Journey to the West: Demon Emperor: Beginning as a Little Toad

Chapter 245: Quicksand Country

"Brother Jinjiao, this is the Hanba."

The Great Immortal Huli pointed at the brown-skinned, ghost-like monster on the ground and said.

"Drought demon..."

Xiao Chen glanced at the drought demon.

To be honest, he was a little disappointed.

This Hanba is actually not very strong. Compared with his current strength as Taiyi Jinxian, he is no match for him.

Xiao Chen moved his little finger slightly, activating the Fu Hai Zhu to perform the magical power of "rowing water into a river".

In an instant, a surging stream of water emerged from the void, like an upside-down river, pouring towards the drought demon.

As a fire-attributed ghost, Hanba fears this kind of flooding the most.

When he was poured by the water, white smoke suddenly came out of his body with a "sizzling" sound, and his momentum instantly became weak, as if all his strength had been drained away.

Just as Hanba was struggling, Xiao Chen's left eye suddenly changed. His pupil instantly turned into a dazzling gold, with a little sunlight flashing in the middle, like a rising sun.

This is exactly his "Golden Eye of the Sun", which can destroy evil things and also contains the infinite power of the true fire of the sun.

Xiao Chen glanced around, and a ray of burning golden light shot out from his eyes. In just a moment, the golden light pierced through Hanba's head as accurately as a sharp sword.

The golden light was not just light, but the embodiment of the sun's true fire. Once it touched the body of Hanba, it began to burn wildly.

Although the fire of the drought demon is extremely fierce, it is also an acquired fire. In front of the true fire of the sun, it can only appear small and powerless.

Just a look.

For an instant.

The drought demon was burned to ashes by the true fire of the sun, without even a trace of ash left, and it dissipated into the air.

"This……"

Although the Great Immortal Huli knew that Big Brother Jinjiao was always very strong, he was still able to see that Big Brother Jinjiao was able to kill Hanba, whom the three brothers had been fighting for a long time without any effort, with just one look.

Hu Li Daxian was still slightly shocked and sighed inwardly:
"It seems that during this retreat, Brother Jinjiao's cultivation has improved a lot."

"Let's go back."

Xiao Chen looked at the drought demon that had turned into nothingness, but there was not much ripple in his heart.

This drought demon is not effective and can't achieve the purpose of training at all.

Xiao Chen felt a little bored and decided to return to Chechi Kingdom.

"Well, this is..."

On the way back, an unusual aura caught Xiao Chen's attention.

In front of us, an extremely strong smell of incense rushed straight into the sky, as if it were real, as if countless believers were devoutly performing some grand sacrificial ceremony.

Xiao Chen released his spiritual sense, which extended downward like an invisible tentacle, searching for the source of the incense scent.

As his divine sense extended, Xiao Chen heard a burst of intensive worship sounds and the villagers' devout prayers:

"Worship the Great Priest of Light. May the Great Priest of Light protect us from the disaster of drought!"

"Great Priest of Light, I offer my sincere worship to you, and hope that you will show up and help us drive away the drought demon!"

"We offer vegetarian food and incense to the Great Priest of Light."

……

The sounds of worship one after another revealed the villagers' endless admiration and reliance on this "Great Priest of Light".

Xiao Chen's consciousness was fixed on a simple altar, where he saw a group of skinny, ragged villagers kneeling in neat rows.

They held tightly in their hands the little remaining vegetarian food, which was the most precious offering they could offer.

The incense burned brightly in their hands, releasing wisps of green smoke that shot straight into the sky, as if it was a bridge of communication between them and the "Great Priest of Light."

The villagers prayed and knelt devoutly.

They hope that this "Great Priest of Light" can show up, drive away the drought and disaster for them, and bring new life to this tormented land.

"Great Priest of Light?"

After fusing with the Ancestral Dragon Pearl, Xiao Chen's eyesight is now very good. He can see clearly the statue of the "Great Priest of Light" on the altar at a glance.

Statues of gods usually focus more on meaning than form and are not carved exactly like the gods themselves.

For example, the statue of Yang Chan's Three Holy Mothers that Xiao Chen had seen, her face was actually very blurry and her figure was a little sloppy, failing to reflect Yang Chan's charm. But as long as there was the iconic "Baolian Lantern" next to her, it was enough to make people recognize her identity.

For example, the statue of Erlang Shen portraying Yang Jian is not carved exactly like Yang Jian, but as long as he has the "three-pointed, double-edged sword", the "Tai'a sword" at his waist and the "Roaring Sky Dog" beside him... people can recognize at a glance that this is Erlang Shen.

Although the face of the statue of the High Priest of Light in front of him was also blurry, Xiao Chen was able to discern clues from certain features of the statue.

He stared at the big red feather crown on the statue's head, which looked like a cock's comb, and the colorful feather robe on its body.
He saw the identity of this great priest of light - Pleiades.

The star official of Pleiades lives in the Palace of Light in heaven, and his duty is to "crow at dawn", which means the sun rises when a rooster crows.

It is no exaggeration to say that he is a deity who brings light to the three realms.

Therefore, this Pleiades Chicken is worthy of being called the "Great Priest of Light".

"Pleiades Star Officer..."

Xiao Chen's eyes suddenly became extremely cold.

This big rooster is still haunting us?
In the world of Journey to the West, there is someone who can catch Sun Wukong.

But Sun Wukong had already mastered the method of avoiding the three disasters, and had an indestructible body.

On the journey to the West, although there are many magical weapons and supernatural powers, there are not many that can directly kill Sun Wukong, and the Yin-Yang Qi Bottle is one of them.

Once this "Yin Yang Qi Bottle" comes out, even an indestructible innate god like Sun Wukong can be killed directly.

The flesh of the big rooster had already been completely melted by King Jinjiao in the "Yin Yang Qi Bottle" and eaten by him.

Fourteen years ago, this Pleiades star official had completely transformed into Da Gong.

The soul of the big rooster was also burned in the Yin-Yang Qi bottle and turned into ashes.

It can be said that it has been completely destroyed in both form and spirit.

Without a soul, there is no possibility for the rooster to be reincarnated.

Logically speaking, the rooster is dead, so how can it still show its spirit?

Can this also drive away drought?
"There is probably someone pretending to be a god behind this, using the name of 'Great Priest of Light' to collect incense for the Pleiades Star Official."

"I know that the Pleiades star official is dead, but how can these ordinary people know these secrets?"

"It seems that a lot of things have happened during my fourteen years of seclusion."

"The person behind this..."

Xiao Chen already had some guesses.

"Hu Li, how is this drought demon usually generated?"

Xiao Chen asked the Great Immortal Huli who was beside him.

There is a sequence of hearing the truth, and there is a specialization in the surgery industry.

All of King Golden Horn’s skills are in fighting.

When it comes to Taoist magic, such as catching ghosts, exorcising evil spirits, and refining elixirs...these are best practiced by the Taoists in Mount Zhongnan and Mount Xiaomao.

"Brother Jinjiao, according to what our sect said."

"Ba is the drought ghost."

"He belongs to the category of ghosts and zombies."

"In these three realms, there was an evil method that specialized in refining the drought demon."

"These evil methods will gather the souls of the dead, preventing them from reincarnating and turning them into zombies instead."

"Not only will the bodies of these dead people who have turned into zombies not rot, but grass and trees will not grow on their graves either."

"In a few years, they will break out of the earth and become drought demons. Wherever the drought demons go, it will be like a raging fire, leaving thousands of miles of land barren and all living things in ruins."

"And for a drought demon like the one we encountered today, there must be someone with great magical powers who has been secretly practicing for a long time."

"This kind of drought demon is not only powerful, but also extremely difficult to deal with."

Huli Daxian explained.

"Ba, drought ghost?"

When Xiao Chen heard this, he thought of Bodhisattva Vimala.

If the true form of Vimala Bodhisattva is really an evil ghost, then she is undoubtedly the best at these ghost techniques.

With a Buddhist background, a mother-son relationship with the Pleiades star official, and the ability to control the drought demon... it is very likely that she is the one behind this.

"This Vimala Bodhisattva is offering incense to his son..."

Xiao Chen had already roughly guessed one or two things.

Xiao Chen narrowed his eyes, murderous intent rising.

It seems that killing the son without killing the mother is equivalent to killing the son in vain.

When cutting grass, uproot it; when killing people, kill them all.

This family just wants to lie down neatly together.

Today, fourteen years have passed since the last time Heaven captured a prisoner.

It has been four years since Zhenwu defeated the demons.

The wind died down.

Maybe it's time for him, King Golden Horn, to chop off a Buddha's head and make a wine glass.

"I originally thought that this drought demon was caused by the monks from Zhiyuan Temple."

"But after thinking about it carefully, it shouldn't be."

"Although these monks have a dispute with our Taoist sect over incense offerings, they would not resort to such despicable means."

"Killing lives in this disguised form, doesn't this also break the Buddhist precepts?"

The Great Immortal Huli thought about it, then denied his idea, shook his head and said.

"Haha, Hu Li, don't you understand yet?"

"Although Buddhism has eight precepts."

"One is to abstain from killing, two is to abstain from stealing, three is to abstain from sexual intercourse, four is to abstain from lying, five is to abstain from drinking alcohol, six is to abstain from touching incense and flowers, to abstain from sitting or lying on a high and wide bed, and to abstain from eating at inappropriate times."

“But how many monks can really hold on?”

"In these three realms, there are not enough monks who kill, are greedy for money, and tell lies..."

Xiao Chen smiled. As the saying goes, "what goes up must come down." Even the Tathagata Buddha took the lead in telling lies and collecting gold and money.

His attendant disciples Ananda and Jiaye even openly demanded bribes in Lingshan.

There is no need to say more about what the people living under this sacred mountain look like.

Not to mention the four monks on the journey to the West who killed millions of little demons. Wasn't this a violation of the precept against killing?

"Brother Jinjiao, could it really be the monks from Zhiyuan Temple who did this?"

Upon hearing this, the Great Immortal Huli opened his tiger eyes slightly and spoke angrily.

"Hu Li, you go back first."

"Don't be impatient, and don't make a fuss. Just hold your ground for now. I'll go around and see what's going on."

Xiao Chen waved his hand and gave instructions to the Great Immortal Huli.

"Yes, I understand, Brother Jinjiao."

Huli Daxian nodded and said in a deep voice.

……

This altar of the "Great Priest of Light" did not exist at all in Chechi Kingdom before he went into seclusion.

It is clear.

That is what was developed during the more than ten years that King Golden Horn was in seclusion.

Xiao Chen activated the power of the "Ancestral Dragon Pearl", concealed his breath, and then turned into a golden light, flying quickly to the east.

He wanted to see how popular the High Priest of Light was.
To the east of Chechi State, there are Wuji State, Baoxiang State and Usizang State.

Further east of U-Tsang Kingdom is the Liusha Kingdom.

The 800-li Liusha River meanders through the Liusha Kingdom, and the 800-li Huangfeng Ridge also stands near the Liusha Kingdom.

After passing the Liusha Kingdom and heading east, you will reach the Xifan Hami Kingdom.

In the original plot, there is a famous mountain in the Xifan Hami Kingdom called "Liangjie Mountain".

As the name suggests, these two boundary mountains are similar to boundary markers, and are the dividing line between Nanshanbuzhou and Xiniuhezhou.

Judging from the current large-scale distribution of incense.

These two mountains can also be said to be the dividing line between the gods in heaven and the Buddhas in Lingshan.

That is the marginal area between the two continents.

That is.

The area near these two world mountains is the weakest spot for the influence of the gods in heaven and the Buddhas in Lingshan.

Xiao Chen flew over the countries of Wuji, Baoxiang, Usizang, Liusha, etc., to investigate the distribution of incense offerings to the great priest of light.

Xiao Chen discovered that the further east the Chechi Kingdom went, the more severe the drought became.

In comparison, the Chechi Kingdom is better, and the human people there can still barely get enough to eat.

But the two countries at the most marginal areas of Xiniuhezhou, U-Tsang and Liusha, were in a miserable situation.

These two countries, located at the very edge of Xiniu Hezhou, are now thousands of miles of barren land and are extremely desolate.

and.

There was also a plague of locusts.

In the sky, locusts were as dense as dark clouds. The sound of their flapping wings gathered into heart-pounding buzzing sounds, echoing across the land like a death knell of doomsday.

Even, several locust monsters have been born among this locust swarm.

These locust monsters have been practicing Taoism for thousands of years. They are the leaders of these locusts and drive the entire locust colony.

Locusts, these greedy little creatures, ruthlessly devour the only remaining green on the ground. Wherever they go, there is a mess and they have brought endless disasters to this once fertile land.

The disaster of drought was coupled with the rampant locust plague.

The two once prosperous countries, U-Tsang and Liusha, are on the verge of destruction.

The people of these two countries still had something to eat, and they were hanging on to death, but they were just hanging on to death.

Especially the Liusha Kingdom, its name seems to be a reflection of reality.

In this country, all you can see are moving sand dunes. The vibrant scene has become a thing of the past, replaced by endless desolation.

It really lives up to its name, the whole country is like "quicksand".

However, it is like a drowning person desperately trying to grab a life-saving straw.

The Pleiades star official, the great priest of light, was apparently packaged as a savior.

In this endless despair, the incense of the Pleiades star official was unusually strong, even reaching the point of purity.

"Worship the Great Priest of Light. May your light shine upon us and protect us from this endless plague of locusts!"

An old man held up the vegetarian incense high with trembling hands, tears glistening in his eyes.

"Great Priest of Light, I offer my sincere worship to you, and hope that you will appear in the world and help us get rid of the drought!"

A young mother, holding a thin child in her arms, her voice full of anticipation.

"We are all working together to offer vegetarian incense to the Great Priest of Light. May you once again use your divine power to help us eat these rampant locusts!"

The children's voices were clear and their eyes were filled with longing.

……

The people of Liusha Kingdom, with despair and helplessness in their eyes, knelt before the statue of the Pleiades star official and offered vegetarian food and incense.

They prayed devoutly to the Pleiades star official, hoping that he would appear again.

They hope that this god can help them eat the locusts again and drive away the drought demon, so that they can get a chance to breathe.

……

The Pleiades Star Official here is no longer a simple altar, but a magnificent and majestic Great Temple of Light.

It forms a sharp contrast with the desolation of the Quicksand Kingdom.

This Temple of Light has become the hope in the hearts of the people of Liusha Country.
The people of Liusha Kingdom dedicated their purest faith to the Pleiades star official, hoping that he could bring salvation.

The pure power of faith was like a trickle of water, constantly converging on the statue of the Pleiades star official, and being absorbed and condensed bit by bit.

With the continuous infusion of the power of faith.

The statue of the Pleiades star official also looked more and more radiant, as if it really had life.

Especially those big rooster eyes, which were bright and seemed to flash with divine light at any time.

"Haha, it really is a good way to curb the incense."

"Accumulating good deeds... that's too slow."

"It is better to create a disaster first, and then appear as a savior, enjoy the offerings of the world, fool the world, and attract a lot of incense."

Seeing this, Xiao Chen sneered.

He had roughly understood the methods of this Bodhisattva Vimala:
"If there is no snow in a place, then we should first make it snow, and then call it 'helping someone in need'."

The tricks of Lingshan Buddhism have always been like this.

Take the journey to the West as an example: The Tang Dynasty is peaceful and prosperous, what should we do if we don’t believe in Buddhism?
Just create problems.

At that time, the Tang Dynasty was peaceful and the people lived and worked in peace and contentment, and they did not have much faith in Buddhism.

However, the Buddhist sect cleverly designed a conspiracy to lead Emperor Taizong of Tang into the underworld, allowing him to witness the sins he had committed in his lifetime and the punishment he would suffer after his death.

Li Shimin's father, Li Yuan, came.

Then Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji also came, and they shouted: "Shimin is here! Shimin is here!"

Then, Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji came up and grabbed Emperor Taizong of Tang to seek revenge.

Also, when Emperor Taizong of Tang was conquering the world, sixty-four smoke fields, seventy-two bandit groups, and the ghosts of princes, chiefs, and other beheaded and dragged bodies...all came to seek revenge on Emperor Taizong.

The Buddhists then took Emperor Taizong of Tang to see the tragic conditions and tortures in the eighteen levels of hell.

Said to Emperor Taizong of Tang:
"You did evil in your life, and you will suffer after your death!"

"The hell of hanging tendons, the hell of wrongful death, the hell of the pit of fire, the hell of pulling out tongues, the hell of skinning, the hell of boiling oil, the hell of pulling out intestines... they are beaten until their brows are frowning and their faces are covered in blood, and they scream to the earth and the sky but no one helps them."

"Disloyalty and unfilial behavior are against the will of heaven... Who can be spared by the gods and ghosts?"

In the underworld, Emperor Taizong of Tang was frightened to the point of being "terrified" and "terrified".

The Buddhist community then took the opportunity to propose that Emperor Taizong of Tang hold a water and land ceremony to liberate the souls of the wronged, in order to ensure the longevity of future generations and the stability of the country.

Finally, Buddhism throws out the temptation of Mahayana Buddhism:
"In the Great Leiyin Temple in the Great Western Heavenly Kingdom, where the Buddha Tathagata is, there are the Three Treasures of Mahayana Buddhism, which can resolve a hundred grievances, eliminate unexpected disasters, save the dead from suffering, and prolong their lives..."

My Buddhist scripture.

Do you, Emperor Taizong of Tang, want it or not?
……

He, the King of Golden Horn, is a monster, born and raised by nature. He has never been worshipped by the world, nor does he need to worship the world.

Monsters eat humans; this is their way of survival.

People in the world are afraid of monsters and shout for their killing. This is an instinctive reaction of mortals to protect themselves, and it is also normal.

People in the world revere gods and Bodhisattvas, worship them highly and regard them as faith.

Gods and Bodhisattvas are sacred beings in people's hearts.

They enjoy offerings from the world, are revered by thousands of people, have constant incense burning, and sit high on an altar.

But really speaking...

Where are the monsters, gods, or bodhisattvas?
We are all cannibals.

It’s just that the method of eating people is different.

When monsters eat people, they eat them directly.

Gods and Bodhisattvas eat humans indirectly.

But compared with monsters, the methods these Bodhisattvas use to eat people are more cruel and hypocritical.

It's still cannibalism, but it's just a hypocritical act under the name of "justice".

What is a demon and what is a Bodhisattva?

Did the Bodhisattva turn into a demon?