Chapter Ten: Tongtian Vanishes

Watching those wandering cultivators, the Three Pure Ones burst into hearty laughter. All those itinerant cultivators possessed the cultivation of Golden Immortals of the Taiyi rank; to roam the vast primordial world, one had to have the power to survive—otherwise, one might as well never leave home.

Their intentions could not have been clearer: to seize the magnificent fortune and merit surrounding the Three Pure Ones. Suddenly, a staff pierced through the defenses of the Exquisite Tower of Heaven and Earth, striking at Laozi’s thigh. Preoccupied with resisting the onslaught of other treasures, Laozi was unable to defend against this attack, and it landed squarely on his calf.

A miserable scream echoed—Laozi’s leg was broken. Yuanshi and Tongtian hurried to his side, their anger flaring as they rushed forward to support him. Standing together, the three brothers glared fiercely at the wandering cultivators, cruel smiles spreading across their faces. The Three Pure Ones had finally been provoked.

The Exquisite Tower of Heaven and Earth and the Nine-Petaled Purple Lotus were both defensive treasures, their offensive power somewhat inferior to that of the Primal Chaos Box, so the responsibility for attack was handed to Yuanshi. Channeling more power into the Primal Chaos Box, Yuanshi immobilized the itinerant cultivators with innate spiritual energy, while Tongtian moved in for the kill. For a time, no one dared to enter the bewildering, dense fog, lest they lose their lives.

Among the wandering cultivators, there were also formidable figures. One stepped into the formation created by the Primal Chaos Box and summoned a cauldron. As soon as it appeared, all the surging primordial energy was drawn into the cauldron.

“What is that thing? How fearsome!” Tongtian exclaimed, seeing the cauldron absorbing the primordial energy. He immediately clashed with the cultivator, but in just a few exchanges, he was kicked back to the side of Laozi and Yuanshi.

“Today, I shall erase the Three Pure Ones from existence!” the cultivator sneered, a wicked smile on his face.

The Three Pure Ones were shocked. They had never revealed their true identities to anyone—how did this man know who they were? Once again, the cultivator raised the cauldron and sent it hurtling toward the Three Pure Ones. The cauldron soared above their heads, sucking in the Exquisite Tower of Heaven and Earth as well. Nowhere to hide, their lives teetered on the edge.

At that moment, a figure stepped in front of Laozi and Yuanshi. It was Tongtian. Laozi and Yuanshi shouted “No!” to no avail.

A voice echoed in their ears, growing faint: “Thank you, my brothers. You are the dearest family I have. Being with you has brought me so much joy—” The words blurred into sobs. Laozi and Yuanshi stood dumbfounded, stricken.

Bonds forged over eons cannot be severed so easily. Just yesterday, they had discussed the grand Dao together. Today, they faced a parting of life and death. How could they bear it?

Laozi and Yuanshi fell to their knees before the cultivator, consumed by shame and humiliation.

“Spare Little Lingbao. Take anything you want, even my life!” Laozi pleaded with the cultivator.

“I have nothing to offer—let my life be exchanged for Little Lingbao’s!” Yuanshi roared from his knees.

Within the cauldron, Tongtian wept bitterly. “Laozi, Yuanshi, you will always be my elder brothers!”

“I want nothing less than your lives!” the cultivator declared, clenching his fist. A wretched scream rang out from the cauldron.

All traces of life disappeared, all spiritual fluctuations ceased.

“Little Lingbao is dead! Little Lingbao is dead!” Laozi and Yuanshi leapt up from the ground. In that instant, heaven and earth changed color, thunder raged in fury.

“I’ll bury you all with him!” Laozi and Yuanshi’s hair turned ashen gray, their eyes dimmed, and their forms slowly merged into one—a being that inspired awe throughout the primordial world, its creator and founder: the Grand God Pangu.

With a fist filled with hatred, Pangu struck the cultivator, sending him flying; the shockwave from the blow slew any nearby wandering immortals. The cultivator survived only because of the cauldron’s protection; otherwise, he too would have been reduced to dust.

Space trembled. An old man in a gray robe appeared on the battlefield.

“Too late, after all?” the old man muttered ruefully, drawing out a jade butterfly. The butterfly emitted purple rays of light that entangled the wandering cultivators, turning them instantly into wisps of primordial energy—leaving not a trace behind.

“Run!” someone cried, and the cultivators fled desperately, but in the end, they too were transformed into surging waves of primordial energy.

The purple rays also wrapped around the Grand God “Pangu,” and soon, the mighty figure faded away, leaving only two brothers on the ground, murmuring, “Little Lingbao, run!” in their delirium.

The cultivator was also slain by the purple light, and only the cauldron drifted in the air, shining coldly.

With a wave of his hand, the gray-robed elder summoned the cauldron to him. This was none other than the Universe Cauldron, which embodied Heaven (Qian), Earth (Kun), and the all-containing power of space, allowing it to encompass the cosmos and refine all things.

The elder probed the cauldron, finding no trace of Tongtian’s presence.

This was grave news—without all three, the founding of the Three Pure Ones’ sects would be incomplete. The elder frowned, fingers moving swiftly to calculate.

Not within the Three Realms, not among the Five Elements.

He glanced at the jade butterfly, which revealed three streams of pure energy. Only then did the elder relax.

That child must have encountered some extraordinary stroke of fortune and managed to hide himself. Looking over at Laozi and Yuanshi, the old man’s lips curled into a wry smile.

“What is this place?” Laozi, aching all over, began to take stock of his surroundings.

“You’re awake,” said the gray-robed elder, approaching from the mouth of the cave.

“Where are we?” Laozi asked.

“This is the Purple Mist Cave of Jade Capital Mountain,” the elder replied, seating himself on a cushion.

“How did we come here, and who are you?” Perhaps their conversation was loud, for Yuanshi stirred and, upon waking, addressed the elder.

“I was traveling through the Eastern Kunlun Mountains when I saw a battle and went to investigate. It turned out to be you two fighting for your lives, so I rescued you. As for my name, I am Patriarch Hongjun.” Seated cross-legged, Hongjun spoke without turning his head.

“And Little Lingbao? He’s in the cauldron, in that cauldron!” Laozi could no longer contain himself, grabbing Hongjun’s sleeve and kneeling before him.

“As long as you cultivate diligently, you will see Little Lingbao again.” With a ripple in space, Patriarch Hongjun vanished, leaving only the dazed Laozi and Yuanshi behind.

“No matter where you are, Little Lingbao, your brothers will find you,” the two encouraged and supported each other.

Meanwhile, in another part of the cave, a young girl asked, “Ancestor, that person is so pitiful. Will they ever be reunited?”

A sigh echoed from within the cave. “Alas, I do not know.”

Then a boy chimed in, “If fate allows, they will meet again.” The girl, seeing the boy’s determined gaze, nodded, her sorrow fading into a gentle smile. The boy’s joy was even more evident.

With each battle, the Three Pure Ones gained experience and grew. Let us await the era that belongs to them.