Failed to Take a Disciple, Received Guidance; Beichen Hides His Cultivation

"Heh, I never thought a fellow disciple could be so calculating!"

The Grand Pure Lord of Morality muttered under his breath. They had all blamed Mystic Turtle for failing to obtain merit today, treating him as an enemy. Never did they expect Nuwa to think of taking him as a disciple, forging a karmic bond with the Heaven and Earth Great Dao.

This idea was truly brilliant!

Even Grand Pure felt a pang of regret: "Taking this Mystic Turtle as a disciple is, relatively speaking, far better than making an enemy of him. Why didn't I think of that?"

Primordial Lord of Heaven and Tongtian were also stunned: "Taking him as a disciple is a great idea!"

"Nuwa Daoist, Mystic Turtle is not fit to be your disciple. Please, Nuwa Daoist, abandon this notion."

Beichen refused outright.

"Hah!"

The other three Destined Saints heard this and let out a long sigh, their hearts feeling much more balanced.

"Mystic Turtle Daoist, why are you unwilling to enter my school? Our master is none other than Old Ancestor Hongjun, who will soon become a saint! Once he finds his own path, This Seat will have a saint's guidance—how could you lack benefits?"

Nuwa's words were sincere. She wanted to take Beichen as a disciple to secure gains for herself, but she also saw promise in him.

"Nuwa Daoist, forgive Mystic Turtle for speaking bluntly, but you are not qualified to be Mystic Turtle's master. On the contrary, Mystic Turtle might offer you a pointer or two on your path to sainthood!" Beichen said with a mischievous grin.

"What? Sainthood?"

Nuwa was taken aback. She was only at the late Primordial Unity Golden Immortal stage, not yet having entered the Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal realm. She hadn't even considered sainthood.

"Mystic Turtle Daoist, do you know some heavenly secrets?"

Nuwa, being meticulous, dared not let this pass and quickly asked.

"Heh, since it's a heavenly secret, it cannot be divulged. Please, Nuwa Daoist, do not press the matter."

Nuwa was puzzled. She pondered for a long time, then nodded: "Very well, since Mystic Turtle Daoist is unwilling to take me as his master, let this matter rest here."

Beichen did not let Nuwa leave. Instead, he kept her chatting idly, and that conversation stretched on for decades.

From Nuwa, Beichen learned that the Primordial World had already undergone the Creation Tribulation and the Dragon-Phoenix Initial Tribulation, but the Witch-Demon Great Tribulation had not yet begun.

This collapse of heaven and earth was due to instability in the world itself, not because Gonggong had smashed Buzhou Mountain during the Witch-Demon Tribulation, causing the sky to fall!

Thinking it over, he found it reasonable. The version where Gonggong broke Buzhou Mountain and Nuwa Mended the Heavens was merely from stories in his past life, highly inaccurate.

That was only a small-scale collapse of the sky, not requiring the Mystic Turtle's limbs to prop up the Four Poles.

Thus, the sky falling and earth sinking, with Nuwa Mending the Heavens, occurred before the Witch-Demon Great Tribulation, not after!

In that case, the world Beichen faced would have to endure the Witch-Demon Tribulation!

This tribulation was terrifying, and Beichen couldn't help but feel a chill inside: "Nuwa Daoist, you say your master hasn't become a saint yet?"

"Yes, my master Hongjun is a Quasi-Saint."

"Heh, since the Dao Ancestor hasn't become a saint, then he hasn't begun preaching yet!" Beichen mysteriously revealed a heavenly secret, "When your master attains sainthood, he will open his palace to preach. Then, we might listen together in the same hall!"

"Oh? Is that so?" Nuwa's eyes showed doubt, but she dared not refute Beichen. "Then This Seat will await you, Daoist, at the Purple Cloud Palace."

"We'll see then. You few are close to the source and can listen easily. For outsiders like us to hear the Dao Ancestor preach, we must cross countless Chaos Voids and endure myriad trials. Whether Mystic Turtle can reach the Purple Cloud Palace is uncertain."

"Then Mystic Turtle Daoist must cultivate diligently. If you can step into the Primordial Unity Golden Immortal realm, your chances of crossing the Chaos will greatly increase."

Nuwa understood well. If one were merely at the Golden Immortal Realm, they would be erased in the Chaos Turbulence, unqualified to reach the Purple Cloud Palace!

Afterward, Nuwa left that vast ocean.

Failing to take a disciple and instead being lectured by Beichen, she felt quite helpless.

"Three senior brothers, let's return," Nuwa said flatly.

Primordial Lord of Heaven did not answer Nuwa but looked at the Grand Pure Lord of Morality: "Senior brother, should we make a move against this Mystic Turtle?"

Grand Pure thought for a moment and shook his head slightly: "Primordial, can you see that the place he dwells is an evolution of a Dao Fragment? Many of his karmic ties are linked to that island. If he doesn't leave the island, we can't do anything to him."

"The three of us are still shallow in cultivation and dare not contend with the Chaos Great Dao that guards him. Better to leave for now and plan another day." Grand Pure narrowed his eyes. "If he ever steps out of these Three Islands, we can act to kill him."

Unfortunately, Beichen clearly had no intention of leaving the Three Islands.

These Three Islands were his cozy nest. He'd only leave if he had a death wish.

Beichen also understood that before the Witch-Demon Tribulation began, demons and monsters roamed everywhere. The Primordial World was filled with countless Primordial Unity Golden Immortals, and some with strong foundations had even stepped into the Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal realm ahead of the four Destined Saints.

With his meager cultivation, it was better to lie low and train hard, not recklessly wander out!

Otherwise, he might end up as "delivery food" for someone else.

The four saints traveled together, leaving this place and heading straight for the Purple Cloud Palace.

Beichen, with a thought, concealed the Three Immortal Islands, making them vanish from sight. Even a saint would find it hard to detect their existence!

However, in the current Primordial World, Hongjun had not yet attained the Dao. Except for some hidden, extraordinary beings, no saints had emerged.

"Time to train hard. Since I have these Three Great Paradise Lands as my backing, I'll make good use of them to level up quickly. Once my strength is sufficient, I can go out and stir up trouble. That'll be fun."

Beichen had no desire to be a boring turtle here. He was only lying low temporarily. Once strong enough, he'd go out and play.

Meddling in affairs, saving good people, humiliating the shameless and the domineering—that would surely be entertaining.

Unfortunately, without strength, all this thinking was useless.

So Beichen settled down to cultivate, breathing in spiritual energy day by day, condensing Dao power, and comprehending the Dao principles of the Three Islands along with the hidden laws of heaven and earth within them.

Three thousand years passed in a flash, and Beichen's cultivation smoothly reached the Primordial Unity Golden Immortal realm—but only the early stage, still quite weak.

However, the Universe Great Dao Mystic Turtle Shell gifted by the system had grown much tougher as his realm improved, boasting formidable defensive power.

And his Boundless Immortal Body of the Great Dao, a primordial Dao body, was several levels above his own cultivation—enough to contend even with a Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal.

"Keep cultivating!"

Another three thousand years later, Beichen's cultivation finally advanced to the mid-stage of Primordial Unity Golden Immortal, yet he still heard no sound of Hongjun attaining the Dao.

Then one day, Beichen looked up and gazed beyond the Three Immortal Islands, only to find the sea area unfamiliar.

Observing closely, he realized—this was the East Sea!

"The East Sea?" Beichen seemed to sense something, and his gaze involuntarily turned further east.

The Three Immortal Islands had often drifted across the East Sea; it was only after receiving the system's gift that they appeared in the North Sea. Now, they had returned!

But Beichen knew they had only just come back, and this return must have a reason.

"Is that the Fusang Divine Tree?" Beichen's heart sank. "Those two Golden Crows are cultivating on the tree!"