Traversing countless worlds from the primordial era

Houtu stopped: "Sister Xuanming, are you saying that by breaking this cage, I've essentially broken a part of your true spirit?"

Xuanming nodded, and Houtu finally understood why the other Ancestral Witches were in so much pain when she pushed open the door.

"What should we do now?" Houtu asked worriedly.

"Push open the door!" Di Jiang said. "Little sister, you must push this door open. What does it matter if we lose some of our true spirit!"

"Yes, if Ancestor Hongjun thinks he can threaten us with this, then he's mistaken," Zhurong said.

Houtu understood the other Ancestral Witches' thoughts. She took a deep breath and began to push the door open once more. As she pushed the door open, the cage vanished, but the true spirits of the eleven Ancestral Witches also completely dissipated.

With the cage gone, the power of the Ancestral Witches immediately returned. They broke free from the earth's constraints and directly shattered the space of the Ancestral Star.

"Primordial World, we're back!" The Ancestral Witches returned to the Primordial World, roaring to the heavens with boundless excitement!

Only Houtu remained conscious. The Ancestral Witches had survived the two tribulations of heaven and earth, but the tribulation of humanity was yet to come. But at this moment, they inexplicably left their ancestral star and returned to the primordial world.

The calamity of humanity arrived swiftly. Before the Ancestral Witches could even catch their breath, two magical treasures emerged from the chaos and entered the primordial world. When these two treasures appeared, the Ancestral Witches couldn't help but worry. These two treasures were none other than the Pangu Banner and the Taiji Diagram! The Pangu Banner and the Taiji Diagram respectively represented the Primordial Heavenly Venerable and Laozi, which meant that the Ancestral Witches' calamity of humanity was caused by these two sages!

"This..." Before the Ancestral Witches could speak, the onlookers already felt despair for them. After the Investiture of the Gods, the Sages went to Chaos, but that didn't mean they couldn't intervene in the primordial world. If a Sage were to intervene, could the Ancestral Witches possibly be a match for him?

"I didn't expect the Sage to actually appear." Di Jiang's face showed an ugly smile, but it quickly disappeared. "But so what if he's a Sage? Let alone two mere magic treasures, even if the Sage himself came, we would never yield."

"Yes!" The Ancestral Witches were filled with fighting spirit, which stimulated the Pangu Banner and Taiji Diagram. The Taiji Diagram slowly rotated, covering the twelve Ancestral Witches. The power of Yin and Yang transformed into ropes to bind them.

The Ancestral Witches wanted to break free, but the Taiji Diagram was personally controlled by Laozi. Apart from Houtu, the other Ancestral Witches were only Great Luo Golden Immortals. How easy would it be for them to break free from the Sage's magic weapon?

On the other side, the Pangu Banner moved without wind, its banner fluttering loudly. Streams of chaotic sword energy shot towards the twelve Ancestral Witches. Even when the Ancestral Witches were at their peak, they wouldn't dare to directly confront these chaotic sword energies, let alone now.

The ancestral witches were utterly helpless and could only watch their deaths unfold.

"Jieyin, Zhunti, it's time for you to fulfill your promise." The goddess Pingxin in the underworld was very nervous. She shouted, and a power in the chaos responded to her.

Just as the Ancestral Witch was about to perish from the chaotic sword energy, two more magical treasures entered the primordial world: the Nine-Rank Golden Lotus and the Seven Treasures Tree. These two treasures did not attack the Ancestral Witch, but instead blocked the chaotic sword energy of the Pangu Banner. Afterwards, the four treasures entangled in the void, and the Ancestral Witch seized the opportunity to break free from her confinement.

"What's going on?" Zhu Jiuyin couldn't understand the scene before him. "These are the magic weapons of Jieyin and Zhunti, right? Why would they help us?"

"This must be my little sister's plan, right?" Xuanming looked at Houtu.

Having escaped death, Houtu breathed a sigh of relief and said with a smile, "Jieyin and Zhunti owe me a favor, and now they have to repay it."

From the moment Ksitigarbha entered the underworld, Lady Pingxin began to scheme to gain favor with the two Western Saints, knowing that this was the only source of their power she had the chance to mobilize.

Yuanshi Tianzun and Laozi were blocked by the two Western Saints, but the tribulation of the Ancestral Witches was not over. A red embroidered ball fell from the sky and hit the Ancestral Witches. They were very familiar with this red embroidered ball, which was the magic weapon of the Goddess Nuwa.

"Be careful!"

The Ancestral Witches had no way to dodge. Under the red embroidered ball, several Ancestral Witches were sent flying, their bodies severely injured. Then, the red embroidered ball fell again, and Houtu quickly stepped in front of the other Ancestral Witches to shield them.

"boom!"

Even though Houtu had reached the level of a quasi-saint, she still couldn't stop the red embroidered ball. Her arms were worn away by the power of the ball, and her right shoulder disappeared as well. But Houtu did not give up; she still stood in front of the other ancestral witches.

"Nuwa, must you do this?" said the Goddess Pingxin in the underworld. Meng Po on the Bridge of Helplessness still had cloudy eyes as she slowly served Meng Po soup to the reincarnated souls.

Empress Pingxin gritted her teeth, stood up, and wanted to help the Ancestral Witch.

"Your Majesty, please wait!" Just then, a figure suddenly appeared in the underworld. When Lady Pingxin saw it, she realized it was Shennong, or rather, the Ancestor Hongyun.

"Hongyun, are you going to stop me too?" Empress Pingxin said coldly.

"Your Majesty misunderstands. I am not here to stop you, but to help you," said Ancestor Hongyun with a smile.

"Help me?" Consort Pingxin asked in confusion.

Ancestor Hongyun nodded: "I can help the Ancestral Witches withstand the calamity of humanity, but I also want a promise from Your Majesty. If I face a great tribulation in the future when I attain enlightenment, I hope Your Majesty and the Witch Clan will do everything in their power to help me!"

Only then did Lady Pingxin realize the purpose of Ancestor Hongyun, but she still had some questions.

"Can you stop Nuwa?" asked Lady Pingxin.

Hongyun Patriarch confidently laughed, "If Goddess Nuwa were to personally descend upon the prehistoric world, I would naturally be no match for her. However, she controls magical artifacts across countless spaces, so even if I cannot win, I will not be defeated."

After weighing the options, Lady Pingxin said, "If you help the Ancestral Witch overcome the human tribulation, I can grant your request."

"Alright, it's a deal!"

After Hongyun Patriarch finished speaking, he disappeared from the underworld, but Lady Pingxin had already figured out how he disappeared.

"I never expected that Hongyun could actually mobilize the power of the Heavenly Dao. Could it be that he is really about to attain enlightenment?" Lady Pingxin was shocked. She was comparable to a saint in the Underworld. Otherwise, she really wouldn't have been able to see how Ancestor Hongyun escaped.

When the red embroidered ball was about to hit Houtu again, the Old Ancestor Hongyun appeared. With a flick of his God-Slaying Spear, he deflected the red embroidered ball.

"Hongyun, what brings you here?" The Ancestral Witches were all surprised to see Ancestor Hongyun. Apart from Houtu, the other Ancestral Witches did not know that Hongyun had returned after reincarnation.

Houtu had received the message from Lady Pingxin and learned about her deal with Ancestor Hongyun. She explained the situation to the other Ancestral Witches, who then lowered their guard.

"Hurry up and heal your wounds. I'll shield you from this red embroidered ball." Ancestor Hongyun said, and without turning his head, he thrust out with his spear. His God-Slaying Spear clashed with the red embroidered ball in the void, and the Ancestral Witches finally seized a moment to catch their breath.

However, the calamity was not yet over when a gust of wind rose from behind them, and a huge shadow opened its mouth and swallowed Zhu Rong whole.

"Kunpeng, you old thief!" The Ancestral Witches were furious. Dijiang flapped his wings and chased after the Kunpeng Ancestor. His speed was even greater than that of the Kunpeng Ancestor, but after he caught up, he was grabbed by the Kunpeng Ancestor's claw.

"Dijiang, you haven't even recovered your strength yet, and you're already rushing to send snacks to your ancestor?" Kunpeng Ancestor chuckled.

Just as the Kunpeng Ancestor was about to swallow Dijiang, Leiming appeared and saved Dijiang. Then, he punched the Kunpeng Ancestor in the abdomen and rescued Zhurong.

"Kunpeng, you old thief, you finally dare to step out of your lair." Lei Ming held the Zhuxian Sword in his hand, its sharp edge intimidating, causing Kunpeng Ancestor to change color.

"Lei Ming, let's settle our grudges another day!" said the Kunpeng Ancestor. He was the one in the prehistoric world who least wanted the Ancestral Witches to return. Even if the grudges between the Witch and Demon races were resolved because of the decisive battle, the grudges between the Ancestral Witches and him would not disappear so easily.

"You have ambushed me several times, and I will settle this score today." After saying this, Lei Ming transformed into a series of afterimages and attacked Kunpeng Ancestor. He was now also in the mid-stage of Quasi-Saint, with a realm no less than that of Kunpeng Ancestor, and his physical body and supernatural powers were even superior. Moreover, he was also wielding the Immortal Execution Sword. Kunpeng Ancestor was no match for him and could only flee into the distance.

The sudden intervention of Ancestor Hongyun and Leiming to help the Ancestral Witches overcome their tribulations was unexpected by everyone else. With their assistance, the Ancestral Witches finally passed their tribulations, and mysterious powers began to repair their bodies, restoring them to the peak strength of the Great Luo Golden Immortals.

"Dear brothers and sisters, let's go back to the Underworld first." After surviving the calamity, Houtu immediately led the other ancestral witches to the Underworld. The Underworld was the territory of Lady Pingxin, and even other saints who entered the Underworld had to give her some leeway.

In the void, the sage's artifact had already flown back to chaos. Lei Ming and Ancestor Hongyun both stopped fighting. The two looked at each other and smiled, both understanding what the other was thinking.

"Fellow Daoist Lei Ming, it's been many years since we last met. Your strength has improved again. Congratulations!" Ancestor Hongyun said with a smile.

"Likewise, in my opinion, Fellow Daoist Hongyun is truly powerful. Your mastery of the power of the Heavenly Dao is becoming increasingly proficient; you are probably not far from attaining the Dao, are you?" Lei Ming said.

Upon hearing this, Ancestor Hongyun's smile froze. He wasn't surprised that Consort Pingxin could see through his use of the Heavenly Dao Power, as she was comparable to a sage and could also use it. But the fact that Lei Ming could see through it shocked him, for the Heavenly Dao Power was a power that only sages could access!

Old Ancestor Hongyun gave Lei Ming a deep look, then disappeared without a sound. Lei Ming shook his head and left.

"The greatest enemy who will hinder my path to enlightenment in the future will undoubtedly be Lei Ming!" The Red Cloud Ancestor said with absolute certainty upon returning to the Fire Cloud Cave. Lei Ming's breakthrough gave him a sense of urgency. With this in mind, the Red Cloud Ancestor left the Fire Cloud Cave and headed to the Five Villages Temple.

Lei Ming, upon returning to Liyuan Island, did not remain idle. He led the Holy Mother of Wudang and the others into the Chaos, where the Tongtian Sect Leader had opened up the Shangqing Heaven. The group listened to the Dao there.

"I hope that Senior Sister and Senior Brother Wuyunxian can break through as soon as possible, so that I can have a few helpers," Lei Ming thought to himself.