Li Qingming listened slack-jawed and after a long pause said, "Come on, why have you turned me into a beastly creature! No matter what, I was also an Innate Taoist Body in my past life! If it weren't for my miraculous encounters, ultimately allowing me to transform into a human, wouldn't I have to live my entire life as a little beast with full spiritual intelligence?"
After hearing Li Qingming's outburst, Hong Jun composed himself and said, "Swallowing Sky Bear is no mere little beast!"
"Swallowing Sky Bear? What kind of creature is that? This body of mine has never shown any peculiar abilities!" Li Qingming was puzzled.
Hong Jun chuckled and said, "Within the Cycle, there are Five Immortals—Heaven, Earth, Divine, Human, Ghosts; there are also Five Insects—Scaled, Finned, Feathered, Furred, Winged. Among these, one species of the Primordial World is shrouded in mystery, known as Swallowing Sky Bear, a beast born from Heaven and Earth with the sole purpose of destroying heaven, naturally possessing the Great Divine Power of 'Swallowing Heaven and Devouring Earth.'"
"I surely don't possess any divine skills like Swallowing Heaven and Devouring Earth!" Li Qingming remained skeptical.
"Haha! Later on, as this beast mated with bears of the Postnatal realm, its bloodline became diluted, making it increasingly difficult to awaken its divine powers. Over millions of years, being hunted by other species, only one of this bloodline remains after ten thousand years!" Hong Jun spoke indifferently.
"Oh? Then that must be my mother? How did she conceive my brother?" Upon hearing this, Li Qingming raised his eyebrows.
"Haha, it was also a serendipitous coincidence. The bamboo forest where you reside is a place of Xuanyin. Your mother absorbed the youthful energy there, hence conceiving an offspring inside her—your brother!" Hong Jun was doing his duty as an explainer.
"I see!"
Meanwhile, tens of thousands of miles away at Mount Buzhou.
Inside the mountain, there was a simple and archaic hall with a huge golden plaque hanging above, inscribed with three enormous Tao runes spelling "Ancestral Witch Hall!"
In the center of the great hall, a heart the size of several tens of feet throbbed, "Thump, thump, thump!" with a steady and powerful beat. To the left and right below, there were six blood-red flesh lumps, also undulating rhythmically up and down with the heartbeat.
As the flesh lumps started beating faster and faster, suddenly there came a series of "crack" and "snap" sounds, and the flesh lumps split apart from the middle, revealing twelve peculiar and bizarre creatures.
The first one looked like a yellow sac, red as cinnabar, with six legs and four wings, formless and featureless. It was Di Jiang, the Ancestor Witch of Space!
The second one, green as bamboo, with a bird's body and a human face, riding two dragons. It was Ju Mang, the Ancestor Witch of Wood!
The third one had a human face and tiger's body, covered in golden scales, with wings on its shoulders, left ear pierced by a snake, riding two dragons. It was Rushou, the Ancestor Witch of Gold!
The fourth one had a python head and a human body, covered in black scales, standing on a black dragon, hands coiled with green snakes. It was Gonggong, the Ancestor Witch of Water!
The fifth one had a beast head and a human body, covered in red scales, ears pierced by a fire snake, feet astride a fire dragon. It was Zhu Rong, the Ancestor Witch of Fire!
The sixth one had eight human faces and a tiger body with ten tails. It was Tian Wu, the Ancestor Witch of Wind.
The seventh one, held snakes in its mouth and hands, with a tiger head and a human body, four hooved feet, and long arms. It was Qiang Liang, the Ancestor Witch of Thunder!
The eighth one had a human face and a bird body, ears adorned with green snakes, holding red snakes in its hands. It was Naz, the Ancestor Witch of Lightning!
The ninth one had a human face and a snake's body, entirely red. It was Zhu Jiuyin, the Ancestor Witch of Time!
The tenth one had a human face and beast's body, with ears like a dog's, and ears adorned with green snakes. It was Shebi Corpse, the Ancestor Witch of the Great Atmosphere!
The eleventh one had a human body and a snake tail, seven hands on its back, two hands in front, with both hands gripping flying snakes. It was Houtu, the Ancestor Witch of Earth!
The twelfth one was a fierce and monstrous beast, covered with bone spurs all over its body. It was Xuanming, the Ancestor Witch of Rain!
"I am Di Jiang! We are the Twelve Ancestor Witches!" Di Jiang roared up to heaven.
Suddenly, thunderous echoes ripped through the Primordial Land, and clear blue skies were instantly shrouded by billowing black clouds. From nowhere, a cadence of rallying cries, "Witch!" "Witch!" "Witch!" resounded.
The mightiest among the Dragon Clan, Phoenix Clan, and Qilin Clan set their stern gazes toward Mount Buzhou.
Upon the birth of the Twelve Ancestor Witches, the Three Pure Ones from Kunlun Mountain felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity awakening in their hearts.
Inside Zixiao Palace, Hong Jun's eyes, which had been lightly closed, suddenly sprang open. Looking at Li Qingming he said, "Descendants of Pangu, the 'Twelve Ancestor Witches'?" Although his tone was interrogative, his expression was one of certainty.
Li Qingming turned to gaze at Mount Buzhou to the east, a flash of excitement crossing his face, and said, "With the advent of the Ancestor Witches, it won't be long before the Dragon, Phoenix, and Qilin Clans are plunged into chaotic battles!"
Hong Jun gave Li Qingming a deep look and said, "Qingmingzi, since you have taken Primordial as your master, you shall thus be the Xuan Sect's foremost chief disciple of the third generation. I do not ask you to glorify the Xuan Sect; just do not harm its interests, and you may act as you please. Take care!"
Upon finishing, he swept his robe sleeve and vanished.
Li Qingming left Zixiao Palace, pondered for a moment, then approached Primordial and said, "I have been away from the island for over ten thousand years, and I wish to return for a family reunion. I hope my master agrees!"
Primordial Venerable slightly nodded and said, "Now that the Primordial Three Races are on the brink of war, you must not become entangled in it. Remember to keep yourself safe. On your return to the island, convey my and the Three Pure Ones' regards to your mother. Go now!"
Li Qingming bowed deeply and departed for Ten Thousand Bamboo Island.
Setting aside Li Qingming's homeward journey, the situation in the Primordial World had become even more chaotic than before.
The Innate Three Clans dispatched a large number of their kin toward Mount Buzhou to investigate the anomalies that had occurred there earlier. The Beast Clan sent the White Tiger Clan, with Bai Mu leading the team, and the overall command given to Lin Ming, the Third Elder of the Qilin Clan. The Flying Creatures Clan sent the Vermilion Bird Clan, led by Princess Feng Yan'er. The Scale Armor Clan sent the Dinosaur Clan, led by Ancestor Dragon's son, Ao Tian. Three mighty armies surged toward Mount Buzhou like torrents.
Ironically, this Bai Shu happened to be that dead Bai Mu's father. This time, the White Tiger Clan leader had conscripted him as a strongman to serve as cannon fodder for the Qilin Clan.
"Third Elder, we have spotted the Scale Armor Clan ahead!" reported a Dark Dragon Guard, dressed in black.
"Oh? How many?" Lin Ming cracked a grim smile.
"Roughly a hundred thousand!"
"How interesting!" Lin Ming's lips curled up with an amused smirk, saying, "Order our clansmen to lower the banners and conceal their presence! We shall meet with the Dragon Clan!"
By a strange coincidence, the Scale Armor Clan had also noticed the beasts in the central region. Unlike Lin Ming, Ao Tian was considering how to quickly provoke a war among the Three Clans.
"Who blocks the Dragon Clan's path ahead?" Ao Tian deliberately ordered a Dark Dragon Guard to call out.
"Ha ha ha! How unexpected to encounter Fellow Daoists from the Dragon Clan here in the Buzhou Mountain Range, truly as they say, 'no meeting is not predestined'!" Bai Shu responded loudly in an exaggerated tone.
"Hehe! Who could this be? If it isn't Elder Bai Shu of the White Tiger Clan? What brings you to Mount Buzhou today?" Ao Tian replied with a snide tone.
"Oh, it's Crown Prince Ao Tian! We both know full well why we are here. No need to feign ignorance!" interjected Lin Ming, standing to the side.
"Hehe! It must be that the Flying Creatures Clan has also come to Mount Buzhou! Now in the Primordial World, our Three Clans stand as a tripod! Since our two clans have met before the Phoenix Clan, why don't we cooperate this once?" Ao Tian sent a telepathic message to Lin Ming.
"Oh? And what does the Crown Prince propose?" Lin Ming's demeanor remained unchanged.
Ao Tian's smile held a hint of mystery as he replied, "Join forces to encircle and attack them unawares!"