Primordial Era: The Witch Clan's Dog-Headed Strategist

The gates of the Pangu Palace slowly closed, the heavy chaotic stone doors shutting out all the noise from the outside world.

The radiance of the thirty-three heavens, the confrontation between the gods and the Heavenly Army.

Taiyi's brows were cold and stern, and Zhurong was surrounded by flames.

All of this was kept outside the door, leaving only the steady and ancient beating of the Heart of Pangu inside the hall.

Each pulse resonated with the laws of the temple, and the aura of the Father God permeated every corner—vast, ancient, and compassionate, without any hostility, yet inspiring awe in all who beheld it.

The moment Di Jun stepped into the Pangu Palace, the saintly light surrounding him subtly diminished.

He could sense the aura of the Father God permeating the hall, and that aura resonated with a very faint resonance with the Primordial Purple Qi mark between his brows.

The resonance was subtle, yet it stirred something within him.

Pan Xuan gestured with his hand, and the two sat down on either side of the stone platform in the hall.

On the stone platform was a set of purple clay teaware, with spiritual tea made from the tender buds of the Enlightenment Tea Tree brewing in the teapot.

The tea has a refreshing and invigorating aroma.

Pan Xuan personally poured a cup of tea for Di Jun, his movements calm and unhurried.

It was as if the person before him was not the ruler of the Heavenly Court or a primordial saint, but an old friend who had come from afar.

Di Jun picked up the teacup, but did not drink it.

His golden eyes shone with a saintly light, and his tone was calm yet scrutinizing:

"Fellow Daoist Panxuan, you invited me here by offering your own primordial spirit as a hostage, surely not just for tea."

You have already learned about the existence of those rulers in the chaos from the Twelve Ancestral Witches and the Three Pure Ones.

In the chaos, I joined forces with the illusory form of Pangu to severely injure one of them, and I also witnessed the retreat of the other four.

With the chaotic external enemy at hand, I can temporarily set aside our grievances and discuss countermeasures together.

"Just say what you have to say."

Pan Xuan put down his teacup, the bottom of the cup striking the stone platform with a soft, crisp sound that was particularly clear in the silent hall.

He raised his head and met Di Jun's gaze frankly. There was no probing or beating around the bush in his gentle, jade-like eyes, only a certainty and sincerity that came from countless deductions.

"Since Fellow Daoist Di Jun speaks frankly, Pan Xuan will not beat around the bush either."

Pan Xuan's voice was steady and clear, each word as if etched into the beating of Pangu's heart.

"The Pangu Palace is formed from the heart of the Father God. Even Hongjun, who merged with the Dao, might not be able to see anything here."

Before you stepped into this hall, did you ever think about this question?

What is Hongjun's true identity?

Di Jun paused slightly in the hand holding the teacup.

He didn't expect that Pan Xuan's first words would not be about the external enemies of Chaos, the ownership of the Thirty-Three Heavens, or the grudges between the Divine Path and the Heavenly Court, but would directly point to Hongjun.

He raised his head, and the light of sainthood in his golden eyes suddenly sharpened, as if trying to see the true intention hidden behind Pan Xuan's words.

Pan Xuan did not avoid his gaze, but simply sat there quietly, waiting for his answer.

Di Jun remained silent for a while; he had considered this question before.

In fact, he had vaguely sensed something a long time ago.

However, he was promoted by Hongjun, and the Investiture of the Gods was bestowed upon him by Hongjun.

The Primordial Purple Qi was bestowed by Hongjun, and it was even the opportunity for him to attain sainthood.

The responsibilities and consequences of a celestial marriage were also revealed by Hongjun through a fragment of the Jade Disc of Creation.

He owed Hongjun too much karma, and this karma made him subconsciously avoid questioning Hongjun.

He needs Hongjun's help to fight against the divine path, against the Twelve Ancestral Witches and the Three Pure Ones, and against the increasingly powerful Witch Clan Alliance.

Under the immense pressure of the divine system, the Heavenly Court would not have been able to survive until today without Hongjun's support.

So even if he vaguely sensed something, he didn't want to think about it too deeply.

He feared that if he thought about it too deeply, he would come to a conclusion that he could not accept.

But at this moment, Pan Xuan asked this question directly in the Pangu Palace, which even Hongjun could not see.

There are no eyes and ears of Hongjun here, no spying of the Heavenly Dao, and no external forces to worry about.

In this hall, he could shed all his defenses and pretenses and confront the issues he had previously deliberately avoided.

He began to think seriously. If it were him, would he, like Hongjun, selflessly support a primordial deity, bestowing upon him the Primordial Purple Qi, the Investiture of the Gods, and fragments of the Jade Disc of Creation, to help him attain sainthood?

The answer is no.

He has helped others before.

He personally promoted the Ten Demon Generals, Taiyi was his own brother, and Kunpeng was the strategist he personally recruited.

But his support for them was always conditional.

The ten demon generals need to swear an oath of loyalty to the Heavenly Court. Taiyi and he are of the same origin and are a community of interests. Kunpeng also needs to serve the Heavenly Court as its military advisor.

No one receives his support for nothing.

This has always been how Emperor Jun acts.

Every effort must be rewarded, and every favor must come at a price.

What about Hongjun?

Hongjun bestowed upon him the Investiture of the Gods so that he could establish the Heavenly Court to fight against the Witch Clan.

He was bestowed with the Primordial Purple Qi so that he could attain sainthood and become a sage at the level of the Heavenly Dao, thereby further balancing the divine system.

He can understand all of this.

This is an exchange of benefits, a tacit understanding between the player and the piece.

But what about the fragments of the Jade Disc of Creation? Why did Hongjun bestow the fragments of the Jade Disc of Creation upon him?

Although that fragment was only the size of a fingernail, it was one of the foundations upon which Hongjun merged with the Dao, containing fragments of the most fundamental laws of the Three Thousand Great Daos.

Did Hongjun bestow it upon him merely to accelerate his own path to enlightenment?

This doesn't make sense. Hongjun knew perfectly well how important the fragments of the Jade Disc of Creation were to him.

Those were fragments of the Chaos Treasure, the core reliance of Hongjun in controlling the Heavenly Dao.

Such a precious thing, if it were Di Jun, he would never easily bestow upon anyone, not even Taiyi.

But Hongjun bestowed it upon him, and it was at a critical moment when he was stuck by responsibilities and karma and unable to reunite his three corpses.

This blessing came at the perfect time, as if it had been prepared all along.

Di Jun's brows furrowed more and more tightly.

His thoughts began to extend to a deeper level.

Hongjun supported him in establishing the Heavenly Court, Hongjun supported the Wu Clan in their opposition, Hongjun bestowed seven streams of Primordial Purple Qi in the Zixiao Palace... These arrangements seem chaotic, but in fact they all point to the same direction: balance.

Hongjun maintains the balance of the primordial world.

The divine path and the Heavenly Court checked each other, as did the witch clan and the demon clan. No single power could dominate, and ultimately they all had to rely on Hongjun, the Dao Ancestor, to mediate.

But why would Hongjun want to maintain this balance? If he was truly the Dao Ancestor who selflessly spread the Dao, he should be happy to see all the forces in the prehistoric world live in harmony and work together to improve the order of heaven and earth.

But he chose the most complicated path.

He stirs up conflict among various parties, maintains balance amidst contradictions, and makes everyone need his presence.

This doesn't seem like the style of a Taoist patriarch; it's more like the strategy of a chess player.

Just then, Pan Xuan spoke again, his voice still steady, yet carrying a sharp edge that pierced straight to the heart, each word precisely striking at Di Jun's deepest doubts:

"Fellow Daoist, have you ever carefully deduced the internal structure of the Primordial Purple Qi?"

Fellow Daoist, you attained sainthood by relying on the Primordial Purple Qi, so there must be an extremely close connection between your primordial spirit and the Primordial Purple Qi.

"Fellow Daoist, you only need to use the full power of a Sage to perceive things, and you will be able to discover things that are not easily noticed in ordinary times."