After spending too long in the Celestial Realm, Chu Yinggui was kicked down to the mortal world to undergo a trial and become an immortal.
To save herself the trouble, she split herself into three incarnations and sent all three to undergo trials at once.
A hundred years later--
The seventh elder of the Sword Sect was stabbed through the heart by her own direct disciple.
The head of the Shen family was poisoned by the nephew she had raised herself.
The master of the Ten Thousandfold Palace had her heart cut out by her beloved young disciple, who used it to save the person he loved.
They killed their masters to prove their Dao and ascended to immortality.
That year, the mortal world was in an uproar. Before long, many began copying them, and humanity fell into decline.
Another hundred years passed before the three souls reunited. The lower world was in chaos, and spiritual energy was scarce.
Chu Yinggui walked slowly into the chaotic Demon Realm and picked up a half-demon wolf cub with barely a breath left.
Having learned from her previous mistakes, Chu Yinggui had developed a shadow around taking disciples.
She said, "I saved you. One day, you'll have to repay me with yourself."
If taking a disciple wouldn't work, she'd take a man instead.
The half-demon cub was a nightmare to raise, and had a terrible temper. After raising him for several years, Chu Yinggui had long forgotten what she had said.
That was, until the cub grew into a tall man, and became a terrifying presence in the Demon Realm.
He said to her, awkward and inexperienced, "A Gui, I'm all grown up."
Chu Yinggui: "..."
What a mess.
--
The three immortals who ascended in the same year developed inner demons, and searched the whole world for their master's scattered soul.
They found nothing.
On the verge of going mad, they saw someone in the Demon Realm.
They had once been utterly certain that they were Chu Yinggui's only disciples, until all three called the same person Master.
They weren't the only ones.
Later, the three immortals knelt on cold bluestone bricks, begging Chu Yinggui to guide them through another trial.
Before Chu Yinggui, a man dressed in black curled his lip. "You have terrible taste in disciples."
She sighed.
Her taste in partners wasn't much better, either.
Theme: The Great Dao is simple