Da Hai, despite never meeting Pangu in his life still remembered him. The statue of Pangu who spoke to him through an inanimate object was a one to one perfect visage. Statues generally have some differences compared to the former but based on Da Hai's memories of the Pangu god, this statue was exactly the same. It was almost frightening.
The lifelike statue did not move despite speaking. The glow in its eyes was very soft as if it'd fade soon. Da hai knew Pangu fell after completing his task. When heaven was finally opened Pangu sacrificed himself to become a stabilizing factor for the world.
The primitive world a yuanhui ago had been split apart for 18,000 years, a relatively short period of time based on chaos godsend's time scale. When Pangu let go of the sky, the universe was still very unstable, it threatened to collapse back into chaos.
Pangu back then could've simply abandoned everyone and left for the chaos sea. He had already split apart chaos and established the primitive world, he had no responsibility to it any longer. However, he stayed and gave his life away for it, filling the empty void with the five continents, four seas, starry skies, and the underworld.
His spine became Mt Buzhou holding up the heavens. His eyes became the sun star and lunar star, his bones and muscles became the continents, his hairs became the starry skies, his arteries and veins became spiritual leylines beneath the soil, his belly button swallowed up the wastes and became the blood sea.
Their reincarnation was only possible because of Pangu. If they were left drifting in the chaos sea, their weak nascent souls would've fallen apart.
It was because of Pangu as well that Da Hai was able to come into existence. Like Wangshu, Da Hai's true nature was once apart of Pangu's body as well.
But Da Hai held no affection towards Pangu.
"I did not expect you to still be alive father god," Da Hai said. However, his voice came out gravely and did not have the reverent air of someone meeting a greater being. The statue seemed to have shone brighter in response but the overall light was so dim that it was hardly noticeable. If Pangu minded Da Hai's tone, he did not say it.
"I am not really alive, merely a remnant stubbornly clinging onto some measure of existence," Pangu's weak voice answered. "My Dao throne is long gone anyways." Even so, Pangu's voice carried with it a level of enlightenment beyond imagination. Da Hai could understand what Pangu was saying, but could not at the same time.
It was like analyzing a tv show back on earth. You understand what's going on and the base themes but there was so much more underneath that could be understood and interpreted. Pangu's simple words made Da Hai feel as if he was beginning to go into an epiphany.
'So this is what it feels like to interact with someone vastly beyond you,' he thought. The experience was something wholly new. Pangu's realm was so transcendent, so beyond anything Da Hai had ever seen. If it were any other scenario, he'd have been filled with joy at this experience.
Da Hai cupped his hands expressionlessly and bowed towards Pangu's statue.
"You do not have to stand on occasion Tian Hai. Do not treat me any different as you would anyone else, not much left to be worth greeting anyways," he said welcoming Da Hai. But within it, one would notice that Pangu's voice carried some sense of self-deprecatingly.
"Nevertheless, you are the creator god. As a junior and someone who benefitted from your pain, it is only right to show you proper respect," Da Hai bowed once to the statue. His show of respectful curtesy was stif.
"I get the feeling you're not too pleased right now," Pangu replied.
"That was never my intention great god. I only hold you in high esteem."
"Bah! I sense the anger rolling off of you like waves. Just like that brat Shenni," Pangu dismissed.
"I am not Shenni!" Da Hai roared angrily. Pangu responded with a chuckle to his sudden words.
"Are you not going through the same emotions he was going through?" Pangu questioned, he chuckled but his tone did not imply any mockery at Da Hai's expense. "You are Tian Hai of the Chaos Godfiends. I remember you fighting me to your last. I also remember annihilating your essence for being so persistent."
"Tian Hai died long ago," Da Hai answered.
"Yet you stand before me all the same. Reincarnation did wonders to tame you."
'He doesn't know? So he's not all knowing after all,' Da Hai thought with narrowed eyes. Pangu was clearly observing him, analyzing him. He did not feel any mental intrusions implying a lack of ability, unwillingness, or weakness. Judging by Pangu's current state it should be the third option.
"You are wrong. I am not a reincarnation, my origin stems from Tian Hai but I am not him," he declared in clarification. "I am Da Hai. Remember that father god."
"Then it seems I jumped to the wrong conclusion. Da Hai hm…I see, you're an innate god born of me," Pangu paused slightly. Da Hai nodded in confirmation.
"I was born from Tian Hai's remnant nascent soul and the waters of the east sea," he told Pangu. The statue dimmed in response. Da Hai grew concerned, had something happened to Pangu?
Fortunately, his worries were lifted when Pangu spoke again. It would seem he was merely thinking.
"I can sense you are not telling the whole truth," Pangu's light signaled for Da Hai to elaborate. The sea god sighed helplessly, there was no real point in hiding anything, he simply didn't dwell on the past much.
"I am also born from another being, a mortal creature called human from another world," he explained the background of the deceased human. Of the memories he inherited and the technological world left behind. 'Wait a second, why am I telling him this?'
"I see, so you know then."
"If you mean the future then yes, I am aware of the broad details," Da Hai confirmed. "You seem to be already aware of the human. May I ask why?" He asked. He gasped and took a defensive stance. But it seemed Pangu ignored him for when he answered, he made no notice to Da Hai's alarm.
"That child 'transmigrated' earlier than you think. In the latter portions of the chaos period he had already appeared," Pangu explained much to Da Hai's shock. He had not been aware of this previously as the human memories were somewhat incomplete.
"That child was torn apart by the chaos sea but luckily he appeared near my residence. The structure I was cultivating in, what your world calls the cosmic egg. The event happened so fast that I barely noticed it, luckily I salvaged a little bit of the pieces that remained," Pangu elaborated as Da Hai's eyes began to widen in realization.
"I saw what he saw, I saw the three realms through his mind. I saw the legends that will come to be. At the time I was stumped in my cultivation. My Dao was already transcended and I only sat in the realm of Limitless Supreme Chaos Immortal realm in name only. But this scene of three realms, this one spark gave me an epiphany," Pangu recalled with nostalgia.
"I thought it was an opportunity unlike any other. The opening of a universe within the chaos sea performed by one such as I. An end route like no other. A permanent legacy," Pangu's next words produced a noise so profound that Da Hai could not comprehend what he was hearing.
"From pure nothingness, nonexistence defines the singular element completely white, blank, empty, no meaning, no existence, yet full of meaning, full of existence. Wuji, primordial ultimate, that which is without limit."
"From nothing comes something. White becomes Black, swirling in existence. Taiji, supreme ultimate. Taiji is the strongest of all, it is the centre point of creation, the ultimate existence. But Taiji came from Wuji, therefore it is inferior. But Taiji is supreme, but Wuji is limitless. Supreme in something and supreme in nothing."
"Taiji becomes Wuji, Wuji becomes Taiji, the constant transformation between the two created the third element. The constant change of the two, one fading into the other, births the spinning wheel of Taiji. From three all things arise."
"From the inception of creation, the Dao transforms the five elements of fire, water, earth, wood, and metal. From the two primordial forces rises eight trigrams of heaven, lake, fire, thunder, wind, water, mountain, and earth. Existence is complete and all things arise."
"Hence completing Dao birth, where all things are but a transformation of you," Da Hai completed. His eye glazed over in enlightenment. He could feel so much from just musings from Pangu alone.
The distant seas, ever far away yet fully visible in sight. Available yet unavailable, in reach yet far away, present yet away. Endless waters that exists alongside the land. Another reality alongside another, fully visible yet unable to feel. Just attempting to reach would be a journey into the abyss.
The Dao fruit that was only an image within Da Hai's inner cosmos became physical. The tall cosmic tree's flower sprouted a gargantuan fruit gleaming in power. Slowly the tree collapsed away, its role completed. The Dao fruit sat at the centre of the cosmos, an almighty force overseeing all creation.
Great Principle Chaos Immortal, on this day Da Hai had joined the likes of Huoyun, Hundun, Si Hai, Taotie, and others as a top power in the primitive world. He breathed out a profound breath of Qi and could feel the richness of primordial Dao essence around him. He felt so much clearer, so much stronger, so much more freer.
"Thank you great god Pangu," he began kowtowing. 'Wait what am I doing?'
"I guess I can consider you a disciple with that," Pangu chuckled. "I cannot give you any benefits but you can claim the position of my disciple. Named or not it makes no difference." Da Hai felt extremely happy at this, he kowtowed three times before the statue. He would've served tea as well but he did not have any equipment on him.
"How are you doing this? How am I being strung along by you?" Da Hai said angrily. "I am not here here for enlightenment to chit chatter. I'm not even here to see you!"
"You consider receiving cultivation aid a negative? You benefitted didn't you?" Pangu said amused. "And here I thought you could overcome your rage."
Da Hai was snapped towards Pangu. He remembered why he had come here and immediately paid close attention. "My brother is dead."
"Luohu and Hongjun were involved. Hongjun schemed against him and led him to that dire situation where he had no choice. Luohu stabbed him the final blow. You expect me to…"
"Alright enough," Pangu interrupted with a wave of air. The temple complex glowed briefly and the air around Da Hai noticeably became heavier. The fluttering sounds of a butterfly's wings was heard in the wind.
"Do not misunderstand me child. I do understand the pain of losing someone you hold dear. Hongjun and Luohu you say? Those two who schemes against each other for an advantage over my creation?"
"If you have future knowledge then you should already know. Bit dumb of you to follow through with current events if you knew your end." Da Hai's snide remark drew Pangu's ire. But the dying deity only chuckled in a self-deprecating manner. "The Grand Dao is aimless to begin with, it has no consciousness and could not force you. But none of that matters now."
"On the contrary, if you're here to know about those two then my story is very important. It wasn't until I had already killed the 3000 Chaos Godfiends and held open the chaos did I realize my sealed fate. To successfully accomplish the opening of the world, I would need to sacrifice my very being. But I was fine with it."
"I recalled the memories," Pangu said slowly. "I saw the world where everything meant something." Da Hai looked confused, he did not understand Pangu's meaning at all.
"Yes, I could have run and found another way to break through. Step into Dao for real and become an eternal existence like Shiva or Yuanling. But then what?" He suddenly asked. Da Hai could find no answer.
"From the moment of my conception, I have traveled, battled across the infinite chaos sea. I have witnessed the majestic god of destruction and his preserver counterpart, timeless serpent and his consort, primeval giants of fire and ice, the solar falcon riding his eternal barge, and countless other godfiends of the chaos. I have cultivated all my life hoping to continuously progress, to reach the Dao," Pangu sighed.
"Dao is supreme, the beginning and end of all things, eternal and without limit. But then there is nothing," he explained to Da Hai who was beginning to understand.
"You fear there is nothing after the Dao," he said slowly. If the statue could nod it would've so Da Hai took the silence as confirmation.
"If I one day reach Dao then wouldn't my life become pointless?" Pangu sighed in defeat. "I did not want such an ending. I was already the mightiest in the chaos. I had defeated all I have met in combat, all for the sake of progression."
"I'm fine with this ending," he said, "Being responsible for the rise of so many greats with my name behind them, responsible for their existence. Egotistical I know, but at least there was some meaning," Pangu elaborated.
"And this relates to my goals how?" Da Hai stated.
"Just be patient, I'm getting there."
"See, as chaotic lifeforms our whole lives centers around cultivation. Every living being in fact yearns to evolve and become something greater. The style of cultivation practiced by the Chaos Godfiends were but one such method. They're hardly unique in all existence, their philosophy is hardly anything stand out. We all sought the same thing, to reach the next realm."
"When I was planning things out, I wasn't exactly paying attention to my surroundings. Two godfiends wondered into my vicinity and saw aftermaths of the decaying human. Like me and everyone else, they were searching for a means to break through. The godfiends were a bit obtuse you see, none of them ever figured out how to reach past Primal Zenith Chaos Immortal"
Da Hai's eyes widened to disc plates. He stared at Pangu and asked, "Hongjun and Luohu obtained those pieces too didn't they. They saw the future as well. Their own methods to advance right?"
"Correct, this two caught some drifting pieces and became aware of the three realms. I do not know what they saw but I am sure their actions are related to it."
Da Hai pondered, "Could it be that your knowledge was incomplete?"
"Possibly, I saw the heavenly courts, the three pure ones, the buddha, the great battle of investiture of the gods, the monkey who trampled heaven underfoot, and the legacy I left behind," Pangu said. "Multiple Dao realm supreme beings all from me. How wonderful is that?"
Da Hai widened his eyes in realization, "Are you aware of the three preachings at purple cloud palace. The 3000 guests and six disciples who became saints."
"Saint? What? Is that a title because I am aware of no such realm," Pangu answered fully clarifying Da Hai's hypothesis.
"Heavenly Dao, Hongjun, he knows he is destined to win," Da Hai explained leaving Pangu speechless. "He saw his future and he is determined to see it through."