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

In his view, he could easily extort 200,000 merits from the Western Paradise in one go, and his family could also produce Chaos Green Lotus steadily, so 48,000 was really not a large amount.

He even secretly grumbled to himself.

Surely no one is so poor that they would keep the 8,000 merits of the divine water as a family heirloom?

The Jade Emperor forcibly suppressed his grievances and heartache, took a deep breath, and felt his hands trembling slightly.

He put down his wine glass, pretended to be nonchalant, quickly wiped the moisture from the corner of his eyes with the back of his hand, and forced a smile as he explained.

"Cough cough... It's nothing, it's nothing. Just now, this merit water... um, it burned my throat a little, burned my throat..."

Just then, Venus returned, holding a gourd that looked... very ordinary, even a bit dusty, and carefully handed it to Lin Zhu.

"Lord Prison God, this is a gift of 40,000 merits of divine water bestowed by His Majesty."

Venus's voice carried a barely perceptible hint of reluctance and trembling. Using such an ordinary container to hold such precious merit water was truly a manifestation of the Heavenly Court's petty pride—since it couldn't compare to the capacity of your broken gourd, at least the container shouldn't appear too deliberate or humble.

The Jade Emperor looked at the dusty gourd, mustered his spirits, and tried to use the 40,000 merits of the divine water to regain his last bit of dignity and honor.

He straightened his back and tried his best to make his voice sound bold and magnanimous.

"Minister Lin, this 40,000 Merit Water is a small token of our congratulations from the Emperor and the Heavenly Court to your advancement to the half-step Quasi-Saint realm! Please accept it and use it as you see fit! We hope that you will cultivate diligently in the future, reach the Quasi-Saint realm as soon as possible, and make unparalleled contributions to the Heavenly Court!"

Lin Zhu took the dusty gourd and could feel the immense power of merit and vows contained within it. At the same time, he keenly sensed the reluctance of Venus and the pain hidden beneath the Jade Emperor's feigned composure.

He looked at the gourd in his hand, then looked up at the Jade Emperor on the dragon throne, whose eyes were darting around and whose lips were twitching slightly, and tentatively asked.

"Your Majesty, you... seem somewhat tired? If the Heavenly Court is currently facing financial difficulties, perhaps I could exchange this Merit Water for another reward?"

He meant well, thinking that the Jade Emperor might be in some kind of difficulty.

But to the Jade Emperor, these words were nothing short of another invisible blow!

"Change?! Change what?!"

The Jade Emperor, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, raised his voice several octaves, his voice filled with an almost frantic excitement.

"I said I would reward you, and that is that! What are a mere 40,000 units of merit-based divine water to me or to the Heavenly Court?! A drop in the ocean! You...you can take it! Use it however you like! I will not say a word!"

He practically roared these words, as if only with such extreme "generosity" could he conceal the frantically bleeding wounds in his heart and his crumbling dignity.

Lin Zhu took the dusty gourd. It felt slightly heavy in his hand. With a slight probe of his divine sense, he could feel the power of vows contained in the 40,000 merits of the divine water inside.

However, perhaps due to preconceived notions, or perhaps because the divine water produced by the Chaos Green Lotus was too pure, he always felt that the one given by the Jade Emperor seemed to have a slightly mixed aura, and smelled a bit like... an indescribable "aged" aroma, far inferior to the fresh, pure, and harmless water produced by his own Green Lotus.

"This taste... tsk, I'll keep it for myself."

Lin Zhu muttered to himself, instantly dismissing the idea of ​​enjoying it.

Just as he was pondering how to deal with this "defective" gourd, the familiar task notification sound rang in his mind again.

"Ding! Instant task issued."

A generous boss.

"Task requirements."

He then transferred the 40,000 kilos of merit-giving water, recently bestowed upon him by the Jade Emperor, to his subordinate enforcer, Nezha.

"Task rewards."

Four portions of the merit-giving holy water.

"Ok?"

Lin Zhu was stunned. This task... was far too easy! It was practically a free gift of four high-quality divine waters! Although he didn't understand why the system issued such a task, the benefits were real, and it would be foolish not to accept it.

He immediately recited it in his mind.

"Accept the mission!"

Then, he looked up at the Jade Emperor on the dragon throne, who was still trying to maintain appearances but whose eyes kept glancing at the gourd, and asked again to confirm.

"Your Majesty, you just said that I can use this merit-making water as I please?"

The Jade Emperor was feeling extremely distressed, and upon hearing this, he almost reflexively straightened his back, waved his hand, and spoke the most heart-wrenching words in the most heroic tone.

"Of course! A king's word is law! What is bestowed upon you is yours! Use it however you wish! I have no objection!"

"That's good."

Lin Zhu nodded, a "I'm relieved" smile appearing on her face.

Immediately afterward, under the astonished gazes of the Jade Emperor, Venus, and all the immortals in the hall, Lin Zhu suddenly turned around, casually flicked his arm, and tossed the dusty gourd containing 40,000 merits of divine water at Nezha, who was standing at the front of the military officer's line and looking at him with admiration, as if it were an insignificant piece of junk!

"Nezha!"

Lin Zhu called out.

"Huh? Boss!"

Nezha instinctively reached out and caught the flying gourd. The heavy feeling in his hand and the faint, vast power of the vow left him completely stunned. He stared blankly at Lin Zhu, then looked down at the gourd in his arms, his mind unable to process what was happening.

Lin Zhu smiled at his blank expression and spoke in a casual tone, as if announcing this month's performance bonus.

"Here you go, this is your bonus for this month. Now drink it."

"puff--!!!"

On the dragon throne, the Jade Emperor, who had just drunk a mouthful of imperial wine to calm his nerves, spat it all out upon hearing these words, splashing Taibai Jinxing below!
He stared wide-eyed at Lin Zhu as if he were looking at a monster, his face filled with disbelief!

Four...fourty thousand merit-based divine water...as...as a monthly bonus?! And now...drink it?!

Who exactly is this Lin Zhu?! How can there be such a wealthy person in the world who doesn't care about the sacred water of merit?!
Meanwhile, the eyes of the other immortals in the hall were all focused on the dusty gourd in Nezha's arms!
Their reactions were even more fascinating.

Some of the spirits opened their mouths wide, their eyes glazed over, as if their intelligence had been reduced to a lower dimension, and they were completely unaware that saliva was dripping from the corners of their mouths.

Some stared intently at the gourd, their eyes filled with fascination, as if it were not a gourd, but the only path to the pinnacle of the Great Dao, their breathing becoming heavy.

Even more shockingly, some celestial officials who were usually quite reserved suddenly lost their composure and began to hiss in low voices.

"Lord Prison God! Does the Nine-Level Heavenly Prison need a sweeper?! This humble immortal is willing to go!"

"My lord! Leave the garbage collection to me! I promise not a speck of dust will be left behind!" "As long as I can follow Lord Prison God, I'll do anything, even serving tea and water!"

Forty Thousand Merit Divine Water!

This is enough to save a Great Luo Golden Immortal countless years of arduous cultivation, and even allow them to touch the threshold of a higher realm!
Such an opportunity is incredibly tempting to the vast majority of immortals and gods who are struggling on the path of cultivation!

Although they dared not snatch it, their deep-seated, soul-stirring desire and envy almost set the entire Lingxiao Palace ablaze!

Holding the heavy gourd, Nezha felt the countless burning gazes around him that were almost melting him. His heart was pounding and his limbs were going weak.

A mixture of immense joy and unprecedented fear nearly suffocated him.

He gritted his teeth and pushed the gourd in his arms forward with all his might, his voice trembling with excitement and trepidation.

"Boss... Boss!"

This...this is too valuable! I can't accept it! I really can't accept it!

He explained incoherently.

"Countless Great Luo Golden Immortals may not be able to accumulate enough resources to break through to the Perfect Realm even after one or two eons of arduous cultivation, let alone have the opportunity to touch the half-step Quasi-Saint!"

"My lord, you so easily bestowed such a precious treasure upon me. Nezha... what merit does Nezha possess?! Besides, you yourself need it for your cultivation! You should keep it for yourself!"

As he spoke, he tried to stuff the gourd back to Lin Zhu.

However, just as he looked up, ready to hand over the gourd, his movements froze, and his eyes widened instantly, becoming bigger than copper bells!

Not only him, but the Jade Emperor on the dragon throne, Taibai Jinxing below, and all the immortals who were still drooling all seemed to be frozen in place, their eyes fixed on Lin Zhu's... other hand!

Suddenly, Lin Zhu's left hand held another identical, dusty gourd! Moreover, judging from the even purer and more vast power of merit emanating from that gourd, it clearly contained... divine water of merit!
The quantity seems to be... no less than the one given to Nezha earlier!
The Jade Emperor felt a chill run from the soles of his feet straight to the top of his head. His finger trembled as he pointed at the gourd in Lin Zhu's left hand, his voice changing with disbelief and horror.

"Lin... Minister Lin... what... what's in your other gourd?!"

Lin Zhu was somewhat bewildered by the expressions of the Jade Emperor and the others, who looked as if they had seen a ghost. He shook the gourd in his left hand, which contained four portions of his own merit water, and answered with an air of matter-of-fact.

"Oh, this is also merit-making water. My family is poor and doesn't have a big container, so I have to store it in separate containers, otherwise it would be such a waste to spill it."

"My family...we're poor...we pack them separately..."

"It's...it's also the holy water of merit..."

These two sentences were like two bolts of chaotic divine thunder from the heavens, striking the very depths of the souls of every immortal!

The entire Lingxiao Palace fell into an unprecedented and utter silence!

You can hear the needle drop!

Immediately afterwards——

"hiss--!!!!!"

"hiss--!!!!!!"

Gasps of astonishment rose and fell, one after another, as if trying to drain all the spiritual energy from the hall!

The Jade Emperor inhaled the most intensely, his face turning blue, his chest heaving violently. He wanted nothing more than to slap himself hard across the face! Trying to save face! I'll teach you to pretend you're something you're not!

That's it, we've completely lost face! And we're almost done for inside too!
Seeing the expressions on everyone's faces, as if their worldviews had collapsed, Lin Zhu shook his head helplessly and casually put away both gourds.

He raised the wine cup that the fairy servant had filled earlier and said loudly.

"Many thanks to Your Majesty for your generous gift, and with all my colleagues as witnesses, Lin Zhu is deeply grateful! Here, I raise a toast to Your Majesty, and a toast to everyone here!"

Seeing this, Nezha knew he couldn't refuse the divine water. He gritted his teeth, pulled out the stopper of the dusty gourd, and poured out the 40,000 merits of the divine water.

He gulped it down like he was drinking cold water!
A vast and boundless power of will exploded within him, washing over his limbs, bones, meridians, and primordial spirit!
A dazzling divine light erupted from his body, and his aura began to rise uncontrollably!
The Jade Emperor and the immortals watched Nezha's "wasteful" yet incredibly enviable drinking, and then thought of Lin Zhu's words, "My family is poor, so I'll just pack it separately." They were all filled with mixed feelings, a bittersweet mix of emotions welling up in their hearts.

Suppressing their indescribable complex emotions, they all raised their glasses and, following Lin Zhu, tilted their heads back and drank the wine in one gulp.

However, the wine tasted incredibly bitter at this moment and was difficult to swallow.

Lin Zhu put down his wine glass, feeling quite pleased with the four extra portions of pure merit water in his system space after completing the task, and sighed inwardly.

"Today was another day of helping my subordinates improve, maintaining harmony in Heaven, and reaping a great harvest. It was truly wonderful!"

This turmoil, sparked by the reward, eventually came to a slow end amidst Lin Zhu's "generosity" and the extreme shock, envy, frustration, and self-doubt of the Jade Emperor and the immortals.

……

Meanwhile, deep within the Great Thunder Temple on Mount Ling in the Western Paradise.

Chen Xuanzang, who had been forcibly brought back by Guanyin Bodhisattva using her immobilization spell, slowly awoke.

He found himself unable to move or even speak, his entire body bound tightly to a golden pillar inscribed with Sanskrit.

Beneath him was not the prison floor he had imagined, but a pool radiating a gentle yet vast Buddhist light!

The water in that pool was not ordinary water, but rather a concentrated form of pure Buddhist power, which continuously washed over and permeated his body.

However, in Chen Xuanzang's perception, which was filled with prejudice and fear, this pool of water, which was filled with peaceful Buddhist light, seemed to be a boiling oil pot!
"Hot...so hot! It's burning me!!"

"They...they really threw me into boiling oil hell!!"

"Immortal Lin is right! Mount Ling is hell!"

They're going to deep-fry me! Torture me!!

His soul was screaming in silent agony, recalling Lin Zhu's warnings about "Buddha's light torture" and "brainwashing," and he was convinced that he was suffering the cruelest punishment!
The intense burning sensation kept coming, almost causing him to lose consciousness, and his heart was filled with extreme resistance and despair!

After the effects of the medicine wore off, he was completely reduced to a mortal. Faced with the vast power of the Buddha, he was powerless to resist and could only wait in endless pain and fear for the unknown fate that he believed was destined to be tragic.

Meanwhile, in a secluded meditation room deep within the Great Thunderclap Temple on Mount Ling in the Western Paradise.

The atmosphere was so heavy it was almost palpable.

The Buddha's face was ashen, and the vast Buddha light surrounding him seemed somewhat disordered, just like his anxious state of mind at that moment.

His gaze was fixed on Chen Xuanzang in the center of the meditation room, bound to a golden pillar and submerged in the Buddha's Light Pool, his face still contorted in pain, silently screaming. (End of Chapter)