The youths who remained outside the formation watched the changes in the formation, and their expressions changed drastically. The disciples from various sects gathered together and discussed for a while. Most of them selected two or three disciples to return to the mountain to report to their masters, while the rest waited anxiously outside the formation, occasionally flying up into the sky to look into the formation. However, the demonic formation was filled with demonic energy above, and they could not see anything.
On the other side of the magic array, Ahua, unusually awake, lay half-reclined on the ground, her eyes fixed intently on the array shrouded in demonic energy. Langyuan sat beside her, toying with a pebble typical of the Gobi Desert. Ji Jue sat cross-legged on the ground, his fists clenched and trembling slightly, his face unusually etched with deep worry as he gazed anxiously into the magic array. Yu Ke stood far away on a low hill, his hands clasped behind his back, his face somber as he looked towards the north.
--
Shi Chan recited the scriptures repeatedly to calm his mind. When his mind was somewhat at peace, he slowly opened his eyes and saw a smiling little face.
At that moment, Liuli was squatting in front of Shichan, her arms resting on her knees, her hands cupping her face, looking at Shichan with a smile.
Shi Chan's eyelashes trembled, his breathing suddenly became unsteady, and his heart, which had just calmed down, began to pound violently again, as if it were about to jump out of his chest.
"Little monk," Liuli said with a smile, "you ate a pill made from the essence of a living person, and then you kissed me. Didn't you break your vows?"
Shi Chan's expression changed. He took a deep breath to calm himself and nodded with a wry smile, saying, "Yes, this humble monk has broken his vow. If we are able to escape this demonic formation alive this time, this humble monk will kneel before the Buddha statue to repent and seek the Buddha's forgiveness."
Liuli shook her head, coughed lightly, and said in a serious tone, "Don't be silly, little monk. You've made such a serious mistake. Your Buddha will definitely not forgive you!"
Shi Chan paused for a moment, carefully examining Liu Li's small face, clearly discerning a mischievous glint in her eyes. After a moment of silence, Shi Chan shook his head and chuckled, "If that's the case, then this humble monk can only kneel before the Buddha until the Buddha forgives me."
Liuli frowned, displeased, and said, "You blockheaded, stupid monk!"
Shi Chan smiled slightly, then said solemnly, "Buddha is magnanimous. As long as this humble monk's repentance is sincere, Buddha will surely forgive this humble monk."
"Hmph!" Liuli hated hearing Shichan mention Buddha the most, because of that Buddha, he wouldn't even let her stay by his side. She was unhappy and pouted, shouting, "Impossible! Your Buddha will never forgive you!"
Looking at Liuli's appearance, Shichan tilted his head slightly and couldn't help but smile gently. This woman was as pure and flawless as the most beautiful piece of jade in the world. At this moment, Shichan had a strange feeling in his heart. He wanted to protect this piece of jade well and keep her from being tainted by even a speck of dust.
Seeing that Shi Chan only smiled and didn't say anything, Liu Li's eyes darted around a few times before she simply said, "Little monk, why don't you just return to secular life? Once you're gone, we can travel all over the Central Plains together!"
"Return to secular life?" Shi Chan was taken aback. He hesitated for a long while, then shook his head and smiled, "This humble monk has never considered returning to secular life. My only aspiration is to travel throughout the Central Plains to enlighten the world, so that the light of Buddha may shine upon the earth... until one day, when there is no more greed, anger, or ignorance in this world, only truth, goodness, and beauty, when people trust each other and there is no more deceit, when people leave their doors unlocked at night and do not pick up lost items on the road, because there will be no more thieves or robbers, and of course, no more wars. People will live in peace and prosperity, with no struggle for power, no distinction between high and low, no difference between noble and lowly..."
As he spoke, Shi Chan's gaze gradually became distant and profound, and a genuine joy appeared on his face, filled with a heartfelt longing for such a world. He continued, "People will no longer do evil; they will not steal, kill, lie, or commit adultery. Naturally, no souls will fall into hell, and the eighteen levels of hell will become meaningless..."
"Namo Amitabha Buddha!" Shi Chan straightened his face, put his hands together and chanted the Buddha's name for a long time, saying word by word: "I will not become a Buddha until hell is empty!"
Liuli stared blankly at the solemn expression on Shichan's face as he made his great vow. After a long while, she nodded blankly and said, "Little monk, shall I help you?"
Shi Chan smiled gently and nodded, saying, "Alright, thank you, young lady."
At this moment, Liuli suddenly came to her senses. She shook her head, lowered it, and frowned, thinking about what she had said. How could she have just said whatever came to mind?
After a while, she raised her head, scrunched up her small face into a pitiful expression, like a little dog begging for mercy, and said, "If you don't leave the nunnery, how will you marry me?"
These words struck Zenshi's heart like a hammer, freezing all the expressions on his face and replacing them with one of utter astonishment.
Liuli leaned forward, her little face scrunched up pitifully, just about to continue speaking, when suddenly something unexpected happened.
Having dodged the black feathered arrows from the sky and the strange flowers on the ground, the human and the demon had been here for about fifteen minutes. Suddenly, a series of thunderous booms echoed throughout the Demon Palace. All the stone pillars in the passage where Shi Chan and Liu Li were standing began to move. Some pillars moved forward, some backward, and some to the left and right, seemingly without any order, yet somehow in accordance with the laws of nature. As the pillars moved, the demonic energy within the formation surged and churned, like waves whipped up by a raging storm.
As soon as the stone pillars began to move, Shi Chan hurriedly pulled Liu Li to her feet, shielding her behind him as he warily watched the changes in the demonic array.
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