As he chatted pleasantly with Sanzang, the boiling Dragon Blood within Li Ye gradually calmed.
Yet Li Ye discovered that after the boost from Dragon Blood overload vanished along with the blood's dormancy, the emptiness it left behind disappeared as his mana filled up. That power surged forth once more, as though it had permanently remained within him.
This newfound strength did not feel unfamiliar to Li Ye. Instead, it gave him an instinctive sense that it was only natural.
It was not power sustained by the Holy Grail, but an expansion of Li Ye's own limits.
The most obvious change was the upper limit of Mana Burst. It had risen noticeably, and Li Ye estimated that it had gone from Rank B to B+.
The potential of Dragon Blood...
Li Ye pinched a strand of his pale hair. Although he did not think there was anything wrong with his mind, his body seemed to have undergone irreversible changes.
It was not just his appearance. Li Ye felt his appetite greatly increase, accompanied by a hunger that could not be satisfied.
His attributes, such as strength, also seemed to have improved to a certain extent.
Am I completely developing into a humanoid dragon?
"Where are we going next?! Shouldn't we look for water and food? Though that was usually Sun Wukong's job, I can do it too!"
Sanzang licked her lips and asked eagerly.
Pulled from his thoughts by Sanzang, Li Ye came back to his senses. Only then did he notice her pale lips, and he blurted out, "Servants need food too?"
Hearing that, Sanzang nodded and replied as though it were obvious, "Of course! If you don't eat, you'll definitely die!
The Buddhist scriptures say: all sentient beings live by relying on food. Food is one of the most important things there is!"
Holding up one finger, Sanzang spoke to Li Ye as though an elder were instructing a junior. "And I'm so hungry and thirsty. I haven't eaten anything since I manifested!"
Hearing this, Li Ye clapped his hands and laughed. "If Master Sanzang says so, what are we waiting for? Let's go beg for alms first. I happen to know a place—"
Li Ye had originally been hesitating over whether to continue deeper into the desert in search of the Crusaders' remnants, but Sanzang's words gave him the excuse to abandon that idea.
After his battle with the nameless Servant, Li Ye had once again recognized his own shortcomings. Although infinite mana gave him an enormous advantage, it was not absolute.
Li Ye's Mana Burst had an upper limit. Anything beyond that threshold was a realm he could not reach, and within that realm existed many beings beyond his grasp.
Even though Dragon Blood's second enhancement had raised that threshold, it was still not enough for Li Ye.
His techniques were still too crude. Even after surviving battle after battle, the valuable experience he gained through actual combat could not bring about a qualitative transformation.
What he needed now were more advanced martial skills and mana control.
And a sword capable of supporting him in battle.
Damn it, where am I supposed to find a sword?
The matter of weapons gave Li Ye a headache. Since encountering the Lion King, he had gone through several weapons already—either taken from Crusader knights, taken from Purification Knights, or borrowed from Ozymandias.
Even after entering the Atlas Institute, which Holmes had called a storehouse of Mage's Dresses, Li Ye had failed to find a single Mage's Dress.
I need to find a Mage's Dress somehow...
Having roughly settled his plans for the future, Li Ye began considering Sanzang's situation.
Should he take Sanzang to the Holy City, or to the Holy City?
Going to the Holy City would certainly mean facing the Lion King. However, given Sanzang's current position, she would not come into conflict with the Lion King's side.
After all, Sanzang was still unclear about the situation in the Singular Point and remained in an observation phase. Only after she had fully witnessed everything within the Singular Point would her stance become clear.
Things would be easier for Sanzang on Sun King Ozymandias's side.
As someone who protected human order, Ozymandias had even less reason, given his kingly bearing, to become hostile toward Sanzang.
After weighing it all up, Li Ye decided to take Sanzang back to the Holy City. Where she went afterward would be her own choice.
As Li Ye led Sanzang back toward the Holy City along the way they had come, his curiosity over Sanzang's manifestation prompted him to ask, "Master Sanzang, did you manifest alone? Just now, you were the only one surrounded and attacked by Crusader knights, and you even—"
Cried like that.
Sanzang, who had naturally manifested in this Singular Point, was undoubtedly Buddhism's representative.
Li Ye knew perfectly well which Buddha Ancestor Sanzang meant. It was Shakyamuni Buddha, who had attained enlightenment and become a Buddha.
"The only person on Earth to find the answer beyond the suffering of life and reincarnation."
"One who had reached the true meaning of life."
"The sole enlightened savior among humanity."
The first person to reach the "end."
To a Buddha, this crisis of human order was probably nothing more than a somewhat larger disturbance.
Li Ye did not know what changes his own appearance might bring, but with Sanzang's manifestation, he could be certain that the Enlightened One's gaze had once fallen upon this Singular Point.
Sanzang's face crumpled at his words. "W-what else could I do? I just... can't manage alone...
Being alone gets unbearably lonely. I'm lonely, and scared, and I can't do anything at all—"
Sanzang's sudden complaint made Li Ye raise a hand instinctively. "That is no longer a problem, Master Sanzang. From here on, your journey will be like the one you once had."
At Li Ye's words, Sanzang immediately beamed. "As a high monk maiden who endured eighty-one trials and tribulations, I'll definitely face hardship with ease. Otherwise, Sun Wukong and the others will laugh at me."
Hearing Sun Wukong's name again, Li Ye hesitated briefly before choosing to ask, "Um, Master Sanzang, the weapons you used earlier were all the weapons of your three disciples, right?"
As he spoke, Li Ye glanced sideways at the Nine-Ringed Vajra Staff in Sanzang's hand.
Having witnessed Sanzang fight twice, Li Ye had been deeply impressed by her decisive, fierce fighting style.
It was not only Sanzang's extraordinary martial skill, but also her ever-changing weapons—at times an iron staff, at times a Nine-Toothed Rake, at times a Demon-Subduing Staff.
Li Ye could not quite remember Sanzang's exact background, but he felt those transformed weapons were not mere empty shells.
"Hm? Weapons?"
Sanzang looked at Li Ye in confusion, then suddenly realized and leaned back. "I don't know. They should be those three idiot disciples' weapons, right? The people themselves didn't come along, but their weapons could follow me.
And after I treated Sun Wukong and the others so well, too—"
Sanzang spun the Nine-Ringed Vajra Staff one-handedly. With a casual swing, it made the air howl.
So it really is?
Hearing Sanzang speak so casually, Li Ye's curiosity was instantly stirred.
Those were several famous divine weapons from Journey to the West. Whether it was Sun Wukong's Ruyi Jingu Bang, Zhu Wuneng's Nine-Toothed Rake, or Sha Wujing's Demon-Subduing Staff, each was undoubtedly a top-tier Noble Phantasm.
What was more, the Nine-Ringed Vajra Staff in Sanzang's hand was even more extraordinary. It was a Noble Phantasm personally bestowed by a Bodhisattva, though Li Ye had yet to witness its effects.
It was surely a superlative Noble Phantasm as well.
"So, Master Sanzang, during your journey west, who was the one who subdued the demons?"
Feel free to join the group. I'd really love for everyone to discuss things together.