Protecting Hongjun and Obtaining the Taiji Diagram

Ran Deng stepped forward and respectfully bowed.

"Disciple Lights the Lamp to pay respects to the Master, congratulating the Master on attaining the Great Dao, may the Dao's fruit endure forever!"

Randeng knew in his heart that apart from the Yangmei Ancestor who might be hiding in the chaos, only Hongjun had become a saint in the entire prehistoric world. He was the number one person in the prehistoric world. He just didn't know why he had been summoned here. Could it be that he was going to bestow a spiritual treasure on him in his joy?

Hongjun sat upright on a futon, wearing a Hunyuan Daoist robe, the corners of which were embroidered with the sun, moon, stars, mountains and rivers. He was surrounded by billions of purple energies, and his eyes shone with endless Daoist charm, as deep as the ancient starry sky, as if they could reflect all the illusions of the world.

He stared at the lamp, his gaze piercing through layers of appearances, reaching the very essence of its being, as if trying to see through it completely, inside and out.

Before he became a saint, the cause and effect of the lamp was shrouded in mist and could not be seen clearly. Now that he has become a saint and has initially merged with the primordial Heavenly Dao, he should be able to see the cause and effect, fortune, past and present lives of all beings born after the birth of the Heavenly Dao.

However, the cause and effect of the lamp burning were still a tangled mess, deeply intertwined and shrouded in mystery, making it difficult even for a sage like Hongjun to see the whole picture. This made Hongjun feel a little strange.

After a long while, he withdrew his gaze and sighed softly.

"It's merely achieving sainthood; it's hardly worthy of being called attaining the Great Dao. It's still far from the realm of Pangu, and besides, it's confined by the primordial world and can never truly be free."

Upon hearing this, Randeng was slightly taken aback, his body swaying almost imperceptibly, and a wave of emotion surged within him.

The path to sainthood is indeed limited, even Master Hongjun cannot escape it. When he merges with the Heavenly Dao in the future, will he choose to completely merge with the Heavenly Dao or take the opportunity to break free from it?

Seeing that the lamp below had fallen into deep thought because of his words, Hongjun interrupted him.

"Don't worry, you're still far from that level. It's not time to think about this yet. Once I perfect the method of severing the three corpses, I might have a chance to directly attain the Great Luo Primordial Dao."

Hongjun paused, his divine eyes piercing through the surface and landing on the three flowers above Randeng's head. One flower was surrounded by an aura of annihilation, icy cold, as if it could annihilate all life in the world; the other was heavy and steady, containing the endless foundation of the laws of the earth, as solid as a mountain.

'The Law of Annihilation and the Law of Earth—what kind of path does this kid want to take that requires such a combination of laws? His cultivation is progressing quite rapidly, though.'

Hongjun spoke again, "The reason I summoned you here is that I need to prepare for the Dao Integration for the next 30,000 years before I give my sermon at Zixiao Palace. I will be unable to monitor the prehistoric world and will need your help."

"I wonder what Master needs me to do?" Randeng wondered. Could there be something in this primordial world that could affect a sage?

"Preaching at Zixiao Palace is of utmost importance as it concerns whether I can successfully attain the Dao."

Hongjun spoke slowly, his voice calm yet carrying an undeniable authority.

"I preach the Way to all beings, guiding them to glimpse the path to the Great Way. At the same time, I can use the fortune of those who listen to the Way to help me cultivate myself and accumulate the merits and opportunities needed to unite with the Way. And when all beings embark on the right path because of my words, I can also repay a portion of the primordial karma. This is beneficial to both me and all beings."

Hongjun did not directly state what he needed the lamp for, but instead told him the purpose of his sermon at Zixiao Palace.

Ran Deng instantly understood his teacher's intention. His teacher had told him this crucial matter of attaining enlightenment without reservation, clearly treating him as a true disciple. This trust and high regard warmed his heart.

"Does the teacher mean that over the next 30,000 years, someone might prevent other primordial deities from coming to hear the Dao? And that I need to ensure the stability of the primordial world during this period?"

Randeng quickly understood what Hongjun wanted him to do. The extraordinary phenomena when Hongjun became a saint caused a stir throughout the entire prehistoric world. A saint's teachings were certainly much faster than self-taught cultivation, but if a force wanted to monopolize this opportunity, it was not impossible for them to block the innate saints who wanted to go to Zixiao Palace.

As far as Randeng knows, both the demon race and the witch race in the primordial world have the strength to accomplish this task.

Hongjun nodded slightly, increasingly satisfied with Randeng. He truly deserved to be the disciple he had personally chosen; he was indeed insightful.

"In addition, when I merge with the Dao, I need to devote myself wholeheartedly, and the suppression of Rahu will be minimized. That Demon Ancestor is ambitious, treacherous and cunning. In order to prevent him from taking the opportunity to bewitch the people of the prehistoric world, disrupt the order of heaven and earth, and affect my merging with the Dao and preaching at Zixiao Palace, I want to hand him over to you for custody."

"What?"

Randeng suddenly looked up at Hongjun, his eyes filled with disbelief and astonishment.

He wondered if he had misheard and quickly said, "Teacher, are you sure you didn't misunderstand? You want me to guard Rahu? That was the Demon Ancestor! It's not that I'm afraid of death, but my current strength is insufficient, and I'm afraid I won't be able to do it and will fail to live up to your trust."

Luo Hou's greatest strength is not his cultivation level, but his ability to manipulate people's hearts and sow discord. Back then, he single-handedly caused the near extinction of the Dragon and Phoenix clans, and the Qilin clan also suffered as a result, thus instilling fear in all the races of the prehistoric world.

Moreover, Luo Hou was once able to fight four patriarchs alone. Even now that Hongjun has become a saint, their strength at their peak was only comparable. Guarding such a person is like walking on a narrow bridge at the same time.

"Of course, it's not simply about having you keep watch over him. Luo Hou was once infinitely close to the Hunyuan Daluo realm, and his remaining primordial spirit cannot be suppressed without a supreme innate treasure."

Hongjun raised his hand and summoned a black and white painting that flew out from the space beside him.

The image is neither gold nor jade, neither silk nor brocade, but is a manifestation of the origin of the Great Dao.

One black and one white, the yin and yang fish, head to tail, slowly rotate, turning earth, water, fire and wind, and fixing heaven and earth, sun and moon.

The white fish embodies yang, exhaling countless rays of pure purple energy; the black fish conceals yin, absorbing endless, mysterious light from the netherworld.

The fish eye is a tiny spark of primordial light from before the beginning of time; it may seem insignificant, but it can illuminate the eternal chaos.

"This is one of the three great treasures transformed from Pangu's axe that opened the heavens and the earth. It is the Taiji Diagram, which can stabilize the earth, water, fire and wind, and separate yin and yang, purity and turbidity. I have sealed the remnant primordial spirit of Rahu inside it. You can refine it a little and control this treasure. You can keep Rahu under control and also use the Taiji Diagram to stop other forces."

Ran Deng reached out and took the Tai Chi diagram.

"Disciple thanks Master. With this innate treasure, disciple is confident that he can keep Rahu under control. Master, you can simply focus on achieving enlightenment."

Hongjun looked at Randeng's resolute expression, nodded in satisfaction, and a hint of relief flashed in his eyes.

"Alright, thirty thousand years will pass in the blink of an eye, so you must not let your guard down. Rahu is cunning and treacherous, and even if he is sealed, he may still try to bewitch you or attract other remnants of the demonic path to help you. You must hold fast to your principles and not be swayed by external things. You must carefully comprehend the power of the Taiji Diagram, as it will greatly benefit your cultivation in the future."

After speaking, the Great Dao Heavenly Sound of Zixiao Palace continued to linger, and purple mist filled the air. However, Hongjun was no longer on the futon at the head of the table. Randeng also turned and left Zixiao Palace without lingering, heading into the chaos.