One O eight, Desolate and shattered wilderness

  Xun Daozi saved the Han man and brought him back to Xun Dao Mountain. After a few days, the Han man recovered from his injuries. One day, while Xun Daozi was chatting with Su Xin in the Bamboo Pavilion, the Han man walked in and knelt before Xun Daozi, saying: "Hou Yi thanks the Taoist master for saving my life. Whatever you command, I will swear to obey unto death!"

  Xun Daozi stretched out his hand and said, "You get up, sit here, I have something to ask you."

  Hou Yi stood up according to the words, sat down at the place pointed by Daozi, and Su Xin handed a cup of spiritual tea in front of Hou Yi. Hou Yi hastily got up to receive it, thanked him repeatedly, and Su Xin smiled lightly without saying anything. However, that smile made Hou Yi stunned for a moment, then he realized his mistake and hurriedly apologized.

  Xun Daozi glanced at Su Xin and saw that she was staring blankly, also speechless. He then said to Hou Yi, "No need for excessive courtesy, please take a seat!"

  Hou Yi sat down reluctantly, still tense, his eyes fixed straight ahead, sitting upright and motionless, not daring to move slightly.

  Xun Daozi saw his appearance and no longer spoke for him, opening his mouth to ask: "Are you Hou Yi?"

  Hou Yi nodded and respectfully replied: "Yes, I am Hou Yi, a warrior of the Wu tribe's Houtu department, Dufu clan!"

  Xun Daozi listened and continued to ask: "But I feel that you are not a witch, yet you possess the divine power of the witch tribe. Why is this?"

  Hou Yi's face turned gloomy as he replied, "My father is the chieftain of the Du Fu tribe, and my mother is a human."

  Xun Daozi's heart also moved upon hearing this, for Hou Yi had exceptional innate talent and was a good material for cultivation. He possessed the strengths of both humans and witches, but because witches didn't cultivate their yuan shen, Hou Yi's practice of witchcraft left his yuan shen untrained and extremely weak. If he could receive guidance from a great master, he would surely become a top-notch figure.

  At once, Xunzi asked again: "Is your family at peace?"

  Hou Yi's face turned even more sorrowful, and he replied: "Mother passed away ten thousand years ago, Father was burned to death by the Golden Crow's true fire of the sun!" After finishing speaking, his complexion darkened.

  Xun Daozi heard this and felt a bit downhearted. He comforted Hou Yi with a few words, then asked: "Do you have any plans now?"

  Hou Yi said: "All my loved ones have passed away, and I don't know what to do either."

  Xun Daozi said: "In that case, you can temporarily stay here with me. The demon clan will not let you go, wait for things to pass, and then consider what to do next."

  Hou Yi listened and then stood up, bowed his body and said: "I don't want to implicate Daozhang, let me go back!"

  Xun Daozi said: "Your home is already destroyed, and there's nowhere else to go. For now, let's settle down here. The demon clan can't do anything to me!" He immediately called for Bao Shi to help settle Hou Yi down.

  Hou Yi and Bao Shi left, seeking the Daoist Subduing God who was wandering outside of heaven. In the legends of past lives, Hou Yi was a hero with many stories, such as "Shooting the Sun" and "Chasing the Moon". Some said he was from the Wu tribe, while others said he was from the human tribe; the Daoist Subduing God also rather liked this legendary hero.

  This time, the ten-day outing was also unknown who had planned it, triggering a battle between witches and demons. Zǐ Yuè originally only wanted to take a look, but in the end, he saw that the man who shot the sun actually had human blood, and his heart couldn't help but want to save him. So when Tài Yī made his move, he stood up and saved this man who shot the sun. He thought that because of his arrival, this person who shot the sun would change, but unexpectedly it was still Hòu Yì, but a person with both witch and human blood. But the legend of 'Chasing the Moon' might not happen again!

  Xun Daozi's battle with Taiyi didn't excite him much, as he could sense that Taiyi was not in top condition during the fight. Considering Taiyi rushed over from the void, it was clear that he had used a secret method to rescue his nephew, which damaged his body and allowed him to break through the void. Who else in this world, besides those who have achieved the Mixed Yuan state, could do such a thing? Even if it were Yuanshi, Laozi, or Tongtian at their peak, they wouldn't lightly display such abilities. This Taiyi may have achieved the Great Luo Golden Immortal fruit position, but compared to the original three, he is still far behind. His ability to break through the void and rush over without being injured is precisely what allowed Xun Daozi to successfully rescue Hou Yi. If it were a fully-powered Taiyi, Xun Daozi might not have been able to handle him, but if they fought with all their might, it's unlikely that Taiyi could easily emerge victorious.

  Xun Daozi left Hou Yi on Xun Dao Mountain, but didn't bother to manage the chaos that had already erupted in the Hong Huang. Taiyi rescued his only nephew who was still recovering and hadn't yet come back to his senses to look for Xun Daozi's trouble, when a series of conflicts between the two tribes of witches and demons began to spread. Even though some calm people among the witches and demons felt that these events were suspicious and abnormal, they could no longer stop the rapid escalation of conflict between the two sides.

  The ten sons of Emperor Jun, the master of the Youzu Heavenly Court, suddenly ran to the Honghuang Tiankong for some reason. Due to their shallow cultivation, they could not control their own solar true fire and burned down many settlements of the Wu tribe along the way, killing a large number of Wu people. They were chased by Da Wu Kuafu, but Kuafu was also unable to withstand the power of the solar true fire and died from exhaustion. Later, Yi shot down nine golden crow princes, and this conflict between the Honghuang Wu and Yao could no longer be suppressed.

  In an instant, blood and flesh flew everywhere, with slaughter between the two tribes of witches and demons all around.

  Xun Daozi is on Xun Dao Mountain, coldly watching the witches and demons slaughter each other. He doesn't care about the black hand behind the scenes that is driving the conflict between the witches and demons. Instead, he lives a peaceful and warm life of cultivation on Xun Dao Mountain, occasionally urging his disciples and taking walks around the human settlements surrounding Xun Dao Mountain.

  Decades later, the witch and the demon had a final battle at Mount Buzhou. Xun Daozi led Stone Warrior's troops to block the way, relocating thousands of witches from the tribe into Mount Xundao, not allowing them to leave. Although many people, including Stone Warrior, were puzzled and even thought that Xun Daozi was intentionally blocking their way to help the demon clan, under the pressure of Xun Daozi, San Yan Snow Lion Beast, and three Su Xin great Luo realm cultivators, they had no choice but to trust Xun Daozi's good intentions and temporarily stayed in Mount Xundao.

  Xun Dao Zi intercepts Shi Yong's unit and safely disposes of them on Xun Dao Mountain, then closely pays attention to the development of the witch and demon's decisive battle.

  After calculating that the two tribes had gathered at Bu Zhou Mountain, Xun Daozi also made some arrangements for the affairs of Xun Dao Mountain. The three-eyed snow lion beast also stayed on Xun Dao Mountain to assist Su Xin and Zhen Ci in dealing with Shi Yong and other witch tribe members. In this great calamity, Xun Daozi was afraid that Shi Yong and others would be trapped by the calamity and do things unfavorable to Xun Dao Mountain.

  Xun Daozi's body entered the vast wilderness, rushing in the direction of Buzhou Mountain. Due to his insufficient strength, Xun Daozi had to set out early in order to arrive at Buzhou Mountain before its collapse and witness the greatest calamity in this vast wilderness.

  They rushed to the scene, and by the time they arrived at Mount Buzhou, the battle between the witches and the demons had already reached its climax. The eleven ancestral witches self-destructed one after another, causing the Zhou Tian Xing Dou Great Array to collapse, Mount Buzhou to crumble, the Primordial Chaos to shatter, and the Heavenly River to hang upside down. Many of the great sages of the demon tribe were killed, including Emperor Jun, Taiyi, and Fuxi, who all died and had their Dao extinguished. Several old ancestors of the dragon tribe in the Da Luo realm also failed to escape, leaving only Kunpeng to flee back to the North Ming alone.

  When Zidu arrived at Mount Buzhou, he happened to see six saints also arriving at Mount Buzhou. The heavenly canopy above had broken, with the Weak Waters hanging upside down; earth, water, fire and wind were in turmoil, the sky was shaking violently, and seemed about to collapse.

  Yuanshi looked up and shouted, instantly transforming into a massive void shadow that propped up the tottering sky with both hands. Laozi took out the "Taiji Diagram" to stabilize the shattered void and prevent it from flowing wildly. Tongtian transformed the "Qiankun Ding" into an enormous cauldron to catch the falling weak water. The other deities also hastened to use their abilities, either stabilizing the fractured land or gathering the weak water that was rampaging on the ground. Nüwa took out the "Mountain and River Map" to protect the living beings of the desolate wilderness and sent away the demons that had not fallen near Mount Buzhou. Meanwhile, Laozi quietly took away many witch tribes.

  Finally, all the weak water on the ground was collected, and the earth no longer cracked or split. The void was stabilized, and the sky stopped shaking. Only the cracks remained conspicuous, with weak water still seeping out of them. The giant "Dry Sky Tripod" continued to catch the leaking weak water. Laozi's "Taiji Diagram" flashed a blue light on the heavenly curtain, stabilizing the void. Yuanshi had put down his hands but was ready to hold up the falling heavenly curtain again at any moment. As he withdrew his hand, he saw the half of Mount Buzhou lying on its side nearby. Moved by this sight, Yuanshi's massive figure spread out his sleeves and gently swept them across, collecting the half of Mount Buzhou into his sleeve.

  Xun Daozi also took out the 'Hunyuan Furnace' to collect the weak water that flowed onto the ground when the six saints were busy. At this time, seeing that all the saints had finished their work, he hurried forward to pay his respects to his master Yuanshi and his uncle, as well as Nüwa, Jieyin, and Zhunti.

  Zhun Ti, however, returned the courtesy with a serious expression, making Xun Daozi think that he couldn't let go. With a sincere look on his face, Zhun Ti began to speak: "I, Zhun Ti, was once not like this, but because of my friend's guidance, I was able to greatly enlighten and understand the truth, thus having today's opportunity to attain the ultimate reality; therefore, I thank you!"

  He had once attempted to seize the treasure of Xun Daozi on Mount Bu Zhou, but was ultimately thwarted by Yuan Shi's trio, who forcefully took the 'Qing Lian Treasure Flag'. However, this incident allowed him to gain insight into himself and eventually attain the Heavenly Way of Hunyuan. In reality, even without that incident, Zhunti could have relied on other opportunities to attain the Heavenly Way of Hunyuan. Yet, he felt that it was due to that incident that he owed Xun Daozi a debt of karma, so he wanted to take this opportunity to express his gratitude and settle this karma.

  Xun Daozi didn't dodge Zhunti's courtesy, and immediately knelt down to say: "Xun Daozi doesn't dare take credit, the saint's opportunity lies in his own body, the master's proof of the Tao is mixed with the origin only because of his own merit. Xun Daozi should not thank the master!" After finishing speaking, he knelt again and retreated to stand beside his master Yuan Shi.

  At this moment, the sky was filled with a radiant glow, auspicious energy rose, heavenly music echoed, and fragrant scents wafted through the air. The Taoist ancestor appeared in mid-air, and Laozi and other saints immediately knelt down to pay their respects. Xun Daozi also followed behind them, prostrating himself on the ground. Only then did they hear Laozi and others call out: "Greetings, Master! May your sacred life be boundless!" And Xun Daozi called out from behind: "Xun Daozi pays his respects to the Ancestral Master, may the Ancestral Master's blessings and longevity be boundless!"

  "Hong Jun Dao Zu said with a wave of his hand: 'You all get up, this chaotic and fragmented world still needs you to clean it up!'"

  Everyone stood up and stood on one side.

  Hong Jun looked at Xun Daozi with a faint gaze, and this glance made Xun Daozi's heart tremble with fear.

  Xun Daozi can bear the responsibility of protecting Hongyuan, but now Hongyuan has been broken, will the founder of Hongyuan pursue responsibility?

  Fortunately, Hong Jun Dao Zu only glanced at the six saints and said: "You will now re-refine this broken Hongyuan, and it's not necessary to refine it into one piece. You can each refine a large piece into a continent, and those that have flown into the sea can stay in the sea. The larger ones can be refined, and the smaller ones can evolve on their own; those that have flown into the void don't need to be searched for. You will divide the work and re-refine this Hongyuan, repair the sky curtain, and then come to the Zi Xuan Palace to see me!"

  After finishing speaking, the figure of Hong Jun Dao Zu in the colorful cloud gradually became blurred and disappeared. Lao Zi and others bowed down to the ground again, shouting: "See off the Master (Shi Zu)!"

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