Chapter 33: Gonggong Encounters Xiangliu
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Nanyang, the Wilds of Liguang. Within the entrance to the enormous silver vortex lay the Temple of Origins.
Once the Primordial Mother Goddess Nuwa, her procession, Mu Changge, and Athena had entered the silver vortex, the “Intestines of Nuwa” present at the scene departed in different directions.
With the ten divine attendants of the Primordial Mother Goddess Nuwa gone, the Wilds of Liguang returned to their original appearance.
Upon entering the hidden realm, Mu Changge and Athena saw the Temple of Origins.
It was an ancient, old-fashioned palace, possessing neither dazzling ornamentation nor magnificent architecture.
The temple had been built from unknown divine stone, upon which ancient divine patterns were carved. Its style was unmistakably primitive.
The only feature worthy of praise was that the concentration of spiritual energy here was ten times greater than in the outside world.
When Mu Changge and Athena arrived and saw that this was the residence of the Primordial Mother Goddess Nuwa, Mu Changge was astonished.
The Temple of Origins—judging by its name alone, it ought to have been as grand as the Kunlun Imperial Capital. Yet now that he had seen it, he could only say that he was disappointed.
Could it be that the Primordial Mother Goddess Nuwa simply disliked grandiose architecture?
The Primordial Mother Goddess Nuwa led Mu Changge and Athena into the main hall.
Only after Mu Changge and Athena had taken their seats did she speak.
“Tell me about yourselves. I very much wish to know how you became entangled with this universe’s Beast of Extinction.”
Mu Changge glanced at Athena. Athena nodded in response.
“Primordial Mother Goddess, my name is Mu Changge. She is my mentor, Athena, one of the Twelve Olympian Gods from the Greek Realm.”
“First, we traveled through time from the distant future. In our era, the Beast of Extinction had already awakened, and every living being on the Ancestral Origin Star faced the threat of annihilation.”
“To change that future, we traveled through time in search of a way to break the deadlock.”
“For reasons unknown, I became infected with the Beast of Extinction’s curse. The curse has now been removed by Lord Tianyuan Yinglong. He told us that an event would occur in this era—one that would greatly aid us in defeating the Beast of Extinction.”
“When we discovered that the Beast of Extinction from another universe had appeared in this era, we assumed that the matter was connected to you, Primordial Mother Goddess.”
“That is why we have come to seek you.”
After Mu Changge finished speaking, he quietly awaited Nuwa’s response.
The Primordial Mother Goddess Nuwa pondered for several breaths before saying, “The corpse of the Beast of Extinction from another universe that I once fought is in my possession.”
“If you use that corpse to strengthen yourselves, you may indeed gain the courage and power to contend with the Beast of Extinction.”
“However, I cannot possibly give you the corpse for nothing. You must first prove that you possess the qualifications to offer me meaningful assistance.”
Athena asked, “May I ask whether there is anything that the Primordial Mother Goddess requires me and my student to do?”
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The Primordial Mother Goddess Nuwa thought for a moment before replying, “I once received a divine weapon from Lord Tianyuan Yinglong. The weapon has no name, and I have never been able to think of a suitable one.”
“If you can offer me some suggestions and help me resolve this difficulty, I will give you the corpse of the Beast of Extinction.”
“Thank you, Primordial Mother Goddess. My student and I will gladly help.”
Nuwa nodded as well.
“You may reside here for the time being. However, I prefer tranquility, so do not forget that.”
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The western lands of the Huaxia Realm.
Gonggong had come here to evade the pursuit of the God of Fire, Zhurong.
The Celestial Emperor Dijun had already announced in the Kunlun Imperial Capital that Gonggong was stripped of his position as Water God. He then appointed the Ancient God Tianwu to take Gonggong’s place as the new Water God.
After Tianwu became a divine general, the God of Fire, Zhurong, received orders from the Celestial Emperor Dijun to hunt down Gonggong, who had fled in rebellion.
Gonggong had come to the western lands for two reasons. First, a ferocious beast calling itself a fiend god dwelled there, and he wished to subdue it and make use of it. Second, the west was filled with high plateaus, making it an ideal place to hide.
Gonggong first captured several underlings of the so-called fiend god and forced them to lead the way. Following those insignificant creatures, he advanced without hindrance.
When Gonggong saw Xiangliu, whose serpentine body coiled upon itself and whose necks bore nine heads, he sent all the creatures who had guided him down into the earth.
Sensing that the intruder meant no good, Xiangliu let out a furious roar before shouting sharply, “Who are you? How dare you trespass on my territory! Have you grown tired of living?”
Gonggong snorted coldly. Vast divine power erupted from his body like an endless ocean.
“How… how is this possible?” Xiangliu cried in astonishment.
“I am Gonggong—the Water God Gonggong!”
His powerful divine voice reverberated through the land, striking terror into Xiangliu’s heart.
Xiangliu panicked at once. Although he called himself a fiend god, he was utterly incomparable to the Four Great Evil Beasts—Qiongqi, Hundun, Taowu, and Taotie.
He dared to call himself a fiend god only because ferocious beasts had become exceedingly rare throughout the world. As the saying went, when there are no tigers in the mountains, the monkey becomes king.
Had ferocious beasts still existed in great numbers, the moment Xiangliu dared to proclaim himself a fiend god, the Four Great Evil Beasts would have come knocking to teach him a lesson.
Gonggong looked at the now-submissive Xiangliu and asked with a smile, “Well? Are you willing to serve at my side?”
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“Reporting to my master, Xiangliu has lain here in seclusion for a thousand years. I have only regretted never encountering a wise lord. If my master does not disdain me, Xiangliu is willing to acknowledge you as his adoptive father!”
At that moment, all nine of Xiangliu’s heads and his serpentine body were pressed flat against the ground, displaying his respect for Gonggong.
“Hahaha! Good! Very good! My child, rise!” Gonggong accepted Xiangliu as his adopted son without seeing anything improper in the arrangement.
Hearing that Gonggong acknowledged him, Xiangliu immediately said, “Adoptive father, please accept your child’s respects! From this day onward, I shall follow you through fire and flood, and never shrink from danger!”
Gonggong was extremely pleased with his newly adopted son.
The creature spoke sweetly, submitted quickly, and possessed considerable strength. Naturally, he was worth cultivating.
No sooner had Gonggong accepted Xiangliu as his adopted son than he suddenly heard a certain summons—a summons that only he could hear.
Gonggong shook his head, assuming it was merely the result of his troubled mood.
He had yet to realize that his divine office had already become tattered and decrepit, and that it was changing in an exceedingly strange and perilous direction.
With Xiangliu’s help, Gonggong began gathering the ferocious beasts that remained between Heaven and Earth, preparing to contend with the Celestial Emperor Dijun once more.
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After Ku became the leader of the human tribal alliance, he took the initiative to usher in an age of prosperity for humanity.
Ku established the seasonal divisions and governed in accordance with the people’s wishes, causing even the phoenixes to come and pay homage.
He advocated honesty and trustworthiness, the cultivation of character, self-discipline, and the clear discernment of good and evil.
During Ku’s tenure as alliance leader, humanity entered an entirely new stage of development and reached unprecedented heights. The establishment of the seasonal divisions in particular greatly enhanced human productivity.
Thus, Ku ascended to the position of Celestial Emperor with remarkable ease—perhaps the smoothest ascent among the Three Sovereigns and Two Emperors.
Ku relinquished his position as leader of the human tribal alliance and abdicated it in favor of Yao.
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