“This… this?”

The hunchbacked Daoist in tattered robes stood atop the clouds. Despite being a disciple of a Sage and a master of the Primordial Era, he found himself… caught completely off guard and utterly bewildered.

Exploded?

Not only exploded, but!

In an instant, without giving him even half a chance to speak, the avatar had completely burned away!

What technique was this?

After being in seclusion for tens of thousands of years, had Daoist cultivation methods become so wild?

He hadn’t said anything except the Western Sect’s usual opening line:

“Fellow Daoist, you have a fated connection with our Western Paradise. We could establish a karmic bond.”

Wasn’t this normal? Was there something wrong with it?

Why did this happen?

How did the avatar just self-destruct?

Could it be that their Western Sect’s secret manipulation of the Three Schools had been exposed? If it had been exposed, there surely would have been problems earlier, so how…

“Hmph.”

While the hunchbacked Daoist was still doubting himself, he suddenly heard a cold laugh from behind.

Only then did he realize that his body was already entangled by dao patterns. Above and below, in all ten directions, space itself was sealed by these dao patterns.

This hunchbacked Daoist was usually quite wise and confident in his cultivation. Previously, he hadn’t taken the Sect of Humanity’s immortal Zhao seriously, so he directly appeared to intercept the Sea God’s avatar to discuss some minor matters.

But an unexpected change occurred!

The Sea God self-destructed, leaving not even ashes, and Scholar Gongming seemed… enraged because of this.

It was as if this had been a trap set for him!

At this moment, the hunchbacked Daoist felt a warning tremor in his heart, suddenly realizing that he might have underestimated this outer disciple of the Sect of Humanity…

The hunchbacked Daoist turned around and saw Scholar Gongming already dozens of li away.

At this moment, Scholar Gongming was surrounded by twenty-four light blue treasure pearls, gripping a golden wooden whip in his hand. His already imposing figure emanated an astonishing aura!

Those twenty-four treasure pearls directly fixed the space around the hunchbacked Daoist. Scholar Gongming’s intention to fight was now very obvious!

The hunchbacked Daoist grew even more suspicious in his heart. A white lotus appeared in his hand as his figure slowly retreated, secretly seeking a way to break the spatial seal.

The hunchbacked Daoist asked uncertainly: “Fellow Daoist, why are you doing this?”

“Why am I doing this?”

Scholar Gongming’s face was extremely grim, his thick beard trembling continuously.

Scholar Gongming said coldly:

“Fellow Daoist, you pressure my Dao School’s people right in front of me. Did you not consider my, Scholar Gongming’s, face?

Hmph, I, Scholar Gongming, may have a thin face, and it matters not if you don’t give me a face.

But when you pressure someone like this, you’re making my Dao School lose face!

Making my Dao School lose face is making my Sect of Humanity lose face, making my teacher lose face, making my two senior uncle-masters lose face!

You ask why I’m doing this!

You unfilial one!”

The hunchbacked Daoist frowned. Had everyone in the Dao School gone mad?

Where was the logic in this?

“Fellow Daoist, you…”

Scholar Gongming shouted:

“Enough talk! Take this!”

Scholar Gongming shouted again, his golden wooden whip blazing with light. The twenty-four Stabilizing Sea Divine Zhenzhus directly concealed themselves around his body as his figure transformed into a beam of rainbow light, instantly crossing space and breaking through barriers to appear before the hunchbacked Daoist!

The hunchbacked Daoist was greatly shocked!

He only knew Scholar Gongming usually spent his days wandering around as the Sect of Humanity’s senior outer disciple but didn’t know Scholar Gongming had such magical treasures and such powerful abilities!

At once, treasure light flickered around the hunchbacked Daoist!

A lotus flower bloomed beneath his feet, its layers of petals wrapping around his figure.

But in the next instant, a golden light flashed as the golden whip struck down fiercely, nearly tearing the lotus flower apart!

Fortunately, the space here had been fixed by the twenty-four Stabilizing Sea Divine Zhenzhus, otherwise, who knows how many living beings would have been affected…

In the sky above the mountains, Scholar Gongming swung his golden whip and pummeled the lotus flower while cursing and swearing, shouting crude words from the Sect of Humanity;

Before long, Scholar Gongming had torn apart the lotus flower, grabbed the hunchbacked Daoist, and began beating him furiously from head to toe.

How mighty and fierce!

…

What had been happening to himself lately?

As Scholar Gongming was violently beating that hunchbacked Daoist…

In the underground secret chamber of Small Jade Peak, Li Longshou held his splitting forehead and let out several painful groans.

The paper avatar had exploded too quickly earlier; he hadn’t even had time to fully withdraw his consciousness.

It was like when he was a child in his previous life playing with firecrackers during New Year’s, and one exploded in his hand before he could throw it; when a paper avatar self-destructs, it tears at one’s consciousness…

However, Li Longshou had prepared for such situations beforehand.

Now he only felt pain, his Primordial Spirit hadn’t been damaged.

The pain came quickly and left quickly. Li Longshou sat in his round chair, using another paper avatar to observe the two masters fighting in the sky from afar.

It could hardly be called a fight – it was more like one beating and one being beaten…

Li Longshou couldn’t feel happy at all; there was nothing worth being happy about. He had merely cleverly escaped a disaster.

He constantly reflected in his heart, reflecting on the subtle changes in his mentality during this period.

Within a month, he had made two major mistakes.

Previously, when Junior Master returned to the mountain, Li Longshou had felt fully prepared yet overlooked the most basic issue of the Junior Master’s gender;

Fortunately, nothing major went wrong, and Li Longshou summarized the lessons afterward.

But today, when Scholar Gongming was about to leave, even though he had already calculated that he was being targeted by Western Paradise masters, he still boldly chased after him!

If he hadn’t had a few backup plans, he might have already been converted by the Western Paradise!

Li Longshou broke out in a cold sweat all over, closed his eyes with a long sigh, and couldn’t help but laugh bitterly.

How could he have been so careless these past few days, losing the most important principles of stability for survival?

Self-reflection was necessary, necessary;

This sudden appearance of the hunchbacked Daoist was like a wake-up call.

Li Longshou examined himself. Since the Great Master had become his backing, his worries had decreased significantly, and relatively speaking, his careful consideration had also decreased.

After this matter was concluded, he would continue to perfect the “Scripture of Stability” and…

A man must also be harsh on himself!

Recite it three thousand times!

Quickly adjusting his mentality, Li Longshou’s consciousness gradually returned to calmness as he pondered how to handle the aftermath to ensure his safety.

In the brief moment he spent reflecting on his mentality, Scholar Gongming had already beaten that hunchbacked Daoist… until he was spitting blood;

Scholar Gongming hadn’t dealt a killing blow, just grabbed his wooden whip and thrashed him violently;

That old Daoist’s protective immortal light flickered unstably, and two of his protective spiritual treasures had already been damaged.

Once the hunchbacked Daoist had no strength left to resist, Scholar Gongming summoned the twenty-four Stabilizing Sea Divine Zhenzhus from the surrounding space and directly immobilized him.

These twenty-four Stabilizing Sea Divine Zhenzhus were no ordinary items – they were Primordial Spiritual Treasures bestowed by the Patriarch of the Original Heaven, formed from parts of the Chaos Zhenzhu that broke during the creation of heaven and earth, containing the power of the four seas and able to create their space-time.

Now the twenty-four Stabilizing Sea Divine Zhenzhus pinned down this hunchbacked Daoist, leaving the already extremely wretched old Daoist completely unable to move.

Look at this hunchbacked Daoist – black and blue, bleeding from his forehead, wounds all over his body, his tattered clothes now full of holes and covered in blood…

Li Longshou privately frowned repeatedly, first thinking through how this matter would affect him, then immediately considering how to perfectly deflect responsibility…

This hunchbacked Daoist was also not someone he could afford to offend.

Meanwhile, Li Longshou also had some guesses in his heart.

Could it be that Scholar Gongming was…

A simple-minded person?

Had he overthought things during his previous conversations with Scholar Gongming?

No, Li Longshou still felt that this senior disciple of the Sect of Humanity couldn’t be someone without depths!

This could be seen from how Scholar Gongming had drawn the karma to the face of the Three Sages of the Dao School before taking action.

Of course, it was also possible that this was exactly what Scholar Gongming thought…

If so, this master’s sense of collective honor and recognition of the Dao School was simply too strong.

Hmm?

‘During the Great Investiture of the Gods, Scholar Gongming always said “The Three Schools are one family, we’re all fellow disciples,” and never dealt harshly with the Twelve Golden Immortals of the School of Original Heaven whom he defeated.

But this Uncle Zhao’s end was quite tragic;

In the end, he was cursed to death by the mysterious Master Luya of the School of Original Heaven, who instigated Jiang Ziya to use the Seven Arrow Curse Book, and ascend to the Investiture of the Gods List…’

In this instant, Li Longshou had a flash of insight and suddenly thought of You Qin Xuanya!

There was a type of person whose behavior Li Longshou couldn’t predict – those who always thought of things optimistically…

And Scholar Gongming might be this type of ‘exceptional’ existence.

Saying all this, for such a first-rate master of the Primordial Era, Li Longshou naturally held reverence in his heart and wouldn’t scheme or calculate anything.

Moreover, he was a disciple of the School of Humanity, so he didn’t necessarily need to form good karma with Scholar Gongming.

Later, he would make some small amends, give him a copy of the Sea God Sect’s teachings as a reference, and use ‘following heaven’s way’ and ‘protecting mortals’ as reasons to re-explain why the Sea God Sect could develop so quickly and could cut off this karmic connection.

But what Li Longshou didn’t expect…

Scholar Gongming’s next actions not only exceeded Li Longshou’s expectations and left him completely unable to understand, but also shocked Li Longshou into a cold sweat.

This outer disciple of the Sect of Humanity, not content with just beating someone, also imprisoned the hunchbacked Daoist with the Stabilizing Sea Divine Zhenzhus, continuously scolding and pushing him toward the Sea God Temple.

Li Longshou: …

Could this Uncle Zhao also be… poisoned somehow?

How could he, a mere Sea God, be involved in this karma?!

The hunchbacked Daoist was a disciple of a Sage!

You might beat him once, and he naturally can only suffer silently, saying his abilities weren’t enough;

But if the Western Paradise settled accounts afterward and vented their anger on him, the Sea God, how should he, a minor disciple from a remote branch of the School of Humanity, deal with it?

Even if he could ask the Great Master to intervene, how should he explain this matter to the Great Master?

Li Longshou didn’t know whether to laugh or cry and hurriedly thought of countermeasures;

At the same time, another paper avatar also used earth travel techniques, rushing toward that small Sea God Temple;

Only to see…

Scholar Gongming floated back above the small temple, descended from the sky, threw that hunchbacked Daoist into the Sea God Temple courtyard, and even said matter-of-factly:

“Go, apologize to the Sea God.”

Li Longshou’s legs went weak, and his true body almost shrank under the desk in the secret chamber.

The hunchbacked Daoist was now pinned down by the Stabilizing Sea Divine Zhenzhus, lying on the ground unable to move, his gaze full of grief and indignation.

Where was the reason for this?

Did the Three Schools of the Dao still have any reason?!

Their Western Paradise was usually unreasonable enough, but compared to this senior disciple of the Sect of Humanity and this Sea God, they weren’t worth mentioning!

The hunchbacked Daoist simply closed his eyes and remained silent, so angry his Primordial Spirit trembled.

Scholar Gongming sneered: “What, still pretending to be dead? You forced the Sea God’s avatar to die, and insulted our Dao School, how could this end so easily!”

Just then, Scholar Gongming heard a thread of voice transmission in his ear…

“Senior, senior, please speak no more, this matter is already nearly unsalvageable!”

“Oh?”

Scholar Gongming’s gaze looked toward a certain place underground, looking exactly where the paper avatar was hidden, and said calmly:

“Don’t be afraid, we’re in the right!”

Li Longshou couldn’t help but hold his forehead with one hand, but immediately gathered his spirits. Based on Scholar Gongming’s personality, he prescribed the right medicine, already having one main plan and two backup plans in mind.

To resolve this matter, he must first persuade Scholar Gongming, then let Scholar Gongming deal with this hunchbacked Daoist.

As for himself, he absolutely could not appear!

Li Longshou dared not wait any longer and immediately used his avatar to transmit:

“Senior, although we’re in the right, you also know that the two masters behind this person aren’t…

Senior, your prestige in the Sect of Humanity is too high, and the Sect has many seniors like you who are boundlessly righteous and loyal. If you were targeted by the Western Paradise, how could the Sect take it lying down?

If this matter grows larger, it might provoke conflict between the Western Paradise and the Sect of Humanity!

When that time comes, there will certainly be casualties. How could you bear to see your fellow Daoists harmed?

Senior, you’re not someone insignificant like this junior. Your every word and action can affect the trends of the Primordial Era.”

Hearing this, Scholar Gongming immediately frowned deeply, stroked his beard, and drew in a sharp breath, directly transmitting to Li Longshou’s paper avatar:

“These words, they do make some sense, but this person forced you to destroy your avatar…”

“This junior is a cultivator of the School of Humanity, considered one family with senior, and many generations junior to you.”

Li Longshou transmitted with a sigh, “The reason this junior is unwilling to show his true face is that our School of Humanity practices quietude and non-action. If I came out to collect incense and merit, it would displease my Great Master.

Although my Great Master doesn’t concern himself with worldly affairs, he views the Three Schools of the Dao as one family quite seriously and has been worried these years about the constant friction between the Schools of Original Heaven and Humanity.

Therefore, when people from the Western Paradise find me, I immediately destroy my avatar, unwilling to have even the slightest connection with them.”

Scholar Gongming showed realization, then lowered his head in deep thought before muttering: “How about we just eliminate this Daoist and be done with it.”

“How could this be hidden from the Sage masters?”

“Then what should we do?”

Li Longshou said: “This junior boldly has a few small strategies to offer. If senior trust me, please consider using them.”

“Hey, now you’re being too formal!”

Scholar Gongming waved his hand, transmitting to Li Longshou’s paper avatar: “The Dao Schools are one family. If I don’t trust you, should I trust this fellow instead?

What strategies do you have? Let me hear them.”