At Kunlun Mountain Peak, the atmosphere was strange.
Tongtian Jiaozhu squatted listlessly in a corner, picking up the shattered strands of sword qi from the ground.
He kept muttering, "A cat... It was actually a cat..."
"Why didn't I think of that?"
"If I'd known earlier, I would've gone to the East Sea and caught a true dragon for him as a pet!"
"No, true dragons are too ugly. Phoenixes are prettier. Right, I'll go to the Southern Bright Volcano right now and tie up Yuanfeng's Seven-Colored Phoenix!"
The more he thought about it, the more feasible it seemed. Even the sword intent around him began to fluctuate uncontrollably.
Listening to his disgraceful nonsense, Yuanshi Tianzun snorted coldly.
He rebuked him through divine sense, "Shut up! Haven't you embarrassed us enough?"
"If you tie up someone else's phoenix, the disciple might be happy, but do we still care about Kunlun Mountain's reputation?"
"How will all living beings in the prehistoric world see us afterward?"
"Pangu's True Lineage, actually stooping to abducting women just to please a disciple... No, abducting female birds!"
"Then what are we supposed to do?!"
Tongtian Jiaozhu scratched at his head anxiously. "Are we supposed to just watch that woman lure our disciple away?"
"Look at how close they are. It's making my chest feel blocked!"
Yuanshi Tianzun felt no less stifled.
He watched Nuwa hold Lin Shen in her arms, gently teaching him how to stroke the little kitten's fur.
Lin Shen giggled happily, his face full of bliss.
That scene was so warm it hurt the eyes.
It was as if they were the real family.
While the three masters who had painstakingly raised him, acting as both father and mother, had become outsiders instead.
He could not swallow this anger!
"Big Brother!"
Yuanshi Tianzun turned his divine sense toward the silent Taiqing Laozi. "Say something! What should we do now?"
Taiqing Laozi slowly opened his eyes.
A trace of helplessness flashed through his deep gaze.
What could they do?
What solution did he have?
When it came to patience, he had plenty.
When it came to magic treasures, he had even more.
And when it came to cooking, he believed he was no worse than his two younger brothers.
But in the profound field of "humoring children," he realized that, like his two useless younger brothers, he was a complete outsider.
They were used to thinking through problems with the great principles of the Dao.
They were used to solving problems with magical power and divine abilities.
But before a three-year-old child, none of that was useful.
Nuwa had casually shaped a little cat and effortlessly won all of their disciple's attention.
This was a Dimensional Strike.
It was a double-sided crushing defeat brought by gender advantages and specialties in the Great Dao.
"This matter requires long-term consideration."
Only after pondering for a long time did Taiqing Laozi slowly speak through divine sense.
"Long-term consideration?"
Tongtian Jiaozhu said anxiously, "By the time you come up with a solution, our disciple will have followed that woman back to her Wa Huang Palace!"
"Do not panic, Third Brother."
Taiqing Laozi reassured him, "Although Fellow Daoist Nuwa gets along well with Lin Shen, she is ultimately a guest."
"Lin Shen's roots are still here on Kunlun Mountain."
"The urgent matter is not to compete with Fellow Daoist Nuwa over temporary gains and losses, but to reflect on our own problems."
"Our own problems?"
Yuanshi Tianzun and Tongtian Jiaozhu were both stunned.
Taiqing Laozi's divine sense grew solemn. "The three of us were formed from Pangu's Primordial Spirit. We were born male, and our temperaments are strong and forceful."
"Normally, we either discuss the Dao, refine artifacts, or practice sword techniques."
"Do we know what children truly need?"
That question left both Yuanshi and Tongtian speechless.
Yes, they had given Lin Shen the best food, the safest home, the strongest magic treasures, and the most novel toys.
But were those truly what a child needed most?
Watching Lin Shen laugh so hard in Nuwa's arms that he rocked back and forth just because the little kitten acted cute...
They seemed to understand a little.
"Companionship?" Tongtian Jiaozhu asked tentatively.
"Gentleness?" Yuanshi Tianzun added.
"It is patience, companionship, gentleness, and above all... love."
Taiqing Laozi made the final judgment. "Although we love our disciple, the way we express it is too stiff and too presumptuous."
"What we must learn is how to care for him and understand him like real elders."
"Rather than blindly forcing upon him the things we believe are good."
Taiqing Laozi's words struck heavily against Yuanshi and Tongtian's hearts.
Both of them sank into deep thought.
Yes, they seemed to have... truly been wrong.
They had always treated Lin Shen as an "unparalleled treasure" that needed protection and feeding.
Yet they had forgotten that he was also a "person" with thoughts and feelings.
"Big Brother's lesson is correct. We were too obsessed with appearances."
Yuanshi Tianzun spoke with sincere conviction.
"Then... what should we do?" Tongtian Jiaozhu humbly asked for advice.
A profound light flashed through Taiqing Laozi's eyes. "Very simple."
"Learn!"
"Learn?"
"That's right. Learn from Fellow Daoist Nuwa."
Taiqing Laozi slowly said, "Whatever she does, we shall do the same."
"If she is gentle, then we shall be even gentler."
"If she is patient, then we shall be even more patient."
"If she can shape a cat, can't we refine a phoenix?"
"I refuse to believe that the three of us brothers, three Primordial Golden Immortals, cannot compare to one mere woman!"
Taiqing Laozi's words rang with force.
They instantly ignited Yuanshi and Tongtian's fighting spirit!
That's right! Wasn't it just humoring a child?
Learn! Pangu's True Lineage had no reason to lack learning ability!
Thus, a "favor-competing imitation contest" launched by Kunlun Mountain's three top figures against Nuwa quietly began.
The next day.
The moment Lin Shen woke up, he found three "kind-looking" masters gathered around his little bed.
The expressions on their faces all carried a practiced, extremely unnatural... gentleness.
"Beloved Disciple, you're awake?"
Tongtian Jiaozhu was the first to speak. He tried his best to make his voice sound softer.
But no matter how one listened, that rough voice sounded like he was challenging someone to battle.
"Third Master prepared breakfast for you."
As he spoke, he presented a bowl of... multicolored porridge that gave off an eerie glow.
Inside the porridge were red, green, yellow, and purple chunks of various spirit fruits and spirit herbs, cut into strange shapes.
They had been piled together at random.
It looked like an overturned paint palette.
"I specially made this Seven-Colored Glazed Hundred-Fruit Soup for you!"
Tongtian Jiaozhu said expectantly, "Doesn't it look good? It's delicious too!"
Lin Shen's little face turned green as he looked at that terrifying bowl of porridge.
Third Master, did you have some kind of misunderstanding about "looking good" and "tasting good"?
Could this thing... really be eaten?
Before he could express his refusal, Yuanshi Tianzun had already silently shoved Tongtian Jiaozhu aside.
"Third Brother, your thing is far too crude."
"Look at what Second Master prepared for you."
Wearing a solemn expression, Yuanshi Tianzun presented a White Jade Plate.
On the plate was a painting made from all kinds of top-tier ingredients.
In the painting, a little child rode an Ink Qilin through the Sea of Clouds.
That little child was unmistakably Lin Shen.
"This is the Kirin Treading Clouds Painting."
Yuanshi Tianzun introduced it in a poetic tone.
"The kirin was carefully roasted with dragon meat and phoenix marrow aged through ten thousand years of Heat Control, using the fire of the Eight Trigrams Furnace."
"The Sea of Clouds was condensed from the juices of Nine Heavens Immortal Spring and a hundred kinds of immortal fruits."
"Not only can it be eaten, one can also comprehend the mysteries of the Wind Law and Fire Law while eating it."
Yuanshi Tianzun looked utterly proud.
He felt that his dish completely crushed Tongtian's messy bowl of "pig slop" in creativity, appearance, and meaning.
However, Lin Shen looked at the exquisite "dish," which was more like an artwork than food, and pouted.
Second Master, I only wanted breakfast. Why did you make me a figurine?
How am I supposed to take a bite out of this?!
Just then, Taiqing Laozi walked over with a smile.
He carried nothing in his hands.
He merely extended a warm palm toward Lin Shen.
"Disciple, you're hungry, aren't you?"
"Come, First Master will carry you to breakfast."
His voice was calm and natural.
There was no forced gentleness, yet it made people feel at ease.
Lin Shen looked at his three masters.
One held a "dark cuisine."
One held an "artwork."
One had merely extended a warm hand.
Without hesitation, he stretched out his chubby little hand and grabbed Taiqing Laozi's finger.
"Eeya!" (First Master, carry me!)
Tongtian and Yuanshi froze once more.
They... had lost again?
And they had lost for no apparent reason!
Taiqing Laozi revealed a victorious smile.
He secretly thought, You two foolish younger brothers, you are still too young.
Sometimes, the simplest things were the most effective.
On the road to competing for favor, he had taken another step ahead!
But just as Taiqing Laozi was feeling pleased with himself...
Nuwa slowly walked over while holding the little kitten.
"Oh, you three Fellow Daoists are up so early?"
Her voice carried a faint trace of amusement.
"It seems none of you slept very well last night."
The Three Pure Ones immediately became alert.
What was this woman planning now?
Before you continue