Don't Mess with that Turtle

In Snake Valley, silence fell in an instant.

Even Feng Ya Ya stood, her mouth agape, blinking her two big eyes huffing and puffing.

Green Snake was baffled, twisting her head to look around at everyone.

"How is this Little Turtle's talent? What path should it take for advancement?"

No one spoke, only staring at Su He in amazement.

Green Snake flicked her tail in irritation; humans were truly troublesome. Just say what it is, will you? I know Little Turtle has poor talent, but what about that can't be spoken aloud?

A newly spirit-awakened snake demon could not understand the complex emotions of humans.

"I've heard that Qingyuan Gate has a Beast Valley sect. If I... ask for fewer resources, might it be possible to take it into Beast Valley?" Green Snake struggled internally, enduring the pain in her heart as she made the decision.

Feng Ya Ya cried out in surprise and leaped up, hanging entirely on Su He's turtle head: "Big Turtle, Big Turtle! I just knew it; you are the most talented beast I've ever seen!"

Gu Lin also came back to his senses, his face full of joy. He had not expected that when coming to meet Brother Green Snake today, he would encounter an even bigger surprise.

"?"

Green Snake curled into a question mark; she felt that the atmosphere was a bit off.

"Aunt Lin, does Big Turtle also need to find a master for training?" Finding a master is so annoying; once you have a master, there's always someone telling you what to do every day. Wrong posture, you get spanked; Tao Scripture not memorized, you get spanked; homework not done well, you get spanked…

But Big Turtle is a turtle, how do you spank a turtle? Hang it up?

Imagining the scene of such a big turtle being hung up and struggling, Feng Ya Ya started laughing heartily.

Gu Lin smiled and shook his head; the little girl must be up to some mischief again: "Since the founding of Qingyuan Gate, only two people have made the test token sound. One is the Ancestor Master, and the other is your mother. This turtle is the third to have such talent."

"Don't worry, no one can become a master to a beast, and besides, your mother has water attribute. You can ask her about how to nurture this Big Turtle."

"Okay!" Feng Ya Ya was delighted, sitting on Su He's head, swinging her little legs: "Big Turtle, I'll take you to meet my mother. I know where she is. We'll hide and give her a surprise."

Gu Lin affectionately stroked Feng Ya Ya's head: "Go then, take good care of Big Turtle. Such talent, no telling it might become an Eclipsed Sun Beast!"

Being an Eclipsed Sun corresponds to cultivators stepping into the Stepping Sky Realm. Any place that harbors an Eclipsed Sun Beast is an absolute forbidden land.

Qingyuan Gate has been rising progressively over the past few decades and shows signs of becoming the top sect of the East Cloud Mountain Range. This is because three bodies of Eclipsed Sun Realm exotic beasts were discovered in a forbidden area underneath the sect's territory.

Qingyuan Gate drew out the spiritual power from the bodies, making the sect abundant with spiritual energy, and thus treasures and talents emerged frequently, making cultivation much more effective.

Green Snake's head turned frame by frame.

What did she hear?

One of the three with the best talent since the founding of Qingyuan Gate...

The best three...

The best...

Her feelings of heartache and sympathy became stuck in her throat, causing discomfort. There was a faint pain in her seven inches, where her heart lies.

When Gu Lin noticed Green Snake's stunned expression, he came back to his senses. He had been rude, so shocked by the turtle's talent that he had ignored Brother Green Snake.

Did Brother Green Snake just say something?

He quickly apologized to Green Snake: "Please forgive my rudeness, I was disrespectful."

As if she heard nothing, Green Snake stood still, motionless. It took her a while to come back to her senses before she turned to Gu Lin: "If I follow you back to the sect now, Gu friend, can I find a master to train and choose a cultivation technique?"

"Finding a master requires the willingness of both master and disciple. As for cultivation techniques, you can choose one right now."

A flash of green, and Green Snake was already coiled on the flying boat, her tail tip hitting the side of the boat: "Let's go!"

I'm the one you came for, aren't I? What else is there to wait for?

Gu Lin chuckled; dealing with newly transitioned demonic beasts usually took some effort. One might need to promise benefits or demonstrate power, but this Green Snake was refreshingly straightforward.

Gu Lin seemed to have figured out the reason, and without saying more, leapt onto the flying boat, looking towards Feng Yaya.

If Feng Yaya brought her along, the turtle would be a burden, and they would have to activate the second form of the flying boat.

Feng Yaya waved her hand at her. Patting Su He's head, she said, "Big Turtle! Let's go, we'll go find mom."

Su He didn't know why he was following Feng Yaya to leave, perhaps it was the call of the Daoist heart? Staying here he could only mingle with crocodiles all day, while Qingyuan Gate was a cultivation sect, full of countless possibilities.

Moreover, Qingyuan Gate was only a hundred miles away from Tinghai Lake, and with his current speed, coming downstream, it would only take half an hour to get there.

Tinghai Lake was shaped like a stomach, and Elephant Water was the esophagus and intestines connecting it.

Elephant Water was to the north of Tinghai Lake, and going downstream for about a hundred and eighty miles, one would reach the territory of Qingyuan Gate Beast Valley, the Seven Veins of Qingyuan: Beast Valley, Huayang Peak, Sword Playing Pavilion, Sword Washing Pool, Evergreen Peak, Heavenly Secret Pavilion, and the Sword Residence where the sect leader resided.

In fact, according to the rules of Qingyuan Gate, there was no such thing as main and branch veins, all seven veins were considered legitimate. It was just that the original seven master ancestors took on disciples with different emphases, gradually forming the seven styles of inheritance.

But up to this day, Qingyuan Gate didn't have a so-called main vein, and the Qingyuan Master could emerge from competition among the seven veins. However, from some generation onwards, the other six veins somehow could never compete with Sword Residence. The sect leaders all came from the Sword Residence vein, and gradually, it became known as the main vein.

Especially in this generation, the current sect leader, Feng Yi Ju along with his wife Su Huanian, had managed in just three hundred years to elevate Qingyuan Gate from a mid-tier sect in the East Cloud Mountain Range to one holding the reins of power.

Feng Yi Ju and Su Huanian became the existence revered by the disciples within the sect.

Su He was going to meet Su Huanian, the second person in Qingyuan Gate whose talent had touched the testing token.

Qingyuan Mountain soared into the clouds, piercing the Han, ravishing and delicate.

Below the mountain, a rock bore an inscription, neither a poem nor a couplet: "On Qingyuan Mountain lies Qingyuan Gate, within Qingyuan Gate cultivates the Immortal."

Su He arrived riding the waves, landed onshore, and ascended the mountain. He didn't go towards the sect's gate but was directed by Feng Yaya towards a pool of water amid the mountains.

Su Huanian had a water attribute and rarely resided on mountaintops, often choosing to live by the water, tranquil and elegant.

A formation enveloped the pool, making it appear as a thick fog from the outside. Anyone who tried to barge in without knowing the method to unravel the formation could, at best, get mired in confusion or, at worst, perish.

However, the fog automatically parted for Feng Yaya, allowing her to lead Su He inside.

The scenery within the formation was exquisite.

There was a mountain stream and a pool, with a Grass Residence by its side. Outside the residence, white clothes were casually scattered over the vines, dropped in haste by someone who had disrobed to enter the water, leaving the garments piled up carelessly.

"Shh! Big Turtle, be quiet!" Feng Yaya whispered on Su He's head: "Mom got injured, she's healing in the water, let's not disturb her."

After saying this, she seemed to remember something and anxiously added, "You mustn't tell anyone else, okay?"

Satisfied after seeing Su He nod, she said, "Let's carefully enter the water and see how mom is doing."

Su He slowly crawled into the pool. The water was ice cold, several degrees colder than Tinghai Lake, almost on the verge of freezing.

In the middle of the pool, a stunning woman in minimal clothing floated at the bottom. The water outlined her graceful figure with well-defined curves. As the water rippled, her clothes wafted like gauze amidst the mist. Distant mountains peered through the thin fog, occasionally fully revealed when the wind swept the fog away, then veiled again as the fog returned.

Su He breathed frantically, agitating the water, making the fog waft even more eagerly, with the mountain peaks flickering in and out of sight.

Taking a deep breath, Su He set his ultimate goal: to transform from a demon to a human!

Su He made a Dao oath.

In this lifetime, I vow to transform from a demon into a human! No one can stop me!

This was a world of cultivation, where there were women generals who fought in the Nine Heavens and proudly looked down upon heroes; seductive and bold vixen demons; and fairy maidens as cold as crystal-clear frost and unblemished.

How could I spend my life as just a turtle?

Transform from a demon into a human!

Su He's breathing intensified, and the disturbance alerted the fairy.

Su Huanian suddenly opened her eyes, her Immortal Sword about to strike but stopped just in front of Feng Yaya. Seeing her daughter, a smile spread across her cool face.

That smile had mana, and Su He felt sudden darkness before his eyes, and when the light returned, the fairy had already dressed and was floating lightly onto his back.