Chapter 21: Dispersed

  Time is like the wind, sometimes fast and sometimes slow, but you can never grasp it.

  In a flash, three days have passed. On the smooth reef washed by seawater, a figure stands, gazing out at the sea every day.

  Although the old dragon king was petty, he didn't do anything wrong and shouldn't have received such punishment. Thinking of the old dragon king's blood staining the vast ocean surface, Li Mu felt a pang of guilt. After all, he had been taken care of by him for many days, and the taste of repaying kindness with enmity was indeed unbearable.

  Is she all right?

  What makes Li Mu most worried is still Ao Ning, who is entangled by the devil of illness. Can she control her own illness? Thinking back to when she was fighting against Sun Wukong, turning anger into strength, the stronger her strength became with increasing anger, what kind of illness is this after all.

  Li Mu himself had limited knowledge, and his only hope now was his master, Tongyuan Daxian. "Wait for a while, then take her to Mount Tongyuan!"

  Li Mu let out a soft sigh, things had blown up to this point, and he really didn't have the face to go visit the Dragon Palace now. During this period of time, his strength had made significant progress, basically recovering to about 50% of his former power. If he rode the wind, it would take him around ten days to half a month to reach Tongyuan Mountain.

  He doesn't want to trouble the monkey, and he can't trouble the monkey either.

  Since the monkey got the golden hoop rod, he danced with joy every day and looked for someone to try it out. Except for fighting against the Bull Demon King for tens of thousands of rounds without a winner, only the Peng Demon King could barely keep up with the monkey's speed, and the Jiaolong Demon King relied on his aquatic skills. Sun Wukong was naturally clever and had extremely high intelligence, and during the trial, he actually created a set of rod techniques called Qianlie Shenhou Gun. Together with his original Qianjun Rod Technique and Youlong Rod Technique, his strength increased greatly.

  "Great Sage, why are you alone here?"

  Although the sea water crashed against the reef with a loud roar, Li Mu's senses could still distinguish people. A beautiful and elegant woman, her gentle voice like water, made one's heart feel refreshed, comparable to the appearance of a nine-heaven fairy, if placed among people, no one would suspect that she was a demon who killed without blinking an eye.

  Li Mu thought hard, but didn't know which demon king she was. There were too many demon kings who came to rely on her, except for a few with strong powers and those who showed off, the rest Li Mu really couldn't remember.

  The woman seemed to have her own worries, not a lovesick person, how could she think of finding a quiet place in this lively gathering? She just didn't expect to run into that carefree and unrestrained Standing Saint with an evil smile on his face.

  She saw Li Mu's embarrassment at a glance and introduced herself: "I am Bai Lian, the Blood Lotus Demon, the island owner of Xianlian Island."

  "Sorry, it's been so long that I forgot your name." Li Mu's mouth corner rose, sweeping away the previous gloom, "How did you also end up here?"

  "There's nothing, just feeling a bit stifled, coming out to get some fresh air." Bai Lian stepped forward, walking up to Li Mu's side and standing shoulder to shoulder with him. She couldn't conceal her own concerns like Li Mu could, those sentimental eyes had already fully revealed them in front of Li Mu.

  "I haven't asked you yet, have you been happy on the island during this time? If not, you can leave freely, after all, this is a monkey nest, not suitable for everyone." said Li Mu.

  Bai Lian hastily shook her head and said, "Great Sage, you misunderstood. These days are the happiest days for Bai Lian, and staying with all of you is also very delightful." As she spoke, she lowered her head again, and those eyes that could speak always revealed a deep sense of worry.

  "Don't call me Great Sage, that's what outsiders call me. Just call me Li Mu. So, do you have something on your mind? Tell me about it and see if I can help." Li Mu said with a guiding tone, seemingly forgetting that he was the one who was troubled just moments before.

  Bai Lian raised her eyes and looked at Li Mu. She saw that Li Mu was also looking at her curiously, but after a moment, he hesitated and turned away, wanting to speak but stopping himself.

  Li Mu raised an eyebrow and smiled lightly: "Are you thinking that I'm too weak to help you?"

  "Not, not," Bai Lian said hastily, "this has nothing to do with strength anymore."

  "That's an emotional issue, I'm also worried about it. Why don't we talk about it and find a solution together? How does that sound?" Li Mu smiled lightly, as if he was talking about something very casual, rather than the emotional issue that had been haunting him.

  Bai Lian was taken aback, not expecting Li Mu to speak so bluntly and lightly. She couldn't help but ask: "Big... Brother Mu, are you also... the Dragon Princess?" Bai Lian suddenly remembered when Sun Wukong fought the Dragon King, Li Mu rushed forward recklessly to save a girl.

  Li Mu didn't deny it and nodded: "Right, now that I've severely injured the Dragon King, I really don't know how to face her."

  "Oh."

  Bai Lian nodded slightly, staring at the sea surface below her feet. She didn't expect Li Mu to be so open-minded about emotional matters, liking someone was just that, and he wouldn't deliberately avoid it. Her heart was shaken: should she also take the initiative?

  "Huh! Old Eight, you're here!" Suddenly a dull thud was heard in the sky, and then Old Cow and Sun Monkey came down.

  "Boss, Seventh, what's going on with you two..." Li Mu looked at them curiously, it didn't seem like they were going to compete.

  The white lotus beside her suddenly became flustered, her eyes not knowing where to look, sometimes glancing up, but more often lowering her head and staring at the ground.

  She saw the change in Li Mu, now Li Mu was not the silly and naive little boy he used to be. As long as he had a mind, any emotional changes could not escape his eyes. Now Li Mu could basically confirm that Bai Lian's knot was tied to whom.

  The Bull Demon King said: "Old Eight, I plan to return to Mount Cuiyun, and have already spoken with the others about it."

  Li Mu was taken aback and said: "Why are you leaving when everything is fine?"

  Lao Niu said: "Under the sky, there is no banquet that will not disperse. You and I are in different places, but we are always brothers. Come to visit me at Cuiyun Mountain often! Take care!"

  The old cow had made up its mind, and Li Mubai and Sun Wukong no longer tried to persuade it. They bid each other farewell, turned into a stream of light, and disappeared into the sky.

  After the old cow left, Peng and Mo Wang also departed one after another. It's not that the Mountain of Flowers and Fruits is not good enough, nor is it that brothers are not loyal enough. When a person reaches a certain realm, what they pursue will be different too. A comfortable life is no match for passionate challenges. They may not be the strongest, but they must strive to become stronger.

  The Ninth Heaven Palace above, the Lingxiao Treasure Hall within:

  "Your Majesty, you must do justice for me." The East China Sea Dragon King Ao Guang, who had just recovered from his injuries, joined forces with the Dragon Kings of the South China Sea, West China Sea, and North China Sea to go to Heaven and file a complaint. The Dragon Prince Ao Jing, who had just returned from his training in a distant land, saw that his father was severely injured and felt both angry and distressed. He knelt before the Jade Emperor and tearfully pleaded: "Your Majesty, my East China Sea has always been kind to others. We remembered that the demon monkey had made contributions to the elimination of evil, so we lent him our magical weapon with good intentions. But he not only didn't thank my father, but also snatched away the treasure of the East China Sea, the Dinghai Shen Needle, and severely injured my father. Countless members of the sea tribe died as a result, and the thousand-year-old Dragon Palace almost perished in an instant. Please, Your Majesty, you must uphold justice for me."

  "We request the Jade Emperor to uphold justice." said Ao Qin, Ao Shun and Ao Reng.

  Still remembered that a long time ago, the four dragon kings were beaten by a child until they were covered in bruises and lost all face. Now again being stirred up by an emerging monkey until the sky and earth are overturned, it's really not good to spread this out.

  The four seas are connected by the same breath, although there may be internal strife and struggle between them, but they present a united front to the outside world. After all, this concerns the face of the dragon clan, the face of the four seas.

  The Jade Emperor had not spoken yet, but Li Jing could no longer hold back, taking a big step forward to the center of the hall and saying loudly: "Your Majesty, I will go and capture this demon immediately."

  The Jade Emperor hesitated, the monkey had indeed violated heavenly rules and should be taken back to Heaven for trial.

  Jade Emperor hesitated, and the Supreme Elder Lord immediately said: "Your Majesty still remembers Nezha. In those years, Nezha made trouble in the sea and committed a great mistake that filled the sky. However, he is indeed a powerful general of our heavenly court now. Your Majesty may send someone to descend to the mortal world to persuade him to surrender. If it doesn't work, we can still resort to force later."

  Yu Huang asked, and then he said to Long Wang: "Ao Guang, do you know what the Dinghai Shen needle is?"

  Ao Guang knew that the Supreme Old Lord was highly respected and didn't dare to disobey his words, so he replied: "I'll return the Old Lord, the Dinghai Divine Needle is the greatest treasure of the Eastern Sea, with it, we can calm the waters of the Four Seas."

  The Supreme Elder shook his head and chuckled, "Not so, the Dinghai Divine Needle was originally called the Ruyi Golden Hoop Rod. It's a treasure I personally refined during the time of Da Yu's water control. At that time, it was all thanks to this treasure that we were able to control the Yellow River. After Da Yu passed away, it remained in the Yellow River. As for why it appeared in the East Sea, I don't know what reason there is. But one thing can be certain, it's absolutely not the Treasure of Calming the Sea. The East Sea won't have any disasters even if it leaves."

  "That Ruyi Jingu Bang was forged for someone with the right fate, and since Da Yu's time, no one has been able to use it. Even I, its creator, have no way of using it. Weighing 13,500 kilograms, relying on brute force is definitely not enough to lift it, unless it acknowledges a master. So in the grand scheme of things, it freely chose its own master, and now that it has acknowledged the Monkey King as its master, why should the Dragon King pursue this further? Let's just give Lao Jun a bit of face and put aside this grudge."

  The Dragon King of the Four Seas had never heard such a story before, and the Dinghai Immortal Needle was indeed unshakeable for thousands of years, but it was taken away by the monkey with ease. The Supreme Old Lord had already said so, what else could the Dragon King say? He could only swallow his bitterness.

  The Dragon King of the Four Seas retreated, and the Jade Emperor immediately sent Taibai Jinxing down to earth to pacify him.

  Sun Wukong attaches great importance to his reputation, and it's better to be an official in the heavenly court than a demon in the lower world. With Taibai Jinxing's three-inch tongue that can talk people into submission, he has already been moved by the heavenly immortals' words. On the other hand, Li Mu doesn't think so, living a carefree life is more enjoyable than being in heaven.

  But he didn't persuade Sun Wukong, just like he didn't persuade the other sworn brothers to stay behind. Everyone has their own thoughts and choices, and they also have the right to pursue what they want. Since the monkey likes heaven, his brother can only wish him well.

  Have another cup of wine, and let's part with no more words.

  "Wood, Flower and Fruit Mountain will be in your care first, I, old Sun, have become a high-ranking official in Heaven, and naturally won't forget my brothers." The monkey was loyal and righteous, but who knew about that sentimental heart under his free-spirited appearance?

  The monkey left, and Li Mu suddenly felt very lonely again, as if the tens of thousands of demons were all strangers, and he had returned to the time when he had just descended. It seemed that this was just a dream, only the dream was somewhat real.

  Similarly heartbroken is the infatuated woman. Bai Lian watched as Sun Wukong's figure disappeared into the distance, feeling a pang of sadness, with tears welling up in her eyes. When emotions run deep, people are left alone; isn't this the infatuated heart of this infatuated woman?

  "The monkey has left, will you wait for him?"

  It must be a very happy thing to have such a gentle woman quietly thinking of you and loving you. Li Mu thought so, but he didn't know if there was also a heart in the dark depths of the ocean that was thinking of him. It's time to go see her, after all, one person can't bear the pain of longing alone, love must be fair for both people.

  "I'm willing to, even if he becomes a god or a Buddha, I'll wait for him." Bai Lian said firmly. The last teardrop slid down her delicate chin, and under the sunlight, it was surprisingly beautiful and touching.