Chapter 178: Shou's Layered Schemes

"Fellow Daoist, please stay!"

Upon hearing this voice transmission, Wen Jing Dao Ren had no intention of responding and even considered devouring this Heavenly Immortal Realm elder to steady her nerves. But at that moment, she wasn't sure if the Three Fierce Ones of Jie Jiao had truly left, leaving her deeply uncertain. She began to suspect that this approaching Heavenly Immortal Realm elder might have been deliberately sent by the Three Fierce Ones to test whether she would dare speak of what had just happened...

Wen Jing Dao Ren closed her eyes and took a light breath, suppressing her anger. Under someone else's roof, one must bow their head! She wasn't a match for Zhao Gongming and Qiong Xiao, so her priority was to save her own life. Thus, facing this elder who seemed to be testing her, Wen Jing Dao Ren put on a somewhat pitiful expression...

Perhaps due to the overwhelming frustration, a wave of pessimism and gloom brewed in Wen Jing Dao Ren's heart, with images constantly flashing before her eyes of how the Three Fierce Ones had extorted her...

They were called the Three Fierce Ones, but the name didn't quite fit. After all, only two of them were truly fierce; the other, a minor True Immortal pretending to pass by, was clearly just a random helper dragged in by Zhao Gongming and Qiong Xiao! Thinking of that minor True Immortal made Wen Jing Dao Ren even angrier...

What kind of person dared to act so boldly against her? The other had feigned passing by, grabbed her arm, and hypocritically shouted:

"Oh dear, Fellow Daoist, this won't do at all!

Oh dear, you've injured someone like this—how terrible!"

Such words were clearly meant to tell her: We've got you cornered, so admit defeat, Fellow Daoist! The people of Jie Jiao were all despicable! Even this unassuming minor True Immortal was despicable! Compared to them, the experts of Western Teachings, who were always scheming to poach from the Dao sects, were like selfless benefactors dedicating themselves to the great development of the western Hong Huang!

Her clan's children were like pure boys and girls nurtured in heavenly spiritual holy water! Especially when Wen Jing Dao Ren thought about...

"This queen has already admitted defeat, yet they did nothing to me at all!"

That was the most infuriating part! The Three Fierce Ones only took a pile of useless treasures and spirit stones. Qiong Xiao made her wear this long dress now and scolded her for corrupting the Hong Huang's customs and affecting the cultivation of Jie Jiao's pure-hearted male disciples. Then, they made her swear a Great Dao Oath and simply let her go...

Were they looking down on her? Was Wen Jing Dao Ren not worth targeting by Jie Jiao? Not worth being coerced into doing something more meaningful? Was her life only worth a pile of spirit stones and treasures? Damn the Western Teachings! Who knew what she had been through!

The more Wen Jing Dao Ren thought about it, the more stifled she felt. She truly wanted to curse them out loud, but then she remembered the Great Dao Oath she had been forced to swear...

What kind of insidious, cunning, and meticulously crafted oath template could only have been devised by such vicious spirits? What exactly were the Jie Jiao immortals plotting by scheming against her this time? Was it to knock on the mountain to scare the tiger? Or was it just a random encounter, bullying her for a bit of amusement?

Amusement... Wen Jing Dao Ren might not be a top figure in the Hong Huang, but she was still a notable expert with great magical powers, and now she had become the plaything of these Jie Jiao fiends... After all these years, she had schemed against countless beings, and most who had seen her or knew her name were already dead. Yet, today, encountering true masters of scheming, she realized the gap was so vast...

No wonder they could become disciples of the Jie Jiao saints, while she was merely a blade in the hands of the Western Teachings saints...

With these thoughts, Wen Jing Dao Ren gave a self-mocking smile and suddenly felt disheartened. If she couldn't win and would only lose, should she continue opposing the Dao sects? All her running around for the Western Teachings had only earned her a bit of incense merit... Did she really care about those clan members held by the Western Teachings? Upon self-reflection, not really. Last time, when her clan members were killed by the Dragon Clan, she hadn't felt much pain—it was just the anger of being outsmarted by those foolish dragons.

But without those clan members, she would have no sense of existence in this world, like a wandering ghost drifting from ancient times. The Three Teachings, Western Teachings, Heavenly Dao, great trends, merits, struggles among great sects... Ha... In the end, what did any of this have to do with Wen Jing Dao Ren? A laugh for ten thousand years of futility, a sigh for the impermanence of the Great Dao. Better to go to the Chaos Sea, evade the saints' searches, and find a hidden place to cultivate. If she's lucky, she might find a tribe of weak Chaos beings or a fragment of the Hong Huang lost in the Chaos Sea where beings exist, and she could still be a queen...

Thus, Li Changshou saw:

The Mosquito Daoist, who should have been extremely ferocious, suddenly wore a weary and desolate smile as she looked up at the vast blue sky, her eyes full of emotion. Then, in a calm and indifferent tone, she voice-transmitted to the elder hundreds of miles away:

"Fellow Daoist, there's no need to come over. Your Great Dao Oath is already so comprehensive—do you still worry that I might seek revenge later?"

Indeed! Li Changshou thought with a bitter smile. This Mosquito Daoist had truly been extorted by Zhao Gongming and Qiong Xiao! They hadn't killed her, probably because they didn't know her origins... Now, looking at her, she was quite a beauty. But alas... In Li Changshou's eyes, even if this Mosquito Daoist were as beautiful as Chang'e of the moon, ranked among the top five in history, she was still just a ruthless figure from the Hong Huang with six legs!

As Li Changshou continued approaching the Mosquito Daoist, before he could respond, Wen Jing Dao Ren voice-transmitted again, her emotions slightly agitated:

"Fellow Daoist, that's enough!

Am I really so shameless? You're bullying me too much! Fine, I can't afford to provoke you, so I'll just hide! I'm leaving the Hong Huang now—are you satisfied?"

Li Changshou: ...

How had a simple extortion led to her suddenly becoming so world-weary? He and the Mosquito Daoist had clashed remotely several times, once viewing her as his most troublesome hidden threat, making anti-mosquito measures his top priority when going out. As opponents, Li Changshou had some understanding of the Mosquito Daoist's style from her actions. Although he couldn't rule out that she was putting on an act, reasoning backward from the saints' instructions, it was likely that the extortion had inexplicably disheartened her, making her truly want to leave the Hong Huang and avoid the Three Realms...

That wouldn't do at all! The Tai Qing Saint's intention was for the Mosquito Daoist to maintain her original state. Whether she schemed against the Dao sects or plotted against the Dragon Clan, it couldn't affect her role in destroying the Western Teachings' twelve-grade Golden Lotus! What exactly had Zhao Gongming done to this mosquito? Li Changshou's thoughts raced. Though he had come in a hurry, he quickly came up with several plan options...

Option A: Stir up the Mosquito Daoist's anger and hatred toward the Jie Jiao immortals to reinvigorate her and keep her causing trouble in the Hong Huang's shadows.

Option B: Have a dramatic and passionate conversation with the Mosquito Daoist, reveal her identity, express how much he values her as an opponent, and encourage her to counter the impact of this extortion.

Option C: Trick the Mosquito Daoist into joining the Dao sects.

Option D: Teach the Mosquito Daoist anti-trickery techniques to let her strike back at Zhao Gongming's group.

In an instant, Li Changshou made his decision. Option A was too risky—if the frenzied Mosquito Daoist caused chaos at the Three Teachings Origin Conference, the danger would be too high, not stable. Option B might lead to a "close confidante Mosquito Daoist" storyline, easily creating karma and giving people something to gossip about, slandering him as a leg fetishist, not stable. He was clearly not! Ahem, back to business... Option C: The saints probably wouldn't accept her. The Mosquito Daoist had done countless schemes for the Western Teachings; the Three Pure Ones wouldn't need to take in such a vicious assassin, not stable. Option D, while relatively better, still had many risks—if it backfired, he, Li Changshou, could end up on the blacklists of the Western Teachings and Jie Jiao saints...

With only about a hundred zhang left between them, and Wen Jing Daoist about to turn and leave, Li Changshou quickly decided. He chose...

The fifth plan!

"Your Majesty Jade Emperor, circumstances demand it, and with the saint's orders, you'll have to be the one to take this on once!"

"Fellow Daoist, please stay, please stay!"

Li Changshou, disguised as an elderly immortal, waved his duster and kept calling out. Wen Jing Dao Ren looked impatient, turned her head to glare at the approaching figure, and truly wanted to strike but held back due to caution. Upon closer inspection, she realized this elder was just an incarnation... Moreover, she felt a vague sense of familiarity with him.

Li Changshou flew up to Wen Jing Dao Ren, smiled slightly, and said warmly:

"Fellow Daoist, have you heard of the South Sea Sea God Cult?"

The Sea God Cult? Wen Jing Dao Ren narrowed her phoenix eyes and said indifferently, "You're not from Jie Jiao?"

"How could I be from Jie Jiao, Fellow Daoist?"

Li Changshou flicked his duster, showing a somewhat superficial smile, and moved two zhang closer to Wen Jing Dao Ren.

"Don't misunderstand, Fellow Daoist. Our Sea God Cult is backed by Ren Jiao. The second leader is a Jie Jiao disciple, but we only have a bit of business dealings with Jie Jiao."

Thousands of thoughts raced through Wen Jing Dao Ren's mind as she said coolly, "Fellow Daoist, do you know who I am?"

"Forgive my poor eyesight, Fellow Daoist, please don't blame me."

Li Changshou bowed with a daoist salute, adjusted his sleeves, cleared his throat, and said seriously:

"To be honest, I am the Sea God of the South Sea, with over ten thousand incense god temples and good relations with the ancient Dragon Clan. Today, seeing your outstanding demeanor and unique charm, I feel... you have a connection with our Sea God Cult. Would you mind letting me explain the teachings of the Sea God Cult and perhaps take a walk with me through the mundane streets to chat?"

Wen Jing Dao Ren was puzzled and watched the elder before her, still on guard. She had searched for the South Sea Sea God for so long, and now he appeared on his own, blocking her here... What a day full of strange events!

"We should have no connection, Fellow Daoist," Wen Jing Dao Ren said indifferently. "I am just an obscure wanderer in the Hong Huang and have no desire for any ties with your cult."

"Ah, saying that makes you too distant, Fellow Daoist."

Li Changshou smiled, knowing he had to keep Wen Jing Dao Ren here and let her hear more to successfully persuade her.

With a determined thought, Li Changshou said leisurely, "Fellow Daoist, your ties to our South Sea Sea God Cult are quite deep, aren't they?"

Wen Jing Dao Ren became highly alert and stared at the kind-eyed elder. "What do you mean by that, Fellow Daoist? I'm a bit confused."

Seeing Wen Jing Dao Ren remain composed, Li Changshou ramped up his approach.

"Oh? You don't understand?"

Li Changshou smiled with narrowed eyes. "Shall I remind you a little? If we go back a bit, you instigated several incense god cults to smash a few of my god statues. Have you forgotten such a trivial matter?"

A hint of coldness appeared in Wen Jing Dao Ren's phoenix eyes as she stared at this incarnation. In that moment, she connected many dots but only said, "Are you just making wild accusations, Fellow Daoist? Do you think I'm purely benevolent?"

Purely benevolent...

What thick skin—truly hard to deal with.

Li Changshou restrained his smile and met Wen Jing Dao Ren's gaze, saying calmly:

"Fellow Daoist, once things are laid out, they lose their charm. I haven't revealed your origins to those friends, wanting to keep them from killing you, and I specifically waited here to point you toward a clear path. If you're like this, I'll just invite those twenty-four pearls and the great scissors again and make them spit blood once more."

Wen Jing Dao Ren instantly stepped back half a step, her entire body radiating vigilance. "Who exactly are you, sir?"

Li Changshou smiled slightly, everything unspoken.

"Fellow Daoist, let's talk somewhere more private."

Wen Jing Dao Ren furrowed her brows but slowly nodded and scoffed, "I'd like to see what tricks you're up to!"

She made a gesture of invitation, and Li Changshou flicked his duster before flying toward the coast on a cloud. As Li Changshou's paper incarnation, disguised as the elderly immortal, flew ahead, he muttered:

"Lately, there have been more big black mosquitoes around the South Sea. Fellow Daoist, why not set up a barrier to hide our movements? You're so purely benevolent and beautiful—if a mosquito bites you, that would be unfortunate."

Big black...

Wen Jing Dao Ren's expression finally changed. Her phoenix eyes glared at the back of this Heavenly Immortal elder, and chilling light gathered at her fingertips. But she quickly realized that today, she was completely in this person's grasp. This was just his incarnation, and Zhao Gongming and Qiong Xiao could appear at any time... She was utterly at their mercy.