Stone Fairy!

The previously turbulent water gradually calmed down, but the rain continued to fall.

Daozhen looked at the old turtle curled up in his hand, its body covered in bloodstains, some so deep that the bone was visible. However, the Dao runes on its body sealed it and stopped the injuries.

Daozhen shook it twice, but the old turtle remained unchanged.

Daozhen chuckled lightly, then ignored him, stuffing the old turtle into his sleeve and looking at the green snake: "Now you're all that's left in the Black River. Do you still want to come with me?"

Upon hearing this, the green snake immediately nodded and said, "Of course, I'll go with you."

After he finished speaking, the green snake's body began to shrink until it was no more than a foot long and as thick as a finger.

Daozhen waved his hand, and a green snake coiled around his wrist. Its entire body was emerald green, and it looked like a carefully carved snake-shaped bracelet.

Daozhen rode the waves and returned to the large ship amidst the awe-inspiring gazes of the crowd.

They had witnessed Daozhen's battle with the old turtle, and even seeing it with their own eyes, they still found it hard to believe that such an extraordinary person existed in the world.

Xie Tian looked at Dao Zhen, his tone even more respectful: "Daoist Master, shall we return here?"

"Hmm." Daozhen nodded.

So, at Xie Tian's signal, the large ship set sail, braving the wind and waves to return to the city.

Xie Ning moved closer and asked in a low voice with some concern, "Are you alright?"

"It's not a big problem." Daozhen shook his head: "It's just that I estimate I'll need to go into seclusion for a few days after I get back."

Are you injured?

"No," Daozhen explained, "I obtained something from the bottom of the river, and I need to study it."

Upon hearing this, Xie Ning did not ask any further questions.

Half a day later,

Daozhen and Xie Ning returned to the Xie residence, while Xie Tian went to the city lord's mansion, as there were still many things that needed his attention.

In a quiet room,

Purple smoke rose gently from the beast-shaped furnace, carrying a faint, pleasant fragrance.

Daozhen sat cross-legged on the futon, with a black object placed in front of him, which was the old turtle.

Upon closer inspection, it is more like a tortoise than a soft-shelled turtle, with natural patterns growing on its carapace, subtly containing Taoist principles.

But the old turtle is still playing dead, its limbs tucked inside its shell, refusing to move.

"Let's talk," Daozhen whispered.

"If I could, I might let you go."

The green snake had already slipped off Daozhen's wrist, and its tail kept pawing at the tortoise shell as it said, "Old turtle, come out and talk."

"Don't be afraid, at worst I'll just eat you."

Upon hearing this, the old turtle shrank even more.

Daozhen looked at the green snake, not knowing what to say for a moment. After a pause, he gently brushed his palm towards the old turtle, and a faint golden halo fell on its body.

The turtle's injuries are slowly healing.

Feeling the changes within himself—the pain disappearing, the wounds healing—after a moment of silence, the old turtle tentatively asked, "Really?"

Daozhen nodded and responded.

The old turtle slowly poked its head out, its tiny green eyes, no bigger than mung beans, looking at Daozhen with fear.

When Daozhen asked him questions, Lao Bie answered them all and did not choose to hide anything.

After some conversation, Daozhen got a general understanding.

The old turtle had been in the Blackwater River for nine hundred years, but due to the nature of its species, even after so many years, its cultivation level had been growing slowly, and it was now only slightly stronger than the green snake.

The temple existed before the old turtle had any memories, and it always enshrined the dragon statue. The old turtle had originally thought of making it its nest, but whenever it stayed there for too long, it felt uncomfortable, as if something was watching it, so it had no choice but to give up.

As for the green snake, it seemed to have appeared out of nowhere. By the time the old turtle noticed it, it had already gained considerable power and had even made that temple its lair.

The old turtle was originally rather carefree and didn't pay much attention to it. However, as its cultivation level increased, it began to consider taking human form, but its progress was slow.

Until three hundred years ago, a young Taoist priest passed by this place and gave the old turtle a method, which was the incense way, which absorbs the incense offered by people and transforms into form through the power of their wishes.

The old turtle readily complied, initially looking forward to it. However, as its millennium limit drew near and it was still some time away from transforming into human form, the old turtle began to panic. It wanted to share more offerings in order to transform into human form and prolong its life faster, which led to what happened later.

"Then why do you want this true nature?" Daozhen pointed to the golden mark on his wrist.

The old turtle craned its neck and glanced at it, then, as if suddenly realizing something, murmured, "So this thing is called true nature."

The old turtle continued, "The true nature you mentioned was left behind by that passing Taoist priest."

"Since he was able to give me the method of transformation, what he left behind must also be extraordinary."

"My time is drawing near, and I have no other choice but to do this."

At this point, the old turtle looked at Dao Zhen with a somewhat evasive expression: "If I had known earlier that you were a senior who had already taken human form, how could I have dared to stop you?"

Dao Zhen stroked the golden patterns with his fingers, feeling a warmth within them. Although he didn't know how to use this Dao Zhen nature, he had a vague feeling that he would use it one day.

"What do you know about that Taoist priest?" Daozhen asked the old turtle.

Old Turtle pondered for a moment, as if recalling: "He was probably a middle-aged man. As soon as he arrived in Heihe, he went straight into that temple. At the time, I only dared to watch from afar."

"Huh!"

The old turtle suddenly let out a soft "hmm" and looked Daozhen up and down again, as if confirming something.

"The aura emanating from you seems somewhat similar to that of that Taoist priest," the old turtle said uncertainly.

Daozhen raised an eyebrow: "Are you sure?"

The old turtle circled around Daozhen once, then, as if confirming its suspicions, said, "Yes, there is a similar aura."

"Although I'm not very skilled, my nose is still very sensitive."

Upon hearing this, Daozhen couldn't help but ponder. He had been in the mountain temple all along, and had only interacted with three people: his master, his senior brother, and Ayu.

The old turtle was talking about something that happened three hundred years ago. My senior brother didn't live past a hundred, and Ayu couldn't have either. So could it have been my master?

Daozhen didn't know much about his master either; he mostly heard about him from his senior brothers.

Or perhaps the master's master?

Seeing that Daozhen was deep in thought, the old turtle looked around. Just as it moved, it was pulled back by the green snake's tail.

"Old turtle, where are you going?" The green snake raised its head, flicked its tongue, and stared at the old turtle with dangerous vertical pupils.

The old turtle said sheepishly, "It's just a little exercise."

Silence fell over the quiet room.

In the comfortable environment, the green snake was very sleepy, and its tail unconsciously slapped against the old turtle's shell.

The old turtle, sealed by Dao Wen, could only retract its limbs and head.

Daozhen continued to ponder, even resorting to divination, but he could not calculate anything when it came to the true nature of things. The results were different each time, resulting in complete chaos.

"What exactly is being hidden here?" Daozhen muttered to himself.