Rebirth of Nezha in the Investiture of the Gods

That was the Ancestor Witch who once ruled the Primordial Land, the very one who struck Buzhou Mountain and dared to clash head-on with Donghuang, who wielded the Chaos Bell!

The Water Ancestor Witch, Gonggong!

Perhaps this name may no longer carry as much weight in the current Primordial World, but during the ancient Witch-Demon War, he was undoubtedly one of those figures whose mere stamp of a foot would shake the entire world three times.

And when the Twelve Ancestor Witches joined forces to summon Pangu's True Body, even Saints dared not challenge them; only the Daoist Ancestor could subdue them in the entire Primordial World.

Alas, the Witch Clan was inherently born without Primordial Spirits and ignorant of fate. It was destined for extinction. Otherwise, the Demon Clan of the past could never have stood against the Witches, not even with the Celestial Star Battle Formation.

After all, no matter how powerful the Celestial Star Battle Formation was, it could never surpass the Twelve All Heaven Gods and Demons Array.

All twelve Ancestor Witches were brave and battle-hardened, but the most formidable among them were undoubtedly Gonggong and Zhu Rong. Though calling them "the most formidable" carried a hint of irony, for it was their battle that once gave the Demon Clan the chance to contend against the Witches.

Nonetheless, Gonggong's strength was undeniable—a peak powerhouse among the Quasi-Saints. Without even having appeared yet, he had already evenly matched the likes of Nüba.

One could only imagine, if Gonggong truly struck with all his might, the terror he could unleash.

Meanwhile, Nüba unleashed a retaliatory strike that pierced straight toward the Earth Core. Passing through a blistering hot magma chamber, the attack's momentum grew even stronger.

Now that the Demon Emperor had perished, Zhu Rong had fallen, and the Phoenix Tribe had sealed itself away, Nüba was undoubtedly the greatest master of the path of fire in the Primordial Three Realms.

Li Mingzhu's Divine Thought followed closely. Were he to rely on his true form's speed, he would surely be unable to catch up with the attack. But with his Divine Thought, he barely managed to keep up.

An even more terrifying crimson beam of light surged towards a stone chamber. Evidently, the target had been located, and now it was time for a final charge and eruption.

The stone door was blasted apart by the crimson beam, sending shards flying everywhere.

"How dare you insult me?"

Just as the crimson light breached the stone door and prepared to erupt in full force, an earth-shattering roar echoed from within the chamber, nearly shattering Li Mingzhu's Divine Thought.

Li Mingzhu was forced to withdraw his Divine Thought from the chamber. The terror within was too overwhelming. He could confidently say that the cultivation of the being inside was no less than that of the Demon Emperor's projection he had once seen on Fusang Island.

Though the exact level of cultivation remained unknown, one thing was certain: this individual had already reached the pinnacle below Sainthood.

Because his Divine Thought had been forced out, Li Mingzhu did not know what happened inside the chamber afterward. But the outcome was already clear.

Nüba spat out a mouthful of blood. Her Divine Skill had merely been countered by the entity below and had already caused a backlash, injuring her. Clearly, it was far more than a mere clash of Divine Thoughts.

As blood spilled from her mouth, Nüba spoke two words through clenched teeth. It was not the anger of being defeated, but a trembling revelation filled with shock.

"Gonggong!"

After directly facing him in battle, Nüba recognized the identity of the Water Ancestor Witch who had been imprisoned at the Earth Core beneath the Huai River. Though Gonggong's identity was enough to shock anyone, it was not enough to truly unnerve the ever-calm Nüba. What enraged her more was Gonggong's audacity!

"You dare to forge a Primordial Spirit from the souls of millions of humans? Even at the height of your Witch Clan's power, you wouldn't have dared to do such a thing! Now, Gonggong, you're seeking your own destruction!"

Nüba's face flushed red with anger, a stark contrast to her usual icy demeanor, making her look even more beautiful. But Li Mingzhu had no mind to admire her beauty.

His heart and spirit were wholly consumed by Nüba's words. Millions of human souls forged into a Primordial Spirit—no wonder the countless souls summoned by Wuzhiqi had vanished without a trace.

Wuzhiqi had not practiced a demonic cultivation technique, nor had he refined any evil artifacts, yet those human souls had disappeared. Li Mingzhu had been puzzled until now, finally realizing: Gonggong had taken them for himself to forge a Primordial Spirit. It was truly monstrous.

Even more heinous than Yuan Futong! Millions of souls meant millions of lives!

These countless mortals could have lived out their natural lifespans, growing old, sick, and dying, then peacefully entering the Six Paths of Reincarnation. But now, they had all been turned to ash, barred even from reincarnation!

"Just millions of human souls? And so what? Back when the Witch Clan ruled the Primordial World, the Human Clan was but an ant-like existence, barely clinging to survival. Now, even as protagonists of Heaven and Earth, they are merely bigger ants!"

"I must admit, though, human souls are remarkable. The Demon Clan once used them to forge the Witch Slayer Sword that could harm our Witch Clan's physical bodies. Now, I, too, use them to forge a Primordial Spirit. It's just a pity we didn't discover this method earlier. Had we known, how could the Witch Clan have been defeated?"

Clad in black, with flowing white hair, Gonggong emerged slowly from the water, his voice devoid of any emotion, as if millions of lives were no more significant than roadside weeds.

Only when speaking of the Witch Clan did a faint ripple of emotion cross Gonggong's otherwise cold demeanor.

"You are unforgivable!"

Nüba roared, furious. Gonggong's words had clearly struck her deepest nerve!

What did Nüba care about most?

Beyond Ying Long, it was the Human Clan. Gonggong's treatment of humanity and his utter disregard for their existence filled her with unparalleled rage!

"Unforgivable? My physical body has reached the pinnacle of the Ancestor Witch level, infinitely close to that of a Saint. The Beiming True Water meant to dissolve me at the Earth Core has only strengthened my body, allowing me to advance farther—this is a feat even my brother Emperor Jiang never achieved! Your so-called Daoist Cultivations? This body has already cut two of the Three Corpses—a Quasi-Saint late stage, as you call it. Only one more step remains to cut the third and achieve full Sainthood. What a pity Wuzhiqi failed to gather enough souls!"

Gonggong spoke in a tone dripping with regret, clearly bitter over Wuzhiqi's failure to gather all the souls he needed.

At the edge of chaos, in Fire Cloud Cave.

"Elder Brother, shall we not intervene?"

Clad in a golden imperial robe, Xuanyuan radiated killing intent as he addressed the refined and composed Fu Xi. He was clearly long past patience. Gonggong's countless crimes were one thing, but more crucially, his own daughter was now confronting a near-Saint like Gonggong!

As one of the Three Sovereigns of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity, Xuanyuan was the Human Emperor, the only one to achieve Taoist truth through killing—his bloodlust was unmatched. Were it not for Fu Xi's restraint, he would already have descended to the Lower Realm.

"Have you forgotten our duty?"

Fu Xi slowly opened his eyes, his gaze as sharp as a sword, forcing Xuanyuan to look away.

Though both were Human Emperors, Xuanyuan, who had achieved Taoist truth through killing, was no match for Fu Xi, let alone argue against him. Beyond that, Fu Xi had also once been the Emperor of the Demon Clan—Emperor Xi. Xuanyuan dared not defy his words.

"Sigh!"

Xuanyuan flicked his sleeves with a sigh, pacing the room in frustration. In the end, he could stand by no longer. Snatching the Xuanyuan Sword from the wall, he hurled it fiercely downward!