Primordial Era: I, Ksitigarbha, shall be the Supreme Being of the Primordial Era.

"This junior would like to make a deal with Senior Styx!"

"Methods for accumulating merit?"

Styx slowly sheathed his sword and sat back down in his chair.

"Indeed!"

"How much merit can one gain?"

"It is no less than what I have achieved before!"

"Really!?" Styx was immediately excited upon hearing this. He was really envious of the vast amount of merit that Ksitigarbha had previously obtained!

"This junior dares to swear an oath! If I am lying, may my cultivation never advance an inch!"

Ksitigarbha's resolute expression immediately shook the Styx River.

But one question remained in his mind: "Why didn't you tell your master about such a good thing or keep it for yourself? Why did you make a deal with me instead?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Ksitigarbha pointed to the top of his head and said, "Heaven will not allow it, and besides, it has no affinity with my Mount Sumeru!"

Moreover, this method might be more suitable for you, senior!

The Styx River finally fell silent.

Is this explanation reasonable?

That's not very reasonable!

But was he tempted?

I'm absolutely smitten!

"What do you want?" Styx asked Ksitigarbha, barely suppressing his excitement.

However, Ksitigarbha did not directly choose what he wanted. Instead, he bowed to the Styx River and said, "Once you have succeeded, I will naturally come to collect what I need!"

"Oh? That's interesting. Aren't you afraid that Old Ancestor Wu will renege on his promise later?"

Ksitigarbha did not stand up, but remained bowed to the Styx River, saying, "This junior believes that senior will certainly keep his promise!"

Seeing Ksitigarbha's certainty, Styx's expression changed slightly.

He believed that Ksitigarbha must know that if he gained so much merit, his cultivation would progress to a very high level.

At that time, the two paths of Mount Sumeru may not be able to stop them.

But Ksitigarbha's behavior left Styx unsure of what to do.

Suddenly, Styx remembered the Primordial Purple Qi that Hongjun had bestowed upon the two Daos, and his eyes widened instantly.

"He was so certain that he would not renege on his debt, and only he could be so sure that the two paths of Mount Sumeru would become saints before him!"

This also explains why he didn't share this method with the other disciples, but instead used it to make a deal with me!

Thinking of this, Styx felt a sense of relief.

At the very least, this proves that the method described by Ksitigarbha must be effective.

"A meritorious deed befitting Heaven!"

Styx sighed, his voice filled with longing for merit.

"I have agreed, so please speak quickly!"

Seeing that Styx had agreed, Ksitigarbha no longer concealed himself. A glint flashed in his eyes, and his lips parted, uttering four words:

"Creation, establish a religion!"

"Creation... establishing a religion..."

Styx kept chewing on the four words spoken by Ksitigarbha, but he could never grasp their meaning.

"Could you perhaps explain it more clearly, young friend?"

For the sake of Heavenly Merit, Styx also lowered its stance at this time.

Ksitigarbha shook his head and pointed to the sky again, saying, "Senior, you must know that heavenly secrets cannot be revealed. The time is not yet ripe. When the time comes, you will naturally understand what I mean!"

Seeing that Ksitigarbha was unwilling to say more, Styx had no choice but to give up.

He then asked, "From what you've said, young friend, these are two separate matters. Does this mean one can gain merit twice?"

"Indeed! And the merits gained in these two instances will absolutely not be less than what I received in each one; I can guarantee that!"

Upon hearing this, Styx beamed with joy.

"If what you say is true, young friend, then whatever you desire from this sea of ​​blood, I will give it to you without hesitation or pity!"

"I hope you'll keep your word!"

Upon seeing Styx's assurance, Ksitigarbha immediately took his leave, saying, "Now that this matter is settled, I will not linger any longer. I will return to pay my respects once you have achieved your goal!"

Styx was taken aback by this, then a smile appeared on his face. "Young friend, why don't you stay with me for a few more days, so that I can fulfill my duty as host?"

"This junior thanks you for your kindness, senior, but I have been away from the mountain for quite some time now, and I fear that my two masters will worry. I should return as soon as possible and dare not delay. Please understand!"

"Haha, in that case, I won't keep you any longer, young friend. I'll see you out now!"

"Thank you so much, senior!"

Seeing that Ksitigarbha had brought out two paths to Mount Sumeru, Styx knew that he would not be able to keep Ksitigarbha this time, so he simply did not forcibly stop him.

He stood up, and a blood-red road appeared before him, its end reaching beyond the sea of ​​blood.

The two walked one after the other onto the crimson road, chatting about interesting things from the prehistoric era, without mentioning their previous transaction at all.

This was a tacit understanding reached by the two of them without prior arrangement.

Upon reaching the center of the sea of ​​blood, Ksitigarbha suddenly paused, stopped, and looked towards the side of the road.

Seeing this, Styx also stopped and looked at Ksitigarbha.

"Young friend, is something amiss?"

Upon hearing Styx's question, Ksitigarbha shook his head and said, "No, it's just that I suddenly sensed something here that I have a connection with, so I stopped."

"A treasure destined for him?" Styx wondered. Could there be some treasure in the vast sea of ​​blood that he had not yet discovered?

"I wonder what this is? Would you like me to fetch it for you, young friend?" Styx asked Ksitigarbha with a meaningful look in his eyes.

"Then I'll have to trouble you, senior!" Ksitigarbha didn't hide anything and directly pointed to a spot in the Sea of ​​Blood for Styx.

"It's about a kilometer away in that direction. Please, senior, lend a hand!"

Seeing Ksitigarbha's generosity, Styx could only suppress his doubts and look in the direction Ksitigarbha was pointing.

However, after investigating, he found nothing unusual.

"Young friend, there's nothing there."

"Could it be that you've misinterpreted things, young friend?"

"Senior, you only need to bring that sea of ​​blood completely, and the truth will become clear!"

Ksitigarbha never offered an explanation for the mystery surrounding the River Styx.

Seeing this, Styx could only channel his magic power, conjuring a large, blood-red hand that reached towards the area Ksitigarbha had mentioned.

Styx, who had initially harbored doubts, suddenly changed his expression upon grasping the location. "Huh? There really is something there!"

When Styx pulled the object to his side, he finally realized what it was.

"Strange, it is actually the embryo of a creature that emerged from the sea of ​​blood just like mine!"

Its aura merged with the sea of ​​blood; no wonder I hadn't noticed!

"Senior, this is it; it is destined for me!"

"This..." Styx originally thought it was some kind of treasure and wanted to claim it as his own, claiming that everything from the Blood Sea belonged to him.

Unexpectedly, it was just a creature from the Blood Sea, which was of little use to the Styx River.

Therefore, he handed the embryonic life form to Ksitigarbha, saying, "Since this life form is destined to be with you, young friend, then give it to you! This is also a blessing for this life form!"

Ksitigarbha accepted the embryonic life form and immediately thanked Styx.

Styx waved his hand dismissively and continued leading Ksitigarbha out of the Blood Sea.

Upon reaching the edge of the Blood Sea, Styx suddenly sensed something.

Turning his head, he saw two people with sorrowful expressions, while another person smiled and looked in his direction.

These were Jieyin and Zhunti, who had never left the Blood Sea since arriving there.

Upon seeing the two, Styx's expression changed drastically. "Hmph, fellow Daoists, your disciple has been delivered to you!"

I haven't touched it in the slightest!

After saying this, he left Ksitigarbha on the shore of the Blood Sea and turned to walk into the depths of the Blood Sea.

"Thank you, Fellow Daoist Styx, for taking care of us disciples!"

Upon hearing Zhunti Daoist's words of thanks, Styx did not turn his head, but sank into the sea of ​​blood with a dark face.

Zhunti Daoist didn't care, and instead turned to look at Ksitigarbha.

Ksitigarbha looked at his two masters with some surprise and asked, "Why have you two come, masters?"