Chapter 425: Clear Rewards and Punishments

Calm down! There's a trick; there must be a trick here! What does simply being 'steady' prove? As long as I'm thick-skinned enough now, I can ignore that 'my husband is my Senior Brother' comment from earlier! Stay calm, don't get flustered. Either the other person made a mistake, or Senior Brother is deliberately testing me.

Ling'e calmly put away the two poison-releasing magic artifacts hidden in her sleeves, which were locked onto Ao Yi. Enduring the surrounding gazes, she stood up and used immortal power to push the jade bracelet and tray back, staring at the 'fairy' in front of her who seemed vaguely familiar.

“Fellow Daoist, we truly don't know each other,” Ling'e said, radiating her disguised Heavenly Immortal realm aura and stepping back half a pace. “No two flowers bloom alike, nor does the sky birth identical forms. What is your intention in approaching me so closely, Fellow Daoist?”

Ke Le'er sighed softly, her eyes filled with apology and sorrow: “Sister-in-law, could we speak in private? My brother didn't intentionally flirt. How about we discuss your angry words elsewhere, in private?”

Ling'e's brows furrowed, and her vigilance intensified. Is this woman truly Senior Brother's paper effigy? No, there's none of the unique aura or artificiality of a paper effigy. This must be a real living being, and I've definitely seen her before.

“Sister-in-law, please...” Ke Le'er gestured for her to follow, transmitting a message: “I came here on the orders of Brother Changshou. There shouldn't be many who know the title 'Cult Master Brother.' Cult Master Brother forgot to bring you spirit stones, so he specifically sent me to deliver some and to test your vigilance. Sister-in-law Ling'e, you've performed well so far; you can now show an expression of having seen through my disguise. Please don't mention Ao Yi leaking information to Cult Master Brother.”

Ling'e's pupils constricted, but her expression remained unchanged, showing no flaws. She let out a soft huff and left the place, flicking her sleeves.

Ke Le'er followed, carrying the tray. The two burly old men, transformed dragon elders, exuded their pressure, instantly silencing the tea house, inside and out. Golden Immortal realm experts serving as guards! In an instant, the immortal senses probing Ling'e and Ke Le'er decreased by more than half.

A moment later, in a private room at an inn, several dragon elders set up an immortal power barrier.

Ke Le'er set down the tray, and Ling'e also changed her previous expression, smiling: “It's been an honor, His Royal Highness, Second Prince.”

“Oh?” Ke Le'er's eyes lit up, and she sighed, “Sister-in-law recognized me after all.”

Ling'e's cheeks flushed slightly, and she quickly said, “I was just guessing. Senior Brother and I aren't... not married yet. Please don't tell my Senior Brother about this; it's quite embarrassing.”

“Hahaha,” Ke Le'er transformed, taking on Ao Yi's youthful appearance, and bowed to Ling'e. Ao Yi said, “Since Ling'e has seen through my disguise, I won't hide it any longer. It's rare for Ling'e to be out training; would you like to visit the Dragon Palace?”

“No, I'm out for training, and I still have tasks from Senior Brother to complete.” Ling'e gently shook her head, appearing graceful and composed. “Could you take me with you when you leave this market town later? After the commotion caused by His Highness just now, I really feel like I'm being targeted.”

Ao Yi nodded with a smile. With a few old dragons assisting, this was a minor matter.

By the pond on Black Pool Peak, Li Changshou and Bai Ze exchanged glances. Bai Ze smiled, “Ling'e is quite impressive; she managed to deduce His Highness Ao Yi's identity from just a small hint.”

Li Changshou stroked his chin, musing for a few moments, and muttered, “I always feel like Ao Yi was going easy on her.”

“Why does the Water God always like to assume the worst of others?”

“That's not malicious speculation; it's just a reasonable deduction based on my understanding of Ling'e,” Li Changshou chuckled. “Never mind, let's say she passed. After all, it was my oversight earlier; I forgot to give her more spirit stones.”

Bai Ze laughed heartily and watched the scene in the pond with Li Changshou. The scene shown in the pond:

Ling'e, Ao Yi, and several dragon experts vanished simultaneously, parting ways by the East Sea coast. Ling'e changed her appearance, put on a thin mask, used Earth Evasion to travel thousands of miles, and reappeared in an uninhabited river valley.

She cautiously explored the surroundings, rested by the river for a while, soaked her feet, and then took out the jade bracelet Ao Yi had given her.

First, she checked if the storage magic treasure had any extra restrictions. Second, she wrapped the storage magic treasure in immortal power, pushed it several yards away, and used her immortal sense to try and undo the restrictions. Third step...

“Wow!” Ling'e exclaimed softly, then quickly covered her mouth. Her large eyes blinked, and tears dripped down. Blocks upon blocks of spirit stones, enough to fill the storage magic treasure!

Ling'e's eyes were filled with indignation. She gritted her teeth softly and kept counting on her fingers: “Stinky Senior Brother, you have so much wealth, yet you make me carefully budget my spirit stones every day!”

By the pond, Bai Ze looked at Li Changshou with slight disdain, tsk-tsking with a knowing smile. Li Changshou said calmly, “I just didn't pay attention on a daily basis. She doesn't need these in the mountains, and her general expenses haven't been lacking.”

“I understand, I understand.”

However, Ling'e's subsequent actions greatly pleased Li Changshou. When she was close to her first training location, she went to a market town again, this time with much more confidence.

After spending half a day wandering the city, Ling'e chose two expensive immortal treasures for her master, Qiyuan, purchased a large quantity of fabrics, and prepared for her upcoming trial location by buying numerous hunger-suppressing pills and low-grade pills usable by mortals. This situation closely resembled an elder from a newly established small sect out on a procurement trip...

When Ling'e left the market town, to guard against being ambushed, she opted for a strategy of misleading with fakes. Her true body hid inside the sleeve of an 'ancient version paper effigy.' Once the paper effigy was out of the city, her true body quietly separated. The paper effigy was not robbed in the end and was buried by Ling'e in the mountains near the market town for future use.

Bai Ze watched in amazement, but Li Changshou merely smiled faintly. In one aspect, she had his demeanor from back then.

When Ling'e arrived near the Southern Continent's border by cloud...

Li Changshou spoke, asking, “Mr. Bai, do you think humans and demons can coexist now?”

“Why does the Water God suddenly ask this?” Bai Ze waved his feather fan and smiled, “Unless only humans remain in the world, how could demons become extinct? Even if they are antagonistic, they are still coexisting.”

Li Changshou asked again, “Is the Heavenly Dao's existence truly to make the world more stable?”

“Does the Water God perhaps think that the Heavenly Dao is intentionally lowering the overall strength of living beings in the world?”

“Hmm,” Li Changshou slowly nodded. “Recently, while comprehending the Great Dao, I had a sudden realization. If the Heavenly Dao were to classify post-natal beings, how would they be ranked?”

Bai Ze pondered for a moment and replied, “Humans, demons, witches, dragons, spirits?”

“You're mistaken, Mr. Bai,” Li Changshou chuckled. “It's humans, immortals, spirits, demons, devils, ghosts.”

“Oh?” Bai Ze lowered his head in thought, made calculations with his fingers, a puzzled expression on his face, and sweat gradually appeared on his forehead. Soon, Bai Ze stood up and bowed, “I wish to hear the details.”

Li Changshou's voice was somewhat ethereal as he slowly said: “This is a conclusion I reached over the past two years while comprehending my own Dao and resonating with the Heavenly Dao. Currently, humanity holds an absolute advantage in the world. The human race is listed separately, while all non-human beings are categorized as spirits, such as dragons, phoenixes, witches, and demons, and so on. If humans and spirits cultivate the Dao and uphold righteousness, they become immortals. Immortals can be human immortals, fox immortals, ox immortals, dragon immortals, tree immortals, and the like. If human nature is corrupt, acting evil and malicious, they become devils. If spirits are wicked and indiscriminately kill the innocent, they become demons. There's no need to elaborate on ghosts; they are what become of humans and spirits after death. What do you think of this path, Mr. Bai?”

Bai Ze bowed his head in contemplation, silent for a long time. Li Changshou waited quietly by his side, watching his Junior Sister's journey in the pond.

What he had just said was indeed something he realized during his enlightenment, or rather, a hint from the Heavenly Dao, instructing him, an ordinary influential minister of the Heavenly Court, on which direction to guide the Heavenly Court's efforts. A certain Duke Mu felt offended again.

This time, sending Ling'e to Chen Tang Ancient Town was not merely for her training; it was also for Ling'e to 'investigate and research' on his behalf. Li Changshou's words just now were actually establishing the future rules of the world, setting a standard for the Primordial World, completely breaking free from the shadows of ancient times.

But to achieve this, the most crucial step is the separation of immortals and mortals. Chen Tang Ancient Town has existed for a long time. Though called an ancient town, it is actually a substantial fortress. Why did Li Changshou send Ling'e to train here? That's a long story, so I'll keep it short.

The demon race survives in the crevices between the great continents, which might sound pitiful. However, because the Primordial World is so vast, these 'crevices' are either continuous mountain ranges or boundless dense forests. For mortals, these are insurmountable natural barriers, but for demons, they are paradises where they can thrive and multiply.

Chen Tang Ancient Town is one such 'human frontline' where conflicts with the demon race constantly erupt, and it has long been isolated and unsupported.

Since Emperor Dayu retired to Fire Cloud Cave, the position of co-ruler of the world had been passed down for merely a thousand years before imperial power declined, and the Southern Continent fell into a chaotic situation lasting tens of thousands of years. With the rise of Daoist sects, the 'immortal gate' forces began to emerge. The human population grew rapidly, and more mortals lacked cultivation aptitude. The mortal world gradually became unsuitable for Qi Refiners to cultivate, hence the gradual separation of immortals and mortals.

However, the relationship between Central Divine Continent and the mortal realm remains inextricably linked— Most disciples of immortal sects originate from the mortal realm. While mortal wealth is merely icing on the cake for major immortal sects, many medium-sized immortal sects value this wealth highly.

This has led to the current mortal forces, kingdoms, and tribes having the shadows of immortal sects behind them. Power struggles often involve immortal sect maneuvering. What Li Changshou calls the separation of immortals and mortals is cutting off this connection, and he has already put it into action.

—The 'Shang' tribe, currently protected by Sister Kong Xuan in the Southern Continent, is a crucial piece in changing this chaotic situation. Due to the existence of the 'Three Immortal Covenants,' once Shang unifies the prosperous mortal regions of the Southern Continent, the separation of immortals and mortals can be largely achieved! However, everything has two sides.

Immortal sects secretly collude with mortal kingdoms and tribes, exploiting mortals in the process; at the same time, these immortal sects also protect mortals, shielding most of them from the threat of demons. Li Changshou had to consider this problem: after the separation of immortals and mortals, with the reduced influence of immortal sects in the mortal world, how could human Qi Refiners better protect the mortal human world?

As Bai Ze said, demons cannot be completely eradicated. All spirits absorb the essence of the sun and moon to cultivate; when they transform, they become demons, and there will always be evil demons who harm mortals. This is where Chen Tang Ancient Town's importance becomes evident.

Chen Tang Ancient Town is located in a remote area, and the demon forces it faces are not particularly strong, failing to attract the attention of human experts... Various factors caused it to be outside the sphere of kingdoms and tribes, receiving almost no aid from the mortal world. Yet, relying on themselves and the support of a small number of human Qi Refiners, they have resisted demon invasions for thousands of years.

Li Jing's coming to the Immortal Du Sect to apprentice was, in fact, a path that all young disciples from Chen Tang Ancient Town with cultivation aptitude had to take. They left their homes, hoping to learn immortal techniques quickly and return to their town to vanquish demons. During his investigation into Li Jing's background, Li Changshou discovered the situation in Chen Tang Ancient Town. He wanted to find answers or inspiration here on how to protect the mortal world after the separation of immortals and mortals... Therefore, Ling'e's training trip came about.

By the pond, Li Changshou gazed absently at Ling'e, who was flying on a cloud. Beside him, Bai Ze was calculating with his fingers and carefully pondering, but in the end, he decided to retort: “Water God, this seems to place humanity's status a bit too high.”

Li Changshou looked up, just about to debate, when a small gray cloud suddenly drifted over Black Pool Peak. The gray cloud arrived abruptly, without any prior warning, condensing directly within Black Pool Peak's grand formation and instantly drifting above the pond. Just as Li Changshou's heart recalled the fear of being dominated by heavenly punishment, his Dao body's 'muscle memory' was reawakened, and his primordial spirit shone with brilliant light!

The gray cloud directly struck out a lightning bolt, thumb-thick, which hit Bai Ze on the head! After the lightning, a wisp of golden light sprinkled down from the gray cloud and entered Li Changshou's Dao body. Merit! Enough merit to condense one small toe of a Golden Body of Merit!

Li Changshou's spirits were greatly lifted. He looked inward, then looked up at Bai Ze beside him, and immediately burst out laughing. Bai Ze's long hair was disheveled, his forehead scorched black, a wisp of black smoke rising from his head, and he looked at the sky with a face full of indignation...

“This is utterly unreasonable! I merely spoke a single sentence!” “Mr. Bai, watch your words, watch your words.” Li Changshou quickly stopped Bai Ze's complaints, looked up, bowed to the rapidly dissipating gray cloud, and said loudly: “This disciple now understands the Heavenly Dao's will and will surely advise His Majesty the Jade Emperor soon, to benefit all living beings and maintain the world's stability!”

Looking up again, the gray cloud had vanished without a trace. Li Changshou couldn't help but squint his eyes in a smile, standing with his hands behind his back, looking at the inexplicably indignant Bai Ze.

“Mr. Bai, did I win this debate?” Bai Ze turned away, sighing softly at the pond: “This humble Daoist has gained the title of an auspicious beast in vain; a new generation replaces the old.”

Li Changshou smiled without speaking, the doubts in his Dao heart regarding this matter vanishing like smoke. If only Ling'e could also gain some merit...

With a hum, Li Changshou reined in his smile and fell into thought by the lake. Three hours later, Ling'e had arrived near the ancient town. She happened to witness a small-scale 'skirmish' between human soldiers and demons and secretly released some poison. Ling'e quickly discovered several True Immortal realm demon 'experts' hiding in the rear. —Here, the True Immortal realm was already considered among the ranks of experts.

Ling'e thought carefully and did not rush to act. Instead, she sent out a paper effigy to secretly investigate the demon forces in the area. Seeing many wounded soldiers in the town, she entered the ancient town as a wandering human Qi Refiner and proactively helped treat these injured soldiers. The trial in Chen Tang Ancient Town was actually of low difficulty, and Ling'e found it quite easy to handle.

Watching Ling'e's busy movements displayed in the pond, Li Changshou couldn't help but smile with satisfaction, then remembered the two subsequent tasks he had hidden in the jade slip. Trial Task Two: Go to a certain island in the East Sea and 'rescue' fellow disciple Youqin Xuanya. Trial Task Three: Following the map, go to Wuzhuang Temple and personally deliver this jade slip to the master of Wuzhuang Temple.

It's rare for Ling'e to come down from the mountain; naturally, she needs to be properly... put through her paces. *Ahem*; naturally, she needs to gain enough experience to grow better.