Journey to the West: Cultivation Begins at Jindou Mountain

Chapter 256 The Monkey King Escapes
Mount Futu, Wuchao.

Niu Yi was sitting in the center of the huge Wuchao Temple with Zen Master Wuchao, facing each other at a table, enjoying the fire date tea that Niu Yi had brought.

Zen Master Wuchao put down his teacup, looked at Niu Yi opposite him, and smiled gently:
"So, are you confident now that you can cultivate the Primordial Dao Fruit within this one dimensional space?"

Niu Yi shook his head slightly and said:
"To be honest, Zen Master, the difficulty of cultivating the Primordial Dao Fruit is indeed much greater than I had imagined, and progress is still slow."

The Zen master said:
"You are now in charge of the eastward transmission of Buddhism. When this matter is successfully completed, you will have great merit, which will be of great use to you."

"When the time is right, the Great Celestial Venerable will seek you out, and you will reap the rewards then."

Upon hearing this, Niu Yi was also somewhat curious.

Judging from the old Zen master's words, could there be some treasure in the Heavenly Court that could help him cultivate the Primordial Dao Fruit?
But that makes sense. There are countless secrets in the Three Realms. Even the Heavenly Court is only a superficial view of what he can see.

Niu Yi picked up the jade teapot beside him and refilled the teacup in front of the old Zen master.

"Speaking of which, Tang Sanzang has now reached the border of the Tang Dynasty, the border of Hezhou Wei, and is heading towards the Five Elements Mountain. It should take him more than a month to reach the Zen Master."

"The journey to the West to obtain Buddhist scriptures has now officially begun."

The old Zen master picked up his teacup and smiled:

"Heh~ Speaking of which, a few years ago I saw that Zhu Ganglie from Yunzhan Cave on Fuling Mountain had settled there, but he committed a lot of killings. So I asked him to cultivate with me for a while, but unfortunately he refused."

"Judging from his personality, he's alright in other aspects, except for two things: lust and laziness."

"Now that we are about to accompany Tang Sanzang on his journey to the Western Paradise to worship Buddha and seek scriptures, there will surely be many troubles on this journey."

Niu Yi nodded in agreement and said:

"This journey to the west is both a journey to obtain scriptures and a journey of spiritual cultivation. We walk the road, but we cultivate our hearts."

"If these five can overcome numerous hardships to obtain the true scriptures and achieve enlightenment, it will become a legendary tale in the Three Realms."

In the underworld, in the endless Yin land, in that pitch-black valley.

At this moment, a figure shrouded in pitch-black yin energy looked at the two people before him and said:

"The wandering souls and vengeful spirits that have been born in recent years along the banks of the Tongtian River have always been forbidden to be touched by the Venerable Lord. Is that Divine Physician Daoist Lord really that powerful?"

One of the figures, resembling a seductive woman, slowly spoke:
"Otherwise, what kind of simple being could make the Venerable One willingly back down?"

"It is said that this person now possesses all the fortune of medicine in the world, and his divine name has spread throughout the four continents. Even in the underworld today, there are still many who believed in him in their lifetime."

"In recent years, only the Nine Heavens Demon-Subduing Ancestor has been able to surpass someone with such abilities."

"If you're not satisfied, you can go to the Wudang Mountain area to collect the wandering souls and wronged ghosts, spread the Lord's teachings, and try and provoke that person!"

The shadowy figure hidden in the darkness snorted coldly, and said rather defiantly:
"That Divine Physician Daojun attained godhood through the art of medicine, how could he be the same as that Demon-Slaying Ancestor? The Venerable One only gives him leeway because he holds a very high position in the Heavenly Court."

"How much skill can a doctor who has become a god have? The area along both banks of the Tongtian River is vast, and who knows how many lonely souls and wronged ghosts he might miss."

The white-clad man who had been listening beside the two smiled and said:
"Judging from what Brother Yu is saying, you're planning to travel to both sides of the Tongtian River?"

"Right on my mind!"

The sinister figure sneered:

"At this time, the many wandering souls and vengeful ghosts on both sides of the Tongtian River are our comrades, suffering and unable to vent their resentment, and are finally being taken to the City of the Wrongfully Dead."

"It is we who have suffered! We were persecuted to death by those people back then, and they won't even let us take revenge ourselves. This is their law!"

Upon hearing this, even the two disapproving figures in front of him fell silent. The woman touched the small bottle around her neck that shimmered with a ghostly green light, within which two ferocious ghostly green faces seemed to flash.

"I came here to ask if you two were willing to go with me to rescue them. Since neither of you are willing, I will go myself."

"I refuse to believe that no matter how powerful that Divine Physician Daoist is, what ability could he possibly have to find my movements and figure throughout the entire Tongtianjiang region!"

After the dark figure finished speaking, it turned into yin energy and disappeared without a trace. The two people present were also silent for a long time.

Deep within the Black Valley, a colossal stone statue, half Buddha and half demon, with only its head visible above the ground, stands silently.

A figure in a black monk's robe stood atop the Buddha-demon statue, watching the departing black mist. His face remained expressionless, showing neither approval nor disapproval.

"Ksitigarbha, how about we make another gamble?"

Outside the Five Elements Mountain, in the Daojun Temple, Liu Boqin and his elderly mother were worshipping the statue of Daojun in front of them.

Suddenly, Liu Boqin seemed to hear something. He looked at the statue of Daojun in surprise and bowed to it again.

"Please rest assured, Daoist Lord, I will go now."

"My child, does the Daoist Master have any instructions?"

"That's right, Mother. Please rest assured, I'll be right back. Please ask Mother and Feng'er to go home first."

The old lady looked at her son, Yingwu, who was wearing a leopard-skin hat and looked like a hunter, and nodded repeatedly.

"Alright, alright, since it's Daojun's order, you must do it well."

Liu Boqin nodded solemnly, strode out of the Daojun Temple gate, took a bag of poisoned arrows from the servant, picked up the steel fork, and headed down the mountain.

"Taibao, Taibao!"

As Liu Boqin descended the mountain, every passerby he encountered greeted him. He continued to greet them as he walked, and soon he left the village at the foot of Daojun Temple Mountain and headed towards the place where Daojun had sent the message.

As soon as Liu Boqin left the village and entered the mountains, he ran wildly like a tiger returning to the mountains. An invisible aura rose from him, startling the tigers, wolves, snakes and insects around him, causing them to flee.

Normally, Liu Boqin would have entered the forest to hunt for prey, but now he ignored the commotion around him and ran quickly in one direction.

After a while, Liu Boqin heard a series of frightened neighs from horses, and his eyes lit up. He then ran towards that direction.

"Wow--"

As if sensing a familiar and terrifying aura, the tigers, wolves, snakes, and insects around them all fled in terror, while the panicked figure on horseback watched this scene in astonishment until Liu Boqin's figure leaped out of the grass.

Liu Boqin quickly stepped forward and looked at the elder sitting on the back of the white horse, who was so frightened that he was lying on the ground.

"Elder! Please do not be afraid! I am a hunter from the village of divine healers ahead. My name is Liu Boqin, and my nickname is the Mountain Guardian. I have come here to rescue you on the orders of the Divine Healer Daoist!" Upon hearing Liu Boqin's words, Tang Sanzang looked surprised, but he still quickly bowed and thanked him.

"Thank you so much, Taibao. I was a monk from the Tang Dynasty traveling to the Western Paradise to worship Buddha and seek scriptures. When I passed through this place, I was blocked by these tigers, wolves, snakes and insects. If it weren't for your help, Taibao, I'm afraid I would not have been able to escape this predicament."

"Haha~ Elder, please don't be so polite. This time, it was Daojun who ordered me to come and save you, which is why I rushed here."

"This place is also within the territory of the Great Tang Dynasty. You and I are from the same country, so there is no need for you to be so polite, Elder. However, Elder, are you perhaps traveling alone to the Western Paradise to obtain the scriptures?"

Liu Boqin looked at the elder with a Buddha-like face and was somewhat surprised. This person did not seem to know martial arts or have any self-defense ability at all.

If this man were to travel alone, and if it weren't for the Daoist Lord's order to come and rescue him, he wouldn't even be able to reach the Two Realms Mountain, let alone the Western Paradise to worship Buddha and seek scriptures.

Upon hearing this, Tang Sanzang turned pale and sighed, saying:

"Alas, I hope you will find out, Your Excellency. When I left earlier, I took two attendants with me, but we encountered three monsters at that place, and my two attendants were killed by them."

At this point, Tang Sanzang couldn't help but put his hands together in prayer and repeatedly say Amitabha.
Seeing Tang Sanzang's reaction, Liu Boqin shook his head and said:

"The place the elder passed by earlier was Shuangcha Ridge, a den of tigers and wolves. It is only natural that there are monsters there. People like us from the Divine Doctor Village usually avoid that place."

"Please don't be afraid, Elder. Please come back to the village with me and stay at my house for the night. If you still want to travel, I will escort you for a while tomorrow."

Tang Sanzang was overjoyed and quickly nodded his thanks.

"Then this humble monk thanks you very much, Taibao. I wonder if there is a Daojun Temple in Taibao's village? This humble monk will also go and offer incense to express my gratitude to the Daojun."

"Haha~ Of course, please, Elder."

Tang Sanzang was very familiar with the story of this divine physician, Daojun. When he was young, he was almost killed by that villain. It was Daojun who appeared to him and gave him a pair of bracelets to protect his mother from being harmed by the villain.

His mother-in-law had lived in the Wan Hua shop for eighteen years, and she was still fine when he went to look for her, thanks to the help of the Dao Jun disciples.

Therefore, although Tang Sanzang practiced Buddhism, he also held this Taoist divine physician, Daojun, in high esteem.

Liu Boqin led the way for Tang Sanzang in the forest, while Tang Sanzang led the white horse that had stood up again and followed behind Liu Boqin, heading towards the village of the divine healer.

"To be honest, I don't know why your village is called the Divine Healer Village. Is it related to that Divine Healer Daoist?"

“Hahaha, not bad!”

Liu Boqin laughed and told Tang Sanzang what he had heard from his mother.

"Legend has it that the faith in the Divine Physician Daojun came from Daojun Mountain in the Western Regions, and our Divine Physician Village had no residents at that time."

"Since the first Daojun Temple in our Great Tang region was built here, a group of people gradually gathered around the Daojun Temple. Those people were our ancestors, and because of the gathering of Daojun, our ancestors named it the Divine Healer Village."

Tang Sanzang nodded in sudden realization and said:
“I never imagined that you would have such a background. To be honest, my family has been under the protection of the Daoist Master since I was a child. I must go to the Daoist Master’s temple to offer incense this time.”

"I have heard that Daojun Mountain is a sacred place for medicine and the place of faith of the divine physician Daojun. If I am fortunate enough to visit it during this journey to the west, I will definitely go there to pay my respects."

"Hahaha~ Good, good, good. When the elder returns from retrieving the true scriptures, you must come to me and tell me what Daojun Mountain looks like~"

"Please rest assured, Taibao."

The two chatted happily along the way. Perhaps because Liu Boqin was there, Tang Sanzang was no longer as afraid as before, and instead chatted and laughed with Liu Boqin all the way to the Divine Doctor Village.

Along the way, Liu Boqin saw a huge striped tiger and killed it in front of Tang Sanzang, intending to take it home. Tang Sanzang couldn't help but marvel at the bravery of this mountain guardian.

Soon, when Liu Boqin brought Tang Sanzang back to the Divine Doctor Village, the two did not linger. Instead, they went straight to the Daojun Temple on the mountain, one to report back to the Daojun and the other to pay their respects to him.

After the two respectfully offered incense, Liu Boqin led Tang Sanzang down the mountain and brought him back to his home.

Late at night, in front of the Daojun Temple.

The figure of the Divine Physician Daojun stood in front of the temple gate, looking towards the direction of what was once the Five Elements Mountain, now the Two Realms Mountain.

"More than five hundred years have passed without us even realizing it."

"Yes, the monkey should be free by now."

The voice of Taibai Xingjun rang out from behind Daojun. This old man with an air of otherworldly grace slowly walked to Daojun's side, stroked his beard, and looked at the Five Elements Mountain with a smile.

"Does Daojun intend to meet him tomorrow?"

The Divine Physician Daoist was silent for a moment, then shook his head and said:

"No, the journey to the west is long. Let's wait until they reach my Golden Gourd Mountain before we meet again."

Venus waved his whisk.

"Daojun, Kui Mulang has agreed to add another tribulation to the journey to the West in the future, but he also said that he really does not want to fight against Sun Wukong."

"Heh~ He's scared of being beaten~ But that makes sense. Back then on Flower Fruit Mountain, the Twenty-Eight Constellations were overwhelmed and beaten by that monkey all by himself. It's understandable that they were a little scared."

"However, Star Lord, there's no rush for this."

Venus stroked his beard and nodded slightly.

Venus and Daojun stood on the mountain peak, quietly watching and talking until dawn the next day. Many believers began to climb the mountain to worship, but the two of them remained standing there, gazing at the Five Elements Mountain.

After a while, suddenly, the ground began to tremble. Venus and Daojun looked at the Five Elements Mountain in front of them and saw that the Five Elements Mountain was beginning to tremble continuously.

"What's going on here?!"

"The mountain god! The mountain god is enraged?!"

"Look! Over at the Two Realms Mountain! The Two Realms Mountain is starting to tremble!"

The villagers were watching the constantly trembling mountain peak with fear in their eyes when suddenly, the Two Realms Mountain exploded. At the same time, a golden light shot straight into the sky, and a familiar voice entered the ears of Daojun and Xingjun.

"I, Old Sun, am out! I, Old Sun, am out!!!"

Upon hearing that familiar voice and the excitement in it, Daojun and Xingjun couldn't help but smile.

More than five hundred years later, the monkey finally completed its punishment and was able to escape.

(End of this chapter)