Primordial Era: The Three Senior Brothers of the Taiqing Clan

After Lieshan escaped danger, Chen Qing did not leave immediately. He settled down near the tribe and secretly observed for a period of time. Although it was still uncertain whether the people from beyond the realm had their eyes on the human race's leader, it was always better to be cautious.

The arrangement of the Three Sovereigns was ultimately nothing more than following the will of Heaven. If something went wrong along the way, no one knew what unforeseen changes might occur.

Fortunately, things have been peaceful these days, and no foreign invaders have come.

Afterwards, Chen Qing simply found a secluded place nearby to go into seclusion and continue refining the microscopic world within his body, while also protecting the Human Emperor nearby.

Lieshan was gone for many years, leaving behind his wife and young daughter, Nüwa.

The girl was only seven or eight years old. She had only seen her father once, when he was born, and had never seen him since. In order to wait for her father to return as soon as possible, she spent most of her days sitting at the entrance of the village, staring blankly into the distance, or wandering around the neighborhood.

These days, the girl heard that her father would be returning soon, so she ran out of the tribe every day.

Unexpected events can happen at any time.

One day, the girl was playing by the sea when a passing black dragon, seeing how cute she was, harbored evil intentions. A gust of wind swept through, and the girl was abducted.

The tribespeople chased after the sound, but by the time they emerged, the person had vanished.

The black dragon sped along and landed on a reef by the sea. It transformed into human form, looked at the little girl in its arms, and said with a smug smile, "I am the younger brother of the Dragon King of the East Sea. From now on, you will follow me."

"Pah! Let me go! My father is the supreme ruler of humanity!" The girl struggled desperately.

The black dragon's expression changed slightly. Humanity is now the dominant force in the world, attracting the attention of powerful beings from all walks of life; they are indeed not to be trifled with.

But then he thought, he was a noble of the dragon race, after all. Who would bother him for the sake of a mortal girl?

Without further hesitation, the black dragon grabbed the girl and prepared to dive into the sea.

The girl knew that once she was dragged into the deep sea, there would be no chance of survival. Summoning strength from who-knows-where, she struggled violently.

Black Dragon made a careless move, and the girl slipped from his grasp.

How could an ordinary seven or eight-year-old girl withstand the pressure of the deep sea? In just a few moments, the girl drowned.

Black Dragon cursed his bad luck and turned back to the Crystal Palace.

The girl's body slowly floated to the surface. Her lingering resentment lingered, and her soul, intertwined with her resentment, transformed into a small red bird.

The little bird travels daily between the land and the East China Sea, carrying twigs and pebbles to throw into the sea, as if trying to fill it up. Each cry seems to call out, "Jingwei—Jingwei—"

When Lieshan returned from his travels to his tribe, he found his wife weeping. After inquiring about the reason, he was overcome with grief and burst into tears.

He hated himself for not spending enough time with his daughter, leaving her to suffer this tragedy alone.

Guang Chengzi, who had been following and protecting her, was furious upon learning of this. Lieshan was considered his disciple, and the girl was naturally connected to him. How dare a mere demon dragon commit murder?

Guang Chengzi immediately informed Lieshan and led him to the East Sea.

On the shores of the East Sea, Lieshan saw his daughter's remains, already mutilated and eroded by fish and shrimp. Overwhelmed with grief and anger, he fainted on the spot.

Guang Chengzi followed the scent and found the Jingwei bird.

When Lieshan woke up, he held his daughter, who had transformed into a Jingwei bird, and wept bitterly. He repeatedly kowtowed to Guangchengzi, begging him to save the girl's life.

Guang Chengzi was in a dilemma. If he had that ability, he would have saved them long ago; why wait until now?

The Jingwei bird is formed from the fusion of the girl's resentment and soul. To save the girl, the resentment must be eliminated.

However, the resentment was entangled with the soul, and he was powerless to do anything about it with his cultivation level.

Devastated, Lieshan was heartbroken. After returning to his tribe, he spent his days in tears, believing that his negligence had harmed his daughter.

Guang Chengzi couldn't bear to watch any longer, so he told him that he could take the Jingwei bird to find someone to help.

Guang Chengzi, accompanied by the Jingwei bird, traveled swiftly to Chen Qing's secluded retreat.

"Greetings, Senior Brother!" Guang Chengzi bowed respectfully.

He knew, of course, that it was best not to disturb his senior brother during his seclusion, but he was truly at a loss and had no choice but to seek help. Fortunately, the Jingwei bird was not in a hurry and was prepared for a long wait.

"Speak, what is it?" Chen Qing's voice came from inside the cave, his tone calm. "Shouldn't you be protecting the Lieshan clan? Has something happened?"

Guang Chengzi was taken aback, not expecting his senior brother to ask him a question directly.

He quickly replied, "It wasn't Lieshan who had an accident, it was his daughter..." He then recounted the girl's ordeal in detail.

Chen Qing raised an eyebrow after hearing this—he hadn't expected even the story of Jingwei filling the sea to come up.

His gaze shifted to the small red bird perched quietly on Guang Chengzi's shoulder. Guang Chengzi had used his magic to restrain it, and the Jingwei bird showed no unusual behavior at that moment.

Chen Qing stepped out of the cave and carefully examined Jingwei's condition, his brows gradually furrowing. This was indeed quite troublesome—for some reason, the girl's soul had become deeply fused with the resentment, almost indistinguishable from it.

If one were to forcibly use magic to strip away the resentment, it would inevitably damage the soul. The souls of ordinary human girls are inherently fragile, and the slightest carelessness could cause them to be scattered.

Seeing Chen Qing frown, Guang Chengzi gave a wry smile. So even his senior brother finds it troublesome?

"Senior Brother, if there's no other way, then forget it. I'll go ask Grand Master Uncle for help again." Guang Chengzi sighed.

He had been hesitant about bothering his master, feeling it inappropriate to trouble the Primordial Celestial Venerable with such a matter, which was why he came to find Chen Qing first. It seems he'll ultimately have to go to his senior master and the others.

Just as he was about to take his leave, Chen Qing suddenly spoke up: "Wait, there is a way."

Chen Qing pondered for a moment, then slowly said, "According to what you said, the girl's death is inextricably linked to that black dragon. If we can capture and kill this beast to end this karmic debt, the girl's resentment might dissipate on its own. Even if it cannot be completely eliminated, it will at least be weakened, making separation much easier then."

Guang Chengzi was initially delighted, but then a troubled expression appeared on his face: "That black dragon... I've also inquired about it; he's the offspring of the Dragon King of the East Sea. I'm afraid it won't be easy to harm him!"

He paused, then added with a wry smile, "Although the three ancient races have declined, the Dragon Clan is still the leader of the three. Even a starved camel is bigger than a horse. If we rashly antagonize the Dragon Clan, I'm afraid there will be endless troubles in the future."