Journey to the West: The roadblock!

Chapter 117 Encountering the Blackwater River (Part 3)
However, Ao Tu's threatening words frightened the imperial envoy so much that he turned pale and knelt down repeatedly, kowtowing and promising to report to the king.

Ao Tu nodded, then prepared to leave.

Seeing that Ao Tu was about to leave, the imperial envoy hurriedly asked, "Lord Dragon God, when will the bridge be built?"

Ao Tu said, "We can only start construction when the holy monk from the Tang Dynasty arrives."

The imperial envoy asked, "This... Lord Dragon God, why must we wait for the Tang Dynasty monks to arrive before we can begin construction?"

Ao Tu said, "These are the rules of Heaven; you mortals should not ask any more questions."

The imperial envoy dared not ask any further questions, and only said, "Lord Dragon God, do you know when that Tang Dynasty monk came to our country?"

Ao Tu said, "There are still a few months left, at the latest half a year."

Upon hearing this, the imperial envoy breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Then I will wait here for the Tang Dynasty monks, and we will prepare for the bridge construction once they arrive."

This is the way of officialdom for an imperial envoy.

If he were to return directly to the capital now, the king would surely be disgusted to see that he had accomplished nothing. Not only would he have no merit, but he would also be punished.

Why not wait here for half a year until the Tang Dynasty monk arrives and the bridge begins construction? Then we can get some credit for it for free.

Ao Tu ignored the imperial envoy and returned directly to the river.

The imperial envoy stayed in a city near the Blackwater River.

Soon after, news of the Dragon King's appearance spread far and wide, and merchants flocked to the area, bribing officials and offering high prices to buy land along the Blackwater River, hoping to profit from it.

The ignorant masses are unaware of the mysteries involved.

They only knew how to work at sunrise and rest at sunset, and had no idea of ​​the impact the bridge would have on them.

When the common people saw that merchants were buying land at prices 30-40% higher than the market price, they were immediately tempted and many chose to sell their land.

Merchants accepted all comers. The land they acquired at high prices would yield profits many times over once the bridge was completed six months later.

Unfortunately, despite the merchants' meticulous planning, they couldn't match the intervention of the royal family.

With a single decree, the king confiscated all the land surrounding the Blackwater River as royal property. However, to avoid disrupting agriculture, the common people were still allowed to cultivate the land.

Ao Tu ignored all of this and simply cultivated in the river every day, enjoying the service of Ming Niang and the White Bone Demon.

In his spare time, he would teach Tiger Vanguard, White Bone Demon, Two Little Tigers, and Two Little Wolves some magic techniques and spells.

The items belonging to the Ao Tu Society are quite valuable to outsiders.

Tiger Vanguard and others are making daily progress.

Mingniang was very envious of this and begged Aotu to teach her.

Ao Tu said, "The spells I teach are all demonic arts. Once you learn them, you'll have demonic energy in your body. If you learn my spells, you won't be able to go to the Heavenly Court. Have you thought it through?"

Upon hearing this, Mingniang hesitated and did not bring up the matter of academic law again.

The White Bone Demon naturally knew that Ao Tu was trying to scare Ming Niang.

She learned many spells, including some methods of cultivating qi and body, as well as some transformation spells. They were all orthodox Taoist spells, pointing directly to the supreme Dao. Where was there any demonic energy?
Not only did she lack demonic energy, but since she began practicing these techniques, the demonic energy within her body had become almost imperceptible, and her bones had become increasingly lustrous, like celestial jade, far surpassing what they had been before.

The White Bone Demon felt that her aptitude had been changed.

The value of these techniques in the outside world is self-evident.

She felt that even if she went to the Heavenly Court and became a high-ranking official, she might not be able to learn this level of magic.

However, although the White Bone Demon knew these things, she did not reveal them to Ming Niang.

This is the king's test for the other party. If the other party cannot pass, it means that their fate is not good enough, and they cannot blame anyone else.

The White Bone Demon only regretted that she met the King too late.

If she had met the king sooner and offered herself to him, things would have been much better than they are now...

Several more months passed.

After traversing many foreign lands and enduring countless hardships, Tang Sanzang and his disciples arrived in the Kingdom of Huoluo. At first glance, the kingdom seemed no different from any other.

When crossing wilderness, they set up sheds and slept in the open; when traveling through villages, they sought lodging and alms.

When faced with a sorrowful event, reciting scriptures to help the deceased is considered doing a good deed.

If you encounter someone in distress and help them, saving their life is also a good deed.

On this day, the four of them, master and disciples, entered a town.

Tang Sanzang saw several wealthy families in the town and said:
“Disciples, look at those red brick walls; those must belong to wealthy families. Let’s go in, beg for some alms, and get some scraps of cloth to mend our clothes, shall we?”

Pigsy laughed and said, "Good! Good! These past few days I've been walking through forests and over rocks, and my clothes are all worn out. Isn't it indecent to have my flesh showing all the time?"

Wukong laughed and said, "Fool, it's because you're so big. When we encounter thorny bushes, I can just swing my way through; even Master can ride a horse through them, but you can't, and you end up tearing your clothes."

Bajie grumbled, dissatisfied, "If I weren't carrying this load, I could get across too!"

Tang Sanzang laughed and said, "Alright, I'll go knock on the door. You all better keep your faces down and don't frighten them."

As he spoke, Tang Sanzang went to knock on the door and asked a family to open it.

The servant in that household saw Tang Sanzang and asked:

"Monk, where did you come from? What brings you here?"

Tang Sanzang said, "This humble monk comes from the Great Tang Dynasty in the East. I am a monk on my way to the Western Paradise to worship Buddha and seek scriptures. I am passing by your residence and would like to ask for a vegetarian meal and some scraps of cloth to mend my clothes."

Upon hearing this, the servant exclaimed with delight, "You're from the Tang Dynasty?"

Tang Sanzang said, "That's right."

Upon hearing this, the servant hurriedly went inside to report the good news:

"Master, a monk from the Tang Dynasty has come to our house!"

Upon hearing this, the master of the mansion hurriedly came out to check. After confirming the matter, he respectfully treated the man to a vegetarian meal and then reported it to the authorities.

It turns out that the king of Huoluo had already posted a notice throughout the country.

Once a Tang Dynasty monk is discovered, he must not be neglected and must be sent to the capital immediately. Commoners who discover him are rewarded with silver, and officials who discover him are rewarded with merit. As a result, Tang Sanzang has become a highly sought-after figure.

This was when Tang Sanzang and his disciples first entered the town, where few people were literate.

If we were to enter the city, we would likely be discovered the moment we stepped through the city gate.

Before long, government officials arrived.

Upon seeing this, Tang Sanzang panicked and said, "My lord, I am new to this land and have not broken any laws. Could it be that someone has disguised themselves as me and is committing illegal acts?"

Upon hearing this, the official smiled and said, "Holy Monk, you are overthinking it. I have come here for a good cause. Please allow me to explain."

Then, the official told Tang Sanzang in detail about the Dragon King building the bridge.

Upon hearing this, Tang Sanzang turned his back to the official and said to Wukong:
"Wukong, the Dragon King specifically asked me to come before he would repair the bridge. I'm afraid he's a demon in disguise, and he's trying to harm me!"

Wukong said, "Master, don't be afraid. We can't avoid it anyway. Let's go over and see what's going on first."

Tang Sanzang nodded.

The four, master and his disciples, were then sent to the capital by officials.

When the king met Tang Sanzang and his disciples, he treated them with great hospitality, held a grand banquet, and kept them in the palace for three days. He stamped the travel documents with his seal and then sent people to escort Tang Sanzang and his disciples to the Blackwater River.

For the Kingdom of Huoluo, this bridge was indeed very important. If the king were not old and frail and unable to withstand the arduous journey, he would have wanted to go along as well.

The Tang Monk and his disciples were escorted by officials and their entourage all the way to the Blackwater River.

They stayed at official post stations and ate official rations along the way, with carriages and horses accompanying them, and soon arrived at the area where the Blackwater River was located.

(End of this chapter)