Journey to the West: Starting with the True Lord of the Pure Land

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The True Lord's command has been issued.

Lei's troops immediately split into three groups, each carrying banners and riding thunder and lightning, heading towards the Poison Swamp and Skull Mountain.

Chen Jiao led Fei Peng, Yang Feng, and eight hundred elite thunder cavalry, creating auspicious light and thunder clouds, heading straight for the direction of Ghost Cry Gorge in the west.

The cloud-riding vehicle moved swiftly, cutting through the air silently, leaving the mountains, rivers, and cities below as fleeting shadows.

While on the move.

Chen Jiao's mind suddenly stirred slightly, and a faint yet pure force of willpower faintly came from within.

Where did this sudden and pure will come from?

He was immediately puzzled.

When Chen Jiao was the Heavenly Lord Yilie, he was in charge of thunder and lightning to punish evil, but he often acted in remote and desolate places, such as the lair of demons.

He would summon lightning to exorcise demons in the dead of night, rarely revealing his divine power to the public, and never deliberately cultivated incense offerings or left behind a fixed title or temple.

Chen Jiao calmed his mind and focused on sensing the prayer sounds contained within the power of the vow.

I could vaguely hear a woman sobbing and whimpering, mixed with an old man's trembling prayers.

Every word and phrase was a prayer for peace and protection for the newborn baby in the family, lest the baby fall victim to evil spirits. The anxiety and sorrow were palpable, and those who heard it felt a pang of sympathy.

"The Baby-Eating Demon Mother..."

Chen Jiao understood instantly.

Without further hesitation, he instructed Fei Peng and Yang Feng beside him:

"You all lead your troops along the original route, keep your voices down, and do not make a sound. I will go ahead and scout ahead first."

Having said that, he did not wait for the generals to respond.

His figure had transformed into a wisp of clear light and thunderous energy, following the power of his vow, and vanished in an instant.

Below, the earth was shrouded in darkness.

Near Ghost Cry Gorge, there is a small country called Shunping Kingdom. Its territory is not large, only the size of a city, built against the mountain.

All the lights in the city went out, and every household closed their doors tightly, sealing the cracks in windows and doors with talismans, mugwort, and even coarse salt.

The entire city was shrouded in darkness and deathly silence; not even a dog barked.

Only on the main street of the city, a faint lantern light moved slowly, only to be quickly swallowed by darkness.

"Thump—clang—"

"The weather is dry, be careful with fire..."

"It's the third watch...it's the third watch of the night..."

The night watchman hunched his shoulders, his steps hurried and quick, as if he wished he could cover the long night road in one stride.

He dared not look around, but stared intently at the small patch of dim yellow light cast by the lanterns at his feet.

Its ears, however, were perked up, catching any unusual sound in the wind.

In the southwest corner of the city, there is a very inconspicuous low temple.

The temple doors were tightly shut, and the gaps in the windows were all sealed with thick cloth, preventing any light from getting in.

Two candles were placed on the offering table, their flames flickering slightly, barely dispelling a corner of darkness, but also casting unsettling shadows.

On the altar, there is a statue of a deity made of ordinary clay and wood, only a few feet tall.

The temple is small and the statues are small, but it has its own unique atmosphere.

Made of clay and wood, with mottled paint, yet its imposing, sword-wielding posture, with clean lines and subtly revealing its sinews and bones, is still remarkable.

Especially around his eyebrows, despite years of smoke and soot, his imposing aura has not diminished, as if he could burst forth at any moment to slay demons and vanquish evil.

The memorial tablet in front of the deity was shrouded in wisps of smoke from three burning incense sticks, and only the words "Heavenly Ruler" could be vaguely discerned at the end of the tablet.

Inside the incense burner, three sticks of incense had burned more than halfway, and the smoke slowly swirled in the small temple hall.

Under the statue, a family of five, young and old, were gathered together.

An elderly couple, both over sixty and with deep wrinkles, and a young man in his prime, though pale-faced, were tightly embracing a young woman.

The baby in the swaddling clothes was fast asleep.

"Crunch..."

The latch seemed to be moved by the wind, making a slight sound.

The man, named Wang Shuan, heard the commotion and peered nervously through the crack in the door, peering at the empty street outside.

Apart from the unsettling echo of the watchman's gong in the distance, nothing could be seen or heard.

Wang Shuan pulled his head back, his back pressed against the cold door panel, and fine beads of cold sweat seeped from his forehead.

He moved closer to his wife and hugged his wife and children again, feeling his arms trembling slightly.

Wang Shuan's Adam's apple bobbed, and finally, unable to hold back any longer, he lowered his voice and asked:

"Father, is this deity truly effective?"

I heard during the day that Granny Wang from the front street worships the Bodhisattva day and night, and a few days ago she even made a grand offering at the City God Temple.

But her little grandson, the night before last, was still...

He didn't finish speaking, but his meaning was clear.

The rest of the family members froze upon hearing this.

The old man, who had been silent with his eyes closed, suddenly opened them upon hearing this. Without saying a word, he raised his hand and gave his son a light tap on the back of the head.

The young man winced in pain but dared not utter a sound; he simply shrank his neck.

"You brat, what do you know! Whether it's accurate or not... your old man knows the truth!"

The son, daughter-in-law, and even the old woman who had been chanting Buddhist prayers with her head down all looked up at the old man.

The old man reprimanded in a low voice, but his cloudy old eyes shone surprisingly brightly in the candlelight.

He took a deep breath, as if inhaling the swirling smoke and memories from decades ago.

"That was... more than thirty years ago."

Your father was young and quick-witted back then, and was one of the best carpenters in Shunping.

That day, I took on a job to renovate the house of a wealthy man named Zhang in a village thirty miles to the south.

The work was urgent, and by the time they finished, it was completely dark. The employer invited them to stay for dinner, but Dad was worried about home, so he declined and hurried back home with his wages.

Halfway there, in the Laoyaling area, which is still more than ten miles away from Shunping, the weather changed!

Thunderclaps rolled overhead one after another, the wind was so strong it felt like it would lift people into the sky, and trees as thick as a bowl could topple over at any moment.

Then, a torrential downpour began, as if the sky had burst open, and people could no longer be seen just a few steps away.

The mountain path quickly turned into a muddy mess, so slippery that it was impossible to stand still.

The old man's voice lowered, carrying a sense of awe at the power of nature:

"That rain, that wind, so eerie! It wasn't like ordinary rain, it was more like... something in the sky was angry."

My father immediately got a bad feeling, knowing that he had probably encountered something unclean.

I want to find a place to hide, but it's all in the middle of nowhere, where can I find a place?

Rain blurred my vision, and I stumbled through the water, not knowing where I was.

I felt a chilling wind all around me, as if countless claws were reaching out from the darkness to grab me…

"Just as Dad felt a chill run through his body, his legs cramped, and he was about to collapse..."

Old Carpenter Wang's voice suddenly rose slightly, carrying a certain indescribable emotion.

Suddenly, a bright light appeared in the sky! It wasn't lightning, it was... it was a beam of white light that cleaved down from the thick clouds!

Immediately afterwards, there was a thunderous roar—the sound was so loud that the earth shook!

"I've never heard such loud thunder in my entire life!"

The other four people in the temple, along with the baby in swaddling clothes, seemed to be stunned by the thunderous sound in Old Wang's words, and held their breath.

"Then, Dad saw..."

The old man licked his chapped lips, his eyes shining even brighter.

"The sky above Laoya Ridge was filled with a huge hole where the clouds had all dispersed, and lightning bolts were flashing like snakes inside!"

A tall, divine being, clad in armor and whose face was obscured, stood atop the clouds!

He seemed to be holding a long, pale white stick or something, but Dad couldn't see clearly. Then he saw him smash it down hard!

"Another, even louder clap of thunder!"

Father saw a huge, green shadow, as thick as a water vat and of indistinct length, deep in the mountains, carrying a torrent of water, trying to rush out.

But it was firmly suppressed by the white lightning unleashed by that divine being!

The blue shadow screamed terribly, neither like a snake nor a dragon, sending chills down one's spine...

Then came countless beams of white light, crashing down like rain, all striking the green shadow...

Later, all Dad heard was thunder, all he saw was light, his head was buzzing, and then he knew nothing more…

Wang Shuan's mouth gaped slightly as he listened, and he instinctively hugged his wife tighter. His wife forgot her fear and opened her eyes wide.

"When Dad regained some consciousness, he felt that the rain had lessened and the wind had stopped."

In my hazy state, I seemed to see an old, white-bearded sage with a cane looking at me.

The rain was so heavy, but he didn't get wet at all.

Dad wanted to move, but couldn't; he wanted to speak, but couldn't.

He crouched down, looked at me, sighed, and said something...

"Fortunately, Lord Yilie arrived in time and suppressed that wreaking havoc, the thousand-year-old green serpent; otherwise, all living beings within a hundred miles would have been reduced to fish and turtles..."

"Lord Yilie..."

Old carpenter Wang murmured the name repeatedly, his gaze refocusing on the clay statue:

"My father was in a daze at the time, but he memorized those four words. Then the old sage tapped my father on the head with his cane, and my father fainted again."

"When Dad woke up again, he was already lying in his own bed. He had no injuries, but he had a headache for a few days."

The villagers all said that Dad was lucky. With such a strong wind and rain, half of Laoya Ridge collapsed, and countless trees were damaged.

The mudslide came down, but Dad was lying perfectly fine right in front of our house.

"I don't know what happened that night, nor do I know who that Lord Yilie is."

But Father remembers the lightning-wielding god he saw that day very clearly!

My father thought to himself, "This is a true deity who saved us and the people in the surrounding villages!"

But here, I haven't heard of any temple dedicated to this Heavenly Lord...

The old man's face showed an almost stubborn expression, and his tone was resolute.

"My father wasn't very skilled; he only knew a little carpentry."

With the money I had saved over the years, I bought wood and mud bricks, and tried to recreate the appearance of that amazing person from my memory.

Little by little, they sculpted this statue and built this small temple.

Regardless of whether others worship or believe, on holidays, the first and fifteenth of each lunar month, Dad would always come to burn incense.

Thinking to myself, I don't know if other gods, Buddhas, and Bodhisattvas care about us, but this Lord Yilie has truly saved my life...

Old carpenter Wang turned his head, looked at his son, daughter-in-law, and wife, and his voice was unusually firm.

"Tonight, we'll believe in this deity. We won't go to any other temple. We'll stay here and wait."

The temple was completely silent, save for the crackling of candlelight and the upright smoke from incense sticks.

Wang Shuan, who had been listening intently, found that the fear he felt because of the Ghost Mother was somewhat diluted by the even grander and more terrifying story of the Thunder-Slaying Green Serpent.

At this moment, he couldn't help but ask in a low voice:

"Father, you just said that the divine being is called... Yilie Tianjun? What's the significance of the name 'Yilie'?"

And what about that 'Blue-Gray'? What kind of creature is it that has become a spirit? The name sounds rather awkward.

"Is it really that powerful, capable of stirring up such a huge storm?"

When his son asked him this, Old Carpenter Wang paused for a moment, a hint of embarrassment flashing across his face, and waved his hand:

"My father is just a woodcutter, how could he recognize those fancy words?"

I was feeling drowsy when I heard the white-bearded old immortal say that.

In my father's heart, he always regarded him as "Lord of Righteousness and Fierceness," a righteous and fiery deity.

"That bluish-gray color, Father thought it was a powerful bluish-gray snake..."

He paused, then recalled:

"Later, I always kept thinking about this matter. Once, a traveling storyteller came to the teahouse. He was quite learned."

Father bought him a pot of wine and offered him a drink. He vaguely recounted what had happened back then, asking if he knew what "Yilie" was or what "Qinghui" was.

"After listening, the gentleman stroked his beard and pondered for a long time. He said, 'The character '翊' means to assist or protect, and '烈' means fierce and violent.'"

The name "Yilie" combined likely praises this deity as a powerful and ruthless ruler who assists the Heavenly Court. As for "Qinghui"...

A flicker of lingering fear crossed the old man's eyes:

"The master said that the 'hui' is a kind of venomous snake mentioned in ancient books. It is powerful and can cultivate itself into a 'jiao' (a type of dragon).

However, ordinary snakes, once they cultivate to a certain level and have five hundred years of cultivation, can try to transform into a dragon if they encounter the right opportunity.

But the 'Green Serpent' is different. It is a naturally occurring, strange species with a strong malevolent aura. To truly cultivate it to its full potential, one must have over a thousand years of cultivation!

Moreover, the calamities triggered when it transforms into a dragon are even more ferocious.

The one Dad ran into back then,

It is likely that this kind of ferocious creature with a thousand years of cultivation is more than ten times more powerful than an ordinary dragon-transformation monster!

No wonder it stirred up such a huge storm, trying to cause a flash flood...

As Old Carpenter Wang recounted the past, a chill still ran down his spine. That night, he was just a hair's breadth away from being pulverized and the surrounding area turning into a vast swamp.

Upon hearing this, Wang Shuan and his wife couldn't help but shiver and hugged their child tightly.

It turns out that what my father encountered on the verge of death was such a terrifying monster, and the "Yilie Tianjun" was the one who could suppress such a monster...

Old Carpenter Wang looked at his son and daughter-in-law, then at the silent clay statue, and his voice deepened:

"Now you know, right? The god we're worshipping is a formidable demon!"

"Specially designed to subdue those unclean and malevolent beings! What do those infant-eating demon mothers amount to compared to a true god like this?"

Wang Shuan could no longer voice his doubts.

The old man's experiences, which he never told outsiders, sounded more real and more...inexplicably reassuring than any of the sacred scrolls and legends in temples.

They fell silent and offered only silent prayers.

The tiny candle flame, under everyone's gaze, seemed to grow even warmer and brighter, dispelling the chill in the cramped space of the temple.

Time flows by quietly.

The terrifying baby-eating demon mother did not appear.

The tension in my heart eased slightly.

The Wang family members secretly speculated that perhaps the clay statue of the Heavenly Lord was indeed somewhat efficacious tonight, or perhaps the ghost had gone elsewhere, or perhaps... it was just a false alarm?

Just as this thought was quietly taking root in his mind, the sound of the night watchman's drum came from outside.

"Thump—clang—"

"It's past four in the morning, all is well—"

The night watchman's shouts could be heard.

However, the gong and shout that followed abruptly froze, as if something had suddenly choked him and forced him out.

"At the fourth watch of the night, all is well... nothing happened."

The voice was still that of the watchman, but the tone was flat and stiff, without any variation.

It echoed eerily in the quiet night, carrying an indescribable sense of the bizarre.

Inside the temple.

Wang Shuan suddenly looked up and met his father's gaze. Both of them saw a sudden chill rise in each other's eyes.

The old carpenter's rough hands gripped his knees tightly.

Suddenly, the wind outside the temple picked up and howled loudly. It was no longer the usual night wind, but rather as if countless cold hands were pounding on the doors and windows.

The temple doors rattled loudly under the wind, and the bolts groaned under the strain, as if they might be blown open at any moment.

The Wang family members, who had just begun to relax, instantly jumped to their throats, holding their breath in anticipation.

Old Carpenter Wang's hand had already quietly reached under the altar, where he hid his short-handled axe, which he used for his carpentry work.

The baby in the woman's arms pouted but didn't cry out; instead, it buried its little face even deeper into the woman's embrace.

Just then, the wind howled and the door rattled.

A voice suddenly rang out outside the temple gate.

"Tap, tap, tap."

Three clear and gentle knocks pierced the wind and reached the ears of everyone inside the temple.

Then a young woman's voice rang out, slightly breathless, soft and delicate, even a little timid.

"Kind-hearted family...please have mercy and open the door..."

I was traveling with my child when we lost our way late at night. The wind was so strong outside that my child couldn't bear the cold.

Please, please let my son and I go inside to avoid the wind and rest for the night.

Just one night, I'll leave at dawn...

The young woman holding the baby trembled and instinctively hugged the swaddled baby even tighter.

Wang Shuan's face turned pale as he looked at his father.

Old Carpenter Wang's cloudy eyes were fixed on the door that seemed ready to be knocked on at any moment, and the wrinkles on his face looked as if they had been carved by a knife in the flickering candlelight.

He slowly shook his head at his son.

His chapped lips opened and closed silently, uttering a few barely audible words.

"In the dead of night, where did this young woman come from, carrying a baby...?"

Old Carpenter Wang gripped the axe handle tightly, his eyes fixed on the door.

The son, Wang Shuan, was breathing heavily and laboredly, like a broken bellows.

Outside.

The delicate and sorrowful female voice paused for a moment, then rang out again, sounding even more pitiful and helpless than before.

"Kind family, please open the door."

The wind is too strong, and my child is still young and can't stand the cold. Let us go inside to take shelter, even if we don't go inside, we can stay under the eaves until dawn..."

The sound seeped in through the crack in the door, carrying a damp, cold scent.

No one answered.

Wang Shuan was about to speak when the old carpenter's fierce glare froze him in place.

The voice let out a long, drawn-out sigh, filled with disappointment and desolation:

"Alas, if that's the case, then I'll go find somewhere else to stay..."

Then came the rustling sound, like the hem of a skirt dragging across the rough ground, accompanied by the sound of footsteps gradually fading away.

The footsteps disappeared completely.

The temple was deathly silent.

Only the candlelight had shrunk considerably, becoming as small as a mung bean, flickering dimly.

The sense of relaxation brought by the receding footsteps coiled around me like a venomous snake.

Wang Shuan's tense shoulders relaxed slightly, his Adam's apple bobbed, he swallowed, and asked in a low voice:

"They...they left?"

The tense atmosphere inside the temple immediately eased.

Wang Shuan let out a long breath of stale air, his body feeling weak.

About the time it takes for an incense stick to burn has passed again.

A slightly noisy sound suddenly came from the deathly quiet street.

First, several doors creaked open, followed by conversations filled with surprise and excitement.

The sound of footsteps was loud and varied, coming from afar and getting closer, as if many people had come out of their homes and gathered on the street.

"Is...it really gone?"

"That light...and that sound..."

"Is he a passing immortal? He must be!"

Inside the temple, the Wang family members looked at each other in surprise and disbelief.

Old carpenter Wang raised his hand to signal for quiet. His ear was almost touching the door panel, and his wrinkled face looked as taut as an old elm in the shadows.

suddenly!

"Knock knock knock!"

The knocking sounded again, this time much more urgent and forceful.

Immediately, a loud, gruff voice roared from outside the door.

"Uncle Wang, Shuanzi! He's alright! This is fantastic news!"

It's Zhao Mang, the blacksmith next door, also known as Zhao the Hammer!

Wang Shuan's eyes lit up, and he almost jumped up.

Old carpenter Wang remained motionless, his eyes sharp.

Zhao Mang's voice was filled with barely suppressed excitement, even drowning out the sound of the wind:

"That child-eating demon mother has been eliminated!"

Just now, a group of immortals riding on clouds and stepping on light passed by and captured that ghostly thing under the old tree at the street corner!

A beam of golden light descended, and the ghost screamed...

It's alright now!

The faint sounds of people outside could be heard: doors opening, hushed conversations, and the faint crying of children who had been startled awake.

Some people were even shouting, "Is it true?" and "Let's go see!"

Inside the temple, the atmosphere suddenly changed.

Wang Shuan's face lit up with ecstatic joy. He looked at his father and laughed:

"Father! It's Uncle Zhao! Listen! There are so many people outside! The Demon Mother has been exorcised! Exorcised by the Immortal!"

The young wife suddenly raised her head, her eyes shining. The baby in her arms seemed to sense the relaxation in his mother's emotions and quieted down.

The old woman stood up shakily and clasped her hands together:

"Amitabha Buddha, Amitabha Buddha, may the Bodhisattva protect us, oh, may the Heavenly Emperor also protect us..."

"Dad! Open the door! Uncle Zhao and the others are outside! I need to see what that ghost mother looks like!"

Wang Shuan couldn't wait any longer and reached for the wooden bar at the top of the door.

"Don't move!"

Old carpenter Wang lowered his voice and growled, but instead of loosening his grip on the axe, he tightened it even more.

His eyes were frighteningly sharp as he stared intently at the door, as if trying to see through the wooden planks to see what was outside.

"Zhao Dachui..."

Old carpenter Wang squeezed out the words through gritted teeth:

Yesterday, I went out of town to deliver the plowshares I had made to Zhangjiazhuang. I had agreed to stay there for two nights.

His wife said it herself.

The slight flush that had just appeared on Wang Shuan's face vanished instantly, leaving him as white as paper.

He stared at the door, then at his father, his body ice-cold.

Zhao Dachui was still shouting outside, his voice filled with doubt and urgency:

"Uncle Wang? Why aren't you opening the door? It's really alright! Everyone's outside! Come on out!"

What's the point of hiding in this dark, cramped little temple? Go home and rest!

The voice and tone were so vivid, just like the rough and enthusiastic blacksmith Zhao on ordinary days.

You could even hear a woman nearby trying to comfort them: "Old Wang's family must be terrified..."

A child exclaimed excitedly, "Mommy, are there really gods?"

The wind stopped at some point.

Outside, only Zhao Dachui and his neighbors, filled with the joy of surviving a disaster, shouted and offered words of comfort.

The calls urged them to open the door and return to the safe night.

Old Carpenter Wang's back was bent even lower, like a bow stretched to its limit.

He slowly knelt down before the clay and wooden statue that stood silently in the dim light.

His forehead pressed against the cold ground, his rough hands gripping the axe handle tightly, as if clutching at the last shred of hope.

The flame of the oil lamp suddenly leaped up.

Wang Shuan felt ice-cold all over, his teeth began to chatter, and he looked at his father with a desperate, struggling look in his eyes:

"Father, could it be that Zhao Dachui had something come up and came back early?"

"fart!"

Old Carpenter Wang cursed, his eyes fierce, his voice squeezed out from between his teeth, so low that only the few people in front of him could hear it.

"Have you forgotten how that 'woman' knocked on the door? You're staying here tonight!"

"Stay here and guard the Heavenly Emperor! Don't go anywhere! Whether it's a human or a ghost outside, we'll see at dawn!"

As if to prove his words.

The voices of the neighbors gradually faded away.

After a brief wait, Zhao Dachui's urging voice outside the door changed in tone.

That enthusiasm and eagerness gradually faded, replaced by a subtle chill and impatience.

"Uncle Wang? Shuanzi? Are you really asleep? Open the door, it's Da Chui!"

"Knock knock! Knock knock knock!"

The knocking suddenly intensified, no longer a slapping motion, but more like a fist or an elbow pounding on the door.

"Open the door! Did you hear me?! It's really okay outside! Come out now!"

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The banging on the door grew louder and more urgent, the wooden bar supporting the door began to shake violently, and the door groaned under the strain.

The voice of Zhao Dachui outside had completely shed its feigned enthusiasm and become rough and tyrannical.

"Open the door! Are you hiding inside like a coward? Come out!"

"Come out!!"

The last sound no longer resembled a human voice.

A mixture of resentment and a certain slippery eeriness struck the already fragile heartstrings of every member of the Wang family amidst the deathly silence of the night and the howling wind.

The flame of the oil lamp was shaken wildly by the violent banging and roaring, almost going out.

The shadows of everyone inside the temple were torn into chaos and despair.

"boom!!"

A sharp, ear-piercing shriek suddenly exploded!

Almost simultaneously, the thick, old window screen that was barely covered on the temple door came into view in the wide, horrified eyes of the crowd.

It was slapped and torn from the outside in by countless sticky, bloody handprints!

The window screen shattered instantly, and through the gaps in the wooden planks, one could vaguely see shadowy, inhuman figures swaying wildly outside!

"Bang!"

A biting, chilling wind slammed against the door!

The wooden beam supporting the door let out a groan of unbearable strain, cracking open with fine lines.

The already faint flame of the oil lamp was extinguished with a "poof" by the raging wind carrying endless filth.