Tenderness at Parting

"Jiu'er?" Chen Tong was stunned. "Didn't I tell you to wait for me by the sea? Did you not come down?"

After the telepathic transmission, Chen Tong was busy dealing with Guanyin and didn't notice this. Seeing her now, he finally remembered.

As soon as the Ninth Princess descended, her delicate, bell-like hands grabbed Chen Tong's right arm and shook it back and forth, acting spoiled and revealing her girlish charm.

"No! I didn't know what was happening when you started fighting with Bodhisattva Guanyin. By the way, Brother Chen, why did you suddenly become so powerful? You can even beat Bodhisattva Guanyin?"

The Ninth Princess glanced deeply at the Jade Pure Bottle in Chen Tong's left hand, a complex look flashing in her beautiful eyes.

"Do you remember being injured when we first met?" Chen Tong gazed into the distance. Although he didn't want to show it, the emotional fluctuations on his body betrayed him. "That was Old Thief Tathagata's doing."

"Ah..." The Ninth Princess opened her mouth slightly, looking at Chen Tong in surprise. "You mean Buddha Tathagata?"

"Yes, that old thief thought I had some Heavenly Dao divine artifact on me and didn't hesitate to use treacherous means to force me to comply. So, Jiu'er!" Chen Tong looked at her jade-like face and said solemnly, "Do you still believe those hypocritical guys now? Those guys are the kind who would eat meat without spitting out the bones."

"I don't know!" The Ninth Princess mumbled, her face falling.

She was just a princess who lived deep in the Dragon Palace, pure and adorable. The ugliness of the world was as clean as a blank sheet of paper to her. Chen Tong naturally knew this, so he didn't want her to bear these burdens too early.

"Alright, you've been out for so long. You should hurry home, or your father will worry."

The reason Chen Tong brought her out in the first place was that she had just saved him. Now that the mission was complete, and he had thoroughly become a wanted criminal by Spiritual Mountain, his future days would surely be difficult. Therefore, he didn't want her to stay by his side any longer.

"Brother Chen, are you trying to send me away?" The Ninth Princess lowered her head, like a little girl who had made a mistake, shaking Chen Tong's hand incessantly.

Alas, Chen Tong looked helpless. He was very happy about the girl who had suddenly appeared in his life. Although their contact was brief, compared to the world he had just arrived in, she was like a precious family member. If given the choice, who wouldn't want a beautiful angel by their side?

"Jiu'er, you know, you're like an angel in my life, warming my inner loneliness. You are noble and pure, making it hard for me to part with you, let alone let even a speck of dust tarnish you." Chen Tong continued affectionately, "You are also the warmth that I am willing to protect with my life. So, Jiu'er, I am in great danger now, and you must leave. Only then can I be at ease."

Chen Tong's words made the innocent and world-ignorant Ninth Princess blush, her small face turning as red as sunset clouds. Her heart pounded wildly, and her breathing grew tense. She kept her head down, not daring to look up.

"Chen... Brother Chen, are... are you telling the truth?" Her voice was already soft, and the latter part of her sentence was almost a breath of air.

"Yes!" Chen Tong ignored her expression and continued to speak with conviction, "If I break this oath, may lightning strike me...!" Chen Tong glanced at the sky, then swallowed the rest of the word. What a joke, this was a world of gods, where the impossible could happen. He had to be careful.

"Brother Chen, I don't want you to swear. I... I believe you." The Ninth Princess shyly lowered her small head, not wanting Chen Tong to see her blushing face.

"Mm, since you believe me, then close your eyes. I'll send you home."

The Ninth Princess immediately looked up at Chen Tong, then lowered her head again, timidly asking, "Then... can I see Brother Chen again?"

Chen Tong looked at her silently, wanting to stroke her fragrant hair, but his hand stopped in mid-air. With a thought, a faint, ethereal blue light emanated from his hand. "Jiu'er, your enchanting aura has seeped into my bones, and I will never forget it in this lifetime. When I get through this danger, I will come to find you. I will take you to travel across mountains and rivers, and it will be a joy."

With that, the ethereal blue light enveloped Jiu'er's delicate body. In the next second, before she could respond, she had vanished into the sea, along with the Jade Pure Bottle. The moment he sent her away, Chen Tong had thrown the Jade Pure Bottle at her. After all, it belonged to Guanyin and was a rare treasure.

"Alas, I have nothing to give you. This Jade Pure Bottle, obtained for free, I hope you like it." Looking at the vanished Ninth Princess, Chen Tong muttered to himself.

Inside the Emerald Dragon Palace, in a bright room. Jiu'er was about to answer Chen Tong's words when she suddenly felt the familiar surroundings and her very familiar room. Looking around, she was momentarily dazed and murmured, "How did I get back here! Where's Brother Chen!"

Although dazed, she came to her senses the next moment, and a sense of emptiness and disappointment filled her entire being. Chen Tong's words still echoed in her mind, her face still flushed, the warmth lingering.

"Brother Chen, why did you send me back without letting me say a few words?" The Ninth Princess was lost in thought, recalling Chen Tong's words, still feeling a little shy.

The next second, she felt something inside her body. With a thought, the object inside her appeared in her hand.

Looking at the pure, jade-like white bottle radiating a purifying aura, the Ninth Princess was stunned. "Isn't this Bodhisattva Guanyin's Jade Pure Bottle? How did it get here? Could it be...!"

The Ninth Princess thought of something and immediately smiled, then became a little worried. She understood that this Jade Pure Bottle must have been a gift from Brother Chen. Her worry was that this was Bodhisattva Guanyin's item, and what if it implicated the Dragon Palace...

"Never mind, as long as I hide it well, no one will find out." After all, she was a young woman with a simple heart. The worry of the previous moment turned into joy in the next.

Within Spiritual Mountain, in the great hall, golden light radiated like rubies in a deep mountain. Combined with the ethereal mist, it added a layer of sacredness to the mystery, and within this sacredness, there were sounds of Buddhist chanting, wondrous and distant, continuous and unending.

At this moment, above the great hall, a golden Buddha, radiating golden light, sat cross-legged before the Buddha's seat with his eyes closed and his hands resting on his abdomen. His demeanor was peaceful, quiet, and upright, sacred and solemn.

Below him sat all the Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, Great Vajras, and Arhats. They too were sacred and solemn. The only similarity was their expressions, filled with respect and adoration for the Buddha above.

And in the center, two defeated figures lay slumped on the ground. Their auras were chaotic, and their complexions were pale, clearly having suffered severe injuries.