bookbashuk Chapter 19: Buddhist Schemes, Tragedy of Brothers
Chapter 19: Buddhist Schemes, Tragedy of Brothers
The golden light dissipated, leaving the spot empty.
The expressions on Muzha and the Black Bear Spirit's faces were extremely grim.
"They escaped!" The black bear spirit slammed his black-tasseled spear into the ground in anger, creating a large crater. "Huian Walker, what are we going to do now?"
Mu Zha withdrew his Vajra Bracelet, his face as still as water.
"This cunning monkey is even more sly than it was five hundred years ago!"
He knew very well that Sun Wukong had deliberately taken the blow head-on, using the impact of the Vajra Bracelet to instantly escape with Chen Fan.
This wasn't due to the power of the magic weapon, but rather the monkey's mastery of power, which had reached an unbelievable level.
"This matter must be reported to the Bodhisattva immediately!" Mu Zha dared not delay. "Black Wind Mountain Lord, you continue to guard this place and must not expose yourselves. They will come again!"
The black bear spirit nodded repeatedly, but his heart was pounding.
Another time? You might not be so lucky next time!
……
On a mountaintop a thousand miles away, the figures of Sun Wukong and Chen Fan appeared.
"Pah!" Sun Wukong spat, his face full of sullen anger. "That woman actually tricked me! And that charcoal-headed guy, I'll skin him alive and pull his tendons out of him sooner or later!"
Chen Fan dusted himself off, remaining quite calm.
"Great Sage, don't be angry. This is actually a good thing."
"Good news?" Sun Wukong stared at him, wide-eyed. "We almost got trapped inside, and you call that good news?"
"Of course," Chen Fan analyzed. "This shows that Guanyin has lost her composure. She knows we've come back to cause her trouble, so she set a trap in advance, hoping to wipe us all out."
"This just proves that she's scared. She doesn't dare to fight us head-on, so she can only resort to these underhanded tactics."
Sun Wukong's anger subsided a little after hearing this, but he was still annoyed.
"So what do we do now? We can't just let it go like this!"
"Of course we can't let it go," Chen Fan said. "Let her fight her way, we'll fight ours. She wants to assemble the entire pilgrimage team, right? We'll uproot her foundation, one by one!"
"How do I pull it out?"
"Find them!" Chen Fan's gaze deepened. "Great Sage, one person's strength is ultimately limited. The Heavenly Court and the Buddhist sect are powerful; we must unite all forces that can be united!"
"You mean..." Sun Wukong understood.
"That's right." Chen Fan nodded. "Great Sage, where are the six Great Sages you swore brotherhood with back then?"
Sun Wukong's body trembled.
The Great Sage Who Pacifies Heaven is the Bull Demon King; the Great Sage Who Overturns the Seas is the Flood Dragon Demon King; the Great Sage Who Confounds Heaven is the Roc Demon King; the Great Sage Who Moves Mountains is the Lion Camel King; the Great Sage Who Knows All is the Macaque King; and the Great Sage Who Drives Away Gods is the Yu Rong King.
Along with himself, the Great Sage Equaling Heaven, Sun Wukong, was known as one of the Seven Great Sages. How majestic he was back then!
Five hundred years have passed, and he has been imprisoned under the mountain. How are his brothers doing?
"My brothers are all upright and honorable men! They must be local tyrants by now!" Sun Wukong said, his voice full of pride.
"Then let's go find them!" Chen Fan decided immediately. "If we reunite the Seven Great Sages, who in the Three Realms will dare to look down on us!"
"Great!" Sun Wukong slapped his thigh, scratching his ears and cheeks excitedly. "That's it! Who should we go find first?"
"The principle of proximity." Chen Fan mentally reviewed the map. "The Great Sage Flood Dragon Demon King's Northern Sea isn't far from here, so let's go find him first!"
"Walk!"
Without saying a word, Sun Wukong mounted his somersault cloud, carrying Chen Fan, and transformed into a golden light, heading straight for the North Sea.
The somersault cloud was extremely fast, and in less than half an hour, the two arrived above a black sea.
This place is the Northern Sea.
However, the scene before him made Sun Wukong frown.
Where is the promised aura of demons soaring to the heavens, with all demons coming to pay homage?
The sea below was lifeless, devoid of even a fish or shrimp, with broken weapons and warship wreckage floating on the surface.
The entire Northern Sea is like a giant graveyard.
"What's going on?" Sun Wukong's face darkened.
Chen Fan's heart skipped a beat; he had a bad feeling.
The two landed on a deserted island by the sea. Sun Wukong used his fiery eyes to scan the surroundings and quickly discovered a faint trace of demonic energy in a rocky cave.
He darted past and pulled a trembling shrimp soldier out of the hole.
When the shrimp soldiers saw Sun Wukong's appearance, they were so frightened that their souls almost flew away.
"Your Majesty...please spare me! Don't eat me!"
"I, Old Sun, don't eat shrimp!" Sun Wukong asked impatiently. "Speak! What's going on here? Where is your Great King, the Flood Dragon Demon King?"
The moment the mention of the Flood Dragon King was mentioned, the shrimp soldier burst into tears.
"Your Majesty...our king...he's been captured by the Buddhist monks!"
"What?!" Sun Wukong's voice suddenly rose, and a terrifying demonic aura erupted instantly, scaring the shrimp soldier so much that he almost fainted.
"When did this happen? Who did it?"
"Just... just about half a month ago," the shrimp soldier said, trembling. "That day, suddenly a lot of monks came from the west. The leader was a man with an iron rod, and he said his name was something like... Huian Xingzhe."
It's Muzha again!
Sun Wukong's fists clenched so tightly they cracked.
"When they came, they said our king was a demon and demanded that he convert to Buddhism and put a golden ring on his head."
"Our king refused, saying that he was the mighty Great Sage Who Overturns the Seas, how could he become someone else's mount! And then...and then a fight broke out."
"Our 100,000-strong navy of the Northern Sea is no match for them. His Majesty... he was severely injured by Huian Xingzhe's Vajra Bracelet while protecting our escape, and was finally dragged away by an iron chain..."
The shrimp soldiers wept uncontrollably.
Sun Wukong fell silent.
His expression was obscured by his golden hair.
But the murderous aura emanating from him, almost solidified into a tangible form, made Chen Fan feel a chill run down his spine.
"Buddhism..."
Sun Wukong squeezed out two words through his teeth, each word dripping with blood.
He released the shrimp soldier, said nothing, and turned to leave.
"Great Sage, where are you going?" Chen Fan followed.
"Go to Lion Camel Ridge! Find my third brother, Peng Demon King, and my fifth brother, Lion Camel King!" Sun Wukong's voice was as cold as ice.
Chen Fan didn't say much. He knew that Sun Wukong needed to vent his anger at this moment.
However, when they arrived at Lion Camel Ridge, they were met with a scene even more desolate than the Northern Sea.
The entire Lion Camel Ridge was razed to the ground.
The mountaintops were all leveled, and the land was covered with crisscrossing ravines, as if it had been plowed by countless terrifying spells.
A faint Buddhist atmosphere still lingered in the air.
Not a single one survived.
Died cleanly and completely.
Sun Wukong stood on the ruins, his thin figure appearing particularly lonely.
Five hundred years of dramatic changes.
He thought that once he got out, he could rally his brothers and they would get together again, just like they used to, drink and eat heartily, and cause a huge ruckus.
But reality dealt him the heaviest blow.
Brothers, some are dead, some are captured.
Of the seven great sages of yesteryear, who remains today?
"Buddhism... Buddha..."
Sun Wukong raised his head and looked at the sky. His fiery eyes were no longer filled with violence, but only with a deathly red.
"I, Old Sun, will remember this debt."
Chen Fan patted him on the shoulder, unsure how to comfort him.
Just then, the system's voice rang in his mind.
[Ding! Detected a significant change in the host's and Sun Wukong's states of mind; main quest changed.]
[Main Quest Part 4: The Fury of Vengeance!]
[Mission Description: The purge between Buddhism and Heaven has begun. Rather than passively waiting, it's better to take the initiative! Gather all forces capable of resistance, ignite the flames of revenge, and make all the gods and Buddhas pay the price for their actions!]
[Currently available target: The Great Sage Equaling Heaven, Bull Demon King!]
"Great Sage," Chen Fan took a deep breath and said, "we still have somewhere to go."
Sun Wukong slowly turned his head.
"Where to?"
"Mount Jilei, Moyun Cave!" Chen Fan said, enunciating each word clearly, "Go find your elder brother, the Great Sage Equaling Heaven, the Bull Demon King!"
"Big brother..."
A glimmer of light rekindled in Sun Wukong's eyes.
Yes, and the eldest brother too!
The Bull Demon King is the leader of the Seven Great Sages, possessing the greatest strength and extraordinary abilities!
He'll be alright!
"Let's go! To Jilei Mountain!"