Aren't you taking some local specialties back?

Tang Yu froze on the spot, staring at Tathagata Buddha, who was holding a cigarette in his mouth.

Although he had wanted the Buddha to try it, he hadn't expected it to go so smoothly, with the Buddha taking it directly into his own mouth.

Looking at the cigarette, it was clearly from the pack meant for the Yellow Wind King.

Guanyin Bodhisattva turned her head. Just moments ago, she felt it was an insult to Buddhism when she saw Tang Yu with a cigarette, but now Tathagata Buddha himself was holding one, and openly smoking it to resolve a conflict.

This Buddhist Sect feels so strange nowadays.

"Tathagata, I'm going to kill Juan Lian today," the Jade Emperor said directly.

The unspoken implication was: I'll kill him, and then you can revive him, so the Journey to the West won't be delayed, and my dignity will be preserved.

Tathagata's expression turned cold. He flicked some ash, tilted his head, and with his neck craned, he asked, "What did you say? Kill him?"

From now on, Juan Lian would be one of his people in Buddhism, so he naturally had to protect him to the best of his ability.

Moreover, Sha Wujing was one of the most important figures in the Journey to the West. Did the Jade Emperor think he could just kill him?

If the Jade Emperor didn't want Buddhism to flourish, he should just say so.

The Jade Emperor's breathing hitched. Why is Tathagata acting like such an idiot? Why can't he understand what I mean?

"Tathagata, he embraced my Queen Mother. Where does that leave my face?"

"You cannot kill Juan Lian. You should understand his importance. As for embracing your Queen Mother, that was purely an accident. Besides, you know there's been a variable in the Journey to the West, don't you?"

The Jade Emperor knew about the variable in the Journey to the West.

However, it didn't affect him much. Even if the journey to the West wasn't completed, it would be Buddhism that suffered the loss.

"I don't know," the Jade Emperor said, his face turning ashen.

You don't know? Are you kidding me?

Tathagata's lips twitched slightly. "I suspect this matter might be the work of the variable, manipulating things from the shadows. Therefore, Juan Lian is just a victim pushed to the forefront."

Even if he was a victim, he had undeniably embraced the Queen Mother.

And they had come with such a large entourage, making such a grand display.

If he didn't do something, they might think he feared Tathagata.

"What does any of that have to do with me? I'm here for Juan Lian," the Jade Emperor said, then ordered the heavenly soldiers below, "Kill him."

Tathagata Buddha's expression turned cold. "How dare you."

With a wave of his hand, the heavenly soldiers below were instantly sent flying into the distance.

Plop, plop. They fell into the Flowing Sand River.

The Jade Emperor's aura also surged abruptly.

Quasi-Saint!

He and Tathagata were both Quasi-Saints in terms of cultivation.

Sun Wukong blinked, watching the Jade Emperor. If he was as powerful as Tathagata, why did he need to ask Tathagata Buddha for help during his Havoc in Heaven?

With the Jade Emperor's cultivation, defeating him would have been just as easy.

At that moment, Sun Wukong truly felt a conspiracy at play.

He looked at the Jade Emperor and the Buddha confronting each other in the sky.

One was the Lord of the Three Realms, the other the leader of the Western Heaven.

He wondered who would win if they fought.

To be honest, even Tang Yu hadn't expected that Sha Wujing would cause a confrontation between Buddhism and the Heavenly Court.

Tsk tsk.

It's truly a case of 'unintentional planting yields shade'!

However, he also understood that even if they fought, it would just be a formality. Neither of them would fight to the death.

Besides, there were Sages watching everything from above. If things truly got out of hand, a Sage would definitely intervene.

But being able to witness such a scene was rare.

He pulled Wukong, that simpleton, and retreated a few more steps to avoid getting caught in the crossfire.

Thirty-third Heaven.

Taishang Laojun shook his head slightly. "This is going a bit too far."

He took a step forward and in an instant, he appeared at the Flowing Sand River.

"Disperse, everyone," Taishang Laojun said lightly.

"Greetings, Old Lord."

The Jade Emperor and Tathagata quickly bowed in respect.

"Disperse, everyone."

"But..." The Jade Emperor looked troubled.

Taishang Laojun waved his hand, and instantly everyone's memories were wiped clean, specifically, memories concerning the Queen Mother.

Only the Jade Emperor, the Queen Mother, Tathagata, Tang Yu, and a select few retained their original memories.

Some heavenly soldiers and generals were bewildered, not knowing how they had appeared there.

However, seeing the Jade Emperor present, no one dared to ask further questions.

"How was it?"

Taishang Laojun said calmly.

Although unwilling, the Jade Emperor couldn't say much.

His face ashen, he declared, "Retreat, return to Heaven."

In the sky.

The dense mass of heavenly soldiers quickly withdrew.

Seeing this, Tang Yu secretly sighed, Why didn't they fight?

They just left so dejectedly.

"Thank you, Old Lord."

Tathagata Buddha bowed respectfully.

Taishang Laojun chuckled lightly, and his figure vanished from his spot.

Just before leaving, he seemed to glance at Tang Yu. That was Tang Yu's feeling, and it was very clear.

What did that glance mean?

A warning?

Was it because he had dragged the Heavenly Court into this mess, or for some other reason?

Or perhaps it was telling him not to go too far.

Watching Taishang Laojun depart, Tathagata Buddha immediately straightened his back. "Tang Sanzang, though the journey to the Western Heaven will be arduous and fraught with peril, you must never forget your original intention."

Seizing this opportunity, he decided to warn Tang Sanzang.

Lately, this Tang Sanzang had been acting more and more outrageously, for reasons unknown.

He ate meat and drank wine, even breaking the precept against lust.

Moreover, he no longer carried himself like a monk at all.

The way he wore his kasaya, it was tied directly at his waist, while his pants, like shorts, were pulled up to his thighs.

Seeing this behavior, the Buddha himself felt an urge to strike him dead.

No wonder Guanyin Bodhisattva was so infuriated. Initially, he had thought Venerable Guanyin's cultivation was insufficient and her temperament unstable.

But after witnessing his current state with his own eyes, even Tathagata Buddha was angered.

Original intention? Tang Yu's original intention was not to go to the Western Heaven at all.

"Got it,"

Tang Yu said grumpily.

The cigarettes should be almost finished by now, right?

Those were laced with something extra.

Should I let Tathagata take some more back this time?

Seems possible!

He secretly exchanged for more cigarettes with the System, and these were even more potent than the ones given to the Yellow Wind King.

"Since that's the case, you should set off quickly. Arrive at the Western Heaven sooner, and achieve Buddhahood sooner." Tathagata Buddha directly resorted to temptation.

As he spoke, Tathagata Buddha prepared to leave and return to the Great Thunderclap Monastery.

However, upon remembering that the cigarettes were gone, he hesitated slightly.

Never mind, this matter could be left to Lingji Bodhisattva.

It wouldn't be appropriate for him to handle it personally.

"Baozi."

Tathagata Buddha's body trembled.

Baozi.

What a distant term.

It felt like a very, very long time since he had heard this address.

No.

I am no longer the Daoist Duobao of the past. I am now Tathagata Buddha, the boss of the Western Heaven. Who dares call me Baozi?

Isn't that asking for death?

Sun Wukong and Zhu Bajie stared at Tang Yu, dumbfounded.

This master of mine is truly fierce.

He actually called Tathagata Buddha "Baozi."

Tathagata Buddha looked at Tang Yu with a cold expression.

"Aren't you taking any local specialties back?"

Tang Yu chuckled, and two packs of cigarettes appeared in his hand.