Zhang Kui Asks the Way in Investiture of the Gods

With his nerves on edge, Zhang Kui activated his Great Yin-Yang Void-Piercing True Eye, scanning left and right, his divine sense spreading out like a spider web, trying to find the source of the mysterious sound.

Suddenly, the surrounding scenery rippled and distorted violently like waves. He felt an irresistible, profound, and supreme power instantly envelop his entire body. This power was so vast that it was far beyond his ability to resist, and he didn't even have time to react.

His vision blurred for a moment, and when it cleared again, he was no longer in the empty and solemn Fengdu Hall.

Looking around, this is a palace with a completely different style. Unlike the solemn and majestic Fengdu Palace with its intricate carvings, this palace appears exceptionally simple and rustic, even carrying a wild and primitive atmosphere.

The palace was built from an unknown type of bluish-gray megalith, with only some blurry, seemingly naturally formed ancient totem patterns on the stone walls. On the left and right sides of the main hall, there were six array flags, each about three zhang high. The flags were neither cloth nor silk, but had a chaotic color. Embroidered on them were unrecognizable ancient divine characters. They moved without wind, faintly exuding a majestic power to suppress earth, water, fire and wind, and to stabilize the universe.

In the center of the temple, there was no statue of a deity, but only a seemingly ordinary, yet ancient and desolate boulder that exuded a chilling aura. On the boulder, two profound ancient characters, containing the ultimate truths of creation and creation, were imprinted in the runes of the Great Dao—Pangu.

The mere sight of those two words filled Zhang Kui with a profound awe, a reverence stemming from the very essence of life itself; the lingering, supreme will emanating from them was awe-inspiring. He instinctively wanted to step forward, to examine them closely, to glimpse the infinite mysteries they contained.

However, the moment he took a step, he suddenly felt his knees buckle. An indescribable pressure from the very source of his bloodline descended like a mountain, causing his knees to involuntarily thud and he fell heavily to his knees. This instinctive suppression left him with no will to resist.

Before Zhang Kui could recover from the sudden kneeling and consider the source and purpose of this oppressive aura...

"Snapped!"

A crisp slap came from the back of my head, but it wasn't loud.

A strange power penetrated his body, causing his magical power to stagnate slightly, and his soul to become dazed for a moment.

"You impudent little fellow," a female voice, tinged with reproach yet laced with mockery, rang out behind him, "How dare you peek at the remains of the Father God? I'll give you a little lesson first: put away your curiosity."

Zhang Kui was both shocked and furious, and he suddenly turned his head to look in the direction of the sound.

Suddenly, a woman appeared gracefully behind him. She wore a simple yet elegant dress, its design seemingly imbued with the very essence of the earth and its mountains. Her features were serene and refined, radiating a sense of peace and tranquility, like a mother of all things, encompassing everything. Her aura was as deep as the sea and as weighty as the earth; simply standing there calmed the mind and prevented any trace of malice from arising.

"This being is absolutely far beyond a Grand Luo Golden Immortal, perhaps even... higher!" Zhang Kui was shocked, and cold sweat almost broke out on his back. Before such a being, any disrespect could be a path to death.

Zhang Kui forced himself to calm down, lowered his posture, and bowed respectfully: "Junior Zhang Kui has mistakenly entered this sacred place. If I have offended you, I hope you will forgive me, senior." He decided to play the fool for now and find out the situation before making any further moves.

However, "Smack!"

Another light tap on the back of his head. The woman looked at him with a half-smile, her eyes filled with an all-knowing indifference: "Insincere, you deserve a beating! You little rascal, who knows what you're thinking about me, but you're certainly putting on a good show."

Zhang Kui was speechless, inwardly cursing, "How could they have seen through that?"

A sense of frustration welled up inside him. Even a clay figure has some temper, let alone someone as proud and arrogant as Zhang Kui, who had experienced countless battles.

He suddenly raised his head, a flash of anger in his eyes, and said in a deep voice, "Senior! I have done my best to be polite, but you have repeatedly made fun of me. Isn't that going too far? A scholar can be killed, but not humiliated." As soon as the words left his mouth, he regretted them, worried that he would anger the other party, but he could not suppress the nameless anger.

Strangely, despite his anger, he subconsciously didn't believe the woman truly harbored ill intentions, a feeling that was quite contradictory.

The woman was unconcerned by his anger and did not answer his question. She simply smiled slightly, slowly raised her hands, and began to perform an ancient and mysterious hand seal.

In an instant, her aura changed drastically.

Her simple, elegant robes fluttered without wind, and her form began to transform within a soft yet powerful light—her upper body remained human, her skin the color of the earth that bears all things, her eyes becoming incredibly deep, as if holding the swirling stars; her lower body transformed into a powerful serpent's tail, its scales a dark yellow, as if forged from divine stone, its slight swaying seemingly drawing upon the very earth's veins, making Zhang Kui feel the ground beneath his feet resonate with it. Even more awe-inspiring was the appearance of seven phantom arms formed from pure laws behind her, each arm containing a distinct yet equally vast and powerful primordial law: Creation, Life and Death, Reincarnation, Annihilation, Growth, Earth, and Space.

"Houtu, the Ancestral Witch!"

Zhang Kui's pupils constricted sharply, his scalp tingled, and he almost cried out in a hoarse voice.

All anger, resentment, and scheming vanished in that moment, leaving only boundless shock and awe.

This is Houtu, one of the twelve ancestral witches born after the creation of heaven and earth, who governs the earth and the central soil, and whose body has been reincarnated in the six realms to mend the heavenly way, accumulating immeasurable merit. She is now the true ruler of the underworld, Lady Pingxin, and has been bestowed the title of the supreme being Houtu, the Earth Goddess who upholds the laws of heaven, embodies great virtue, and glorifies the land. Any one of her identities is a primordial behemoth that can shake the three realms and six paths.

"Snapped!"

The third tap landed precisely on the back of his head. Zhang Kui could even feel a noticeable bump forming there, burning with pain. But now he dared not retaliate at all, not even daring to show the slightest displeasure. In front of this person, his cultivation level was no different from an ant; for the other party to tap the back of his head was probably just like an elder patting their mischievous junior…

Upon hearing Zhang Kui blurt out the title "Houtu Ancestral Witch," Lady Pingxin was slightly taken aback. Then, a complex and inscrutable emotion appeared on her elegant face. A trace of reminiscence flashed in her eyes, which had witnessed countless cycles of reincarnation, and she said softly, "Houtu... it's been so long since anyone called me that..."

She suppressed her感慨 (gǎnkǎi, a feeling of mixed emotions, including regret and apprehension), and her gaze returned to Zhang Kui. She looked him up and down, her brows furrowing slightly, and asked with a hint of confusion and doubt, "Little fellow, you possess such pure Wu Clan bloodline and have received the complete Blood Refinement inheritance, so why haven't you broken through to the Spirit Wu realm and awakened your innate divine power yet? With your comprehension and foundation, it shouldn't be this slow."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Kui was about to explain. His primary cultivation method was the orthodox Xuanmen technique, the "Golden Elixir Path," and he used the Wu Clan bloodline primarily as an auxiliary means and supplement to his physical strength. Furthermore, burdened by worldly affairs, he hadn't devoted much energy to improving his Wu Clan cultivation level…

But before he could even organize his thoughts, Consort Pingxin seemed to have already "seen" his laxity from his expression and demeanor. Her face darkened, and she was clearly somewhat angry.

"Hmph! It seems you haven't put your mind to witchcraft. You bear the blood of the Father God, how can you neglect it?" Empress Pingxin's tone was filled with exasperation, not giving Zhang Kui a chance to explain.

After saying that, she stretched out her hand, and without any visible movement, Zhang Kui felt the space around him freeze again. An invisible force enveloped and lifted him up as easily as lifting a chick.

"Senior, wait! Let me explain..." Zhang Kui hurriedly shouted, trying to struggle, but found that in front of this powerful being, all his supernatural powers and magic were frozen, and he had no power to resist at all.

Empress Pingxin ignored his cries and dragged him a few steps to one side of the main hall. There, a pool had appeared out of nowhere. The water was a chaotic color, seemingly composed of countless tiny runes and blood essence, radiating unimaginable, boundless power and the most primal aura of Pangu. This was the supreme treasure of the Wu tribe's legend—the Wu Pool. It was said to have been formed from the heart's blood of the great god Pangu, containing the purest laws of power and the origin of bloodline. It was the ultimate sacred place for purifying the Wu tribe's bloodline, promoting its evolution, and awakening supernatural powers.

"Go inside and stay there!" Empress Pingxin's tone left no room for argument. "You may come out only when you break through to the Spirit Witch Realm and awaken your innate divine power. Otherwise, you will remain inside forever."

Before she finished speaking, she flicked her arm lightly.

"Thump!"

Zhang Kui, clothes and all, was thrown into the chaotic, churning pool of witchcraft, utterly disheveled.

In an instant, an unimaginable sensation of heat, tearing, and reshaping surged from all directions, as if countless red-hot steel needles were piercing into every pore of his body, penetrating his bone marrow, blood, and even soul. Furthermore, a vast, ancient, and incomparably domineering will and energy, like a primordial torrent, surged wildly into his body, beginning its most fundamental cleansing and transformation.

"Ughhh!" The intense pain made Zhang Kui let out a low growl. He felt as if his body and soul were about to be burst and melted by this force.

He could only desperately preserve a sliver of clarity in his mind, and fully activate the Blood Refining Technique to absorb and guide this violent energy...