381 Chapter 302: The Future Buddha of Shimen.. The Smiling Maitreyal_2


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    Tang Xuanzang felt a deep sense of despair in his heart.


    Just at this moment.


    Clop-clop-clop- Clop-clop-clop.


    The sound of horse hooves approach, as a group of more than ten people on horseback charged forward – among them was a guard, holding a golden imperial edict in his hand.


    “Tang Xuanzang, receive the decree! By the order of Her Majesty the Empress, you are to go to the ck Wind City for trial immediately!” The guard read the decree out loud.


    Meanwhile, the nearby soldiers exchanged nces, never expecting such an unassuming monk to attract the personalmand of the Empress.


    So…


    A soldier stepped forward cautiously and said, “Please wait a moment, envoy. I will report to our leader.”


    Thismotion…


    Attracted the attention of the other prisoners watching, all of them very surprised at the high profile of these two neers.


    Tang Xuanzang almost wept for joy.


    “Wukong, it seems that the people from Shimen areing to save me,” Tang Xuanzang put down his work, tugging at Sun Wukong beside him as he spoke.


    He was not a fool. He had sensed that his journey to fetch the scriptures might not be as simple as it seemed from the many times Guanyin had appeared to protect him.


    Humph!


    Sun Wukong rolled his eyes and ignored Tang Xuanzang. It hadn’t been long since he had been forced to wear the golden hoop, and he was still quite upset about it.


    After a while…


    The manager of the construction camp arrived and, after confirming the authenticity of the decree, waved at Tang Xuanzang and Sun Wukong.


    “Hey, you two monkse over here! Follow this envoy and the chiefs to the ck Wind Imperial City to meet your fate!”


    ck Wind Imperial City.


    In the study.


    A chessboard was ced on a desk, the ck and white pieces upying the board. A man and a woman sat on either side of the board.


    The woman wore a ck dragon robe, her head adorned with a purple-gold crown, and there was a regal aura around her dignified appearance.


    The man wore a Taoist robe and cloth shoes, his long ck hair tied casually behind him, and a faintly glowing duster tied around his waist.


    These two yers, Xuanqing and his young disciple Qingwan, were immersed in their game.


    Gazing at Qingxu, who vaguely resembled the young Fat Ya from the past…


    For a moment…


    Xuanqing was overwhelmed with a mix of emotions.


    He hadn’t expected that the little girl who used to run around with a runny nose, tugging at his sleeve asking about Peppa Pig, was now the prestigious Empress.


    Time flies in cultivation, what used to be a blink of an eye has now turned into the ebb and flow of a lifetime.


    The memories of the past with Fat Ya still lingered vividly in his mind, as if it all happened just yesterday.


    “Sir… it’s your turn to y,” Qingwan reminded him.


    Hmm?


    Xuanqing snapped out of his reverie, shaking his head with a light chuckle.


    Once people grow old, the sight of familiar faces and things from the past will inadvertently sink them into nostalgia.


    “Fat Ya, in these years, I have been wholeheartedly practicing and have somewhat neglected you,” said Xuanqing, his voice filled with regret.


    At those words…


    Qingwan’s body shuddered.


    Especially upon hearing the familiar name ‘Fat Ya’, which she hadn’t heard in a long, long time.


    However…


    As she had taken the position of Empress, she knew very well that what Xuanqing needed was a capable subordinate who could provide assistance, not a little girl who could only whine and act spoiled.


    With this in mind…


    Qingwan took a deep breath and lowered her head, murmuring: “Sir, don’t worry too much. Fat… Qingwan… I’m very happy to have found my own path too!”


    Just as the atmosphere had be somewhat delicate…


    “Report! Convict monk Tang Xuanzang of the Tang Dynasty and Sun Wukong have been brought here!” A guard’s voice rang out from outside the door.


    “Cough-cough.”


    Qingwan coughed lightly, waving her hand at the guard andmanding, “Let Tang Xuanzang and Sun Wukong in!”


    Outside the imperial study…


    Tang Xuanzang looked anxious, his fingers constantly rubbing his monk’s robe. He felt that the journey to fetch the scriptures was extremely difficult.


    He had barely left the Tang Empire when he had encountered bandits and watched his disciple, bestowed by Guanyin, turn on him before being imprisoned by ck Wind City. It was like being born with no luck, only to face death head-on.


    “Tang Xuanzang, Her Majesty the Empress summons you to meet her.” The guard who had been walking not far from the Imperial Study Room approached Tang Xuanzang and spoke.


    Tang Xuanzang did not dare to dy and quickly pulled the sleeve of Sun Wukong, “Wukong, let’s go, don’t make Her Majesty wait too long.”


    “Hehe-”


    Sun Wukong chuckled softly and shrugged his shoulders without saying anything.


    The two entered the room.


    Before their eyes… was an Empress dressed in a ck gold-trimmed dragon robe, wearing a purple-gold crown, looking dignified and noble, just like a Heavenly Emperor.


    At the side of this noble empress was a young Taoist priest dressed in a Taoist robe, wearing cloth shoes, and with a glowing duster hanging from his waist.


    “The poor monk…pays respects to Your Majesty.”


    Tang Xuanzang’s attention waspletely drawn by the aura of the ck Wind Empress. As soon as he saw her, he immediately knelt down and respectfully performed a grand ceremony.


    ording to the etiquette of the Tang Dynasty, in most cases, there was no need for a kowtow ceremony. Only the people of Shimen, who always imed that all beings were equal, would perform such kowtow rituals time and time again, which could be considered extremely hypocritical.


    On the other hand, Sun Wukong’s attention was entirely attracted by Xuanqing. He just felt that this Taoist priest… seemed somehow familiar.


    “This Taoist priest…why do I feel like I’ve seen him somewhere before?”


    Sun Wukong’s eyes rolled around, but inside his mind, he began to recall where he had seen this Taoist priest.


    Suddenly.


    His eyes widened, and he remembered.


    “You are…the Taoist priest who was killed by those Jiedi decades ago?” Sun Wukong eximed, unable to contain his words.


    As soon as his words came out.


    Qingwan was first taken aback, then became furious.


    This furry-faced monkey-like monk was not only ugly, but also dared to be rude to her master.


    “How dare you, you furry-faced monkey-mouthed Sun Wukong, speak wildly against the Master of the Primordial Beginning? Or do you want to be suppressed again in the ck Wind Country for another five hundred years?”


    Qingwan’s face was as cold as frost, and her voice was icy.


    Seeing this.


    Tang Xuanzang’s heart jumped, and he couldn’t help but curse inwardly at the monkey who had brought upon misfortune. It was bad enough that he was arrogant and reckless outside, but why did he have to act this way in front of Her Majesty?


    Now it was over. He had angered the Empress, how could he continue fetching the scriptures?


    “Wukong, don’t you quickly apologise to the…Master…” Tang Xuanzang scolded angrily but couldn’t recall the title of the Daoist master that the Empress had mentioned earlier.


    “Hehe, Master, the Master of the Primordial Beginning!” Sun Wukong scratched his chest and reminded him with a smile.


    “You…”


    Tang Xuanzang pointed at Sun Wukong with trembling fingers, almost choking with anger.


    At this moment.


    Watching the farce in the Imperial Study Room.


    Xuanqing seemedpletely unconcerned, and he didn’t even nce at Tang Xuanzang and Sun Wukong. Instead, he looked towards the beams of the room.


    “Master, this monkey is arrogant and unruly. In my opinion, perhaps we should…”


    “Alright, what he said isn’t wrong. I was indeed killed by the Jiedi from Shimen…more than once.”


    Xuanqing waved his hand, interrupting Qingwan’s words.


    Then.


    “Hehe-”


    He gave a faint smile and bowed to the room beams, “The revered Future Buddha of Shimen, the Great Compassionate Guanyin, condescends to visit my humble ck Wind Country, why do you hide your head and show your tail?” Upon hearing this.


    Uh??


    Tang Xuanzang, who had been scolding his disobedient disciple, Qingwan, who was nning to deal with Sun Wukong, and even Sun Wukong himself, were all stunned, not understanding why the Master of the Primordial Beginning spoke such inexplicable words.


    However.


    Then they understood the meaning of the Master of the Primordial Beginning’s words.


    Ommm-


    A sacred Sanskrit chant sounded, apanied by a golden lotus in the air…


    Plop- The sound stopped abruptly!


    The golden lotus that had just appeared shattered like a bubble, and the sacred Sanskrit chant disappeared instantaneously as if someone had pulled the plug.


    “Plop-”


    Xuanqing sneered and said indifferently, “Don’t bother with such theatrics in my presence.”


    As his words fell.


    Aughing Buddha appeared on the beam of the Imperial Study Room, wearing a loose golden kasaya, exposing his chest and sporting a big belly.


    Following that.


    Guanyin reluctantly revealed herself beside the Laughing Buddha.