This uninvited guest was no stranger.
In fact, he was an old acquaintance of Su Qing’s.
One could even say he was an old acquaintance to everyone present.
Su Qing wasn't particularly surprised to see him; she had anticipated this. It was just that the fellow had arrived a bit earlier than she expected.
Moreover, she found the situation somewhat amusing.
After all, everyone was enjoying their meal when a monkey suddenly dropped in.
Especially after the monkey landed, scanned the crowd, spotted Su Qing, and came hopping over while waving his hands and shouting "Big Sister! Big Sister!"
The scene was indescribably comical.
It was a testament to the monkey's thick skin; he didn't seem embarrassed in the slightest.
Su Qing, for one, knew she could never pull off such a stunt.
Wukong arrived before Su Qing. Seeing the group of people before him, he paused for a moment and then bowed to each of them in turn.
If it had only been Taishang Laojun or Su Qing, he wouldn't have bothered with such formalities, as they were very close. Although he respected Su Qing, it wasn't the kind of respect that required rigid etiquette.
"Wukong... why are you here?" Su Qing glanced at Lao Jun. Seeing that he had no intention of speaking, she asked the question herself.
"Sigh, it's that Master of mine! Big Sister, you had only just left when someone snatched him away!" Wukong said helplessly. "I originally intended to find Guanyin Bodhisattva for help, but I couldn't find her anywhere. So, I had no choice but to come to Great Thunder Monastery to find you."
"Oh? Is that so? However, within the borders of my Women's Kingdom, there shouldn't be any demons you can't handle, right?"
"It's not that I can't handle her; it's just hard to get close. That demon has a lethal poisonous sting! Every time I'm about to take her down, she stings me right on the head! The pain is unbearable."
Wukong bared his teeth and grimaced.
"Big Sister knows that I fear headaches most of all, especially after being saddled with this tight-fillet spell. The pain is even harder to endure."
Su Qing rubbed her chin and nodded. "I see. But which demon is it exactly?"
"It's a Scorpion Spirit. She uses a three-pronged fork and is an expert with poison," Wukong explained.
"Oh? So it's her! She’s usually quite well-behaved. Ever since I taught her a lesson once, she hasn't harmed anyone. Why would she kidnap your master now?"
"That... I don't know either." Wukong scratched his head. "I figured that since she's a demon on your turf, you’d be able to take her down easily if you went there."
Su Qing looked at Wukong, thought for a moment, and said, "Very well, I'll go with you to take a look."
"Hehe, thank you, Big Sister! Thank you!" Wukong quickly grinned and added, "I'm sorry for interrupting your vegetarian banquet..."
"It's fine... Rescuing Elder Tang is more important." Su Qing shook her head. "If you really want to thank me, just be more obedient in the future."
Wukong nodded vigorously; how could he dare refuse?
Seeing this, Su Qing gave the monkey a look before apologizing and bidding farewell to the seniors.
The seniors had no objections to Su Qing leaving. They simply nodded and told her to hurry.
Everyone present knew the importance of Tang Sanzang; they certainly wouldn't hinder Su Qing from saving him.
Without further delay, Su Qing mounted her Somersault Cloud and headed toward the Women's Kingdom.
Both of them were riding Somersault Clouds.
On the way, Su Qing silently complained about Guanyin Bodhisattva.
That woman moved so fast... Su Qing had barely left when she let the Scorpion Spirit snatch the man.
Su Qing felt that Guanyin was definitely holding a grudge; otherwise, she wouldn't have picked such a perfect time. Why did she think so? Naturally, because her meal had been interrupted.
However, even though Su Qing knew this, she didn't say it out loud. She simply returned to the Women's Kingdom in silence and located the Scorpion Spirit's cave.
Arriving at the entrance, she didn't need Wukong to shout a challenge.
With a wave of her fair hand, Su Qing blew the cave doors open.
Well, to be precise, she blasted them open.
Once the doors were open, someone flew straight out.
It was none other than the Scorpion Spirit.
The Scorpion Spirit looked at Su Qing, her eyes flickering slightly. "You actually came."
"Oh? You knew I would come?" Su Qing raised an eyebrow.
The Scorpion Spirit nodded. "I want to talk to you..."
"Then release Elder Tang first. Otherwise, I'll have to use force." Su Qing rubbed her chin. Though confused, she decided to rescue Tang Sanzang first.
Seeing Su Qing's stance, the Scorpion Spirit nodded indifferently. "Since you're here, I will naturally release him..."
Her words made Su Qing frown. Did this Scorpion Spirit kidnap Tang Sanzang just to get Su Qing to find her?
What on earth was going on?
She couldn't quite understand the Scorpion Spirit's logic.
"Then release him quickly." Su Qing couldn't figure it out, so she stopped thinking about it for the moment and just urged her to let him go.
The Scorpion Spirit didn't waste any time. With a wave of her hand, she brought Tang Sanzang out and placed him before Su Qing. Her actions were so decisive that it was clear she had never intended to take anything from him, let alone eat him for immortality.
This Scorpion Spirit... truly baffled Su Qing.
However, Su Qing didn't show any emotion. She simply waved her hand and tossed Tang Sanzang into Wukong's arms.
"Wukong, take Elder Tang and leave first!" Su Qing said, glancing at him.
Wukong was somewhat surprised that his master had been rescued so easily. He had expected at least one fight!
Yet, it was over with just a few words.
"I understand!" Though surprised, Wukong didn't forget that his primary goal was to save his master. Whatever curiosity he had would have to wait until his master was safe.
Before long, Wukong left with Tang Sanzang, leaving only Su Qing and the Scorpion Spirit facing each other.
"Can we talk now?" the Scorpion Spirit asked.
Su Qing nodded. "I'm curious. Did you kidnap Tang Sanzang simply to talk to me?"
"A nun told me that this would be the easiest way to see you, so I did it."
"You could have just come to the palace to find me. It would have been the same."
"It's not the same. I tried, but you were never there."
"..." Su Qing said speechlessly, "You just had bad luck."
"..." The Scorpion Spirit was silent for a moment before saying, "Actually... kidnapping that Tang monk wasn't just to see you. That nun also told me that doing this would help me avoid a fatal calamity. I didn't believe it at first, but I couldn't help but believe it eventually."
"Well, that makes more sense. I thought you really kidnapped someone just to see me! If that were the case, I really wouldn't be able to grasp your thought process."
"...It was partly that as well."
"So, what exactly do you want to do by seeing me? What do you want to ask?"
"Some private matters..."
"So what is it exactly?"
"Come inside first!" The Scorpion Spirit paused and said.
Su Qing frowned, finding it harder and harder to understand what this Scorpion Spirit was thinking. However, she didn't refuse. If the Scorpion Spirit had any ill intentions, Su Qing's strength was more than enough to stop her easily.
After the two entered the cave, the Scorpion Spirit told Su Qing the reason she had sought her out.
But upon learning the Scorpion Spirit's plan, the expression on Su Qing's face froze. She was completely shocked by this demon.
The Scorpion Spirit actually wanted to "try things out" with her.
This... even someone like Su Qing was momentarily stunned into silence.
Wasn't this demon looking for her "ideal match" before? Why was she suddenly trying to start something with her now?
Which of her wires had crossed?
"I'm not that kind of person!" Su Qing refused sternly.
"Neither am I... but I can only find you."
"Why me?"
"Because you are different. Rumor has it that you won't refuse any woman who wants to be with you..."
Su Qing was utterly stunned. "Where did this rumor come from?"
"I heard it from an evil monk."
"..." Su Qing was willing to bet that this was definitely Guanyin Bodhisattva’s doing.
Su Qing sighed and said, "I'm really not like the rumors say. I'm someone who guards my purity! Besides, I don't understand why you want to do this."
"I just want to truly understand emotional matters. Also, I want to make up for my deficiencies in this area so I can successfully enter the Dao."
"..." Su Qing rubbed her brow.
She felt things were getting messy. But she still refused the other party, saying:
"If you want to cultivate, I can teach you. But as for emotional matters, I really can't teach you... Furthermore, I won't do those things with you. Please don't believe nonsensical rumors. And... it's not like doing what couples do will make you understand emotions. Speaking of which, I'm curious—why don't you look for a man?"
"I don't like men..."
"..." Su Qing's lip twitched slightly.
Fine! That was indeed a sufficient reason.
"Forget it. In short, I can't help you with this. You've been fooled by that evil monk and that nun."
Su Qing rubbed her brow and said, "Emotions are definitely not such simple things."
"Is it really not possible?"
"No." Su Qing shook her head. "While feelings can be nurtured, it's definitely not that simple."
"Then how should they be nurtured?"
"Hmm? By staying with someone, getting to know them, and understanding them?" Su Qing rubbed her chin and thought for a moment. "But to be honest, I don't really understand this area well either... Despite how I seem, I really can't teach others about these things! My feelings for them also grew slowly and unconsciously."
"I see." The Scorpion Spirit nodded. "Then... can you and I develop feelings unconsciously?"
Su Qing: "..."
This woman truly had a knack for saying shocking things.
She said helplessly, "How would I know... we aren't even close."
"Then take me with you, Big Sister!" The Scorpion Spirit said after a moment of silence.
"Huh?"
"Please take me with you!" Seeing Su Qing's confusion, the Scorpion Spirit thought she wasn't being sincere enough, so she changed her tone to a plea.
"Why the sudden decision?"
"I just want to try..." The Scorpion Spirit stared into Su Qing's eyes and said seriously, "This can be considered my heart for seeking the Dao. So... please take me with you! I don't care what I have to do..."
Su Qing rubbed her brow, feeling that this woman was definitely going to be trouble... but looking at her, Su Qing couldn't bring herself to refuse.
Su Qing sighed and said, "Fine. Go to Linzhou City! There's a medical clinic there where my clone is. Go find her."
With that, Su Qing told her the specific location via Sound Transmission.
"Your clone?"
"You can think of her as another me... a version of me with a different appearance and different cultivation."
"I see... Is your clone specifically for doing these kinds of things?"
"What are you thinking! My clone is mainly to help me collect Incense Power, not for picking up girls."
"Oh... then your clone is also you, right?"
"Yes, that's correct." Su Qing nodded. "It's not convenient to take you to the Changbai Mountains, so I can only send you to my clone."
"I understand." The Scorpion Spirit nodded.
Then, she stepped forward to Su Qing and said, "Then, Big Sister... let's get to know each other again. I suspect you've long forgotten my name..."
Su Qing rubbed her chin. She had to admit, she had indeed forgotten the Scorpion Spirit's name.
After all, to her, this was just a demon on the journey to the west; there was no need for deep memories, and she never thought they would meet again like this, let alone have this conversation.
"Yes."
"My name is Jin Xin, a Scorpion Spirit who once listened to scriptures before the Buddha," Jin Xin said.
Su Qing nodded. "I'll remember it... I don't need to introduce my name again, do I?"
"No, I have always remembered your name."
"That's good..." Su Qing let out a breath and said, "Then you shouldn't have any other questions, right?"
"None at all," Jin Xin said calmly. "Most importantly, you have already agreed to my request."
"In that case, I'll be going now." Su Qing nodded. "After you've prepared, go to the place I told you and find my clone!"
Jin Xin nodded. "I understand, Big Sister. I will go."
Seeing this, Su Qing didn't say anything more. She turned and left the cave.
After walking out of Jin Xin's cave, Su Qing took a deep breath.
She couldn't help but marvel, "The world is truly full of wonders..."
Jin Xin had certainly left a very deep impression on her today. After all, she had never met anyone like Jin Xin; it was a unique experience.
It was just a bit mentally exhausting.
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