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

Chapter 283 Seven Gourds
In the reception room of Lion's Roar Mountain, the atmosphere became solemn and mysterious because of the words of the Dragon Demon King.

"Innate Gourd Vine?"

When Xiao Chen heard what the Dragon Demon King said, he was shocked.

He was not unfamiliar with the name. On the contrary, this Xiantian gourd vine was closely connected with many myths and legends, and the Xiantian gourd was even more magical.

Even in this world of Journey to the West, there is another "King of the Golden Horn" with the same name and surname as him, who owns a famous purple, gold and red gourd.

The Demon King Jiao looked at Xiao Chen's thoughtful expression, knowing that he had guessed a little, and continued to explain to Xiao Chen:

"This innate gourd vine is an extremely powerful existence among spiritual roots."

"Its history can be traced back to when the great god Pangu created the world."

"Ever since the great god Pangu created the world, this innate gourd vine has grown on the Buzhou Mountain, which was formed from Pangu's spine. It absorbs the essence of heaven and earth, bathes in the blessings of the sun and the moon, and continues to grow."

"As time went by, seven innate gourds actually grew on this innate gourd vine."

"One each of the gold, red, yellow, green, white, blue and black gourds."

"Although every gourd on the gourd vine is a rare treasure."

"However, the seven gourds did not ripen at the same time."

"The seven gourds mature one after another."

"Also, the time it takes for each gourd to mature varies greatly."

“Therefore, although some of the great powers passing by coveted the innate gourd, they could only pick one or two of them when they were ripe, and could not take all seven gourds at once.”

"What's more, the prehistoric world had just been opened up at that time. There were the Chaos Green Lotus, the Yellow Plum, the Innate Bitter Bamboo, the Innate Bodhi Tree, the Innate Spirit Lamp... all kinds of innate spiritual objects emerged in an endless stream, all waiting for the right person to discover and snatch them."

“Therefore, although this Xiantian gourd is precious, it was not particularly outstanding in that era. No one was willing to stay here and wait for the gourd to mature.”

"That would be a waste of other great opportunities."

Kunpeng is a veteran figure in the prehistoric times.

The Demon King Jiao is Kunpeng's apprentice, so he naturally knows a lot about the ancient times. He knows the story of the innate gourd vine in detail.

The Demon King Jiao continued:

"The first ripe purple gold gourd was picked by me."

"I have a keen eye for treasures and have refined this purple gold gourd into a purple gold red gourd for storing elixirs."

"It is said that the purple-gold red gourd contains the universe. Once an ordinary Taiyi Golden Immortal, or even a Daluo Golden Immortal, is trapped inside, they will instantly turn into pus. It is extremely powerful."

"And the second ripe purple-red gourd was obtained by one of my master's mortal enemies, Taoist Hongyun."

When the Demon King Jiao mentioned the Taoist Hongyun, a trace of hatred flashed in his eyes and his voice became low.

The Dragon Demon King paused for a moment, obviously trying to control his emotions.

As the saying goes, a master is a master, and a master is half a father. The hatred of the master is the hatred of the disciple.

As Kunpeng's apprentice, Jiao Demon King naturally knew the grudge between his master and Taoist Hongyun. This hatred was deeply imprinted in his heart.

"hehe."

The Demon King Jiao sneered, and seemed to feel a little pleased with the fate of the Taoist Red Cloud. He continued:
"This purple-red gourd was taken by the Taoist Hongyun and refined into the Nine-Nine Soul-Dispersing Red Gourd. It contains red sand, which can be used for both attack and defense. The red sand can pollute a person's soul, and the red gourd can also absorb souls for its own use."

"However, this Taoist priest Hongyun was ultimately defeated by my master and was killed by him in a fight. In the end, he died and his Taoism was destroyed."

"It's a pity that the Nine-Nine Soul-Dispersing Gourd disappeared during the fight."

The Jiao Demon King said regretfully.

"As for the purple-white gourd, it was obtained by our demon clan's demon king Donghuang Taiyi."

"In the past, Yi shot down nine suns and killed nine Golden Crow princes of my demon clan. It was a situation where they were doomed to die."

"Donghuang Taiyi killed Houyi, and combined Houyi's 'Nine Sun-shooting Arrows' and Houyi's spirit, he refined it into a magical weapon with extremely strong attack power - 'Slaying Immortal Gourd', also known as 'Slaying Immortal Flying Knife'."

When the Jiao Demon King said this, a trace of awe flashed in his eyes, and he continued:

"Because Hou Yi's archery skills are extremely strong, and his arrows never miss their targets. So this Immortal Slaying Gourd has also inherited some of Hou Yi's skills."

"The Immortal Slaying Gourd, once the flying knife comes out, it will hit the target every time. The head will fall off when the knife strikes."

"Even a Daluo Jinxian can't escape its brilliance."

"Later, this Immortal Slaying Gourd was left by Donghuang Taiyi to the last Golden Crow Prince Lu Ya of the demon race for self-defense."

The Jiao Demon King laughed.

"I see."

Xiao Chen suddenly understood after hearing this.

Houyi killed the nine Golden Crow princes of the demon clan. As the demon king, Donghuang Taiyi naturally could not tolerate such provocation. Houyi's death was almost inevitable.

Donghuang Taiyi will definitely kill him.

However, Donghuang Taiyi had nine of his sons and nephews killed by Houyi, and this hatred is hard to get over.

After Donghuang Taiyi killed Houyi, he was still not satisfied and refined his spirit into the Immortal Slaying Gourd, making him unable to be reborn for eternity.

“No wonder Lu Ya’s Immortal Slaying Gourd is so powerful.”

"Even masters like the long-armed ape Yuan Hong, the nine-tailed fox Su Daji, the Baili Tianjun, and the Penglai Island Yiqixian Yu Yuan... the Immortal Slashing Gourd can chop them all down with one strike. No one can withstand the power of its strike."

"It turns out that this Immortal Slaying Gourd is a combination of an Xiantian Gourd and Hou Yi."

"Hou Yi's archery skills are rare in the world. He can even shoot down the sun, which shows how amazing his killing power is."

"Donghuang Taiyi refined Houyi's 'Sun-shooting Arrow' into a flying knife."

"The Xiantian Gourd is already powerful, and is a treasure of heaven and earth. It is also combined with Hou Yi's archery skills and spirit to create the Immortal Slaying Flying Knife. Its power must be astonishing."

"Houyi, Chang'e..."

Xiao Chen had seen Chang'e and knew that she seemed to be still waiting for Houyi's return.

However, Houyi has already been refined by Donghuang Taiyi and merged with the Immortal-Slaying Gourd.

The widow Chang'e is afraid that she will never wait for Houyi and will have to live a lonely life.

This is the cruelty and ruthlessness of the ancient world. Every life is struggling to survive in this huge torrent, unable to predict its own fate.

"However, the relationship between my master Kunpeng and this Prince Lu Ya is not very good."

The Dragon Demon King shook his head, with a hint of helplessness in his tone.

He knew that the grudge between his master and Prince Lu Ya could not be explained in a few words.

Hearing this, Xiao Chen couldn't help but twitch his lips slightly.

Kunpeng is indeed strong. He is almost the strongest among the demons in the world. His strength is beyond doubt, but he also has many enemies.

However, this is a common occurrence in the Three Realms.

It is inevitable that conflicts often arise between strong people due to various conflicts of interest.

When you go out, everyone has an enemy.

If you don't even have a decent rival, it only means that you haven't made a name for yourself in this circle.

Especially in the age of great contention, people like Taoist Hongyun, even if they do not fight or rob, will make enemies with others for no reason.

"As for the golden gourd on the Xiantian gourd vine, it was obtained by our demon clan's saint, Nuwa."

The Jiao Demon King continued:
"Nuwa refined it into a 'Demon Summoning Gourd' to capture and command the demons."

"Because the demon-summoning banner was kept in the golden gourd, this demon-summoning gourd is also called the 'demon-summoning banner'."

"Demon-summoning gourd, demon-summoning banner."

Xiao Chen nodded. He had heard a little about this treasure.

There is a "golden gourd" in the Queen Nuwa Palace. Remove the cover and point with your hand. A white light will appear in the gourd. Above the white light, a banner will be hung. The light is divided into five colors and reflects thousands of rays. It is called the "demon-calling banner". The Queen Nuwa used the demon-calling banner in the golden gourd to summon the three demons from Xuanyuan Tomb: the nine-tailed fox spirit, the nine-tailed pheasant spirit, and the jade pipa spirit. The three demons hid their demon forms and stayed in the palace to confuse the king and wait for King Wu to defeat King Zhou so that they could help him succeed.

"As for the purple-yellow water-fire gourd, it was obtained by Master Tongtian."

The words of the Jiao Demon King brought Xiao Chen's thoughts back to reality:

"Master Tongtian took it and refined two water and fire unicorns and melted them into it, greatly increasing its power."

“However, Master Tongtian has many powerful magic weapons, and this purple-yellow water-fire gourd is not very famous in his hands.”

Upon hearing this, Xiao Chen expressed his deep agreement.

Tongtian the Patriarch has the Four Swords of Zhuxian in his hand, so he can fight against many saints at once.

In comparison, although this purple and yellow water and fire gourd is also a rare magic weapon, it does seem a little overshadowed among the many magic weapons of Master Tongtian.

However, even so, it cannot be said that the purple and yellow water and fire gourd is weak, it’s just that Master Tongtian didn’t use it much.

"And the purple-green gourd and the purple-black chaos gourd..."

The voice of the Dragon Demon King seemed to carry a kind of magic, pulling Xiao Chen's thoughts back into the mysterious legend of the innate gourd vine.

The Jiao Demon King continued:
"It is said that these two treasure gourds were obtained by the Jade Emperor and Yuanshi Tianzun respectively."

"The purple-green gourd can breed treasures from all over the world, taking them to a higher level, and becoming extremely powerful. And the purple-black chaos gourd is even more mysterious. It is said that it can communicate with chaos and trigger supreme power..."

The Demon King Jiao told Xiao Chen everything.

"Awesome, this innate gourd vine is really awesome."

Xiao Chen sighed when he heard this.

What else can he say about these seven gourds? He can only say that gourds are awesome.

Whether it's Taishang Laojun's purple gold red gourd, Lu Ya's immortal-slaying flying knife, or Nuwa's demon-summoning banner... they are all extraordinary innate spiritual treasures.

Although these gourds are different, some are treasures for killing, some are treasures for controlling, and some can improve the grade of magic weapons... but without exception, these gourds are very strong, ridiculously strong.

"All seven gourds were picked."

"Later, when Goddess Nuwa created humans, she came and dug away some of the Nine Heavens Xirang near the roots of the Xiantian Gourd Vine."

"Well... she also cut off half of the Xiantian gourd vine and refined it into the magic weapon 'Creation Whip' for creating humans."

"Nuwa soaked a gourd vine in mud and then sprinkled it on the earth. Wherever the mud splashed, people turned into humans."

"This Xiantian gourd vine was cut off half by Nuwa, and its Nine Heavens Xirang was also dug away..."

"This Xiantian gourd vine has been severely damaged and can no longer recover to its former glory..."

"Gradually, it was forgotten by the world and no longer received attention."

The Jiao Demon King said helplessly.

"This Xiantian Gourd Vine is also miserable. Too miserable."

When Xiao Chen heard this, he sighed in his heart.

All seven gourds from this innate gourd vine were picked, without leaving a single one.

Then, the soil of the innate gourd vine was dug away by Nuwa, and the gourd vine was cut in half by Nuwa, almost draining out all its value.

It was really squeezed dry, not a drop left.

The fate of the Xiantian gourd vine is very similar to that of the Buzhou Mountain on which it depends. They were both once treasures between heaven and earth, but after being fully utilized, they were completely forgotten by the world in this desolate land and abandoned in the long river of time.

This fate...how tragic it is.

"So this Xiantian gourd vine, is it still alive?"

Xiao Chen asked.

"This innate gourd vine is, after all, an innate spiritual root from the beginning of chaos. Its vitality is so strong that it is almost endless."

“Even if all the gourds are picked, the soil is dug, and the vines are cut, as long as there is a trace of roots left, this innate gourd vine can tenaciously grow back.”

"Moreover, Bai Ze, the leader of the Ten Demon Saints, had other uses for this Xiantian Gourd Vine and has been taking good care of it over the years."

The Jiao Demon King explained.

"That's true. Plant spirits have extremely strong vitality. Even if the roots are broken, they can grow back at any time after a period of time."

"I'm afraid the same is true for this Xiantian gourd vine."

Xiao Chen nodded in agreement.

He, the King of the Golden Horn, has a similar plant monster called "Poison Ivy" under his command, which is also a vine-type monster. Poison Ivy was once ordered by him to go to Chechi Kingdom to serve as the chief eunuch.

Although the poison ivy cut off the root of the trouble with one stroke, for vine-type monsters like them, it is very easy to cut it today and have it grow again tomorrow.

“The Resurrection of the Ginseng Fruit Tree.”

Xiao Chen thought of another innate spiritual root that created the world, Zhen Yuanzi’s ginseng fruit tree.

Sun Wukong jumped up on a cloud and went straight to the ginseng garden. He swung his golden hoop and hit the tree with it. Then he used his magical power to push the tree down.

There is a poem that goes: "It's a pity that the leaves have fallen and their roots have emerged from the ground, and Wukong has lost the grass and the elixir!"

This Sun Wukong pushed down the ginseng fruit tree, pulled it out by its roots, and directly cut off the ginseng fruit tree's offspring!
There were no fruits on the ginseng fruit tree, its branches had fallen, its leaves had fallen, its roots and branches were damaged, and it was completely dead.

It was just as Sun Wukong said: "Spiritual roots! Spiritual roots! I have already cut off his roots!"

But even if the roots of the ginseng fruit tree are broken and completely dead, it can be revived by Guanyin Bodhisattva in an instant and become: "green branches and leaves are dense and gloomy."

Ordinary gourd vines have a very strong vitality, not to mention this innate gourd vine, which is the ancestor of all gourd vines in the world.

What's more, as they are both innate spiritual roots, the vitality of this innate gourd vine is not inferior to that of the ginseng fruit tree, and is even stronger.

Even if only a few roots are left of the innate gourd vine, it will grow back sooner or later.

In addition, this innate gourd vine is on Mount Buzhou after all. It can be considered an innate spiritual root after all. Although it is damaged, it is still of some use.

What's more, there are people from the demon tribe who are always watching over the innate gourd vine and protecting it.

It has been countless billions of years, so it is not surprising that the innate gourd vine has grown back.

"Although the continent of Uttarakuru is barren, it is full of miasma and filthy air."

“But in this seemingly dead land, this innate gourd vine silently took root deep underground, using the power of the earth veins to absorb the thin spiritual energy of heaven and earth from the endless depths of the earth.”

"Over time, little by little, it accumulated into a lot. After who knows how many billions of years, seven more gourds grew on the Xiantian Gourd Vine."

There was a hint of amazement in the words of the Jiao Demon King as he introduced.

"The Xiantian Gourd Vine uses the power of the earth veins to absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth from deep underground."

"This is the same approach that the Lion King took to transform Lion's Roar Mountain."

Xiao Chen nodded, his eyes gleaming with thought.

In this harsh environment, this innate gourd vine remains indomitable and tenaciously finds a way to survive.

Since the surface of Uttarakuru is barren, the innate gourd vine chooses to take root deep underground, using the power of the earth veins to draw the thin spiritual energy of heaven and earth from the depths of the entire continent here.

If it doesn’t work on the ground, then go underground.

Lion's Roar Mountain was originally a barren land, but was transformed by the Lion King with the help of the power of the earth veins into the spiritually-rich place it is today. The two actually coincide with each other.

"Seven gourds..."

Xiao Chen groaned and asked:
"Compared with the previous seven innate gourds, how is the quality of the current seven gourds?"

Upon hearing this, the Jiao Demon King said solemnly:

“That’s exactly what I was going to say.”

(End of this chapter)