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"He moved! The Great Sage moved!" called out a Beast Region expert. When they saw the Great Sage remove the staff from his throat and attack, their faces lit up with delight.

"I knew it! The Great Sage wields the Fiery Eyes of Truth. He can see through all things; how could he possibly be tricked by a mere mirage formation?"

"Man, we all worried for nothing."

"The Great Sage really lives up to his reputation."

The instant the Great Sage moved, they all lit up, shouting his praises and teasing each other. They seemed utterly relaxed.

However, the demons and zombies weren't in such high spirits…..

Jiangchen and Hanba knit their brows. "He broke the mirage formation?"

On the demon's side, Black Dragon asked the same question.

"Great Sage Sun possesses the Fiery Eyes of Truth," explained Su Yiyun. "A mirage formation is no real threat to him. Furthermore, it's just a formation I placed casually. My goal was to save Hanba, not to kill him. It's only logical that he'd escape the formation."

For some reason, Su Yiyun seemed utterly relaxed. He narrowed his eyes, then turned to Black Dragon and said, "let's go rout the enemy, then. I don't know how that monkey suddenly became so strong. Even so, although my mirage formation didn't kill him, he ought to be completely spent. There's no way he's as strong as before."

"Understood." Black Dragon nodded and left. Shortly after, an unseen smile tugged at Su Yiyun's lips.

"Break for me!"

The Great Sage was bathed in golden light as he viciously swung his staff at that distant figure.

His Fiery Eyes of Truth were no mere rumor. Everyone on the outside thought he'd used them to escape the formation.

No one else knew that, in truth, he hadn't activated the Fiery Eyes of Truth at all.

The Fiery Eyes of Truth could break countless barriers. However, the instant he activated them, the illusions vanished without a trace. He ached to see her again, so he intentionally allowed himself sink into this illusory landscape…..

But in the end, his wish wasn't realized.

"Oh, how I long to see you again."

He leaped into the air, his heart still aching for her. Then he swung his staff at the illusory figure with all his might. The way he saw it, destroying the shadow would surely break the formation.

Whump.

"......"

The instant his staff landed, he froze.

Judging by the sensation transmitted through his staff, he hadn't hit an illusion. Instead, it seemed that he'd hit…. A living, breathing person.

Cough.

Bloody mist filled the air.

"Fiery Eyes of Truth, activate!" The Great Sage roared, his eyes flashing with dazzling golden light.

Whoosh.

A gentle breeze blew by, completely dispersing the disconcerting mists.

Thump.

When he saw her clearly, his staff fell from his hands and clattered to the ground.

"Monkey, you…. How've you been?"

The mists dissipated, revealing a woman in a long, purple dress with a purple flower tucked into her hair. Her lips twitched as if she were about to smile but before she could, a stream of fresh blood started flowing from her forehead.

Drip.

Blood pooled on the ground.

"How is this possible? How could it be you?"

The Great Sage called out, seemingly maddened, "didn't you go to the God Realm? Didn't you say you could never return? Why? Why are you here? Why?"

The woman smiled. Even so, her expression carried a hint of bitterness. "I…. missed you."

"We've been apart for tens of thousands of years, yet I've missed you every waking moment. By chance, father went somewhere far away, so I snuck out to visit you."

"It's impossible, this can't be true…. If it's really you, why did you say those things to me? Why didn't you let me see your face?"

"I was afraid…. Afraid that after I saw you, I'd be unable to resist staying here with you forever." Her voice weakened. The Great Sage grabbed his head and paced frantically. Then, eyes bloodshot, he rushed to her side and pulled her into an embrace.

Her wound bled continuously as the Great Sage hurriedly tried to treat her injuries. "I didn't mean to, I really didn't mean to."

She reached out and gently stroked his cheek, her pallid face alight with happiness. "After I left, I regretted it so much, I really did. But I dared not disobey father's orders - I was afraid that if I did, he'd take his anger out on you. It's been tens of thousands of years. I can't tell you many times I dreamed of your embrace, just like this….. Finally, my dream has come true."

The Great Sage's lips quivered furiously as he muttered over and over again, "Why? Why didn't I activate my Fiery Eyes of Truth earlier? Why was I so hasty to….."

"It's alright," she said with a gentle smile. "This isn't so bad, don't you think? This way, I'll finally be free. We love each other yet can't grow old together. It's been a form of torture for us, don't you think?"

"No, I didn't want this….."

"I truly wanted to be with you forever. I wonder…… we've been apart for so long… did you ever… think of me?"

The hand caressing the Great Sage's cheek fell to the ground as she turned to light and disappeared from his embrace.

He grasped desperately at the light, calling on all his accumulated karmic merit in hopes of recondensing her scattered life essence.

But… it was all futile.

"No…….."

He knelt to the ground, gazed up into the sky and let out a long, mournful cry. At the same time, he watched a purple morning glory fell from above. That flower…. He'd placed it on her head himself all those years ago.

He picked it up, then carefully held it to his chest.

Then he noticed the Ruyi Jingu Bang lying on the ground….

He used it to kill demons and evil spirits, to punish the wicked and reward the just, but now he had used it to...… kill the woman he loved more than anything!

What good was it?

Bang.

He stomped it into the ground. Suddenly, his head filled with images of what he'd just done.

He killed her with his own hands…...

With his own hands!

"Ah…."

He roared in despair. Instantly, his body grew dozens of feet tall. The light emanating from his body was no longer golden, but rather blood-red.

Roar…..

He let out an ear-splitting roar. His eyes glinted red, then he turned his gaze upon the crowd.

Looking into his eyes, you could no longer find any trace of rationality. Instead, there was nothing… but bloodlust.

Watching this, the crowd's hearts trembled. Meanwhile, Su Yiyun frowned as he looked into the distant sky.

"A double-layered formation? Where did such an expert come from?"