risk everything for my sake as an Uncle-Master!"
Dao Ancestor Hongjun was the sole Sage of the Primordial World; for Xiaoxuan to dare speak up and ask the Dao Ancestor to bestow a treasure for suppressing Karmic Luck was taking a remarkably heavy risk.
If this had displeased the Dao Ancestor, even the three brothers combined would not have been able to protect him!
"Nuwa, you have several matters of merit to accomplish in the future. You may become my unregistered disciple. Are you willing?"
Though not a direct personal disciple, becoming an unregistered disciple of the Dao Ancestor still brought a smile to Nuwa's face as she offered her thanks in a crisp voice: "This disciple pays respects to Master!"
"This is the Rivers and Mountains State Diagram, and it belongs among the top-tier innate spiritual treasures. You may study its specific functions on your own!"
Nuwa joyfully received the Rivers and Mountains State Diagram. Not far away, Fuxi saw that his younger sister had obtained this stroke of good fortune, and a smile appeared on his face as well.
Seeing the Western pair staring at him with pitiful expressions, Dao Ancestor Hongjun felt reluctant, but in order to repay the karma of the past, he could only speak up: "Jieyin and Zhunti likewise share a master-disciple affinity with me, and may become my unregistered disciples.
Take these twelfth-grade merit golden lotus and blessing pestle for your self-defense!"