After transmigrating into the body of the Jade Rat Spirit, I became Nezha's adopted sister.

A streak of crimson light crashed down without warning!

With a loud bang, the impact didn't hit any monster, but rather the open space between Bai Yeying, the skeleton monster, and the bird demon!

The scorching air burst out in a ring, carrying with it a magnificent divine power that could burn away all evil!

The skeleton monster was the first to be hit. The raised bone knife shattered the moment it touched the shockwave. Then, its entire body was thrown into a furnace. Before it could even scream, it was annihilated in the divine light and turned into a wisp of green smoke.

The swooping bird demon was also struck by the edge of the shockwave, letting out a mournful cry. Half of its wing was instantly charred black, and it plummeted from the sky, emitting black smoke. It twitched twice on the ground and then fell still.

The corpse demon, which was a little further away, seemed to have encountered its natural enemy. The black aura on its body hissed and quickly dissipated. It roared in terror and turned to try to burrow into the ground, but was swept by the remaining divine light. Its rotting body began to peel off piece by piece and eventually turned into a pool of foul-smelling pus.

In the center of the demon-fighting arena, there was a complete mess.

Bai Yeying stood there, her hand holding the pistol trembling slightly. The wound on her back was still bleeding, but she didn't feel much pain at the moment.

She gazed ahead.

Amidst the smoke and lingering divine light, a tall, red figure stood up slowly, his back to her.

Nezha didn't even turn around completely; he just tilted his head and glanced at her sideways with his beautiful phoenix eyes.

The red mark on the boy's forehead stood out starkly against the backdrop of the lingering malevolent aura of the demon-fighting arena. His face was expressionless, but the light in his eyes was terrifyingly bright.

His gaze swept over the piles of monster remains on the ground, then fell on Bai Yeying, lingering for a moment on her blood-stained dress and pale face.

Then, he chuckled.

"Showing off?"

He strode towards her. His steps were neither hurried nor slow, as he stepped over the scorched earth. The Heavenly Silk Ribbon moved behind him without wind, winding and stretching out gracefully.

As Bai Yeying watched him approach, her heart pounded wildly, whether from exhaustion after the fierce battle or for some other reason.

Nezha stopped a step away from her, lowered his head slightly, and looked at her.

"Having a good time killing people?"

Bai Yeying opened her mouth, as if to say something, but her throat felt dry.

"How many are left?" he asked again, his gaze sweeping over her hand gripping the gun. "Why did you stop? Weren't we supposed to send them all at once?"

Bai Yeying felt a little embarrassed by his question. The courage she had just felt faded, replaced by lingering fear and the awkwardness of being seen through.

"I..." she muttered softly, "I can't hold on much longer!"

"Can't hold on?"

Nezha raised an eyebrow and suddenly reached out, grabbing her wrist that was holding the gun.

His fingers were slightly cool, but the pressure was considerable.

Bai Yeying was stunned and subconsciously tried to pull her hand back, but he held it firmly.

Nezha raised his other hand, bent his index finger, and tapped her forehead lightly with his knuckle.

"Thump."

The familiar voice, the familiar force.

"Knowing you can't hold on, why are you still smiling so happily? Bai Yeying, do you think you'll survive just because I'm watching over you from outside?"

Bai Yeying rubbed her forehead where she had been hit, glared at him, and her eyes welled up with tears: "I didn't! I really wanted to see how many I could take on!"

"Did you figure it out?" Nezha released her wrist, crossed his arms, and asked leisurely.

"It's working."

Bai Yeying puffed out her chest, though the movement aggravated her wound and made her wince in pain, she still tried to appear proud: "One-on-one, I'm not afraid now! But I still need to practice against multiple opponents!"

Nezha looked at her, who was clearly in a terrible state but was still proud, and a smile appeared in his eyes.

"Not bad," he uttered, offering his assessment.

Then, he turned away from her and said, "I'm leaving."

"Huh?"

Bai Yeying hurriedly followed him, "You're leaving already? I haven't finished hitting you yet." As soon as the words left her mouth, she wanted to bite her tongue. Still hitting you? If she hit you again, you'd really be done for!

Nezha kept walking without turning his head: "It's over. As for your performance..." He paused, "So-so, I'll give you a passing grade."

Bai Yeying's eyes lit up, and she jogged to catch up with him, standing beside him: "Really? Then... then will you take me out again next time?"

Nezha glanced at her sideways and said, "We'll see how you do."

"That line again!" Bai Yeying pouted, but inside she felt like she had a little sun inside her, warm and bright.

She stole a glance at the boy's profile beside her. The afterglow of the setting sun gilded his features, but the red mark on his forehead remained conspicuous.

"Hey, Nezha," she whispered his name.

"Um?"

"Thank you."

She said in a soft but earnest voice, "Thank you for giving me this opportunity, and thank you for not letting me really die."

Nezha paused for a moment, but didn't turn around or say anything.

But the earlobes, illuminated by the sunset, seemed to have a faint blush.

Bai Yeying saw this, smiled, quickened her pace, and followed closely behind him.

After leaving the Valley of Ten Thousand Demons and breathing in the relatively fresh mountain air again, Bai Yeying felt weak all over, it seemed that she had exerted herself quite a bit!

Nezha, who was walking ahead, stopped and turned around.

Bai Yeying also stopped and looked up at him.

Nezha raised his hand, a point of light gathering at his fingertips, and gently touched her injured shoulder.

A warm current flowed in, dispelling the excruciating pain and repairing the damaged muscles and meridians. At the same time, a fragrant pill was placed in her hand.

"have eaten."

Bai Yeying obediently swallowed the pill. The pill melted instantly upon entering her mouth, transforming into a gentle medicinal power that spread throughout her limbs and bones, rapidly replenishing her depleted demonic energy.

After a short while, some color returned to her pale face. Although the wound had not fully healed, she was fine.

"Thank you, Nezha," she whispered.

"Hmm." Nezha responded, looking towards the western horizon, where Tang Sanzang and his disciples should have reunited and continued their journey.

"It's time to go back."

He wrapped his magic ribbon around Bai Yeying's waist again and flew into the sky.

By the time we returned to Trapped Sky Mountain, it was already dark.

The Heavenly Silk loosened, and Bai Yeying landed steadily. Just as she was about to turn around to say goodbye, she discovered that the red figure behind her had not left immediately.

Nezha stood a few steps away, arms crossed, the evening breeze ruffling the stray hairs on his forehead and the red ribbon behind his neck. He looked at the weariness on her face, his phoenix eyes filled with darkness.

"The journey westward is full of excitement, but the waters are also murky. Remember, no matter what you see, don't get involved easily. If any trouble arises, take care of yourself first."

"Understood, Third Prince."

She deliberately drew out her words and curtsied respectfully, saying, "This little demon will certainly keep to her duty and not cause you any trouble."

Nezha looked at her feignedly obedient appearance and didn't reply. His figure flew into the sky and disappeared as before.

Bai Yeying watched him leave before turning back to her cave.

Inside the cave, Cuiluo had already prepared hot water and clean clothes. Seeing her return looking disheveled but with a relaxed expression, she finally felt relieved and quickly went to her.

"Madam, where have you been again? We were so worried about you," Cuiluo asked softly as she helped her loosen her hair.

"I went... to see a good show," Bai Yeying mumbled, immersing herself in the warm water. She sighed comfortably, letting her fatigue evaporate with the heat.

...............

On the other side, Tang Sanzang and Sun Wukong were together.

Since the day Sun Wukong, in a fit of anger, somersaulted back to Flower Fruit Mountain, Tang Sanzang, traveling alone, indeed suffered quite a few frights.

The petty thieves who block the road are alright; reciting a few scriptures and giving them some valuables will usually get rid of them.

But the ignorant spirits, tigers, leopards, wolves and jackals in the mountains and fields didn't listen to reason at all, and only regarded him as a piece of walking fat meat.