A Bit Too Confident

Upon hearing the words of the Pearl-Bearing Dragon Girl, Su Qing couldn't help but be momentarily stunned.

Found him so quickly?

Su Qing gave her a surprised look, then nodded slightly.

She didn't actually doubt the Pearl-Bearing Dragon Girl's ability. Although the girl's individual strength wasn't exceptionally high, she was, after all, nobility of the sea and a disciple of Guanyin Bodhisattva. Having such a capability was hardly strange.

"Then I'll have to trouble you!" Su Qing said.

The Pearl-Bearing Dragon Girl smiled faintly and then stepped forward to lead the way.

The speed of Su Qing and her companions went without saying. In a short while, they spotted the underwater palace within the Heaven-Reaching River.

Outside this underwater palace, several shrimp soldiers and crab generals were drilling. Seeing this, Su Qing flickered and appeared directly in front of the demons.

Seeing someone approach, the small demons immediately struck a pose and shouted, "Halt! Who goes there?! Stop right there!"

The demons put on a fierce and malevolent look, leveling their long spears in front of Su Qing and the others.

Jingyue and the Dragon Girl made no move, as they were currently following Su Qing's lead.

Seeing the situation, Su Qing formed a hand seal. As soon as the seal was made, the demons were suddenly unable to move a muscle.

The small demons were struck with terror. They hurriedly asked, "Just who are you?! Do you know that this is the underwater palace of the Great King of Inspiration? We are the Great King's subordinates. If you kill us, the Great King will certainly not let you off!"

Though the small demons were breaking out in a cold sweat, being right at their king's doorstep gave them a bit of backbone.

Su Qing heard this and said, "It doesn't matter who we are. We've come here to find that king of yours. If you want to live, go and pass a message for me. Tell your king that we wish to see him!"

After Su Qing finished speaking, she released the small demons. Bullying a group of minor spirits like this wasn't particularly interesting.

Hearing Su Qing's words, the small demons scrambled and fled into the underwater palace to seek their king.

Seeing this, Jingyue tilted her head and asked, "Sister, why... not just attack our way in? This palace gate isn't very sturdy; even I should be able to smash it."

Su Qing shook her head and replied, "We didn't come here specifically to fight... so there's naturally no need for that."

Jingyue didn't quite understand, but since her sister had said so, she clearly had her own reasons. There was no need for her to say anything more.

The Pearl-Bearing Dragon Girl was a woman of few words and remained silent as well.

Inside the underwater palace, the Great King of Inspiration learned from the small demons that someone had come looking for him. Although he found it a bit strange, after a moment of thought, he said to the demons, "Bring me my armor and weapons!"

The Great King of Inspiration couldn't gauge the visitors' intentions, so he naturally had to treat them as enemies. Bringing his armor and weapons was a precaution.

Before long, a group of small demons brought out his regalia and his Nine-Petal Red Copper Hammers. The Great King of Inspiration donned his armor, took up his hammers, and marched out the door.

Outside, the Great King of Inspiration saw Su Qing and the others and demanded, "Who are you? State your names! Why have you come to disturb my palace?!"

The Great King naturally did not recognize the Pearl-Bearing Dragon Girl. She had changed her appearance, making her difficult for ordinary people to recognize, and even he could not see through it.

"Me? You can just call me Su Qing," Su Qing said. "As for why I'm here, I naturally have something for you to do!"

Su Qing didn't want to waste words, so she directly took out the willow branch that Guanyin Bodhisattva had given her, hoping to save some trouble. She wanted to avoid unnecessary talk.

Hearing the name Su Qing, the Great King of Inspiration naturally didn't recognize it... Su Qing rarely visited the South Sea Purple Bamboo Grove, and the Great King had previously been honestly cultivating in the pond of that grove. Thus, he had no knowledge of the name Su Qing.

However, upon seeing the willow branch in Su Qing's hand, he couldn't help but freeze. His expression shifted, and his gaze turned fierce.

Then he said coldly, "So that old woman sent you! She wants to take me back? Hmph, now that I've escaped that pond, how could I be willing to return! Ha! Take this hammer!"

Su Qing was also stunned for a moment, then she flickered to dodge the hammer strike. She was speechless... she had thought this matter could be resolved simply! She hadn't expected that Guanyin's token would be completely useless. Not only was it useless, but it had actually become the source of his rage.

"It seems you've enjoyed your stay in this Heaven-Reaching River for several decades so much that you've forgotten your place!" Su Qing's gaze darkened.

She knew she couldn't kill the goldfish. However, not being able to kill him didn't mean she couldn't teach him a lesson...

"Enough talk! If you don't want to die, get out of my Heaven-Reaching River!" the monster snarled.

Clearly, the monster also knew that the person before him likely couldn't be killed. If he killed a disciple of Guanyin, Guanyin would personally come to collect him, and he wouldn't even have a chance to flee.

Hearing the Great King's words, the Pearl-Bearing Dragon Girl was the first to frown, subconsciously beginning to form a hand seal to strike. However, Su Qing shook her head slightly and said, "Let me handle it! This monster isn't strong."

Watching the exchange between Su Qing and the Pearl-Bearing Dragon Girl, the monster became even more infuriated. He swung his red copper hammers and lunged at Su Qing.

However, the monster had clearly underestimated the strength of the person he was facing! He didn't realize that among the three of them, her strength wouldn't even rank second.

As he lunged, Su Qing formed a hand seal. The monster was immediately swept away by a surge of water.

The monster was shocked. As an aquatic demon, how could he be swept away by a wave? He immediately realized that the person before him was definitely stronger than him. Even in underwater combat, she wasn't necessarily weaker.

The Great King didn't dare hold back and had to give his all, while simultaneously thinking of a way to escape! He valued his life and wouldn't truly throw it away. He had only escaped to the mortal world to be a king for a few years; how could he let himself be killed like this?

Seeing the Great King lunge again, Su Qing condensed a Talisman Sword in her hand to face him. The Great King did indeed have some skill in the water... but unfortunately, in terms of absolute power and realm, he was far behind. Within just a few moves, the Great King was completely suppressed.

Noticing this, the Great King didn't dare delay further and hurriedly tried to flee.

Seeing him try to escape, Su Qing formed a hand seal and shouted softly, "Freeze!"

An immobilization spell was cast. The Great King was suddenly unable to move and fell straight to the riverbed.

Seeing this scene, Jingyue and the Pearl-Bearing Dragon Girl, who were watching from the side, were both slightly surprised. Although both had complete confidence in Su Qing's strength, seeing her defeat the Great King of Inspiration so easily was still quite impactful.

Especially Jingyue... although she had been by Su Qing's side for a long time, she had never seen Su Qing truly fight. Seeing it now, she was quite startled.

The Pearl-Bearing Dragon Girl suddenly remembered something and said quickly, "Sovereign, please do not kill that goldfish!"

Su Qing held the seal, turned to glance at the Dragon Girl, and smiled as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Don't worry, I won't kill him! I just want to have a talk with him. Though, it's quite boring. I was hoping to play a bit longer, but I didn't expect this goldfish to be so fragile."

Hearing this, the Dragon Girl breathed a slight sigh of relief. Although she didn't like this goldfish or what he had done, it was, after all, a task her master had entrusted to her, so she had to see it through.

Su Qing walked slowly to the Great King of Inspiration and said, "Well? Still want to fight? Now, can we sit down and have a proper talk?"

The Great King of Inspiration looked at Su Qing, his eyes unable to hide his fear. He truly regretted it; he had actually believed the level of power this woman had initially shown... he had forgotten that strength could be hidden.

He stared at Su Qing and let out a long sigh. "I lost. Do with me as you will! Take me back to that old woman or kill me, it's up to you."

The Great King of Inspiration actually knew that this woman likely wouldn't kill him or send him back... especially after hearing what the woman beside her had said. He was even more certain now. So, besides cooperating, what other choice did he have?

Seeing him speak this way, Su Qing nodded with satisfaction. "Oh? Since we can communicate, things are much easier. I'll release the immobilization spell, but don't try to sneak attack me! I'm easily frightened, you know."

Hearing Su Qing's words, the Great King of Inspiration's mouth twitched. Easily frightened? More like looking for an excuse to kill him!

He said, "Rest assured, Immortal... I already know I am no match for you. How would I dare do something so foolish?"

Su Qing smiled, then made a gesture to release the immobilization spell on him. After being released, the Great King of Inspiration let out a breath of turbid air and said, "In that case, Immortals, please follow me into the palace!"

Su Qing nodded with a smile, then turned to look at Jingyue. "I thought he would be much harder to talk to!"

Jingyue curled her lip. "Sister Qing, sometimes you're really quite mischievous."

"Don't talk nonsense, I defeated my opponent with pure strength," Su Qing said with a smile.

Jingyue said nothing more, simply following Su Qing into the underwater palace.

Entering the palace, the small demons didn't dare approach... they had all seen their king defeated. They knew that the group of people entering were not to be provoked.

In the main hall, the Great King of Inspiration served tea to everyone and asked respectfully, "Immortal... what exactly is it that you need from me? Please give me a clear instruction."

Su Qing didn't beat around the bush and directly stated her purpose for coming. Upon learning what Su Qing actually wanted him to do, the Great King of Inspiration was stunned. He had thought it would be something extraordinary, but he hadn't expected it to be such a simple matter.

At this moment, he was filled with regret. Why had he fought her? If he had just played along from the start, wouldn't that have been better? He wouldn't have been beaten, and he wouldn't have lost face. What could have been bad about that?

The Great King of Inspiration was extremely regretful, but regret was useless now. The beating had been taken, and face had been lost. He still had to agree to these things.

"This is not difficult. I will certainly handle it perfectly for the Immortal," the Great King of Inspiration said.

Su Qing nodded slightly and said, "By the way, besides that, I need you to do me a favor and ferry us across the river."

"Eh?" The Great King was stunned. He didn't understand; with Su Qing's strength, wouldn't crossing the river be simple?

Su Qing paused and said, "You don't need to know the reason. Just do as I say."

Su Qing was too lazy to explain to the Great King; it saved trouble. Hearing this, the Great King didn't dare ask further. There was nothing he could do; who told her she was the one who could step on his head?

"I understand," the Great King said.

Su Qing nodded. "Alright, there's nothing else for now. We'll head back first. Prepare yourself and come over later to ferry us across."

The Great King of Inspiration naturally didn't dare say anything else and hurriedly nodded in agreement.

Saying goodbye to the Great King, Su Qing returned to the temple to find Chen Chaoyan. Although there had been a few hiccups with the Great King of Inspiration, resolving it hadn't been too much trouble, and her goal was successfully achieved.

Before reaching Chen Chaoyan, Su Qing stopped halfway. She said to the Pearl-Bearing Dragon Girl, "Thank you for making this trip. I won't need to trouble you further, so you can head back now. Oh, and take this willow branch back to Senior Guanyin."

Hearing Su Qing's words, the Pearl-Bearing Dragon Girl nodded and bowed. "It was no trouble at all. This entire trip was planned by you, Sovereign, and it was you who acted. I merely followed you along. It wasn't hard!"

"Regardless, thank you anyway," Su Qing said with a smile, handing the willow branch to the Dragon Girl.

The Dragon Girl smiled, took the branch, and said, "Then I shall take my leave."

Su Qing nodded and bid her farewell. After saying goodbye, the Dragon Girl mounted an auspicious cloud and left the territory of the Heaven-Reaching River.

After parting with the Dragon Girl, Jingyue and Su Qing returned to the temple. By then, Chen Chaoyan and Su Yudie had been waiting in the temple for a long time. Seeing Su Qing return, Chen Chaoyan excitedly ran up and hugged her. "Godmother, you were gone for so long! I thought something had happened to you!"

Su Qing laughed. "What could happen to me? Everything went quite smoothly."

"As long as it was smooth," Chen Chaoyan said with a sigh of relief. "By the way, where is your friend, Godmother?"

"She went back after helping us settle things," Su Qing explained. "She's quite busy normally, so she didn't stay long."

Chen Chaoyan didn't doubt her and nodded. "I see... I didn't even get to say goodbye or thank her, even though she helped so much."

Su Qing rubbed the girl's head. "It's fine, she wouldn't mind such things... and I've already thanked her. By the way, someone will come to ferry us across the river in a bit. You should pack up!"