“I will give you the Three Lives Gate, and you give me the Dark Domain Heavenly Net. How about an exchange?” the Wonderful Zen Woman said.
Zhang Ruochen replied, “Did you not just say you owe me something? Why start resorting to robbery with your superior cultivation? Forget the Mani Pearl I already gave you; saving your life alone should be worth you giving me the Three Lives Gate in return.”
The Wonderful Zen Woman shook her head, quite earnestly, and said, “That is different. First, you chose to save me; I never asked for it. Second, once a gift is given, how can it count? Gifts cannot be used as bargaining chips. For instance, when I gave you the Arhat White Pearl, did I ever think of taking it back?”
Zhang Ruochen smiled bitterly, unable to refute.
In that light, she did have the moral high ground.
“Even if that Arhat White Pearl was fake,” the Wonderful Zen Woman added.
“Fake?”
Zhang Ruochen was not particularly surprised, for who in the world besides him would be fool enough to give away a genuine one of Buddhism’s seven treasures?
If it had been a real Asura White Pearl, the Wonderful Zen Woman would surely have reclaimed it during their time in the Heavenly Gate.
The Wonderful Zen Woman parted her red lips slightly, a white glow shimmering within her mouth.
Her movement was graceful, like a mermaid exhaling a pearl; a white pearl the size of a pigeon’s egg floated out and appeared in her palm.
The white pearl radiated a hazy lustre, with Sanskrit characters rising and falling upon it.
It seemed capable of purifying all the world’s dust and impurities.
“Thanks to this Arhat White Pearl, every time the Withering Death Absolute flared up, I suffered a little less agony,” the Wonderful Zen Woman said, her eyes growing wistful as she sank into memories of her most bitter past.
The Arhat White Pearl hanging on Zhang Ruochen dissolved into a wisp of white mist and flew into the white pearl in the Wonderful Zen Woman’s hand. Clearly, that was the true pearl.
The Wonderful Zen Woman handed the genuine Arhat White Pearl to Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen looked at her with an unusual gaze, not quite grasping her intent.
Of course, he understood she meant to give him the real Arhat White Pearl; he simply could not fathom why she would do so.
Had the world gained yet another fool?
“What are you standing there for? Take it before I change my mind,” the Wonderful Zen Woman said, staring into Zhang Ruochen’s eyes, which shone brighter and more beautifully than the Arhat White Pearl and Mani Pearl combined.
Zhang Ruochen accepted the Arhat White Pearl and found no difference from the previous fake one, a testament to the Wonderful Zen Woman’s exquisite skill in crafting a counterfeit indistinguishable from the original.
A great god should possess such prowess.
“Exchanging pearl for pearl settles the past grievances once and for all,” the Wonderful Zen Woman said.
Zhang Ruochen gripped the Arhat White Pearl tightly and said, “Fine, that shows sincerity. Return the Fire God Armour to me, then?”
“It is merely one suit of armour, already given away, and now you want it back?” the Wonderful Zen Woman replied.
Zhang Ruochen said, “This armour is no trifling matter, not some ordinary treasure. Besides, when did I ever say it was yours? At the time, I merely lent it for your protection. If I had known you were a great god…”
“Hold on.”
A sly glint appeared in the Wonderful Zen Woman’s eyes, her own narrowing like crescent moons as she said, “What you said just now was… give.”
“So what?” Zhang Ruochen replied.
The Wonderful Zen Woman said, “You said it yourself. Spoken words must be honoured. Since you gave it, how can you take it back? I never asked for it or seized it; you offered it of your own accord. Sword God Ruochen truly lives up to his fame as the renowned spendthrift boy who scatters wealth like dirt.”
Whether facing the sea or the Wonderful Zen Woman, one would find a woman who rarely smiled, was exceedingly serious, and could even be called one who severed emotions and desires.
Anyone attempting to jest with her would likely end up awkwardly laughing alone.
Zhang Ruochen had never imagined that over a mere Fire God Armour, she could utter such playful and teasing words.
“I am hardly a boy,” Zhang Ruochen murmured to himself.
Of course, only he could hear that.
Zhang Ruochen said, “I truly do not understand. With your status and cultivation, aside from divine artifacts, what treasure in the world is not within easy reach for you? Why fixate on this Fire God Armour?”
The Wonderful Zen Woman offered a reason Zhang Ruochen could not refuse: “Because I am not wearing any clothes.”
As she spoke, she raised her slender jade arms and twirled once before Zhang Ruochen.
It was unclear whether she meant to emphasise her lack of attire or to mock his low cultivation for failing to see through the illusion of her robes.
Zhang Ruochen could not help glancing at the cyan Buddhist robe on her body but refrained from employing the powers of truth or origin. After one look, he withdrew his gaze.
“This Buddhist robe may block your eyes, but it cannot fend off the scrutiny of a divine venerable. You know, in the world of gods, for a beautiful woman, her clothes are most important, not the war weapons in her hands. Otherwise, encountering an evil divine venerable, she risks defilement. Though few gods harbour such perverse interests in women’s bodies,” the Wonderful Zen Woman said.
Zhang Ruochen replied, “I truly did not know that!”
“Now you do, and it is not too late. In future, when gifting treasures to women, you can consider this aspect,” the Wonderful Zen Woman said. Flames then enveloped her body, condensing into a suit of armour.
The Fire God Armour was not fixed in form; on her, it clung closely, outlining her figure’s curves to perfection.
How could she still resemble a Buddhist cultivator?
The Fire God Armour shifted again, becoming soft and transforming into a golden cassock.
Every golden edge burned with divine flames.
“Can you imagine me returning the Fire God Armour to you now?” the Wonderful Zen Woman asked.
Zhang Ruochen knew he would not get it back; perhaps he truly was a spendthrift boy, at least when it came to squandering wealth. He said, “It suits you better. No need to remove it!”
The Wonderful Zen Woman said, “I want the Dark Domain Heavenly Net to collect this dojo and take it away.”
“You intend to awaken that divine army?” Zhang Ruochen grew wary.
The Wonderful Zen Woman said, “You must understand, this dojo and that divine army were left to me by our ancestor; they are our family’s legacy. Is it not only right that I take the dojo?”
Zhang Ruochen had no desire to help her, nor to play the spendthrift boy again.
The Wonderful Zen Woman continued, “I know that though you are in the Infernal Realm, you have countless ties in the Heavenly Court. I investigated you thoroughly and know you, Zhang Ruochen, to be a man of deep loyalty and righteousness. That is precisely why I make an exception to trust you today. Rest assured, even as Yin Xue Tian’s descendant, I must cultivate the Nether Soldier Scroll to command the divine army. And the Nether Soldier Scroll has long been lost. Reviving the divine army remains a distant prospect.”
“But why should I give you the Dark Domain Heavenly Net? Having gained the Fire God Armour is not enough for you?” Zhang Ruochen said.
The Wonderful Zen Woman replied, “You misunderstand! I want the Dark Domain Heavenly Net precisely to repay you for the Fire God Armour.”
“What did you say?”
Her logic left Zhang Ruochen struggling to keep up.
He felt that the Wonderful Zen Woman no longer saw him as a mere spendthrift boy, but as a gullible mark. And a rather foolish one at that.
The Wonderful Zen Woman said, “Do you know Wujiang’s background?”
“The son of Great God Wentong, disciple of an ancient figure in the Dark Divine Hall. So what? Great God Wentong is dead; will that ancient figure in the Dark Divine Hall personally avenge his disciple?” Zhang Ruochen said.
The Wonderful Zen Woman replied, “That ancient figure possesses unparalleled cultivation and rarely appears even once in tens of thousands of years, so naturally he would not act personally. But whether Wujiang’s senior brother might come to kill you yourself is uncertain. Do you know who his senior brother is?”
“Reportedly, a master of formations,” Zhang Ruochen said.
The Wonderful Zen Woman shook her head and said, “That is another senior brother! The one I mean is the Hall Master of the Dark Divine Hall.”
Zhang Ruochen fell silent, plunged into profound shock.
He had assumed Wujiang’s mysterious and ancient master was the Hall Master of the Dark Divine Hall.
“Is there an existence in the Dark Divine Hall older than its Hall Master?” Zhang Ruochen asked.
The Wonderful Zen Woman said, “With your age and cultivation, of course you could not know this secret. The world of gods is far more terrifying than you imagine. Wujiang’s master is a taboo-like existence across the entire Infernal Realm, accepting only one disciple per eon. Now, do you grasp the trouble you have stirred?”
Zhang Ruochen said, “Then I do not understand: why did that ancient figure accept Wujiang as a disciple this eon?”
“That is the crux of it! You know Wujiang’s father is a great god of the Nether Hall, with… a slim chance at competing for Vice Hall Master. So why does Wujiang cultivate in the Dark Divine Hall instead of the Nether Hall?”
Zhang Ruochen said, “It concerns his mother? What is her identity?”
The Wonderful Zen Woman shook her head, withholding the information from Zhang Ruochen, and said, “When your cultivation advances, you will learn these secrets of the divine world naturally. What I tell you now is this: give me the Dark Domain Heavenly Net, and I will bear the responsibility for killing Wujiang, Mohe Yan, Master Qu You, and the others. It amounts to saving your life. Do you not think that repays the Fire God Armour?”
“I think you simply want the Dark Domain Heavenly Net,” Zhang Ruochen said.
The Wonderful Zen Woman replied, “It is better than you carrying it without daring to use it, is it not? Moreover, with the Nether Hall and Dark Divine Hall clashing over this, would you not be delighted?”
“No need to spell it out so plainly, is there?”
Zhang Ruochen sighed and took out the Dark Domain Heavenly Net, handing it to her. “You are right; carrying this thing is more curse than blessing. But I want something from this dojo!”
With the Dark Domain Heavenly Net in hand, the Wonderful Zen Woman felt immense joy and said indifferently, “Anything in this dojo you can take, feel free to claim.”
Zhang Ruochen stepped towards the dojo’s edge, the Buddha Ancestor’s Sarira on his body emitting brilliant light.
Upon encountering the Buddha light, the heavenly patterns parted automatically.
Zhang Ruochen reached the dojo’s exterior, arriving beside the stone cauldron engraved with patterns of the Udumbara flower and Sixth Ancestor’s Sanskrit script. He pressed his palms together, bowed deeply, and said, “Amitabha! I share an uncommon bond with the Sixth Ancestor; my master, Sage Monk Shumi, held the Sixth Ancestor in the highest regard. Yet I possess no relic of the Sixth Ancestor. This stone cauldron, though no treasure, was left by the Sixth Ancestor. I very much wish to keep it.”
