Of course...
The old white deer wasn't trying to speak ill of the white-faced fox. He simply intended to teach her a few more things. After all, she was about to follow Su Qing up the mountain.
As for himself...
He didn't particularly care. To him, staying in the Changbai Mountains was already a stroke of good fortune, especially after receiving Su Qing's appointment.
Now, he no longer had to worry about his former master coming to reclaim him. If that master wanted to take him away, he would have to answer to Su Qing first.
He was now working under the command of Bi Ling Yuanjun, the Azure Spirit Sovereign!
Su Qing was unaware of the old white deer’s subsequent thoughts and didn't dwell on them. She returned to her courtyard on the mountain.
Upon arriving home, Su Qing noticed that the courtyard had been expanded out of thin air...
She wasn't surprised; she simply felt that Ao Ying and the others worked quite fast. But then again, they were immortals. Using magic to renovate a house was a simple matter.
Su Qing thought for a moment and walked into the expanded section to take a look.
It was empty, devoid of any furniture.
"Hmm, looks like they've probably gone out to buy furniture." Su Qing hadn't seen Ao Yiyi or Ao Ying when she returned, and seeing the state of the room, she could guess what they were up to.
This was actually quite good; at the very least, it seemed they were getting along harmoniously.
"Come to think of it, Ao Ying and Ao Yiyi are of the same clan. It's not strange for them to be close," Su Qing thought, shaking her head slightly.
Since Ao Ying and the others were handling the furniture, Su Qing didn't need to worry about it. She decided to lie down in the courtyard and bask in the sun.
The sunlight was perfect at this moment; it would be a waste not to enjoy it.
As for the remaining matters...
There was no need to rush. Her work in the town at the foot of the mountain had reached a temporary conclusion. The rest would require careful planning, and since she wasn't in the mood for it now, she couldn't be bothered to think about it.
Other minor issues were even less urgent.
It seemed like there was a lot to do in the Changbai Mountains, but in reality, there weren't many things that truly required Su Qing’s personal attention. Most of the work had been delegated. The only thing she occasionally had to do herself was fulfill the wishes of all living beings.
Su Qing leaned back in her lounge chair, using her arm to shield her eyes from the slightly piercing sunlight.
She rested there, her mind relaxing... and before she knew it, she had fallen asleep.
She even... had a dream.
No, it wasn't exactly a dream. Rather than a dream, it was more like entering her own mental world.
She was certain of this because she found herself once again beneath the Bodhi Tree.
The Bodhi Tree in the mortal world had withered and died, but the Bodhi Tree within her consciousness, planted some time ago, had unknowingly grown into a towering giant.
Su Qing looked up at the tree, her mind becoming increasingly clear, yet she felt a touch of curiosity. How did she end up here just by taking a nap? This had never happened before.
However, Su Qing didn't feel any panic. This was her mental world, after all. In a sense, she was the master of this space.
As for why she had appeared here...
The reason wasn't hard to guess. With a moment's thought, she surmised her sudden appearance was likely because the Bodhi Tree had summoned her.
Once she realized this, Su Qing began to observe her surroundings with curiosity.
"I haven't entered this place directly in many years. The mental world within my Niwan Palace has changed quite a bit... I wonder how large this place has become."
Su Qing turned to look at the scenery. It was a vast, dense forest. Standing there, her vision was obscured by trees and leaves, preventing her from seeing very far. But with a slight ripple of her mental energy, she could feel it.
The current forest was unimaginably immense.
"Quite... interesting."
As she pondered, Su Qing’s vision blurred, and a woman in a goose-yellow palace gown appeared before her.
The woman was beautiful, with a peach-blossom-shaped huadian on her forehead. Dressed in warm tones of goose-yellow, she looked exceptionally gentle. She carried a tea tray with a teapot and tea set.
Su Qing looked at the woman, thought for a moment, and asked, "Are you... the consciousness of the Bodhi Tree? I didn't expect you to take on a human form."
The woman nodded slightly and said, "Mhm... though I am only one of them."
"Oh? The new one or the old one?" Su Qing knew that the Bodhi Tree in her mind had two consciousnesses, like Twin Spirits. However, the two consciousnesses had a chronological order of emergence, so she didn't know if the one before her was the one she had known in the past or the one born later.
"I don't know, I've forgotten. Master, you can think of me however you like." The woman gave a shallow, gentle smile, seemingly indifferent to the distinction. She placed the tea set on a stone table that had appeared out of nowhere and said, "Please, have a seat."
Su Qing wasn't surprised by any of this. This was a mental space; it wasn't strange for anything to manifest suddenly. She looked at the woman, nodded after a moment, and sat opposite her.
"What about the other you? Doesn't she plan to come out and see me?" After sitting down, Su Qing looked at the three teacups and said calmly, "Since you've prepared three cups, I assume she intends to show herself?"
"She wanted to, but then she gave up."
"Why?"
"She's shy."
"...That's a rather silly excuse."
"I think so too," the woman in the goose-yellow gown agreed with a smile. She poured tea into the cups and said, "I don't know much about tea. This was brewed from the tender leaves of the Bodhi Tree. I don't know if Master will like it."
Su Qing chuckled and shook her head. "I don't know much about it either. If it were wine, I might be able to offer a critique."
Saying this, she took a small sip. The tea's flavor was very light, but it wasn't like plain water; instead, it had a mysterious, delicate fragrance. To say it was delicious? Not exactly. But it wasn't unpleasant either.
"It's not bad," Su Qing gave an honest evaluation.
"As long as Master doesn't dislike it," the woman smiled softly. "I thought Master might find it disagreeable."
"You worry too much; I'm not that picky." Su Qing shook her head, holding the teacup. "But I am curious—why do you call me 'Master'?"
Hearing this, the woman shook her head and smiled.
"Because Master is Master. If Master hadn't planted the Bodhi Seed, I wouldn't exist today, so you are naturally my master. Furthermore, this world was formed by Master's Niwan Palace, so everything within it belongs to Master, including us. That is why I took the liberty of calling you Master. However, if Master dislikes it, I can change it to a title Master prefers."
As she spoke, her gaze was exceptionally sincere. Clearly, these weren't empty words; she truly believed them.
As Su Qing thought this over, the woman added, "However, she doesn't seem to like calling you Master."
"She? The other you?"
"Mhm~ To be precise, we are the same being. We share the same memories, just different personalities and two bodies."
"The same..." Su Qing spread her hands helplessly. The woman before her seemed very persistent on this point. But since she was so insistent, Su Qing didn't feel the need to argue. It wasn't as if she had to win every debate.
"Fine. Tell me... how does she address me?"
The woman in the goose-yellow gown smiled brightly at Su Qing’s question. "Her? She likes to call you 'Big Green Snake.' However, I still think she should call you Master, since you are the sovereign of this world."
As she spoke, she refilled Su Qing’s half-empty cup.
Su Qing watched her, her lip twitching slightly, before she said, "Looking at it this way, you're the new one, aren't you?"
"We are one and the same." The woman remained unruffled, repeating the same sentiment.
Su Qing rolled her eyes, not particularly caring. After chatting for a while, she felt it was time to get down to business.
She asked, "Alright, enough small talk. I'm curious—why did you suddenly call me here?"
"It was indeed our fault for summoning Master so abruptly," the woman said. "However, we truly have some urgent matters to discuss with Master."
Su Qing nodded. She knew they wouldn't have called her for no reason.
"That's why I'm asking—what is it?"
"Master surely knows about the Great Tribulation of Heaven and Earth by now?"
"I've known for a long time." Su Qing nodded. "If you just wanted to tell me that this event is coming soon, you can save your breath; I already know. But I suspect you didn't seek me out for something so simple. So, what is the specific matter?"
The woman in the goose-yellow gown stared at Su Qing, a hint of surprise in her eyes, which soon turned back into a gentle smile. She said:
"Since Master knows about the Great Tribulation, you must also realize that for those on the path of cultivation, it is a calamity that is almost certainly fatal. Even for mortals, it is a monumental disaster."
"Naturally. And?" Su Qing had a faint inkling of what the other was about to say.
The woman set down her teacup, toyed with a few strands of hair falling by her temple, and said, "Since Master knows this, has Master considered how to survive this Great Tribulation?"
Su Qing fell silent for a moment...
To be honest, although she had known about the tribulation for a long time and knew that both the Heavenly Court and the Buddhist Sect were preparing with all their might, if asked whether she had considered how to survive it...
She hadn't given it much thought. No, to be precise...
She had thought about it seriously, only to realize that with her current abilities, let alone surviving a tribulation that made even the Buddha and the Jade Emperor experience massive headaches, she couldn't even defeat Guanyin Bodhisattva!
As of now, she was still just a junior.
Therefore...
She mostly cooperated with the Heavenly Court and the Buddhist Sect to prepare the means for survival. Her plan was to follow their lead and try to weather the storm together.
If they could pass it, everyone would be safe. If they couldn't... then everyone would die together.
It was that simple.
She knew this mindset was quite 'defeatist.' But when even the Buddha and the Jade Emperor found this tribulation incredibly thorny and weren't entirely certain of success, what could she do with her meager strength?
That was why Su Qing was somewhat resigned. Or, to put it more elegantly, she was being open-minded and broad-hearted.
But if asked if she was truly content with this...
Truthfully, how could she be? She had practiced for so long and finally reached her current realm. To have it all come to naught because the world decided to undergo a massive upheaval was, to put it mildly, quite frustrating.
Su Qing looked at the woman in the goose-yellow gown. After a long silence, she finally told the other her thoughts in full.
The other was the consciousness of the Bodhi Tree; she was absolutely trustworthy. Even if this was the newborn consciousness, she was still reliable.
There was no particular reason. It was just pure trust—trust in her master, and trust in the previous consciousness of the Bodhi Tree.
Upon learning Su Qing’s thoughts, the Bodhi Tree consciousness couldn't help but laugh, her laughter making her entire frame tremble.
This made Su Qing slightly annoyed. She huffed and said, "What are you laughing at?"
"I'm laughing because Master is too silly. You've forgotten what your master said!"
"What my master said?" Su Qing was momentarily stunned, feeling a bit confused.
Her master had said so many things; how could she remember them all? Besides, so much time had passed—so much that she had forgotten quite a lot.
"Have you forgotten? Master's teacher once told Master... the Bodhi Tree is the key to a tribulation, a necessity for you to survive that calamity." The woman stopped laughing and looked at Su Qing seriously, pointing to the sky-blotting Bodhi Tree above them.
Su Qing’s brow twitched as she searched her memories for her master's words.
She searched for a long time, but she still couldn't recall him saying those exact words. Or rather, there was no such direct quote.
However, he had said similar things. But that tribulation had already passed.
As for which tribulation it was... naturally, it was her ascension tribulation. That Heavenly Immortal Tribulation had nearly cost her her life. If the Bodhi Tree hadn't stabilized her mind back then, she might not be here talking to this other consciousness now.
"Were there such words? I only remember something similar, but that tribulation is already over." Su Qing frowned slightly, looking at the woman's face.
"No~ That sentence was never referring to the Heavenly Immortal Tribulation."
The woman in the goose-yellow gown cupped her face in her hands, her elbows on the stone table, looking at Su Qing with a smile. She tilted her head as she spoke:
"You simply misunderstood or misremembered! Master should understand her own teacher, right? He was never one to be direct or speak his mind plainly. He always liked to talk in circles or deliberately withhold information, letting you figure it out yourself."
"Though I also think it's wrong for Master's teacher to act that way, it seems they all like to do it... It's annoying, isn't it?"
"However, Master's teacher is very good to Master, because he placed me in Master's hands."
"So, Master... don't blame your teacher."
Su Qing looked at the woman, momentarily speechless. She hadn't expected the other to speak up for her master. But Su Qing had never actually blamed him.
Her master did have a strange temperament and hated speaking plainly, but he was beyond reproach when it came to her. He was truly good to her; she couldn't possibly blame him over such a small thing. She wasn't that thick-skinned. At most, she would complain about him always acting like a 'riddler.'
However, the woman’s words also made Su Qing realize something.
Did she mean that the true purpose of the Bodhi Tree was to help her survive the Great Tribulation of Heaven and Earth?
"You mean, you can help me survive the Great Tribulation?"
"Master is so clever. Exactly... that is what I mean." The woman clapped her hands with a smile. "Master's teacher sent 'us' to Master's side from the very beginning for this Great Tribulation."
"Is that really so?"
"Naturally..."
"But why couldn't he just say it clearly?" Su Qing gave a helpless smile. "Fine, that is indeed his nature. Perhaps he had some concerns at the time?"
"Who knows?" the woman continued to smile. "But now, I have more or less grown up, and I can be considered to have a bit of ability to protect Master through that Great Tribulation."
"You already have the ability to pass it?"
"It's not a complete certainty~ only a possibility."
"Not a complete certainty?"
"That is the Great Tribulation of Heaven and Earth, after all~ I don't have a hundred percent certainty yet~"
"Then..."
"But the future is another story."
"Oh? You can continue to grow?"
"Of course. After all, I was originally a treasure used by Master's teacher for 'Tuoshen' detachment." The woman thought for a moment and added, "Oh, detachment means surviving the Great Tribulation."
Hearing this...
Su Qing was stunned for a moment, then, as if thinking of something, she asked, "Master gave you to me—what about him?"
"I don't know... but Master needn't worry about her teacher. Master's teacher is very powerful~" the woman said thoughtfully. "Master should know just how powerful he is."
Su Qing listened and remained silent for a long time before finally nodding helplessly. She had to admit, her master was indeed formidable. Someone that powerful likely wouldn't prepare only one treasure for detachment. Besides, if he had the spare capacity to give her one, he surely had more than one for himself.
"It seems... I was worrying unnecessarily," Su Qing smiled helplessly, muttering to herself.
At the same time, she couldn't help but think: "In a few days, I should ask Taishang Laojun for a way to find Master... otherwise, there are things I can't even say to him."
Although her master had said many times that he wouldn't see her again, Su Qing knew he was mostly just talking. If she really went looking for him, she would likely find him. He was just a grumpy old man with a sharp tongue but a soft heart. Whether it was toward her, Wukong, or the other disciples in the courtyard, he was always like that... it was just that he was a bit better to her.
Once Su Qing understood this, her mind calmed down. She began to ponder the words of the Bodhi Tree consciousness. After a moment, she asked, "You said you can still grow and survive the Great Tribulation in the future. Does that mean once you've grown, you'll have a hundred percent certainty?"
"Master is so clever."
Seeing Su Qing steer the conversation back so abruptly, the woman wasn't surprised at all. Instead, she stood up with a chuckle and clapped again. She said, "Actually, it's still not a hundred percent certainty, but it will be much higher than it is now."
"Still not a hundred percent?"
"Well, not exactly. If it were only Master alone, then there would certainly be a ninety percent chance, or even absolute certainty."
"Only me?"
"That's right. But Master... can you leave the others behind? Leng Xiang, Ao Ying, Bai Suzhen, and all the rest." The woman walked slowly to Su Qing’s side and leaned her body against Su Qing’s back. Her ample chest pressed firmly against Su Qing, and along with that pressure came that ever-smiling, pretty face. She said, "Master, you can't let them go, can you? I've been in Master's mind all this time, so I know you very well. I know Master definitely won't leave them behind."
"..." Su Qing looked at the smiling face beside her own, falling into silence. She was right; she definitely couldn't abandon Ao Ying and the others. Although she knew the terror of the Great Tribulation, she was far from being able to simply discard them. Looking out only for herself... was indeed not her style.
As for how to get them through the Great Tribulation as well... Su Qing didn't actually have a plan for that.
But hearing the words of the Bodhi Tree consciousness just now, she roughly understood. Her Bodhi Tree could protect more than just herself; it could even protect those around her.
After a moment of silence, Su Qing turned her head to look at the girl beside her and said, "So, you really have a way to ensure the people around me survive this Great Tribulation too?"
Hearing Su Qing’s words, the woman in the goose-yellow gown immediately broke into a brilliant smile.
"As expected, my Master is very smart!"
"Master is right; I can indeed do that."
"However..."
"However?"
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