Night Investigation at the Prince-Consort’s Residence

In Tusita Palace, the Adamantine Ring still lay quietly on the floor.

Monkey clasped his hands and said, "Well, can you or can't you? Just give me a straight answer. Didn't you say you couldn't contact Lord Lao?"

Birdie replied, "Master just told me he’ll be back soon."

"Just now?"

Birdie silently nodded.

Monkey couldn’t help but chuckle, "Looks like he knows I’m here."

Birdie kept her head down and didn’t reply, just quietly brewing tea. Her eyes occasionally flicked toward the courtyard.

Clara Heart paced nonchalantly in the courtyard, hands clasped behind her back, while dry leaves drifted down from the trees nearby.

[Ellipsis—scene break]

In the secret chamber, Lord Lao stood up, panting, and tossed the four brushes he’d been holding and biting into a nearby brush holder.

He looked down at the intricate formation he’d just finished drawing and chuckled to himself.

He stepped out of the formation, pressed his hands together, and streams of silvery spiritual power converged. The once-dim secret chamber was suddenly flooded with light.

Then, with a gesture toward the center of the formation, a ripple swept across the floor, and a small silver fountain slowly rose from the heart of the array.

The silver water flowed along the formation’s lines, quickly spreading throughout and casting flashes of silvery light.

Seeing this, Lord Lao slowly closed his eyes and began to chant.

Under the incantation, the previously motionless lines of the formation began to spin, and a silver orb the size of a fist floated up in the center.

Soon, other silver orbs of varying sizes appeared in the surrounding lines—some as large as a thumb, others as small as soybeans. All these orbs whirled rapidly above the formation, tracing silvery patterns in the air.

Bolts of lightning crisscrossed the air.

After a moment, Lord Lao stopped chanting and snapped his eyes open.

Instantly, the silver spheres spinning in midair exploded, showering the ground with liquid silver that formed irregular patterns.

To an ordinary person, these patterns would look like nothing more than water splashed carelessly across the ground—no rhyme or reason at all. But to Lord Lao, it was different.

Without pausing for a moment, Lord Lao swiftly stepped into the center of the array and lowered his head to examine it closely.

Meanwhile, the silvery liquid rapidly seeped into the ground. In the end, not a single drop remained, as if nothing had ever happened here.

Lord Lao tilted his head slightly, stroked his long beard, and shook his head with a sigh.

“Times really have changed... But, well, knowing this much is enough.”

...

In the pavilion hall, Birdie lifted her head slightly and said softly, “Master has returned.”

“He’s back?”

Monkey and Clara Heart, who stood outside the door, were both taken aback.

Before the words had faded, Lord Lao’s figure appeared at the doorway.

Upon seeing Lord Lao, General Lee quickly bowed and clasped his hands. “General Lee pays his respects to Lord Lao!”

“No need for formalities.”

Violet Robe and the other two Daoist disciples quickly stepped forward and bowed as well.

“Master, Great Sage has been waiting for you for quite some time.”

“I know.” Lord Lao waved his hand, brushed past Violet Robe, and lifted his pant leg to step over the threshold.

Looking up, Lord Lao saw Monkey standing in the hall, arms akimbo.

After six hundred and fifty years apart, their reunion was marked by a pause. The difference was, Monkey’s face was expressionless, while Lord Lao wore a broad smile.

After a brief silence, Lord Lao sighed softly, “How long have you been out?”

With that, Lord Lao slowly walked into the hall.

Birdie, who had been making tea in the seat of honor, simply bowed and gave up her place.