Yang Xue never expected that she would be tailed by the Bodhisattva Guanyin.
In an ordinary small town, inside a humble eatery, Yang Xue ordered a pot of wine and a plate of beef for herself.
Looking at Guanyin sitting opposite her, a being seemingly detached from the mortal world. She was dressed in simple, plain white commoner clothes of the mortal realm, with her hair coiled high in a coronet, which added an air of unattainable nobility to her face that was so beautiful it was hard to tell whether it was male or female.
The customers in the eatery cast curious glances at her one after another. It seemed to them that such a person didn't belong in this unassuming little shop.
The magnificent restaurant in the center of the town was where she should be.
It was said that Guanyin had countless incarnations, male and female. So seeing her now, Yang Xue suppressed her curiosity and refrained from asking about the gender of her true form.
"Waiter, bring a pot of Tieguanyin tea," she suddenly thought of what kind of tea to order for the Bodhisattva.
Hearing Yang Xue's words, Guanyin frowned. "I don't drink tea."
"Is it the name of the tea that's not good?" Yang Xue blinked her big eyes, looking as innocent as could be. "I thought you might like this name. I bet you've never tasted it. It's okay. I'll treat you. It's a once - in - a - lifetime chance."
Since she knew that Guanyin represented the Western Paradise, and with those big eyes that seemed to be able to see through the affairs of the mortal world, Yang Xue couldn't resist the urge to tease her and see if there was an ordinary human side to her.
Sure enough, she didn't refuse again. She just stared very carefully at the tea soup when the shopkeeper brought the tea.
Inevitably, sitting next to Guanyin, Yang Xue felt as if she had become a bit more sacred and noble. The air around her seemed extremely fresh, time seemed to slow down, and her mind became much clearer and more active.
"May I ask, Bodhisattva Guanyin, have you come to arrest me and take me back?" Yang Xue sipped her wine and secretly counted the time in her heart, hoping to send this Bodhisattva away before Sun Wukong arrived.
"Miss Yang has misunderstood. I've come to ask a favor of you," she carefully examined the teacup in front of her but still didn't take a sip in the end.
"What? Asking a favor of me?" She was shocked. The chopsticks slipped, and the meat dropped onto the table.
The Bodhisattva asking a favor of her. Yang Xue naturally couldn't believe it.
"I... I'm just a little demon. How could you possibly ask a favor of me?" Yang Xue put down her chopsticks and looked seriously at the kind - faced Bodhisattva. "Could it be that this is a new trick of the Bodhisattva's, trying to deceive me into going to the Western Paradise and then arrest me?"
"I never tell lies. I really do have something to ask of you," the Bodhisattva seemed a bit hesitant. After frowning and thinking for a moment, she took out her magic vase. "I offended you before. Since we've met by chance today, I hope you'll let bygones be bygones and accept this gift as an apology."
"Ah?" Can the Bodhisattva apologize?
Could it be that she came because of what Yang Jian had said before?
"What's the gift?" If the gift was to her liking, she would of course accept it. After all, she had indeed been regarded as an evil demon by the Western Paradise before. Consider it compensation for the offense.
"As long as it's within my power, you can ask for anything," she held the vase and the willow branch, and there was a hint of anxiety in her expression.
This was so good. She had to make good use of it.
"Then Bodhisattva, first tell me what it is you're asking for," Yang Xue asked cautiously. "What if I can't do it or don't want to agree?"
The Bodhisattva stared straight at her. Her grape - like pupils were as clear as a spiritual spring, making one feel as if bathed in the morning breeze.
"Yang Jian once went to see you. I've come today to ask for the same thing. Tathagata has been attacked by a demon in his heart because of you. He's still in danger now. I beg you to help him."
"..." This was just absurd. How could she have caused him to be attacked by a demon in his heart?
Yang Xue took a sip of wine to calm her nerves. "How can I help?"
"Come with me to the Spirit Mountain. Only after you see him will there be a way," the Bodhisattva lowered her voice. "And we have to keep it from Sun Wukong."
"..." Were they worried that Sun Wukong would disagree?
Indeed, according to the Great Sage's personality, Tathagata was no longer on his list of trustworthy people. If he heard about this, he would surely think it was a trap set by Tathagata.
And she also thought it was a trap.
"If you don't believe me, I can swear. If I tell a lie, I will surely be punished by heaven," saying this, she raised her hand and swore to heaven. Her expression was solemn. "I beg you to let bygones be bygones and save Tathagata."
"Bodhisattva..."
"I know you're looking for the Six - Eared Macaque, worried that he will replace Sun Wukong. I can guarantee that Sun Wukong will never be replaced..."
"No, Bodhisattva, I don't believe this. Where is the Six - Eared Macaque now?" Yang Xue grasped the key point and stared intently at her. "If you hand him over to me and the Great Sage continues on his journey to the Western Paradise to fetch the scriptures, I'll believe you."
"Okay," she readily agreed. "Sun Wukong is coming soon. Please come with me to the Spirit Mountain. We'll be back in the time it takes to burn an incense stick."
"Okay." Yang Xue trusted the Bodhisattva. Her eyes couldn't lie. She might as well trust her this once.
Yang Xue told the waiter that she would be back in the time it took to burn an incense stick and asked the man who would come later to wait for her.
In the blink of an eye, the Bodhisattva took her to the resting place of Tathagata on the Spirit Mountain.
Judging from this situation, Tathagata still wouldn't let her go easily. This matter would have to be negotiated by the Bodhisattva.
Yang Xue also knew that she had to act quickly. She walked up to the sandalwood bed and saw only a hand sticking out from behind the curtain.
"Please feel his pulse. Then you'll naturally know how to save him," the Bodhisattva lowered her voice as if guarding against others discovering them. "I'll guard the barrier for you. If you really can't save him, I won't make things difficult for you."
"Understood. Thank you." She wasn't stupid. If Tathagata's other disciples knew she was here, they wouldn't let her leave.
She stretched out her finger and placed it on his wrist. Instantly, she seemed to be sucked into another world.
After a brief period of darkness, Yang Xue found herself in an endless expanse of water. The water met the sky, and there was only a faint Buddha light and boundless aqua - blue between heaven and earth.
She stepped on the water as if walking on flat ground.
She saw a person sitting on a golden throne not far away, surrounded by white lotuses.
However, when she got closer, she found that a male - like figure was shrouded in a misty light. She couldn't see his face clearly, but the black lotus on his forehead between his eyebrows was clearly visible.
Was this the demon in his heart?
"Master, this is the demon in Tathagata's heart. He's still sleeping in a dream. You just reach out and pluck the black lotus, then find a white lotus and insert it into his forehead between his eyebrows," Qing Xuan's voice clearly reached her ears.
"Okay." Yang Xue couldn't help asking curiously, "Why can't I see him? Did he hold back a trick so that if he wants to trap me in the future, I won't recognize him?"
"Yes, Master is really smart," Qing Xuan appeared on her shoulder, nodded crisply, and said in a clear voice, "You're Tathagata's calamity, so he'll always be on guard against you."
"He's my calamity, isn't he? Even when he's asking a favor of me, he still doesn't plan to let me go. You tell me why I should save him." Even though she said so, she still reached out and plucked the black lotus.