Xuan Ming's massive hand descended, grasping the Bodhi Tree and crushing it into splinters. Zhunti was consumed by grief and indignation, his fury reaching the heavens.
If they were fighting, they should fight—why destroy his tree? The Bodhi Tree was incredibly precious, arguably the most valuable treasure in the entire West. Now, it had been brutally destroyed by an Ancestral Witch.
What a waste of heaven's gifts! Such beastly behavior!
"I'll kill you!" Zhunti roared, his entire being appearing as if it might explode. He wanted to tear the Witches apart with his bare hands to avenge his tree.
"Junior Brother! Don't let your emotions dictate your actions!" Jieyin grabbed Zhunti, pulling him back.
"We are not their match. Retreat! We must preserve ourselves; it won't be too late for revenge in the future!"
"Let them have Mount Sumeru!"
"There are green mountains everywhere under heaven. Once we have succeeded in our Cultivation, it won't be too late to take it back!"
Jieyin was shocked and enraged, but he fought to restrain himself. Charging back meant death; they absolutely could not defeat this many Ancestral Witches. Furthermore, the magic power he borrowed from the Power of Faith could not last forever—it would eventually be exhausted. If they waited until then, they wouldn't even be able to run.
"Fine! Today's cause is tomorrow's effect. In the future, everything will be repaid in full!" Zhunti spat out these harsh words as a verbal warning to maintain a shred of dignity. Despite his rage, he wasn't about to throw his life away for it.
"Hehe. Don't wait for 'the future.' If there are green mountains everywhere, and you were born here, then you might as well be buried here!"
Candle Nine Nethers sneered after hearing the Western Duo's words. Immediately, several Ancestral Witches gave chase, intending to pull the weeds up by the roots.
"Hmm?" Zhunti's expression shifted. This was wrong. In the past, after they delivered their parting threats, their opponents usually let them leave. Why were they being hunted now?
"Hmph! If we wish to leave, who can stop us?" Zhunti snorted arrogantly, acting as if they were the ones doing the chasing!
"Junior Brother! Shut up!" Jieyin barked, nearly losing his mind. The aura on his body was steadily weakening, no longer as brilliant as his peak moment. Magic power boosted by faith was, in the end, not eternal.
Boom!
Magic power surged through the infinite sky. The Two Sages of the West fought while retreating. Wherever they passed, the void was rendered into nothingness, leaving behind a lingering aura of destruction. While they couldn't beat the Witches, they were experts at fleeing—Zhunti and Jieyin were practically specialists in this field.
"As expected. The Two Sages finally lost. They didn't even force the Witches to deploy their full strength, though reaching this point is already something they can be proud of."
The great powers observing the battle sighed. This result didn't surprise anyone. After all, the Wu Clan hadn't even unleashed a tenth of their true combat potential. The phantom of Pangu was no joke.
"So far, all six of the Dao Ancestor's disciples have been thrashed by the Witches. In the Honghuang World, if the Dao Ancestor does not appear, who else can suppress them?"
"Even the Three Crows of the Sun Star likely can't do it. Unless they can sneak-attack and kill an Ancestral Witch to prevent them from forming the array, there isn't even a glimmer of hope!"
They followed the battle with intense focus because these experts realized the Wu Clan's actions now posed a direct threat to their own survival. Unfortunately, they were a pile of loose sand, unable to unify against the Witches.
Too many interests were involved. The higher the level of the expert, the more schemes they had; achieving total unity was impossible. For instance, if one allied with someone like Styx, the primary concern would be whether he'd stab you in the back.
Over the years, some had tried to visit Zixiao Palace, but it remained hidden from the world, making it impossible to see the Dao Ancestor. Thus, the path of "filing a complaint" had also ended in failure.
Ultimately, the Two Sages of the West fled into the Chaos, claiming they were going to Zixiao Palace to ask the Dao Ancestor for justice. Hearing this, the Witches hesitated for a moment and decided not to pursue them to the death, returning instead to Mount Sumeru.
"Big Brother said to flatten Mount Sumeru. I'll just level this broken mountain right now!" the Ancestral Witch of Wind shouted coldly, moving to strike.
"Wait! That's not what Big Brother meant. Besides, Mount Sumeru was formed from our Father's body; how can we just level it?" Candle Nine Nethers said quickly, fearing the mountain would be gone if he was a second late.
"Is that so?" The Wind Witch scratched his head, looking a bit embarrassed.
"Haha! Mount Sumeru is ours. The Western Honghuang is practically Wu territory now!"
"Indeed. We met a bit of resistance, but in the end, our skills were superior!"
"To be honest, this place is truly poor. It's desolate as far as the eye can see. If it weren't for collecting Father's legacy, I wouldn't take this place even if it were a gift."
The Witches evaluated the land with looks of utter disgust. Aside from Mount Sumeru itself, the rest of the West was barely worth looking at.
"Enough. Continue the advance. We cannot slack off!" Candle Nine Nethers ordered sternly. The battle at Mount Sumeru hadn't been "beautiful" enough; the remaining work needed to be clean and efficient.
"Understood!"
The Witches roared in unison and, leading their tribal warriors, began their long path of conquest. They acted with lightning speed, splitting into two groups to swallow both the West and the South.
Sun Star.
Ling Xiao awoke from his meditation and quickly learned of the Wu Clan's movements.
"Truly mad! I have a premonition... Hongjun is almost finished merging with the Dao. I wonder what face he'll make when he sees the state of the Great Desolation?"
He mused to himself. Calculating the time, Hongjun should be finishing soon, unless some complication had arisen.
Ling Xiao didn't dare to relax. Although he was now at Hun Yuan Golden Immortal Perfection, he was still one step away from the Grand Unity Golden Immortal realm. That final step relied heavily on a stroke of luck or sudden Epiphany; it could happen tomorrow or in ten thousand years.
"Perhaps Hongjun already knows everything..."
Ling Xiao believed that "Heaven's will is unpredictable." Once merged with the Dao, Hongjun was the Heavens. What he thought or planned was impossible to foresee. That was the truly terrifying part. Only by reaching the Grand Unity realm could he truly ensure his safety.
"Oh? Zhenyuanzi and Hongyun are here?" Ling Xiao murmured to himself.
Shortly after his words fell, Ziwei Boy came to report.
"Bring them in," Ling Xiao said with a wave of his hand and a smile.
A moment later, the fat and thin Daoists entered the Treasure Hall together. Both wore expressions of shock as they felt a powerful, suppressive pressure within the hall.
Hongyun didn't think much of it and gave an honest laugh. "Fellow Daoist Ling Xiao, we've come to disturb you."
"Fellow Daoists, what brings you to my Sun Star today?" Ling Xiao asked with a smile.
"It's like this: the Wu Clan has reached the West and is closing in on Wuzhuang Temple. We want to borrow the Nine Heavens Breathing Soil to relocate the Ginseng Fruit Tree!"
Hongyun stated their purpose. Even with his good temperament, he was clearly fed up with the Witches' behavior.
Zhenyuanzi then presented three Ginseng Fruits, offering them as payment for borrowing the soil. "This is the only thing I can offer that is worth showing. I hope Fellow Daoist does not mind."
Ling Xiao didn't refuse, beckoning with his hand to bring the three fruits to him. He then asked:
"And where do you plan to move the Ginseng Fruit Tree?"