“Thank you, Dao Ancestor.”
“Thank you, Dao Ancestor.”
Led by their eldest brother Dijiang, the other eleven Ancestral Witches also bowed to the Dao Ancestor to express their gratitude and respect.
After that, the Dao Ancestor once again preached the contents of the first sermon of Zixiao Palace to the Twelve Ancestral Witches, which covered all the details and essentials of cultivation from the Earth Immortal to the Daluo Golden Immortal realm. This sermon lasted for three thousand years.
Though it seemed long, three thousand years in Zixiao Palace was but an instant in the world of Honghuang.
After he finished preaching, Hongjun looked at Houtu, waved his sleeve, and a deep purple treasure map flew out, floating gently toward her. “Houtu, I see that you are bound for great things in the future. This treasure is bestowed upon you.”
An Innate Treasure—the Nine Nether Underworld Map!
Houtu was stunned. She looked at the Nine Nether Underworld Map in front of her in surprise, then at the benevolent face of Dao Ancestor Hongjun. “Thank you, Dao Ancestor.”
Her little brother Xuanjian had said that she would have great fortune and opportunities in the future, and even the Dao Ancestor now said she was bound for great things.
However, Houtu did not yet know what kind of achievements she would have in the future.
“Go now. Return to Honghuang.”
The Twelve Ancestral Witches excused themselves and departed from Zixiao Palace.
The heavy palace doors slammed shut.
Zixiao Palace vanished into Beyond-Heaven, leaving not a single trace.
“Why did you give her the Nine Nether Underworld Map? That is the crucial treasure for finding and even opening the Primeval Underworld. Now that you have given it to her, how can we keep the general trend of history running on the correct track?”
The Heavenly Dao was buzzing with noise once again.
To this, Hongjun only had one thing to say: “Last time, Pangu's will revived. He must have already met with the Twelve Ancestral Witches. With his abilities, do you think he cannot see through the great tribulations?
Great God Pangu likely already knows that you and I are plotting against his descendants. If we proceed with the original plan, the moment Houtu sacrifices herself to transform into Samsara will be the moment Pangu leaps out to hack both of us with his axe.”
Hearing the name “Pangu,” the Heavenly Dao fell silent, no longer nagging.
Hongjun realized that while Mount Zhou was still complete and undamaged, bringing up Pangu was enough to suppress this mentally ill Heavenly Dao.
“Ill-minded.”
...
Having left Zixiao Palace, the Twelve Ancestral Witches rushed to Fangzhang Immortal Island without stopping.
Next up was the great and joyful event of the first auction held by their brother Xuanjian's merchant guild.
They certainly could not be absent.
“Heh, that old man Hongjun is quite generous. He actually gave away an Innate Treasure right off the bat.”
On the way, Gonggong looked at the Nine Nether Underworld Map that Houtu held in her hand, studying it, and couldn't help but chuckle.
Now that they possessed Essence Souls, the Ancestral Witches could naturally distinguish whether this treasure map was a spiritual treasure or an Innate Treasure.
“Gonggong, watch your tone,” Dijiang scolded with a stern face. “The Dao Ancestor has bestowed favor upon us. Even if he cannot be compared to Father God, he is still an elder worthy of respect. Calling him ‘old man’ makes us Ancestral Witches seem utterly ill-mannered.”
Gonggong: “...”
Big Brother, how many years has it even been since we got our Essence Souls?
Manners are something we have to pick up slowly, right?
However, now that Dijiang had pointed it out, Gonggong also felt it was a bit inappropriate. After all, the Dao Ancestor had not only given them a makeup lecture but also bestowed an Innate Treasure upon them. Continuing to call him “old man” was indeed unbecoming.
“My mistake,” Gonggong said sincerely.
“I feel that this map harbors an even greater secret, one that is far more important than the map itself!” Houtu spoke as she stored the Nine Nether Underworld Map into her Essence Soul, having studied it for a moment.
Although she could not see anything yet, Houtu had a premonition.
And a very strong one at that.
“Let's not worry about that for now,” Dijiang said. “As Brother Xuanjian would say, things will naturally work themselves out when the time comes. We'll surely uncover the secrets of this map in the future.”
Houtu nodded. “Yes.”
“Let's speed up,” Zhujiuyin laughed. “The other Innate Sacred Beings have likely already reached Fangzhang Immortal Island. We mustn't fall behind.”
Dijiang said, “Stand firm, everyone. Watch me use my Spatial Great Shift!”
...
Just as Zhujiuyin had said, the many Innate Sacred Beings who had left Zixiao Palace were indeed heading toward Fangzhang Immortal Island.
They recalled that several yuanhui ago, when the Lord of the Dao of Commerce announced the first auction, he had mentioned that Innate Spiritual Treasures would be auctioned, including three Top-Grade Innate Spiritual Treasures!
Having experienced the second sermon in Zixiao Palace and learned of the path of the Quasi-Saint, the Innate Sacred Beings had realized that Innate Spiritual Treasures were closely tied to severing the corpses!
Without an Innate Spiritual Treasure, severing one's corpses was impossible.
Now that someone was openly putting Innate Spiritual Treasures up for sale, how could they not be tempted?
Regardless of whether they could ultimately obtain one, it was always worth going to have a look.
Because of this, many Innate Sacred Beings had already gathered on Fangzhang Immortal Island at this moment!
There were even Daluo Golden Immortal experts from the previous era!
The Three Purities, Nuwa and Fuxi, the Golden Crow brothers, the Lunar sisters, Zhenyuanzi and Hongyun, the Queen Mother of the West and Duke of the East, Minghe and Kunpeng, Jieyin and Zhunti, Randeng, Baize, and other well-known Innate Sacred Beings had all arrived.
The Four Seas Dragon Kings of the Dragon Clan.
The current Mountain Lord of the Phoenix Clan.
Of the three Innate clans of the Dragon-Han Tribulation, two had arrived.
Only the Qilin Clan was currently keeping a low profile, leaving no trace. Otherwise, the rare sight of all three clans gathering would have been realized.
The space outside the island rippled with waves, and immediately after, the Twelve Ancestral Witches stepped out of the void.
“Fellow Daoists, welcome to the first auction held by our merchant guild.”
Seeing that almost everyone had arrived, Xuanjian appeared and announced with a smile, “Let's skip the small talk and start this auction directly!”
“A friendly reminder: our merchant guild does not accept trades in kind. We only receive Coins of Five Virtues. If you wish to bid for treasures at the auction, you may go to the money exchange to convert your belongings into Coins of Five Virtues. Anything goes—spiritual roots, spiritual treasures, divine items. Our merchant guild will calculate their value in Coins of Five Virtues fairly and justly.
Our guild has only one principle: fairness, fairness, and goddamn fairness!
Credibility first!
Everyone can rest assured!”
With that, Xuanjian stepped aside, allowing the Innate Sacred Beings to enter freely.
Hearing Xuanjian's words, the Innate Sacred Beings looked at one another. Some hesitated, some were tempted, and some accepted it calmly.
“Fellow Daoist Xuanjian, I have some Innate divine items and spiritual roots in my possession. I wonder what they are worth?”
The first to respond to the call was Minghe.
As Xuanjian's first business partner, Minghe naturally wanted to support him on such an occasion.
He brought out a Mid-Grade Innate Spiritual Treasure and three Low-Grade Innate Spiritual Roots.
The value of these Innate items was right there; it just depended on how the merchant guild priced them.
Xuanjian took a look and gave an equivalent offer: “A Mid-Grade Innate Spiritual Treasure is worth nine hundred and fifty Coins of Five Virtues. Three Low-Grade Innate Spiritual Roots are worth three hundred and thirty Coins of Five Virtues. That makes a total of one thousand two hundred and eighty Coins of Five Virtues. Please keep them safe, Fellow Daoist.”
Xuanjian put away the spiritual treasure and spiritual roots, then turned around to count out one thousand two hundred and eighty Coins of Five Virtues, pushing them toward Minghe.
Minghe was taken aback.
The other Innate Sacred Beings were also somewhat surprised.
A Mid-Grade Innate Spiritual Treasure and three Low-Grade Innate Spiritual Roots were a considerable fortune even for second-tier Innate Sacred Beings like Minghe, Dijun, or Taiyi.
But in this Treasure Vault Merchant Guild, they were only worth one thousand two hundred and eighty Coins of Five Virtues?
Rate on N.U.
