Don't Mess with that Turtle

Su Huanian watched her daughter tease the turtle, and her complexion gradually turned pale.

She was very supportive of her daughter befriending a turtle. Even if it wasn't a demon, a turtle's lifespan was long enough.

Ya Ya was too special, born during a Heavenly Tribulation amidst lightning strikes, which induced an anomaly as the tribulation entered her body, slowing her developmental rate to more than ten times slower than a normal person's.

A lifetime had passed, yet she still appeared as a three or four-year-old child.

Only a demon species could match her growth rate and truly be her companion. Even if this turtle couldn't transform into a demon, as a pet, it could keep her company for a long time.

But, Turtle Dad...

Su Huanian formed her fingers into the shape of a blade and silently watched Su He.

Perhaps because she was born from a Heavenly Tribulation, naturally close to the heavens and earth, Feng Yaya exhibited mystical qualities and often, without intending to, would make prophetic utterances.

The casual words she uttered all became reality.

She said she didn't like Brother Bone, that Brother Bone should be struck by lightning, and he really was killed by a lightning strike. She said Elder An looked kind and could make a good mother, and the singly eight-hundred-year-old Elder An really gave birth at the age of eight hundred. She envied the ancient relics of Xuanqing Temple and wished her own sect had one; only three months later, Qingyuan Gate discovered ancient relics right beneath their own feet...

Similar incidents were as numerous as the hairs on an ox.

Now she said she wanted to find a turtle to be her daddy...

Su Fairy felt her breath hitch, a heavy weight pressing on her chest as if two large stones had landed there. Mana instinctively surged into her finger blade, and her gaze towards Su He grew colder and colder.

All of a sudden, filled with trepidation, Su He sensed an immense crisis descending upon him, the kind with a slim chance of survival, as if he was about to face a skirmish more terrifying than wolves or crocodiles.

He instinctively retracted into his shell, glancing around in search of the source of the crisis.

Feng Yaya tapped on his shell, "Hey hey, Big Turtle, are you home? What's wrong with you? Did something scare you? With such a small courage, how will you save me in the future? If I ever get eaten, you have to come save me!"

Su He: "???"

Is this the thought process of a child? Such a wild imagination, why would you get eaten?

The sword light that Su Huanian's fingers were playing with paused for a moment and then retracted.

That's just ridiculous, she chuckled to herself. Upon hearing Ya Ya mentioning a turtle as a daddy, she instinctively wanted to kill this turtle. But how could it be this turtle?

A turtle that could force her hand would have to have traversed a Heavenly Tribulation with overwhelming mana, or even be a Greater Power past the fifth step of the Stepping Sky Realm; otherwise, what could possibly suppress her?

Suppressing the shock in her heart, Su Huanian focused on operating the Formation.

What lies ahead is still unknown; just focus on cultivating. If your Boundary Status is sufficient, who would dare harbor sordid thoughts?

The hostility came quickly and left just as swiftly, causing Su He to fear for his life, thinking he was doomed; yet, that hostility disappeared as mysteriously as it had appeared.

The mountain breeze gently lifted, the summer's lingering sunlight shone on the mountain peak, and the pool water scattered the seven-coloured brilliance under the setting sun.

Feng Yaya tapped on Su He's shell, outlining the wonderful life that awaited him after he pledged allegiance to her.

"I'll tell you, Grandpa Ge is a nice old man, but he's too stingy. He invented a Breathing Technique for his turtle, and he wouldn't give it to me when I asked. Now that he's gone out on business, you come to find me and I'll take you to steal that Breathing Technique!"

Su He's eyes lit up.

"There's also Jing'an Hall's nourishing porridge, Qiyun Peak's ginseng fruit, Sword Valley's Water Essence Stone... lots of things that are useful to turtles, we will steal them all. If we can't steal them, we'll wear masks and rob them! Don't worry, they can't beat me, and there's nothing to fear if we're caught, my mother is the Sect Leader's wife, they wouldn't dare to punish me."

As Su He looked at Feng Yaya, his gaze had completely changed, with one turtle paw placed seriously on the child's shoulder, patting it.

Good, this friend is settled.

In just a few words, the child and the turtle established a profound friendship, and the two made thorough and friendly exchanges and plans for their future acts of thievery.

Until the night fell, it was time for Feng Yaya and Su Huanian to leave.

They did not travel by sword, but hand in hand they walked down the mountain, the little milk baby occasionally looking back and waving.

Su He nodded from the corner of the pavilion.

As he watched the two become distant figures, Su He suddenly realized something.

That's not right!

This hundred-day battle of beasts for the chance to obtain the Demonic Fruit, this Fairy didn't want me to miss out, but... damn it, I'm the chance being contested!

If I don't follow them, do I just stay here and wait to be torn open and have the undigested Demonic Fruit stolen by a horde of beasts?

Especially since the fruit he ate was the upgraded Red Fruit, which gave off a stronger aura, living as a turtle high up on the mountain crags—oh, like a lighthouse!

Wait for me, brothers!

Su He wanted to shout, but turtles are mute, lacking vocal cords and unable to make sounds, except when they are in heat.

He almost leaped from the corner pavilion, scurrying after Feng Yaya and Su Huanian at breakneck speed. Feng Yaya glared with her big eyes, while Su Huanian's robes fluttered in the wind.

Feng Yaya's eyes twinkled with surprise, "Big black turtle, can't you bear to part with me?"

Su Nianhua cracked a smile. How many turtles as wise and sentimental as this one could there be? Elder Ge had encountered one, and now Yaya had too. Had the entire turtle population around Qingyuan Mountain become enlightened?

This turtle probably wanted to come down the mountain as well, since there was only a small pond up there, with no food to speak of...

Then they saw the black turtle scramble towards them, biting onto the hem of the girl's dress and refusing to let go.

Su Huanian stood dumbfounded, while Feng Yaya shrieked, hopping and skipping around. She hugged Su He, her big eyes looking endearingly at her mother.

Su Fairy shook her head, "The Ancestor Master set a rule that during the Demonic Fruit contest, collecting beast pets is forbidden."

The fight for the Demonic Fruits was both an opportunity and a selection process, to choose the most suitable animal species for demonification—nature's way of selection and competition.

Not allowing the collection of beast pets during this time also meant forbidding the sect's disciples from participating in the demons' scramble for the Demonic Fruits. No one in Qingyuan Gate dared disobey the Ancestor Master's teachings, except for someone as unconstrained by rules as Elder Ge.

The young girl's face immediately fell into disappointment, puffing out her cheeks, "Then, all right..."

Reluctantly, she set Su He down.

Su He: ??

Gave up?

Su He was shocked. Wait, just like that, you're not going to protest? He stared dumbfounded at Su Hua. Fairy, I have something to say! Cast a spell on me, you know, the kind where you just tap the neck and the animal can speak.

Just last year, he had seen the slovenly old Daoist tap a Fairy Crane, and then it started speaking human language.

Su Fairy failed to understand his gaze but felt that this turtle was indeed very spiritual. Such spirituality could not be achieved simply by consuming Demonic Fruit and unlocking latent intelligence; it must be innate.

It was no wonder. The turtle species had their own extraordinary gifts. Indeed, the Divine God Turtle was one of the Four Spirits, on par with the Dragon and Phoenix.

She pondered for a moment, then with a slender jade finger, she lightly touched Su He's forehead, leaving behind a mark. This mark was not visible, but should Su He be captured with the intent to impose another's mark for subjugation, it would serve as a warning to others that this turtle had a master.

Feng Yaya squatted down, somewhat sheepishly, and patted Su He's shell. Reluctantly pulled up by Su Fairy, with a light step, the Fairy mounted her sword and ascended.

The Immortal Sword carried them both smoothly into the clouds; amidst the ethereal mists, their robes fluttered as though real fairies had descended to the mortal realm.

Not taking me with you...

Su He paused for a moment, glancing down the mountain. The wolf and crocodile packs had dissipated, leaving behind seven or eight carcasses that no one dared approach.

And there was half a snake, with a die settled on its body:

Six points!

This, too, was food he had snatched from the Grey Falcon. The die had been cast, but he had gotten into a fight with the wolves and hadn't reaped the rewards.

Carefully, he crawled over and grabbed the snake's tail. The die vanished, but the snake didn't increase in size. This was the quality improvement kind.

With the snake tail in his mouth, Su He climbed back up the mountain, rushing to the pond at the peak as fast as he could, slithering with the tail into the water, his heart thumping wildly.

Six points of quality improvement. This was a first in history.

The snake was cut from the seven-inch spot, with both the gallbladder and heart on this side—the length approximating one and a half meters, as thick as a walnut. It didn't taste fragrant when he ate it, but had a faint spiciness to it.

Turtles, unlike humans, have a different sense of taste. The snake's stench tasted in Su He's mouth like an under-seasoned spicy snack.

Tearing and swallowing.

The snake meat was tough, but there was no time to waste chewing properly. Meat of six-point quality: if not eaten, it caused unease.

Gulping it down as fast as he could, Su He let out a long, satisfied burp.

The sky darkened, and the rustling sounds of insects began, with distant howls of wolves and beasts. Perched atop the mountain, he seemed a step closer to the heavens, with a myriad of stars twinkling competitively.

Su He submerged at the pond's bottom, and with the water echoed the entire sky, along with those twinkling stars, he closed his eyes and fell asleep.