After a moment of silence, Many‑Eyes the Centipede raised his front limbs, knelt, and said, "Half of the rise of the demon race on Blossom Mountain was thanks to you, Her Holiness the Holy Mother. We demons are not only subjects of the Great Sage, but also yours. Pity that battle six hundred years ago—Blossom Mountain’s demons scattered, the clan shattered. Now, more than half the demons in the Three Realms dwell in Lionback Kingdom. If things go on like this, all the demons here will become burial sacrifices for the Six‑Eared Macaque. I beg you, Holy Mother, have mercy on the countless people of Lionback, and do not let our demon race bleed out again! Many‑Eyes thanks Your Holiness for your boundless grace!"
With that, Many‑Eyes slowly lowered his forehead to the ground and knelt long.
Everything around them seemed to fall silent, holding its breath.
Soft sunlight slanted through the window lattice, shining on Many‑Eyes’ curled body. His form trembled faintly, pleading for mercy.
For a fleeting moment, Anna Yang’s heart seemed to waver. Yet it was only an instant, not even enough to reach her face.
From start to finish, Anna merely stood quietly, head bowed, gazing down at Many‑Eyes. After a long pause, she sighed softly, "That was all in the past."
Many‑Eyes called out loudly, "Does Her Holiness truly wish to watch thousands of lives perish, just to keep the Six‑Eared Macaque from returning to the Buddhist Order for a while?"
Anna gazed out at the bright sunlight beyond the window and said, "Some prices, whether we pay them or not, are beyond our choosing."
"But we clearly don’t have to pay that price! If only Her Holiness would cooperate, Lionback could be scattered in days. Thousands of demons could be saved!"
"Save their lives—and then what?" Anna said softly. "Some things must be faced, in the end. If the Six‑Eared Macaque returns to the Buddhist Order, the Westward Quest will change. What we lose then may be our only chance to defeat the Tathāgata."
"Even if we don’t push the Six‑Eared Macaque toward the Buddhist Order today, he’ll turn to them tomorrow regardless!"
"Then we’ll deal with tomorrow when it comes!" Anna snapped sharply.
"So in Her Holiness’s heart, there’s only the Great Sage?"
"Yes." Anna stared wide-eyed at Many‑Eyes, answering each word distinctly: "In my heart, there is only him. I will not allow anything that could harm him. So there’s no point in saying more."
For a moment, Many‑Eyes was stunned, unable to utter a single word.
After a while, Many‑Eyes composed himself, bowed, and said, "Many‑Eyes takes his leave."
With that, he slowly rose, hunched, and backed away step by step.
"Stop."
Many‑Eyes halted.
"You don’t need to rescue Nine‑Headed Wyrm. I’ll do it myself. For the sake of your loyalty to Blossom Mountain, I won’t expose you this time. But you must stop everything you’re doing right now—or else..."
Anna didn’t finish her sentence, but Many‑Eyes understood.
He knelt again, trembling slightly, and said, "Thank you, Her Holiness."
"Enough. You may go."
"Yes."
...
In the outer hall, Princess Marina Azurewave, Rina, sat dazed, faint tear tracks still visible at the corners of her eyes.
Suddenly, she looked up and saw Anna coming from the inner chamber. She hurried over, bowed, and choked out, "Sister Anna, Nine‑Headed Wyrm—"
"It’s all right, I know." Before Rina could finish, Anna had already lifted her up with one hand. "Come, I’ll take you to save him."
"Thank you, Sister Anna—your kindness is beyond repaying!"
With Princess Marina and her attendants in tow, Anna strode quickly toward the palace gates.
...
The door to the secret chamber slowly opened.
Many‑Eyes stepped inside, one careful step at a time.
Inside, King Roc sat drinking idly. Seeing Many‑Eyes’ grim expression, he quickly stood and asked in a low voice, "No luck?"
"No." Many‑Eyes sighed softly, "That Holy Mother—her heart is set on the Great Sage, heedless of all else. Truly, heedless of all..."
"Thinking only of the Great Sage?" King Roc was startled, then hurriedly asked, "Will she expose us?"
Many‑Eyes shot him a cold look. "Relax. She’s thinking of the Great Sage on the Westward Quest. She probably won’t expose us—at least, not for now."
At that, King Roc finally breathed easier and gave a slow, wry smile. "That’s a relief. Heh, but really—why is she so fixated on that one Great Sage from the Westward Quest? Aren’t they both Great Sages? Power and influence are all that matter; what’s the point in being so picky?"
Many‑Eyes gave King Roc another look. "Anyway, that’s how things stand for now. Next, we’ll need a new plan."
"You’ve got another plan?"
"Of course. I never rely on just one plan." Many‑Eyes gritted his teeth. "We’ll change tactics now—whether she cooperates or not, it’s out of her hands!"
...
A demon officer hurried to Six‑Ears Damon’s side, dropped to one knee, and said, "Great Sage, Her Holiness the Holy Mother is here. She’s brought Princess Marina Azurewave."
At that, Six‑Ears Damon’s grip on his wine cup tightened, and he glanced sidelong at Gavin Goathorn nearby.
"Didn’t she say she wasn’t the informant? Why does she have to meddle in my spy hunt?"
"That... I’m not sure, sire." Gavin Goathorn gave a nervous laugh and edged back a step.
Six‑Ears Damon snorted coldly, "Tell her I’m busy. No time to see her."
The demon officer reporting this could only reply helplessly, "Great Sage, she can’t be stopped..."
Even as they spoke, commotion was already rising outside.
"Her Holiness, Great Sage hasn’t summoned you yet—you can’t..."
"Out of my way!"
"Her Holiness, Great Sage—he..."
"Did you not hear me? I said out!"
With a loud bang, the doors swung open. Anna stood outside, cold and expressionless.
Inside, Six‑Ears Damon sat leisurely at his seat, fiddling with a teacup, Gavin Goathorn standing nearby.
Seeing this, Anna strode over the high threshold and said to Gavin Goathorn, "Out!"
Gavin Goathorn was about to move when Six‑Ears Damon caught his hand.
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"Stay. You’re my chancellor in Lionback Kingdom. There’s nothing here you can’t hear."
Helpless, Gavin Goathorn could only stand in place, not daring to lift his head.
The door closed behind them, leaving only Anna, Six‑Ears Damon, and Gavin Goathorn in the room.
Anna stared coldly at Six‑Ears Damon.
On the other side, Six‑Ears Damon wore a relaxed expression. Gavin Goathorn kept his head down, feeling utterly ill at ease.
"What brings you here today? Quite the rare guest."
"Release Nine‑Headed Wyrm."
"Why?"
"He’s not a spy."
"How do you know he isn’t?"
"I’ll stake my life on it—he isn’t."
Six‑Ears Damon laughed and shook his head. "That makes no sense. There’s definitely a spy in Lionback Kingdom, and a high‑ranking one at that. If you can tell me who the real spy is, I’ll believe Nine‑Headed Wyrm isn’t. But staking your life doesn’t prove anything—that’s just unreasonable."
At this, Anna began to lose her composure. For a moment, she didn’t know what to say.
"Well?" Six‑Ears Damon set his teacup down, stretched, and leaned back comfortably. "What do you think of my proposal?"
Anna bit her lip, took a deep breath, and said, "If you release Nine‑Headed Wyrm, I’ll handle the rumors for you."
"Ha, what a joke. You think I care about those rumors? Or what a bunch of little bugs say about me?"
"Then what do you care about?"
"All I care about is who’s betrayed me. Find the spy, kill them—that’s my only goal." As he spoke, Six‑Ears Damon bared his fangs and slowly clenched his fist in front of Anna, the sound of knuckles cracking filling the air.
"Fine, I get it." Anna turned and reached for the door.
"Leaving already? Not going to try a little harder?"
Ignoring his taunt, Anna kept her face cold as she opened the door and stepped across the threshold.
Outside, Princess Marina Azurewave hurried over, glancing at Six‑Ears Damon inside before whispering, "Anna, Nine‑Headed Wyrm..."
"We’ll talk later."
With just a few words, Anna was already striding away with her attendants. All that remained in Six‑Ears Damon’s view was the gently swaying wooden door, the stunned demon officer outside, and Gavin Goathorn still standing silently by.
Slowly, the playful smile faded from Six‑Ears Damon’s face, replaced by an icy expression. He bared his teeth and muttered, "Now I’m starting to suspect her. Look into her. Better yet, check everyone who goes in and out of Holy Mother Palace."
"Great Sage, this..."
"And Nine‑Headed Wyrm—don’t go easy on him. See if you can really get something out of him."
Gavin Goathorn hesitated briefly, then could only bow and say, "Understood."
...
"Your Holiness, Chancellor has already used torture on General Nine‑Headed Wyrm. He’s demanding he name his accomplices."
...
"Your Holiness, General Nine‑Headed Wyrm has fainted. Chancellor sent word to ask Great Sage whether to continue. Great Sage replied: continue the torture—as long as he doesn’t die."
...
"Your Holiness, General Nine‑Headed Wyrm has fainted again."
"Anna, you have to save Nine‑Headed Wyrm! I swear, he hasn’t betrayed Great Sage, not even a little!"
"It’s not about betrayal anymore, it’s about..."
One message after another arrived. Sitting beside Anna, Rina was already sobbing quietly. Anna, meanwhile, was helpless with worry, unable even to explain the situation to Rina.
Should she tell Rina that this was really Many‑Eyes the Centipede’s scheme? But then, how would she explain her own position?
She couldn’t help Rina, but at least... she shouldn’t drag her into an even bigger storm. After all, they’re nothing like King Roc and those other demon warlords—they’re just a quiet, honest couple.
Just as Anna was feeling desperate, a demon officer hurried in from outside and bent to whisper a few words in her ear.
Anna’s eyes widened slightly.
"King Roc went to the prison to find Gavin Goathorn, and... he came straight from Many‑Eyes the Centipede’s residence?"
So, Many‑Eyes the Centipede doesn’t plan to stop here...
Anna gazed quietly at Rina, who was staring back at her. After a long moment, Anna said softly, "Gather Nine‑Headed Wyrm’s old subordinates. We’re breaking him out."