Legend of the Great Sage

“Then you…” The Dark Queen was reluctant to part with her.

“He probably doesn’t want to see me right now,” said Xiao An.

“Xuanyue, why don’t you go back to the Umbral Yin sect with me and take a look? You can wait there for your mother.
You’ve spent so many years apart, so you should spend a few days together at the very least,” said the master of the Umbral Yin sect, except his sinister tone did not match the heart-warming contents at all.

“Thank you for earlier.” Li Qingshan clasped his hands at the master of the Umbral Yin sect.
While he did watch on indifferently from the sidelines and only struck in the final moments when the situation was favourable to him, which Li Qingshan did not approve of, at least he had not opposed him.
On top of that, if it were not for his finger at the very end, it would have been quite troublesome for Li Qingshan by the time the Fierce King of Chu’s Green Province cauldron had crushed down on him.

“Hehe, it was nothing.
I should thank you instead, fellow, for resolving the conflict between the Umbral Yin sect and Sword Collection palace for good,” said the sect master.

Under the Dark Queen’s pleading gaze, Xiao An nodded in agreement, and the Dark Queen smiled, which made her seem a little more cheerful.
“I’ll be back very soon!”

Right when she was about to fly off, a slender hand grabbed her by her sleeve.
Turning around, it was a beautiful, young girl with a crescent moon on her forehead.

“Xuanyue, sorry about that.
I almost forgot about you.
You can come with me!” The Dark Queen was in an extremely good mood, such that she even apologised for once, but she felt rather perplexed.
She basically never assumed her human form around her.

“I won’t be, meowster.
You’ve already found the real Xuanyue.
I don’t need to be your Yue’er anymeowre.” Xuan Yue smiled, revealing her sharp fangs.

“You don’t have to leave.
I’ll still treat you like before!” The Dark Queen was not a particularly sentimental person, but she was still somewhat attached after all those years they spent together.

Xuanyue shook her head, and the bell on her neck jingled.
The Dark Queen glanced at Li Qingshan and did not try to persuade her to stay anymore.
“You can come back any time!”

Xiao An reached an agreement with Li Qingshan to meet up again when the Golden Cicada Spirit King ascended before setting off for the Umbral Yin sect.
She had benefited quite a lot from this battle, so she just happened to be in need of a quiet place for secluded cultivation.
She needed to refine the śarīra, repair the Skull Prayer Beads, and perhaps forge another arcane treasure of white bone.
She was not afraid of assaults from buddhism, but she did not want to be disturbed either.

Xuanyue watched the Dark Queen fly off until she vanished into the horizon.
Only then did she turn around, “Hey, Big Blacko, are you a man of your word?”

“I always have been!” Li Qingshan touched his horns.

“Then let’s set off!” Xuanyue extended her finger in high spirits.

“Where to?”

“The Dragon province!”

“But that’s the south!”

“Does it matter!?” Xuanyue became furious out of embarrassment.

“It’s fine.
Actually, the Mist province is quite nice too.
All of the people from the Dragon province are very annoying.”

“You lie! The Nine-tailed Fox Empress is beautiful and powerful.
Only a bumpkin of a daemon like you would enjoy a land of savages like the Mist province!” 

“How dare a mere Daemon General act so brazenly before this Daemon King! Whatever, as long as you’re happy!”

Li Qingshan wrapped his arm around her waist and unfurled his wings.
In the next moment, he had already passed through the cloud layer.
His gaze pierced the clouds and gazed at the rising and falling mountains.
The monks of the Chan Monastery of Deva-Nāga were still caught in a holy atmosphere, prostrating on the ground and ignoring everything else going on beside them.
If it were not for the fact that he had witnessed the boundlessness of the buddhist dharma, perhaps he would be mocking their foolishness, but he only sank into his thoughts now.

The Unraging monk seemed to sense that.
He raised his head and his face was filled with helplessness.

Li Qingshan waved his hand with a smile as farewell.
He suddenly experienced a hint of uneasiness, but it flashed by in the blink of an eye.

Gazing into the distant north, it was time for him to uphold his promise of the past!