When Yang Xue woke up again, she found herself sleeping in a bamboo hut. The faint scent of incense lingered in the room.
This was a rare good thing, capable of refreshing one's mind and cleansing one's soul!
It seemed that the Patriarch Bodhi didn't take advantage of the situation to get rid of her.
She sat up abruptly and saw Qing Xuan blinking his big eyes and staring at her intently.
"Master, you've finally woken up. I thought you were dead," Qing Xuan whimpered as he sat on her lap. "When you broke free from the Golden Bell's control, I thought you were really powerful. But it turned out you were at the end of your strength. You shouldn't have broken free from the Golden Bell then. Now look, you've been sleeping for seven or eight days."
Yang Xue reached out and held him in her arms. "Okay, I know you were worried. But if I didn't negotiate with him, the Great Sage definitely wouldn't have gone back obediently, and I would have been gotten rid of as a scourge soon."
Qing Xuan didn't comment, but soon he showed a smile. "But you've actually turned misfortune into fortune. The Patriarch Bodhi even gave you two magic pills, which is why you recovered so quickly."
Yang Xue put on her shoes and couldn't help but be surprised. "He really isn't keeping me locked up anymore?"
"I talked to him about your identity, but I didn't tell him about the existence of the Heavenly Book. Otherwise, if he took it away, you really wouldn't be a threat anymore." Then he lowered his voice. "I got the impression from him that it seemed he was pre - instructed by the Tathagata that you were a great scourge in the Three Realms, which was why he treated you like that."
Yang Xue smiled faintly. "So, it turns out that the one who least wants to see me do well is the Tathagata?"
"Who knows?" Qing Xuan sighed nonchalantly. "I know you're not really the White Bone Demon, but in everyone's eyes, you're just a little demon. It's perfectly normal for them to associate you with evil beings."
"Do you know who gave me the Heavenly Book?" She got out of bed and washed her face. Her fair skin gradually regained its color. "I only saw that old man once. Why did he help me?"
"I don't know."
"Then where did you hide before?"
"I don't know."
Yang Xue was speechless. "If you don't want to say, then forget it."
"The Patriarch is still waiting to talk to you," Qing Xuan jumped onto her shoulder. "I'm going to rest. Don't bother me if it's not necessary."
"Okay." She also noticed that although Qing Xuan was from the ancient divine realm, his current strength wasn't very high. Maybe transforming into a spirit had consumed his divine power.
After getting herself sorted out, she walked out of the stone cave and came to the courtyard she had been to before. She walked through the corridor and came to the pavilion, where she saw the Patriarch Bodhi sitting there playing chess alone.
"Do you know how to play chess?" He didn't even lift his head. His white hair didn't make him look old at all. He motioned for her to sit opposite him.
"I know a little." She picked up a white piece and casually placed it on the board.
Anyway, her chess skills weren't good. It was already good enough that she could play with him now.
Sure enough, seeing the piece she placed, Bodhi frowned.
"Why did you choose to stay here?" By now, he understood very well that she had deliberately sent Sun Wukong away.
"It's good for everyone that I stay here," she replied indifferently, holding a handful of shiny chess pieces in her hand. "These chess pieces are nice. They must be quite valuable, right?"
"They're priceless treasures. How can they be measured by mere money?"
Wow! What a big claim, but he really had the strength to say so.
Bodhi's gaze passed over her. "Why did you take a fancy to that rascal monkey?"
Yang Xue looked up and saw his extremely puzzled expression. Presumably, this was also everyone's question.
"Does he look like a monkey now?"
"Although his appearance has been well - cultivated, it can't cover up the fact that he's a rascal monkey!" His tone was full of disappointment. "If he had been a bit more obedient, he wouldn't have ended up..."
"Wouldn't have ended up with a Six - Eared Macaque ready to replace him at any time, right?"
"..." Bodhi was silent, which was a kind of tacit admission.
After a moment, he looked up and asked, "How did you know about this?"
"I guessed."
He wasn't angry about her perfunctory attitude, but he was a bit confused. "With that monkey's straightforward personality, he definitely couldn't have guessed, and he couldn't have known about the Six - Eared Macaque. How did you know?"
"I really guessed. I can also guess that this time, because all the demons wanted to make him the Demon King, if he hadn't caused another ruckus in the Hall of Miraculous Mist, he might have been annihilated on the spot." She smiled mysteriously. "What a magnanimous heart! He's just a monkey. Why can't they tolerate him!"
"This matter is complicated to explain, but actually you women can understand it!"
"Women?" Yang Xue sneered. "Patriarch, this is your fault! Why do even you, an elder, have the idea of discriminating against women? Shouldn't it be equality between men and women? Don't you always say that all sentient beings are equal? Where is this equality? You talk about all things, but there's such prejudice between men and women. What equality!"
"You... You girl, can't you show more respect in front of me? After all, I'm that monkey's master. Even that rascal monkey knows..."
"When he first saw you, he was so excited that there were tears in his eyes. But what did you do? You not only refused to let him in but also planned to wipe out his wife and everyone related to him, until they were all annihilated." Yang Xue threw away the white piece and stood up neatly. "I feel sorry for him!"
Bodhi looked at the dead end on the chessboard and didn't bother to pursue her disrespect. "You actually won!"
"Patriarch, your chess skills aren't very good."
"You..." Not many people could beat him. Just now, he must have been distracted while discussing that rascal monkey, so he was careless and underestimated her.
Since he lost the chess game, he didn't want to play again. He stood up and sat at the tea table. Rarely, he showed a smile. "You really protect Sun Wukong. Do you really like him?"
"Can true feelings be faked?"
"Hehe! True or false, the human heart is the most difficult to distinguish. Even if it's true now, true feelings aren't eternal. They can change at any time."
"How do you know?" Yang Xue was unconvinced. "Even if others' feelings change easily, mine won't."
Bodhi was helpless. This female demon was quite difficult to deal with. She always talked in riddles with him.
"I'll ask you. At that time, when everyone thought he would surrender obediently and be taken back to the Heavenly Court, was it you who untied the golden hoop on his head?"
"No!"
"..." Bodhi's face darkened, and he got up and walked out!
Yang Xue showed a victorious smile. She used to be very good at annoying people. Now she was very happy that she could avenge the Great Sage.
"Do you still want to find the Six - Eared Macaque?" Halfway through his walk, Bodhi showed a fierce look. He hadn't been so angry for many years. It was really hard for him to remain calm. "With this attitude, even if you wait here for ten or eight years, it'll be in vain."
"So, you really know the whereabouts of the Six - Eared Macaque?" She quickly put on a cute and obedient look, picked up a cup of tea and walked towards him. "Please, Patriarch, don't be angry with a junior like me. I was just so worried about the Great Sage that I dared to talk back to you."
"..."
"Please, Patriarch, be magnanimous. I know you, an elder, surely don't want to watch the Great Sage go to his death. Why don't you show some mercy and save him? I guarantee that from tonight on, the Great Sage will never do anything rebellious again." As she said this, she knelt in front of the Patriarch Bodhi, holding the tea with both hands. Her attitude couldn't have been more sincere.
"..." Bodhi gritted his silver teeth. He was extremely angry.