Chapter 286

A single word from Houtu shook ancient and modern times, causing many active Great Luo to glance askance, and it was rare to divert attention from their own tasks.

Even though everyone knew what was going on, having mingled in the Purple Azure Palace and clearly heard Nüwa's speech at the meeting, and having let everyone give her face and show respect, not meddling……

But this did not hinder the intense interest at the moment; they picked up the melons in hand, eagerly preparing to watch a great show!

——Of course, most of the above groups are merely fence-sitting Great Luo.

The demon race's core demon gods and the Wu Clan's main force great shamans…… upon sensing that complex situation, automatically began to grit their teeth, ready to work overtime at any moment, prepared for the possibility of friction sparking.

The demon race, although they gave Nüwa face, in the game between states, leaders often consider the situation—either keeping a straight face while treating their own words as a fart, or calling a deer a horse, reversing black and white to find a pretext for war…… Without thick skin and a ruthless heart, how could they lead their people to a good life?

Even states are like this.

What more can be said of the demon race, such a pinnacle civilization?

Those Yao Marshals and Demon Emperors dare to play the game of raising bandits to self‑strengthen—first colluding with the Wu Clan to oppose the Dao Ancestor, then turning to suppress the Wu Clan to curry favor with Hongjun, even able to say they would build a retirement home for Nüwa.

In their eyes, face…… how much is face worth? So now that the human race is about to emerge, how could they not be eager to secretly stretch out a tentacle or two and feel around?

As long as they aren't caught red‑handed, there are plenty of ways to placate Nüwa.

I stir up trouble, yet I leave no trace…… How about that? Is that enough face for you! The demon race has begun its action.

However, the Wu Clan also moved.

No need for Houtu to give a heads‑up.

Upon first observing the anomaly, many great shamans sprang into action immediately; the celestial ship fleet began to lift off, departments coordinated, entering a quasi‑war state, weapons pointed at demon gods and Yao Marshals, faintly carrying a warning.

Those ancestral shamans and top great shamans furthermore had some of their whereabouts suddenly become mysterious…… According to feedback from many demon gods, they always felt a chill on their necks, as if some immensely powerful being had utterly lost shame, intending to carry out sneak attacks and assassinations, or to use top‑tier great power to assassinate ordinary Great Luo.

Upon receiving the feedback, the Eastern Emperor neither drilled troops nor inspected the army, merely wandering about with the Chaos Bell in hand, and only then did the situation improve.

Covert battles, clashes, scheming.

The entire Wu Clan, up and down, used their own strength to give Nüwa face, to bolster her resolve—this is an important pillar for her to swell and have prestige.

This vividly illustrates a principle——

Face is not given by others; it is won by oneself.

Do not pin hopes on others' character and morality; rather, have your own strength's backing, able to sanction enemies and make the despicable opponents behave.

……

「Has this day finally arrived? 」

Fengxi stood before Houtu, slightly distracted.

He had waited too long for this day.

Looking back, why did Fengxi cross the vast expanse of time and space to come to this boundless Honghuang?

Besides one aspect being because of Houtu's 'hard to refuse kindness', the greatly merciful and compassionate Houtu Niangniang manages the afterworld; a momentary stubborn refusal, the consequences might not be pleasant; even if the Niangniang is broad-minded and doesn't hold grudges, there are also sycophantic petty people who will gladly give him small shoes to wear——Yama is easy to provoke, little ghosts are hard to deal with.

On the other hand, it is also a rare awakening of conscience, deciding to make some contributions for his own ethnic group.

But after arriving in Honghuang, due to various complex and intertwined situations, the witch-demon struggle, plus the Dao Ancestor's three-legged stalemate…… the human race never had a presence, unable to wait for a suitable opportunity to enter.

Until today.

Houtu told him, the time has come, the human race must emerge! This made Fengxi both happy and worried.

Joy, because the long-held wish has been fulfilled; he now has true roots, a true home.

Worry, naturally because he worries for the human race, knowing what future they will face.

The birth of the human race is not to enjoy blessings, but to bear a great mission.

They must face one trial after another, cross mountains of corpses and the Sea of Blood, carve out a broad and righteous road, proving the correctness of a path! In this process, countless sacrifices will inevitably accompany it, proportional to the final laurel of the world's protagonist they reap.

The greatest gains come with the greatest risks.

However……

I will stand at the forefront, to strive, to struggle, to contribute my strength.

Hopefully, in the end, there will be a beautiful outcome.

Fengxi lowered his eyelids, still listening to Houtu's instructions, but his mind wandered a bit.

Until, the Ancestor Witch Houtu demanded of him, to go with her on a trip, and to take the lead, stepping through layer after layer of spacetime.

Only then did Fengxi focus his energy, steady his mind, and follow closely behind Houtu, step for step.

……

The delicate work of creating humans is naturally to be handled by me…… Nüwa.

However, the auxiliary work besides this main task must be done by you leading people.

No problem, right?

On the way, Houtu lightly asked Fengxi.

No problem.

Fengxi nodded solemnly.

In this regard, he will not fail.

Following your instructions, Niangniang, taking advantage of the human race's emergence, we will launch a big publicity wave to draw the attention of all beings……

After that, we must also use mysterious yellow merit to build momentum for the human race, planting a seed in the hearts of all spirits——if they engage with humans, treat them well, or work for them, they will reap benefits.

Using wealth and resources to exchange for genuine labor, striving to put the human race's development on the right track at the fastest speed……

These commands, Xi keeps them in mind at all times.

That's good." Houtu nodded, "In publicity, we must turn the investment in the human race into an emerging industry…… those die-hard followers who mix with the Monster Clan Heavenly Court, we can't sway them for now.

But those scattered followers…… are the ones we need to attract.

Create favorable future information, lure them in…… once they take the bait, things become easy to handle.

Houtu instructed, Fengxi immediately took out his little notebook to note it down.

The new industry must be a windfall, everywhere gold, everywhere money-making opportunities, only then can it move hearts and guide trends.

This cannot be done without promotion.

After all, if you don't promote, who would know?

And once you get the hang of promotion...

Often, it can be as exaggerated as possible.

Fengxi understood Houtu's implicit meaning.

However, Houtu was too embarrassed to say it outright—that would harm her image.

At this point, naturally Fengxi steps up to take the blame.

He acted as if he understood, saying, "I already grasp your meaning, milady."

"The birth of humankind, blessed by heaven——lighting fires brings merit, building houses brings merit, making clothes brings merit......"

"Anything that helps humankind's progress will earn merit after merit!"

"As for why this is so? Why, even among the Demon Race there are countless tribes and civilizations, with the same fire-lighting, house-building, and clothes-making, yet not a shred of merit?"

"Don't ask…… asking just means they are the protagonists of heaven and earth, tied to the great god Pangu, the universe's darlings!"

Fengxi said.

Houtu showed an expression that said she was teachable——

Exactly!

However, that alone isn't enough.

Just throwing money around, losing money to gain publicity…… Although Nüwa Houtu is very wealthy, the fortune-merit in their little treasury—as vast as thousands of mountains and seas—doesn't just blow in with the wind; we can't create it arbitrarily, or else we'd be giving others an unfair advantage.

After all, she aims to be the banker, drawing in retail investors' funds, not truly engaging in charity.

There's a balance to it; it takes a bit of skill.

In other words, it's…… a shill!

Houtu's gaze became subtle.

Fengxi glanced—oh, I get it.

He had followed Houtu for years, and oddly enough developed a tacit understanding…… that works only with Houtu.

Houtu would blink or shift her expression, and Fengxi could vaguely guess her thoughts; interpreting them his way, he usually got it right.

This is also one of the main reasons why, over the years, Fengxi has become ever more favored in the sovereign's heart and deeply trusted by Houtu.

Now Houtu shows that look…… Fengxi's thoughts shift, and he knows exactly what this lady intends.

Thus, he blinked, organized his words, turning a heavenly pitfall into a rationale—an act of considering the vast investors, like spending a thousand gold to buy a horse's bone.

"Our humankind is an emerging industry, a sunrise sector…… Since it's emerging and sunrise, with no prior investment precedents, it's natural for the vast retail investors to feel uneasy."

"For this, we will help them dispel the shadow of investment, while regulating the market, making a good start, and leaving the most standard investment procedure."

"We should send a dedicated person to demonstrate…… at the designated time and place, following the designated procedure, thus establishing the best rules."

"At the same time, it can also avoid some vicious competition—after all, the extraterrestrial demons stirred up by Rahu the demon ancestor will inevitably reach into humankind and cause trouble there."

"Likewise, to avoid meaningless suspicions, the backgrounds of those award recipients need to be carefully concealed——this is to protect the sacred and inviolable privacy of a sentient being."

Fengxi's words were lofty and righteous.

Bundling the acts of shilling, fake orders, and privately granting merit awards, they packaged it all in this guise.

In short, it's just to achieve one sentence.

The final authority over humankind's fortune-merit belongs entirely to the humankind's holy mother——Nüwa! Houtu smiled with satisfaction.

Her subordinates are just thoughtful.

One can devise a plausible explanation for her act of shifting resources from left hand to right hand.

Houtu was quite pleased and decided to grant an important post to Fengxi, who could ease the sovereign's burdens.

During the period I created humankind, and for a while after, you shall serve as the grand manager of my fortune treasury.

Your ability to grasp market dynamics and people's emotions has always been recognized by me.

When it's time to pull back the bait and stimulate retail investors…… you can make on-the-spot decisions, filing a report while first opening the treasury and decisively entering the market.

"All right……" Houtu's eyes flickered, and she suddenly said something seemingly unrelated: "I see that lately, the Wu Clan has many little fellows whose work results are outstanding."

"Like that Sui Chu, Chao Xi, and such…… their performance is great!"

Houtu recited a string of names.

Fengxi just listened quietly.

These little fellows with great performance, yet their cultivation is a bit low…… sigh, let me lament their survival rate on the battlefield.

Saying this, Houtu sighed, "Ah… why am I telling you this? This isn't your job to handle."

Don't take it to heart.

Houtu thus said to Fengxi:

Fengxi's gaze flickered subtly, then he smiled and nodded, "As you command."

And while saying that.

Fengxi silently noted in his work log, confirming the first batch of "winners," "awardees," and allocating the vast accumulated humankind fortune-merit award pool to those selected for massive investment, clearing it out.

Don't ask.

Asking just means it's fair, just, and open, with absolutely no behind-the-scenes manipulation.

Tsk!

Fengxi felt a sigh in his heart.

Other aspects aren't easy to talk about.

But in this aspect, I'm a veteran.

Recalling Kunlun, Fengxi had done just that.

Mm, no…… back then, I wasn't that fierce.

That is, just tweak the odds a bit, picking numbers that have relatively fewer bets to open.

Not like now.

Just directly arrange our own people to go up and take it.

However, some places are also different.

Investors among the human race's small traders may dream of big money, but all the gold mines have already been arranged…… yet as long as they don't cause trouble, the profit is still quite considerable.

After all, Lady Nüwa genuinely wants to undertake this venture for the human race, looking far ahead, not for petty short‑term gain.

……

Houtu and Fengxi confirmed the publicity for the human race's listing.

Not long after, they entered a vast, boundless hall.

There, countless cultivators were busy.

All kinds of data calculations, all kinds of design planning…… every shaman was very busy.

Fengxi glanced over and immediately understood.

They were all contributing to the birth of the human race, perfecting the design of the bodily organs for every aspect of the human race——

How should the tribe's talents be chosen or discarded?

Should we add points mainly to wisdom or to physique?

How much redundant hidden data should we retain to face different external environments, maximizing adaptability?

……

Etcetera, etcetera.

Creating humans is a huge project.

Faced with the Demon Race's numerous powerful clans, various ancient remnant tribes, various holy spirit species…… how can we possibly oppose them?

The human race must have its own special advantage, and if this advantage is pushed to the extreme, it could have a chance to sweep the field! Of course, we must also consider the quantity issue and still be able to produce output.

This will require great care.

Thus, to speed up this project, Nüwa gathered a large team…… after she provided the core data, the remaining calculations and designs were left to them to perfect.

Right now, Houtu leads Fengxi through this, giving a brief explanation.

"So far, there are seven schemes for the human race's creation…… each has its own features, all have strengths."

"However, I intend to choose the third one."

Houtu handed the scheme to Fengxi.

Fengxi took it, looked it over twice, and praised it further.

"This plan is truly good…… it emphasizes the spiritual wisdom aspect, adding points to comprehension, thus it can be more innovative and promote civilization's development."

(End of chapter)