Chapter 220

The Pure World White Lotus emitted a faint clear light, shining above the Nine Heavens; Qi sat in quiet meditation on the lotus platform, the Great Dao seemed to reveal itself between Mount Sumeru, then vanished without a trace.

The Dao's manifestation became visible; those with clear spiritual eyes who observed it could see the weight of its life and destiny, like the towering Mount Buzhou, and the depth and breadth of its Dao, which even the Four Seas fall short of.

Within the God of Thunder Heaven, gaining clarity, one then sees the Pure World Dao; the myriad gods lie silent, traces are rare within an aeon, and the Primordial Wasteland welcomes a rare moment of tranquility.

Qi opened his eyes, feeling that heaven and earth had never been so clear; he slightly lowered his head, divine light flashing in his gaze, breaking through the barrier of the Nine Heavens, and falling straight onto the land of the Primordial Wasteland.

In the four realms of heaven and earth, at a glance, nothing escaped his sight; all evil and malign influences, upon this viewing, had their bodies and spirits shattered, dissipating between heaven and earth.

Such divine might, the gods felt it, yet could do nothing about it; they could only rise in dejection, preparing to go to the Heavenly Court to offer congratulations and listen to the Dao.

As expected, in the next instant, the sound of Qi's voice echoed from heaven and earth; all that was heard was Qi saying:

I am the God of Thunder Heaven's Words Purify the World, Embrace the Vast Faith, Wise Teacher, God Yunmeng Solves Calamities, Purify the World Great Heavenly Lord, Northern Primal Qi Great Emperor; Qi, now having attained the realm of the Great Heavenly Lord Yue Luo, entering the Primordial Origin Dao, shall, after ten thousand years, on Mount Buzhou, expound the Primordial Origin Great Dao for ten thousand years.

All sentient beings with affinity in heaven and earth may come to listen.

West Kunlun.

Gou Hui felt no surprise at the lecture, only a headache.

Just returned from the Chaos, and now only a single aeon has passed, yet heaven and earth have given birth to another great deity.

Moreover, he is one of the Heavenly Emperors of the Heavenly Court, renowned and exalted; one must not fail to go.

Beside him, Lu Wu did not understand why Gou Hui was like this; on the contrary, he felt rather pleased and said:

"Since the Three Clans, heaven and earth have again seen a great deity who has entered the Primordial Origin Dao, and as he is one of the Heavenly Court's emperors, it seems this lecture will surely bring gain."

Gou Hui did not understand why Lu Wu was so pleased, somewhat doubtful he asked: "That is Emperor Qi's breakthrough, and it is not you; you have only lectured for ten thousand years, the Primordial Origin Dao cannot possibly be exhausted in its teaching, though there is some gain, you have heard much of the Dao, yet even in the Purple Heaven Palace one does not see you like this—why is that?"

Lu Wu said with a hint of boasting: "This you do not know; the Great God Hongjun's lecture is indeed rare, his words profound and extensive, bringing me great benefit, yet lecturing with Emperor Qi is altogether different."

Gou Hui, raising a bit of interest, asked:

"What is the difference, then? I want to see what reason you can give."

"You should know that since the Three Clans, the Heavenly Court has occupied the Primordial Wasteland for nearly eighty aeons."

Lu Wu spoke to emphasize, yet this only made Gou Hui more puzzled; seeing that he truly did not understand, Lu Wu could only speak plainly: "Since the establishment of the Heavenly Court, governing the Primordial Wasteland for eighty aeons, above there are the Heavenly Realm's productions, below the various water gods are offered tribute, and the myriad tribes are subsumed by it; the number of spiritual objects obtained during this period is immeasurable, truly beyond imagination."

"Even if there has been consumption during that period, what remains must surely be an astronomical figure, and it must be rare treasures; if we were to go early, just the reception would likely save me several aeons of cultivation."

"You should know that the Heavenly Court, in collecting spiritual objects from the myriad tribes, takes only the finest, and the Heavenly Realm's output has never circulated externally; today one can also get a glimpse of it."

Gou Hui, somewhat speechless, said: "Even though you are an Innate Divine Sage, cultivating with me in West Kunlun, you have never been stingy toward me; yet to go listen to a great deity's lecture, you actually do this for that reason!"

Lu Wu then chuckled: "Otherwise, you should know that my cultivation level is still insufficient; although the Great God Hongjun's lecture is an opportunity, by the last aeon I was already struggling, and next time I lecture I will likely gain little."

"Moreover, the Chaos is dangerous, the Purple Heaven Palace drifts unpredictably; although under your protection there is no threat to life, yet compared to going to the Heavenly Court, the effort expended and the gain are not commensurate."

Having said this, Lu Wu could not help but give a wry smile; although the Innate Divine Sages are the lords of heaven and earth, in their interactions they address each other as fellow Daoists, yet the gap between them is vast, even surpassing that of ordinary mortals.

The cultivation of the gods is arduous; although steady, its demands are still too high; even though Lu Wu has now cultivated to the rank of Great Heavenly Lord Luo, he still feels that the path ahead has no end.

Perhaps Gou Hui has never considered it, but he himself can see the gap; having experienced the first round of lectures in the Chaos, Lu Wu's heart has even given rise to the thought of turning to the Immortal Dao, though he has not yet made a firm decision.

"But going to the Heavenly Court is different; it lies within the Primordial Wasteland, and the distance from Mount Buzhou to West Kunlun is not great; traveling there at Kunlun speed to listen to the Dao would even take less than a thousand years."

"Emperor Qi is the first person of the Heavenly Court to enter the Primordial Origin Dao; moreover, it is the Heavenly Court's first grand banquet facing the myriad beings of the Primordial Wasteland, and the hospitality for its guests will surely be excellent."

"According to my estimate, I even feel it surpasses the time of the Three Clans; moreover, the Heavenly Court has five Heavenly Emperors, all outstanding figures of the Primordial Wasteland, and there will surely be further lectures."

"For me, listening to the Dao once only takes a mere one or two ten‑thousand years, yet it can save me several yuanhui of bitter toil, and it carries no risk—surely this is worth my joy?"

Lu Wu wore a smile, and in that moment Gou Hui actually felt that his words made some sense, though she found it hard to accept at once.

Although Lu Wu's words have some merit, but if we follow his advice, wouldn't we become people who crash the banquet? Is that not too damaging to one's reputation? Lu Wu, having followed Gou Hui for too long, naturally knows what she is thinking now, and advises: "Your Excellency need not imagine such a thing; expounding the Dao is not something we force upon others. With our innate divine status, going there is merely to add luster to them—no one would think that way."

Moreover, those who open a Dao exposition are all major powers of a region; not to go would be to embarrass others.

You should know, not every power is like the phoenix, rushing to exchange for spiritual objects only when a Dao exposition is announced; they are the first case since the beginning of heaven and earth, while most others lack nothing of these.

The phoenix clan originally exchanged spiritual objects in the Hundred‑Thousand Great Mountains; there the varieties were rich, but the yield was unstable, and the difference between good and poor was too great.

At first no one noticed, but later everyone actually ate no fruit of the same kind, which caused puzzlement; exposed by the other two clans, they became a laughingstock of the primordial era for a time.

Gou Hui felt a bit embarrassed at the time; the person who asked whether anyone had eaten the same fruit was none other than herself.

At that time she was feasting under a paulownia tree when the phoenix clan brought a kind of pear covered in spines; its taste suited her, so she wanted another plate, and then the aforementioned incident occurred.

Even to this day, Gou Hui still feels a degree of shame hard to bear, believing that the phoenix clan's becoming a laughingstock is her fault; fortunately the phoenix clan did not pursue the matter, and she has never left West Kunlun.

"Do not mention this again; I never imagined it would turn out this way."

Gou Hui covered her face with her hand; the embarrassment of being told there was none still lay before her eyes.

Lu Wu, on the other hand, wore a smile; he estimates this matter could still be remembered for several hundred yuanhui afterward, and how could he possibly not bring it up? East Kunlun.

The Three Pure Ones have already prepared and set out, intending to go to Mount Buzhou; Yuanshi and Fuxi have been in occasional talk, and so far their impression of the Heavenly Court remains good; now that there is this happy event, they naturally wish to set out early.

Lingbao, on the other hand, is on good terms with Taiyi; both are rather fond of fighting, and because of Yuanshi he became acquainted with Taiyi, their temperaments being quite compatible.

And this time he goes also with the intention of gaining some insight into the current gap between himself and the Grand Primordial Dao.

Initially, the Qilin easily transformed and suppressed the three brothers; this feeling of helplessness, Lingbao wishes to dispel, and the best way is to experience it personally. The Dao of Morality is merely pure listening to the Dao; he harbors neither like nor dislike toward the Heavenly Court, he knows of the interactions between his two younger brothers and the Heavenly Court, but it has nothing to do with him.

He goes to listen to the lecture purely out of love for the Dao, and there is no need to antagonize the other side.

Mount Sumeru.

Jieyin and Zhunti set off for Mount Buzhou with great enthusiasm; their thoughts are similar to Lu Wu's—now that the Heavenly Court is preoccupied while the West is impoverished, their trip can at least store some spiritual objects for the West, adding a bit of foundation.

Moreover, they are not going alone as just the two of them; they also bring along some outstanding disciples they know from the West, about a hundred people.

Such conduct in the primordial world is also similar to that of the phoenix clan; it is truly a unique case under heaven.

As for the earlier friction in the the the Zixiao Palace, they have already decided that, at worst, they will simply sacrifice a bit of face and apologize.

God Heaven.

Di Jun, Taiyi, and Fuxi all arrived; Nüwa is still out traveling, so she is not present, but having heard Qi's words, she will surely be on her way back.

"Qi, congratulations, it seems you are ahead of me again."

Taiyi's closed‑door cultivation was interrupted, but he felt no dissatisfaction at all; only joy at Qi's successful entry into the Grand Primordial Dao.

Di Jun and Fuxi wore smiles; they were delighted by Qi's progress, and they also felt full confidence knowing that the Grand Primordial Dao would now preside over the future of the Heavenly Court.

Qi slightly sensed and knew that Taiyi was also not far from this Dao, smiling: "Only a single step; in my view, Taiyi is also not far. Surely within ten yuan meetings, the Heavenly Court will gain another Primordial Dao cultivator."

Taiyi showed a confident look: "No need for so long; the impact of Great God Hongjun's lecture on the Dao is unknown; if next time we gain something, after the lecture we estimate we can break through."

Suddenly, Qi's gaze fell on Fuxi; divine light condensed, he observed carefully, and after a moment burst out laughing:

"Taiyi, don't fix your gaze only on me; Fellow Daoist Fuxi has made great progress in cultivation, likely to surpass you."

Fuxi smiled faintly, calmly meeting Taiyi's surprised and Di Jun's delighted gaze, and said: "It seems I cannot hide from Qi's perception; I had planned to give you a surprise after my breakthrough, but I didn't expect Qi to see through it."

"The gap between the Primordial Dao and the Luotian Revered God is still beyond my expectation."

Di Jun hurriedly asked: "Fuxi, is what Qi said true? Can you really surpass Taiyi?"

Di Jun's concern naturally stems from his considerations; at present he is still some distance from entering the Primordial Dao, but with the myriad changes in the wilderness, even the power of the Luotian Revered God makes him feel somewhat powerless.

After listening to the lecture, he knew the wilderness would surely undergo great change; he even considered turning to the Immortal Dao in hopes of an early breakthrough to ease the Heavenly Court's pressure.

Based on Di Jun's speculation about the future, relying only on Taiyi and Qi to suppress the wilderness is still too difficult, forcing him to make a choice.

Since Fuxi also has a chance to advance, with the power of the three Primordial Dao Great Gods, we can certainly guarantee the Heavenly Court's safety.

Perhaps expansion will be hard, but stabilizing the current situation should be fine; as long as we wait for him and Nüwa to enter the Primordial Dao later, the Heavenly Court will still be the undisputed ruler of the wilderness.

Fuxi smiled and nodded; he had never felt so spirited before. Among the five, his presence has always been low, and his past confidence has been almost shattered by Qi and Taiyi.

But now he has comprehended his own Dao; all changes in heaven and earth are contained within it, making him likely the first person in heaven and earth to cultivate this Dao.

He named this Dao the Fuxi Eight Trigrams! Relying on this Dao, Fuxi dares to say that in the wilderness, when it comes to deducing heavenly secrets, none can surpass him.

Thus, he has temporarily surpassed Taiyi and could become the second Primordial Dao cultivator in the Heavenly Court.

Di Jun instantly rejoiced, his voice bursting with heroic vigor: "From now on, the Heavenly Court will undergo no change!"

Taiyi showed a faint smile, happy for Fuxi and also for Di Jun.

Since Great God Hongjun's lecture on the Dao, the pressure has been immense, known to all; as the current hegemon of the wilderness, the Heavenly Court's greatest fear is uncontrollable change.

Di Jun does not worry that several strong challengers will suddenly appear to contest the Heavenly Court's position; with Qi and Taiyi present, he believes no one can surpass it.

However, Great God Hongjun's lecture might cause a sudden surge in the number of powerful beings in the wilderness, and the wilderness has never lacked ambitious individuals.

These ambitious individuals will band together, constantly stirring up strife and conflict in the wilderness, attempting to overthrow the Heavenly Court's rule.

Even if Qi and Taiyi are immensely strong, they are only two; once the wilderness erupts in war on all sides, they will be stretched thin, and the Heavenly Court's rule will also waver.

And once war breaks out, the tumultuous wilderness can overturn every obstacle until heaven and earth return to calm, when a new force arises to take over all this, just as the Heavenly Court did initially.

Seeing Di Jun somewhat out of sorts, Qi couldn't help teasing him:

"Your current appearance is not befitting a Heavenly Emperor."

Di Jun paid no heed; instead, he casually removed his crown, waved his hand, and countless fruits and wines appeared before the platform, saying: "Today I am happy; there are no Heavenly Emperor formalities—just the four of us, as in the beginning at Yunmze Marsh."

Fuxi sat cross-legged, served everyone a cup of wine, then said: "Indeed, today there is no Heavenly Emperor, Donghuang, Qi Emperor, Xi Emperor—only the four of us; let us drink this cup fully to celebrate the future."

Taiyi and Qi sat side by side, rather unrestrained and unpretentious, and drank their wine.

Qi pondered briefly, then sent a voice summons for Bai Ling, telling him: "Issue orders to prepare my Dao lecture banquet; discuss the scale with the Heavenly Court folk; if Nüwa arrives, invite her to God Azure Heaven."

"Besides that, outsiders are not permitted to enter God Azure Heaven; our drunken appearance is rather unsightly, so it's best not to let outsiders see."

Bai Ling immediately replied:

"Following your command, I will not let outsiders disturb your refined enjoyment; I wonder if you need music and dance as accompaniment? I will ensure outsiders remain unaware."

Qi merely waved his hand, rejecting Bai Ling's suggestion; nowadays it's better to restrain oneself a bit compared to before.

(End of chapter)