In the chaos, the Sanqing all sensed the fall of the Ancestral Witch in the Primordial World. However, they found no injuries among the four Emperor-level beings of the Demon Race, nor would they allow Nuwa to return to the Primordial World.
Like the Heavenly Dao, they harbored doubts. The Demon Race always seemed to transcend the limits set by the Heavenly Dao, always proceeding along its designated path in a manner that was both obscure and seemingly compliant.
The Sanqing jointly fought Nuwa, preventing her from entering the Primordial World.
As for capturing Nuwa, subduing a Saint, that was a laughable notion.
Even if five Saints were to arrive, they would still be incapable of capturing or suppressing Nuwa. Even if the last Saint to achieve enlightenment, Zhun Ti, were to replace one of them, the five Saints would still have no means of suppression.
This was because Hunyuan Saints resided in the chaos, free from the Heavenly Dao's suppression. They were like an infinite quantity. Even five infinities could not be greater than one. The very word "infinity" surpassed the realm of measurability. Therefore, in the chaos, the struggle among the six Saints would never result in a victor.
Unless, within the Primordial World, with the Heavenly Dao's suppression, the Saints joined forces.
But even then, a single misstep could shatter the Primordial World.
Yet, now, the Primordial World was already shattered.
Before Buzhou Mountain had even fallen, the Primordial World had fragmented into pieces of various sizes, and the fracturing continued to spread from the edges of the continent towards its center.
On the battlefield between the Witches and Demons, the Thunder and Lightning Ancestral Witches attacked Xihe with ferocity, disregarding their own injuries, giving Xihe no chance to breathe.
Di Jiang's eyes revealed madness. He stared fixedly at Xihe, his six wings flaring behind him. The power of the void descended, fixing space, suppressing Xihe.
Xueshibi's eyes were terrifyingly dark. He spat out a mouthful of blood and produced a doll-like figure. The blood flowed into the doll, transforming it into a lifelike infant, no bigger than his palm. Xueshibi spat out nine more mouthfuls of blood, and countless witch incantations were chanted into the infant.
In the firmament, the gates of thunder and lightning were flung wide open, and primordial lightning descended in torrents. Space was sealed, making escape impossible.
In Xihe's hand, the Moon Essence Wheel flew up, transforming into a vast waterfall of light that rushed forward. Above her, the Taiyin Mirror protected her body, and the Heavenly Empress's Golden Seal flew overhead, countless divine texts of enfeoffment rippling, forming layer upon layer of defense.
Rumble—
The terrifying lightning struck back the cascading light, and the Thunder and Lightning Ancestral Witches threw themselves into the gates of thunder and lightning. Thunder and lightning merged into one, and a primordial lightning of destruction descended.
The Dutian Divine Lightning!
Di Jun's expression changed drastically, and he moved to assist.
But Jumang and Di Jiang intercepted him again, fighting with equal desperation and yielding not an inch.
Gonggong turned to block Donghuang, and along with Rushou, stood before Donghuang.
Tianwu, regardless of the depletion of his vital blood, intercepted Kunpeng. After all, he was an Ancestral Witch of the Four Symbols, equivalent to a half-step Hunyuan. When fighting to the death, even Kunpeng had to concede some ground.
The Dutian Divine Lightning descended with the might of world-ending destruction, striking Xihe's heavy defenses.
Just then, Xueshibi suddenly crushed the human-shaped curse in his hand. A powerful and bizarre curse descended upon Xihe.
Xihe's face instantly turned pale, and she spat out essence blood. Her heart felt as if it had been directly crushed.
The Dutian Divine Lightning instantly breached the waterfall of light and the Taiyin Mirror, which were no longer being controlled by Xihe. Endless lightning enveloped Xihe.
Di Jun's face twisted in ferocity as he charged forward, but Di Jiang offered no quarter. At that moment, a divine light shot out, parting the terrifying lightning, snatching the Heavenly Empress's Golden Seal, and separating the thunderbolts.
Di Jiang roared, "Queen Mother of the West, how dare you oppose my Witch Clan?"
In the Western Kunlun Mountains, Wangmu calmly retrieved the Kunlun Mirror and replied, "I am taking my Golden Seal, what has it to do with you? Does your Queen Mother of the West fear your Witch Clan?"
At this moment, a light emerged from the moonlight, and a figure walked into the endless thunder prison, retrieving half of a broken moon.
The Thunder and Lightning Ancestral Witches retaliated with endless lightning, surrounding the newcomer. "Release Xihe!"
In the moonlit shadow, that peerless beauty caused all beings to lose themselves, but it did not affect the Ancestral Witches.
"I am here to retrieve my sister, what concern is it of yours?"
Qiangliang roared, "Chang'e, if you do not leave Xihe here today, I will send you to accompany Hou Yi, so as not to betray his affections."
Chang'e's eyes turned cold. She put away the broken moon and her clear voice rang out, "Sister, look, men are all unreliable."
Chang'e raised her hands, and a figure in white fluttered through the heavens and earth. Forty-eight thousand strands of pure white silk stretched to connect the sky and moon, dispelling the endless lightning. Moonlight paved the way, white silk formed the road, and the New Moon Goddess, with the origin of the Old Moon Goddess, returned to the Taiyin Star.
Di Jun lost himself in sorrow. He had failed to protect his wife, nor his children. He was not a good husband, nor a good father.
In the brief moment everyone was distracted by this turn of events, Kunpeng made a move that surprised them all.
Kunpeng retracted his Kun fish Good Corpse and Heavenly Peng Evil Corpse, merging them back into his true form. A majestic Kunpeng, roaming between heaven and earth, its ancient beastly aura unsettling all things.
"Moo—"
Kunpeng glided through the void, the firmament rippling like a vast ocean. An immense Kunpeng opened its maw, swallowing heaven and earth. Its terrifying devouring power consumed all things, even swallowing chunks of land into its belly.
And then, the two Ancestral Witches, Qiangliang and Xizi, who had just withdrawn their witch arts.
The faces of the Ancestral Witches changed greatly. Rushou shouted, "Kunpeng, you scoundrel, spit them out!"
Kunpeng flapped its enormous wings, and the world trembled. It vanished.
Kunpeng had returned to his Northern Darkness lair.
Di Jun and Taiyi exchanged glances, their eyes filled with confusion. They had never arranged for such a thing.
Di Jiang reacted, shouting, "No need to concern ourselves with that scoundrel Kunpeng. He cannot harm Eighth Brother and Ninth Brother for a while. Now, we need only kill Di Jun and Taiyi to win!"
Taiyi roared, "If you wish to kill me, then prepare to die!"
Taiyi once again brought forth the Witch-Slaying Sword, which slashed at Di Jiang.
Di Jiang flapped his six wings behind him and instantly moved away.
Xueshibi, Rushou, and Tianwu surrounded Taiyi. Di Jiang, Gonggong, and Jumang surrounded Di Jun.
Several Demon Gods stepped forward to assist, but they were no match for the might of the Ancestral Witches.
The Ghost Chariot was crushed by Xueshibi, with only its primordial spirit escaping.
Ying Zhao lost half its body to Di Jiang, but it still fought to the death, even self-detonating to injure Di Jiang.
The Tu Mountain Demon God had its nine tails severed by Rushou, and all nine of its lives were extinguished. It could not escape the calamity of the Witch and Demon war.
Ji Meng was pierced through the heart by Rushou's immeasurable sharp golden energy, its primordial spirit shattered.
The Qin Yuan Demon God had its head removed by Tianwu, but fortunately, its primordial spirit escaped and fled to the Undying Volcano.
Fei Lian was captured alive by Tianwu and imprisoned in the Ancestral Witch Hall.
Shang Yang, due to a golden hairpin bestowed by Empress Nuwa, managed to escape with his life. Heavily injured, he was rescued by Qi.
Bi Fang was struck down from the heavens by Gonggong's fists and fell into a fractured spatial rift, its whereabouts unknown.
Nine Infants was also killed by Xizi's myriad electric blades within the Zhou Tian Star Array.
The Ten Great Demon Gods, renowned in ancient times, were thus defeated.
However, this also came at a considerable cost to the six Ancestral Witches, all of whom sustained not minor injuries.
Taiyi had already suffered significant injuries in Xuanming's self-detonation. With the protection of the Eastern Emperor Bell and wielding the Witch-Slaying Sword, he could only fight the three Ancestral Witches to a draw.
As for the combat power of Di Jiang and Gonggong, when unleashed, it was comparable to a half-step Hunyuan. However, Di Jun was uninjured, and the River Chart and Lo Shu were defensive treasures that could also draw upon the residual power of the stars, making him difficult to overcome.
Seeing this, a ruthless glint flashed in Di Jiang's eyes. He turned and plunged into the broken Zhou Tian Star Array, shattering countless stars, rescuing Zhu Jiuyin, and sending him back to the Ancestral Witch Hall.
He then flashed away with a resolute heart and slammed into Di Jun with a roar.
As long as Di Jun did not die, the fortune of the Demon Race's Emperor Star would not be extinguished.
Compared to the Eastern Emperor Taiyi, Di Jun, as the leader of the Demon Race, was far more crucial.
Gonggong cried out in alarm, "Big Brother, no! If you are gone, where will the Witch Clan go?"
In the distance, Taiyi saw this scene and his heart was greatly shocked. He desperately struck the Eastern Emperor Bell, its nine rings causing heaven and earth to fall silent, and time and space to become the same.
But Di Jiang still flapped his six wings with all his might, disregarding the tearing of his wings.
Taiyi quickly offered a sword. The Witch-Slaying Sword pierced Xueshibi's heart. He and Di Jun switched positions, blocking in front of Di Jun.
Boom—
The world was illuminated. In the vast expanse of time, the Space Ancestral Witch Di Jiang self-detonated and died, his essence returning to heaven and earth.
The Primordial World fractured further. The Heavenly Dao intervened to mend the order of heaven and earth, but it was difficult to repair immediately.
The Sun Star dimmed, the Eastern Emperor Bell let out a mournful cry, and Di Jun roared in pain, infinite rage and sorrow surging within him. He summoned the Witch-Slaying Sword, and the Sun Essence Wheel and Sun Mirror furiously attacked the two Ancestral Witches.
The remaining four Ancestral Witches also displayed expressions of grief and rage, their fighting spirit surging as they attacked Di Jun.
Di Jun's Sun Essence Wheel fell upon Tianwu, the Sun Mirror shone upon Gonggong's body, the River Chart and Lo Shu trapped Rushou, and the Witch-Slaying Sword slashed at Jumang.
Jumang transformed into a giant tree to block the sword, but was still severely wounded.
Seeing this, Gonggong's heart filled with hatred. Without the Witch-Slaying Sword, the Ancestral Witches would not have died one after another!
If this continued, it would only result in mutual destruction. Rather than mutual destruction, it was better for him to sacrifice himself to achieve a great victory for the Witch Clan!
Gonggong's eyes turned scarlet as he charged towards Di Jun, unhesitatingly allowing the Witch-Slaying Sword to embed itself within him. He dragged Di Jun with him, crashing towards the earth.
Di Jun looked at Gonggong, who had a death wish, and his heart felt desolate. He glanced at Jianmu, remembering Nuwa's words: the bigger the commotion, the better!
Di Jun sneered, then, would the fall of Buzhou Mountain and the collapse of the heavens count as big?
Di Jun suddenly turned, and infinite light erupted, illuminating the shattered Buzhou Mountain. The two half-step Hunyuan Ancestral Witch and Demon Emperor self-detonated, crashing into Buzhou Mountain!
Boom—
Buzhou Mountain collapsed, the heavens and earth trembled violently, and the entire Primordial World plunged into panic.
Many powerful beings thought to themselves, "It's over! It's truly over now!"
At the summit of Jianmu, Qing Ling's face was cold, and his heart was even colder. He stepped forward, heading towards Buzhou.
Zhun Ti sighed, "Daoist friend, why stir up more karma?"
Qing Ling's feet stomped down, and the pressure of Jianmu's thirty-three layers of heaven instantly fell upon Zhun Ti.
Zhun Ti replied, "Even the pressure of thirty-three layers of heaven cannot suppress me."
A golden body, sixteen feet tall, appeared on his body, enduring the pressure of Jianmu.
Qing Ling said coldly, "Buzhou has fallen, and the heavens are about to collapse. Jianmu has become the only thing supporting the sky. If a Saint takes another step, Jianmu will break, heaven and earth will merge, the Primordial World will be unified, living beings will perish, and Saints will cease to be Saints!"
Zhun Ti's expression changed. He glanced at the collapsing Buzhou Mountain. Buzhou Mountain was too tall; even if it fell, the heavens would not immediately collapse, but it was only a matter of time.
Qing Ling added, "I promise the Saint an opportunity for great prosperity in the West."
Qing Ling took a step and disappeared from atop Jianmu.
Zhun Ti remained silent, and the innate bitter bamboo in his sleeve was ultimately not used.
In the chaos, atop the majestic World Tree, "Chaos I" arose.
Jie Yin pointed, and a beam of white light shot out.
But it was blocked by a beam of green light.
Within the green light was a wooden mountain, a mountain of the Wood Dao, a majestic wooden mountain that fell upon Jie Yin's head.
"Chaos I" said, "If the Saint has compassion, do not act. Otherwise, there will no longer be any wood in heaven and earth, nor any Wood Dao. The life and death of all beings of the Wood Dao will be in the Saint's single thought."
Jie Yin paused, then sighed as he looked at the mountain of the Wood Dao held aloft by his relic. In the end, he did not act.
Just as Nuwa had predicted, the two Saints of the West could not stop Qing Ling, for the two Saints of the West possessed great compassion for all living beings.