In front of the empty house, Monkey stood all alone.
He turned to look at the house where Ian Liu lived, lifted his foot to walk toward it, but stopped again.
At that moment, he suddenly didn’t know what to do, gripped by a sense of confusion.
Now that the Earth‑Store King has appeared here, is there any need to check Ian Liu’s memories? Even if he saw something, how could he know if it was real or fake?
He lifted his head and gazed at the sky, letting out a faint sigh. Monkey’s face was full of bewilderment.
He didn’t understand why the Earth‑Store King had intervened twice, but he knew that if the Earth‑Store King could act, then his own master surely could as well.
If Ian Liu’s memories could be fake, then Aiden Chen’s memories in Crescent Star Cave could also be fake.
In the end, the answer could only be found with Anna Yang.
Thinking of this, he suddenly laughed—a bitter laugh.
Whether it was Master Sage Subhuti, Lord Lao, or the Earth‑Store King, he didn’t want to believe a word any of them said. Yet at this moment, he couldn’t help but believe the Earth‑Store King’s last words.
“Actually, anything could be fake. Anything could also be real. The key is what you choose to believe—and what you choose not to believe. Otherwise, once you’ve made everything perfectly clear, your own heart will never be clear again.”
Yes, after all the twists and turns, everything could be fake. Monkey didn’t want to believe that Aiden Chen was Anna Yang’s child, but he couldn’t help thinking about it.
At this moment, the only thing he wouldn’t waver on was his belief that Anna Yang would never lie to him.
That proud woman would never stoop to deceiving him. As long as he stood before her, he could learn the whole truth.
He turned his head and looked toward Mount Hua.
But… should he really go to see her now?
If he saw her, what would be the first thing he said?
The Earth‑Store King has already intervened, which means that protecting Anna Yang by avoiding her is no longer possible. As long as there’s a need or a reason, the Buddhist Order will not hesitate to drag her in.
But… is he really just going to see her like this?
After more than six hundred years apart, Monkey longed—desperately longed—to see her, and to say, as his first words: “I’ve solved all the problems, cut away everything that needed cutting. From now on, I’ll never leave again.”
But if he went now, he could only ask her: “Who is Aiden Chen’s mother, really?”
He couldn’t bring himself to ask. At this moment, as the groom who ran away from his own wedding for another woman, he didn’t have the right to demand anything.
In the tiny courtyard, Monkey just stood there, staring blankly toward Mount Hua, hesitating.
A single maple leaf silently fell from a branch.
......
Cartwright Kingdom.
In the plaza, one monk after another fainted under the scorching sun. Every time someone collapsed, it stirred up a commotion.
At times like this, collapsing from heatstroke was almost the same as dying. Everyone understood that now.
Gradually, the seeds of fear had already sprouted in the monks’ hearts.
Tripitaka saw all of this.
“Can’t you conjure up some water?”
“I can,” Marshal Silver replied without hesitation. “But no matter how much conjured food you eat, it won’t relieve your hunger. Conjured water, naturally, won’t quench your thirst. In the end, it’s just an illusion.”
“Then what should we do?”
Marshal Silver glanced at the rows of arrows in the distance and said quietly, “With the Great Sage gone, if we want to save them, the only way is for us to break out with you. These people are clearly targeting us. If we’re gone, they’ll lose their value. It’s not safe, but at least… it’s a hope.”
Tripitaka was slightly stunned.
Young and trained in martial arts, his body was much stronger than most monks. But that was still only within mortal limits. At this moment, his condition wasn’t much better than theirs.
If he collapsed from heatstroke, Marshal Silver would surely carry him out without hesitation. By then, the plaza would run red with blood.
Giving Tripitaka a faint look, Marshal Silver continued, “Of course, if we break out, casualties are inevitable. As for trying to seize the mastermind, forget it—the real orchestrator hasn’t shown himself, and if we leave your side, you might end up in even greater danger.”
Staring at the exhausted, hostile faces nearby, Tripitaka hesitated.
The Way of universal salvation is about rescuing all beings from the Sea of Suffering. But even if it’s to save people, does he have the right to choose life or death for them?