Chapter 554

Xingtian was born of the Wu clan, wielded an axe as his weapon, and had comprehended the Great Dao of War.

Pangu's Nine Styles of Creation were undoubtedly the most suitable divine art for Xingtian.

Unfortunately, Xingtian was merely a Great Wu, not an Ancestral Wu, and had not directly inherited Pangu's essence blood.

His bloodline contained almost no trace of Pangu's consciousness.

Thus, even though Xingtian carried Pangu's bloodline and had comprehended the Great Dao of War, it was still extremely difficult for him to glean Pangu's Nine Styles of Creation from his bloodline.

The Wu clan of the Journey to the West World also did not possess a complete inheritance, and had not inherited Pangu's Nine Styles of Creation.

This was normal.

The Twelve Ancestral Wus each specialized in different paths.

Yet none of the Ancestral Wus excelled in the pure path of combat.

This made it difficult for the Twelve Ancestral Wus to activate the inheritance of the Nine Styles of Creation.

Moreover, the Nine Styles of Creation did not align well with the combat styles of the Twelve Ancestral Wus; even if given the chance, they likely would not have bothered to study them deeply.

The Nine Styles of Creation were a divine art of the inheritance level.

After receiving the inheritance, one could strive to comprehend it on one's own.

But transmitting or recording it was exceedingly difficult.

To comprehend the Nine Styles of Creation, one must visualize the miraculous phenomenon of Pangu cleaving heaven and earth.

Such a terrifying phenomenon could only be understood intuitively, never conveyed in words.

Only after achieving profound mastery could one impart even a fraction of it to others.

The Nine Styles of Creation, given Luo Fu's talent, had long since been fully comprehended; transmitting them to others was naturally no difficulty.

Given his closeness to the Wu clan, imparting one or two divine arts meant nothing to him.

If not for the fact that the Nine Styles of Creation were too profound and Xingtian could not bear too much inheritance.

Luo Fu would have simply shoved the entire Nine Styles of Creation directly into Xingtian's mind.

Just now, when struck by the axe-light, it was because the Nine Styles of Creation were too mysterious, and Luo Fu had also slammed his own insights into Xingtian's mind.

This caused Xingtian to receive too much information, plunging him directly into comprehension and temporarily losing consciousness.

The owner of that gentle voice was naturally Pingxin Niangniang.

Given Pingxin Niangniang's realm, she could clearly perceive Xingtian's state, hence she spoke to express her gratitude.

With Pingxin Niangniang's permission, Luo Fu flashed forward, passing through an invisible barrier and entering the Six Paths of Reincarnation.

The Six Paths of Reincarnation were the core of the Underworld, of immense importance.

Moreover, after the War of Wu and Yao, all Twelve Ancestral Wus had perished, and the Wu clan suffered catastrophic losses, with nearly ninety-nine percent wiped out.

This left Houtu, transformed into Pingxin Niangniang, deeply disheartened, and she sealed off the Six Paths of Reincarnation.

This was also why outsiders rarely appeared in the Six Paths of Reincarnation.

Within the Nether Underworld, Pingxin Niangniang was equivalent to a Sage.

Holding the authority of the Underworld and residing within it, even ordinary Sages had to avoid her sharpness.

Precisely because of this, the Six Sages had not personally intervened to seize the authority of the Underworld.

The Nether Underworld was one of the Three Realms; possessing the power of reincarnation, its importance was nearly equal to that of the Heavenly Realm.

If possible, the Six Sages would have seized the authority of the Nether Underworld for themselves.

Especially the two Western Sages, who never acted without profit—how could they not covet this vast treasure?

Of course, though the Six Sages did not act personally, they had dispatched disciples to meddle in the affairs of the Underworld.

Officials from the Shengren Sect held positions in many Underworld institutions.

In addition, Buddhism had the Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha, and the Xuan Sect had Yuanshi Tianzun and other great divine beings stationed in the Underworld, dividing its authority.

These moves were a tacit exchange between Pingxin Niangniang and the Sages.

The benefits of the Nether Underworld were simply too great for even Pingxin Niangniang, as its master, to monopolize alone.

Even though Pingxin Niangniang held authority and resided in the Underworld with status equal to a Sage, she was ultimately only one person—two hands could not fend off four.

The Nether Underworld governed the reincarnation of the Three Realms and required vast manpower to maintain.

Before the War of Wu and Yao, Pingxin Niangniang, backed by the Wu clan, could still maintain the Six Paths of Reincarnation with her own strength alone.

But after the outbreak of the War of Wu and Yao and the catastrophic losses suffered by the Wu clan, the remaining Wu could hardly sustain the entire Six Paths of Reincarnation.

Precisely because of this, Pingxin Niangniang openly opened the entire Gai Jiuyou Underworld, allowing other forces of the Three Realms to jointly intervene and stabilize the Six Paths of Reincarnation.

She and the Wu clan then retreated deep into the Six Paths of Reincarnation.

After all, the core of the Nether Underworld was the Six Paths of Reincarnation, which had been formed from Houtu's body—outsiders could never usurp it.

By controlling the Six Paths of Reincarnation, one could always claim a share of the benefits, no matter how the Nether Underworld changed.

After the losses of the War of Wu and Yao, the Wu clan's numbers had drastically declined; the benefits from the Six Paths of Reincarnation alone were sufficient.

Voluntarily retreating to the Six Paths of Reincarnation granted the Wu clan greater peace and quiet.

······

Stepping into the Six Paths of Reincarnation,

Before his eyes were six colossal gates of Xukongshi Stone, each ten thousand zhang tall; beneath them sat a woman clad in palace robes, her face serene with compassion, eyes closed.

Sensing Luo Fu's arrival, the woman in palace robes opened her eyes; her luminous gaze was filled with age, pity, and a hidden thread of exhaustion.

"Luo Fu, friend of the Dao, I wonder what brings you to my Six Paths of Reincarnation? If I recall correctly, I have never met you before."

Without preamble, Pingxin Niangniang suppressed the weariness in her eyes and bluntly asked Luo Fu his purpose.

Pingxin Niangniang was greatly surprised by Luo Fu's sudden visit.

Previously, Luo Fu had forcefully subdued the Buddha in the Outer Heaven, directly confronting the Seven Treasures Wonderful Tree—she had taken notice.

The Buddha, at the peak of a Pre-Sage realm, held considerable status in the Three Realms.

At present, the great calamity has engulfed him, and the Western Buddhist sect is the dominant force behind this great calamity.

As the master of Buddhism, every move the Buddha makes draws the gaze of countless great beings across the Three Realms. For him to engage in combat and yet fail to subdue his opponent is undoubtedly a monumental event that shocks the Three Realms.

Even if Pingxin Niangniang pays no attention to affairs of the Three Realms, such a monumental event that shakes the Three Realms must reach her knowledge.

Moreover, by the later stages of the battle, even Saint Zhunti himself intervened.

When a Saint intervenes, no great being within the Three Realms can fail to sense it.

Precisely because she knew of Luo Fu's exploits, Pingxin Niangniang was especially astonished by his visit.

She simply could not fathom why Luo Fu would come to visit her.