Honghuang Xuanyang Dao

Chapter 216 Changes in the Earth Book and the Grand Ceremony of Sacrificing to Heaven (Please Subscribe)
"Primordial deities!"

"The fire god Zhurong and the water god Gonggong, the Wu tribe has actually transformed into gods and established a divine path!" Looking at the strange phenomenon that rushed into the outer void, Li Xuanyang showed a look of surprise, and even a hint of doubt.

"Primordial deities!" Daoist Zilian's expression changed as he immediately thought of the impact this matter would have on the Primordial World and the Heavenly Court. He couldn't help but say, "Back then, Dao Ancestor Hongjun said that sages should follow the path of education and enlighten all living beings in the Primordial World. But now that primordial deities have appeared and are in charge of the merit and spiritual power of all living beings in the Primordial World, it will surely arouse the dissatisfaction of all the sages!"

"In addition, the Heavenly Court controls the operation of the primordial world and bestows titles upon immortals, gods and cultivators. However, now that Zhurong and Gonggong can bestow titles upon deities, it will also affect the operation of the Heavenly Court."

"Fortunately, it was only the two ancestral witches, Zhurong and Gonggong, who transformed into primordial deities; otherwise, it would have certainly caused a great uproar."

If the twelve ancestral witches of the witch clan were to gather together, each transforming into a primordial deity to govern a law of heaven and earth, and appointing various deities to manage the operation of the primordial world, they could easily replace the Heavenly Court.

“Fellow Daoist is right.” Li Xuanyang nodded and said to the Purple Lotus Daoist, “However, apart from the Sages and the Heavenly Court, the emergence of innate deities can already be considered as the divine path, which will surely affect the four sects of Xuanmen, as well as many Xuanmen cultivators!”

Whether they are disciples of the three religions of Ren, Chan, Jie, and Xuanyang Mountain, or great masters of the Xuanmen such as Zhen Yuanzi and Xuanyin Daoren, or ordinary Xuanmen cultivators.

They all cultivate the path of immortality, using the absorption and exhalation of spiritual energy to comprehend the laws of the universe. Even the disciples of the Western Sect must cultivate in this way, not just relying on merit and mental power.

However, the innate deities are different from other deities; they cultivate entirely through merit and the power of their thoughts.

"Fellow Daoist, are you referring to the conflict between immortals and gods?" Daoist Zilian's eyes narrowed. "In that case, I have underestimated the impact of the emergence of primordial gods on the prehistoric world."

"I'm afraid it's not just a simple conflict between immortals and gods!" Li Xuanyang glanced towards the chaotic void, thinking of the immortals and gods in the Heavenly Court of later generations, who all built temples and statues, gathering the merits and incense (spiritual power) of all living beings, and were no different from deities.

Could it be that the 365 righteous gods on the Investiture of the Gods, besides being related to the Human Tribulation among the Three Tribulations of Heaven, Earth, and Man, also have the intention of suppressing deities and the divine way, or even the Western religion?

Li Xuanyang suddenly felt increasingly confused about the Great Tribulation of the Investiture of the Gods.

Upon hearing Li Xuanyang's words, the Purple Lotus Daoist nodded thoughtfully and bid farewell to Li Xuanyang, saying, "It seems that I must also return to the Heavenly Court immediately to take charge!"

"After you return to the Heavenly Court, there is no need to rush into conflict with the gods such as Zhurong and Gonggong!" Li Xuanyang suddenly instructed the Purple Lotus Daoist. The prosperity of the divine path will first affect the four sects of Ren, Chan, Jie, and Xi, as well as the saints.

In particular, Western religions would certainly compete with deities such as Zhurong and Gonggong for the merit and spiritual power of all living beings in the primordial world.

In addition, there is the Dragon Clan. The Dragon Clan not only rules over the four seas, but also controls many rivers and waterways within the human realm. Gonggong is the water god and can also bestow titles upon deities, so he is bound to have conflicts with the Dragon Clan.

"Thank you for the reminder, fellow Daoist!" Daoist Zilian bid farewell to Li Xuanyang, and then a flash of divine light appeared beneath his feet as he headed towards the Heavenly Court.

"This disciple is somewhat puzzled!"

“Since the innate deities are harmful and useless to you saints, why not just kill them all and sever the path of divinity?” Changxi asked Li Xuanyang with a puzzled look on her face.

"It's not that simple!" Hearing Changxi's words, Li Xuanyang smiled and said to Changxi, "Gods and the Dao exist. Gods themselves can be in harmony with the laws of heaven and earth. Once they are killed, they will definitely suffer a backlash from the laws of heaven and earth, which will damage their own fortune and merits and make them tainted by karma."

"Even with innate spiritual treasures, this is still the case."

The reason why innate spiritual treasures can kill without incurring karmic consequences is because they contain innate laws that are not bound by karma.

However, deities are in harmony with the laws of heaven and earth and are not subject to the restrictions of innate spiritual treasures.

"Moreover, primordial deities like Zhurong and Gonggong wield a law of heaven and earth, and their cultivation and supernatural powers are undoubtedly amplified, so they should not be underestimated!"

Primordial deities govern the laws of heaven and earth, represent the will of heaven and earth, and have rendered meritorious service to heaven and earth. The more saintly or holy emperor they are, the less likely they are to be easily killed.

"Teacher's Pangu Sword is a divine artifact that created the world, so wouldn't it be..." Changxi suddenly had a thought. She thought of Li Xuanyang's Pangu Sword, which was not a primordial artifact, but contained the divine power of creation. Wouldn't it be just right to not fear the backlash of the laws of heaven and earth?

Li Xuanyang smiled and shook his head, saying nothing more. He only gave Changxi a few instructions before summoning a cloud of light and heading towards the primordial land.

Just as Li Xuanyang passed through the innate gale and arrived above the primordial land, a divine light suddenly shot up from afar, revealing a trace of primordial energy.

"This is the aura of the innate Earth Law and the innate Wood Law!"

"Could it be Fellow Daoist Zhen Yuanzi!" Li Xuanyang was stunned for a moment. Without thinking, golden light flashed beneath his feet, and he transformed into a beam of light, flying towards the direction of the divine light.

The closer one gets to the divine light, the more concentrated the primordial energy emanating from it becomes, until Li Xuanyang enters the territory of Longevity Mountain.

Looking out, the sky above Wuzhuang Temple was filled with the divine light of the Primordial Earth, covering an area of ​​hundreds of millions of miles, clearly indicating that the Primordial Earth Formation had been activated.

This formation is the protective formation of Wuzhuang Temple on Longevity Mountain. It is formed by the innate Earth Law and is suppressed by the Earth Book and the Ginseng Fruit Tree. It is connected to the earth veins of Longevity Mountain and is extremely mysterious.

Li Xuanyang had visited Wuzhuang Temple several times, but he had never seen Zhen Yuanzi activate this great formation. Unexpectedly, he saw the mountain-protecting formation being activated to its fullest extent.

Even so, a divine light containing the aura of primordial chaos still managed to pass through the barrier of the mountain-protecting formation and enter the Thirty-Three Outer Heavens.

"It really is Fellow Daoist Zhen Yuanzi!" Li Xuanyang didn't have time to think much. His eyes blazed with golden light as he looked towards Wuzhuang Temple, his gaze faintly penetrating the barrier of the Innate Earth Array.

Within the Wuzhuang Temple, countless rays of light filled the air, from which three divine lights intersected and burst forth, forming three enormous primordial spirit flowers. Each flower displayed a dazzling divine light, gradually transforming into three objects: Zhen Yuanzi's companion spirit treasure, the Earth Book, his companion spirit root, the Ginseng Fruit Tree, and a mass of hazy innate earth essence.

Among them, the innate spiritual treasure Earth Book and the innate spiritual root Ginseng Fruit Tree actually merged together.

"This is a breakthrough to the Three Corpses Quasi-Saint realm!" Li Xuanyang was extremely familiar with the scene before him, and even recognized it at a glance.

This is the scene when one breaks through to the Quasi-Saint level of the Three Corpses. The objects entrusted by the good and evil corpses merge with each other, thereby realizing one's own obsessions and cutting them off.

Since the last time Li Xuanyang, along with Fuxi, Hongyun, and Taiqing Daoist, chased after Shen Ni and went to the chaotic void.

Zhen Yuanzi then bid farewell to the Taoist Xuanyin and returned to Wuzhuang Temple on Longevity Mountain. He secluded himself to comprehend the Primordial Chaos Dao, ignoring all outside affairs, and did not even venture into the Netherworld.

Unfortunately, even though the Earth Book and the Ginseng Fruit Tree are both Zhen Yuanzi's companion spiritual treasures and companion spiritual roots, they can be considered to be half of the same origin.

However, despite years of arduous practice, there has been no progress, and he has been unable to integrate the Earth Book and the Ginseng Fruit Tree.

Just as Zhen Yuanzi was feeling somewhat disheartened, the scholar suddenly underwent a change, as if resonating with heaven and earth, and even intersecting with the ginseng fruit tree, bursting forth with a divine light that shot into the sky, exuding the aura of the Primordial Dao, which was noticed by Li Xuanyang, who had just returned to the prehistoric land.

"The innate Earth Law and the innate Wood Law are both among the innate Five Elements Great Dao Laws. They can be transformed into the Primordial Dao by the cycle of Wood generating Fire, Fire generating Earth, Earth generating Metal, Metal generating Water, and Water generating Wood."

“But…” A strange light suddenly flashed in Li Xuanyang’s eyes. The scene on Zhen Yuanzi’s three flowers of primordial spirit was not based on the mutual generation of the five elements, but on the mutual generation of earth and wood, which transformed into the primordial chaos.

This path is both one of the Five Elements Great Daos of Primordial Chaos and not the Five Elements Great Daos of Primordial Chaos. It can be said to be a separate lineage, the path of the Earth Immortals.

However, the Earth Book and the Ginseng Fruit Tree have not been able to fully integrate yet, as if they are missing a crucial opportunity.

At this moment, the Earth Book suddenly transformed into a patch of earthy yellow divine light, connecting with the ancestral veins of the primordial earth. This caused the ginseng fruit tree to shine brightly, gradually merging into it. Relying on the primordial earth, the two completely merged together.

At the same time, the Qingyun that Zhen Yuanzi originally had was only half an acre in size gradually transformed into an acre in size, radiating golden light and exuding a primordial aura.

One of the three flowers of primordial spirit, a wisp of innate earth essence, suddenly transformed into a divine light, soaring into the sky and landing above Wuzhuang Temple, revealing a Taoist priest dressed in a yellow robe, whose appearance was extremely similar to Zhen Yuanzi.

"This humble Taoist greets fellow Daoist!" As soon as the Taoist in the yellow robe appeared, he smiled and bowed to Zhen Yuanzi.

At this moment, Zhen Yuanzi gradually regained consciousness. Upon seeing the Taoist in front of him, a look of joy appeared on his face. He bowed slightly in return and said, "Fellow Daoist, we are one, there is no need for such formalities!"

Upon hearing this, the Taoist chuckled and then transformed into a beam of divine light, landing on Zhen Yuanzi's three primordial spirit flowers.

The next moment, a voice faintly rang in Zhen Yuanzi's ears, passing through the Innate Earth Array and entering the Wuzhuang Temple.

"Congratulations, fellow Daoist! Your evil and malevolent natures have been expelled, and the Great Dao of Primordial Chaos is within reach!"

"Fellow Daoist, please don't tease me!" Upon hearing Li Xuanyang's voice, Zhen Yuanzi couldn't help but transmit a message to Li Xuanyang. Then, he gathered his magical power, withdrew the Three Flowers of Primordial Spirit, the Earth Book, and the essence of the Primordial Earth, stopped the Primordial Earth Formation, and then got up and walked out of his secluded cultivation place to the entrance of Wuzhuang Temple.

Just then, Li Xuanyang, who was all smiles, spoke to him, saying, "Fellow Daoist, it's been tens of thousands of years since we last met. Not only has your cultivation become even more profound, but you've even severed your ego and obsessions. Truly a cause for celebration!"

“Fellow Daoist, please don’t jest. This is merely a matter of chance, nothing compared to yours,” Zhen Yuanzi said, bowing to Li Xuanyang. “Please come inside to speak!”

"I am not joking!" After Li Xuanyang finished speaking, he followed Zhen Yuanzi into the Wuzhuang Temple and took their seats in the hall.

As soon as he sat down, Zhen Yuanzi summoned the boy and asked him to pick a few ginseng fruits, then brought some spiritual fruits and tea, and began chatting and laughing with Li Xuanyang.

“Fellow Daoist, you may not know this!” Zhen Yuanzi reached out and picked up a cup of spiritual tea, took a small sip, and then said to Li Xuanyang, “Although my Earth Book and Ginseng Fruit Tree are both symbiotic, I have been unable to integrate them after tens of thousands of years of seclusion and arduous cultivation.”

"Unexpectedly, the Book of Earth suddenly underwent a change, aligning with the laws of heaven and earth and connecting with the ancestral veins of the primordial earth. Using it as a carrier, it actually merged with the Ginseng Fruit Tree."

Speaking of this matter, Zhen Yuanzi was also completely baffled. Although the Earth Book was the membrane of the earth and could be connected to the earth's veins through Taoist cultivation and magic, this sudden change surprised Zhen Yuanzi greatly.

"The Book of Earth!" Upon hearing Zhen Yuanzi's words, Li Xuanyang's heart stirred. He suddenly thought of the matter of Zhu Rong and Gong Gong transforming into primordial deities. Could it be related to this matter?

Seeing Li Xuanyang suddenly fall silent and even ponder, Zhen Yuanzi was puzzled as to why Li Xuanyang was like this. Could it be related to the Earth Book he had just mentioned?

"Fellow!"

"Fellow Daoist!" Zhen Yuanzi called out to Li Xuanyang, and when he didn't respond, he called out again.

Li Xuanyang's thoughts were interrupted by Zhen Yuanzi, so he couldn't help but pull himself together and said to Zhen Yuanzi, "When Zhu Rong and Gong Gong transformed into primordial deities and made a vow to the Heavenly Dao, did you hear it, fellow Daoist?"

"A primordial deity!" Zhen Yuanzi was stunned for a moment. He subconsciously used his primordial spirit to sense the secrets of heaven. He felt that the void was hazy and full of hidden killing intent. His primordial spirit even felt a slight stinging pain. He quickly withdrew his primordial spirit and a look of surprise appeared on his face.

"The secrets of heaven are in chaos, and hidden dangers lurk within. It seems that something great is indeed happening in the primordial world. I wonder if it will bring good fortune or misfortune!"

Zhen Yuanzi thought for a moment and then said to Li Xuanyang, "I have not heard of this matter!"

"I was focused on my seclusion earlier and didn't notice what was happening outside, but just now I sensed something in the darkness: the secrets of heaven are in complete chaos."

"However, why did you suddenly bring this up, fellow Daoist!" At this point, Zhen Yuanzi suddenly looked at Li Xuanyang with some confusion.

Li Xuanyang did not answer Zhen Yuanzi's question, but instead said to him, "Fellow Daoist's Book of Earth and my Book of the Underworld are both among the three books of Heaven, Earth and Man."

"When the Netherworld and the Land of Reincarnation were first created, the Book of the Underworld could not only be transformed into the Book of Life and Death, but also be used to appoint many officials in the Netherworld."

"As for your Earth Book, its profoundness surpasses that of my Underworld Book. It occupies the Earthly Path, which is likely related to deities. That's why the appearance of innate deities caused a slight change."

After saying this, Li Xuanyang was filled with admiration for Zhen Yuanzi's fortuitous encounter.

The three books, Heaven, Earth, and Man, each have their own mysteries. The Heavenly Book, the Investiture of the Gods, can appoint 365 righteous gods; the Earthly Book can appoint river and land gods; and the Underworld Book, the Book of Life and Death, can appoint underworld deities.

Therefore, the emergence of the innate deity earlier caused a slight change in the Earth Book. Taking this as an opportunity, the Earth Book and the Ginseng Fruit Tree merged together, allowing Zhen Yuanzi to realize his own obsession.

In contrast, Li Xuanyang used the Heaven-Opening Divine Artifact as his opportunity.

"Fellow Daoist, are you saying that my Earth Book is related to the primordial deities?" Zhen Yuanzi was startled and couldn't help but ask Li Xuanyang.

“That’s right!” Li Xuanyang nodded and said to Zhen Yuanzi with a profound meaning, “Fellow Daoist’s Earth Book corresponds exactly to the Earth Path among the three paths of Heaven, Earth and Man. Now that you have also comprehended the Primordial Chaos Path, you can be considered to be on the path of Earth Immortals. It can be said that the Primordial Chaos Great Dao is within reach.”

"The Three Paths of Heaven, Earth, and Man!"

"The Great Dao of Primordial Chaos is within reach!" Zhen Yuanzi shuddered, suddenly realizing something, and hurriedly asked Li Xuanyang again, "When you say the Great Dao of Primordial Chaos is within reach, do you mean the Earthly Path among the Three Paths of Heaven, Earth, and Man?"

Li Xuanyang did not answer, but only smiled and shook his head. The relationship between the Earthly Path and the Primordial Dao was self-evident, and he had long guessed about it. However, since it concerned a secret of heaven and he was in the primordial world, Li Xuanyang naturally could not reveal everything.

Even if Li Xuanyang hadn't said it, Zhen Yuanzi could have vaguely guessed some things from the words just now. The Three Pure Ones, Nuwa, the two Western Saints and other saints entrusted their primordial spirits to the Heavenly Dao, while the Holy Emperors such as Fuxi and Hongyun entrusted their primordial spirits to the Human Dao.

Since the Earthly Path is one of the three paths of Heaven, Earth, and Man, can one also entrust their primordial spirit to it, thereby proving their Dao and becoming a saint, breaking through to the realm of Hunyuan Daluo Golden Immortal?

If that's the case, then his companion spirit treasure, the Book of Earth, corresponds exactly to the underground passage.

Thinking of this, a hint of understanding appeared in Zhen Yuanzi's eyes, and an excited expression appeared on his face. He cupped his hands and bowed to Li Xuanyang, saying, "Thank you, fellow Daoist!"

Despite Zhen Yuanzi's breakthrough to the Three Corpses Quasi-Saint realm, he has absolutely no clue how to achieve the Three Corpses Unity and break through to the Hunyuan Daluo Golden Immortal realm, and the possibility is extremely slim.

After all, the Earth Book and the Ginseng Fruit Tree could barely be considered to be half of the same origin, but now there is an additional innate Earth Essence, so they can't even be considered half of the same origin anymore, which is almost equivalent to cutting off their own path.

Unexpectedly, a glimmer of hope appeared in the underground book and the tunnels.

However, neither of them spoke of the matter of the Dao or the path to enlightenment. Instead, they enjoyed spiritual fruits and teas and discussed the Dao of Primordial Chaos.

Just as they were having a pleasant conversation, a boy entered, bowed to Zhen Yuanzi, and said, "Greetings, Master. A great shaman from the Wu tribe outside the temple has brought an invitation, inviting you to the Ancestral Shaman Hall to participate in the sacrificial ceremony for the two great gods, Zhurong and Gonggong!"

"A grand ceremony to worship Heaven!" Zhen Yuanzi was extremely surprised to hear the boy's words. "Zhurong and Gonggong have transformed into primordial deities, yet they still want to hold a grand ceremony to worship Heaven?"

"Could it be that you intend to return to the primordial world?"

In the past, the great war between the Wu and Yao tribes caused the collapse of Mount Buzhou. The two tribes committed a terrible disaster. In the end, the remaining Yao tribe was taken away by Nuwa and brought back to Nuwa's Heaven, while the remaining Wu tribe was taken in by Li Xuanyang and handed over to Lady Pingxin by the White Lotus Taoist. They were placed in the depths of the eighteenth level of hell.

Over the countless years, apart from the Battle of Zhuolu, the Wu tribe has almost never set foot in the primordial wilderness.

But now, not only have Zhurong and Gonggong become primordial deities, but they are also holding a grand ceremony to worship heaven, which shows that they are planning to return to the primordial world.

Thinking of this, Zhen Yuanzi waved his hand at the boy and said, "Take this invitation and tell him that I will definitely go when I have time!"

"Yes, sir!" the boy replied, and hurriedly turned and left.

"Fellow Daoist, are you planning to attend the sacrificial ceremony to Zhurong and Gonggong?" Seeing that Zhen Yuanzi was about to accept the invitation, Li Xuanyang couldn't help but ask him.

“I do intend to make a trip there. Besides, matters concerning the gods are related to the Book of Earth.”

"What's wrong? Is there something amiss?" Zhen Yuanzi asked, puzzled as to why Li Xuanyang would bring up this matter.

“When Zhurong and Gonggong transformed into primordial deities, you were in seclusion undergoing a breakthrough and were unaware of it.” Li Xuanyang did not hide anything and told Zhen Yuanzi about the various matters concerning primordial deities and the causal relationship between the Heavenly Court and the four sects of Xuanmen.

"It seems that this sacrificial ceremony will not be peaceful. I would be better off not going, lest I be unnecessarily tainted by karma."

"It would be better to go into seclusion and cultivate in peace, consolidating one's cultivation level." Zhen Yuanzi shook his head, clearly not wanting to get involved in such matters.

"If you wish to go, fellow Daoist, you can conceal yourself and observe from afar. You might even witness a spectacle," Li Xuanyang said meaningfully.

"Oh!" Upon hearing Li Xuanyang's words, Zhen Yuanzi's eyes lit up, and he looked at Li Xuanyang with great interest, asking, "Fellow Daoist, would you be interested in going together?"

“That’s only natural!” Li Xuanyang nodded with a smile. “I’m afraid that not only you and I, but also many fellow Daoists will go to see what’s going on.”

Not to mention the quasi-saints and great supernatural beings and Xuanmen cultivators, even the Three Pure Ones, Nuwa, and the two Western Saints would probably be unable to resist going there.

“In that case, I’ll go with you to join the fun. Maybe we’ll even run into that kid Hongyun.” Zhen Yuanzi teased Hongyun before continuing his discussion of the Hunyuan Dao with Li Xuanyang.

Only when the sacrificial ceremony was almost upon them did the two ride on auspicious clouds toward the Ancestral Witch Hall.

Along the way, one could see clouds passing by from time to time, as well as some quasi-saints and great supernatural beings, and many Xuanmen cultivators. One could even vaguely see traces of some demon saints and demon gods.

It seems Li Xuanyang was right; everyone was planning to go and see for themselves the grand ceremony of offering sacrifices to Zhurong and Gonggong.

However, there was no trace of any disciples from the four major sects of Xuanmen.

Li Xuanyang and Zhen Yuanzi exchanged a glance, showing no curiosity whatsoever, but instead revealing a smile in unison.

The more this is the case, the more certain the disciples of the four sects of Xuanmen will go, even going to the Ancestral Witch Hall together with the Three Pure Ones and the Two Western Saints.

"It seems we made the right choice coming here!"

Zhen Yuanzi suddenly chuckled and said, "Perhaps, just as you said before, we can enjoy a good show."

“Disciples of the four sects, who are known as the orthodox lineage of the Xuanmen, naturally cannot tolerate the rise of the divine path.” Li Xuanyang directly pointed out the key point, and even for the prehistoric world, the rise of the divine path could be better than the rise of the Xuanmen.

Xuanmen cultivators all cultivate by absorbing spiritual energy. Over time, even with the Zhou Tian Star Array, which can continuously refine chaotic energy and transform it into spiritual energy, they can eventually achieve spiritual energy.

However, as the number of cultivators in the primordial world increases day by day, the spiritual energy they contain will continue to decrease until a calamity arises, thereby reducing the number of cultivators.

Gods and the divine path are different. They do not need to absorb spiritual energy to cultivate. Instead, they rely on the merits and thoughts of all living beings in the primordial world, which is naturally a good thing for the primordial world.

This is also a good thing for all living beings in the primordial world. Divine cultivation does not require a specific origin or a blessed land; it only requires the accumulation of merit and spiritual power.

(End of this chapter)