Chapter 68: Xuanhuang as the Seed
The Ancestral Witch Houtu spoke, “I have merged the paths of life and death, seeking thereby to deduce a supreme Dao that will help me progress further. Yet, to this day, I remain without insight, which is to say, I have not yet comprehended my own chance to attain the Way. At this moment, absorbing the power of merit would do me more harm than good, yielding little benefit at best, and would merely waste the merit in vain.”
“If we consider matters from the perspective of maximizing benefit, among us, the one best suited to attain the Way should be our elder brother Jumang!”
Houtu continued, “Elder brother Jumang leads our people in guarding the Chaotic Secret Realm, cultivating spiritual roots and herbs for our tribe. Ninety-nine percent of the resources required for our cultivation depend on him. Should Jumang attain the Way, the resources available to our tribe would likely increase manifold.”
“That is not so!” Jumang hastily interjected. “Houtu possesses the great divine power of the Nine Heavens Breath Earth, able to gather the power of the earth’s veins and evolve it into the divine soil of the Nine Heavens Breath Earth. Even within the Chaotic Secret Realm, this is of great use, for it can be transformed into the divine soil of primordial chaos, brimming with the power of life. Combined with my own abilities, our yields within the secret realm could be increased three to fivefold. Houtu’s contributions are in no way less than mine!”
“In other words,” the Ancestral Witch Zhu Rong frowned, “Houtu’s cultivation is sufficient, but she lacks the opportunity to attain the Way; Dijang not only lacks sufficient cultivation but also the chance to attain the Way; Zhujun Yin and Jumang each specialize in a single path and are only lacking in cultivation, yet Jumang still harbors some hidden dangers within himself that have yet to be fully resolved!”
“In this case, we have merit to prove the Way, yet among our twelve Ancestral Witches, not a single one has the potential to become a saint. Is this not like possessing a treasure yet unable to make use of it?”
“Not necessarily,” Houtu replied with a gentle smile. “By borrowing Pangu’s Heart, I have transformed my body into the true form of Pangu, and have cultivated the Ninefold Mysterious Art to its ninth revolution—my physical body has reached the level of sainthood. For a short time, it is almost impossible for me to make further progress in this aspect.”
“I shall therefore entrust Pangu’s Heart to elder brother Zhujun Yin. With it, he can, after six thousand great aeons, attain the true form of Pangu through the Way of the Flesh. By then, if he fuses a portion of the primordial merit, he may have hope of reaching sainthood!”
With this, Houtu took out Pangu’s Heart and handed it to Zhujun Yin.
Zhujun Yin merged Pangu’s Heart into himself, channeling his vital energies into the heart. He immediately felt a vast surge of energy vanish within it, and after one breath’s time, aided by his vital force, he managed to condense a single drop of true Pangu blood.
“So swift?” Zhujun Yin marveled in secret.
He had long known that the Ancestral Witches could use Pangu’s Heart to refine true Pangu blood, but he had not expected it to be so rapid—a single breath to condense a drop of true blood, far surpassing the speed when Pangu’s Pool was used previously. The difference was incalculable.
It was only natural.
Previously, the Pangu’s Pool relied entirely on the power of magical treasures to draw in the turbid energy of the earth to condense the blood, but now, not only had the pool become Pangu’s Heart, but the turbid energy itself had become the vital energy of the Ancestral Witch. How could the process not be swifter?
Yet, even at this pace, it would still require six thousand great aeons for a complete transformation—testament to how extraordinary the true form of Pangu was. Without the aid of Pangu’s Heart, it would be nearly impossible to succeed. Even with both Pangu’s Heart and the Ninefold Mysterious Art, one could only just barely hope to succeed!
Zhujun Yin circulated the Ninefold Mysterious Art, devouring the innate turbid energy of the primordial world like a ravenous beast, using it to refine true Pangu blood.
In the past, the Ancestral Witches, when absorbing the turbid energy, would have inevitably attracted the curse of karmic retribution.
But now, with the emergence of their primordial spirits, the Ancestral Witches could dispel karmic retribution, clear away grievances, dissolve curses, and sever all ties of cause and effect with the three thousand chaotic gods and demons. Thus, they could now absorb the innate turbid energy without fear. With the aid of innate pure energy—pure energy turns, turbid energy arises—the two forces complemented each other, and Zhujun Yin’s speed in refining true blood increased with each passing day.
As time went on, the amount of Pangu blood within Zhujun Yin grew ever greater, his entire being undergoing a profound transformation, on the verge of being reborn.
…
After a period of cultivation, Zhujun Yin was overjoyed. “You may give me a portion of the primordial merit. Once my transformation is complete, I shall be able to fuse it at once!”
The Ancestral Witch Dijang considered, then said, “Cang has yet to reveal two remaining strategies. Besides using the merit to prove the Way and become a saint, what other uses does the Primordial Merit possess?”
“Second!” Cang replied, “It can be used to forge a supreme treasure of creation, that is, a top-tier innate treasure to anchor the tribe’s fortunes, ensuring our people’s everlasting prosperity!”
“For example, Pangu’s Heart. While this is an innate treasure, it lacks the ability to shield against the karmic and baleful energies. If not for the four Ancestral Witches severing their karma, using this treasure for cultivation would once again attract the innate turbid baleful energy and corrupt the primordial spirit. But with the blessing of a portion of primordial merit, the power of Pangu’s Heart will become vastly different. At that time, a supreme treasure of creation, untouched by all evils, could block even the most potent karmic baleful energy within the innate turbid force, never again invading the cultivator’s body!”
“Is such a thing possible?” The twelve Ancestral Witches were visibly moved.
As great wielders of divine power, they naturally understood: when Pangu’s Heart is elevated to a top-tier innate treasure, it would not merely gain the protection of primordial merit and the ability to shield against karmic baleful energy, but its inner mysteries would also be greatly enhanced.
At that time, the Wu tribe could harness the mysteries of Pangu’s Heart to create formations that shield against the curses of karmic retribution within the innate turbid energy!
In this way, the tribe’s entire cultivation environment would be vastly improved, giving rise to countless primordial spirit cultivators among their people—an incalculable boon to the tribe as a whole.
…
The first method focused on cultivating the tribe’s greatest individuals.
The second method sought to elevate the overall strength of the Wu tribe.
The twelve Ancestral Witches were all remarkable, and naturally knew which path to choose.
Dijiang smiled. “If we consider only the first two methods, I favor the first. But what is the third method?”
“Third!” Cang finally said, “Primordial merit as the seed!”
“As I understand it, the primordial qi of heaven and earth in our world, though a form of merit, is so refined that it is the supreme material for forging postnatal spirit treasures. All such materials can absorb power of the same origin and grow stronger. If we take a strand of this primordial qi and blend it with the merit painstakingly gathered by our tribe, perhaps we could strengthen the primordial merit itself!”
“If we could obtain a continual source of primordial merit, then perhaps the first two methods could both be pursued!”
“Primordial merit as the seed?” Dijiang pondered, then invited the twelve Ancestral Witches and one hundred and eight Great Witches to tally up all the merit the tribe had gathered over six thousand great aeons. After the count, it was found to be neither more nor less than three clouds of three-colored merit.
Dijiang took a strand of primordial qi and fused it with one of the merit clouds. Instantly, the primordial qi grew and divided, and in the blink of an eye, split into thirty strands of primordial qi.
At this point, the original pure golden hue of the primordial qi began to fade. Though it remained mostly golden, a faint tri-colored aura appeared, clearly indicating that the quality of the blended primordial qi had greatly declined, now existing midway between the tri-colored merit clouds and true primordial merit.