Chapter 604: Clever Tactics

"Brother Su, the rest of it is yours now; I'm heading out, okay."

"Alright."

Yu Lin waved his hand toward Su Qu.

He turned and walked toward the other end of the street.

The others were busy clearing up the aftermath—some lifted stretchers, others recorded statements.

A few young squad members saw Yu Lin pass by, opened their mouths to say something, but swallowed the words again.

When he was a few steps away, someone whispered, "Was that General Yu just now?"

"Seems so."

"Why didn't he go up to say a word?"

"He didn't see anyone busy; maybe he had something to do."

"Also..........."

The murmurs were scattered by the night wind; by the time a few Cultivators tried to catch up and greet him, the other end of the street was empty, only the street lamps buzzing overhead, casting rings of warm yellow light.

They looked at each other, as if they had just dreamed.

Su Qu put away his phone, cleared his throat, and spoke softly but clearly enough for everyone to hear.

"I am Su Qu, Chief of the General Division of the Civil Affairs Bureau; I now assume full command of the scene. Everyone..."

"Not full yet, have some more."

Yu Lin walked down another street, patted his stomach, and smacked his lips.

The bowl of noodles he just had was good: the broth was fresh, the lamb tender, the noodles chewy.

He thought of finding another eatery for a bite, his pace unhurried, crossing an intersection and then a corner.

This street was quieter than the previous one, and the lamps were dimmer.

Then he stopped.

At the corner ahead, beneath a street lamp, a figure stood.

The person's features were vague, the facial details indistinct, only a silhouette—thin, tall, shoulders slightly hunched, surrounded by a faint shadow.

Night wind poured in from the street mouth, fluttering his coat edges, yet the shadow remained motionless, as if nailed to the ground.

People passed by that silhouette—one, two, three.

Some stared at phones, some craned their necks to hurry, one held a dog that barked toward that direction before being tugged away by its owner.

Not a single person noticed the figure, as if it didn't exist—a wisp of fog, a shadow, an old dream forgotten beneath the lamp.

Like a ghost!

But Yu Lin stared at the figure, a slight smile curling his lips.

He stepped forward at an even pace, stopped in front of the person.

"Lao Jun,"

"Weren't you playing with the Buddha? Back after the game?"

The silhouette shifted, revealing its true face.

His hair, streaked with gray, was slicked into a large pompadour, glossy; a pair of frog-shaped glasses perched on his nose, eyes behind the lenses squinting with a hint of smile.

He wore a flamboyant short‑sleeve shirt, beige casual trousers, and sandals on his feet.

He looked as if he had just returned from a Hawaiian vacation.

He was nothing like the little old man in the Heavenly Court who squats before the Dan Furnace watching the flames!

Tai Shang Lao Jun took off his sunglasses, twirled them in his hand, and said, "The Old Man conducted an experiment with the Tathagata, setting up a gamble."

He sighed, his tone tinged with helplessness, "In the end that fellow saw the situation was off and fled outright."

Yu Lin raised an eyebrow: "Fled? The Tathagata?"

"What gamble?"

"I won't tell you now; I'll explain later," Lao Jun clipped the sunglasses to his collar, slipped both hands into his pockets, and walked side by side with Yu Lin down the street:

"The Old Man returned after hearing a young disciple say you were looking for me, so I came to see."

He turned his head, glanced at Yu Lin, and asked, "What's the matter?"

Yu Lin slipped his hand into his pocket and said casually, "Nothing much; didn't you notice a cow appeared beside the green ox?"

Lao Jun halted his steps.

"Hm?" He thought for a moment, then slapped his thigh abruptly:

"Ah! It's ruined! How could the Old Man have forgotten this?"

He turned his head, staring at Yu Lin, "Did you ever go to that land of Greece?"

Yu Lin nodded.

"Yes, so what?"

"Is there something wrong with that cow?"

"A big problem!"

Lao Jun's figure flickered and vanished on the spot.

Yu Lin raised an eyebrow; his form also flickered as he followed.

Heavenly Court, by the banks of the Heavenly River.

The green ox circled attentively around A Li Ya.

It transformed back into the glossy‑coated great green ox, moving more than ten times faster than usual.

From the riverbank plucked a handful of the most tender immortal grass, carried it to A Li Ya's front, placed it on the ground, and pushed it forward with its hoof.

A Li Ya lowered her head to sniff, took two bites, then turned her head away to look at the water of the Heavenly River.

The blue ox plucked another handful, placed it in front of it, and this time specially picked a few flowers in full bloom, scattering them over the grass pile.

A Li Ya took another two bites, then turned her head away again.

The blue ox, unhurried and unbothered, went to pluck grass again.

This time it ran farther, plucking the grass from the most fertile patch upstream of the Heavenly River, said to be so good that even the Queen Mother's Jade Pool couldn't grow such.

It carried the grass back in its mouth, placed it before A Li Ya, panting heavily, its eyes full of expectation.

A Li Ya lowered her head to sniff, took a bite, then——turned her head away again.

The blue ox's tail drooped down.

"No, why are you never satisfied?"

"Those heavenly horses want to eat it, but I won't let them have it!"

At that moment.

Two figures landed on the riverbank.

Yu Lin and Lao Jun stood one in front of the other before A Li Ya.

The blue ox raised its head, saw Lao Jun, and immediately let out a 'moo' as a greeting.

Then it saw Yu Lin and let out another 'moo', this one longer than before, carrying a hint of pleading.

Lao Jun ignored it, merely gazing at A Li Ya.

A Li Ya also looked at him, her eyes pure and watery, as if asking: Who are you? Why are you staring at me?

Lao Jun stared at it for a good while, then suddenly spoke.

"Don't pretend, this ox of mine you cannot harm."

A Li Ya blinked.

"Moo?"

That voice was soft and tender, tinged with innocence and bewilderment, as if she didn't understand a thing.

The blue ox grew anxious, ran up to Lao Jun, and nudged him with its head:

"Sir, this is.........."

"Go stand to the side and watch." Lao Jun paid no heed to the blue ox.

He furrowed his brow slightly, his fingers pinching in the void a few times, then a few more times.

His brow grew tighter and tighter, until he suddenly laughed—a laugh born of anger.

"You really have quite the method." He shook his head. "You've discarded all your memories, truly turned into a cow?"

"They say you're willing to do this; I didn't believe it at first, but now seeing.........."

"Truly impressive!"

A Li Ya tilted her head and let out another 'moo'.

Still just as soft and innocent, but Lao Jun no longer listened to its cries.

He raised his hand, fingers spread, and made a grasping motion toward A Li Ya.

A streak of golden light blazed up from A Li Ya.

That light was initially faint, like the first ray of dawn on the horizon before sunrise, then grew brighter and more radiant, bathing the entire Heavenly River in golden brilliance.

Within the light, A Li Ya's form began to change.

Her four hooves contracted, her body elongated, her fur fell away, revealing the……human shape beneath.

The golden light faded.

A man stood on the bank of the Heavenly River.

Tall and sturdy, with a head of curly golden hair hanging over his shoulders, his features handsome.

Clad in an ancient Greek-style white robe, a gold belt around his waist, barefoot, his toes curling in the grass.

The blue ox froze.

It glanced at Zeus, then at the spot where A Li Ya had been standing, then back at Zeus, mouth agape, forgetting to close it.

"I, this, you, he? I?............"

The blue ox doubted its bovine life.

Zeus moved his neck, stretched his arms, looked down at himself, then lifted his gaze to Lao Jun and grinned.

"Found out by you, alas, a pity."

Lao Jun looked at him, saying nothing.

Zeus rubbed his hands: "Earlier I saw your ox was not bad, so I thought……"

He coughed once, cleared his throat:

"Cough, look! Yahweh!"

He suddenly raised his hand, pointing behind Lao Jun.

Lao Jun didn't move, Yu Lin didn't move, the blue ox still had its mouth open, not reacting in time.

Zeus's finger froze midair, the smile on his face also freezing.

He gave a dry chuckle twice, pulled his hand back, and scratched the back of his head.

"Just joking, just joking, actually…… Brahma, how did you come here?"

Without waiting for more to be said,

As his words fell, his whole person exploded—not a gory blast of flesh and blood, but like foam, with a puff, turning into countless tiny light dots that drifted on the surface of the Heavenly River, blown away by the wind!

The blue ox stood in place, watching those light dots drift away, its mouth still open.

After a while, it slowly closed its mouth, lowered its head, looked at the pile of wilted immortal grass on the ground, looked at the few small flowers, and then looked at the place where A Li Ya had stood.

Its tail drooped completely, the whole ox seemed to have had its Bone pulled out, limp and flat on the ground, it buried its head between its forelegs, and let out a low, long 'Moo——'.

Yu Lin stepped forward: 'All right, don't be sad.'

'I'll find you a new one later.'

The green ox heard this and immediately shook its head:

'No, no.'