The moment Tongtian Jiaozhu said that, Yuanshi Tianzun's face instantly darkened.
"Third Brother! You're fooling around again!"
He lowered his voice as he scolded him, his tone filled with anger.
"Didn't you see how dangerous that was just now? If anything happened to Lin Shen, could you bear the responsibility?"
"But isn't he fine now?"
Tongtian Jiaozhu retorted stubbornly.
"Look at that little face of his. He's obviously still hungry! As his masters, we can't let our disciple go hungry, can we?"
"That doesn't mean he can eat just anything!"
Yuanshi Tianzun was so angry that he no longer spoke politely.
"Is Calamity Fiend Qi food? Are your brains made of muscle?"
He truly could not understand the way his Third Brother's mind worked.
After witnessing what had just happened, shouldn't any normal person have been terrified afterward and hurried to take their disciple back to Kunlun Mountain to hide?
But him? He had actually asked whether their disciple wanted another bite!
"I..."
Tongtian Jiaozhu was left speechless.
Though he was carefree by nature, he knew that his Second Brother was right.
What had happened just now really had been frightening. Only Little Lin Shen's extraordinary talent had saved him; had it been any other living being, it would have died long ago.
As Lin Shen listened to his two masters arguing nearby, he grew anxious.
Third Master was right!
I'm still not full!
That bite just now had only whetted my appetite.
Looking at the vast stretch of dark "clouds" hanging above the battlefield, he drooled with craving.
That flavor—numbing, spicy, with just a hint of sweetness afterward—was simply a delicacy beyond compare!
He hurriedly stretched out his chubby little hand and tugged on Tongtian Jiaozhu's sleeve.
Then he pointed at his little mouth before pointing toward the distant battlefield.
"Yiya! Yiyaya!"
He used every ounce of strength to express his longing.
His round, wide eyes were filled with yearning for delicious food.
The moment Tongtian Jiaozhu saw Lin Shen like this, he immediately found his confidence.
"Big Brother! Second Brother! Look!"
He held Lin Shen up before the two of them.
"It's not that I want him to eat it. He wants to eat it himself! As elders, we have to respect the child's wishes!"
Yuanshi Tianzun: "..."
Looking at Lin Shen's greedy little expression, he was momentarily at a loss for words.
He could not understand why any living being would develop an appetite for Calamity Fiend Qi.
It defied the principles of the Heavenly Dao!
Taishang Laojun watched from the side, wisdom glimmering in his eyes.
He did not join his two younger brothers' argument. Instead, he rapidly deduced every possibility.
Not only was Lin Shen unharmed after devouring the fiend qi, he had actually benefited from it.
This indicated that Lin Shen's body—or rather, his unique Origin Qi—possessed some sort of "conversion" ability they could not comprehend.
It could transform filthy calamity fiend qi into the purest energy.
If this deduction was true...
Then what did Lin Shen's existence mean for the entire Primordial World, for this calamity?
A bold thought, so bold that it made even his own heart pound, rose from deep within Taishang Laojun.
The way he looked at Lin Shen instantly changed.
He was no longer simply looking at a treasured disciple.
It was more like he was looking at a supreme treasure capable of changing the entire landscape of Heaven and Earth...
"Second Brother, Third Brother, stop arguing."
Taishang Laojun slowly spoke. His voice was not loud, yet the two arguing brothers immediately fell silent.
He reached out and took Lin Shen into his arms, looking at him gently.
"Lin Shen, tell First Master: after eating that thing, did you feel any discomfort?"
Lin Shen shook his head. He patted his round little belly and let out a burp.
"Then... do you still want to eat it?"
Taishang Laojun asked again.
Lin Shen's eyes immediately lit up, and his little head nodded as rapidly as a pestle.
Seeing this, Taishang Laojun had already made his decision.
He took a deep breath and said to Yuanshi and Tongtian.
"Since Lin Shen wants to eat it, and it does him no harm, then letting him have some more would not be a problem."
"Big Brother?!"
Yuanshi Tianzun stared at him in shock.
He had not expected his always steady and prudent Big Brother to agree with such a ridiculous idea from Third Brother.
"Second Brother, hear me out."
Taishang Laojun's gaze became incomparably deep.
"You and I both know that the calamity is part of the Heavenly Dao's operation. So long as the fiend qi remains, the calamity will not end."
"All living beings in the Primordial World will sink beneath this great catastrophe."
"But what if... Lin Shen could devour all this fiend qi?"
Taishang Laojun's words exploded in Yuanshi Tianzun and Tongtian Jiaozhu's minds like thunder.
The two immediately understood what their Big Brother meant.
If Lin Shen could truly feed on calamity fiend qi, would he not be a walking "calamity purifier"?
As long as he was around, he could continuously weaken the calamity's power.
He could reduce the casualties among the living beings of the Primordial World.
He could even... end this catastrophe ahead of time!
The thought was far too insane—and far too tempting!
Yuanshi Tianzun's breathing became hurried.
He had always regarded elucidating the Heavenly Dao and Following Heaven and Responding to People as his duty.
If he could quell the calamity this way and save all living beings, what immense merit would that be!
Tongtian Jiaozhu was even more excited, his face flushed red.
His thinking was more straightforward: if all the fiend qi was fed to his disciple, then what the hell would the Dragon, Phoenix, and Kirin tribes still have to fight over?
No one would have to die. Everyone would be happy!
And his disciple would get to eat his fill!
This was simply perfect!
"Big Brother is right! Let's do it!"
Tongtian Jiaozhu slapped his thigh and spoke excitedly.
"Let's go draw all that fiend qi over and let Beloved Disciple eat his fill!"
"Do not act rashly!"
Taishang Laojun immediately stopped him.
"This matter requires careful planning."
"We still do not know Lin Shen's limit for devouring fiend qi. If we act too hastily, we may harm him instead."
"Then what should we do?"
Tongtian Jiaozhu asked anxiously.
"Let him try small amounts first."
Taishang Laojun pondered.
"We will stay here and protect him."
"Let him draw in the fiend qi himself. He can eat however much he is able to eat."
"We will observe carefully from the side. The moment we notice anything wrong, we will immediately intervene."
This suggestion was both prudent and feasible.
After pondering for a moment, Yuanshi Tianzun nodded as well, indicating his agreement.
Thus, the three top experts of the Primordial World reached a decision that would have looked utterly insane to outsiders.
They were going to actively let their treasured disciple devour the incomparably poisonous Calamity Fiend Qi.
Lin Shen had no idea about the complex thoughts running through his three masters' minds.
He only knew that his masters seemed to have agreed to let him continue "eating"!
He was so happy that he kicked his short little legs wildly in Taishang Laojun's arms.
Unable to wait any longer, he stretched out his little head and looked once again toward the battlefield.
There was still so much "food" there!
He took a deep breath, puffed up his cheeks again, and aimed at another, smaller cloud of fiend qi.
"Eat!"
Another black pillar of qi came howling toward him.
Ten thousand miles away, Demon Ancestor Luohu, who had been watching in secret, saw this and his eyes turned red.
Again?!
You're doing it again?!
You're stealing my food right in front of me?
This is too much!
Three Pure Ones, you've gone too far!
Luohu trembled with rage as Demonic Path qi surged wildly within him.
He was nearly unable to suppress the urge to strike.
He watched helplessly as that fiend qi, which he had coveted for so long, was swallowed by that little thing in another bite.
And then... nothing happened.
Luohu's Dao Heart was thrown into complete chaos.
He had cultivated the Demonic Path for countless epochs and knew full well how terrifying calamity fiend qi was.
It was the embodiment of Heaven and Earth's negative emotions, the symbol of destruction and ending.
Yet that little thing was eating it like food?
What kind of monster was that?
An unprecedented sense of crisis surged into Luohu's heart.
He realized that if he allowed that little thing to keep "eating," the plan he had plotted for countless years would likely be utterly ruined!
No!
He could not wait any longer!
He had to find a way to capture that little thing!
Killing intent flashed wildly in Luohu's eyes as he began frantically considering countermeasures.
The Three Pure Ones were guarding him. He definitely could not snatch him by force.
He needed to think of a way to lure them away!
Meanwhile, Lin Shen happily finished his second bite of "snack."
He let out a satisfied burp.
He felt warm all over, and his cultivation had improved by another tiny amount.
This feeling was amazing!
However, this flavor was a little different from the last one.
The last one had been spicy, while this one was sweeter, with a faint fruity fragrance.
It seemed that different fiend qi had different flavors?
This was practically a giant buffet!
He licked his lips, ready to keep going and get his fill at today's "buffet."
But at that moment, a crisp mechanical voice suddenly rang out in his mind.
[Ding! It has been detected that the host has officially entered the Primordial World and directly faced the calamity.] [Newbie Protection Period has ended. The Newbie Gift Pack is now being issued...] [Newbie Gift Pack: Primordial World Safety Protection Plan!]
Lin Shen froze.
A Newbie Gift Pack?
There was something this good?
So the system had been silently protecting him all along.
Just as he wondered what exactly this "Primordial World Safety Protection Plan" was—
The next second, he felt his body turn into a bottomless Black Hole!
Before you continue