“Changshou, do you remember the mantras Master taught you yesterday? Recite them for me to hear.”

“Li Changshou! How can a cultivator be so afraid of death? Without taking risks, how can you obtain opportunities!”

Tsk, how quickly Master’s attitude had changed.

These two memories seemed separated by several decades. When he first entered the sect, Master was so kind and gentle; but decades later, Master had become…

Super fierce.

Li Changshou chuckled silently, then realized his spiritual body seemed to be sleeping, still feeling the fatigue from continuous cultivation.

Was this… a dream?

It had been a long time since he’d dreamed. After reaching higher cultivation levels, he slept less frequently. Each time he slept was like this – accumulating too much fatigue from long periods of intense cultivation, requiring sleep to relieve spiritual pressure even when magical power remained abundant.

“Old Tian, Old Tian, stop pretending to sleep! Get up, Old Tian!”

He heard that desperate shouting again, with sirens approaching from afar, still so clear…

Li Changshou showed a bitter smile as if turning over in the darkness to face the rushing memories.

He reviewed the scenes like flipping through pictures as if watching someone else’s life story.

In this story, there were no flying immortals or lofty deities. – Perhaps there were deities, just unknown to humans.

The protagonist, Tian Zuguang, lives on a blue star called Earth.

Tian Zuguang – even his name showed his parents’ deep expectations for him to bring glory to his ancestors.

He had tried his best, living smoothly until age twenty-eight, when he was suddenly diagnosed with an incurable disease…

In his final moment, leaning in his wheelchair, he exhaled softly, feeling the last bit of strength being drained from his body, his consciousness seeming to fall into an endless abyss.

Suddenly feeling intense unwillingness in his heart, like the final flicker of life’s flame, he gripped the wheelchair handles and used all his strength to stand, but before he could take a step forward, he fell straight to the ground…

Which led to that shout from his closest friend in his previous life:

“Old Tian, Old Tian, stop pretending to sleep! Get up, Old Tian!”

The memories abruptly stopped, showing some discontinuity;

This gap lasted about three years, after which the scenes became clearer.

A little boy wearing split-crotch pants with pigtails ran on the grass, then quickly grew up until age seven or eight, when he encountered an old immortal master who took him as a disciple…

This must be fate, bitter fate.

Li Changshou sighed softly, sealing these memories and placing them in the deepest part of his heart sea.

Regardless, these were his most cherished things, though slowly being worn away by time.

He couldn’t be careless or slack off – his surrounding environment wasn’t as stable as it appeared.

Thinking of this, Li Changshou turned over in the darkness, feeling his body gradually losing its fatigue. His spiritual sense spread around him, finding nothing unusual, and for a moment he was unwilling to wake up.

Laziness that hadn’t appeared for a long time emerged.

Although getting another life was good, and he was grateful to the possibly real “great deity” who had opened a back door for him, but…

Couldn’t he have been given a modern life?

Even if returning to modern times was impossible, even the Tang Dynasty or strong Ming Dynasty would have been fine. He could have lived peacefully, passed his life happily, and maybe even had three wives and four concubines.

Instead, he was sent to a cultivation world, and not just any cultivation world, but the most cruel, heartless, and unreasonable one –

The Ancient Primordial World!

Fifteen years after becoming a disciple, through the classics in the Crossing Immortal Gate and various stories told by his master, Li Changshou finally understood his broader environment.

From that day on, he activated the green “self-isolation” button.

Yes, he had arrived in what later generations called ancient times, the legendary Primordial World of mythology, born in a small era between two great tribulations of the Primordial World.

Looking forward along the historical trajectory, the impact of the war between Demons and Celestials continued. Although humanity was prospering, the remnant forces of the demon race were still quite strong. With the protection of Nu Wa, humanity’s Holy Mother and one of the Six Saints, the demon race clung to various borders of the Five Continents, dreaming of revival, and maintaining constant warfare with human cultivators.

The Six Saints had long taken their positions, calculating against each other, willing to let countless beings die over the slightest face.

The two leaders of the Western Religion, Honored Lord of the Origin and Honored Lord of the Destiny, effectively controlled the spiritually barren Western Continent, spreading their Western Religion’s doctrine everywhere, constantly poaching from the Dao School.

The Dao School’s three teachings – Human, Enlightenment, and Severing – had already risen. The Twelve Golden Immortals of the Enlightenment Teaching had just become famous, becoming a hot topic among cultivators in recent thousands of years.

The Severing Teaching’s “Ten Thousand Immortals Coming to Court” momentum had also emerged, with various powerful figures gathering under Patriarch Original Heaven, arguing daily with the Enlightenment Teaching side, though fortunately not yet creating real friction.

This was the best era for the Dao School, with the Three Teachings prospering, the humans they protected prospering, Dao School mountain gates throughout the Central Divine Continent, Three Thousand Great Worlds filled with disciples of the Three Teachings, Dao inheritance spread throughout the Three Realms, Original Spirit Dao and human cultivators becoming mainstream in the Primordial World.

This was also the worst era for ordinary cultivators, with extremely fierce competition in advancement channels. The Heavenly Court had just been established not long ago, completely acting according to the Three Teachings immortals’ attitudes. The Five Continents and Three Thousand Worlds had no order – cultivators’ growth depended entirely on their struggle and luck.

Luck took an extremely large proportion!

The only thing Li Changshou felt fortunate about was that although his master wasn’t very strong – accurately speaking, wasn’t strong at all – at least there was some Human Teaching background.

— Though Li Changshou seriously suspected that the true founding patriarch of the Crossing Immortal Gate might have just been one or two informal disciples of True Person Du’e.

Regarding True Person Du’e of Western Kunlun, the only thing Li Changshou could think of was that this immortal had trained disciples during the Investiture of the Gods war, becoming one of the Heng-Ha Generals; other than that, there were only unsubstantiated rumors.

Most likely, True Person Du’e was also just an informal disciple of the Supreme Pure Saint, ranking quite low among immortals…

Back to himself.

No background, no divine abilities, no luck – how could he make a name for himself in this era?

What a joke, just surviving would be good enough.

Therefore, from that year on, Li Changshou set his goal as [Staying Alive], living as long as possible, trying hard to avoid various tribulations, and living peacefully through this hard-earned second life.

Standing out and becoming famous were completely unrelated to him.

No matter how hard he cultivated, could he compete with the Three Teachings’ big shots?

No matter how desperately he sought opportunities, could he match those so-called children of fate?

The next great tribulation would be the Investiture of the Gods war – the further he stayed away from that tribulation, the better. Rather than becoming a Heavenly Court deity through the Investiture, he’d rather cultivate quickly and actively join when the Heavenly Court was declining, becoming a Heavenly Court elder…

A Primordial World civil servant?

That could work.

Even if he couldn’t obtain immortality, as long as he peacefully lived through his natural lifespan, he would have done justice to this second life!

Therefore, from that day on, Li Changshou’s ultimate goal became –

Living until natural death!

For this goal, he…

“Senior Brother?”

“Senior Brother!”

“Senior Brother, why are you sleeping here? They’re gathering at the main peak, we’ll be late if we don’t go now!”

Hearing the pleasant calling voice by his ear, Li Changshou stopped his wandering thoughts and slowly opened his eyes.

What entered his view was an exquisite young woman’s face – bright eyes, willow brows, jade nose, pretty ears, thin pink lips, these already outstanding features perfectly arranged on her goose-yellow face. Her slightly furrowed brows aroused sympathy, her moving eyes full of spirit…

“Beautiful lady, who are you?”

“Senior Brother!”

The young woman reached out to pinch Li Changshou’s nose, gently rubbing it, “You’re confused from sleep again!”

“Ah, Ling’e, how did you grow up so quickly!”

Li Changshou laughed, his form floating along the grass, standing upright thirty feet away.

“I’ve been on the mountain for ten years!”

Lan Ling’e stomped her foot, her mouth slightly pouting, indescribably cute and charming.

Not only did she have a beautiful face, but her figure had also fully developed. Her slender legs and waist were perfectly proportioned, her immortal dress perfectly outlining her alluring curves, her skin as white as frost and snow, her black hair smooth and intoxicating.

Dong–

The bell sound drifted through the clouds. Lan Ling’e urged: “Senior Brother, quickly summon a cloud! We’ll be late if we don’t go now!”

Li Changshou frowned: “Haven’t you learned to fly?”

Lan Ling’e lifted her chest and head, righteously replying: “But I can’t fly fast!”

“Fine,” Li Changshou seemed somewhat unwilling, summoning a white cloud and jumping on first;

Lan Ling’e’s gaze showed some craftiness, her pink boots lightly tapping the grass as she floated to Li Changshou’s side. Just as she was about to reach out to hold her Senior Brother’s arm, Li Changshou subtly dodged.

Li Changshou said sternly: “Don’t forget our three rules.”

“I know! Senior Brother, you’re really… stingy!”

Lan Ling’e complained, huffily moving half a step aside.

“That’s better, maintain a foot distance in public.

You’re now our Crossing Immortal Gate’s rising star, Immortal Lady Ling’e whom thousands of male disciples admire. Senior Brother doesn’t want to be cursed to death by their witchcraft.”

Li Changshou stretched, looking back toward the thatched cottage, “Has Master been in closed-door cultivation all this time?”

“Yes, Master is in quiet closed-door cultivation, might face the heavenly tribulation for immortality at any time! Maybe when we return from this trip, Master will already be an immortal!”

Lan Ling’e laughed lightly, her big eyes showing some expectation, then stared at her Senior Brother in a daze, her cheeks showing a slight blush. She bit her lips, saying softly:

“You’ve never participated in any of these sect-organized disciple trials before, this time you came… is it because… you’re worried about me…?”

A large hand suddenly appeared before her, followed by Li Changshou’s ‘numb and indifferent’ face, and his quick, clear series of answers:

“No.

Please allow me to refuse.

You’re a good girl.

I’ve always seen you as a real sister.”

“Hmph, I didn’t say anything! So annoying! I’m not talking to you anymore!”

Lan Ling’e’s forehead was covered in black lines, her mouth corners puffed into small meat buns, turning her head to give her Senior Brother an angry back view, her small fists clenching repeatedly.

Li Changshou smiled peacefully, gazing at the clouds on the horizon, calculating the time and angle for him and his Junior Sister to enter the gathering place.

But the calculation was useless – with such a dazzling Junior Sister beside him, trying to maintain a low profile…

Was becoming increasingly difficult.