Chapter Seventeen: The Creation of the Universe and the Emergence of the Five Elements

  Xuan Ao finished his task and came to see Zhen Yuanzi. Zhen Yuanzi said, "I didn't expect you still had such karma on your body. You are located in the center, belonging to the pre-heavenly earth element, which is exactly what is needed to verify the birth of spirits and suppress the Wu-Xu earth element. Now if you follow me to cultivate and leave your post, it will cause the central Wu-Xu earth element to become unstable. This will make the five elements unstable and the Honghuang (vast and chaotic) world restless. What should be done?"

  He furrowed his brow in thought for a moment, then said: "Alright, I'll come up with a plan to substitute one thing for another. I don't know if it will work or not. Give me three drops of your pure blood."

  Xuan Ao followed his words, took three drops of his own essence blood and Zhenyuanzi. Zhenyuanzi also took a portion of the earth from the Book of Earth to the Treasure Mixed Soil, combined it with the essence blood, put it into the Creation Furnace, added many materials, then started the divine work, urged the true fire, opened the furnace and refined it.

  He intended to use the alchemical power of the Huá Dǐng to refine a living spirit, replacing Xuān Kǎo and suppressing the central Wù Jǐ earth. Xuān Kǎo belongs to the earth element, as the spiritual leader of the earth element. Although Zhēn Yuán Zǐ took his essence blood, he was still afraid that the power of the earth element would not be enough to suppress it, so he added a portion of Hún Dùn Xī Rǎng to it.

  It's much harder to create a living being than to refine a treasure, and he had never tried it before, so he didn't have any experience, therefore even he himself was uncertain whether he would succeed or not.

  Nine days later, a sudden strange phenomenon occurred. Five-colored auspicious clouds enveloped the mountain valley, and strange sounds and fragrances filled the air. In front of Zhenyuanzi, a beast leaped out from the tripod in his alchemical laboratory. Its body was bright yellow, with the shape of a deer, the tail of an ox, the hooves of a horse, and the scales of a fish. On its head were horns - it was a Qilin.

  The five-colored auspicious cloud descended and covered the Qilin, and in an instant it was absorbed into its body. Zhenyuanzi saw that it was successful and was overjoyed. He had exerted his utmost effort this time, and now he felt extremely exhausted and couldn't speak.

  This time, the creation of Qilin is in accordance with the will of heaven, so it is different from the refining of Xuanlong Yin. Not only is there no disaster or calamity, but also auspicious clouds with five-colored merits.

  Qilin was born, the earth was spiritual and surging, in the bright yellow, five colors were hidden, with a dignified and majestic demeanor, worthy of being a sacred beast born to respond to the fate!

  Its body is derived from the essence of Xuanhe's blood, so its shape is similar to that of Xuanhe in four or five ways. However, many other materials have been added, making it seem like but not quite the same as Xuanhe, with some differences.

  In fact, creating a spiritual being is thousands of times more difficult than refining a spiritual treasure. How could it be so easy to succeed? It's just that Zhenyuanzi's move was in line with the fate, and Qilin was destined to be born, so there was the help of heaven, and he barely succeeded. Although this is the case, even he himself does not understand many reasons.

  This Qilin is also extraordinary, the first Qilin in the vast expanse of the universe. Although it only inherited some of Xuanhao's divine powers, due to Zhongyuanzi adding the essence of chaos and other heavenly treasures during its creation, its earth-elemental spirit energy is enough to suppress the central region and control the earth-elemental energy of the vast expanse. As long as it steps on the land of the vast expanse, it can summon the earth-elemental spirit energy of the vast expanse, defend against the extraordinary, and in battle, it can stand undefeated from the start.

  That Qilin is indeed a spiritual being, knowing that it was created by Zhenyuanzi. It lowered its head and swung its tail in front of Zhenyuanzi, showing great gratitude. However, it had just been created, like a newborn baby, and did not know how to speak. Zhenyuanzi said: "You are predestined to belong to the earth element, according to the heavenly numbers you should reside in the center, suppressing the earth element. From now on, although you have a free body, no one will restrain you, but remember that you must not stay too long in the border areas, causing the center to lose its suppression, and the five elements to become unstable, bringing disaster to the Honghuang. If this happens, the guilt will fall on your body, and you will have to face retribution. You must be careful. In the future, when I open the mountain gate and establish a sect, you can come and serve as my guardian deity!"

  Qilin heard this and left with joy.

  This Qilin was born from a dragon, inheriting the dragon's innate nature and extraordinary strength, with no one to restrain it. Although it listened to Zhongyuanzi's words and didn't dare leave the Central Wilderness for too long, overall, it remained free-spirited. Thus, in the Wilderness, it roamed freely, creating clouds and rain at will, and soon gave rise to a tribe of Qilins, becoming the leader of the walking beasts. This is a later story, let's not mention it for now.

  Zhenyuanzi succeeded in becoming the Central Divine Beast, and this move conformed to the Heavenly Way. Then, a five-colored merit spirit cloud descended again, which was absorbed into his body by Zhenyuanzi.

  This was the first time Zhenyuanzi had received such a blessing, and he felt his entire body refreshed, exceptionally comfortable. The fatigue from cultivating the Dao was swept away. After absorbing it, although his magical powers hadn't increased, his mind became even clearer and more transparent. He felt that things he couldn't calculate before were now suddenly clear.

  This is the function of merit. If one's body possesses merit, they will naturally receive the protection of the heavenly way, and everything will go smoothly and auspiciously. When merit accumulates to a certain extent, it is also possible to become a sage.

  Zhenyuanzi once again ordered Xuan Ao to enter the Xuanlong Yin, and then measured his body to create a customized fit, according to Xuan Ao's wishes. Using the Huahua Ding, he tempered this seal for a while. After several months, he finally thoroughly completed this pre-heavenly treasure!

  He made plans for future generations, but didn't know that this seal originally had a great origin.

  In his previous life, the collapsed half of Mount Buzhou was refined by Yuanshi Tianzun into the Fantian Seal - this treasure, although it is a later heaven, has great power and is not inferior to the first heaven's ultimate treasure. It shone brightly in the war of sealing the gods. Later, he took out the remaining half of Mount Buzhou's spinal cord spiritual liquid and refined it into a jade seal. The Primordial Heavenly Lord also attached great importance to this seal and granted it to Guangchengzi, one of the twelve Golden Immortals and the first immortal to strike the bell in the Jade Void Palace. Guangchengzi was the teacher of the Yellow Emperor, so he passed on the seal to the Yellow Emperor. The Yellow Emperor obtained the seal and used it to issue documents and govern the human tribe. Later, the human tribe prospered and became unified, and the seal also had great merit. Because Guangchengzi met the Yellow Emperor at Mount Kongtong, this seal was called the Kongtong Seal, which is the imperial seal of the human emperor, a later heaven's ultimate treasure, and is known as a divine instrument in the human tribe!

  No matter whether it's the Fantian Seal or the Kongtong Seal, their power source mostly comes from these spinal cord spiritual liquids. Now that Zhenyuanzi has almost taken them all away, even if those two treasures will still appear in the world later on, I'm afraid their powers will also be greatly discounted.

  After doing all this, Zhenyuanzi no longer continued to travel and search for treasures. The Pre-Heavenly Spiritual Treasures are all about opportunity. He had been searching in the Unborn Mountain for a long time, and his opportunities were exhausted. Forcing himself again would only waste his time, which was meaningless.

  He found this valley quiet and secluded, with a rich spiritual energy, so he dug out a temporary cave on the rock wall by the well and began to cultivate.

  He didn't think of occupying this mountain as a permanent Daoist temple. The reason is that the Buzhou Mountain was not very stable, and there were also entanglements of cause and effect. In the previous life, the witch fought, Gonggong broke off the Buzhou Mountain, and Yuqing Yuanshi Tianzun refined the broken top half of the mountain into a Fan Tian Yin, leaving the remaining half intact, so it was used as a Daoist temple. Because the name of Buzhou was not clear, the original Tianzun changed its name to Kunlun, which became the birthplace of the Xuanmen school.

  If we forcibly occupy this mountain, it's not impossible, but first, the mountain is a crucial hub and central location for the Honghuang sect, and everyone is watching; second, occupying the Daoist platform would require forming a karmic connection with the Three Pure Ones, especially the Primordial Heavenly Master. He wasn't afraid of the Primordial Heavenly Master, but rather thought that since he had his own scripture in hand, why couldn't he establish a Daoist platform anywhere? If things were to go sour because of this matter, it would be unwise!

  His two most important treasures, including the Taiji Jade Symbol, have been fully refined and infused with his true spirit, merging with his body to prevent anyone from snatching them. However, in the sea of recognition, there is still a Hongmeng Purple Qi that has not been fully comprehended, specifically the direct path to the Hunyuan Great Dao, which requires more time. Additionally, the functions of the Causal Furnace Refining Treasure and the Causal Birth Spirit, he had never used before, let alone studied thoroughly. Now, at the beginning of the Hongyuan era, he has used them twice in a row on Mount Buzhou, once to refine treasure and once to give birth to spirit, although successful, it was actually lucky. He also realized that the Causal Dao is extremely important, if the cultivation is not precise, the understanding is unclear, then lightly, the work will be ruined; heavily, strange things will be refined, inviting disaster. Therefore, it indeed requires careful study.

  In fact, the Huahua Ding and Dizhushu are the greatest treasures of the Great Way. In the forbidden techniques, there is a great way that leads directly to the Hunyuan method. Since he has already refined the two treasures, he naturally knows about these two methods as well. However, relying on intuition, he feels that the Taiji contained in the purple energy given by Pangu is his own verification method, so he focuses on contemplating it and doesn't pay much attention to other methods.

  It is unknown whether this is a blessing to the soul or a nostalgia for Pangu, and an obsession arises in the heart.

  In the mountains, there is no passage of time; in the world outside, a thousand years have passed. It's just that in the vastness of the universe, time is merely a unit of measurement, and by comparison, this doesn't amount to much.

  Zhenyuanzi obtained the help of previous merits and virtues, spent 600 years of time, and finally understood the purple energy, knowing the certification method. However, with this path to certify the Tao, it is still uncertain how much time is needed specifically.

  Having found the right direction, cultivation will no longer be hindered and will not be limited to the peak of Daluo Jinxian as before. There are already signs of a breakthrough.

  At this time, a major event occurred in the Desolate World. On that day, Zhenyuanzi was cultivating when he suddenly felt a premonition and looked westward. He saw a great god rising from the western sky, revealing his true form, with a height of tens of millions of feet. The surrounding auspicious clouds enveloped him, and the colorful auspicious aura was dazzling. Behind his head was a jade disc, and the edge of the jade disc had countless auspicious lights and aura, which made him appear even more sacred and solemn under the cover, making people feel that they could not gaze directly at him, and felt that this god was like Heaven and Earth, like the Great Dao itself.

  When that divine being appeared, infinite awe-inspiring power spread throughout the vast expanse. Every living being felt a deep sense of reverence and sincerely bowed to the divine being with utmost respect, feeling as if they were in the presence of their own father or mother. The emotions of admiration and adoration were overwhelming, causing most to shed hot tears! Even Zhongyangzi stood with hands clasped together, not daring to show any disrespect.

  This person is not ordinary, but the pre-heavenly divine abode of the primordial chaos, the Hongyuan Daoist. After the opening of heaven, he obtained the largest fragment of the creation jade disc in the west of Mount Buzhou, and thus enlightened to the Great Way, becoming the first among all living beings to attain the Dao and achieve sainthood. Later generations have a poem as proof:

  High aloft on clouds of ninefold thickness

  The lotus has bloomed in the pond.

  The universe is vast and mysterious outside,

  I will be the leader of the sect.

  Pangu gave birth to Taiji

  Two Instruments and Four Symbols

  One dish for three friends

  Two Teachings on the Distinction between Phenomena and Noumenon

  The leader of the Xuanmen sect

  One breath of harmony.

  Only then did the divine being speak, saying: "I have obtained the divine instrument of creation, prior to all things. I will verify the Dao and mix with the origin, and undertake the responsibility of teaching and transforming. Two hundred years later, I will be in the Purple Mist Palace outside the Thirty-Third Heaven, lecturing on the Dao and imparting its methods. You who have the fate of being born with a spiritual nature can come at that time. If the timing is not right, the Purple Mist Palace will not appear. When the timing passes, the Purple Mist Palace will be hidden in the midst of chaos. Do not hesitate, lest you miss the opportunity!" The voice was loud and clear, like the drum at dusk and the bell at dawn, shaking the deaf and awakening the dumb, spreading throughout the vast expanse. Even those who had just begun to open their spiritual awareness understood its meaning.

  It is indeed:

  Going with the natural order is easy, going against it is hard.

  The moral integrity of the creator is high.

  If there were no unicorn holding down Wu and Ji

  How can Xuēn ào escape his fate?