Journey to the West: Deer Power Immortal, Starting from Becoming a Disciple of the Supreme Lord Tais

Upon hearing this, the three monks said nothing more, bowed to the king, and strode away.

The old king sighed and said to Lu Qingxuan, "Daoist, those three masters are eminent monks from Zhiyuan Temple outside the city. They have been eating vegetarian food and chanting Buddhist scriptures in the palace for the past three days, saying that they need to fast for seven days before they can go on stage."

I am eagerly awaiting rain, but I cannot urge it. Now that the Taoist priest has posted the notice, I feel reassured.

However, those three masters have rather strong tempers, so I hope you will be lenient with them, Daoist Master.

Lu Qingxuan said, "Your Majesty, rest assured, I am not a competitive person. If they can pray for rain and the people will benefit, I will be happy to see it happen. If they cannot pray for rain, I will then take action."

The old king nodded repeatedly and ordered the eunuch to take Lu Qingxuan to a side hall to rest.

Lu Qingxuan sat down in the side hall and closed his eyes to regulate his breathing.

He knew perfectly well that the three monks were mostly charlatans, and that praying for rain couldn't be accomplished by chanting scriptures for a few days.

The severe drought in Chechi Kingdom must be caused by evil spirits or by someone with powerful magic deliberately blocking the water veins.

He had already sensed it on the way; the clouds above the capital had been dispersed by magic, and the water veins had been cut off. This was definitely not an ordinary drought.

Those three monks who kept claiming they could bring rain were either liars or acting under someone's orders.

He decided to see how they performed before making a decision.

Nothing was said that night.

The next morning, a palace eunuch came to invite them, saying that the altar for the ceremony had been set up and the king and his ministers were waiting below.

Lu Qingxuan did not hesitate. He straightened his robes and followed the eunuch to the outside of the city.

Three monks had already ascended the platform, wearing kasayas, holding ritual implements, and surrounded by the smoke of incense.

The audience was packed with people, all looking up with hopeful eyes.

The leading monk stood in the center of the altar, hands clasped together, and chanted loudly, "Amitabha! This humble monk ascends this altar today to pray for rain for the people of Chechi Kingdom. May the eight classes of dragons and gods, and all Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, bestow their compassionate blessings and swiftly send down sweet rain!"

He recited a series of scriptures, then ordered the short, fat monk to strike the wooden fish and the tall, thin monk to shake the copper bell. The three of them circled the altar three times, sprinkled some clean water, and burned several talismans, going on for a full hour.

In contrast, the sky remained cloudless and without even a breath of wind.

The people began to whisper among themselves, and the old king looked somewhat dejected: "Even the three masters couldn't bring rain..."

The three monks were sweating profusely, and after chanting scriptures again, there was still no response.

The short, stout monk leaned close to the head monk's ear and whispered, "Brother, how about we fast for a few more days?"

The leading monk glared at him, but was secretly plotting something.

Some time ago, he dreamt that a Bodhisattva instructed him that the severe drought in Chechi Kingdom would end within seven days, so he came to pray for rain to strengthen the incense offerings.

Why is there no movement at all now?

Is it simply that the time hasn't come yet?

After a moment's hesitation, the head monk uttered a Buddhist chant: "Amitabha! Today's time is inauspicious; I will choose another auspicious day to ascend the stage!"

After saying this, the three of them prepared to leave the stage.

The old king sighed, about to speak, when Lu Qingxuan stepped forward: "Masters, please wait. Since you cannot pray for rain, why not let this humble Taoist give it a try?"

The leading monk's face darkened, and he sneered, "Go ahead and try! What skills could a quack like you possibly have?"

Lu Qingxuan was not annoyed and said calmly, "Whether I have the ability or not, we will know after trying. If I cannot obtain it even if I ask, it will not be too late to ask the three masters to choose an auspicious day."

Seeing that Lu Qingxuan was so confident, the old king was overjoyed. Ignoring the thoughts of the three monks, he hurriedly said, "Since you are so confident, please come up and give it a try."

The three monks, though dissatisfied with the king's words, could not object and had no choice but to step down from the platform in a huff.

However, they did not go far, but stood aside, wanting to see if Lu Qingxuan could summon rain.

If they couldn't, they wouldn't have ended up in such a sorry state today.

If he were to ask them for help, he could say that it was due to his previous efforts, and that Lu Qingxuan was merely taking advantage of their help.

Lu Qingxuan was unaware of what the three were thinking. If he had known, even with two lifetimes of experience, he would have had to admit it was all a lie.

Upon ascending the altar, Lu Qingxuan did not burn incense or set up an altar, but instead closed his eyes and wandered in his mind.

The crowd below craned their necks to look at him, whispering among themselves, "Why isn't this Taoist priest moving?"

"Could this be a hoax?"

"Even the three eminent monks of Zhiyuan Temple failed to bring rain, so I'm afraid this Taoist priest will also have a hard time."

The three monks stood on the side of the platform, sneering repeatedly.

The leading monk whispered, "Let's see how long he can keep up this act of playing tricks."

Lu Qingxuan ignored him, closed his eyes, and let his divine sense soar into the sky.

Now that he has reached the Golden Immortal realm, his divine sense is so strong that he instantly pierced through layers of clouds and entered the Dragon Palace of the East Sea.

Before long, dark clouds suddenly rolled in and a strong wind arose.

A golden light swept in from afar; it was none other than Ao Guang, the Dragon King of the East Sea.

Ao Guang bowed to Lu Qingxuan and said with a smile, "The immortal boy summoned me, and this old dragon has come to await your command."

Since learning that Maitreya Buddha had suffered a loss at Lu Qingxuan's hands, Ao Guang's regard for Lu Qingxuan had deepened, and his words were full of enthusiasm.

However, these words shocked the people in the audience.

Someone exclaimed, "The Dragon King! It really is the Dragon King!"

Some people knelt down and kowtowed, while others were so frightened that their legs went weak.

The three monks were even more pale, their legs trembling. They had been chanting sutras all morning, but hadn't even splashed a drop of water.

This Taoist priest was quite something; the moment he stood on it, even the Dragon King himself came.

The difference is enormous.

The old king trembled with excitement, his voice shaking as he asked, "Who...who exactly is this Taoist priest?"

Lu Qingxuan returned the greeting to Ao Guang and said, "Dragon King, there's no need for such formalities. I have a question for you. Chechi Kingdom has suffered a severe drought for over a year, resulting in a complete crop failure and the displacement of its people. I just sensed that the water veins here have been deliberately cut off, and the clouds have been dispersed. Is this due to the presence of evil spirits?"

Ao Guang shook his head and cupped his hands, saying, "Immortal boy, you may not know, but the great drought in Chechi Kingdom is not caused by evil spirits, but by a decree of punishment from the Heavenly Court."

Lu Qingxuan raised an eyebrow slightly: "A decree of punishment?"

Ao Guang lowered his voice and said, "The old king of Chechi Kingdom was too warlike and bloodthirsty when he was young."

The Jade Emperor decreed that he be punished with a three-year drought as a warning, and now, only a little over a year has passed, and naturally, no rain has fallen.

Lu Qingxuan nodded, understanding dawning on his mind.

"Does the fairy boy wish to pray for rain for the Kingdom of Chechi?" Ao Guang asked, seemingly seeing through Lu Qingxuan's thoughts.

"Exactly."

"This matter is not for the old dragon to decide. If the immortal child wishes to bring rain, he will probably need to report to the Jade Emperor," Ao Guang said frankly.

Lu Qingxuan naturally knew the ins and outs of the matter. Back then, the Jinghe Dragon King was beheaded for arbitrarily altering some points, and he certainly didn't want Ao Guang to suffer the same fate.

However, if he were to report to the Jade Emperor, his status would probably not be sufficient.

"However, this matter is both difficult and simple. If the Dao Ancestor approves, given the status of the celestial child, the Jade Emperor will not say anything more."

Old Dragon had heard that some people from the West had gone to the Heavenly Court some time ago, seemingly to talk about the rain. Although he didn't know if it was related to Chechi Kingdom, some rumors had spread.

"If the fairy boy wants rain, he should hurry, lest he become someone else's blessing," Ao Guang reminded him.