Drip!

The sound of water droplets appeared again, and the whiteness receded in an instant.

Golden light flashed before his eyes, and the scene returned to the spacious and magnificent main hall of the Holy Mother’s Palace.

Li Changshou shook his slightly stiff body, and awareness quickly returned to his blank eyes as his primordial spirit gently shook its head within.

“Oh?”

The Xuanhuang Tower trembled slightly, transmitting a puzzled spiritual thought.

The Grand Master naturally noticed the anomaly from the side, turning his head to look at Li Changshou, then at the Holy Mother who sat quietly on her throne.

With his cultivation realm not far from the Sacred realm, the Grand Master could see the slight smile on the Holy Mother’s lips and catch the fleeting, profound Dao rhythm.

It seemed something interesting had occurred…

The Grand Master’s eyebrows lifted slightly, but he didn’t say much, only playing with the treasure pearl in the brocade box.

This was a primordial treasure pearl, without much spirit or power. Rather than refining it into a hidden weapon-type magical treasure, it would be better to comprehend the remaining rhythms of the Great Dao upon it. Perhaps one might grasp some minor divine ability.

A true minor primordial trinket.

Li Changshou was still maintaining his posture of pressing down on the brocade box, having just carefully set it down.

His earlier ‘dramatic’ change in expression had naturally been seen by the Grand Master;

The Grand Master reached over and took Li Changshou’s brocade box, opening it quite naturally.

“Don’t be discourteous, let your elder brother take a look.”

“Senior Brother…”

Li Changshou’s reaction was slightly slow at this moment, and when he wanted to stop him, it was already too late.

In an instant, treasure light spilled everywhere, like a bursting dam, as ‘stars’ surged forth one after another, with crisp tinkling sounds ringing continuously.

On the throne, Goddess Nüwa tilted her body, her finger pressed against the corner of her phoenix eyes, watching this scene with interest and an amused smile.

As the treasure light slightly subsided, the Grand Master looked at the pearls that had crashed into his arms and scattered across the low table, black lines gradually covering his forehead.

Did the difference in treatment need to be so obvious?

He was, after all, one of the first batch of humans to be molded, and the senior brother of the Dao school…

Although the Holy Mother was very particular about being called ‘mother’ or ‘granny’, he, the Grand Master, could indeed call her ‘Mother’!

What happened in that instant just now?

These pearls were not primordial spiritual treasures; their material was unclear, and they contained those ‘treasure trees’ shaped like pine and cypress sealed within them, more like decorative items…

The Grand Master looked closely and saw a pearl emanating a faint earthen yellow light, with a small pinch of golden soil sealed within.

Nine Heavens Spirit Soil?!

Looking more carefully, the Grand Master immediately found three other distinctive pearls, containing a jar of Weak Water, a wisp of Undying True Solar Fire…

And several pieces of Ten Thousand Souls Gold that had once been used to repair humanity’s supreme treasure, the Xuanyuan Sword!

Adding in these numerous spirit trees of some extinct ancient species, had the Holy Mother directly given Changshou a pile of premium Five Elements treasure materials?

Several fairy maidens flew over from the side, collecting these pearls into a treasure pouch and placing it on the low table in front of the Grand Master.

Although the Grand Master was somewhat puzzled and confused, he wouldn’t let his mental state be shaken by these mere items; he was merely curious.

He returned the treasure pouch to Li Changshou, smiling as he said:

“It seems that I, as the senior brother, am just not as endearing as my junior brother.”

“Senior Brother jests…”

Li Changshou forced a smile, and although he tried his best to endure it, there was still some fatigue in his eyes…

What endearing.

This was exchanged for tens of thousands of pages of comics!

Tens of thousands of pages!

He was required to color them, add light effects, set anti-decay restrictions, and if they weren’t done well, they had to be redone. If the protagonist was too chuunibyou or the plot had various flaws, he would see the Holy Mother’s standard look of disdain…

Although in his previous life, Li Changshou had neglected his studies and read many comic works while in school;

Now he could use deduction methods to extract memories from the past, and combined with his brush and ink techniques honed over many years, he was like a human photocopier.

But modifying the content to match the style of the Honghuang era still required considerable mental effort…

To be safe, Li Changshou hadn’t directly replicated those renowned works.

Good things should be brought out slowly.

Although he didn’t dare to keep the Holy Mother Nüwa hanging, because of this supply and demand relationship, this backing should be secured.

He just didn’t know how important ‘enriching home life’ was to the Holy Mother Nüwa.

Li Changshou didn’t dare say he had become familiar with the Holy Mother now, but coming to the Holy Mother’s Palace in the future shouldn’t be too much of a problem.

The entry privileges of an ordinary court official in the Heavenly Court had gained another item.

Honestly, if it weren’t for the fact that his stored goods weren’t too plentiful either, Li Changshou would have wanted to empty the Holy Mother’s treasure vault!

Think peaches, think peaches.

Getting the Nine Heavens Spirit Soil this time, as well as so many spirit essence treasure trees, was already an unexpected joy.

The Holy Mother hadn’t been perfunctory either – one work offset Li Changshou’s previous crime of deliberately deceiving the Holy One, and then one more work meant one more reward.

These premium Five Elements treasure materials were actually what Li Changshou had carefully considered and requested himself.

Originally, Mother Nüwa had wanted to reward him with one or two primordial spiritual treasures, but since Li Changshou asked for treasure materials, the Mother just…

Saved them.

“Alright.”

On the throne, Holy Mother Nüwa waved her hand lightly, her cloud sleeves floating past, dispersing a streak of golden light, “There are no more matters today, you two may return.”

With a flash of golden light, the Holy One had vanished.

This was…

She was in a hurry to see the ‘grand finale.’

“Ahem,” the Grand Master coughed, his head full of fog at this moment, unable to deduce or guess what had happened in that instant earlier no matter how he tried.

So, the Grand Master turned his head to look at Li Changshou’s elderly face in his Water God form…

“Senior Brother, let’s talk on the way.”

“Very well.”

Just after leaving the Holy Mother’s Palace, Li Changshou couldn’t help but yawn.

Seeing him too fatigued, the Grand Master directly summoned the power of the Taiji Diagram, borrowing the path outside the cosmos with Li Changshou to return to the Five Continents.

“Is it because the battle at Yao Sheng Mountain consumed too much mental energy?” the Grand Master asked with concern.

Li Changshou forced a smile and sighed, “Please trouble Senior Brother to send me back to the度仙门 Sect. I’ll use an avatar to find His Majesty the Jade Emperor and report back on the Heaven Court matters.”

The Grand Master complied and changed course, fully displaying the excellent tradition of asking when not understanding, smiling as he said: “Your elder brother is truly curious, why would the Holy Mother give you so many benefits?”

“This…”

Li Changshou couldn’t help but see in his mind the image of the Holy Mother lying by the pool, swaying her snake tail and repeatedly chuckling, and quickly shook his head to erase this untransmittable image.

Red embroidered ball warning!

“I… wrote some poetry for the Holy Mother, and the Holy Mother was pleased, so she rewarded me.”

Poetry?

The Grand Master pursed his lips and frowned, his strange understanding of the Holy One increasing greatly.

So, the Grand Master smiled and said: “Come, recite one for your elder brother too, let’s see your level!”

Li Changshou: …

The previous senior who dared to plagiarize poetry had already been destroyed by the Heavenly Dao! Such things carry karma, and one absolutely must not carelessly copy them!

—Though the comics for the Holy Mother wouldn’t spread outside, so that was naturally fine.

“Senior Brother, let’s do it another day, another day. My spirit is truly exhausted.”

The Grand Master didn’t press too hard; although he was still somewhat puzzled, he didn’t ask further.

Half an hour later, on Little Jade Peak.

Not counting the years spent in Holy Mother Nüwa’s divine ability, this was also Li Changshou’s second time returning to the peak in half a month with complete mental exhaustion.

Avoiding Ling’e and Wine Jiu who were searching for him all over the mountain, he strolled to the pill furnace, opened a small restriction on one of the furnace’s legs, revealing a tiny ‘room’ within, and transformed into a stream of light to enter it.

After sending a voice message to Ling’e and Master Wine reporting his safety, and telling Ling’e to meet him at the pill room in a month, Li Changshou activated various formations and closed his eyes to concentrate.

He had voluntarily returned to the Xuanhuang Tower, and the lack of security made him unable to sleep peacefully even though he was mentally exhausted.

That person… Heavenly Dao…

The Six Saints… Tribulation…

Thoughts circulated in Li Changshou’s mind, and he first asked himself, ‘Could the Holy Mother be deceiving me?’

The possibility naturally existed, and he must maintain a measure of doubt, though this wasn’t disrespect toward humanity’s Holy Mother.

But relying on Lord Taiqing’s protection, would he truly be safe in the Honghuang world?

He used to think he was safe, but now…

In the vast Honghuang, the Heavenly Dao is the chessboard, the Saints move pieces to plot for all beings, and living beings struggle for transcendence.

What was true transcendence really like?

And what of his path ahead?

If he couldn’t firmly grasp his fate in his hands, how could he obtain that steady sense of happiness?

Even when borrowing power, one’s sail must be sturdy enough, otherwise the boat would capsize and sink, and friends wouldn’t even be able to mention one’s name.

In this Honghuang world, a Merit Golden Body was just a protective charm. The only thing one could truly rely on was oneself – was this path that belonged only to oneself…

The Way.

His fists clenched lightly, and in that narrow dark corner, faint blue-green points of light floated around the sitting figure, gradually converging into a blurry treasure map.

And so, one month later.

…

“Senior Brother!”

A gentle call rang out as Ling’e rode a cloud over, landing gracefully in the pill room, and following Li Changshou’s voice transmission, went to the underground secret chamber with practiced familiarity.

Li Changshou was bent over writing something, his spirit now fully recovered.

Ling’e’s cheeks suddenly grew warm, but she pretended to be normal, walking forward with her hands behind her back, tilting her head to watch Li Changshou busy at work.

“Senior Brother, what are you drawing in these little boxes? They all seem connected.”

“Heaven’s secrets cannot be revealed.”

Li Changshou put down his brush, covered the papers below with immortal power, and took out a jade talisman, injecting a little immortal power.

The jade talisman trembled slightly, and strands of immortal light emerged from within, revealing sixteen ‘anatomical diagrams’ of Little Jade Peak.

“These are the formation engineering modifications to be made next. Any suggestions for changes?”

“Uh, aren’t we about to move Little Jade Peak?” Ling’e couldn’t help asking. “Is there still time to do all this?”

“There is,” Li Changshou exhaled. “Your senior brother has decided not to move for now.”

“Really!?”

Ling’e’s eyes instantly lit up.

“Yes,” Li Changshou smiled gently. “Some things happened that made me adjust the future development path, and I also felt we shouldn’t put all our eggs in one basket.

However, I’ll still make a Little Jade Peak Two later and move the Water God Manor next to Doushuai Palace, since I’ve already announced this matter.”

Ling’e blinked, indicating she didn’t quite understand.

Li Changshou stopped there and began explaining to Ling’e what needed to be done next.

When she heard her senior brother say that they would later replace all the land, lakes, and forests on Little Jade Peak, Ling’e thought her senior brother had gone mad in his cultivation…

Was this necessary?

The previous Little Jade Peak, although completely changed inside by her senior brother, had no major changes on the surface.

But now…

Finally not even sparing this outer layer?

“By the way,” Li Changshou casually asked, “did you cause any trouble while I was asleep?”

Ling’e covered her face with both hands and mumbled in a voice as thin as a mosquito’s, “I… didn’t… mm…”

“Hmm?”

Li Changshou was also amused – this was an unexpected harvest?

After a moment, seeing Ling’e stabilize her state of mind, Li Changshou said seriously: “What wrong did you do before?”

Ling’e again showed signs of ‘Three Flowers Gathering at the Crown’, stammering and blushing red, with slight sweat on her forehead, completely unable to meet her senior brother’s gaze.

She honestly said: “Senior Brother, I’ll self-punish with three thousand copies of the Stability Scripture…”

Li Changshou’s brow furrowed even deeper.

Three thousand copies as self-punishment?

“What great mistake did you make? Did you recklessly try to match Wine Rain Poem with Master?”

“Oh my,” Ling’e bit her lip and stamped her foot, “Senior Brother, please don’t ask anymore. I’ll just punish myself, it’s… it’s between us…”

Li Changshou shook his head and took out two stone tablets.

“Come on, together.

I’ll self-punish with six thousand, share three thousand with you, fair and just, no discrimination young or old.”

“Mm,” Ling’e responded with red cheeks, obediently sitting across from the desk, skillfully taking out a carving knife and beginning to transcribe the new version of the Stability Scripture.

She didn’t even whine or complain.

There’s a problem, there’s a big problem here!

Although Li Changshou was thoroughly puzzled, since Ling’e wouldn’t say, he didn’t ask further, quietly concentrating on carving characters into scripture.

After a while, Ling’e suddenly asked in a small voice:

“Senior Brother, if I… I… if I were pregnant, what should I do?”

Crack!

Li Changshou’s carving knife stabbed into the stone tablet, cracks appeared throughout, and it shattered into small pieces in an instant.

No, his immortal body’s Yang essence didn’t seem to have been depleted, and even if he had been sound asleep, he shouldn’t have had any sensation…

Looking at Ling’e again, he suddenly understood something.

Putting away the broken stones and taking out another tablet, continuing to carve with his head down, Li Changshou calmly said:

“For humans, just holding hands and kissing won’t result in pregnancy.”

Ling’e started, “Then how does one become…”

“First there must be marriage, then sharing a room – the bridal chamber,” Li Changshou continued explaining calmly, “Then daily kowtowing and praying to the Human Race Holy Mother, and when the Holy Mother bestows a mud doll, the woman becomes pregnant.”

Ling’e couldn’t help slowly tilting her head, then suddenly thought of something and lowered her head to busy herself, face red.

So, it was that complicated.

…

In the southwest of the North Uttarakuru Continent, among a range of mountains where poisonous miasma was thin.

At some point, this place had become roiling with demonic qi, especially in recent days, with waves of powerful demon race experts’ Dao rhythms constantly flowing.

Deep in the mountains, in a forest, streams of blue-green demon fire drifted between the trees, with countless figures gathered here.

Half of them used human forms after transformation, each retaining characteristics of their original tribes, usually with beast heads and human bodies;

Half maintained their demon beast forms, their bodies emanating intense killing intent.

Over three hundred Demon Kings, over a hundred ancient experts, and more than ten Demon race elders had been discussing here for three days and nights, still unable to come up with specific strategies for counterattacking the Heavenly Court.

Just thinking about the outcome at Yao Sheng Mountain would directly scatter their newly gathered fighting spirit…

The atmosphere in the forest grew increasingly heavy.

A black bear demon gnashed his teeth and cursed: “Are we going to let this blood debt go just like this?”

The crowd of demons fell silent, silence was tonight’s demon bridge;

Until an old woman spoke in a low voice, and hope blazed anew in the eyes of the many demon race experts.

“Everyone, why don’t we go beseech our race’s Holy Mother to judge the Heaven Court Water God’s crimes of being arrogant with favor, brutal and unreasonable, and massacring our demon race!”