Journey to the West: Cultivation Begins at Jindou Mountain

Chapter 266 Pingdingshan

"Brother, you are indeed quite skilled in the art of incense making. It is truly remarkable that you were able to refine this Longevity Incense so perfectly on your first try."

Looking at the Longevity Incense in his hand, especially the golden child pattern on it, Qingniu nodded in admiration. Then he looked up at Niu Yi across the stone table, and with a wave of his hand, several golden talismans flew out.

“Speaking of which, my dear brother, these are the messages that Taibai Jinxing has been sending me recently. Most of them are trivial matters, and Taibai Jinxing and Guanyin Bodhisattva have already taken care of them, so I haven’t bothered you.”

Niu Yi smiled and nodded, thanked him, and with a wave of his long sleeves, quickly arranged the golden talismans in front of him according to the time sequence from Venus.

"Let Kui Mulang's two children become disciples of Senior Brother Guangshan? Senior Brother Guangshan has already agreed, hasn't he? That's a good idea. Being able to get to know Kui Mulang, one of the Twenty-Eight Constellations, would be a good thing for Senior Brother."

"Besides, these two are descendants of immortals and are also promising talents for cultivation. If they can cultivate well in the future, they should have a good chance of entering the Heavenly Court and becoming immortals."

Niu Yi calculated with his hands, and sure enough, the two boys' death calamity had been averted.

He remembered that whether in his previous life or when he used the divination money to predict the fate of Kui Mulang a few days ago, the fate of these two children was that they would be thrown from the sky by Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing and fall to their deaths on the steps of the Baoxiang Kingdom's palace, turning into meat patties.

After being banished to the mortal realm, Pigsy and Sandy lived in the Cloud Stack Cave and the Flowing Sand River, respectively. Both of them had once lived by killing and eating people, so how could they be polite to this 'seed of a demon'?

However, both Niu Yi and Jin Xing knew the true nature of the Yellow Robe Monster. Those two children were not ordinary demon children, and their mother, Baihua Xiu, was also a celestial maiden reincarnated.

But now it seems he should meet his two junior apprentices.
Niu Yi's gaze fell on the second golden talisman, then on the third, and then the fourth.
After Niu Yi finished looking at all the golden talismans, a thoughtful look appeared in his eyes.

Since he went into seclusion for eighty-one days, a lot has happened on Tang Sanzang and Sun Wukong's side. On their way, they passed through White Tiger Ridge and encountered the corpse demon, Lady White Bone, who was the spirit of the woman from back then.

Just as he remembered, the White Bone Demon transformed into a beautiful young woman, an eighty-year-old woman, and a white-haired old man, causing Tang Sanzang and his companions to lower their guard before they could then plot against him.

Fortunately, Sun Wukong saw everything clearly with his fiery eyes, thwarting the White Bone Demon's plans three times and saving Tang Sanzang. On the third occasion, he killed the White Bone Demon with his staff.

It's a pity that the Corpse Demon would use a fake corpse to escape every time it died, and Tang Sanzang, with his mortal eyes, could not see the mystery behind it. He was furious that Sun Wukong would kill such a kind family at will!

Neither Pigsy nor Sandy could figure it out. Pigsy, seeing the beautiful woman killed by his master with a single blow, couldn't help but feel resentful and muttered a few words in his master's ear.

Tang Sanzang was easily swayed, and Sun Wukong had always been just as eloquent, whether at Guanyin Temple or when he killed the bandits.

When Sun Wukong killed the bandit for the third time, Tang Sanzang's unease, anger, and distrust completely enraged him. With Zhu Bajie adding fuel to the fire from the sidelines, Tang Sanzang directly expelled Sun Wukong from his sect.

Pigsy never imagined that his few complaints would lead to this situation. He hurriedly joined his third brother in persuading their master, but Tang Sanzang was determined and ultimately expelled Sun Wukong from the sect.

Heartbroken and helpless, Sun Wukong had no choice but to return to Flower Fruit Mountain and leave it at that.

After Sun Wukong left, Tang Sanzang and his group crossed White Tiger Ridge and continued westward. They soon arrived at Wanzishan Mountain, where, after some twists and turns, they were captured by the Yellow Robe Monster, who was already waiting in the Wave Moon Cave on Wanzishan Mountain.

Pigsy went to confront the Yellow Robe Monster to demand his master back. After a fierce battle, neither side could gain the upper hand. Princess Baihuaxiu, who was still in the cave, learned of Tang Sanzang's identity and secretly released him. She also gave him a letter to deliver to her father, the King of Baoxiang Kingdom.

When Kui Mulang learned of this, he thought to himself that he had already added to Tang Sanzang's troubles by capturing him. Moreover, since his wife had sent him away, they could meet again without any conflict. Furthermore, Baihua Xiu coaxed him with the words "Yellow-robed Man" and magnanimously acquiesced to the matter.

After Tang Sanzang arrived in Baoxiang Kingdom, he kept his promise and presented the letter to the king. When the king learned that his daughter had been kidnapped by demons, he burst into tears and vowed to rescue her.

Later, Pigsy and Sandy volunteered to fight, but they couldn't defeat the Yellow Robe Monster. They angered the monster, who not only tied up Sandy but also transformed into a handsome young man to come to Baoxiang Kingdom to claim kinship. Instead, he accused Tang Sanzang of being a demon and immediately transformed Tang Sanzang into a fierce tiger.

During this time, Pigsy tried every possible method to defeat the Yellow Robe Monster, but to no avail. In the end, Pigsy had to go to Flower Fruit Mountain and use a provocation to invite Sun Wukong back. They then defeated the Yellow Robe Monster and rescued their master.

When Tang Sanzang saw that his eldest disciple had come to help even after being driven away, he couldn't help but burst into tears. He sincerely apologized to his eldest disciple, which finally persuaded Sun Wukong to come back, and the master and disciples continued their journey.

Niu Yi pondered for a moment, then looked at the last golden talisman.

Na Kui Mulang was eventually taken away by the other twenty-seven constellations. Fortunately, Taibai pleaded for him, and in the end, the Jade Emperor demoted him to the Tushita Palace to serve as a fire-tending boy for the Supreme Dao Ancestor.

When the Jade Emperor was sentencing Kui Mulang, he knew that this mortal had two children in the mortal realm, but he didn't mention it and let it go, indicating that he would not pursue the matter further.

It's likely that Kui Mulang will be reinstated soon. As for Princess Baihuaxiu, she naturally returned to her homeland, Baoxiang Kingdom, burying her thirteen years of experiences in the Wave Moon Cave of Wanzishan deep in her heart.

As for Tang Sanzang and his companions, they are currently on their way to Pingdingshan.

"Golden Horn and Silver Horn?"

Hearing Niu Yi's murmurs, Qingniu turned around and looked at Niu Yi, saying:

“How do you know the names of Laozi’s two fire- tending boys? There are many boys in the Tushita Palace, each with their own responsibilities. These Golden Horn and Silver Horn are the boys who are responsible for guarding the Golden Furnace and the Silver Furnace.”

Niu Yi chuckled and said:

"This name was also heard from Guanyin Bodhisattva. She went to the Supreme Taoist Ancestor three times to borrow people, to test Tang Sanzang's determination to go to the Western Paradise to obtain the scriptures, and also to give the journey of obtaining the scriptures another test."

"The people that the Dao Ancestor lent out were none other than the Golden Horn and Silver Horn, and these two children have been waiting for a long time at the Lotus Cave on Golden Peak Mountain."

"Judging by the time, the pilgrimage team should be very close to Pingdingshan now, and they should be able to reach Pingdingshan in just a few days."

In fact, the group was moving much slower than he had expected, and they had only just arrived at Pingdingshan.

But it makes sense, considering that Tang Sanzang was, after all, a mortal. Even with the excellent speed of the white dragon horse, he still needed to rest during the day, beg for alms and eat, and sleep at night. This made him much slower than when he traveled from Jindu Mountain to Futu Mountain.

The green ox looked at Niu Yi in surprise, not expecting that the pair of children had also descended to the mortal realm. However, he had been in the mortal realm for decades. When he descended to the mortal realm, Laozi did not say much to him, so it was normal that he did not know.

"That's interesting," Qingniu said with a smile, as if he had thought of something extremely amusing. He looked at Niu Yi opposite him and said:

“My dear brother, when I descended to the mortal realm, Laozi gave me this Vajra Bracelet. The abilities of Golden Horn and Silver Horn are far inferior to yours. Laozi must have given them many treasures before letting them descend to the mortal realm.”

"Although Sun Wukong is very powerful, he probably has no chance against the treasures in Laozi's hands. Now that you have come out of seclusion, why don't you come with me to see the excitement?"

Niu Yi looked at the green ox and laughed:

"Brother Si, are you perhaps itching for a fight yourself?"

"Hahaha~ My brother understands me best." Qingniu laughed and nodded without hesitation. "Sitting in the mountains for so long, I haven't stretched my legs for many years."

“Sun Wukong is quite capable, and most importantly, he is a unified whole, so he is indestructible. He must be an excellent opponent.”

Qingniu was speaking with great enthusiasm when he suddenly remembered something, looked at Niu Yi, and quickly said:
"Of course, Sun Wukong is my junior brother. Don't worry, since Laozi sent me down to the mortal realm only to give him a hardship, he certainly didn't mean to make things difficult for me this time."

Niu Yi was speechless for a moment, then chuckled and shook his head, saying:

"Brother Si, what are you saying? I was the one who planned your descent to the mortal realm this time, so how could I not know the whole story? And how could I not know your character?"

"The eighty-one tribulations of the journey to the West are both a predetermined number and a perfect number. Even if Brother Si had not come, other celestial beings would have had to fill the gaps. The fact that Brother Si could come shows the Dao Ancestor's trust in him."

"Furthermore, if the great merits and enlightenment of the West were so easy to attain, wouldn't all the Buddhas on Mount Ling be everywhere? This time, the transmission of Buddhism to the East has gone through fourteen years of hardship. If one can become a Buddha, it is already extremely difficult."

To be honest, the journey to the West to obtain Buddhist scriptures took fourteen years, during which the four disciples and the white dragon horse endured countless hardships to achieve their goal. This was not just a story about the group of four.

This matter was largely accomplished with the support of the Heavenly Court and Mount Ling.

However, unlike the stories he read in his previous life, he is now in charge of and driving the journey to the West to obtain Buddhist scriptures.

Upon hearing Niu Yi's words, Qing Niu nodded in agreement, for the path to Buddhahood through accumulating merit in the West is also extremely rare.

At this moment, Qingniu heard Niu Yi speak again:

"Brother Si, it's best if we don't go to Lotus Cave to join the fun. Before long, Tang Sanzang and his party will arrive in the mountainous area, and then Brother Si will naturally have his chance to fight my junior brother."

Upon hearing this, Qingniu, though still a little disappointed, nodded and agreed to the matter.

Before he descended to the mortal realm, Laozi instructed him to listen to his virtuous brother, so he naturally had no objections. Moreover, what his virtuous brother said made sense, so he would just wait a little longer.

Niu Yi was also a little worried. If he and Qing Niu went to watch the battle, what would his junior brother Wukong's fiery eyes, honed in the Eight Trigrams Furnace, see? That might add more complications.

On Daojun Mountain, as the main body on Jindu Mountain completed the refining of the Longevity Incense, Daojun slowly opened his eyes atop the pavilion floating in the clouds within the incense space.

The refining of the Longevity Incense required his complete concentration, leaving no room for carelessness. Even his divine avatar was focused on deducing the process.

Daojun slowly got up, walked to the window on the third floor of the pavilion, and looked down.

There, the auspicious clouds, shrouded in golden light, drifted peacefully, seemingly unremarkable. But only the Daoist could see that beneath the clouds, a long, dazzling river of golden light was flowing slowly.

That dazzling golden light is the golden light of merit, and this endless, dazzling river is a river of merit.

As Daojun Medical Clinic entered the Southern Continent, the merits that Daojun could collect each day have been increasing over the years.

Especially in recent years, with the help of the emperors of the Southern Continent, the medical books of Daojun Medical Hall have been passed down through generations. Even his pavilion could not contain all these merits, so he had to place them under the clouds and mist, turning them into a long river of merits.

On the main body side, in recent years, some have been taken daily to condense the Golden Body of Merit. However, because the main body has been focusing on comprehending the Great Dao of Desire and building the Primordial Island in recent years, the progress of the Golden Body of Merit has been slow.

Daojun wasn't in a hurry, since all the merits belonged to him; it was just a matter of when to use them.

"According to the old Zen master, after the matter of spreading Buddhism to the East is completed, immeasurable merit will descend, and the Jade Emperor will also seek me out. I will surely reap the benefits."

"If it's just about merit, with my current merit and faith, I can rank among the top among the many gods in the Heavenly Court. I suppose that the treasure that can help me comprehend the Primordial Dao Fruit must require some other conditions before it can be used."

"Furthermore, the Jade Emperor once said that if the eastward transmission of Buddhism ended, he would allow me to use my merits as a boat to ferry my second senior brother across. Now, upon closer reflection, what could ferry my second senior brother across was not merits, but rather the Jade Emperor's decree."

As Daojun pondered this, he activated his own immortal talisman and quickly appeared in the Divine Physician Daojun Palace in the Heavenly Court.

Since his senior brother Guangshan had agreed to take in the two children, he should go and meet his two junior disciples. It just so happens that he had refined a lot of spiritual incense and precious incense a few years ago, which he could give to the two children as a gift as a greeting.

Daojun left his own Divine Physician Daojun Palace and went directly to Qiming Hall. He informed the minor official in charge of internal affairs and did not wait long outside Qiming Hall before Guangshan Daoren came out.

"Master Dao."

"Fellow."

Daojun nodded slightly. This place was crowded with people and officials coming and going. If he called his senior brother Guangshan "senior brother," the matter would soon spread throughout the Heavenly Court. If someone were to investigate the background of his fellow disciples, it would be troublesome.

Therefore, it is best to keep the number of people who know about this matter to a minimum. It is sufficient to let others know that you are quite familiar with Guangshan of Qiming Hall.

(End of this chapter)