Journey to the West: Starting by becoming an apprentice of Emperor Donghua

Ji Sheng was overjoyed and said:

"Thank you very much, birthday celebrant. May I ask where this opportunity lies?"

The birthday celebrant laughed heartily:

"I originally intended to give you two catties of jujubes, but you don't need them much, so I have some other ideas."

While I don't have any special treasures to offer, I can point you to a few opportunities. Do you want the jujubes, or these pointers?

These jujubes are said to have longevity-promoting effects, but for Ji Sheng, they are somewhat of a waste.

After thinking it over, Ji Sheng said:

"Please enlighten me, birthday celebrant."

The birthday celebrant nodded with admiration in his eyes.

"Not bad, you certainly have some ambition. Are you going to the Southern Land Kingdom to mentor those true dragons and tigers?"

The "true dragon" refers to Zhao Xingshuo, and the "fierce tiger" is naturally Li Jun.

Seeing that Ji Sheng had admitted it, the birthday celebrant continued:

"Although the Southern Continent is just a small country in the southern part of Xiniuhe Continent, the world has been turned upside down, involving a change of dynasty, and there are many things involved."

Ji Sheng's heart skipped a beat, and he pressed for an answer:

"Does the 'God of Longevity' mean that deities are also involved?"

The God of Longevity said:

"It wasn't just the gods; even the Heavenly Emperor was involved."

The term "Emperor" refers to the Great Emperor.

There are very few things in heaven that can be given this title.

All emperors hold the power over heaven and earth. For example, the Eastern Emperor is in charge of the register of immortals, and the Eastern Peak Emperor is in charge of the reincarnation of the underworld.

Besides these two, there are also the famous "Four Emperors".

These four emperors are the Great Emperor of the North Pole of the Central Heaven, the Great Emperor of the Longevity of the South Pole, the Great Emperor of the Upper Palace of Gouchen, and the Earth Goddess Houtu.

"When the God of Longevity spoke of the Heavenly Emperor, could it be referring to...?"

Sure enough, the birthday celebrant nodded:

"Indeed, this true dragon of the Southern Land Kingdom is a wisp of the spirit of the Purple Star Emperor."

Although he had already guessed, Ji Sheng was still somewhat surprised:

"This Emperor Ziwei is so esteemed, yet he's connected to the tiny Southern Continent Kingdom?"

The birthday celebrant explained:

"Although the Southern Land Kingdom cannot compare to the Central Plains, it still possesses imperial aura. All imperial aura in the world originates from the Ziwei Emperor; without the Ziwei Emperor, how could there be imperial aura?"

Ji Sheng nodded, deeply agreeing.

Emperor Ziwei is the younger brother of Emperor Gouchen, the elder brother of the Big Dipper, and the second son of Doumu Yuanjun.

The Ziwei star is the highest and most revered star in the sky, never moving.

He is known as the Lord of All Stars and the Master of All Things. The Ziwei Emperor thus assists the Jade Emperor in managing the celestial realm. He holds the reins of heaven and earth, leading all the stars in the sky and controlling ghosts, gods, and thunder.

For example, the Four Saints of the North Pole, the Twenty-Eight Constellations, the Thirty-Six Heavenly Generals and the Seventy-Two Earthly Fiends were all his subordinates.

Its power is immense; it can be considered a first-rate true god in the world.

Ji Sheng asked again:

"The old man just spoke of a true dragon and a fierce tiger. The true dragon is a wisp of the Ziwei Emperor's spirit, but what about the fierce tiger?"

The God of Longevity said:

"That tiger also has an extraordinary origin. It is said to have descended to the mortal realm from the Ziwei Star, with Wang Lingguan as its protector. This tiger is actually a wisp of Wang Lingguan's spirit."

Ji Sheng was even more taken aback. How... how did this get back to Wang Lingguan?

Sun Wukong kicked over the Eight Trigrams Furnace, turning Laozi upside down, and then wreaked havoc in the Heavenly Palace, forcing the Nine Luminaries to close their doors and the Four Heavenly Kings to disappear without a trace.

They fought their way to the Tongming Hall and outside the Lingxiao Hall. They arrived just in time to find Wang Lingguan in charge of the hall. After a fierce battle, they finally saw all thirty-six Thunder Generals arrive.

Finally, the Buddha himself was summoned to subdue Sun Wukong.

Wang Lingguan made a great contribution to this.

This Wang Lingguan is a man of great renown, also known as Taiyi Leisheng Yinghua Tianzun. He is the assistant of Yousheng Zhenjun and the head of the five hundred spirit officials.

You Sheng Zhen Jun was one of the Four Saints of the North Pole, a subordinate of the Ziwei Emperor, and later became the Zhenwu Emperor.

In this light, it seems quite reasonable that Wang Lingguan descended to the mortal realm to protect the Ziwei Emperor.

"Hehe, this is nothing unusual. It's just a wisp of spirit, not the real body descending to the mortal realm. There's no need to be surprised."

Seeing Ji Sheng's surprised expression, the birthday celebrant stroked his beard and smiled.

Ji Sheng didn't think so. Although these two were only distracted, the appearance of two heavyweights in Nanlu National School was still quite astonishing.

Furthermore, both of these guys are connected to me. The key is that I can't afford to offend either of them.

I couldn't help but think of the several fortunate opportunities I had encountered: the edict of the Eastern Peak Emperor and the fire gourd of the Fire God.

I initially thought it was all my luck, but now it seems like I've been used as a tool.

"Old man, what are the real benefits of this dynastic change? It seems like everyone wants a piece of the action."

Seeing his furrowed brows, the birthday celebrant couldn't help but burst into laughter:

"What are you worried about again? Are you afraid that Emperor Donghua can't protect you? Don't worry, do whatever you want. They're the ones begging us, not the other way around!"

If it succeeds, you'll definitely get your share of the benefits; if it doesn't, no one will dare to cause you any trouble!

It seemed that this was indeed the case, and Ji Sheng felt somewhat relieved upon hearing this.

"What exactly is this opportunity that the old man speaks of?"

Upon hearing Ji Sheng's question, the birthday celebrant looked towards the distant capital of the Southern Continent:

"You must have seen the capital city. It was filled with demonic energy. In just ten years, it has become a den of demons!"

These monsters feed on the imperial dragon energy and the resentment of the people's suffering, and are now growing very large.

They will undoubtedly try to stop the overthrow of the Southern Continent court, and you will likely need to intervene to suppress them.

Ji Sheng asked curiously:

"Stop them? How many lives do these monsters have? How dare they stop the Purple Emperor and Wang Lingguan?"

The God of Longevity said:

"Whether they are gods or demons, they are all born in accordance with destiny. What does it mean to be born in accordance with destiny? The people of the Southern Land Kingdom are destined to be deceived by tyrannical rulers and treacherous officials, and true dragons and fierce tigers are destined to suffer enough calamities. These demons are their calamities."

This statement seems to carry a deeper meaning. Considering the later Journey to the West, is it also similar?

Tang Sanzang and his disciples were destined to suffer eighty-one tribulations; if that wasn't enough, they would make up for it.

"Since you were born of the right time, you're bound to have your destined treasure. Besides, these immortals have benefited from you, shouldn't they reciprocate?"

Ji Sheng smiled and said:

"I wonder what kind of peach the birthday celebrant wants me to give him?"

The birthday celebrant praised:

"You're indeed clever! However, the favor I need from you is a small matter, and the time is not right yet. I will come to see you again when the time is right."

As he spoke, the God of Longevity rode on a cloud and floated up to an even higher altitude.

"Young friend Ji Sheng, the person you seek is about three hundred li to the southwest. Remember, act only according to your conscience, and do not force anything!"

The God of Longevity vanished into thin air. Ji Sheng pondered the meaning behind the God of Longevity's words, shook his head, and rode a cloud southwestward.

In the Southern Land Kingdom, in the Heavenly Turtle Mountain, a caravan is slowly moving forward.

The mountain path was narrow, with sheer cliffs on either side, allowing only one person and one horse to pass at a time. Everyone in the group, whether merchants or guards, was extremely cautious.

The leader was a burly, dark-skinned man, about twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old. At that moment, he was leading a horse, holding an iron rod, and shouting incessantly at the men behind him:

"The mountain path is so narrow, everyone please be extremely careful. Once we reach the inn, I'll treat you all to drinks!"

Upon hearing this, a cheer erupted from the group.

However, at that moment, a boy leading a packhorse accidentally slipped, causing the horse to slip and fall into the abyss along with him.

The boy cried out in alarm, and just as he was about to fall into the abyss, a large hand suddenly grabbed his wrist. The other hand grabbed the hind hoof of the packhorse.

With just a little effort, the boy and his packhorse were lifted up by those large hands.