Chapter 99: The Wild God's Worries

Potian Peak, the residence of the Jiu Zi Nine Immortals.

Li Changshou returned here from Du Xian Dian but didn’t see Jiu Wu or Jiu Shi, nor any of the other Jiu Zi Immortals. They had all gone to various parts of the mountain to handle their duties.

His junior uncle was still sound asleep on the bed after a night of heavy drinking, and Li Changshou didn’t disturb her. Moving his junior uncle from the floor to the bed? That would be overstepping boundaries and easily misunderstood, so he naturally wouldn’t do it.

On top of that, Li Changshou spent some time examining the protective array formations around his junior uncle's pavilion and quickly figured out their setup principles. He connected the array bases in this area and activated the formations around her pavilion to safeguard his junior uncle's unrestrained sleeping posture.

The array formations here were clearly set up by Jiu Wu Shibo, carrying a strong “short Daoist” style.

Later, Li Changshou found a miscellaneous disciple and gave him two pills for the Huashen realm. After exchanging a few pleasantries, he asked the disciple to pass on a message to his junior uncle once she woke up, saying that he and Ling E had returned to Xiao Qiong Peak.

With that done, Li Changshou took Ling E along, letting his junior sister lie on a cloud, and flew back to Xiao Qiong Peak at his most familiar altitude.

Honestly, Xiao Qiong Peak's presence was truly too faint.

Although Li Changshou was quite satisfied with that...

His master had been missing for so long, yet no one from the immortal sect had come to inquire about it!

This made all the minor details Li Changshou had prepared completely useless!

Of course, if they weren’t needed, that was for the best...

Fortunately, on the newly erected "Lieshi" stone tablets at Bai Fan Dian, Li Changshou did not find his master's name, or he truly wouldn’t know how to explain it to his master.

Those three paper Daoist statues, even if worshipped for a long time, probably wouldn’t lead to anything else.

Such “sacrifices” were purely for remembrance, with no incense merit being generated...

Back at the thatched hut, Li Changshou first woke Ling E.

After the senior and junior disciples discussed it, they decided to proceed with the previously planned first set of the Steady Master Plan.

Li Changshou lay back on his bed, his lips chapped, his eyes dull, with a hint of reluctance toward the world in his gaze.

Ling E ran to their master’s thatched hut and knelt on the mat, then released their master...

“Who dares to ambush me!

Look at my treasure!”

Qi Yuan Laodao jumped out of the pouch, brandishing his duster and glaring around angrily. When he looked down, he saw his youngest disciple kneeling on the ground.

Ling E’s eyes reddened, and she gently bit her lip. She secretly pinched her thigh, using a bit of her real cultivation.

“Master...”

Qi Yuan was startled, then remembered that he had been knocked out by his two disciples earlier.

With his immortal sense sweeping over, Qi Yuan immediately saw his eldest disciple lying in the neighboring thatched hut and hurriedly asked:

“Ling E, what happened to you?

What happened to your senior brother?!”

“Master, a large group of demons invaded the mountain gate earlier. Senior brother was worried you would rush out to fight them desperately, so he and I put you to sleep and took you away...

Senior brother, in that battle...”

Before Ling E could finish, Qi Yuan rushed over to Li Changshou’s bed.

Seeing his seriously injured disciple, Qi Yuan Laodao was filled with regret. He quickly pulled out a pile of medicine bottles but didn’t know which one to use.

Li Changshou opened his eyes, his gaze lifeless, and whispered, “Master.”

“Ah, I’m here!” Qi Yuan responded shakily. “I’m right here. Say what you need to say.”

“I’m fine,” Li Changshou said hoarsely, letting out a faint sigh. “Master, I was the one who knocked you out earlier...”

“That doesn’t matter, it doesn’t matter. You did it for my sake, how could I not understand?”

Qi Yuan Laodao sat by the bed and carefully grasped Li Changshou’s wrist to check his condition.

In an instant, the old Daoist’s expression changed.

His eldest disciple’s immortal power was much purer and clearer than his own—this was indeed the power of the Yuanxian realm. But at that moment, it felt incredibly weak in Qi Yuan’s perception.

Li Changshou’s internal energy was extremely chaotic, his heart pulse noisy like a drum, and upon closer inspection, it had a rhythmic quality, like the beat of music!

Li Changshou forced a weak smile and said, “Master, I’m really okay. You don’t need to worry.”

Qi Yuan’s eyes were full of guilt as he sighed, “Ah, it’s my incompetence that failed to protect you and Ling E, and made you both work so hard.”

“I knocked you out first, Master, otherwise you would have definitely... cough, cough...”

Qi Yuan Laodao quickly said, “That’s nothing. I don’t blame you, I don’t blame you.”

Li Changshou coughed weakly and gave a bitter laugh. “Master, words alone aren’t proof. I feel truly guilty inside.”

“I, I... oh, right, I swear! This time, I absolutely won’t blame you!”

“Master, what are you swearing on?”

“Naturally, on the Great Dao...”

“Master, if you don’t recite the oath incantation, the Great Dao won’t sense it.”

“Alright, I’ll do it right now!

Hmm?”

Qi Yuan Laodao paused, looking at Li Changshou on the bed. The latter had his eyes half-closed, his breath faint, and he coughed weakly again.

The old Daoist glanced at Ling E hiding outside the hut, and his immortal sense scanned the surroundings of Xiao Qiong Peak. He quickly realized what was going on.

Qi Yuan said coldly, “Changshou, that Turtle Breath Calming Qi technique of yours doesn’t just hide your cultivation, does it?”

“Master, I...”

“Pfft!”

From outside, a laugh suddenly burst out—it was the sound of someone desperately holding back but failing.

Qi Yuan Laodao’s forehead was covered in black lines.

Li Changshou coughed and slowly sat up, giving his master a sincere smile.

“Master, I’m really fine.”

“You little rascal!”

Qi Yuan raised his duster to strike, but Li Changshou bolted toward the door, only to be caught in a “ferocious cat pounce” by his junior sister!

“Senior brother, don’t blame me for being heartless!”

Ling E smiled with narrowed eyes and shouted into the hut, “Master, I’ve got him!

This was all senior brother’s idea!

I originally said that you going out to fight the enemy would fulfill our responsibility as Du Xian Men cultivators, but senior brother insisted you’d just charge in recklessly without any strategy!”

Li Changshou glared at Ling E, but Qi Yuan was already charging from behind, raising his duster and shouting as he struck Li Changshou’s backside.

If he really wanted to escape, Li Changshou could have slipped away in a flash. But at that moment, he was just giving his master a way to vent his anger.

There were a few sharp “smacks,” and that familiar spot swelled up red again...

Li Changshou had it tough; when his master hit him with the duster, he forcefully suppressed his own immortal power to avoid counterattacking and accidentally hurting his master.

A moment later...

Li Changshou and Ling E knelt neatly in front of their master.

Qi Yuan sat in his chair, frowning as he listened to Li Changshou’s detailed explanation.

From initial anger, to doubt, and finally to understanding, Qi Yuan Laodao’s expression went through a series of changes.

Once Li Changshou finished his long speech, Qi Yuan Laodao murmured, “Is that really the reasoning?”

For a moment...

It felt off somewhere, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it.

“Master, that’s exactly how it is,” Li Changshou and Ling E nodded in unison, while Qi Yuan pondered.

Ling E sneaked a glance at the corner of her mouth, fully aware that in this situation, she absolutely couldn’t let her senior brother speak!

Otherwise, he could turn black into white and pink into green!

They had clearly ambushed their master, yet now he felt that he deserved to be put to sleep...

That way, it would prevent any gaps in their battle formation, avoiding a situation where “a thousand-mile embankment collapses from an anthill.”

Qi Yuan Laodao sighed and soon followed Li Changshou’s advice, riding a cloud to Bai Fan Dian.

As the peak master of Xiao Qiong Peak, he should at least show his face and ask if there was anything he could do...

As soon as their master left, Ling E felt a chill sweep over from the side, making her shiver involuntarily.

“Se-Senior brother...”

“Junior sister,” Li Changshou said with a very kind and gentle smile, “Have your wings grown strong?”

Ling E shrank her neck and giggled softly, whispering, “It’s all because you taught me that it’s better for two to die than one... Senior brother, I was wrong!”

“Hmph!”

Li Changshou propped himself up on his sore backside and slowly stood, circulating his immortal power to heal the superficial wounds his master had inflicted.

“Senior brother, do you want me to apply some medicine?”

“Never mind...”

Just as Li Changshou was about to tease Ling E in return, he felt a sudden stir in his heart and frowned.

He discreetly calculated with his fingers hidden in his sleeve, and his brows furrowed deeper.

This time, it wasn’t Jiu Wu Shibo in trouble again—he hadn’t given Jiu Wu Shibo any of those “toys.”

It seemed to come out of nowhere, but Li Changshou suddenly sensed a faint warning sign...

He glanced at his junior sister and said, “Ling E, go play outside for a bit. I need to meditate and think about some things.”

“Oh,” Ling E noticed her senior brother seemed to have serious business, and although she was a bit unhappy with the word “play,” she obediently agreed and quickly left Li Changshou’s thatched hut.

Activating the surrounding array formations, Li Changshou sat cross-legged on the mat and began to sense and deduce in his mind.

Something had happened...

It was the South Sea God Religion that was in trouble.

One of his statues had been smashed.

Li Changshou first felt a spark of joy, since this meant he could successfully “reduce” his over 1,600 statues by one.

But soon, he couldn’t laugh at all...

In the village shrine where they worshipped him, two groups of mortals were fighting with knives, blood splattering everywhere.

This was a religious conflict, which Li Changshou had sensed before, but he hadn’t expected it to escalate so severely, with mortals now shedding blood and risking their lives for the South Sea Sea God...

However, Li Changshou quickly noticed a faint black aura wrapping around his primordial spirit and binding his wrist.

This seemed to be...

Industry barrier!

Li Changshou hurriedly drew out a wisp of the incense merit he had always hidden, bringing it close to the black aura. The two intertwined and gradually dissipated.

Merit and industry barrier offset each other.

“What on earth is this?” Li Changshou sat there, half-amused and half-exasperated, and soon began to think carefully.

Incense merit actually came from “protecting” and “educating” mortals.

The existence of the South Sea God Religion, to some extent, promoted unity and mutual aid in that small region, providing a slight benefit to the stability of heaven and earth.

Combined with the continuous incense offerings from various places, it was as if the Heavenly Dao had acknowledged him as a “wild” god.

This was essentially forced worship.

Now, this industry barrier arose from the religious conflict, where the bloodshed and casualties among mortals had turned into karmic cause that found its way to Li Changshou...

“This matter must be resolved.”

Li Changshou sat there, deep in thought.

He now had paper Daoists, which could serve as a basic version of an external incarnation. With some flying or earth-escaping treasures, he could save immortal power and head to the South Sea coast.

What should he do to bring down his own South Sea God Religion?

This bit of incense merit wasn’t as worthwhile as earning pure merit in the Heavenly Court, which was straightforward and worry-free.

Unlike this, which carried the risk of being targeted by Western Cult at any time.

Thinking about it, as a worshipped “wild god” who was dead set on destroying his own religion, he was probably one of a kind.

“Hmm, I need to plan this meticulously.”

Li Changshou let out a light breath and sat there, carefully considering his options.

That village obsessed with accumulating wealth needed a good scare!

A few days later, on Potian Peak.

Jiu Jiu, who had just woken up, stood at the open wooden door and tried pinching several hand seals, but the array formation’s light barrier outside showed no reaction.

Jiu Jiu furrowed her brows, glancing back at the room inside. It had been cleaned so thoroughly by her fourth senior sister that she felt a bit unadjusted.

Was this really her little nest?

Jiu Jiu Shishu frowned, sensing that things were not as simple as they seemed.

On Jin'ao Island.

“Hong Zhi, this isn’t sustainable for you.”

Ao Yi looked at the weary-faced young woman and said gently, “How about I accompany you out for a stroll? If you’ve grown tired of the East Sea scenery, we can go to the West Sea or South Sea. Each of the four seas has beautiful sights. You can’t keep feeling so down.”

“Ah,” Hong Zhi said with a bitter smile, “My master actually...”

“This isn’t necessarily a bad thing,” Ao Yi said. “After Yuan Ze Shixiong reincarnates, he can still cultivate.

So what if he’s a demon? He’s just lacking in luck and fortune, but he can still transform and continue pursuing the Dao.

And think about it...”

Ao Yi pondered for a moment, his eyes twinkling. “After Yuan Ze Shixiong reincarnates, he’ll probably be unable to speak for a long time. Won’t that keep him out of trouble?”

Hong Zhi blinked and realized, “Oh, you’re right!”

As Ao Yi continued to persuade her, Hong Zhi’s mood gradually improved.

She sighed softly and said gently, “Then let’s go out for a walk. I want to clear my mind. Thank you for always being here for me, Shishu.”

“Of course,” Ao Yi smiled slightly.

I will take good care of you in place of your master!

Soon, the two figures flew out of Jin'ao Island, picking a random direction and wandering off slowly.