What happened next was something no one present had expected!
The Sanqing had actually been so terrified by the incoming attack from the Dharma Body that they fled in a panic, hiding inside the palace and not daring to come out.
Beichen's Dharma Body had only been a feint; he had never truly intended to attack the Sanqing.
So, as soon as the three of them hid inside the palace, he withdrew his Dharma Body and slowly put it away.
After all, this was Old Ancestor Hongjun's Dao Field. Though Beichen had won the favor of the Great Dao, and his Boundless Immortal Body of the Great Dao possessed power approaching the peak of the mid-stage Quasi-Saint Realm, before a true Sage, it was still only a minor path.
Hongjun was currently the foremost figure in the Primordial World. Beichen didn't want to provoke him too far and spur him to murderous intent.
If Beichen hadn't stopped and had insisted on driving that fist into the Zixiao Palace, he would have been courting death!
Hongjun would then have had every reason to kill him outright, and leaving today would truly have been difficult!
Watching Beichen slowly put away his Dharma Body, everyone felt its grandeur. The profound Great Dao within it was still beyond their understanding.
That Dao had reached the peak of the mid-stage Quasi-Saint Realm. For this group of perfected Grand Unity Golden Immortals, it was naturally beyond their level.
Even before Nuwa, who had just entered the Quasi-Saint Realm with the help of a Quasi-Saint Pill, this Dao was a step above her, forcing her to bow in submission!
The peak of the mid-stage Quasi-Saint Realm was enough to utterly crush any early-stage Quasi-Saint. Even several Quasi-Saints working together would be powerless to resist!
Inside the Zixiao Palace, Old Ancestor Hongjun appeared amid the three men's cries.
"This Mystic Turtle ultimately didn't dare to overstep!" Hongjun sighed. "Had he used this Dharma Body to attack my Zixiao Palace, I would certainly have given everything to tear him limb from limb. Even that trace of favor from the Great Dao couldn't have protected him. But he stopped!"
Hongjun's words were full of regret. It was a pity that Beichen hadn't gone any further.
"Master, do you really not intend to kill this Mystic Turtle?" Primordial Lord of Heaven looked at Hongjun with deep resentment. "This Mystic Turtle used a Dharma Body of the Great Dao to bully your disciples and damage your dignity. If you don't kill him, I'm afraid you'll become a laughingstock throughout the Primordial World!"
"Hmph, Yuanshi, my disciple, don't talk nonsense!" Hongjun waved a hand. "It's not that I don't want to kill this Mystic Turtle. It's just that the time isn't right yet!"
"Why?" Grand Pure Lord of Morality was also growing impatient. Remembering how disgracefully he had fled just now, he felt so ashamed that his old face flushed red. "Master, you're the foremost person in the Primordial World. Who could you not kill if you wanted to?"
"This Mystic Turtle first disrupted your lecture and then insulted the three of us. How can we let him go?"
"Won't that make outsiders think the Zixiao Palace is easy to bully?"
Lingbao Moral Heavenly Venerate gritted his teeth in anger. "I agree! Eldest Brother is right. The Mystic Turtle deserves to die!"
"Heh, don't be impatient, my three disciples!" Hongjun sneered. "I had only just finished lecturing when the three of you went looking for trouble with the Mystic Turtle. You were the ones who started this. Besides, the Mystic Turtle didn't go any further and attack my Zixiao Palace, so I have no reason to act!"
"If I rashly killed him, the myriad cultivators of the Primordial World would think I was throwing my weight around and acting unjustly. I'll pretend I know nothing about the grudge between you and the Mystic Turtle. Wouldn't that show my magnanimity and earn me the praise of countless cultivators?"
"Um..." The Sanqing were momentarily at a loss for words.
"But we were avenging Master. Does that mean Master won't back us up?"
Tongtian spoke bluntly.
"Heh, what am I supposed to back you up for? I gave you the Quasi-Saint Pills so you could absorb the secrets within them and return to cultivate properly. But you swallowed them, raised your cultivation, and went to deal with the Mystic Turtle. What can I say?"
"So Master didn't mean for us to do that?" Tongtian gave him a questioning look. "Did I presume to guess your intentions?"
Hongjun's gaze shifted evasively. He waved a hand. "The three of you should go back for now. Remember to cultivate properly! As for Mystic Turtle Beichen, I won't let him off so easily!"
"This time, he manifested his Dharma Body in front of my Zixiao Palace, and I still didn't act. The myriad cultivators of the Primordial World will see how magnanimous I am. If Mystic Turtle Beichen falls someday, whatever crimes he may be accused of, none of them will have anything to do with me."
Tongtian pondered for a moment, then his divine eyes lit up. "Oh! I understand, Master."
Grand Pure Lord of Morality and Yuanshi said nothing more. It was plain to them that Hongjun had given them the Quasi-Saint Pills precisely because he wanted them to deal with Beichen. But they had been defeated the moment they made their move.
As the foremost figure in the Primordial World, Hongjun would never admit he had ordered it, not if he wanted to preserve his dignity!
By refusing to move against Beichen, he had placed the entire "farce" squarely on the Sanqing, acting as though he knew nothing about it!
Thinking this through, the Sanqing felt a little despondent, as if their own master had used them.
Still, a master was a master. He had given them Quasi-Saint Pills to help them comprehend the mysteries of the Quasi-Saint Realm, and in their battle with Beichen, they had entered the Quasi-Saint Realm without even realizing it. That was enough to keep them from resenting Hongjun.
"I must think of a foolproof way to get rid of Mystic Turtle Beichen! First, I need to find a way to sever his connection with the Heaven and Earth Great Dao. Only then will I be able to make my move!"
After the Sanqing left, Hongjun thought to himself.
In front of the Zixiao Palace, Nuwa, Fu Xi, Hong Yun, and the others said their goodbyes to Beichen and returned to their respective residences.
Beichen wasn't in a hurry to leave. Instead, he beckoned toward the shadows. "Old Ancestor Kunpeng, Daoist Six-Eared Macaque, come out!"
A cute little monkey leaped out in full view of everyone. "Daoist Mystic Turtle, what about the three thousand years of the Great Dao?"
"Daoist Six-Eared Macaque, come back to Three Immortal Islands with me. I've already mastered the Great Dao for those three thousand years!"
"Woohoo! Wonderful! Six-Eared will follow Daoist Mystic Turtle!"
Then everyone looked toward Old Ancestor Kunpeng.
Beichen looked that way too.
Seeing Old Ancestor Kunpeng fidgeting, Beichen asked, "Daoist Kunpeng, did you want something from me?"
"Daoist, why has your cultivation improved so quickly? You've already reached the mid-stage Quasi-Saint Realm!" Kunpeng quickly bowed. "Could you tell Kunpeng the secret behind it?"
"Heh!"
Beichen smiled faintly. How could he not know that Kunpeng wanted to cultivate and advance as quickly as possible so he could seek revenge against Hong Yun?
"There is a secret to it, of course, but this isn't the right time to explain. We'll have to talk it over slowly once we've returned," Beichen said. "Old Ancestor Kunpeng's Northming is very close to my North Sea. Why not visit Three Immortal Islands in the North Sea from time to time?"
As he spoke, Beichen sent out a Dao principle. "You can come find me anytime!"
With that, Beichen led everyone back.
"Master, just now we... couldn't come to your aid..."
Dijun and Taiyi felt somewhat guilty.
Beichen waved a hand. "It had nothing to do with you. Don't feel guilty!"
After all, the Sanqing had taken the pills and entered the Quasi-Saint Realm. They were beyond the level where Dijun and Taiyi could intervene.
"Master, aren't Three Immortal Islands in the East Sea? Why did you just tell Old Ancestor Kunpeng they were in the North Sea?"
Changxi had noticed the details and asked in puzzlement.
Beichen made a quick calculation, a smile on his face. "My Dao Field, Three Immortal Islands, has drifted into the North Sea!"
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