Seeing Bi Kwe distracted, Lan Ming took the opportunity to rescue Je Xi. The Wind God then severed Bi Kwe's magical scarf. He used a gentle breeze to bring Je Xi closer to him.
"You despicable Lan Ming!" Bi Kwe, in pain, commanded her magical scarf to attack the Wind God. Unfortunately, being cut by Lan Ming had drastically reduced its power. The magical scarf now floated weakly in the air.
"Bi Kwe, enough. If you admit defeat, I will treat your wounds," Lan Ming said sincerely. He genuinely disliked fighting among his own kind like this.
"No! I won't!" Bi Kwe inhaled the surrounding air deeply and then exhaled quickly. Hundreds of small peony flowers appeared around her. These small peony flowers slowly attached themselves to Bi Kwe's body and seemed to merge with her skin.
Lan Ming's eyes widened in disbelief. He knew this forbidden technique; it would kill its user. The hundreds of small peony flowers would serve as a sort of battle armor for the user, enhancing their abilities. However, after using the technique, the user would perish as their energy was depleted.
"Bi Kwe, stop! It could kill you!" Lan Ming exclaimed. The Wind God didn't stay idle; he recited a mantra and created numerous wind arrows to stop the small peony flowers from attaching to Bi Kwe's body.
"Are you afraid? You're pathetic," Bi Kwe laughed triumphantly. She was still under the influence of the enchanted liquor, so her rationality was impaired. The goddess was even willing to sacrifice herself to defeat Lan Ming.
Lan Ming's hands swiftly swung, accelerating his wind arrows to destroy Bi Kwe's peony flowers. As he tried to stop Bi Kwe's dangerous actions, suddenly a medium-sized lizard entered the cottage. The lizard transformed into a young man and stood with his back to Bi Kwe.
"Sister, come to your senses!" The young man then recited a mantra, summoning a large wooden box. He then extracted a yellow liquid from his mouth, stored it in a bottle, and forcibly fed it to Bi Kwe.
"What are you doing to me, you scoundrel!" Bi Kwe struggled, but the young man managed to restrain her by using a sealing mantra in the form of a red thread.
"This is for your own good, Sister. Do you want to die?!" The young man looked angry as he made Bi Kwe consume the liquid. He then transferred her into the large wooden box before leaving with a teleportation mantra.
Lan Ming was curious about the young man. He had never seen him before. However, he realized that he needed to first deal with the chaos. He sighed, looking around lazily. His cottage was in disarray due to the fight.
"I'll help you," Je Xi offered her assistance. She realized that she also needed to help clean up the mess, especially after being briefly held hostage and unable to do anything but rely on Lan Ming's help.
"Thank you." Lan Ming then turned to Ying and moved the old woman into the bedroom. He also cast a spell on Ying to ensure she wouldn't wake up until the cleanup was done.
In the lush forest, there was a small cottage adorned with light pink peony flowers from the outside. This small cottage was the home of a pair of siblings, a god and a goddess who didn't have official titles.
Bi Kwe woke up, feeling like she was trapped in a very confined space.
"Where am I?" she murmured as she rubbed her eyes. She tried to get up, but her head bumped into something quite hard.
"Ugh... what's this? Where am I actually?" she grumbled irritably. She banged around her surroundings quite roughly, causing a noisy racket.
Hearing the commotion, a young man approached the large wooden box. He then opened its lid, revealing Bi Kwe wearing a sour expression inside.
"Finally, you're awake. I'm grateful that you're still alive. Luckily, I arrived just in time," the young man repeatedly expressed his gratitude upon seeing Bi Kwe's improved condition. The Goddess of Theft's body had now recovered, her wounds healed, and her skin smooth as before.
"Why am I in this house? Wasn't I just fighting against Lan Ming?" Bi Kwe was puzzled by her current situation. "You owe me an explanation, Chan Do!" Bi Kwe glared at the young man who had saved her.
Chan Do sighed heavily. "Sister, you really have no manners. No wonder you're almost forgotten by humans and don't have an official title," he said lazily. Chan Do was Bi Kwe's younger brother, just like her. He also had no title, and his presence was nearly unknown to humans. But that was understandable since Chan Do was a newly born god, so his age was still young.
"You're just like me. Ugh, let's not talk about that again; it only makes me more annoyed," Bi Kwe stepped out of the wooden box and chose to lie down on her bed, which was shaped like a fairly large peony flower.
Chan Do sensed his sister's dislike. He himself understood the situation well and chose to remain silent. He opted to go to the kitchen and make rose tea for his newly awakened sister.
***
After they finished cleaning up, Lan Ming purposely invited Je Xi to have tea with him first. Lan Ming served his homemade dim sum to Je Xi.
"After the fight earlier, I've been thinking about making a firm decision. I will train hard in the human world while helping people on Earth before returning to the Celestial Realm and defeating Ha Han with all my might," Lan Ming suddenly expressed.
"Are you still intending to defeat Kak Ha Han?" Je Xi asked cautiously. She was afraid of offending the Wind God. The topic of conversation related to Ha Han was sensitive.
"Of course. I will definitely defeat him. Not only that, I will also make him realize that I am not just his shadow. I... will become stronger and make him acknowledge my strength not out of pity," Lan Ming said while staring at his clenched fist.
"That seems like it will be a long journey for you," Je Xi said as she nibbled on her dim sum. "If possible, may I accompany you on that journey?" Although she could express her thoughts clearly, the Goddess of Sound was secretly afraid of rejection from Lan Ming. Deep down, she kept pleading for Lan Ming to allow her to join him.