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

Guanyin Bodhisattva stood to one side, her once solemn and compassionate face now filled with weariness and helplessness.

The jade bottle she held in her hand was tilted slightly, and the "Compassionate Lapis Lazuli Liquid" inside, which was said to be able to purify all filth and soothe all restlessness, was turning into a trickle, constantly washing over Chen Xuanzang's body, trying to cleanse the stubborn demonic energy.

However, a day and a night passed, and the pure liquid seemed to have vanished without a trace. The conflict between Buddhism and demons within Chen Xuanzang's body not only did not ease, but became even more intense due to the stimulation of external Buddhist power!
The Mara markings beneath his skin flickered erratically, fiercely clashing with the Buddha's light in the pool, emitting a subtle yet unsettling hissing sound.

"Buddha..."

Guanyin Bodhisattva put away the jade bottle, her voice tinged with a hint of hoarseness and despair.

"This Compassionate Glazed Liquid... is no longer effective. If this continues, at most one more day, Jin Chanzi's true spirit will be completely eroded and annihilated by the demonic energy... At that time, all will be lost!"

The Buddha clenched his fist tightly, his knuckles turning white from the force.

How could he not know that time was of the essence? But that supreme Tai Chi Pill, which could harmonize Yin and Yang and balance Buddha and demon, had now become the biggest obstacle blocking the lifeline of Journey to the West!
"Taiji Pill... Laozi!"

The Buddha spat out these words through clenched teeth, his face terrifyingly grim.

"If it weren't for the lack of this elixir, how could our Western Paradise's millennia-long plans have been subject to the control of others?!"

Guanyin Bodhisattva hesitated for a moment, then cautiously made the suggestion.

“Buddha, things have come to this, perhaps… we should go to the Tushita Palace again and plead with Laozi? Maybe…”

"A plea?!"

The Buddha abruptly interrupted her, letting out a cold, mocking laugh filled with suppressed anger and the humiliation of being outmaneuvered.

"Plead with him? Do you think Lao Tzu is some kind of benevolent believer?"
He was the benevolent corpse that the Sage Taiqing had severed. He appeared to be inactive, but in reality, he was the most shrewd and calculating!
He had already anticipated our urgent need for this elixir!

His eyes flashed with a cold light that seemed to see through everything yet was filled with helplessness, and his voice carried an almost teeth-gritting certainty.

"I dare say that he has already prepared the Taiji Pill! He is just waiting for us to come to him so that he can raise the price and extort the merit water of my Western Paradise! Just like the 'Divine Spirit Pill' last time!"
He's treating my Western Paradise like a treasure trove of merit, taking whatever he wants!

The moment he finished speaking, a golden-bodied Arhat hurriedly entered the meditation room, knelt down, and reported.

"Reporting to Buddha and Guanyin! A secret report from our spies in Heaven confirms that there is absolutely no Taiji Pill in stock inside or outside the Tushita Palace, including Laozi's private treasury! Not a single one!"

"what?!"

Guanyin Bodhisattva cried out in surprise.

After a brief moment of astonishment, the Buddha's face did not show disappointment, but instead revealed an even stronger rage, as if he had been tricked!
"Excellent! Excellent Laozi! Excellent 'nothing remains'!"

The Buddha's body suddenly erupted with Buddha light, illuminating the entire meditation room as if it were daytime. The terrifying aura made the golden Arhat and Guanyin Bodhisattva tremble involuntarily!
"He's deliberately emptying his inventory to create the illusion that he has no pills left! That way, when we come to him for help, he can use the excuse of the difficulty in finding materials and refining the pills to ask for a higher price! He might even directly demand the refining method for the Merit Divine Water!"

The Buddha, enraged, laughed instead, his voice like a chilling wind from the deepest hell.

"First, they used the Divine Elixir to make the Tang Emperor immune to all ghosts, ruining my Underworld's plans! Now they want to use the Taiji Elixir to drain my Western Paradise's merits once again! Time and again, they've stolen the foundation of my Buddhist sect. Do they really think my Western Paradise is a clay Bodhisattva, without a shred of temper?!"

In his rage, an unprecedented surge of malevolence welled up in the Buddha's heart.

A fierce glint flashed in his eyes. He slammed his hand on the lotus platform beneath him and said sternly.

"This scoundrel has gone too far! If he is not punished, won't he dare to ride roughshod over my Western Paradise in the future?! I am determined to teach him a lesson he will never forget! And those arrogant and domineering servants under him, none of them will escape!"

Guanyin Bodhisattva was so shocked by the Buddha's sudden and ruthless decision that she turned pale and hurriedly tried to dissuade him.

"Buddha! No!"
"But Laozi is, after all, a sage and a benevolent being, of venerable status. To clash with him might incur the sage's displeasure, with unimaginable consequences! I urge Buddha to reconsider!"

However, at this moment, the Buddha was blinded by the successive setbacks and his resentment towards Laozi, and he could not listen to any advice. He was determined to vent his anger!
……

Meanwhile, the court assembly in the Heavenly Court's Lingxiao Palace had already ended, but the shock and jubilation caused by Nezha's on-the-spot advancement to a half-step Quasi-Saint still echoed in the Thirty-Three Heavens.

The immortals gathered in twos and threes, and their conversations revolved entirely around Lin Zhu's arrogance and Nezha's extraordinary opportunities, their tone filled with endless envy and感慨 (gǎnkǎi, a feeling of deep emotion or reflection).

It is foreseeable that, as a result of this incident, Lin Zhu's prestige in the Heavenly Court and the allure of the Nine-Layer Heavenly Prison will reach an unprecedented height.

In stark contrast to the hustle and bustle outside, inside the empty Lingxiao Palace, sat a lonely figure sitting atop the Nine Dragons Incense Carriage.

The Jade Emperor did not return to his palace immediately as usual, but instead waved away his attendants and sat alone on the throne that symbolized the supreme ruler of the Three Realms.

A pot of imperial wine sat before him, but no immortal servants attended to him.

He drank one glass of wine after another in silence, his face no longer bearing the forced smile he had during court assemblies, only a deep sense of frustration, powerlessness, and self-doubt remaining.

He witnessed firsthand how Lin Zhu casually bestowed 40,000 merits of divine water as a "monthly bonus" upon his subordinates, and he also sensed the "assets" contained within Lin Zhu's seemingly worn-out gourd, which far exceeded his imagination.

What filled him with even more despair was the gap in their strength and resources. Lin Zhu was not only incredibly powerful, having advanced to the half-step Quasi-Saint level, but his magical treasures were also astonishing—the God-Slaying Spear, exuding murderous aura, and the Immortal-Slaying and God-Exterminating Blade, both of which were top-grade innate spiritual treasures!

Even more surprisingly, he vaguely sensed that the Golden Lotus of Merit under Lin Zhu's seat, which was originally only at the ninth grade, had quietly advanced to the twelfth or even thirteenth grade at some point!

This doesn't even include other unknown methods he might be hiding.

Looking at himself, although he was the ruler of the Three Realms and had the peak cultivation of a Quasi-Saint, the magic treasures he possessed and the resources he could use seemed so...shabby and inadequate compared to Lin Zhu's outrageously luxurious setup.

"I thought I could rule the Three Realms and hold the reins of Heaven... but I never expected..."

The Jade Emperor murmured to himself, his voice choked with emotion, which eventually turned into a long, bitter sigh.

He tilted his head back and drank the remaining wine in the pot in one gulp. The spicy wine burned his throat, but it was nothing compared to the stinging pain brought on by the disparity between reality and his heart.

Overwhelmed with sorrow, he couldn't help but clap his hands and hum an unknown, mournful tune. As he sang, two lines of tears finally slid down his cheeks. In the empty hall, he alone savored the sense of loss and loneliness that no one could understand.

……

Meanwhile, Lin Zhu was happily riding his cloud back to the Star Palace, ready to take stock of his day's gains and examine the four portions of Pure Merit Water awarded by the system. However, just as he was halfway there, about to step into his palace gates, his brows furrowed suddenly. He keenly sensed an extremely subtle yet unusually intense spatial tremor emanating from the direction of the Thirty-Three Heavens, a higher level of the Heavenly Court!

Immediately afterwards, a terrifying roar filled with violence and destruction faintly pierced through the layers of spatial barriers and entered his ears!

That direction is... the Heaven of Separation? The Tusita Heaven?

Lin Zhu raised her eyebrows, a playful expression on her face, and chuckled softly.

"Oh?"

Who is this blind fool, so audacious as to cause trouble on Laozi's territory? Truly astonishing.

Before he finished speaking, a figure descended from the sky in a flurry of activity; it was none other than Nezha, who had just stabilized his cultivation level and was radiant with health.

"Boss!"

Nezha's face showed a mixture of excitement and seriousness.

"You sensed it too? Something big has happened in Tushita Heaven! It's quite a commotion!"

Lin Zhu looked at Nezha, a meaningful smile slowly curving his lips, his eyes gleaming with the sharp light of someone who had spotted prey.

"Heh, it seems someone couldn't hold back any longer and resorted to desperate measures."

Lin Zhu chuckled softly, countless calculations flashing through his mind in an instant.

"That old man, Laozi, has spent his whole life refining elixirs; he must be quite wealthy."

Now that someone's come looking for trouble, as law enforcement officers maintaining order in the three realms, it's not unreasonable for us to go and 'mediate the dispute,' and incidentally collect a reasonable 'police handling fee' or 'protection fee,' right?"

The more he thought about it, the more he felt that this matter had great potential, and the playful and confident expression on his face became even stronger.

"Let's go, Nezha!"

Lin Zhu made a decisive move, flicking his sleeves.

"Come with me to Tushita Heaven to see what's going on! Maybe we can even pick up some 'unclaimed' pills or materials."

After saying that, the two smiled at each other, and transformed into two streaks of light, one white and one red. Instead of returning to the Star Palace, they changed direction and sped straight towards the direction of the Lihentian Tushuai Palace from which the tremor had come!

When Lin Zhu and Nezha arrived at Lihentian and stepped into the territory of the Tushita Palace, the scene that came into view surprised even Lin Zhu, who was very knowledgeable.

What was once a blessed land surrounded by auspicious clouds and filled with the fragrance of cinnamon has now been transformed into a raging sea of ​​fire!
The flames were no ordinary fire; they were a dark gold color, carrying a strong Buddhist aura, yet filled with a violent and destructive will. Wherever they passed, pavilions, towers, and spiritual plants were reduced to scorched earth and ruins!
Almost the entire Tushita Palace was burned down, and the air was filled with the smell of burning and a strange fragrance of burnt elixirs.

However, Laozi, who should have been presiding over this place, was nowhere to be found.

Clearly, the audacious murderer, after causing this astonishing destruction, had already taken advantage of the chaos to sneak in, or... had already succeeded and left?
Lin Zhu and Nezha stepped into the territory of the Doushuai Palace, which had become a scorched earth and a sea of ​​fire. The air was filled with the pungent smell of burning, the strange fragrance of burnt pills, and... a faint trace of blood and the desolate atmosphere of a collapsing primordial spirit.

As far as the eye could see, there were broken walls and ruins, with charred beams and pillars still emitting wisps of smoke.

Even more shocking was the sight of the dead and wounded among the attendants of the Tushita Palace who were usually responsible for guarding the alchemy furnace and tending the herb garden! Several headless corpses lay on the ground, their wounds smooth as mirrors, clearly indicating that they had been instantly decapitated by a sharp blade!

Their primordial spirits had completely dissipated, not from natural disintegration, but from being forcibly devoured by someone using domineering methods. Only a faint trace of their true spirits managed to escape, floating aimlessly above the ruins, emitting silent lamentations.

This place is the Daoist temple of Laozi, the benevolent corpse severed by the Supreme Sage of Morality and the Heavenly Venerable of the Great Purity. It is no exaggeration to say that it is one of the safest places in the Three Realms! Who could have imagined that someone would break in so easily and cause such horrific destruction and slaughter?!

The other palace officials and divine generals who rushed to the scene upon hearing the news were all shocked and their faces were filled with horror and disbelief when they saw the tragic scene.

"Hiss... Who is so audacious as to commit violence in the sacred temple?!"

"Look at this method, ruthless and decisive, killing with a single blow, not even sparing the primordial spirit... This is definitely not the work of an ordinary demon!"

"Moreover, the ability to sneak into the Tushita Palace so quietly must mean that they are extremely familiar with this place..."

The crowd whispered amongst themselves, each already having their own guesses: it was most likely the work of an "acquaintance"! But even if they had guessed, no one dared to utter the murderer's name—offending a saintly and benevolent corpse was a heinous crime for which even the destruction of body and soul would not be enough to atone for it! Who would dare to make such a connection, and who would dare to speak it aloud?
Amidst this oppressive atmosphere of shock and suspicion, Lin Zhu, accompanied by Nezha, strolled over leisurely, as if taking a walk after a meal.

He looked at the mess before him, his face showing no sympathy or anger, but rather a lazy, sleepy expression, as if he hadn't woken up yet.

His gaze swept over the charred remains of the alchemy furnaces and the scattered, either charred or broken pills, before he shook his head in disgust and muttered under his breath.

"Tsk, too late. The good stuff has either been stolen or destroyed, and all that's left are shoddy goods. There's no fun in taking advantage of the chaos..."

His undisguised whisper of "regret," though not loud, was heard by everyone present, who wasn't sharp-eyed and perceptive? Instantly, a barrage of surprised and astonished gazes focused on him.

"Even...even the God of Hell said there's no way?"

"This murderer... seems to be quite extraordinary!"

"Could it be that even Lin Yushen can't find any clues, or... he doesn't dare to investigate?"

Hearing the whispers around him, Lin Zhu waved his hand lazily, yawned, and drew a conclusion directly.

"Alright, everyone disperse. This case has nothing more to investigate, so let's close it here."

As soon as he said this, the Tushita Palace attendants who had survived by chance and were immersed in grief and fear immediately erupted in uproar!

A little boy with soot on his face and bloodshot eyes suddenly rushed out, pointed at Lin Zhu, and his voice trembled sharply with anger and sorrow.

"Lin, the God of Hell! You...you are the God of Hell who enforces the laws of the Three Realms, in charge of the Heavenly Punishments! Now that my Tushita Palace has suffered such a calamity, my fellow disciples have died tragically, and my master is nowhere to be found, you...you are just being so perfunctory, saying that there is nothing to be found?! You clearly don't want to care! You are not worthy of being the God of Hell who enforces the laws!"

This little boy was so angry he lost his mind, daring to criticize Lin Zhu to his face. (End of Chapter)