Primordial: From a grain of soil to the ancestor of all paths

Chapter 339 The Wrath of the Ancestral Witches

Hongjun originally intended to ignore external causes and effects until he had completely refined the Heavenly Dao Will within the Heavenly Punishment Seal.

However, Ksitigarbha's actions represent the best opportunity for the Heavenly Dao to intervene in the Underworld.

Once you miss this opportunity, it won't be easy to get another one like it.

Moreover, the journey to the West during the Great Tribulation also requires the cooperation of the Underworld.

Given the current hostile stance between the Underworld and Heaven, how easy is it to get them to cooperate with the Western Journey to the West?

However, as long as Ksitigarbha can gain a foothold in the underworld, it will be easier for the West to get the underworld to cooperate with the Journey to the West in the future.

But upon closer reflection, Hongjun felt it wasn't really necessary.

Firstly, if Hongjun were to intervene, then Taichu and the others might also be involved.

If the two sides were to engage in another major battle, it could very likely cause further cracks to appear on the Heavenly Punishment Seal, thereby affecting his grand plan to refine the will of Heaven!

Secondly, the current underworld is home to the Ten Kings of Hell, the Five Ghost Emperors, the Emperor of Fengdu, the Earthly Saint Styx, Zhen Yuanzi and Hongyun who are about to become Earthly Saints, and most importantly, Houtu, making it undeniably powerful.

Even if Ksitigarbha manages to stay in the underworld, what can he do under the various forms of suppression from Houtu and the others?
In other words, Hongjun felt that even if he intervened to protect Ksitigarbha, it wouldn't make much of a difference.

Thirdly, and most importantly!
As long as Hongjun can successfully control all the power of the Heavenly Dao and suppress the greatest threats like Taichu, why would he be afraid of not being able to suppress the Underworld?

By then, even if there isn't a Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, there will still be a Celestial Treasury, a Human Treasury, and so on...

Therefore, Hongjun had no reason to suffer the consequences for the sake of Ksitigarbha!
"Hmm?" At this moment, Hongjun sensed Yuanshi's arrival and frowned slightly: "Why is Yuanshi here?"

"Could it be about Ksitigarbha?"

Hongjun felt something was strange. Although what Ksitigarbha was doing at this moment, if successful, would benefit the entire Heavenly Dao.

However, under the strong pressure from Houtu and even Taichu, Ksitigarbha could only do so much, and even his survival was a question.

In this situation, was it necessary for Yuan Shi to be in such a hurry?

If Ksitigarbha is a disciple of the Chan Sect, given Yuanshi's protective nature, Hongjun could understand.

However, Ksitigarbha was a disciple of Buddhism, so neither Jieyin nor Zhunti came to find Hongjun. Instead, it was Yuanshi who came.

"Could it be because he suffered too many blows from Taichu and his group, so he is unwilling to let go of any opportunity to slap them in the face?"

After much thought, Hongjun could only come up with this possibility!

However, this meant that Hongjun could no longer ignore the problem of Ksitigarbha.

Otherwise, given Yuan Shi's personality, it's hard to say what kind of trouble he might cause!
Moreover, upon closer examination, Hongjun's decision to step down wasn't entirely without reason!

"That's fine!"

"While the mere presence of Ksitigarbha might displease the Wu Clan, it's unlikely to escalate to the point where Taichu and the others would also be involved!"

"Even if Tai Chu and the others really do join the fray, I can take this opportunity to test their current cultivation level."

"In this way, when I fully control the power of the Heavenly Dao in the future, or even before I fully control the power of the Heavenly Dao, if I were to disregard everything and attack Tai Chu and the others, I would be able to make a better judgment on their cultivation level and strength!"

Because of the appearance of Yuanshi, Hongjun, after a moment's thought, decided to protect Dizang.

But it's impossible for him to personally get involved right away!

"In that case, I'll trouble you to go in my place first!"

Hongjun summoned his benevolent avatar, Hongyuan, and spoke to him.

"it is good!"

"As long as Tai Chu and the others don't personally intervene, I'm confident I can protect Di Zang!"

Hongyuan agreed without hesitation.

As Hongjun's benevolent incarnation, his cultivation level is naturally at least at the limit of Hunyuan (Saint Realm)!
As Hongjun's progress in refining the will of the Heavenly Dao increases, Hongyuan can also temporarily unleash the power of the Hunyuan Taiji Golden Immortal (Dao Integration) realm if he so desires!

Hongyuan had not forgotten that during the final battle of the last Investiture of the Gods, Taichu had temporarily unleashed the power of the Hunyuan Taiji Golden Immortal Realm and killed him on the spot.

If Tai Chu really intervenes this time, he might still have a chance to get revenge!

This is another major reason why Hongyuan readily agreed just now!
"Ok!"

"Go ahead!"

"If there's anything you can't handle, I'll take matters into my own hands!"

Hongjun nodded.

Hongyuan nodded slightly, and his figure gradually disappeared from the spot.

Outside Zixiao Palace!

"You don't need to go in!"

"I will go to the underworld with you!"

Yuanshi had just arrived at Zixiao Palace and was about to request an audience with Hongjun when Hongyuan appeared before him and gave him instructions.

"is teacher!"

When Yuanshi recognized that Hongyuan was the benevolent incarnation of Hongjun, he immediately nodded with delight.

Although Hongyuan's cultivation level is far inferior to Hongjun's, this already represents the latter's attitude.

In Yuanshi's eyes, as long as Hongjun was willing to intervene, Dizang's life could certainly be saved.

This can be seen as indirectly targeting the Underworld and the Primordial Chaos!
then!

Yuan Shi then followed Hong Yuan Qi and quickly headed to the underworld!
at the same time!

The underworld, the netherworld!
"That's unreasonable!"

"When did it become the business of those bald monks from the West to manage the eighteen levels of hell in my underworld?"

"That guy Ksitigarbha clearly wants to take this opportunity to seize some of the power of my Underworld!"

"We absolutely cannot let him succeed. We must banish him from the underworld, no, let's just kill him outright!"

“No, Ksitigarbha’s vow of ‘I will not become a Buddha until hell is empty’ may seem insignificant, but it is actually a great act of merit for all living beings in both the Yin and Yang realms.”

"If we make a move against him, it will inevitably lead to a karmic backlash!"

"Most importantly, Ksitigarbha's actions are certainly not his own idea; he must have the support of the West, or even the Heavenly Dao, behind him!"

"Ha, so what?"

"If the West wants to scheme against my Underworld, they must pay the price. Do you think my Underworld is afraid of mere karmic retribution?"

"That's right, just kill Ksitigarbha and see what the West and the Heavenly Dao can do."

"..."

Just as countless ancient deities had predicted, the ancestral witches were all furious upon hearing the news.

The Ten Kings of Hell, the Five Ghost Emperors, the Emperor of Fengdu, and the deities of the underworld such as Styx, Zhen Yuanzi, and Hongyun all looked rather grim!
Before this, none of them expected that the West, the weakest of the top powers, would actually pull off such a big feat.
Moreover, if the underworld ignores the situation, not only will it be impossible for Ksitigarbha to truly gain control of the underworld, but once the news gets out, it will inevitably cause outsiders to underestimate the underworld to some extent.

For the various deities of the underworld, this move by the West is tantamount to a slap in the face!
For this reason, most of the great deities in the underworld hoped to teach Ksitigarbha a lesson. The ancestral witches, disregarding the karmic backlash and the Western and Heavenly Dao forces behind Ksitigarbha, wanted to kill him on the spot!
After all, the so-called karmic backlash couldn't be too great; the Ancestral Witches could withstand it if they wanted to. Most importantly, even if Hongjun himself descended to the Underworld, dealing with Houtu, the Lord of the Underworld, wouldn't be an easy task.

Given the Ancestral Witches' consistent disrespect for the Heavenly Way and their exclusive veneration of Pangu, would they still be afraid of the West behind Ksitigarbha, or even the Heavenly Way itself?

"Everyone, don't be impulsive!" At this moment, Houtu's beautiful figure appeared in front of Dijiang and Zhurong, shaking her head and advising, "For the sake of a mere Ksitigarbha, it is not a wise move for us to bear the karmic backlash and directly start a new war with the Heavenly Dao."

"Besides, even if Ksitigarbha really did live and remain in the underworld, how easy would it be for him to seize some of my authority in the netherworld?"

Houtu's meaning is very simple: whether it is Ksitigarbha himself or the commotion he caused this time, in her eyes, it is just a small matter.

The underworld did not let this small matter escalate into a major conflict between the two sides!
"Little sister, are we just going to ignore this?"

"The West and the Heavenly Dao are clearly plotting against us. If we do nothing, won't they think we're afraid of them?"

"The authority of the underworld should belong entirely to us. We will not allow even the slightest chance for Ksitigarbha to touch it!"

"..."

Upon hearing Houtu's words, all the Ancestral Witches spoke with some resentment.

"Of course we won't do nothing!" Houtu shook her head and said, "On the contrary, I want you to follow your own ideas and attack Ksitigarbha to your heart's content, with the goal of suppressing and killing him!"

"I just want you to understand that Ksitigarbha and his great vows are just small things, and you don't need to care about them too much!"

"What do you mean?" Zhu Rong and the other ancestral witches looked bewildered: "What do you mean that we don't need to pay too much attention to Dizang, but we are told to take action against him with the goal of killing him?"

"I understand!" The Great Emperor of Fengdu and other deities quickly realized: "The reason we are taking action against Ksitigarbha is not because his existence or what he has done is worth our attention."

"It is not that the West, or even the Heavenly Dao, has directly established a presence in our Underworld without our permission; this is a provocation against us!"

"Therefore, the West and the Heavenly Dao must pay the price they deserve for protecting Ksitigarbha before we can forgive them!"

“We might even allow Ksitigarbha to live, or even allow him to possess a tiny bit of power in the underworld, but the West, and even the Heavenly Dao, must pay a hundredfold, or even a thousandfold, price in exchange!”

"That's right!" Houtu nodded in agreement with the guess of the Fengdu Emperor and the others, and further explained: "After the last Investiture of the Gods, the saints and forces on the Heavenly Dao side have been rapidly increasing their strength."

"With the great calamity of the Journey to the West approaching, the West witnessed this event where Ksitigarbha made a great vow!"

"Of course, compared with the West, the overall strength of our Underworld is improving at a much faster pace!"

"That's precisely why we don't need to pay attention to this small move by the West!"

"The key is how to use this incident to force out the true strength of the West and the Heavenly Dao, and even to extract sufficient benefits from them!"

"I still don't understand!" After listening to the explanations from the Emperor of Fengdu and Houtu, the ancestral witches, including Zhurong, still shook their heads like rattles.

"In short, if you trust me, just do as I say, and leave the rest to me!" Houtu didn't have high expectations for her brothers' intelligence and immediately spoke up.

"no problem!"

"Whatever you say, little sister, we'll do!"

"Yes, why didn't my little sister just tell us what to do from the beginning? Why did she have to explain so much to us?"

"We don't believe anyone else, but we will definitely believe in our little sister!"

"..."

The ancestral witches all spoke up.

"..." Houtu felt a little tired.

Fortunately, she was already used to it!

"Then I'll trouble you brothers to follow your ideas and kill that Ksitigarbha!" Houtu said directly to Zhurong and the others without further ado.

"it is good!"

"Finally, we can have a proper fight!"

"To be honest, we haven't really fought with anyone from the outside world since we came to the underworld."

"Previously, it was just setting up the 'Twelve Capital Heavenly Gods and Demons Formation,' which didn't have much significance!"

"Hopefully, this Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva can withstand a lot of damage, otherwise it won't be as interesting if he dies too quickly!"

"..."

Upon receiving the order, the Ancestral Witches excitedly headed towards the direction where Ksitigarbha was located!

"Fengdu Emperor, Five Ghost Emperors, Ten Kings of Hell, you may go too!"

After the Ancestral Witches left, Houtu gave instructions to the Emperor of Fengdu and the others.

"Yes, madam!"

Emperor Fengdu and the others naturally did not object, and they all accepted the order and chased after the ancestral witches.

"Styx!"

"If the two Western Saints were to intervene, are you confident you could defeat them?"

Houtu then asked the Styx River.

"Please rest assured, Your Majesty!"

"If it were just the two Western Saints, I would definitely not lose!"

Styx nodded confidently.

"it is good!"

"Then you can go too, but if no sage from the West or the Heavenly Dao intervenes, you don't need to participate!"

Houtu nodded in agreement and gave instructions to Styx.

"Yes, madam!"

Styx immediately accepted the order and headed off into the distance!

"Zhen Yuanzi, Hongyun!"

"You are only one step away from becoming a true sage, so there is no need for you to get involved in this excitement."

"You should all go back to your seclusion and strive to become Earthly Saints as soon as possible!"

Houtu then gave instructions to Zhenyuanzi and Hongyun, who seemed somewhat eager to try.

"Yes, madam!"

"We will definitely attain enlightenment as soon as possible!"

Zhen Yuanzi and Hongyun were somewhat disappointed, but they still nodded together.

However, Houtu is right; they could become Earthly Saints at any time.

In comparison, they really don't need to get involved in this matter!

(End of this chapter)