Honghuang: My understanding is beyond belief. I am the first immortal of Jiejiao.

Although the Tang Emperor could not see the magnificent Buddha light phenomenon, he keenly sensed that the western sky seemed to have become exceptionally "bright," and an indescribable sense of oppression enveloped his heart.

He quickly moved closer to Lin Zhu and asked in a low voice.

"Boss, is... that guy from the west coming? How should we coordinate?"

Lin Zhu glanced at him and said calmly.

"Just follow my lead and adapt to the situation."

Having said that, he didn't delay any longer. With a flicker, he transformed into a white streak of light that was inconspicuous yet extremely fast, and silently flew towards the two people in the center of the square who were still in a "riding" posture.

……

On the ruins of the altar.

Chen Xuanzang felt an unprecedented sense of weakness, which swept over his entire body like a cold tide.

The immense magical power that once filled his limbs and seemed capable of destroying the world was rapidly dissipating, like a deflated balloon.

His punches became increasingly weak and powerless, and even maintaining his position in mid-air became difficult.

"Is the effect of the medicine... about to wear off?"

A thought flashed through his chaotic mind, bringing a sense of panic.

Guanyin Bodhisattva, who had been pinned down by him and silently endured the long and fierce beating, keenly sensed the change in the demon's power within her!

Her heart, which was on the verge of exploding with humiliation and anger, was instantly replaced by a surge of ecstasy!

An opportunity! An opportunity for revenge has arrived!

She, the dignified and compassionate Guanyin Bodhisattva who saves people from suffering, was actually beaten to the ground in such a humiliating way for so long by a mortal monk, who was also the one chosen by Buddha to go on the pilgrimage!
If she doesn't avenge this humiliation and disgrace, how will she ever have the face to stand in the Three Realms again?!
"Ugh—!! Get out of my way!!"

Just as Chen Xuanzang was about to deliver another weak punch, Guanyin Bodhisattva suddenly let out a fierce shout that had been building up for a long time!
The vast magical power of a Great Luo Golden Immortal at the peak level, which had been suppressed for so long, erupted like a volcanic eruption!
"Oh!"

Caught off guard, Chen Xuanzang, whose power had already declined to the early stage of the Great Luo realm and was still falling, was directly thrown away by this powerful force. He tumbled several times in the air before crashing heavily to the ground some distance away, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Guanyin Bodhisattva sprang to her feet with a swift, albeit slightly disheveled, motion.

Her appearance at this moment was truly pitiful. Her precious crown was lost, her hair was disheveled, and her once kind and dignified face was now swollen like a pig's head, covered in bruises, with golden bloodstains hanging from the corners of her mouth. Her magnificent white celestial robes were also torn to shreds and covered in mud.

But her eyes were sharp as knives, filled with the joy of revenge and a chilling killing intent!
She pointed a finger defiantly at Chen Xuanzang, who had just struggled to his feet, his face filled with bewilderment and fear. Her voice was muffled by the swelling in her cheeks, but it still carried a raging fire.

"Chen! Xuanzang! You wretched creature! You demon! How dare you... how dare you pin me to the ground... and beat me for so long! Such a humiliation is unprecedented! It is intolerable! If I do not extract your soul and refine your spirit today, I will not be able to quell the hatred in my heart! You come here!!"

This angry rebuke exploded in Chen Xuanzang's ears like a thunderclap!

He had just emerged from that violent and out-of-control state, and his consciousness was still somewhat muddled. But when he heard Guanyin Bodhisattva's angry shout, saw her face, which was swollen beyond recognition but full of a vicious expression, and felt the terrifying pressure emanating from her that was rising again, far exceeding his current strength... everything that had happened before flooded into his mind like a tidal wave!

I... I actually pinned Guanyin Bodhisattva to the ground and beat her up?!
They beat her for so long?! She was bruised and battered, her saintly image completely ruined?!
A bone-chilling cold instantly shot from the soles of my feet straight to the top of my head!
Chen Xuanzang was so frightened that his whole body trembled like a leaf!
He knew all too well what this meant!

To blaspheme against a Bodhisattva or to assault a deity is an unforgivable sin!

If I were to fall into the hands of the enraged Guanyin Bodhisattva, I would surely die a miserable death!

They probably won't even have a chance to enter the cycle of reincarnation. They will be completely destroyed, and may even be suppressed in the deepest part of Avici Hell, never to be reborn!
"No...no! You hurt me first! You were the one who tried to hurt me first!!"

As Chen Xuanzang screamed in terror, he desperately tried to break free from the invisible shackles of Guanyin Bodhisattva's aura and escape into the distance, using the little remaining magical power in his body.

He muttered incoherently.

"The robe...you tampered with it...you're going to ruin me...I can't fall into your hands...you'll tear me to pieces...Avici Hell...I don't want to go to Avici Hell!!"

However, his cultivation level was like a firefly compared to the bright moon in front of Guanyin Bodhisattva. No matter how he struggled, he could not shake the invisible bondage in the slightest. Instead, due to fear and despair, his movements became more and more staggering and pathetic.

As Guanyin Bodhisattva approached step by step with a cold, sinister smile on her face, her powerful aura almost suffocating him, Chen Xuanzang was filled with endless despair.

At this critical moment, out of the corner of his eye, he suddenly caught sight of a figure—a figure dressed in flowing white robes, handsome and otherworldly, slowly walking from the edge of the chaotic square!

The man's expression was calm, and his steps were unhurried, as if the earth-shattering battle and chaos around him had nothing to do with him, and he was simply strolling around.

Chen Xuanzang's eyes widened instantly!

He recognized him! It was that immortal! The mysterious white-robed immortal who had given him the life-saving elixir!
Seeing a lifeline in his despair, Chen Xuanzang no longer cared about anything else.
As if grasping at the last glimmer of hope, he desperately cried out for help towards Lin Zhu with all his might.

"Immortal! Immortal in white! Save me! Please save me!!"

"If you'll save me, I'll give you anything! My life, my loyalty, everything I have! Please, save me! I don't want to die!!!"

Upon hearing Chen Xuanzang's shrill cry, Lin Zhu was slightly taken aback at first, then a playful smile appeared on his face as he teased, "Oh?"

"Now you know to call for help? Where did that ferocity go when you were hitting someone?"

His voice wasn't loud, but it clearly reached the ears of Chen Xuanzang and Guanyin Bodhisattva, who was about to pounce on him.

Chen Xuanzang was both ashamed and afraid, wishing he could find a crack in the ground to crawl into, while Guanyin Bodhisattva was so angry that she trembled all over, feeling a surge of blood rushing to her head!

"Lin Zhu!! You...you're being insolent!!"

Guanyin Bodhisattva no longer cared about her Bodhisattva demeanor and pointed at Lin Zhu, angrily rebuking him in a shrill voice.

"You were clearly just watching the show! You watched this fiend commit atrocities, you watched me being humiliated, why didn't you step in to uphold justice sooner?! Now that I'm about to capture this wretch, you jump out to stop me?! What are you really up to?!"

The more she spoke, the more aggrieved she felt. She, a dignified Bodhisattva, had been brutally beaten and humiliated today. Now, when she wanted to take revenge, this wicked man was blocking her way. What kind of justice was this?!

Upon hearing this, Lin Zhu's playful expression vanished instantly, replaced by a cold solemnity.

He snorted coldly, his voice like the clash of ice, carrying an undeniable authority.

"Hmph! What a hypocrite! Guanyin, as a Bodhisattva, instead of saving all sentient beings, you bully a weak mortal who has just escaped demonic possession and is unarmed?! What a display of power!"

Before he could finish speaking, Lin Zhu casually waved his hand!

"Om-!"

A terrifying magical power, far purer and more violent than Chen Xuanzang's demonic energy before, seemingly containing the very essence of the laws of heaven and earth, crashed down like an invisible giant hammer onto the invisible aura binding Guanyin Bodhisattva that was enveloping Chen Xuanzang!
"Crack!"

The aura that was powerful enough to imprison a Golden Immortal shattered like fragile glass before this force! Not only that, but the remaining force crashed into Guanyin Bodhisattva like a raging sea!
"puff--!"

Guanyin Bodhisattva had no time to make any effective defense. She only felt an irresistible force coming towards her. Her protective Buddhist light dimmed instantly. She was as if she had been hit head-on by a prehistoric beast. Blood gushed out and her body flew backward uncontrollably, crashing heavily to the ground once again. This created an even deeper human-shaped crater in the already cracked square, and dust filled the air!
"you you!!!"

Guanyin Bodhisattva struggled to climb out of the pit, her hair disheveled, her body covered in dust mixed with golden blood, looking extremely miserable.

She pointed at Lin Zhu, her lips trembling with anger, tears welling up in her eyes—a mixture of humiliation, rage, and boundless hatred!

"Lin Zhu! You've gone too far! How dare you stop me?!"

Lin Zhu stood with his hands behind his back, his white robes swaying gently in the breeze, his expression stern and righteous as he spoke.

"Why wouldn't I dare stop you?! Chen Xuanzang is the Grand Master of Buddhist Orders, personally appointed by His Majesty the Great Tang! He is a highly virtuous, gentle, and beloved monk!"

Even if I were to be misled by a villain and fall into demonic possession, my crime does not warrant death! It is not your place to use torture in private! This is the territory of the Great Tang Dynasty, and the laws of the land and the heavens will deal with it!

Upon seeing this, Emperor Taizong of Tang, Li Shimin, immediately understood and stepped forward, adopting an imperial demeanor and solemnly echoing the sentiment.

"What the Lord of the Prison says is absolutely right! The country has its laws, and Heaven has its rules! Even if Master Xuanzang is wrong, he should be judged and convicted by me and by the laws of the Tang Dynasty! The Bodhisattva's attempt to carry out private punishment was indeed inappropriate!"

At this moment, Chen Xuanzang finally scrambled to Lin Zhu's side, tightly gripping Lin Zhu's clothes. He huddled there like a frightened quail, trembling all over, not daring to look at the Guanyin Bodhisattva who looked like a madman.

Guanyin Bodhisattva looked at the two people singing in harmony, and then at the "enlightened monk" trembling behind the tall figure. She felt an extreme sense of frustration and absurdity welling up in her heart. She was so angry that her vision went black and she almost spat out a mouthful of blood!
She suffered such a brutal and inhumane beating for nothing! The monster who beat her up suddenly became a "victim of evil" and a "gentle and virtuous" enlightened monk? And she, the victim, became a bully who "bullies ordinary people" and "intends to carry out vigilante justice"?!
Is there no justice left?! Is there no law left?!

She was so aggrieved that she almost cried out, but her strong pride made her bite her lip tightly, forcing back the tears that were about to flow. She felt only a chill and despair in her heart.

Just as the stalemate was at its peak, another unexpected event occurred in the sky!
“Buzz——!!!”

The boundless Buddhist light, like a golden ocean, instantly engulfed the entire sky above Chang'an! The majestic chanting of Buddhist hymns resounded throughout the universe, and boundless pressure descended like the collapse of the heavens! All the mortals present felt their souls tremble, and they couldn't help but want to kneel down!

A grand and majestic Buddhist chant, yet containing an uncontrollable rage, exploded like thunder from the heavens.

"Lin Zhu, the God of Hell! You are resorting to sophistry and going too far!"

Golden light converged, and an enormous golden Buddha statue, smiling with a flower in hand but with a serene expression, appeared above the clouds. It was the Buddha Tathagata of the Western Paradise personally arriving!
Upon seeing the Buddha descend, Guanyin Bodhisattva, who had been holding back, could no longer hold back, and all her grievances and pain erupted instantly!
Like a little girl who had suffered a great injustice at school and finally met her parents, she disregarded all semblance of bodhisattva decorum and rushed towards the golden statue of the Buddha, sobbing and choking with tears streaming down her face.

"Buddha! Buddha, you must do justice for your disciple! Your disciple... your disciple was humiliated and beaten by that demon Chen Xuanzang, and lost all face! Now this prison god Lin Zhu is... is even biased towards that demon, preventing your disciple from taking revenge!"

They...they ganged up on the disciple! Waaaaah..."

She cried so hard, as if she wanted to let out all the tears she had held back while being beaten.

When Buddha looked at Guanyin Bodhisattva, who had fallen to his feet and was crying her heart out, and then at Chen Xuanzang, who was being protected by Lin Zhu and looked like a good citizen with no conscience, he felt a chill run from the soles of his feet to the top of his head, and his heart sank.
He was a step too late!
How did this once-good pilgrim turn into such a mess?! And he's even being protected by that wicked Lin Zhu?! Look at how dependent Chen Xuanzang is, it's like he's recognizing a thief as his father!

No! I absolutely cannot let my long-term plan be ruined! I must get this wicked disciple back!
The Buddha suppressed his shock, anger, and anxiety, his face grim. His immense and terrifying pressure, like the abyss of the universe, pressed down on Lin Zhu as if it were a tangible force, his voice as cold as ice that had stood for millennia.

"Lin Zhu, the God of Hell! This is an internal affair of our Western Paradise. Chen Xuanzang is a disciple of our Buddhist sect. He has committed the heinous crimes of murdering the Buddha and insulting the Bodhisattva. He should be brought back to our Western Paradise for punishment! You have no right to interfere. Hand him over immediately!"

Faced with this terrifying pressure, enough to shatter the minds of even an ordinary Grand Luo Golden Immortal, Lin Zhu merely tilted his head slightly, his clear yet unfathomable eyes coldly fixed on the Buddha, his tone calm yet carrying a chilling edge. (End of Chapter)