Guanyin, You're Playing Dirty With Me!

After seeing off Guanyin Bodhisattva, Su Qing stretched her back and went back to find Bai Yuhe.

Seeing Su Qing return, Bai Yuhe couldn't help but ask, "Who was that nun? Why did she come looking for you?"

She naturally didn't think it was another of Su Qing's lovers. After all, Su Qing wouldn't hide such things from her... and no lover would be bold enough to come looking for her at her own home.

Su Qing smiled and said, "It was Guanyin Bodhisattva."

"Huh?" Bai Yuhe was stunned for a moment and asked, "Truly Guanyin Bodhisattva?"

"Truly her!" Su Qing nodded. "She came to tell me there's a vegetarian banquet at Thunder Monastery and asked me to attend in her stead. She has some business lately and can't make it."

Bai Yuhe stared at Su Qing, seeing that she wasn't lying, and said, "So, you're going?"

"Yes! After all, it's an invitation from Guanyin Bodhisattva; how could I refuse? Besides, the Buddha and the others will be there! I have to show some respect." Su Qing spread her hands, speaking with feigned helplessness.

Half of this was the truth, though Su Qing didn't explain the real underlying reason.

At this, Bai Yuhe sighed. "Really... I wanted to spend a few more days with you and properly study the Daoist arts."

"You and I will have plenty of opportunities in the future; why be in such a hurry? Here, these are two serious Daoist manuals. Since you're so bored, take them and study for a bit."

"You're doing this on purpose, aren't you!" Bai Yuhe pouted. She didn't believe for a second that Su Qing hadn't understood her meaning.

Su Qing feigned ignorance. "Oh? Didn't you say you wanted to study? Then study hard!"

"Hmph." Bai Yuhe snorted coldly, too lazy to keep bickering with Su Qing over this. She simply asked, "So you plan to leave right now?"

"Right now!" Su Qing nodded. "I'll have to trouble you with the remaining matters."

"It's not really a trouble... just letting them stay at Donglin Temple for a few more days." Bai Yuhe nodded. "But it's quite unexpected... my Queen has such great connections that even Guanyin Bodhisattva asks you to attend a banquet for her."

Su Qing shook her head helplessly. "It's just because we've had many professional dealings, so we're quite familiar! Besides, I'm only attending in her place. The banquet didn't actually invite me."

"You aren't an orthodox member of the Buddhist sect, so they naturally wouldn't bother inviting you." Bai Yuhe rolled her eyes. "Fine, fine. If you're going, then go! I'll handle everything here for you. But when do you plan to return?"

"I'll return as soon as the banquet ends. Two or three days at the earliest, four or five at the latest," Su Qing said casually.

She didn't know exactly how many days she would stay at Spirit Mountain, but it wasn't a bad idea to give a longer estimate. If she returned early, it was good luck; if she returned late, it was because the banquet lasted a long time. Either way, it wasn't a problem.

"Mm, then go!" Bai Yuhe crossed her arms. "But after the banquet, you must come back. I have some important matters to discuss with you personally."

Su Qing nodded. She could guess what 'important matters' Bai Yuhe had in mind even with her eyes closed.

"Alright, I understand!" Su Qing stretched, then performed a hand seal. "I'm off then."

Bai Yuhe said nothing more, watching as Su Qing soared away from the palace on a cloud.

After leaving the palace, Su Qing traveled all the way to Great Thunder Monastery on Spirit Mountain in the West. When she arrived, the so-called banquet had not yet begun.

A Vajra was waiting and, upon seeing Su Qing, led her before the Buddha.

"Greetings, Buddha." Su Qing bowed and said, "I have come at the request of Guanyin Bodhisattva to attend the Great Thunder Monastery's banquet in her stead."

The Buddha chuckled. "I naturally know why you have come. However, it is truly unexpected that even after passing that stretch of the journey, you can still disrupt the arrangements for the pilgrimage."

Su Qing scratched her head, thinking the Buddha was about to call her to account!

But before she could speak, the Buddha continued, "Rest assured, I am not here to punish you. If anyone is dissatisfied with what you've done, it is only Guanyin, who has worked so hard to arrange these tribulations."

Su Qing's lip twitched. "I see... I thought you were going to punish me, Buddha!"

"Hahaha, there is no need to punish you over such a small matter." The Buddha laughed. "After all, there is no superior-subordinate relationship between us, only that of senior and junior. However, what you did this time wasn't actually bad."

"Actually, I didn't do anything... things just happened that way."

"Hahaha, regardless, your very presence influenced the outcome."

The Buddha shook his head with a smile and said, "While this isn't a bad thing, do not cause any more trouble for Guanyin later. Otherwise, with her temper, she might actually roll up her sleeves and have a go at you. I heard that for Tang Sanzang's previous tribulation, she vented her frustration with you on that monkey."

"She is still brooding over you spiriting away her beloved disciple!"

Su Qing felt her lip twitching so much it was almost cramping... she had been twitching far too much today.

She sighed softly. "That really wasn't my fault! The Dragon Girl wanted to come out and play with me. Isn't it because Guanyin Bodhisattva was too strict with her?"

The Buddha neither agreed nor disagreed, only saying with a smile, "Do you even believe those words yourself?"

Su Qing: "..."

I believe them! Of course I believe them!

Could I possibly be telling a lie?

Though she grumbled internally, she didn't say it aloud. She only looked at the Buddha with a speechless expression.

Then, she changed the subject. "By the way, Buddha, when does the banquet start? Or is there no banquet at all, and Guanyin Bodhisattva just duped me?"

Su Qing felt her reputation was beyond saving. Even the Buddha had a fixed image of her now. It was a headache, but she was helpless.

"Hahaha, she didn't dupe you. It just hasn't started yet. The banquet begins tomorrow." The Buddha shook his head with a laugh. "You can find a place to stay in Tianzhu for now and come back tomorrow when the feast opens."

"Oh? That works too. I can go find the Jade Rabbit to play with while I'm at it." Su Qing nodded, having no objections.

Yuer, the Jade Rabbit, was in the Kingdom of Tianzhu. Staying there for a day was perfectly fine.

The Buddha nodded. "But don't let Yuer run off with you. She still has to fulfill one of the Eighty-One Tribulations!"

"..." Su Qing said speechlessly, "If she runs away, it definitely has nothing to do with me! It would absolutely be Lady Chang'e's doing. Besides, I'm not that ridiculous! I'm just going to hang out with her."

The Buddha only chuckled at Su Qing's words and didn't follow up. It was unclear if he was teasing her or if he truly thought that way.

Seeing the Buddha's expression, Su Qing rolled her eyes inwardly. She was quite speechless.

However, she didn't care to say more. She simply said, "Then, Buddha, I'll be going! I'll return tomorrow when the feast opens."

"Go on, go on!" the Buddha replied.

Su Qing turned and left. Her Somersault Cloud was extremely fast, and in the blink of an eye, she arrived in the Kingdom of Tianzhu.

In the back garden of the royal palace of Tianzhu, a princess sat alone, playing with flowers... those poor, beautiful blossoms were being more or less ravaged by her hands.

Su Qing's appearance went unnoticed. Even the princess sensed nothing.

Su Qing's strength had long surpassed Yuer's. If she didn't want to be found, Yuer naturally couldn't discover her.

She appeared silently behind the princess and tapped her lightly on the shoulder.

This startled Yuer so much she jumped, nearly diving headfirst into the flower bushes.

Seeing this, Su Qing chuckled. "I didn't think you were so cowardly, Yuer! That was enough to scare you."

Yuer turned around and, seeing it was Su Qing, patted her chest. "You're really too much! If you're here, you're here, but you had to scare me! If it weren't inconvenient for me to use spells right now, I would have smashed a giant fireball into your face."

"That little bit of firepower of yours? Forget about hurting me; it's only good for stir-frying. Why would I be afraid?" Su Qing looked at Yuer with a smile. "Besides, I'm just getting revenge for when you kicked me back then! Who told someone to always do such annoying things?"

"That wasn't my fault; I was just getting revenge too." Yuer looked away. "But you... why did you suddenly think of me? And even came to my garden? Are you bored?"

Su Qing found a place to sit. "I'm not bored, I just missed my little rabbit! It's a pity you've hidden your rabbit ears now; otherwise, I'd really want to pinch and play with them."

"Hmph, those words might work on a young girl, but they won't work on me." Yuer rolled her eyes. "It would be a miracle if you actually missed me! So, what is it really?"

Seeing she couldn't dupe little Yuer, Su Qing smiled, unbothered.

"There's a vegetarian banquet at Great Thunder Monastery tomorrow. Guanyin Bodhisattva asked me to attend in her place... so I came to the Kingdom of Tianzhu to play for a day and keep my lonely little Yuer company."

"Ew, you're being gross! You're doing this on purpose, aren't you?" Yuer pouted. "But speaking of which, weren't you weirded out by my rabbit ears before? Why do you like them now?"

"People's tastes change~ and when did I ever think they were weird?"

"When we first met," Yuer said. "But forget it, you can't see them now anyway~ this princess is a human right now."

"It seems you're quite used to your current identity!"

"What else can I do?"

"Fair enough."

"How do you want to play? There's still some time before dark. This princess doesn't mind taking you out for a stroll!"

"Then I'll follow your lead. Let's go for a stroll! By the way, don't you find it awkward calling yourself 'this princess'?"

"Why would I? I am the Princess of the Kingdom of Tianzhu!"

"Fair enough."

Su Qing and Yuer chatted as they quickly left the palace.

Su Qing could naturally sense Yuer's current state... although she had grown accustomed to life in Tianzhu, she hadn't truly integrated. If she had, why would she be alone in the back garden messing with flowers?

However, Su Qing wasn't surprised by this. There was a fundamental difference between immortals and mortals, especially regarding lifespan. Such a difference was the root of why Yuer couldn't fully integrate.

The two of them wandered the streets of Tianzhu... they played with anything interesting and bought anything tasty to try. It was exceptionally joyful. They spent the entire afternoon together and only parted at dusk.

Su Qing didn't plan to stay in the palace with Yuer; she simply found an inn outside to stay in.

In the blink of an eye, it was another early morning.

In Donglin Temple in the Women's Kingdom, Wukong woke up comfortably after a good night's sleep. He was just about to go find his master.

However, the moment he pushed open his master's door, he found... his master was gone.

Sha Wujing, following close behind, was also stunned by the empty room. "Eldest Senior Brother, where is Master?"

"I don't know! Let me check the old pagoda on the back mountain. If he's not there... I'm afraid he's been snatched by a demon again!" Wukong was so anxious he scratched his head. He rushed to the old pagoda on the back mountain!

But when he reached the pagoda, he found his master wasn't there either.

Clearly, his master had been kidnapped by a demon again.

"Master, oh Master, what kind of luck do you have? Even in my Big Sister's city, you can still get snatched by a demon." Wukong was frantic. Knowing his master had been taken, he hurried to the palace to find Su Qing and ask for clues.

But when he arrived at the palace, he discovered Su Qing was gone, and only Bai Yuhe was there.

When he asked where Su Qing had gone, Bai Yuhe simply said, "The Queen was called by Guanyin Bodhisattva to attend a banquet at Great Thunder Monastery. She left yesterday and probably won't be back for a few days."

"What?" Wukong felt a stampede of ten thousand horses in his mind.

So Guanyin was playing dirty with him!

His Big Sister had barely left when his master was snatched by a demon. Wukong's teeth itched with rage. He couldn't help but ask urgently, "Then does Your Majesty know of any powerful demons within the borders of the Women's Kingdom?"

"Powerful demons? I know of a few... but they don't harm people. After all, you know your Big Sister's methods." Bai Yuhe rubbed her chin. "But why are you suddenly asking about this?"