“Elder Uncle Yuding is so mean…”

This voice kept echoing in Li Changshou’s ears, lingering for quite a while before fading.

This overly delicate Spirit Zhenzhu;

That fearless Nezha who had jabbed his father with a spear stirred up the East Sea with the Cosmic Silk and struck the Dragon King with the Universe Ring…

What exactly had this child gone through?

By Heaven above, could it be that after a single reincarnation, the Spirit Zhenzhu’s personality had changed so drastically?

The Spirit Zhenzhu’s reincarnation hadn’t passed through the Six Paths of Reincarnation. After becoming Nezha, it seemed only his memories were erased while his cultivation level from the Spirit Zhenzhu period should have remained. By logic, his personality shouldn’t have changed so dramatically…

This was the first time Li Changshou felt he couldn’t quite grasp the threads of this Primordial Chaos and the Great Catastrophe of Investiture of the Gods.

“Changgeng, you’re known among the Three Schools for having many ideas,” True Lord Taiyi grabbed the arm of Li Changshou’s paper avatar. “Consider this a favor I owe you—help me figure something out.”

Li Changshou pondered for a moment, then calmly nodded and said, “Your young master—no, your Spirit Zhenzhu nephew’s matter, why must you still explain it to the Sage?”

True Lord Taiyi sighed, pulling Li Changshou into his cave dwelling while explaining:

“My disciple was originally a treasured pearl nurtured in Mount Kunlun’s treasure pool. Since ancient times, it absorbed the essence of the sun and moon, gradually gaining consciousness. His origins are pure and his aptitude extraordinary. If he had transformed naturally, he could have achieved a Pure Blessing Primordial Spirit.

The Master gave the Spirit Zhenzhu to me, letting me assist in his transformation and accept him as a disciple.

Three thousand years of nurturing, and in one morning he transformed, taking the form of a five or six-year-old child. Ah—”

True Lord Taiyi heaved a long sigh: “At first, nothing seemed amiss. Since he was a male child transformed from a Spirit Zhenzhu, having neither masculine nor feminine energy was reasonable.

But gradually, I discovered his nature was rather gentle.”

As they spoke, Li Changshou and True Lord Yuding had already followed True Lord Taiyi into the Golden Light Cave. Without waiting for an invitation—and without standing on ceremony—they sat around a stone table.

Li Changshou thought for a moment and asked, “Could you give a detailed example?”

True Lord Taiyi pondered and said, “In his fifth year after transformation…”

[On a hillside of Mount Qianyuan, amidst slopes covered in short grass and wildflowers, a handsome young Daoist sat meditating in the sunlight. Not far away, a graceful boy was spreading his small hands, constantly chasing butterflies.

As he chased them, the boy let out a cry. The young Daoist opened his eyes to look, and his forehead immediately darkened.

The boy was crouching on the ground, carefully holding a butterfly in his hands, breathing out a wisp of immortal qi toward it while softly saying:

“I’m sorry, I hurt you.”

The little butterfly gently fluttered its wings, then slowly flew up, circling the boy, who let out bell-like laughter.

Just then!

Whoosh—

A black shadow descended from the sky—it was a large foot, landing directly in front of the boy.

The young Daoist, veins bulging on his forehead, roared, “Is this how a man plays with butterflies?”

The boy’s little mouth turned down, his eyes brimming with tears. “Mas-Master… you’ll scare the little butterfly.”

“Scare it?”

The young Daoist smiled slightly, his eyes seemingly becoming triangular, flashing with malicious light.

Raising his left hand, fingertips bursting with immortal light, the young Daoist said calmly: “Today I’ll show you how a real man should play!

Yin-Yang First Finger! Second Finger! Third Finger!”

Whoosh whoosh whoosh!

Several streaks of light shot past the butterfly. The little butterfly desperately fluttered its wings while the boy covered his mouth and burst into tears.

The young Daoist kept chasing the butterfly from behind, shooting streams of light from his fingertips while letting out maniacal laughter…]

True Lord Taiyi paused his story, watching as the two Daoist immortals before him cracked their knuckles and pulled out their treasures. He scooted his chair backward.

“What are you two doing? I was only trying to guide Spirit Zhenzhu back to the right path!”

True Lord Yuding’s small cauldron trembled slightly as he glared at True Lord Taiyi before putting it away.

Li Changshou also put away his Yu the Great’s Flood Control Chart—he had seen True Lord Yuding about to act and had wanted to mediate to earn some favor.

True Lord Yuding said, “Spirit Zhenzhu’s personality is like this because of your guidance, Senior Brother.”

“No, no, no,” True Lord Taiyi kept shaking his head. “This personality is innate. I was only trying to stimulate him to protect butterflies, to show some backbone.

Changgeng, do you have any solutions?”

Li Changshou asked, “Could we see what Nephew Spirit Zhenzhu is doing now?”

“Good idea,” True Lord Taiyi agreed without hesitation, drawing some water from a treasure pool in his cave to form a water mirror, which showed Spirit Zhenzhu’s current situation.

Li Changshou thought: Why are you so practiced at this?

Spirit Zhenzhu was lying face down on a bed, hugging a thin blanket and completely motionless.

True Lord Yuding asked with concern: “What’s wrong with him?”

“He’s probably feeling dejected,” True Lord Taiyi raised his hand to his forehead. “In a moment you’ll see… here it comes.”

Just as True Lord Taiyi finished speaking, a sigh came from the water mirror. Spirit Zhenzhu raised his head from under the blanket, revealing a delicate face with traces of tears yet full of determination.

By now, Spirit Zhenzhu appeared equivalent to an eighteen or nineteen-year-old human. Though not short, his frame was rather thin.

His features couldn’t be called feminine, but being a transformed Spirit Zhenzhu, his spiritual energy did lean toward the ethereal side.

He jumped up from the bed and walked to a standing mirror nearby. Pursing his lips, he looked at his reflection and then made a glaring, frowning expression.

Well, if not for that little pout at the end, it would have been quite imposing.

Then Spirit Zhenzhu sighed dejectedly, and stood despondent before the mirror for a while, before rallying his spirits. Hands-on hips, chest out, head high, he waved his small hand forward and said in a crisp voice:

“I am Spirit Zhenzhu, a disciple of True Lord Taiyi of Mount Qianyuan! Demons and evil spirits, retreat at once!

Wuu… I’m quite impressive, aren’t I?”

Several dozen zhang away in the cave dwelling’s reception hall, True Lord Taiyi dispersed the water mirror and couldn’t help but throw his head back with a long sigh:

“What’s with that ‘wuu’!”

Li Changshou laughed from the side: “Though Senior Brother may not like to hear this, Spirit Zhenzhu is fine as he is.

We cultivators, why must we be confined by masculine energy? Some male creatures are naturally gentle and delicate, just as some female creatures are naturally fierce and unrestrained—these are all reasonable. As long as we don’t overly emphasize these contrasts, there shouldn’t be any major issues.”

True Lord Yuding slowly nodded and said solemnly: “Junior Brother Changgeng speaks truly.”

“Speaks truly? It’s not your disciple so you’re not worried!” True Lord Taiyi sighed:

“His personality is already affecting his cultivation progress. In the future, he might stumble because of his temperament.

I secretly arranged several trials for him, and each time he showed indecisiveness and excessive mercy. When facing difficulties, he gets scared immediately, cries, and is unable to respond properly.

How can one survive in the Primordial Chaos like this? He can’t just cultivate in a cave for several grand kalpas without going out, can he?

Moreover, with such a personality, even if he achieves the Dao fruit of long life when he goes out, he might get killed by a Celestial Immortal!”

Li Changshou pondered carefully…

“So this is the root cause of your bullying of Goddess Shiji?”

Though True Lord Taiyi’s sense of crisis and preemptive approach made him quite a formidable expert of the Enlightenment School…

Even if his cultivation level was somewhat lacking compared to truly formidable figures.

True Lord Yuding said: “A gentle nature is not wrong. Nowadays, which part of Heaven and Earth doesn’t know of the Three Schools?

The external circumstances Spirit Zhenzhu will face are completely different from when we roamed the Primordial Chaos.”

True Lord Taiyi shook his head repeatedly, “Brother, we must nip problems in the bud and prevent troubles before they arise. If we don’t prepare for this constantly, he will surely suffer in the future.

Anyway, I am Spirit Zhenzhu’s master, I must correct his temperament!

Changgeng, do you have any brilliant plans?”

Li Changshou pondered for a while, sitting there in quiet contemplation.

After waiting for a moment, True Lord Taiyi said softly: “I feel like you’re not thinking about how to help Spirit Zhenzhu, but rather how to extort a favor from me?”

“How can Senior Brother say such things?” Li Changshou frowned and said: “How could I be someone who won’t act without profit? If I were, how could Senior Brother Xuandu trust me?”

True Lord Yuding cast an approving glance from the side.

Unexpectedly, Li Changshou changed his tone: “However, if Senior Brother Taiyi insists on offering some favor as compensation, I can’t well refuse—that would be disrespecting Senior Brother.”

True Lord Taiyi laughed heartily: “No need, your brother doesn’t care about such superficial matters of face.”

“Alas, temperament is heaven-ordained,” Li Changshou showed sympathy…

“Fine, fine, fine!” True Lord Taiyi cursed with a laugh, “Whatever flavor you want, won’t your brother grant it?”

The sympathy on Li Changshou’s face instantly transformed into a warm smile. He said slowly:

“However, personality can be improved through nurture. Let’s think of some methods—gradual progress should show results.”

True Lord Taiyi asked: “Then what kind of favor do you want?”

Li Changshou thought for a moment and smiled: “Naturally when I need help, it would be the favor of asking Senior Brother to either act or refrain from acting.”

True Lord Taiyi laughed freely, “Even without your nephew’s matter if you came to my Mount Qianyuan seeking help, would I turn you away?”

“Good,” Li Changshou and True Lord Taiyi exchanged glances, both smiling.

True Lord Yuding shook his head and moved his stone stool slightly further from these two immortals.

True Lord Taiyi asked again: “What brilliant plan does Changgeng have?”

“This is somewhat complicated,” Li Changshou said, “Let me prepare for half a day before discussing it with Senior Brother.”

Hearing these words, True Lord Taiyi’s worries diminished by half, and he thanked Li Changshou.

Li Changshou closed his eyes, withdrawing most of his consciousness to his main body, spread open a scroll, and began to think carefully.

Helping someone change their personality was something Li Changshou hadn’t done before, but he knew it couldn’t be accomplished overnight—it must be a process.

Therefore, what he needed to do was formulate a long-term plan.

Today, obtaining True Lord Taiyi’s promise of favor was actually to gain more “initiative” in Nezha’s story when the Great Catastrophe of Investiture of the Gods arrived.

True Lord Taiyi burning Goddess Shiji was one of the earlier direct conflicts between the two schools during the Great Catastrophe, though Goddess Shiji’s roots in the Severing School weren’t deep—she was just a wandering immortal and didn’t provoke much reaction from the Severing School.

But even so, it could be exploited by those with ulterior motives…

A single spark can start a prairie fire. If Goddess Shiji was a kind-hearted person, Li Changshou would try to save her when the time came, considering his intention to test Heaven’s Way’s boundaries.

Changing Heaven’s Way’s script wasn’t so easy.

Hmm?

Could he put more effort into Spirit Zhenzhu’s temperament?

Though uncertain how much it would affect the future Nezha, it was worth trying.

With this thought, Li Changshou’s brush moved as if divinely guided, drawing a long arrow from right to left on the scroll, with options marked above and below it.

…

Two hours later, outside the Chess and Card Room of Little Jade Peak, Li Changshou approached with a jade memory token in hand.

Inside the pavilion, Ling’e, Jiang Lin’er, and Jiu Yushi immediately covered their cards. Though they didn’t know why, these women spanning three generations all felt somewhat guilty at that moment.

“Ancestral Master, Senior Aunt.”

Li Changshou made a Daoist salute and walked in smiling, getting straight to the point: “I’m here mainly to ask Ancestral Master about a small matter.”

Jiang Lin’er pointed at her nose in surprise, “Me?”

Li Changshou said: “Indeed, after much thought, asking the Ancestral Master is most appropriate.”

“You asking so suddenly makes your Ancestral Master quite uncomfortable.”

Jiang Lin’er immediately sat up straight, then feeling awkward, raised her left foot onto the armchair, letting her skirt fall.

“Ask away!”

“Ancestral Master,” Li Changshou asked with complete seriousness, “When you first left Crossing Immortal Gate to roam outside, your temperament was outwardly gentle but inwardly strong, with an unyielding spirit, wanting to gain experience outside and fight desperately to break through to the Celestial Immortal realm, is that right?”

Jiang Lin’er blinked, “That’s right.”

“Then, what exactly happened?”

Li Changshou asked puzzled: “That made Ancestral Master change from being outwardly gentle but inwardly strong to… consistent inside and out?”

“Oh, that.”

Jiang Lin’er held her smooth chin and hummed lightly, bubbles seemingly appearing above her head, growing larger, with scenes flashing inside them.

[It was when she first went out to make her way after a small team of wandering cultivators hunting demons had just divided a large reward, a group of warriors living on the edge gathered to drink and chat.

“Lin Jiang, are you a woman dressed as a man? You look so delicate?”

“How could that be! I’m not using any illusion magic!”

Jiang Lin’er patted her chest, and several companions immediately cast trusting glances her way, continuing to drink and eat meat heartily.]

“Uh…”

Jiang Lin’er held her forehead with one hand. After all, she was now a married woman living a happy and fulfilling life—it was better not to mention such a dark history.

Li Changshou smiled and said: “I think I understand now, thank you, Ancestral Master.”

“Hey! What do you understand?”

Jiang Lin’er started, slapped the table, and stood up, shouting:

“I didn’t spend all day drinking and fighting with a bunch of men! When cultivating and sleeping, I was always separate from them!”

Ling’e and Jiu Yushi exchanged glances, each covering their mouths and giggling.

“Yes, yes, the disciple didn’t think anything improper.”

Li Changshou nodded with a smile, writing in the jade token—One becomes like one’s company, companions are very important.

Then Li Changshou asked again: “What does Ancestral Master think is the most precious quality in a man, one that differs from women?”

“Hmm?” Jiang Lin’er thought for a moment, “Taking responsibility.”

“Taking responsibility… Senior Aunt Yushi, what would you say?”

Jiu Yushi also thought seriously for a while before saying softly: “Being capable of handling matters independently.”

Li Changshou carefully recorded this, then looked at Ling’e and turned to leave.

“Senior Brother, aren’t you going to ask me?”

“No need, your brother already knows your answer.”

“Come on, ask me!

It might be different from what you think… it’s stability, stability is most important! Senior Brother!

Ah, he flew away.”

Ling’e sighed softly, triggering another round of laughter in the Chess and Card Room.

Shortly after, Li Changshou stopped at the Spirit Beast Enclosure to ask Xiong Lingli the same question. Xiong Lingli showed off her recently somewhat inflated muscles.

“Must be stronger than me!”

Li Changshou smiled and nodded, nearly crushing the jade token.

Soon after, Li Changshou’s paper avatar went out to conduct surveys.

In the Heavenly Court, he questioned the Dragon Princess, the fairy maidens of Jade Pool, questioned the commanders of the Water God’s mansion;

In the Sea God Temple, he questioned divine envoys, and temple keepers, questioned some elderly mortals.

Finally, after organizing and perfecting the answers, filling in the gaps in his plan, and modifying some details, he related this plan to True Lord Taiyi.

—Basically, it involved throwing Spirit Zhenzhu among the Heavenly Soldiers and Generals to be influenced for a period.

True Lord Taiyi was quite excited, raising his hand to grab Li Changshou’s arm, sighing: “I temporarily entrust my precious disciple to you, Junior Brother!”

“Rest assured, Senior Brother, I will do my best.”

Li Changshou agreed warmly, then added: “Later when Senior Brother speaks to Nephew Spirit Zhenzhu about this matter, no need to say too much, just say…

This is necessary training to become an upright man of great character.”

“Mm, we’ll do as Junior Brother says. Must make him braver, not so timid,” True Lord Taiyi said firmly, “Even being a bit reckless is fine!

This child has been gentle since young, he doesn’t even know how to make trouble!”

Li Changshou’s forehead was covered in black lines—he had almost believed it.