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

After Pan Xuan attained sainthood, he did not immediately embark on his grand plan to conquer the Chaos.

Instead, he went into seclusion in the Great Luo Heaven for a long period of time.

The realm of the sage is profound and mysterious.

The cultivation of mortals is about merging oneself with heaven and earth.

The realm of a sage is one where one unites with heaven and earth.

That's a completely different perspective.

It was as if he had suddenly stood on the entire primordial world, overlooking countless laws, countless strands of fortune, and countless threads of cause and effect, all laid out before his eyes like silk threads.

Pan Xuan went into seclusion to use the perspective of a sage to re-examine the entire history of the primordial world from beginning to end.

He sat cross-legged atop the Great Luo Heaven, holy light flowing around him, and slowly closed his eyes.

Divine thoughts spread out like a tide.

They traversed the thirty-three heavens, crossed mountains and rivers, passed through the underworld, and traversed the Zhou Tian Star Array.

He incorporated the entire primordial world, inch by inch, into his perception.

The way of Heaven is impartial and operates as usual.

The self-flowing torrent of rules, in his eyes at this moment, seemed to have transformed into a huge, clear mirror, reflecting the birth, death, and reincarnation of all things in heaven and earth.

Humanity flourishes, and its vitality is boundless. The vast fortune of humanity, like the Yangtze River, flows ceaselessly, supporting the life and hope of countless beings.

The underworld is orderly, and the cycle of reincarnation continues. The order of the netherworld is as solid and steady as the earth, providing an eternal journey home for all the departed souls.

everything is fine.

When the three elements are in balance, all things under the frosty sky compete freely.

But Pan Xuan's brows furrowed slightly at this moment.

He noticed something unusual.

That abnormality was extremely subtle, like a termite that was difficult to detect with the naked eye, quietly gnawing at a certain part of the origin of the Heavenly Dao.

If he hadn't already reached the realm of a sage, and if he hadn't viewed the Dao of Heaven from the perspective of a sage, he probably would never have discovered this gap.

Pan Xuan slowly opened his eyes, his gaze gleaming.

He opened his palm, and a wisp of the Heavenly Dao Law condensed in it as he examined it closely.

The patterns of those laws seemed to be missing a corner, like a perfect painting that had been cut off.

"This is..." Pan Xuan frowned, and after calculating with his fingers, a chilling thought gradually rose in his mind.

He closed his eyes and sank his divine sense into the depths of the origin of the Heavenly Dao.

The vast torrent of rules slowly unfolded before him, like turning the pages of an endless book.

He searched and deduced all the way, and finally found the source of the gap in a corner of the origin of the Heavenly Dao.

It was an extremely ancient trace, almost identical to the origin of the Dao.

It was as if something had been forcibly removed from this celestial order.

Pan Xuan followed the trail and traced it all the way back.

Those traces pierced through countless years and eras, ultimately pointing to one thing: the Investiture of the Gods.

"Investiture of the Gods..."

Pan Xuan murmured, his eyes gleaming brightly, "So that's how it is, so that's how it is!"

He finally figured out an old matter that he had never investigated before.

Back then, after Hongjun merged with the Dao, he supported Dijun and Taiyi in establishing the Heavenly Court of the Demon Race and bestowed upon them two things.

The Investiture of the Gods, and the Primordial Purple Qi.

At that time, Pan Xuan vaguely felt that the Investiture of the Gods was extraordinary, but he could never quite put his finger on what made it so special.

All he knew was that the Investiture of the Gods could record the true spirits of all living beings.

Those who are listed will have their true spirits bound by the Heavenly Court, and their lives and deaths will be controlled by the Heavenly Court, leaving them with no way to resist.

Emperor Jun and Taiyi wield this treasure, and all the gods of Heaven are subject to its control.

But now, looking at it from the perspective of a sage, Pan Xuan has finally glimpsed the truth of the Investiture of the Gods.

It's not a naturally formed innate spiritual treasure at all!

All innate spiritual treasures in the world are naturally formed by the laws of heaven and earth, and are perfectly integrated with the origin of the Dao.

However, this Investiture of the Gods was a piece that was artificially and forcibly separated from the origin of the Heavenly Dao.

It is part of the laws of nature!

When Hongjun attained enlightenment, he used unparalleled methods.

They forcibly extracted the laws concerning "conferring of gods," "imperial decrees," and "the succession of divine positions" from the origin of the Heavenly Dao, refined them into a list, and bestowed it upon the Heavenly Court.

In name, it was to give the Heavenly Court the power to control the gods, but in reality, Hongjun was using the Investiture of the Gods to secretly control the lifeline of the Heavenly Court and a gap in the Heavenly Dao!

"What a remarkable Hongjun!"

Pan Xuan smiled coldly, "On the surface, you bestowed the Investiture of the Gods upon the Heavenly Court."

What moved Di Jun and Tai Yi to tears of gratitude was, in reality, a piece of flesh and blood was torn from the very origin of the Heavenly Dao.

As long as the Investiture of the Gods remains in this primordial world, the origin of the Heavenly Dao will forever be incomplete, forever unable to be perfect.

"Your hidden move was incredibly well-concealed!"

He paused, then thought of something even deeper.

The true spirits on the Investiture of the Gods were all those who pledged their souls as collateral on the list.

Those who make the list, no matter how high their cultivation level, will be unable to transcend their limitations once their true spirit is restricted.

With this list, Hongjun not only controlled the Heavenly Court, but also firmly grasped the lives of countless powerful individuals.

In the primordial world, how many powerful beings were controlled by this list, obeying the Heavenly Court and being driven by others?

This is probably one of the methods Hongjun uses to control all living beings.

"Now that I have become a saint and the three realms of the primordial world are complete, it is time to fill this last gap in the Heavenly Dao."

Pan Xuan slowly stood up, his gaze fixed on the direction of the Thirty-Three Heavens. "It's time to return this Investiture of the Gods to its rightful owner."

With a flick of his sleeve, a streak of light rose from the Great Luo Heaven and flew straight towards the depths of the starry sky where the Demon Clan's Heavenly Court was located.

Emperor Jun of the Heavenly Court was sitting quietly, comprehending the foundation of a sage after the replacement of the divine realm's origin.

Suddenly, a streak of light appeared from afar, landing outside the Ziwei Palace and transforming into a handsome and upright figure—it was Pan Xuan.

Di Jun slowly opened his eyes, a knowing smile flashing across them:

"Fellow Daoist Panxuan, weren't you in seclusion? Why did you come to my Heavenly Court after you emerged?"

Pan Xuan cupped his hands and smiled: "After becoming a saint, I had some insights and came here to discuss an important matter with you, fellow Daoist."

Seeing his solemn expression, Di Jun said nothing more and led Pan Xuan into the hall.

The hall was quiet and serene, with only a few lamps and starlight filtering through the windows.

The two sat facing each other, and Di Jun personally poured a cup of spiritual tea and pushed it in front of Pan Xuan: "Fellow Daoist, please speak freely."

Pan Xuan accepted the spirit tea but didn't drink it. He raised his eyes, looked directly at Di Jun, and slowly spoke:

"Fellow Daoist Di Jun, do you still remember the Investiture of the Gods that Hongjun bestowed upon you by the Heavenly Court back then?"

Di Jun was taken aback, then nodded: "Of course I remember. Back then, Hongjun merged with the Dao, supported me in establishing the Heavenly Court, and bestowed upon me the Investiture of the Gods and the Primordial Purple Qi."

Once this list is published, all the true spirits of the gods in the Heavenly Court will be recorded on it. By wielding this list, I can command all the gods and greatly enhance my prestige.

"In truth, without this list back then, my Heavenly Court would likely have been unable to gather the demon gods from all directions so quickly."

"Does this Investiture of the Gods actually exist?" Pan Xuan asked again.

Di Jun frowned:

"This list was created innately, capable of recording true spirits and appointing divine officials; it is the supreme treasure of the Heavenly Court for suppressing destiny."

Why do you ask this, fellow Daoist?

Pan Xuan remained silent for a moment, then slowly said, "After I became a saint, I looked down on the Heavenly Dao from the perspective of a saint and suddenly discovered..."

Above the origin of the Heavenly Dao, there is an extremely deep gap.

I followed the gap and eventually discovered that the gap was where a part of the laws of nature had been artificially removed.

The part that was extracted is the Investiture of the Gods.

Upon hearing this, the Ziwei Palace fell silent.

Di Jun's pupils suddenly contracted.

"What did you say?!"

Di Jun abruptly stood up, his eyes filled with shock. "The Investiture of the Gods... was it extracted from the Heavenly Dao by Hongjun?!"

"Not bad." Pan Xuan nodded, his gaze calm.

"The Investiture of the Gods is not a naturally occurring spiritual treasure born of the Heavenly Dao."

Rather, it was created by Hongjun using supreme means when he merged with the Dao, by forcibly extracting and refining the section of law concerning the decree of the Investiture of the Gods from the origin of the Heavenly Dao.

He bestowed this list upon you ostensibly to add a treasure to your Heavenly Court to suppress its fortune, but in reality...

On the origin of the Heavenly Dao, one of Hongjun's palms was left.

As long as the Investiture of the Gods exists in the primordial world, the origin of the Heavenly Dao will forever be incomplete, forever unable to achieve true perfection.

Di Jun's expression turned extremely ugly in an instant.

He was incredibly astute; after a moment's thought, he understood several parts of Pan Xuan's words.

When Hongjun bestowed the Investiture of the Gods, he was secretly grateful, believing that Hongjun was supporting the Heavenly Court.

Looking back now, the true spirits recorded on the Investiture of the Gods were actually the soul imprints of powerful beings, demons, gods, and deities from all corners of the primordial world.

Using the Investiture of the Gods, Hongjun not only seized control of the Heavenly Court, but also held the lives of countless powerful figures in his hands.

Emperor Jun had been in charge of this list for many years, and he thought he commanded all the gods and was extremely powerful.

Little did they know that they themselves had always been a pawn on Hongjun's chessboard, guarding the countless bound true spirits on Hongjun's behalf.

"What a Hongjun." Di Jun slowly clenched his fist, his voice deep and resonant.

"I originally thought that when he bestowed the Investiture of the Gods upon me, he was genuinely supporting the Heavenly Court."

Unexpectedly, he used me to imprison the true spirits of the entire primordial world and to seal the gap in the Heavenly Dao.

I, Di Jun, have been an accomplice to evil for so many years!

Pan Xuan said, "Fellow Daoist, there is no need to blame yourself."

The spirits bound on the Investiture of the Gods were all those whom Hongjun had schemed against.

Fellow Daoist, you were unaware of the true situation back then. By taking charge of this list, you were merely caught in the middle of the game and were used by Hongjun.

Now that the situation is clear, we should try to resolve it.

Di Jun remained silent for a long time, slowly calming his emotions. He looked up at Pan Xuan and said in a deep voice:

"Does fellow Daoist mean to return the Investiture of the Gods to the Heavenly Dao?"

"That's right," Pan Xuan said. "The Investiture of the Gods was originally extracted from the origin of the Heavenly Dao. Only by returning it to the Heavenly Dao can we achieve this."

Only when the gap in the origin of the Heavenly Way is filled can the Heavenly Way be truly perfected.

Hongjun left this hidden move so that he could still control the primordial world when he returned in the future.

What we need to do now is to completely remove this thorn, leaving Hongjun with no backup plan.

Upon hearing this, Di Jun did not reply immediately.

He slowly sat back down, his fingertips lightly tapping the armrest, lost in thought.

Pan Xuan didn't urge him, but just watched him quietly.