Primordial Era: Starting by overwhelming the Sages, Hongjun was stunned!

Kong Xuandao: "It's growing roots."

Where do the roots grow?

Kong Xuan looked at the white light: "Grow over there."

The Golden-Winged Roc remained silent for a while.

"What happens when it grows to its full length?"

Kong Xuandao: "I don't know."

"Perhaps the crack will close."

"Perhaps the crack will get even bigger."

"Maybe it will grow into a tree and cover us all."

The Golden-Winged Roc did not ask any further questions.

But his gaze fell on the seedling.

The leaves are emerald green, the branches are upright, and the roots are spreading silently under the clouds.

Like a net being woven.

A few more days passed.

Kong Xuan sensed the movement of the mark.

In the far distance, towards the Blackwater Marsh, a faint golden light flickered.

It's his mark.

Something touched the seed wrapped in golden light.

Kong Xuan did not move.

He stood before the crack, closing his eyes to sense it.

The golden light shone for a moment in the darkness, then went out.

It felt like something had swallowed it whole.

Kong Xuan opened his eyes.

"It's here."

The Golden-Winged Roc immediately stood up: "Where?"

"Blackwater Marsh."

"They've already left."

"But it touched my mark."

The Golden-Winged Roc clenched its fist: "Then where is it now?"

Kong Xuan remained silent for a moment.

"Still looking."

"It's going in circles."

"Walk around these lines I've laid, and see which one leads to the farthest place."

He turned to the Golden-Winged Roc: "Go there."

"Don't chase after it, just check for me whether those markings are still there."

The Golden-Winged Roc nodded, transformed into its original form, spread its wings, and flew south.

Kong Xuan watched him leave.

Then he squatted down, stretched out his hand, and placed his fingertips on the branches of the seedling.

The branches were warm, as if they had been exposed to sunlight all day.

"It's testing the waters, you're growing."

"Let's see who's faster."

The seedling's leaves trembled slightly.

It's like a response.

As evening fell, the Golden-Winged Roc returned.

He landed with a somber expression: "Three markers are missing."

"The path in Blackwater Marsh, the path outside Phoenix Perch Palace, and the path on the desolate hill to the west."

"They're all broken."

"It's like it was uprooted by something."

Kong Xuan was not surprised.

Was it completely plucked?

The Golden-Winged Roc thought for a moment: "Clean."

"The location marked was completely bare, without even a patch of extra soil."

"It felt like it had been licked by something."

Kong Xuan stood up.

He looked at the white light, his gaze calm, but no longer gentle.

"It's clearing the way."

"Remove all those eyeliners I've laid, one by one."

"It will come to us after it's all been pulled out."

The Golden-Winged Roc listened without saying a word.

He walked over to the seedling, squatted down, and gently touched its leaves.

"And you? How much faster can you grow?"

The leaves swayed gently in the wind.

It's like saying, "You're watching."

The next morning, the seedling had grown an inch taller.

A small thing emerged from between the leaves.

Extremely small, finer than a grain of rice.

The color is a pale gold, with a slight shimmer at the edges.

The Golden-Winged Roc was the first to discover it.

He squatted down next to the seedlings and tilted his head to look at them for a long time.

"Brother, this seedling seems to be growing more than just leaves."

Kong Xuan walked over and looked down at the small, pale golden object.

It protrudes slightly at the fork of the branches and leaves, as if something is about to emerge.

It looks like a tiny flower bud.

"It's about to bloom."

The Golden-Winged Roc paused for a moment: "Now?"

"It's only this tall."

Kong Xuandao: "It can't wait any longer."

The Golden-Winged Roc squatted there, silent for a while.

Then he spoke up: "Brother, if it blooms, won't the shadowy figure be even more eager to come in?"

Kong Xuan looked at the white light: "It was in a hurry to come in."

"But once the flower blooms, it will be even more urgent."

The Golden-Winged Roc raised its head: "And what about us?"

Kong Xuan withdrew his gaze and looked at the seedling and the pale golden flower bud.

"We'll wait for it to open."

After saying this, he stood back in front of the crack.

The wind surged forth from the white light.

His robes were rolled up, and the ink-black color gleamed with a dark light in the sunlight.

The seedling behind him swayed gently in the wind.

The pale golden flower bud swelled slightly.

It is growing.

Kong Xuan is waiting.

The dark figure was clearing the way.

These three things happened simultaneously, silently.

But each one is moving forward.

Before the crack, Kong Xuan, his robes fluttering, stood like a mountain.

The sapling behind him, with its pale golden bud on the branch, quietly swelled a little longer in the wind.

It seemed to know something was about to happen.

Therefore, we must seize every moment.

The flower bud grew even larger.

It was pale gold, like a star that someone had placed on a branch.

The wind blew through the white light and brushed against it, causing it to tremble slightly.

Like a living thing breathing.

The Golden-Winged Roc squatted beside it and watched it for the entire afternoon.

As the sunlight moved from overhead to the west, his posture remained largely unchanged.

Kong Xuan did not urge him.

As evening fell, the Golden-Winged Roc suddenly spoke up: "Brother, will it make a sound when it opens?"

Kong Xuan thought for a moment: "I don't know."

"There might be some sound."

"The very light kind."

The Golden-Winged Roc nodded, watched for a while, then got up and stretched his legs, which had gone numb from squatting.

"I'm going hunting for something."

"I'd like some hot soup tonight."

He spread his wings and flew away, his crimson-gold wings drawing an arc in the twilight.

Kong Xuan stood in front of the crack, looking down at the flower bud.

A breeze blew by, and the flower bud swayed gently.

It looked like he was yawning.

At night, the Golden-Winged Roc returned carrying a pheasant, cleaned it up, and set up a fire on the clouds.

When the soup boils, its aroma travels far on the night breeze.

The two squatted by the fire, each holding a bowl of hot soup, and slowly drank it.

The soup was very hot, but after swallowing it, my whole body felt warm.

The Golden-Winged Roc took a few sips and suddenly said, "Brother."

"Have you ever thought about what would happen if that seedling actually grew its roots from that side together with the roots from this side?"

Kong Xuan held the bowl, looking at the oil floating on the soup noodles.

"have no idea."

The Golden-Winged Roc was silent for a moment: "Then why are you letting it grow?"

Kong Xuandao: "It chose it itself."

The Golden-Winged Roc did not ask any further questions.

He finished his soup, put down the bowl, and leaned against the clouds, gazing at the night sky.

Starlight spilled down, falling on his face and on the leaves of the seedling.

The flower buds glowed faintly with a pale golden light in the night.

Like a very small lamp.

The next day, Kong Xuan stood in front of the crack as usual.

The sunlight was lovely, and the wind wasn't strong.

The clouds flowed slowly beneath my feet, like a wide river.

He sensed that the mark had been touched again.

This time, it's in the west.

The direction of the Kunlun Mountains.

He closed his eyes and sensed for a moment; the golden light flashed twice and then went out.

It lasted longer than last time.

A golden-winged roc approached from afar: "Broken again?"

"Um."

"It lasted a little longer than last time."

The Golden-Winged Roc frowned: "Then it's learning."

"It's learning how to eat your tags faster."

Kong Xuan did not deny it.

The Golden-Winged Roc walked to the seedling, squatted down, and looked at the flower bud.

The flower buds have grown even bigger.

The color has also deepened, changing from pale gold to a warm amber color.

The edges are slightly transparent, as if you can see something taking shape inside.

The Golden-Winged Roc did not touch it.

He just stared at it for a while, then stood up.

"Big brother, wait until it opens."

"May I pluck a petal?"

Kong Xuan looked at him: "What are you going to do with them?"

The Golden-Winged Roc thought for a moment: "Keep it."

"Keep them like the leaves in your sleeves."

Kong Xuan paused for a moment, then said, "Let's wait until it opens."

The Golden-Winged Roc smiled and didn't ask any more questions.

Two days later, the wind in the crack suddenly picked up.

It wasn't a violent wind, but a continuous, steady one.

It felt like something was slowly approaching from there.

Kong Xuan stood in the wind, his black robe billowing in the breeze.

He did not back down.

The leaves of that seedling were blown to one side by the wind, but its roots were firmly planted.

The flower buds swayed slightly in the wind, but showed no sign of falling off.

The wind lasted for a full hour before gradually subsiding.

After the wind stopped, a very faint line appeared at the edge of the crack.

It looked like something had lightly scratched it with a fingernail, leaving a white mark.

Kong Xuan walked over, squatted down, and looked at the white mark.

The imprint was extremely faint, almost invisible.

But its trajectory was downward, stretching from the edge of the crack all the way to the clouds beneath his feet.

Like a road.

The Golden-Winged Roc walked over and also saw the seal.

"What is this?"

"It's drawing a road."

"They want to tell us which way it came from."

The Golden-Winged Roc paused for a moment: "It wants us to go and fetch it?"

"Maybe."

"Perhaps it just wants us to know that it's already reached the door."

Kong Xuan stood up but did not wipe the mark away.

He returned to his original position and continued standing.

The white mark remained on the cloud, like a shallow scar.

In the afternoon, a red-gold bird flew over from the peach grove.

It landed on Kong Xuan's shoulder and pecked at his collar.

It held a blade of grass in its mouth, very similar to the one from last time, but a darker color, as if it had already grown.

Kong Xuan took the grass stem, and the golden bird flew away.

He looked down at the grass stem in his hand.

There is a very fine engraving on the grass stem, as if it were gently pinched out with a fingernail.

The marks were fresh, with a hint of damp green at the edges.

The Golden-Winged Roc leaned closer for a look: "Is there movement over there too?"

Kong Xuan nodded: "They're guarding over there too."

He walked over to the seedling, squatted down, and placed the grass stem on the moss next to the root.

It's like returning it to it.

The seedling's leaves twitched slightly, as if in response.

As night fell, the starlight dimmed somewhat.

A thin layer of clouds hung in the sky, obscuring most of the starlight.

The white light shining through the crack was particularly clear in the night.

The Golden-Winged Roc was already asleep, its breathing steady, curled up on the clouds.

Kong Xuan did not sleep.

He stood before the crack, gazing at the white light.

A breeze swept in from that direction, carrying a slightly cool scent.

Then he heard a voice.

Extremely light, extremely far, as if it came from the bottom of very deep water.

"Are you still standing?"

It was the voice of the shadowy figure.

But this time it didn't come from the crack.

It came from the direction of that white mark.

It's as if it has already drawn its voice on that seal, waiting for Kong Xuan to listen.

Kong Xuan looked down at the white mark: "Hmm."

"It's always been there."

The shadowy figure was silent for a moment: "I've removed your mark."

Kong Xuandao: "I know."

"You pulled them out cleanly."

The shadowy figure said, "But you're planting new ones again."

"The roots of that seedling have already penetrated the crack."

"I found it."

Kong Xuan paused for a moment.

He didn't turn around to look at the seedling.

But he sensed it.

The seedling's roots have already crossed the boundary of the white light.

It extended over there.

The shadowy figure's voice paused for a moment, then became even softer.

"It didn't pull away after it touched me."

"It's growing towards me."

Kong Xuan remained silent for a long time.

Then he asked, "And what about you?"

The shadowy figure did not answer.

The sound on the white mark gradually faded away, like the tide receding.

The wind returned to normal.

Starlight peeked through the thin clouds and sprinkled back onto the cloud wisps.

Kong Xuan stood there.

He didn't check whether the seedling's roots had actually crossed the crack.

He doesn't need confirmation.

He sensed it the moment the shadow told him.

The edges of the roots had indeed touched the soil of that other world, as if they had touched a wall, then went around it and continued to grow downwards.

He looked down at his hands.

The wind rushed in through the crack, blowing his robes, and the leaves and petals in his sleeves gently collided with the wind, making a soft rustling sound.

Behind me, on the branch of the sapling, the flower bud swelled up a little more in the night.

The pale golden luster was a little brighter than last night.

It's as if something inside is slowly waking up.

The next morning, when the Golden-Winged Roc woke up, the first thing he saw was that flower bud.

He paused for a moment, then got up, walked over, and squatted down.

"Big brother."

"It looks like it's about to open."

Kong Xuan walked over and looked down at the flower bud.

On the amber-colored surface, a very fine crack is slowly spreading.

Like an egg being pecked open.

The crack extends downwards from the top, then splits into two thin branches that circle around the edge of the flower bud.

The Golden-Winged Roc held its breath.

He squatted there, motionless.

Kong Xuan did not move either.

The two of them and the tree stood there quietly, watching each other.

A breeze swept in from the white light, stirring the fine lines on the surface of the flower buds.

The cracks opened and closed slightly in the wind, like a mouth breathing.

Then, a crack appeared at the top of the flower bud.

A sliver of light shone through the gap.

Golden, warm, like melted sunlight.

A ray of light seeped through the gap and fell on the leaves below the flower bud.

The small area of ​​the leaf that was illuminated became somewhat transparent.

The Golden-Winged Roc paused its breathing for a moment.

He opened his mouth, but no sound came out.

The cracks in the flower bud are still widening.

A petal peeks out from the crack, very slowly.

Like a newborn butterfly, slowly stretching its wings out of its cocoon.

The petals are white.

The edge is inlaid with an extremely fine gold line.

It's exactly the same as the flower on the mountaintop.

The wind suddenly picked up.

The petal trembled slightly in the wind, then continued to unfold outwards.

The second piece, the third piece, the fourth piece, the fifth piece.

The five petals unfold in sequence.

Like a tiny white hand, slowly opening in the wind.

The stamens are pale gold, delicate, like they've been sprinkled with starlight.

The flowers are blooming.

The Golden-Winged Roc squatted there, motionless.

He stared at the flower for a long time.

Then he took a soft breath: "It's open."

Kong Xuan stood there, looking at the flower.

He didn't speak.

But his gaze fell on the flower, on its five petals, on its pale golden stamen.

He knew who this flower was for.

It was opened for Pangu.