As the second lecture concluded, Hongjun suddenly called out, “Taiyin Xihe.”
Xihe froze for a moment, then immediately stood up and bowed. “Xihe is here. What instructions does the Dao Ancestor have?”
Hongjun remained silent. Xihe lowered her gaze and did not inquire further, yet she could feel the immense pressure emanating from the person before her.
This was not a deliberate attack on her but rather the natural aura of a Saint—like the awe one feels when gazing upon towering mountains or the vastness of the sea. At this moment, Hongjun gave her the sensation of billions of mountains pressing down on her head, an unbearable weight.
Almost instinctively, a sense of resistance arose, and her Great Dao Double Pupils instinctively activated in defiance.
This tormented Xihe—she was merely a Taiyi!
A mouthful of blood sprayed out, her double pupils throbbing with pain. Her body swayed but was steadied by an embrace.
“Dao Ancestor, Xihe had no intention of disrespect. Please understand,” Tongtian said, holding her as he bowed.
The eldest of the Three Pure Ones could no longer remain seated. He angrily exclaimed, “Nonsense! How dare you speak in the presence of the Dao Ancestor? Return at once!”
Zhunti feigned righteousness, saying, “Tongtian, your words are mistaken. Fellow Daoist Xihe is unruly and should be disciplined.”
Hongyunzi immediately stood up and retorted, “Zhunti, do not speak nonsense! Fellow Daoist Xihe’s character is as pure as the bright moon, gentle and easy to get along with. She would never disrespect the Dao Ancestor. There must be a misunderstanding here.”
Zhenyuanzi also nodded in agreement. “Fellow Daoist Xihe is beautiful in appearance and kind at heart, a model for us cultivators.”
The corners of everyone’s mouths twitched. These two were truly shameless! How could they utter such words with a straight face? Xihe, that woman who constantly spewed vulgarities, as pure as the bright moon?
How could they say such things against their conscience?
Hongjun raised his hand, silencing everyone. Dao essence instantly restored Xihe’s injuries.
“Though I am a Saint, your eyes have awakened the Great Dao Double Pupils. The Great Dao will not submit to anyone, hence the instinctive resistance. Your cultivation is weak, which is why you were injured in the backlash.”
Xihe quickly bowed. “Thank you, Saint, for clarifying.”
Hongjun nodded. “Good. Those with the Great Dao Double Pupils can perceive all falsehoods. For cultivation, the path is smooth, with almost no bottlenecks. I wish to take you as my personal disciple. Are you willing?”
Xihe was shocked. What the hell? What is this about?
Wasn’t the selection of disciples supposed to happen after the lectures? And I wasn’t even among the candidates. Could it be because I disrupted fate by seizing the Prayer Mat?
Even the Saint could not suppress the commotion. Now, no one could remain seated. They all stood up, looking at Xihe in disbelief.
Among them, the faces of those from the West and Kunpeng were the ugliest.
Hongyunzi and Zhenyuanzi, however, wore expressions of delight. A Saint’s personal disciple—who would dare to touch someone with such a status?
Under the gaze of all, Tongtian gently nudged her, signaling her to accept quickly.
If Xihe could show her expression at this moment, it would undoubtedly be a deathly green. Because when the Saint spoke, the System also spoke.
[Pretentious Task Issued: Refuse to become Hongjun’s disciple. Reward: Heavenly Dao’s Ominous Treasure—Heaven-Suppressing Coffin.]
[Task Failure: Deduct all task rewards.]
Xihe’s heart was in turmoil. The Heaven-Suppressing Coffin! Isn’t that the companion treasure of the Sealing Demon among the Three Thousand Chaos Gods?
Who are the Three Thousand Chaos Gods? They were the opponents of Father God Pangu!
Later, that coffin seemed to have fallen into the hands of the Demon Ancestor Luo Hou…
What is going on with this System? This time, failure means losing all rewards. In other words, the System absolutely forbids me from having any connection with Hongjun, yet it insists on making me jump around right in front of him.
Is there some kind of grudge here?
While her heart was roiling with shock, Xihe’s face remained that of an icy beauty.
As everyone grew impatient, Xihe bowed and said, “Dao Ancestor, although I was born from Pangu Father God’s right eye, my cultivation has always been weaker than that of my fellow Daoists. How could I be worthy of becoming your disciple? I dare not bring shame upon the Dao Ancestor!”
She actually refused!
This time, the entire hall fell into dead silence. Everyone looked at Xihe as if she were a fool. Even Tongtian, standing to the side, wore an expression of utter confusion.
Hongjun was now the supreme power in the Primordial World. Aligning with him meant a chance to become a Saint. Why would she refuse?
Amid the silence, Hongjun spoke: “Since you are unwilling, it means you have no affinity with me. So be it. All of you may disperse. The next lecture on the Saintly Dao will still be three thousand years from now!”
As soon as Hongjun left, Yuanshi was the first to voice his displeasure: “How dare you reject a Saint’s goodwill? You deserve to perish and vanish from this Primordial World!”
“Amitabha, Fellow Daoist, you have no affinity with the Great Dao!” Zhunti chimed in.
Nuwa also looked perplexed: “Fellow Daoist Xihe, what were you thinking? That was the chance to become a Direct Disciple of a Saint. Do you not wish to achieve Sainthood?”
Kunpeng sneered: “Truly seeking death.”
Xihe stood surrounded by everyone. Even Hongyunzi and Zhenyuanzi wore disapproving expressions.
“One innate spiritual treasure and five ginseng fruits to settle our karma,” Xihe demanded without hesitation.
Zhenyuanzi was taken aback but did not refuse, producing five ginseng fruits. Noticing Hongyunzi’s embarrassed expression and knowing he was too poor to offer a spiritual treasure, Xihe immediately handed over another five ginseng fruits.
“This humble Daoist will temporarily cover Fellow Daoist Hongyunzi’s share. Will spiritual fruits suffice?”
Xihe nodded, waving her hand to accept them. “I intend to leave. If any of you harbor ulterior motives, I am unafraid. Farewell, fellow Daoists.”
With that, she tore through space right within the Purple Heaven Palace and stepped into the rift.
There were too many oddities about Xihe. No one was curious anymore about why someone cultivating Taiyin Power could wield spatial laws.
Everyone merely stared at the closing spatial rift, their expressions hesitant.
Even though she had refused, she was still someone the Dao Ancestor had taken notice of. What if, during the next lecture, the Dao Ancestor mentioned Xihe, and they had already killed her…
While Emperor Taiyi remained unmoved, the two Western Buddhas did not hesitate and stepped directly into the rift.
Kunpeng followed closely behind!
Kunpeng now hated not Hongyunzi the most, but Xihe, who had utterly humiliated him.
All three were still at the mid-stage Daluo realm. With the three of them joining forces against a single late-stage Taiyi cultivator, no one believed Xihe would survive. Many sighed in pity.
Just as the spatial rift was about to close completely, Tongtian took a step forward.
But he was simultaneously stopped by his two elder brothers. Taiqing Laozi spoke: “Do not involve yourself further with one who has no affinity with the Great Dao.”
Yuanshi was more direct, scoffing: “Junior Brother Tongtian, as one of the Three Pure Ones, do not tarnish our reputation. How can you be swayed by feminine charms and still claim to be the true lineage of Pangu?”
With that delay, the spatial rift vanished entirely. Without a word, Tongtian transformed into a beam of light and departed.
The others suddenly understood: No wonder her cultivation was a whole realm higher, yet she had still taken his sword. So it was out of pity for her beauty!
Sensing that she was locked onto by the three, Xihe did not panic. Following her plan, she forcefully struck the Dijiang imprint within the spatial laws.
Her idea was to provoke Dijiang and frame the three, while she seized the chance to escape.
But as luck would have it, the moment she destroyed Dijiang’s imprint, the System announced: 【Congratulations, Host, for completing the show-off mission. Reward issued.】
The instant a black coffin, emitting dark smoke and bound by chains, appeared in her sea of consciousness, Demonic Qi instantly devoured her divine sense.
Xihe knew nothing anymore; her mind held only one word: “Kill!”
A mere Taiyi, fearless of death, faced the three without a word and struck directly.
The half-black, half-white innate Twelve-petaled Pure World White Lotus, tainted by Demonic Qi, was summoned in a vain attempt to suppress the three Daluo.
Then, using the Fire Spirit Pearl, she unleashed the Blazing Heaven Palm.
At this moment, the Blazing Heaven Palm was many times more powerful than the last time she had used it, yet the gap in cultivation was insurmountable.
Zhunti uttered, “Amitabha,” and the Pure World White Lotus was repelled.
Kunpeng sneered coldly, tearing the fiery palm apart with his wings.
Jieyin had already reached behind Xihe, striking her spine with a golden palm. Xihe was severely injured, her body plummeting downward.