Chapter 688

"Thank you, Sister Nüwa!" Chen Qianye exclaimed happily.

Nüwa and Chen Qianye chatted enthusiastically, instantly addressing each other as sisters, while Ye Qin stood to the side, oddly becoming an outsider.

However, Nüwa once said that flower fairies rarely develop feelings, but once they do, they are irrevocably committed—this is also why their spiritual power is so strong.

Because the word "emotion" contains too much uncertainty; if the spirit is fragile, beings like flower fairies would have long ceased to exist.

Ye Qin couldn't help but marvel at the wonder of creation—how many extraordinary beings exist in the world. He reflected that since arriving in Honghuang, most of those by his side have been women, all possessing vast divine abilities and boundless potential.

For example, Ao Ling, initially just a dragon princess, now has the chance to obtain true dragon blood; similarly, Huang Luo Yan, as the ancestor of the phoenix clan, naturally possesses exceptional talent and has now become a pure yin body; Nüwa, though she lost her ultimate yin body, has achieved the Creation Dao Body; also, the moon goddess Artemis from another world, originally ignorant of the Honghuang Dao, has now awakened to the Dao of Contract; furthermore, the Nine Netherworld Phoenix, wherever it may have wandered, is also a woman of great divine ability.

This flower fairy even embodies the wonder of creation—her aura seems like the source of the Great Dao, capable of enabling one to comprehend the Dao, and her unique charm made Ye Qin unable to help glancing at her several more times.

"That Carefree Wanderer is just a lecher, Qianye little sister—be careful of him from now on. He has so many women around him; let me count: the dragon princess Ao Ling, the little moon Artemis, the phoenix ancestor Huang Luo Yan, the Nine Netherworld Phoenix Youhuang, plus Qinglian Qingyi, Jiemie Heilian Molian, the Spirit Emperor Ruoguo, ah, and the Stellar Maidens, the Spirit Clan are all women too—now adding the flower fairy clan, Carefree Wanderer, you won't try to collect them all, will you?" Nüwa teased.

"Nüwa, don't slander me like that. I admit I'm lustful, but food and sex are natural—this is the ordinary principle of the Dao, hard to avoid. But I don't have the thought of collecting them all? I don't even know why my fate is so strange. Xiao Mei'er Artemis, Ao Ling, Youhuang—needless to say, they were the first women I met; Luo Yan sister also developed feelings after long association; my bond with you was even more accidental; Ruoguo, I only see her as a sister; not to mention the Spirit Clan. Qingyi and Molian are just my friends—we discuss the Dao together. As for the Stellar Maiden Clan, I merely entered chaos once and obtained the Stellar Fruit Tree, a supreme spiritual root, which became my avatar, forming an inseparable karma, but I have no such intentions." Ye Qin's cheeks flushed slightly, feeling guilty facing Nüwa.

"Still no intention? If you had no intention, how did you practice dual cultivation with the Stellar Maiden's soul on Carefree Island? If you had no intention, how could you be so anxious about Ruoguo's safety? If you had no intention, why did you still place the Spirit Clan's true spirit into the Spirit Realm to nurture? And Qingyi and Molian—people still call you 'Carefree Big Brother'." Nüwa laughed teasingly.

A jealous woman is truly terrifying, but Ye Qin secretly rejoiced in his heart.

Along the way, Ye Qin had already told Nüwa everything about himself.

"Those are all special cases. Take that soul dual cultivation, for instance—if I had that intention, I wouldn't have chosen soul dual cultivation. At the time, I cultivated and went into qi deviation, pure yang energy burned my body; without soul dual cultivation, I would have already turned into pure yang energy. As for the Spirit Clan, since they are friends, I couldn't just stand by and watch them die—this isn't my nature. As for Qingyi and Molian, calling me 'Carefree Big Brother' is perfectly fine!" Ye Qin defended.

Speaking, Ye Qin felt a surge of heroic spirit rise in his heart. He realized he didn't even know how many yuanhui he had spent in Honghuang, having saved countless girls.

This is what I should do! Ye Qin thought to himself.

Hehe, in the future, among the sages, except for Nüwa, all will be male—wouldn't that be excessive yang and deficient yin? That would be unfavorable for the world's development. Perhaps the great calamities never cease because those sages have excess energy. I must let Honghuang produce some female powerhouses capable of opposing the sages.

Of course, the Carefree Realm cannot be all women. Ye Qin has a plan: once the origin realms are all opened, he will condense countless life symbols to give those destined to fall in Honghuang—great gods—so they may be reborn in the Carefree Realm. For example, Hongyun, the Twelve Ancestral Witches, Donghuang Taiyi, etc.

"Hmph! You are the greatest lecher in all of Honghuang heaven and earth. Little sister, you must be careful of him—from now on, keep your distance!" Nüwa warned.

"Mm, thank you, sister, for the reminder. We flower fairies are beings of utmost sincerity and emotion; if we fall for a faithless person, it becomes our emotional tribulation. If we cannot pass it, we will truly perish, even with strong spirits. Of course, if we meet a devoted person, it becomes our fortune!" Chen Qianye said, also patting her chest.

"Nüwa's jealousy is truly great. Women with strong jealousy are the most emotionally rich. No wonder she became a sage in later generations, always caring for the demon clan, even ignoring the fate of the human race she created when it suffered calamity. Although she was schemed against by other sages, with me here, Nüwa's ending will surely be different." Ye Qin thought secretly.

Through conversation with Nüwa, Ye Qin carefully reflected and analyzed why most of those around him are women.

Perhaps it is due to innate creation. Maternal nature is inherently emotionally rich.

As a modern person, Ye Qin has experienced familial love, romantic love, friendship, and also the deceit and scheming among modern people—his soul is rich in emotion beyond compare.

Even after crossing into Honghuang and becoming the Heaven-Devouring Rat, his mindset still judges everything by human values. He has not merged into Honghuang, but created the Carefree Supreme Dao, observing Honghuang's rise and fall from an outsider's perspective.

In the vast expanse of Honghuang heaven and earth, most beings are naturally nurtured; the stronger a being's power, the firmer its belief in pursuing the Dao.

In their minds, the Dao is the supreme standard, while emotions are pushed aside.

For example, the Ancestral Dragon treated Ao Ling without special regard, and fathering the Nine Heavenly Dragons was merely to fulfill the Dao.

Fuxi and Nüwa awakened together, cultivated and lived side by side—originally they should have deep affection, but Nüwa disappeared for a long time; even knowing of the calamity on Creation Island, Fuxi still wholeheartedly cultivates the Dao, going wherever opportunity arises, never thinking to seek Nüwa.

This phenomenon of taking the Dao as the supreme pursuit is especially prominent among male beings in Honghuang, nearly reaching a pathological degree. Many powerful beings treat women either as furnaces for dual cultivation or as tools for reproduction.

In the Dragon Court, this situation is even more evident. Countless later-generation dragon clan beings mostly do not know who their mother is, thus becoming emotionless, only knowing to pursue the Dao, waging war everywhere.

This is the current state of civilization in Honghuang—barbaric, emotionless, with traces of the Dao everywhere.

When the Dao prevails, emotions are hidden; when emotions are rich, the Dao recedes—they are mutually contradictory.

Precisely for this reason, the Dao Ancestor Hongjun considers Haoqing a demon, the source of the Dao's destruction. Therefore, when the Heavenly Daoist sought Huang Luo Yan, he only wanted to take her as a dual cultivation partner—i. e., a furnace.

This is the value system generally held by beings in Honghuang.

However, in Ye Qin's view, whether male or female, everyone is born with the desire to become strong—only men's strength-seeking is outwardly expressed, while women's is inwardly contained.

Ye Qin couldn't help but recall the rise of women's status in his previous life—women holding up half the sky, many renowned achievers among whom were not lacking women—could this be the release of women's innate strength-seeking nature?

After understanding these, Ye Qin's resolve in the Carefree Supreme Dao heart became firmer; this evolution of values gave him a clearer understanding of the path to building the Carefree Realm.

He will absolutely not let the Carefree Realm become like Honghuang—he wants to build a world where everyone is like a dragon, everyone utmost in sincerity and emotion, where the strong do not regard all things as ants, the weak also have the chance to become strong, and if the strong dare to look down on the weak, they may later be pulled down from the divine altar.

Such a world would be the most wonderful—not a chessboard where sages and strong beings play against each other, where beings are not pieces casually moved by sages, and even if one is temporarily a piece, one day could become the player.

This is the truth Ye Qin comprehended through "emotion."

"Carefree Wanderer, why aren't you speaking? Are you angry? If not, I won't say anything!" Nüwa thought Ye Qin was angry, unaware he was in the midst of comprehending the Dao.

In Honghuang, beings are as insignificant as ants; Ye Qin, having traveled all the way, has witnessed countless beings' demise over the years, as well as the birth of countless new lives.

This day, they finally reached the edge of the area on Mount Buzhou shrouded in Pangu's divine grace.

Though still hundreds of millions of li from Mount Buzhou, they could already see that towering heavenly pillar piercing the clouds, its rolling will containing inviolable majesty; under divine grace, beings dare not act recklessly.

Compared to the noisy chaos of the four directions of Honghuang land, this place is simply a mortal paradise.

"Nüwa, Chibai, this is already within the range of Mount Buzhou—it should be safe. If you traverse Mount Buzhou's territory, you can enter the sphere of influence of the Hongdao Sacred Land. However, I still have two things to give you."

Ye Qin said, producing two white runes radiating immortal energy, and said: "Take these two life symbols—now, merge them into your souls!"

"Huh? Is this the life symbol of the Carefree Realm? Give it to Qianye little sister—I don't want it!" Nüwa said.

"Why not? This is a life-preserving item—it can preserve the true spirit at critical moments. Honghuang is chaotic, great calamities follow one another—too dangerous. I can't rest easy."

"Carefree Wanderer, I want to seek the Dao on my own, not always under your protection. Moreover, my inner demons are not yet eliminated—I don't want to receive your favors anymore—just like this!" Nüwa said, pulling Qin Chibai as she flew toward Mount Buzhou.

Ye Qin stood in place, feeling helpless in his heart.

He understood Nüwa's temperament—she is stubborn and rational, her pursuit of the Dao extraordinarily firm.

It is precisely because Nüwa has such a temperament that she became the only female sage in later generations.

"Forget it—let everything follow fate." Ye Qin muttered to himself.

The reason Ye Qin did not keep sending Nüwa all the way to the Hongdao Sacred Land is twofold: first, because Nüwa herself awakened on Mount Buzhou, and within the range of Pangu's divine grace there, there would be no danger; second, because when he stepped onto this land, he already sensed a familiar aura.

It was the aura of the Great Dragon Xianghuang God—only his early disciple Bai Qi possesses such an aura.

He was curious—what kind of storm would a killer star like Bai Qi stir up in Honghuang? At the same time, he wanted to test this disciple's cultivation level.

The Honghuang land is miraculously vast—boundless in extent, and the distribution of powers follows a certain pattern.

For example, the area within billions of li around Mount Buzhou is the region shrouded in Pangu's divine grace—a paradise-like land of divine favor; the eastern part of Mount Buzhou is the renowned Tianlong Mountain Range, the origin of the Dragon Court; the southern part is the Nanhua Land and the Southern Fire Region; the westernmost is the Gem Luo Mountain, the base of the Buddhist sect; the northwest is the Demon Palace; the north is the Hongdao Sacred Land.

In the gaps between these major powers, there exist many scattered cultivator factions and powerful individuals.

What attracts wandering cultivators most is the region between Mount Buzhou and the lands of the southeast, northwest, and northeast.

On one hand, these major powers refrain from spreading war here out of reverence and fear for Pangu; on the other hand, even if war reaches this place, they can take refuge in the Land of Divine Grace, making it the best choice for wandering cultivators.

Mount Shi Shen lies between the Tianlong Mountain Range and the Land of Divine Grace, within a mountain range close to the Land of Divine Grace.

As soon as Ye Qin stepped onto this mountain, he sensed Bai Qi's unique killing intent.

"Who goes there?" the gatekeeper shouted, his visage ferocious and terrifying, though his cultivation level was not high.

"Summon Bai Qi to receive me!" Ye Qin wished to test Bai Qi's cultivation level, so he altered his form, taking on the guise of a white-jade scholar—exactly his White Qilin incarnation.

The White Qilin incarnation now possesses a white-jade body, and Ye Qin has yet to test the power of the white-jade body.

"Another challenger? Brothers, a fearless one has come—hurry and inform the king! Hey, you pale-faced brat, if you wish to challenge our king, first state your name, then pass our Eighteen Linked Dog-Beating Formation, and only then may you challenge the king!" the ferocious-looking being shouted. "Then come on—Bai Qi truly is worthless; after all these years, the gatekeeper still shows no progress!" Ye Qin replied.

At that moment, eighty-one strangely shaped beasts flew out from the cave dwelling, each wielding various bizarre weapons; these weapons were not spirit treasures, but forged from innate spiritual materials fused together—in Ye Qin's view, a sheer waste of fine materials.

They laid out a killing formation, their forms flickering, their trajectories dazzling to the eye, yet bearing some resemblance to the Eighteen Linked Formation.

However, in Ye Qin's eyes, these beings were as insignificant as ants. He swept his hand wide, and a palm of primordial energy descended from the heavens, slamming all the beasts into the ground in one fell swoop.

"Pfft! Cough cough cough, this fellow is tough to deal with—hurry and inform the Four Great Kings!"

At that moment, four burly men flew out from the cave dwelling on the mountain: one with a pale face and monkey cheeks, eyes flashing with feral light, killing intent surging, wielding a massive club; one with golden hair and blue eyes, his body radiating scorching heat; another also with a monkey face, but covered entirely in black fur, with long, slender arms; and one who floated like an immortal, as if he could ride the wind.

"Which sect do you hail from, fellow cultivator?" the white ape with surging killing intent asked.

Yet his response was not words, but a fist. The fist was fair and clear-skinned, emitting white light, yet seeming capable of shattering the void, its power boundless.

One punch flew forth, and the white ape was blown a li away.

"Damn it! God-Slaying Staff, I strike!" the white ape raged inwardly—this fellow observes no rules, daring to launch a sneak attack.

The massive staff flew toward the sky, swelling to ten thousand zhang in length, containing the weight of millions of tons; beast souls roared upon it, murderous qi surged to the heavens, and it swiftly hurtled toward Ye Qin. (End of Chapter)