Time flowed like a rushing river. Following Jieyin's lead, Yuanshi and Tongtian successfully slew their second corpses in succession.
After a vast span of time, Zhunti finally reached that milestone as well. With this, all six of the Dao Ancestor's personal Disciples—the future Saints—had achieved the rank of Two-Corpse Quasi-Saints.
Tens of thousands of years had already slipped by during this period.
On the side of the Yao Race, Kunpeng did not disappoint. Holding his own against the tide, he became the second person after Nuwa to slay a second corpse.
Yet, despite this, the situation for the Yao Race remained anything but optimistic.
During these millennia, the strength of the Ancestral Witches had been surging at a terrifying pace.
The resources and benefits reaped from their territorial expansion had granted the lesser and greater Witches a massive leap in raw power. Furthermore, their mission to "Collect Pangu's Legacy" had bestowed upon them profound Luck and tangible spiritual rewards.
Initially, the Wu Clan targeted only the famous mountains and immortal Dao Fields transformed from Pangu's body. Eventually, however, they simply decided to sweep everything in their path. Wherever they marched, they fought.
Their logic was primitive yet effective: if they occupied the entirety of the Honghuang World, would that not be equivalent to gathering every last shard of their Father God's legacy?
Fueled by this conviction, they fought with an even greater ferocity, spreading outward from Mount Buzhou and turning every occupied territory into a Wu Clan stronghold.
The Sun Star.
Ling Xiao's Law of Fire and Law of Yang had both reached the Hun Yuan Golden Immortal Perfection.
Just one more step—the absolute mastery of a single Law—and he would cross the threshold into the Realm of Grand Unity Golden Immortal (Hun Yuan Great Luo).
Additionally, during these years, he had comprehended the Law of Metal. Utilizing the Sky-Swallowing Gourd, he had also grasped the Law of Devouring.
With this, he had gathered all Five Elements Laws: Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth. By fusing them, he could now begin to comprehend the true, unified Five Elements Law.
"Finally... I am close. Only a single barrier remains before the Grand Unity Golden Immortal Realm..."
Ling Xiao whispered to himself. Laws manifested within his eyes, evolving into terrifying celestial anomalies. Every slight movement of his frame carried a monumental Divine Might.
Having reached the peak of the Hun Yuan Golden Immortal stage, he stood before the final wall. Breaking it would usher him into a new reality of existence.
However, experience told him that this final step was often the most arduous; it could be achieved in a flash, or it could take an eternity.
Ling Xiao had a clear plan: he would use his Fire or Yang Laws to charge into the Grand Unity Realm first, then gradually refine his other mastered Laws. He had no intention of waiting for every single Law to reach Perfection before making the leap.
Ling Xiao's gaze drifted toward another sector of the Sun Star. Dijun and Tai Yi remained in deep seclusion, attempting to break through to the Late Stage of the Hun Yuan Golden Immortal Realm. Tens of thousands of years had passed, yet there was still no sign of their emergence.
This was an inevitability. Cultivating Laws followed a logarithmic scale; the closer one got to the end, the more difficult the path became.
Even with fragments of the Jade Disc of Creation, it required vast amounts of time. Without treasures like the Jade Disc or the Chaos Pearl, the Path of Laws would indeed be a dead end for most.
Ling Xiao could feel that over these millennia, the suppression from the Heavenly Dao had grown increasingly potent.
This signaled that Hongjun's integration with the Dao was nearing completion. The purpose of "Merging with the Dao" was to perfect the Heavenly Dao. As the Dao grew whole, it naturally began to exert a restrictive pressure over the entire Honghuang World.
From this point forward, for ordinary living beings, the Path of Laws was effectively severed.
Fortunately, Ling Xiao and his brothers possessed "cheats"; otherwise, their progress would have ground to a halt.
[Ding! Detected that the Witch-Demon Calamity has entered a critical phase. The Yao Race is suffering continuous defeats and requires support. Please make your choice!]
[Choice 1: Emerge from seclusion immediately. Turn the tide of battle, sweep aside the Wu Clan, and slay the Twelve Ancestral Witches. Reward: Three drops of Pangu Essence.]
[Choice 2: Remain steady and do not emerge. Refuse to enter the Tribulation. Reward: One Innate Spirit Treasure.]
As Ling Xiao was pondering the state of the world, the long-absent voice of the System rang out, carrying a rich and tempting offer.
"A critical phase..."
Ling Xiao mused. The term "critical" was intriguing. Just how critical the situation had become remained to be seen.
"Three drops of Pangu Essence..."
"Pangu truly is unlucky. Even after his death and the transformation of his body into the world, the System still manages to extract his marrow."
Ling Xiao joked to himself, unable to suppress a smile. The reward designed to lure him out was clearly calculated by the System.
Three drops. Not one, not ten—exactly three.
One for each of the Three Crows.
Unfortunately for the System, his resolve to stay out of the Tribulation was absolute. No matter how glittering the reward, it would not move him.
"System, I choose Option 2."
Ling Xiao made his choice instantly. He had chosen the second option so many times he felt he was becoming synonymous with the word "Steady."
"No reward shall sway my heart for Cultivation!"
Ling Xiao steeled his will, purged his thoughts, and returned to his meditative state.
The Hundred Thousand Great Mountains; Yao Race Headquarters.
"The Wu Clan's offensive grows more savage by the day! If this continues, I fear we won't even be able to hold the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains!"
Kunpeng's voice rang out, laced with a frantic, desperate irritation. His face was a mask of shadow, directed not only at the Witches but at his own comrades, whom he secretly blamed for their inability to hold the line.
"I have a premonition. This time, the Wu Clan possesses a conviction for absolute victory. It seems they will not stop until we are utterly eradicated," Fuxi said gravely. His mastery of deduction allowed him to glimpse a dark truth that remained hidden from others.
"Fear them for what? At worst, we simply fight to the death and take them with us!" Gui Che shouted in a rage. He was past the point of reason; in his clashes with the Ancestral Witches over the years, he had lost nearly all his heads multiple times. The humiliation was driving him insane.
"Save your breath, Gui Che. If we actually had the ability to take them with us, we wouldn't have been beaten into this pathetic state!" Ji Meng said helplessly. He was merely stating the cold truth.
These tens of thousands of years had almost broken the Yao Race's spirit. They had initially hoped that Nuwa's Demon Script and their surge in Luck would give them the edge, but the reality remained unchanged. As they grew stronger, the Witches seemed to grow stronger even faster.
Nuwa listened to the arguments of her generals, her expression one of solemn, heavy concern.
"Tens of thousands of years ago, it seems the trace of the Great God Pangu's Will granted the Wu Clan immense benefits. That is the source of their current surge," she analyzed calmly.
She had personally traded blows with Di Jiang during the recent skirmishes. To her shock, she found that even though she had slain her second corpse and held massive Karma, she could only fight Di Jiang to a stalemate.
The rate of the Twelve Ancestral Witches' growth was simply incomprehensible.
"Curse them! Why do those barbarians possess such fortune?" one of the Great Yao vented, his breath sounding like rolling thunder. They had worked so hard, yet they could not catch up. Did Pangu favor them simply because they were "physically incomplete" descendants?
"At this stage, we have only one option left: we must invite external assistance!"
At that moment, Bai Ze, who had remained silent, slowly spoke while idly waving his feather fan.