Nuwa returned to her former residence in Fengqi Mountain. Di Jun and Tai Yi personally paid her a visit. She did not agree to Di Jun's request to annihilate the Wu clan, but she did declare that she would still fight for the demon race.
However, Nuwa also explicitly stated that although she had become a Saint, transcending all beings, she still had the Heavenly Dao above her. The Heavenly Dao did not permit her to arbitrarily disrupt the grand momentum of heaven and earth.
Di Jun and Tai Yi were not overly disappointed. They had long harbored suspicions about Saints. After Dao Ancestor achieved sainthood, he had left the Primordial World and entered the chaos, rarely interfering in the major affairs of the Primordial World.
But as long as Nuwa was still willing to fight for the demon race, she was the Saint of the demon race!
After Nuwa attained sainthood, she entered seclusion.
This was not only to consolidate her Hunyuan foundation but also to reconstruct her elder brother's true spirit. Only a Saint possessed such heaven-defying means.
The human race, created by Nuwa, also began their distinct journeys.
The two hundred thousand humans, protected by Nuwa's descendants, entered the Well Demon Domain, one of the twenty-eight demon domains, and lived alongside the southern demon race.
Because the human race was created by Empress Nuwa, all the demon clans treated them with great care, partitioning a mountain range of a hundred thousand li for the humans to recuperate and prosper.
The first generation of humans was formed from the Nine Heavens Xi Soil and Three Light Divine Water, among other rare treasures, and imbued with Nuwa's vital blood, giving them extraordinary innate potential.
Merely by relying on the common demon cultivation techniques passed down from the Demon Master Palace, several of them achieved Golden Immortal Demon Lord status within a thousand years. Each human was at least a Celestial Immortal realm Heavenly Demon!
The first generation of humans was born with cultivation physiques and possessed remarkable fortune. They leveraged the luck of the demon race to rise, their cultivation speed a cause for envy.
As for the humans residing in the Heavenly Court amongst hundreds of other races, they were even more formidable. Under the tutelage of a multitude of demon gods and demon Saints, within a mere ten thousand years, several Grand Unity Demon Lords had emerged!
However, the reproductive speed of the first generation of humans was not as rapid as their cultivation; it was, in fact, arduous.
What surprised Qing Ling even more was that there were no mortals among the first generation of humans.
The ninety thousand humans in the Eastern Wilderness, under the tutelage of the two ancient clans, gradually formed a tribal clan system. They were close to nature and not adept at warfare, possessing profound understanding in areas of spiritual herbs and elixirs.
Although all three branches of the human race were rapidly rising, they differed greatly.
The humans in the Heavenly Realm had already been dispersed, favored and taken in by various demon Saints and Demon Lords, some even being taught their lifelong ultimate techniques as personal disciples.
The sense of clan among the Heavenly Realm humans was weak, but they had completely integrated into the entire demon race.
The human race in the lower realm, protected by Nuwa's descendants, was divided into dozens of small tribes, some honing themselves through battles with the Wu clan at the borders of the demon domains, while others left their clans to seek great powers in famous mountains and rivers, in pursuit of the Great Dao.
It was unknown how many of them had thus disappeared into the vast Primordial World, either meeting untimely ends or being captured by powerful beings for unknown experiments.
Mount Kunlun, as a dwelling place of renowned great powers in the Primordial World, naturally attracted humans seeking the Great Dao.
Even Lao Tzu, who had always been reluctant to accept disciples, was moved by the potential of the human race and accepted one human disciple, bestowing upon him the name Xuan Du.
Yuan Shi, always picky and self-important, could not help but accept five, bestowing upon them the names: Ci Hang, Pu Xian, Wen Shu, Chi Jing Zi, and Qing Xu.
Tong Tian also felt a pang of envy. It was a pity that Mount Kunlun was far away, and few humans came to seek the Dao there. Among the Three Pure Ones, he had the most disciples, so it was not appropriate for him to compete with his senior brothers for disciples. He did not get any, which made the great power, who enjoyed teaching, extremely regretful. He was determined to take in more human disciples in the future to compensate!
The fame of Nuwa creating humans and becoming a Saint spread throughout the Primordial World. Ming He in the Nether Blood Sea was deeply moved. After secretly studying the human race and even referencing the souls of several recently deceased humans who had arrived in the Netherworld, he began to enter seclusion.
Other great powers also followed suit.
Seeing the potential of the human race, the two Saints of the West, Zhun Ti, traveled thousands of miles. He spoke eloquently to every human he encountered, moving many to willingly follow Zhun Ti to the West.
The human race's name had become too great, its reach extending throughout the Primordial World. Being so scarce, humans became highly sought after. Countless rogue cultivators and great powers wished to accept human disciples.
Quite a number of humans from the Heavenly Realm and the demon domains were lost to other factions, but the ninety thousand humans in the Eastern Wilderness remained untouched. The prestige of the Jian Mu was far-reaching, and no great power dared to venture there.
The ninety thousand humans from that year had gradually reproduced and expanded to hundreds of thousands, thus becoming the most numerous among the three lineages of humans.
Qing Ling sat cross-legged at the Jian Mu for a long time. Ten thousand years passed in the blink of an eye. The changes in the human race surprised him somewhat, but they were still within his expectations.
He then peacefully contemplated the Great Dao, remaining detached from external affairs.
Within Qing Ling, the Da Luo Dao Cang Realm had long since evolved into a Great Thousand World. The world seemed boundless, with the Wood Dao reigning supreme, and his magical power flowed inexhaustibly.
If the Qi Hai Qing Yun of the thirty-first layer of heaven were to unfurl, it would likely span hundreds of millions of li.
This magical power was the fruit of his countless eons of diligent cultivation, accumulated drop by drop towards perfection.
The number of great powers of the Wood Dao in the heavens and earth was dwindling. Even the transformation of innate spiritual roots was becoming increasingly difficult, making the path of the Wood Dao ever more arduous and challenging.
All of this was because Qing Ling was absorbing the Wood Dao of the entire world to reach a state of perfection.
The path he was treading had only been successfully traversed by Hong Jun. However, Hong Jun had already merged with the Dao, leaving Qing Ling with no experience to draw upon. Everything had to be explored by himself.
Despite being blessed with abundant luck, Qing Ling sensed that the suppression from the Heavenly Dao was growing heavier, making each step forward even more difficult.
Although the Three Pure Ones and the two Saints of the West were a generation behind him, they did not face the suppression of the Heavenly Dao; instead, they were aided by it. While his luck was abundant, it was also mixed.
The luck of the Three Pure Ones was derived from Pangu, of high quality and great quantity.
The two of the West, though drawing only from the luck of the Western lands, possessed it in large quantities and with great purity.
Qing Ling knew that his path was long, and his path to Hunyuan was exceptionally difficult. However, Qing Ling was determined to contend for it. The era of the Wu and Yao was the most suitable era for achieving the Dao; he could not miss it.
In a simple yet warm stone house within a Wu clan settlement, Chang'e removed the long bow from Hou Yi's back as he returned home. She asked with a puzzled expression, "This bow and these ten arrows are not the ones you usually use."
Hearing this, Hou Yi smiled and replied, "Indeed, they are not.
This bow was taken from the Pangu Hall by the Ancestral Wu and specially bestowed upon me. They said that I am the most skilled archer among the Wu clan, so it is best utilized."
Chang'e's heart skipped a beat. After a moment of hesitation, she frowned, "Are they sending you to shoot the Great Sun Golden Crow?"
Hou Yi scratched his head helplessly, "You truly hide nothing from me. Alright, don't think too much about it."
Chang'e sighed, "Even if you are a great witch comparable to the great powers of heaven and earth, you are about to shoot at supreme great powers. Even with the best bow, the best arrows, and the best timing, it is a venture with a nine-tenths chance of death!"
Hou Yi embraced Chang'e and said gently, "I know you are worried about me, but the demon heaven and Wu earth are locked in an unending struggle. I am a great witch of the Wu clan, and I must bear the sky for countless Wu people."
Chang'e's eyes reddened slightly, "This is the best era, where rituals are established but incomplete, orderly yet wild and free-spirited. I know your heart's reluctance and your responsibility towards the Wu clan, but you must also remember that you are my sky."
Three days later, Hou Yi left home and entered the Pangu Hall.
Chang'e left home and headed towards the Western Kunlun.