Chapter 169

Golden hooped staff lay horizontally in the cave; the heroic maiden and the flying swallow maiden sat on a rock, gasping heavily, their bodies drenched in fragrant sweat, while Zhou Shuo sat beside them, reaching out to grasp the spirit-trapping jewel that bound the Azure Rosy Immortal; the spirit jewel ultimately could not withstand the flame of the Sun-Moon Divine Lamp, having been melted into a droplet of jade liquid, now being enveloped by Zhou Shuo with primordial qi.

"What on earth is going on?" the heroic maiden took a while to collect her thoughts, looking at the cross-legged figure sitting in midair, she worriedly glanced outside, wondering if that ferocious ape would come after them.

"I don't know, Elder Brother Zhou, what should we do?" the flying swallow maiden shook her head, simultaneously turning her head to look at Zhou Shuo.

"Don't worry, there's nothing to fear; this is the Water Curtain Cave, the source of spiritual roots, where heart-demons cannot enter." Zhou Shuo let primordial qi seep into the spirit jewel in his hand, shaping it into the form of a lamp, and then added qi to it to form a miraculous treasure.

"You dare think to refine me?" the wick formed from the Azure Rosy Immortal began to struggle wildly; the lamp made from the spirit jewel by Zhou Shuo was meant to bind her.

"Water Curtain Cave, is this actually the Spider Silk Cave or the Water Curtain Cave?" the heroic maiden looked at the huge staff lying across the cave, somewhat confused, wondering what all this was about.

"I understand, Elder Brother Zhou; is this perhaps the heart-demon illusion of the Great Sage Sun, with the Sea-Stabilizing Divine Needle present here representing the Great Sage's righteous mind?" the flying swallow maiden's thoughts sprang lively, and she quickly formed this hypothesis.

"Good and evil depend only on one's heart; this place is both the Water Curtain Cave and the Spider Silk Cave, that ferocious ape outside is Sun Wukong, staying here is fine, but above all do not go out, for if you lure him in it would be bad; I now must speed up, first refining the Azure Rosy Immortal." Zhou Shuo forcefully poured primordial qi into the wick of the spirit-jewel lamp in his hand.

"You dare not." feeling a force like a waterfall washing over her body, the Azure Rosy Immortal involuntarily let out a scream, causing azure flames to surge upward, burning away all the inflowing true qi, then she strained to blast outward, hoping to melt the spirit-jewel lamp, but she could never break through.

"Is this really the Azure Rosy Immortal?" the flying swallow maiden looked at Zhou Shuo's hand, where a mass of jade wrapped a darting blue light, her lively eyes wide open; in legend, one of the wicks of the Sun-Moon Lamp is she, while the other, the Purple Rosy Immortal, is the one who loved Sun Wukong.

"Great Immortal, spare my life, great immortal, spare my life!" just as the flying swallow maiden widened her eyes, the constantly leaping azure flame in Zhou Shuo's hand flared, its color shifting from blue to purple; within the radiant glow, an identical face appeared, and a pleading voice issued forth.

"The Purple Rosy Immortal?" the heroic maiden was somewhat uncertain.

"It's me, it's me, I and my sister share the same wick but different faces, Great Immortal, please spare me!" the Purple Rosy Immortal in the flames, stirring her purple blaze to burn the true qi, although the fire grew fiercer the more it burned, she felt the flames slipping from her control, a deathly aura closing in.

"Zhou——" the flying swallow maiden looked at the pleading face in the flames, about to speak, but before she could finish, the heroic maiden beside her stopped her.

"Let him do it himself!" the heroic maiden looked at Zhou Shuo, his face stern, continuously pouring true qi into the jade light in his hand, she halted the flying swallow maiden's notion of pleading for mercy, for that Azure Rosy Immortal was no good person; whether to release her was Zhou Shuo's own consideration.

"Vile wretch, I will kill you!" the purple flame in the jade light suddenly turned blue, the vengeful face grotesque beyond compare.

"Do not disturb me again." Zhou Shuo spoke, then entered a meditative state, fully sending primordial qi into the jade light in his hand, using a spirit-qi resonance to gain control of the purple‑azure wick.

Faced with Zhou Shuo's words, the flying swallow maiden and the heroic maiden fell silent, merely watching the Spider Silk Cave outside with some tension, that ferocious ape might still be roaming inside the cave; if it found them it would be disastrous, although Zhou Shuo said it couldn't find them, but who knows the outcome.

In the silent cave, the golden hooped staff hung in midair, the flame within the jeweled sphere continually shifted between blue and purple, manifesting different faces—pleading, cursing, resentful—but could never escape Zhou Shuo's control; the two appeared alternately, the flame light now blue, now purple, finally the blue‑purple flames intertwined and leapt together.

"Done." Zhou Shuo gave a startled cry, shook his hand, the jeweled sphere instantly flew up into midair and burst open, a jade lamp fell into his hand, the two intertwined strands of blue‑purple flame on the lamp burned quietly in the air.

"What is this?" the heroic maiden looked at the blue‑purple flame on the jade lamp, somewhat curious, she asked.

"Just a lamp." Zhou Shuo looked at the lamp in his hand, exceedingly pleased.

"Of course I know it's a lamp; the question is what use it has?" the heroic maiden rolled her eyes.

"You still don't see it." Zhou Shuo looked at the sister who rolled her eyes, and showed her the blue‑purple flame on the lamp.

"Are these the Purple Rosy Immortal and the Azure Rosy Immortal?" the flying swallow maiden slightly opened her mouth.

"Exactly, I alone cannot deal with that ferocious ape, so I must rely on this!" Zhou Shuo nodded.

"And what about them?" the flying swallow maiden looked at Zhou Shuo in disbelief.

"Gone." Zhou Shuo looked at the flying swallow maiden and shook his head.

"You really killed them?" the heroic maiden also couldn't help but widen her eyes; those were the wicks before the Buddha's altar—would slaying them draw the Buddha's wrath?

"Just joking, they're still here; I merely took their flames away; to tame them will still take considerable time." Zhou Shuo looked at the two astonished maidens, involuntarily smiling; the Buddha does not exist to cause trouble for him over this, it's just that those two are unruly and will need a while to be tamed.

"With this, we need not fear the monkey; come on, let's go take revenge—this thing can't kill it, but it will at least make it shed a layer of skin." Zhou Shuo held up the lamp, triumphant, and led the two maidens out of the Water Curtain Cave.

"Wow, three of you, I've finally found you; please, give back the Moonlight Treasure Box, Jingjing is still waiting for me to rescue her!" Almost as they exited the Water Curtain Cave, Zhizunbao strangely appeared before Zhou Shuo and the two maidens, loudly voicing his plea and lunging forward.

"Get lost." Zhou Shuo looked at the pleading Zhizunbao, held the lamp in his right hand, blew out a mouthful of immortal qi, the purple‑azure divine flame on it instantly surged, rushing toward Zhizunbao and instantly igniting him into a struggling fire‑person.

"Damn it, you three bastards, where were you hiding just now? I turned the Spider Silk Cave upside down and still found nothing inside." The fire‑person flung out his arms, shaking off the purple‑azure divine flame, transforming into a smoke‑covered, soot‑black ferocious ape, baring its fangs as it crouched on the ground, its eyes blazing with ferocity.

"Today I'll have barbecued ape." Zhou Shuo saw the ape's eyes blazing with ferocity, curled his lip in a savage grin, raised the jade lamp to set fire; the ape could not withstand the purple‑azure divine flame, it yelped and fled.

"We managed to drive the ape away, but what now?" the heroic maiden looked at the howling ape demon fleeing into the cave, suddenly feeling a wave of despondency.

"This is the Great Sage's heart‑demon illusion; I think perhaps if we can enlighten the Great Sage, we might be able to leave." the flying swallow maiden proposed a hypothesis.

"Enlightening that monkey is no simple matter." Zhou Shuo shook his head; this thing is not simple.

"But we must try." the heroic maiden said without hesitation; the ferocious ape's vicious aura is terrifying beyond compare, yet we must give it a shot, otherwise we'd be stuck here forever!

"But how should we try?" the flying swallow maiden looked toward Zhou Shuo.

"I think perhaps the solution lies with the Moonlight Treasure Box." Zhou Shuo shook the jade lamp in his hand; the purple‑azure flame flickered, and the long wooden box that Zhizunbao had previously had snatched by the Azure Rosy Immortal instantly flew out.

"The Moonlight Treasure Box?" the gazes of the flying swallow maiden and the heroic maiden locked onto the box.

"Not bad, oh right, there's also the purple‑azure treasure sword; you two decide who takes it first, your original weapons won't work." Zhou Shuo shook the lamp again, and the purple‑azure divine flame burst forth once more, forming a sheathed treasure sword that fell to the ground.

"Elder Sister Ying, you take it first!" the flying swallow maiden looked at the glint‑cold sheathed treasure sword, her expression somewhat inscrutable, while the heroic maiden also felt a bit awkward, yet she stepped forward and drew the sword.

"As for this box, you keep it for now, remember, don't give it to Zhizunbao." Zhou Shuo handed the box to the heroic maiden, adding a reminder.

"All right, no problem." the heroic maiden nodded and took the box.