Primordial Era: Reborn as Kunpeng, starting by swallowing the Styx River

Chapter 75 Humanity Questions the Heavens

On Shouyang Mountain, apricot-yellow flags flutter and thousands of golden lotuses protect this pristine land for thousands of miles, making it as solid as a rock.

Kong Xuan withdrew the five-colored divine light that was powerful enough to sweep away all things, and stood proudly on the cloud, suppressing all the petty people who dared to covet this place.

Inside the golden lotus light curtain, hundreds of millions of people from the Shouyang Mountain tribe were staring blankly at the outside world.

Beyond the flag lies a living hell.

A demonic wind howled, and blood flowed like rivers. Although countless demon soldiers dared not approach the area marked by the apricot-yellow banner, they did not leave. Instead, they continued to hunt down the humans who had managed to escape from other tribes but failed to enter the protective zone in more distant places.

Cries, wails, and pleas for help, though separated by a thin veil of light, were clearly heard by every survivor.

They watched helplessly as their fellow countrymen were torn to pieces and their souls extracted by those ferocious demons.

Within the banner, there is only one pure land.

There was no killing, no fear, only the relief of surviving a catastrophe, and—a grief and anger that almost pierced the sky.

"Waaaaahh ...

A woman knelt at the edge of the light screen, crying out in anguish, reaching out as if trying to reach through the golden lotus to grab the small figure being carried away by the demon wolf in the distance.

An elderly man with gray hair, leaning on a cane, watched the bloody scene outside the banner with trembling eyes, tears streaming down his face. His tribe was just a hundred miles away, but now, only scorched earth and ruins remained.

A strong and complex emotion spread wildly through the crowd.

It was a deathly silence after despair, and even more so, a raging fury born from that silence!

Finally, the old man could no longer suppress his grief and indignation.

He turned abruptly, staggered to Suirenshi who was comforting his people, and with all his might slammed his cane on the ground, tearfully asking, "May I ask, Ancestor!"

"This is Shouyang Mountain! It is the sacred site of the Supreme Sage!"

"Why has our human race suffered such a devastating calamity? Why does the Sage—why does he turn a blind eye? Why refuse to help us?!"

""

"Why was it the demon race's holy master who came to our rescue in the end?!"

This question, like a thunderclap, instantly resounded in the hearts of every surviving human.

Yes, why?

They established a tribe here, worshipping the Sage Taiqing day and night, practicing the Golden Elixir Dao he passed down, and regarding him as another guardian deity of the human race.

But now, the executioner's blade has fallen, where is the sage?

On the contrary, it was the Kunpeng Saint Master, whom they had never met and who had even harbored resentment towards because of his identity as the "Demon Ancestor," who sent his disciple at the most critical moment, bestowed a supreme treasure, and carved out this last piece of pure land for them to live in!

Looking at the old man's bloodshot eyes, and at the pairs of eyes around him filled with confusion, anger, and questioning, Suiren felt a sharp pain in his heart.

He opened his mouth, wanting to say a few words in defense of the sage, saying, "The sage has his own considerations," and "This is a calamity ordained by Heaven."

But looking at the devastating scene of mountains of corpses outside the banner, he couldn't utter a single word of these pale and powerless words.

Silence, dead silence.

After a long while, Suirenshi did not answer the old man's question.

He simply turned around slowly, straightened his animal skin clothes which were already stained with blood, and knelt solemnly in the direction of the distant Northern Sea for a long time!

"Heaven is ruthless, regarding all things as straw dogs."

"The sage does nothing, but watches as all living beings perish."

Suirenshi's voice was hoarse and deep, yet it clearly reached the ears of every member of his tribe: "We humans are born weak, yet we are indomitable."

"Let us learn from today's calamity!"

"From this day forward, our human race shall strive unceasingly for self-improvement! We will not seek gods, nor worship saints!"

"We only worship the grace of the Holy Mother and revere the protection of the Holy Teacher!"

"Holy Master, have mercy! Holy Master, have mercy!"

The hundreds of millions of humans below seemed to have found an outlet at this moment, and they all followed Suirenshi, kneeling down in the direction of the Northern Sea, their cries shaking the heavens.

Faith underwent a complete shift at that moment.

In the center of the tribe, the ancestral tablet of the Taiqing Saint, which was originally enshrined in the most prominent position, was silently taken down by several surviving youths.

They neither smashed nor burned it; they simply moved it to the most inconspicuous corner of the ancestral hall, not even bothering to wipe off the dust.

Indifference is a deeper form of despair than hatred.

The longevity tablets of Kunpeng and Nuwa, which were originally located on the two sides, were carefully picked up by the clansmen, wiped clean, and enshrined high in the center of the ancestral hall.

The three thickest sandalwood sticks were lit, and wisps of smoke rose, the incense burning at its peak.

Beyond the thirty-three heavens lies the Taiqing Heaven, the Eight Views Palace.

The aroma of the Nine-Turn Golden Elixir had already filled the alchemy furnace.

Taiqing Laozi sat cross-legged on the Wind and Fire Futon, his eyes slightly closed, his mind wandering in the vast void, seemingly indifferent to the life and death of the billions of living beings in the lower realm.

However, at the very moment when the human race's faith collapsed at the foot of Shouyang Mountain.

"puff-

—

An unnatural flush suddenly appeared on Lao Tzu's usually calm face, and a mouthful of golden holy blood uncontrollably spurted out, splashing onto the blazing Bagua Furnace and making a sizzling sound.

"What's going on?!"

Lao Tzu suddenly opened his eyes, and for the first time, his indifferent eyes, reflecting the Dao of Heaven, revealed a look of shock and disbelief.

He calculated with his fingers, and the secrets of heaven flowed.

When he saw everything that happened at the foot of Shouyang Mountain, and saw the divine tablet that had been moved to a corner and covered in dust, even with his saintly heart, he felt a surge of blood and qi and a sharp pain in his primordial spirit!

"Boom—"

"6

From the depths of the darkness, a mournful cry echoed across the sky.

The enormous golden dragon that had been coiled above his Taiqing Heaven, representing the fortune of the Human Sect, suddenly trembled, and the light around it dimmed instantly.

That once robust body had visibly shrunk by more than 30%!

Backlash!

Lao Tzu established a religion of humanity and became a sage. His foundation was thus inextricably linked to the beliefs and destiny of the human race.

Now that humanity is utterly disappointed in him and their faith has collapsed, this backlash is directly impacting him, the leader of the cult. "Damn it! Damn it!"

Lao Tzu could no longer maintain that tranquil and inactive demeanor. He suddenly stood up, looking down at the soaring demonic energy and the wailing of the human race, and at the apricot-yellow flag high above. A trace of unprecedented regret and anger flashed in his eyes.

He cultivated the supreme state of detachment from emotions, but ultimately underestimated the power of "human nature".

What he perceived as a test and compliance with destiny was, in the eyes of the human race, a blatant betrayal!