In the Primordial World, years went uncounted. But for Xuan Wazi, who had already reached the mid-stage Hunyuan Golden Immortal realm, identifying his direction and crossing endless space back to his own cultivation grounds was no difficult task. He even found time to study the Treasure Distribution Cliff he had forcibly pried away, discovering that it was essentially an enormous Chaos Primordial Stone containing Chaos Aura, a supreme material for refining cave abodes or large formation foundations. That made him happy for quite a while.
His cultivation grounds were called Carefree Residence. The name had been chosen casually, but its location was exceptionally tricky. It lay hidden behind an Innate Formation at the border between the eastern Primordial World and Mount Buzhou. He had created that formation by combining it with the Chaos Bead's Stealth Ability. Unless one stumbled upon it by chance or deliberately searched for it, ordinary great powers would find it difficult to discover.
Passing through layers upon layers of cloud-and-mist restrictions that appeared naturally formed but actually concealed countless mysteries, the view suddenly opened up. Immortal mountains drifted in the haze, spiritual springs babbled, exotic flowers and rare herbs covered the ground, and unusual birds and spirit beasts occasionally appeared. Though it could not compare to top-tier blessed lands such as Kunlun Mountain and West Kunlun, it was still tranquil, elegant, rich in spiritual energy, and unique in its own way. Most importantly, it was safe and secluded!
The moment the protagonist stepped into his own great hall, the profound and unfathomable air he had maintained while discussing the Dao with Tongtian in the chaos instantly collapsed, revealing his true nature.
"Wahahaha! I'm back, I'm back!" He threw himself onto the cloud bed made of Spirit Warming Jade without any regard for his image, hugged the soft cloud-silk quilt, and rolled around several times before sitting up. His eyes gleamed, and his face was filled with irrepressible excitement and belated thrill.
"Thrilling! So damn thrilling!" He slapped his thigh and muttered to himself, spittle flying everywhere. "Making trouble right under that old Hongjun's nose! I snatched the first seat at his Dao lecture, disrupted his treasure distribution gathering, emptied out his Treasure Distribution Cliff, and even broke through to the initial stage of Hunyuan Golden Immortal right in front of him! In the end, I even fooled Tongtian silly... No, I guided him through his confusion! Good heavens, I'm freaking incredible! The Primordial World's number one badass, the perfect example of courage and wisdom combined—none other than me!"
The more he thought about it, the prouder he became. He felt heroic spirit soaring within his chest, and the slight frustration from having been forced by the system to pursue Not Being a Person was swept away. He almost wanted to rush straight back to the gates of Zixiao Palace and erect a monument reading, "Xuan Wazi was here."
"Chaos Bead! You're awesome! Blocking heavenly secrets, concealing my cultivation, moving house, stealing treasures—you're simply the ultimate divine tool for stirring up trouble... No, for pursuing carefree freedom!" He pulled out the inconspicuous gray bead, kissed it hard, and could not bear to put it down.
Just as his confidence swelled to the extreme, nearly breaking through the heavens, and he even began considering whether he should give himself a more resounding title, like "Chaos Celestial Venerable" or "The Primordial World's Most Handsome Man"—
Buzz!
The familiar pale-blue light screen unfolded before his eyes again without warning, interrupting his daydream.
On the screen was still that crude pixel-style smiling face.
But this time, the pixel smile had changed. It had become a figure sticking out its pinky finger and dramatically picking its nose, accompanied by a flashing line of text brimming with disdain: [Host, wake up and stop dreaming! Wipe off your drool!]
The protagonist's smile froze. Irritated, he said, "System Bro, what do you mean by that? Can't you stand seeing me do well? Are you jealous of my brilliance, my unparalleled courage, and how I'm about to reach the pinnacle of life?"
"Jealous, my ass!" The nose-picking pixel animation on the system screen grew even more forceful, as though it could dig something out. "Host, do you have some enormous misunderstanding about the word 'awesome'? Did you think you got the first meditation cushion because your kingly aura leaked out, and Hongjun liked the look of you so he ignored it?"
"Wasn't that the case?" The protagonist craned his neck, trying to maintain the "lofty" image he had just established.
"Bullshit!" The system struck without mercy, its synthesized electronic voice rising an octave. "From the moment you entered Zixiao Palace—no, from the moment you obtained me and entered the Primordial World—Hongjun, through the Heavenly Dao, had already noticed the existence of an 'anomaly' like you! When you sat on the first meditation cushion, he saw it perfectly clearly! The reason he didn't turn you into ashes on the spot wasn't because you were so impressive, nor because the Chaos Bead was completely invincible and could fully block the Heavenly Dao's perception. It was because the Heavenly Dao's rules restricted him. As someone merged with the Dao, he could not personally erase an anomaly that had not yet directly and severely endangered the stability of the Primordial World. Otherwise, he would suffer Great Dao Backlash. It simply wouldn't be worth it!"
"What?" The pride on the protagonist's face instantly froze, as though a basin of chaotic ice water had been poured over him from head to toe, chilling him to the bone. "Hongjun... he knew all along? He knew from the very beginning?"
"What else did you think?" The pixel smile on the system screen changed into an enormous eye-roll. "Did you think Heavenly Dao Sages were useless? Especially someone like Hongjun, who was about to merge with the Dao! His every move practically represents the will of the Heavenly Dao! If this system hadn't planned every step carefully, calculated everything precisely, and guided you to exploit the bugs in the Heavenly Dao's rules so you could sit on that meditation cushion—then, every time you stirred up trouble, used the Chaos Bead to disrupt local heavenly secrets to the greatest extent possible, reducing the Heavenly Dao's immediate attention and the 'justification' for Hongjun to act directly—you would have long since been 'reasonably' eliminated by Hongjun! Would you still be here celebrating yourself? You'd have been dead and cold ages ago!"
The protagonist: "..."
He fell completely silent. The soaring heroic spirit from moments ago deflated in an instant, and he visibly wilted, collapsing onto the cloud bed like a salted fish that had lost its dreams—one that had already been dried in the sun.
"So all this time... I was dancing on a blade's edge, while thinking I was partying on my own kang..." he muttered. A wave of lingering fear washed over him, and a layer of cold sweat even seeped across his back. So the "awesomeness" and "thrill" he had boasted about were actually supported by the system and the Chaos Bead taking enormous risks, constantly testing the limits of the Heavenly Dao and Hongjun.
Seeing how badly reality had crushed the host, the system's tone softened slightly, and the image on the screen changed into a comforting pat on the shoulder.
"Relax, relax, Host. Don't be too depressed. Knowing fear is a good thing—it means you can still be saved. Although Hongjun noticed you long ago, rules are rules. As long as you don't court death by directly shaking the foundations of the Primordial World, like crashing into Mount Buzhou right now or punching a hole straight through the Heavenly Dao, he truly cannot act against you directly. In a sense, your earlier operations did count as 'awesome' within the range permitted by the rules."
Hearing that, a faint light rekindled in the protagonist's eyes. Like a tiny blade of grass wilted by the sun, he had finally received a little nourishment from rain and dew.
He struggled upright, stroked his chin, and that habitual glint of Not Being a Person began flashing in his eyes again—the kind that made the system both gratified and exasperated. "So... as long as I don't touch that 'ultimate bottom line' set by Hongjun and the Heavenly Dao, I can actually... stir up trouble within limits, inside the rules?"
"Bingo!" A flashing thumbs-up with a checkmark appeared on the system screen. "Correct understanding! Hongjun cannot move against you directly, but he is still the Heavenly Dao's spokesperson. He has countless methods and schemes deeper than the sea. If you truly enrage him and he is willing to pay a huge price—such as consuming his own merit and fate, or using Heavenly Dao Power to arrange things and guide other great powers into conflict with you—he can still bypass the restrictions and have you killed indirectly."
"But—" The system drew out the word, returning to that smug tone as though everything were under control. "With this system here, I'll naturally help you keep things within bounds and assess the risks. The missions I issue will all fall within the range of 'safely stirring up trouble.' I won't truly send you to your death or force Hongjun to destroy you at any cost. So, Host, put your heart at ease! As long as you follow this system's rhythm, I guarantee you can make waves to your heart's content without fear of capsizing! Our goal is to keep making waves healthily and sustainably on the path of Not Being a Person!"
"Hehe, got it!" The protagonist rubbed his hands together, and that signature smile appeared on his face once again—the smile that would make countless Primordial Great Powers grind their teeth in hatred in the future. "Making waves within limits is the only sustainable way to make waves! System Bro, I'll rely on you to steer the course from now on! You're the lighthouse on my voyage across the Primordial World's vast sea, the compass in the mist!"
"Easy, easy! This system is very pleased that you have such awareness, Host!" The screen flickered, seemingly quite pleased by the flattery. "At the current stage, the proper path is to remain steady while seeking mischief. First, properly consolidate your mid-stage Hunyuan Golden Immortal cultivation. Don't let the reward you just gained become unstable. I've detected several familiar auras approaching your cultivation grounds. They're probably here to 'discuss the Dao' with you."
"Got it, got it!" The protagonist nodded and was just about to settle his mind and enter meditation to consolidate his cultivation.
Suddenly, the Innate Formation outside the cultivation grounds sent out a faint ripple with a particular rhythm. It was the signal of a visitor, and the other party seemed to know how to enter the formation—or at least had received a certain degree of the formation's "recognition."
Immediately afterward, three familiar auras of varying strength rapidly approached, passing through the cloud-and-mist restrictions and materializing outside the great hall.
"Hmm?" The protagonist swept his divine sense over them and grinned. "Oh? Speak of visitors and visitors arrive? And they came as a group? Brother Hong Yun, little sister Nuwa, and Fellow Daoist Tongtian... That's quite the lineup. Looks like the knot over the Primordial Violet Qi still hasn't been untied in their hearts."
He straightened the robes that had become somewhat wrinkled from his rolling around earlier. The lingering fear and depression brought by the system revealing the truth had already vanished without a trace, replaced by anticipation that more fun had come knocking—and that he could conveniently show off a little more.
"Looks like there's no avoiding these days of discussing the Dao, drinking tea, and exchanging insights about 'Violet Qi.' Fine, then let this poor Daoist properly teach you all another lesson!"
Before you continue