Primordial Era: The Three Senior Brothers of the Taiqing Clan

A century passed in the blink of an eye. After finding the necessary materials in the East China Sea, Chen Qing returned to Penglai Island to begin refining the spiritual treasure.

The refining process went quite smoothly—first, the materials were returned to their original state using the Qiankun Cauldron, then the Great Dao Laws comprehended in one's own microscopic world were imprinted on them, and finally, an undying spiritual light was incorporated, waiting for them to evolve and mature on their own.

Once the spiritual treasures were forged, Chen Qing possessed two low-grade innate spiritual treasures. Each treasure contained the rudimentary form of a world within it, and their quality was quite acceptable. After refining them, he could mobilize the power of the world within for offensive purposes, use them directly to attack people, and even comprehend the laws of the Great Dao—it was quite a gain indeed.

As soon as Chen Qing stepped off Penglai Island, he sensed three quasi-saint level forces clashing fiercely in the direction of the East Sea near the Primordial Continent. He took a step forward, his figure transforming into a streak of light, and sped off in that direction.

From afar, the battle was fought by several familiar faces—Kunpeng and the Blood Sea Styx Ancestor, who were joining forces to besiege Hongyun, a well-known good-natured man in the prehistoric world. Hidden in the distance were many onlookers, all holding their breath and watching intently.

"Is it for the Primordial Purple Qi?" Upon seeing this scene, Chen Qing immediately understood the reason.

When the Dao Ancestor Hongjun bestowed seven strands of Primordial Purple Qi, six of the recipients were taken as disciples. With the Dao Ancestor as their backer, the people of the Primordial World naturally dared not covet them. Moreover, those six were not weak in cultivation themselves, and ordinary people were no match for them. Only Hongyun, without the protection of a sect or a powerful background, had no one else to turn to if not him for the Primordial Purple Qi.

Hongyun was in dire straits. His iconic crimson robe was tattered and torn, and even his only magic weapon—the Nine-Nine Soul-Scattering Red Gourd—was covered with fine cracks and its spiritual light was dim.

"Kunpeng, Styx, don't push your luck!" Hongyun shouted angrily, blood spilling from his mouth.

Styx, standing on the supreme innate spiritual treasure, the Red Lotus of Karmic Fire, and holding the Yuan Tu and A Bi, two supreme weapons of slaughter in each hand, coldly said, "Hand over the Primordial Purple Qi, and I will spare your life out of consideration for our shared understanding at Zixiao Palace."

In comparison, the Kunpeng appeared much more shabby, with only a small, palace-shaped magical artifact floating above its head.

"Hahaha, Styx, do you think I'm a three-year-old child?" Hongyun let out a mocking laugh.

Beneath the laughter, however, Hongyun's heart was filled with sorrow. He had thought that obtaining the Primordial Purple Qi would give him the opportunity to become a saint, but unexpectedly, it brought him a deadly disaster.

Chen Qing watched from the sidelines, somewhat puzzled—Hong Yun's close friend, Zhen Yuanzi, was not present. If Zhen Yuanzi were here, with the Earth Book formed from the Earth Membrane in his hand as defense, Kunpeng and Styx would probably be truly helpless against them.

Suddenly, Chen Qing's eyes narrowed, and he retreated rapidly. He remembered clearly that Hong Yun was about to self-destruct. A self-destruction at the Quasi-Saint level was something even Saints would avoid; he didn't want to be caught in the crossfire.

Sure enough, as soon as Chen Qing stepped back, he heard Hongyun coldly say, "Kunpeng, Styx, didn't you want the Primordial Purple Qi? Then let it be buried with me!"

"You dare!"

"stop!"

Kunpeng and Styx shouted at the same time, but their figures retreated rapidly in unison.

"boom--"

Hongyun suddenly exploded, instantly turning everything within a radius of ten thousand miles into nothingness. The violent aftershocks of the explosion raged outwards, affecting more than ten thousand miles, and countless living beings were reduced to ashes before they could even scream.

Chen Qing felt a violent shockwave approaching and quickly summoned the Apricot Yellow Banner. Ten thousand golden flowers bloomed, firmly protecting him within. One by one, the golden flowers vanished in the impact, only to be reborn endlessly, repeating this cycle.

After a long time, everything finally calmed down. The shattered space was slowly repaired by the power of Heaven, leaving only the remains of countless creatures that had died in the battle floating on the sea.

Above the sea, a large, cracked, bright red gourd floated forlornly—it was Hongyun's Nine-Nine Soul-Scattering Red Gourd. The primordial purple aura, however, had vanished without a trace.

Two figures appeared on the sea, Kunpeng and Styx. Both were in a sorry state—Styx was protected by a supreme treasure and only suffered minor injuries; Kunpeng was in much worse shape, with blood trickling from the corner of his mouth and his aura weakened.

The two searched around but found no trace of the Primordial Purple Qi. Their gazes fell on the red gourd in unison.

"Hahaha, the Primordial Purple Qi is mine!"

Suddenly, a giant hand descended from the sky and grabbed at the red gourd.

"court death!"

With a roar, Styx unleashed his Yuan Tu sword, which flashed a streak of blood as he slashed at the arm.

"what!"

The arm snapped off, and a Taoist priest with a missing arm appeared from the void, his eyes glaring hatefully at the Styx River.

However, before he could say anything, another large hand came down with a terrifying suction force—it was Kunpeng who had made his move.

"ah--"

The Taoist priest was powerless to resist and was crushed to death.

Then, Kunpeng and Styx, with perfect understanding, each guarded one side and coldly shouted, "Whoever dares to make a move, I will ensure that he never has another chance to make a move."

Those who had been eager to try immediately fell silent.

Chen Qing watched with admiration, thinking that he truly lived up to his reputation as a renowned figure in the prehistoric world, and his actions were indeed ruthless.

He wasn't in a hurry, believing that someone else would eventually make a move—after all, that was Primordial Purple Qi!

However, Chen Qing knew in his heart that no one could refine this Primordial Purple Qi; it was destined to be prepared for the future Three Sovereigns of the Human Race.

Hongyun was nothing but a tragedy. If he hadn't rushed to leave Zixiao Palace and instead begged Hongjun Daozu to guide him on the right path, perhaps he wouldn't have ended up like this.

At the same time, the countless stars above Wuzhuang Temple suddenly vanished. Zhen Yuanzi instantly sensed the news of his friend Hongyun's demise, and overwhelmed with grief, he roared to the heavens:

"Di Jun, Tai Yi, Kun Peng, Styx—I will never let you get away with this!"

With a flick of his sleeve, he vanished from the spot.

"clang--"

A bell rang out, resounding throughout heaven and earth, and a massive, chaotic-colored bell appeared in the sky above the East China Sea. A domineering voice then echoed in all directions:

"This primordial purple aura, my demon race desires it!"

Upon seeing the Chaos Bell, everyone's expression changed drastically.

"Hahaha, what a joke! You fiery crow, you should just go back to your heavenly court!"

A loud laugh rang out, and a figure with a beast's head and a human body, covered in red scales, with fire snakes piercing his ears and riding a fire dragon appeared in the sky above the sea—it was Zhu Rong, the ancestral god of fire in the south.

"Witch Clan, this is none of your business. Get out of my way!" The domineering voice rang out again in the sky, and the figure of Donghuang Taiyi slowly appeared beside the Chaos Bell.

"Bullshit! Zhurong, go! Smash this crow!" Another voice rang out, and Gonggong, the ancestral sorcerer of the northern waters, appeared with a python's head, a human body, covered in black scales, riding a black dragon, and with a green python wrapped around his hand.

Chen Qing looked up at Donghuang Taiyi in the sky, then at the two Ancestral Witches who had appeared, a look of anticipation on his face. He knew that it was impossible for only two Ancestral Witches to appear to deal with Donghuang Taiyi; most likely, all twelve Ancestral Witches had come together.

If he could think of this, others certainly could too. Many onlookers turned and left—neither the Witch Clan nor the Demon Clan were people they could afford to offend. The Primordial Purple Qi was indeed valuable, but one had to be alive to enjoy it. The lesson of Hongyun was right before their eyes; no one wanted to be the next.

Chen Qing wasn't very interested in what would happen next, but he was still happy to spend some time watching Donghuang Taiyi get his comeuppance.

Sure enough, the twelve Ancestral Witches then appeared one after another.

Dijiang, the leader of the Twelve Ancestral Witches, coldly looked at Donghuang Taiyi and said, "Three-legged crow, are you planning to spar with us brothers?"

The Wu tribe was inherently warlike, and the twelve Ancestral Witches were all particularly belligerent. At this moment, they were all eager to try, staring intently at Donghuang Taiyi in the sky.

The most hot-tempered of them all, Zhu Rong, shouted, "Taiyi, you birdman, come down and fight!"

Just as tensions were about to rise, a figure suddenly appeared beside the Nine-Nine Soul-Scattering Gourd left behind by the fallen Hongyun and grabbed the gourd.

"How dare you!"

Donghuang Taiyi, who had been staring down, was furious. He rang out the Chaos Bell in his hand and swiftly rammed it downwards.

The man had intended to seize the treasure and escape while Donghuang Taiyi was confronting the Twelve Ancestral Witches and everyone's attention was drawn to them, but he never expected Donghuang Taiyi to react so quickly.

"ah--"

Under the influence of the Chaos Bell, the man only had time to let out a scream before he was completely reduced to ashes.

The already shattered Nine-Nine Soul-Scattering Red Gourd was affected by the power of the Chaos Bell and shattered with a "crack".

Three purple wisps flew out of the broken gourd—one large and two small—it was the Primordial Purple Qi.

Everyone's eyes lit up, and they were about to make a move to snatch it when, unexpectedly, the three broken strands of Primordial Purple Qi swirled in the air and instantly disappeared into the void without a trace.

Everyone present was dumbfounded. The cultivators skilled in divination hurriedly made calculations, but before long, they all opened their eyes, revealing blank expressions—they couldn't find the whereabouts of the Primordial Purple Qi at all.

"Hahaha, you three-legged crow, we're not playing along!"

Dijiang laughed heartily, turned around, tore open space, and led the other Ancestral Witches away. Their purpose in coming here was to prevent the demon race from obtaining the Primordial Purple Qi. Now that the Primordial Purple Qi had disappeared, there was naturally no need for them to stay any longer.

"snort!"

Donghuang Taiyi snorted coldly in resentment and turned to leave.

Seeing that the excitement had subsided, Chen Qing turned and headed towards the prehistoric continent.

In this battle, only Hongyun perished; the others gained nothing.

Of course, Hongyun was both dead and not dead. After all, he was already a cultivator. What matters is the Great Dao. Although Hongyun's Great Dao was damaged due to the self-destruction, it ultimately did not disappear.

In other words, Hongyun has a chance to return, but it will be very difficult, since his primordial spirit and true spirit have self-destructed, and the chances of them being able to reassemble are too slim.

However, it had nothing to do with him, so he simply stopped thinking about it.

Having been away for so many years, he plans to go back to Kunlun Mountain for a visit.

Judging by the timeline, the human race should be about to be born.