Don't let Yu Ding take on any more disciples.

Chapter 158: Father’s “kindness” and son’s “filial piety”
"Bodhi Daoist?"

The young man in black frowned slightly, pondered for a moment, and said with some disappointment, "Never heard of it!"

To be honest, he didn't care what the Taoist's name was.

He insisted on asking the other person's name mainly because he wanted to see if this person who suddenly appeared and took him as a disciple was famous in the prehistoric world.

It's not that he lacks cultivation techniques or anything like that.

But if we encounter a highly skilled person who is renowned even in the primordial world, wouldn't that be a great gain?

Whether you've heard of it or not is not important.

Bodhi Daoist chuckled lightly, neither angry nor annoyed: "What matters is whether I have the ability to teach you, don't you think?"

The boy in black looked up at him, somewhat eager to try, but suddenly his pupils contracted, and he asked calmly, "When will you begin your cultivation?"

He sensed something profound and unfathomable about this Taoist priest.

It wasn't the kind of profound stillness and towering grandeur, but rather a sense of oneness with the world, something he had never felt from his cheap uncle.

But you should know that his uncle, who evolved from a jiao to a dragon, also had the cultivation level of a true immortal, so what kind of person must this Taoist be?

Since that's the case... it wouldn't be a loss if he could actually learn something from him.

"Since you wish to cultivate, let me ask you one more question: what is your purpose in cultivating?" Bodhi asked in return.

He could roughly deduce the cause and effect.

Ao Run's reputation as a womanizer had long been known to the outside world.

This little dragon must have been the fruit of love planted by Ao Run during one or several encounters while he was having affairs.

But for a fickle dragon like Ao Run, picking wildflowers by the roadside isn't something he truly likes; it's just a change of pace, something new.

Once the novelty wears off... what follows is probably the old cliché of starting something and then abandoning it, which doesn't need to be described.

The boy in black retorted, "Didn't you say you knew?"

"..." Bodhi was speechless.

This is a feud between father and son.

As the saying goes, even an upright official finds it difficult to settle family disputes, and he was indeed somewhat reluctant to interfere or ask him to give up anything.

He just felt that the dragon's thoughts were now very dangerous, and that it was cold-blooded and even somewhat evil.

Killing two masters...isn't that evil enough?
If he doesn't die, he will surely grow into a powerful figure among the demon race.

However, they are blessed with great fortune, which helps them turn bad luck into good and makes it difficult for them to die. On the other hand, powerful beings such as celestial immortals and golden immortals who take action regardless of their status will only damage their own fortune.

Therefore, if it is not guided properly, this little dragon will surely grow into a great demon king who will bring calamity to the three realms.

"Cultivation is not something that can be accomplished overnight; the worst thing you can do is to be impatient and restless."

Bodhi looked around and found that the spiritual energy in this place was unusually rich.

It seems... we could set up a dojo for him?
He then waved his whisk.

A beam of divine light appeared, transforming into a hammer and chisel that materialized before the boy in black.

"What are you doing?" The boy in black was taken aback.

Bodhi raised his hand and pointed to the mountain: "Go, use this to carve out a cave in the mountains."

The boy in black looked slightly somber.

However, he didn't say anything, because he knew he couldn't beat his new master.

Bodhi smiled and said, "Remember, you must carve it out one stroke at a time by hand. You cannot use magic power. If you do, you will have to start all over again."

Then... let's continue teaching them how to cultivate their character!

The boy in black had a sour expression.

He raised his head, his eyes opening and closing, transforming into serpentine vertical pupils as he coldly stared at Bodhi: "Why?"

He glanced again at the hammer and chisel in front of him.

He definitely can't beat me in a fight.

It's impossible for him to do manual labor; he craves strength, not hard labor.

At that moment, he had an urge to turn around and leave.

"If you want to know why, think and reflect for yourself. Don't always expect others to tell you everything."

If you don't want to do it, you are free to leave. I will not stop you, but our master-disciple relationship will end then.

Bodhi looked at a wildflower by the pond and said:

Flowers bloom and fade, fate comes and goes; encounters in this world are a kind of fate, wonderful beyond words.

You were there waiting for your master, and I happened to be there and found you. But from the moment our fate brought us together, it was destined that our fate would also end. It all depends on whether you know how to cherish it.

The young man in black stared at the thin, sallow-faced Taoist priest before him. After a moment of hesitation, he finally bowed and picked up the hammer and chisel: "Yes!"

He was certain that the Taoist priest before him was an immortal with great supernatural powers and magic, who roamed the mortal realm.

As for why he was made to do these things...

The law should not be passed on lightly… The black-clad youth's mind raced; this old fellow must be testing him.

Regarding the master,

To be honest, he has absolutely no sense of awe!
His uncle had told him that his master's teachings and guidance were like a second father to his disciples, and that he should treat his master as he would his own father.

But his father... he was planning to kill him!

So why did he look so bewildered when he killed those two masters?
He had heard his uncle, who was not his friend, say that no supernatural power or magic could be mastered overnight; it required sustained perseverance and extraordinary willpower.

Therefore, after accepting disciples, those great immortals would first test them to see if their desire for the Dao was sincere and their resolve was firm before deciding whether to pass on their true abilities.

At this moment... that's probably the case too.

Thinking of this, the black-clad youth's eyes flashed, and he picked up the hammer and chisel and began to work diligently.

I wonder how this master's skills compare to his father's... whether he'd be easy to kill.

Bodhi Daoist watched his retreating figure and nodded slightly.

It takes a long time for the ice to freeze three feet thick!
A truly responsible and good master must use only 100% love to melt the ice in his disciple's heart.

Of course... this takes time, you can't rush it!
As their father-son relationship of "kindness" and "filial piety," he, as their teacher, didn't want to get involved.

But if a future demon is properly trained and prevented from indiscriminately killing innocents and wreaking havoc, wouldn't that be a good thing for the prehistoric world and the Three Realms? The merit would certainly be considerable.

Merit… Bodhi’s eyes gradually brightened.

He seemed to have discovered a quick way to cultivate virtue!

……

Dongzhou.

The landscape painting radiates light, and the scenery is lifelike, unfolding in mid-air.

Below, the Lion Camel King looked up at the flower roll, his forehead covered in sweat and his body trembling.

Two powerful Golden Immortals... and both are legendary figures, two of the Twelve Golden Immortals of Jade Void Palace!

If he had any lingering hope before, now that hope was completely gone.

Beside him, Peng Demon King and Yuan Hong remained remarkably calm.

"Why are you suddenly not nervous anymore?" Peng Demon King transmitted his voice.

Yuan Hong glanced at him and calmly said, "And what about you? Aren't you the same?" Their eyes met in mid-air.

The next moment, suddenly, a knowing smile appeared on their faces.

Everything is self-evident!
Then... the two glanced at Lingzhuzi, who was peeking over their shoulder.

"What do you want to do? Let me tell you, my... my master is inside," Lingzhuzi said guiltily.

"What a coincidence, my master (teacher) is also inside..." Yuan Hong and Peng Demon King thought to themselves.

A faint smile forced across Peng Demon King's cold, hard face: "Young brother, it's a misunderstanding..."

It was only thanks to Senior Brother Yuan Hong's broad knowledge that he noticed something was wrong; otherwise, he would have truly chopped this junior brother up.
I reckon that senior apprentice definitely chopped himself up too...

Lingzhuzi: "???"

Inside the landscape painting, Yu Ding and Taiyi sit facing each other.

"So... after you recovered from that injury, you switched to practicing the profound martial art you created?"

After listening to the story, Taiyi Zhenren slowly nodded: "No wonder you recovered your cultivation so slowly... well, actually it wasn't that slow."

From the time Yu Ding was injured until now, it's only been five or six hundred years at most.

During this period, Yu Ding not only went from losing all his cultivation foundation to returning to the Celestial Immortal realm... but also took the time to teach three Celestial Immortal level disciples. How could his senior brothers put their faces like that?

"It was actually a last resort."

Yu Ding said that if he had mastered the Eight-Nine Arcane Arts, he probably wouldn't have practiced this incomplete method.

"But after your disciples graduated, they all ran off to the Heavenly Court one by one... This is..."

Taiyi was speechless at this point, and pondered, "This matter must not be known to anyone else."

With this great calamity imminent, the Heavenly Court's attitude is also crucial. If the Heavenly Court finds out... it will be very detrimental to my Jade Void Palace.

"I know, so I've only told my senior brother about this so far."

Yu Ding raised an eyebrow and said, "I hope you can keep this a secret, senior brother."

A hint of warmth flashed in Taiyi's eyes, and he snorted, "Don't worry about that, I, Taiyi, am not one to talk too much."

"By the way, you now have several disciples. Remember to teach them well, and make sure they don't go causing trouble in Heaven again. Heaven's power is growing stronger and stronger."

At this point, Taiyi also felt a slight headache.

“One, and this time I guarantee she will absolutely not cause trouble in the Heavenly Court,” Yu Ding said confidently.

"Um...why?" Taiyi asked, somewhat surprised.

Such confident words... this is not Lao Yuding's style!
“My disciple is Long Ji. You’ve forgotten, although she is a princess of the Heavenly Realm, the Heavenly Court does not belong to their family.”

Yu Ding smiled and said, "We may not know the rules of the Heavenly Court, but surely she does! Do you think she'd be so bold as to come to our house and cause trouble? The Golden Mother and the Heavenly Emperor would surely punish her severely!"

"Hmm...that's true!"

Taiyi and Yuding exchanged a glance, nodded slightly, and looked somewhat relaxed: "After all, it takes sixteen yuanhui to reach the Returning to the Void Realm..."

He stopped abruptly at this point.

"Among all the people I've ever met, I, Taiyi, would call such qualifications the worst..." Taiyi thought to himself.

He didn't dare say it in front of Yu Ding, because he would definitely get angry if someone spoke ill of his disciple to his face.

I imagine the same applies to the jade tripod.

With a hum, the landscape painting glowed, and two figures emerged together.

It was Yu Ding and Tai Yi.

"Master!" Lingzhuzi immediately went up to him.

He glanced at Yu Ding with some concern, worried that this senior uncle might not have been able to handle his master.

After all, Yuan Hong didn't hurt him and even protected him. If he were to be hurt because of him, he would feel uneasy.

"I'll be waiting for you here."

Taiyi glanced down and said, "You can deal with these troublemakers, Junior Brother. Lingzhu, come with me. You think you're all grown up now?"

With that, he grabbed Lingzhuzi's ear and pulled her aside.

"Hiss... Master, it hurts, it hurts..."

Lingzhuzi's eyes welled up with tears as she cried out, "Uncle-Master, save me!"

He was not a mortal, but when his master pinched him... it hurt so much he almost cried out for his parents.

Unfortunately, he had no parents, so he could only ask Yu Ding for help.

"Little Spirit Pearl, even your martial uncle can't help you!"

Yu Ding smiled and spread his hands, watching them walk away before turning back to look at Yuan Hong and the other two below, his smile fading.

Yuan Hong, Peng Demon King, and Lion Camel King also looked up at him.

"Jade... Jade Cauldron Immortal... the legendary Great Sword Immortal, it's all over..."

The Lion Camel King, sweating profusely, hid behind the Roc Demon King, arms crossed, and swallowed hard: "I don't want to die!"

"You wretched child, do you know your mistake?" Yu Ding said coldly.

"I know I was wrong, I know I was wrong!"

Yuan Hong and Peng Mowang nodded hastily, "We will never beat our fellow disciples again."

"Heaven cherishes life!"

Yu Ding looked down at the three men, his expression softening slightly. He pondered for a moment and said, "Since you have deeply realized your mistakes, well, considering that you have cultivated yourselves for thousands of years and achieved your current Dao results with great difficulty, today I, well, will give you a chance. I hope that you will uphold good intentions and walk the right path in the future."

However, if you dare to wreak havoc on the primordial world in the future, I will surely execute you without mercy, even if you escape to the Three Thousand Realms, I will still capture you and grind your bones to dust.”

Having said that, he glanced down at the ground, then...

With a flick of his sleeve, he drifted away, exuding an indescribable air of nonchalance.

"Eh?"

Lion Camel King was stunned, speechless, and asked Peng Demon King and Yuan Hong in disbelief.

"This...is it over?"

"Otherwise, what else do you want?"

The Roc Demon King was very impatient and said rather irritably, "Would I chop you in half with one sword?"

I just feel it's a bit... fantastical, right? The Lion Camel King shrank back sheepishly and stopped talking. When did a Golden Immortal become so easy to talk to?

"Master!"

Watching the departing figure, Yuan Hong sighed inwardly. His master had said that they would never meet again.

But she still came all the way here for him. She must have foreseen that he was in danger and came here on purpose. I wonder how she managed to persuade that petty Uncle Taiyi... cough cough!
In short, how could he possibly repay this kindness?
After much thought, the only option seemed to be for his master to enjoy the throne of the Heavenly Emperor... Yuan Hong's eyes gradually hardened, and his conviction grew stronger.

"Wait, that's..."

Suddenly, Yuan Hong's eyes lit up.

A sliver of light drifted down from mid-air, and he remembered...

The radiance seemed to have fallen out when his master flicked his sleeve.

(End of this chapter)