The fragrance of tea filled the air, and wisps of smoke curled upward.
Since an old friend had come to visit, the Great Accomplishment Sacred Body gave Meng Chuan a warm welcome after all.
In the end, he was a man who said one thing and meant another.
But as Meng Chuan watched his tea-loving host fuss over him, he felt rather strange.
He had clearly come to say goodbye.
Yet somehow, it had turned into a visit to cadge food and drink.
It would tarnish his good name.
Still, on principle, Meng Chuan could not let anything go to waste. He could only swallow it down with tears in his eyes.
"How long will you be gone this time?" the Great Accomplishment Sacred Body asked.
"I'm not sure," Meng Chuan replied. "It's still an unknown. I can't predict it."
After a few cups of tea, the mood between them eased.
It seemed that, on learning Meng Chuan was about to leave, the Great Accomplishment Sacred Body had put away his sharp edges and grown mellow.
"Don't tell me you know you won't be coming back, so you came to say your final goodbyes?" the Great Accomplishment Sacred Body said in surprise.
"You're not really going there, are you?"
All right, so a few sharp edges were still showing. He had not put them all away.
"It's just a perfectly ordinary little breakthrough. How could it possibly stump me?" Meng Chuan said with lofty detachment.
"Your cultivation is too low. You wouldn't understand even if I told you."
"So this trip really will be dangerous," the Great Accomplishment Sacred Body said thoughtfully. Meng Chuan's words had only confirmed his suspicions.
"But..."
"I may not understand it, but I still believe in you."
The Great Accomplishment Sacred Body spoke earnestly.