A cat that lingers beside a saint

A land of nothingness.

The old Taoist priest was currently devising how to set up the upcoming test for his closed-door disciple.

If it's too difficult, I'm afraid it might damage his Dao heart.

If it's too easy, I'm afraid he'll get too cocky.

This little guy is too smart; after going out for a while, he probably already realized his identity.

If he relies on his status to roam the world, he will eventually suffer a great loss.

After all, not everyone fears the word "sage".

Moreover, the sages had already gone into hiding after the Investiture of the Gods war, so the word "sage" had no deterrent effect on those new generation's chosen ones.

After thinking for a long time, the old Taoist priest finally couldn't help but sigh.

Just then, a voice came: "Junior brother, it's just a trial. Why don't we learn from the West and set up a similar tribulation in this world? They go to the West to seek the scriptures, and we go to the East to ask the questions. What's so difficult about that?"

The old Taoist raised an eyebrow slightly. This method was not bad. In this way, it could both temper the kitten's temperament and make him develop a great interest in the Tao.

But just being in this world doesn't feel quite real.

If we're going to do it, we should do it on a big scale.

Why not include everything Su Bai experienced in the outside world as well?

As for the number of calamities, it should be three.

As the saying goes, the Tao gives birth to One, One gives birth to Two, Two gives birth to Three, and Three gives birth to all things.

The number three signifies extremes, implying continuous hardships.

Only through constant training can the kitten improve; after all, he can't just stare at the kitten forever.

……

At this time, at the mouth of the Guanjiang River.

Su Bai has made up his mind; he wants to open a cave dwelling on Mount Hua.

As for how to open it up, that's Yang Jian's job.

He was a cat, not a mouse, and he didn't have the ability to open up caves, so this task naturally fell to Yang Jian.

Yang Jian readily agreed when he heard Su Bai say he wanted to open a cave dwelling on Mount Hua.

With Su Bai around, Third Sister might restrain herself a bit, so at least in the short term, she won't do anything too outrageous with that mortal.

Upon arriving at Mount Hua, before Yang Chan could even ask any questions, Yang Jian, holding his axe, headed deeper into the mountain.

Nestled in Yang Chan's arms, Su Bai watched Yang Jian fly away into the distance and couldn't help but say, "This three-eyed guy is good in every way, except he's a bit simple-minded. Although he's more cunning than Nezha, I guess that cunning will soon be put to rest."

Hearing her brother being mocked by others, even though it was Little Cat Daoist, Yang Chan couldn't help but retort: ​​"Second brother is indeed reckless at times, but he's not as bad as Little Cat Daoist says."

"My second brother has suffered too much in his life and endured too much hardship. Please, Little Cat Daoist, do not speak nonsense."

Su Bai chuckled lightly, then looked up at Yang Chan, whose expression was serious. Looking at her delicate face, Su Bai couldn't help but shake his head slightly and say, "The Third Holy Mother is the goddess of Mount Hua. Last time we met, you said you wanted to protect the peace of the people, yet now you're disregarding mortals and putting your second brother in a difficult position. I only said a few words casually, and you're already protecting her like this. Don't you think you're contradicting yourself?"

Upon hearing this, Yang Chan's expression changed slightly. She had indeed been getting close to an ordinary man these days, but she was only somewhat curious about him.

She knew all too well what had happened to her mother, Yaochi, and what consequences it would bring to her second brother if she did the same thing as her mother.

She had never told anyone about these things, and she couldn't understand how Su Bai had learned about them.

As if she had thought of something, she couldn't help but look up at Yang Jian in the distance, who was holding a mountain-splitting axe and opening up the cave with his physical strength without using any magic.

The axe in his hand was like a tool for venting his anger; every strike was so forceful that the stones in front of him seemed like blocks of tofu, utterly vulnerable under his hacking.

Yang Chan slowly withdrew her gaze, and after a moment, couldn't help but chuckle softly, saying, "So, Second Brother thinks I've fallen for worldly desires, and that's why I'm venting my emotions with this stone?"

Su Bai was taken aback: "You don't have one?"

Yang Chan gently shook her head, then, carrying Su Bai, stepped into the air and walked towards the area where Yang Jian was.

A gentle breeze blew, causing her skirt to sway and her hair to flutter in front of Su Bai's eyes, making him unable to resist reaching out to grab it.

"When I was in the Nuwa Palace, the goddess told me some things."

"There are many kinds of lust."

"Love, family, siblings, teacher-student relationships..."

"Of all things, love is the most poisonous."

Yang Chan walked slowly, her gaze fixed on the kitten in her arms. Seeing his appearance, she couldn't help but smile.

"So-called love is nothing more than selfishness, to achieve momentary pleasure, but the harm caused by momentary indulgence is unimaginable."

"The Heavenly Court is not heartless. If it were truly heartless and without desire, the Jade Emperor and the Queen Mother would never have let my second brother off the hook for what he did back then."

"Even more so, there is the Great Sage Equaling Heaven of Mount Emei."

"The Great Sage Equaling Heaven caused havoc in the Heavenly Palace. Although he did not break into the Lingxiao Palace, he still had something to boast about. At this time, the Heavenly Court lost face. Although the Buddha and Bodhisattva of the Western Paradise mediated, if the Jade Emperor really got angry, even if the gods and Buddhas of the Western Paradise pleaded for him, I'm afraid this monkey would not be able to avoid death."

"However, even in such a momentous event, neither the Jade Emperor nor the Queen Mother showed any real anger, which is enough to show that the Heavenly Rules do not bind the freedom of the gods, but rather their desires."

Upon hearing this, Su Bai stopped what he was doing, looked up at Yang Chan, and asked, "Then why do you still have dealings with that mortal?"

"He's strange. I see a familiar aura about him."

"When the great war ended and Jiang Ziya conferred titles upon the gods on the Investiture Platform, I caught a glimpse of it from afar."

"This person looks a lot like one of those who were bestowed the title of Wenquxing back then, but I can't remember who it was."

Wenquxing (文曲星)?

Su Bai licked his paws.

Is the God of Literature descended to earth?

It seemed that they had guessed Su Bai's thoughts.

Yang Chan gently shook her head and said, "It's not that the God of Literature has descended to earth."

"Perhaps it was the blessing of the God of Literature that made him so talented."

Upon hearing this, Su Bai roughly understood.

Yang Chan's curiosity about him did not stem from affection, but rather from curiosity about why he was there.

Perhaps they harbored some petty motives or some scheme, wanting to use this as a stepping stone to rise to the top.

If that's true, this person truly deserves to die.

Just as Su Bai was about to express his thoughts, he heard Yang Chan shake her head and say, "Senior Brother Cat, there's no need to worry. After chatting with Daoist Cat for a few minutes today, I understand that killing is not my intention, but making sure he can never appear in front of me again is not a difficult task."

"As for Second Brother, we still need Little Cat Daoist to give him some advice."

"Aren't you going to tell me?"

Yang Chan chuckled softly, "I'm afraid if I tell him, he'll think there's some kind of conspiracy behind this."