Journey to the West: Tang Monk Conquers Everything

"Alas..." In the night, within the tranquil Zen Room, a long sigh rose.

Master Puhui looked at the statue of the Tiger Conquering Arhat, which had lost its liveliness, and knew the Arhat had departed. This left Puhui helplessly shaking his head with a bitter expression.

This time, the Tiger Conquering Arhat had manifested to assign him a task, yet he had failed to complete it. Certainly, the Arhat must be dissatisfied with him.

When departing, there wasn't even a farewell, naturally, the so-called credit the Arhat had promised him was gone as well.

"What on earth is happening..." Reflecting on the current situation, Master Puhui felt extremely wronged.

The task given by the Tiger Conquering Arhat wasn't completed, nor was the matter handled well, surely leaving a bad impression.

And what about Master Xuanzang? Not only had Puhui failed to make him depart sooner, but Xuanzang had clearly become aware of his intent to drive him away.

Had he offended him as well?

He had gained nothing but managed to offend both parties.

In this fight between immortals, he was the one suffering undeserved disaster!

...

Setting aside what Master Puhui was thinking at the moment, on the other side, the Tiger Conquering Arhat was also looking quite upset.

Puhui had shown the intent to send him away, yet Xuanzang stubbornly refused to leave?

It seemed he remembered deeply the grudge against the Dragon Subduing Arhat, so he was determined to seek revenge!

So, what should he do? Take action against Xuanzang?

No sooner did this thought arise than the Tiger Conquering Arhat silently shook his head, swiftly dismissing the idea.

The Dragon Subduing Arhat was punished with a hundred cycles of reincarnation just for offending Xuanzang.

If he were to truly strike Xuanzang, the consequences were unimaginable!

Since he couldn't take action against Xuanzang, what should be done?

After a moment of contemplation, the Tiger Conquering Arhat turned his thoughts to Daoji.

Since he couldn't strike Xuanzang, he could only try to kidnap Daoji; without Daoji, Xuanzang would be unable to seek revenge, right?

Moreover, he bore the great responsibility of seeking scriptures in the West and couldn't afford to linger for long.

With this in mind, the Arhat nodded secretly to himself.

Of course, he couldn't personally carry out this task; if it were exposed, it would be hard to explain.

After pondering for a moment, the Arhat remembered something he had heard before—how a boy under the Supreme Elder Lord transformed into a demon creature to block the Scripture Seeker's path.

"Next, it's up to you!"

Thinking to emulate this tactic, the Tiger Conquering Arhat fixed his gaze upon a vibrant Fierce Tiger beside him and said,

"Understood!"

The Fierce Tiger nodded in response, and its body underwent a transformation, taking the form of a robust man in his thirties before turning and leaving.

...

"Oh no, oh no..."

One day, after Jiang Liu's Green Lotus Taoist Scripture had circulated for eighty-one complete cycles, he was about to retract all his True Yuan when suddenly, he heard a flurry of panicked shouting outside, and the noises grew increasingly chaotic.

"What's going on?" Hearing the commotion outside, Jiang Liu was inwardly surprised and immediately got up to go out.

By listening to a few monks conversing outside, Jiang Liu understood that Daoji had gone missing!

"Gone missing!?" Learning of Daoji's disappearance, Jiang Liu felt a slight sinking in his heart.

Even though Daoji's head bore nine Scars of Precepts, indicating profound Buddhist affinity, he was currently just a three-year-old child.

If a demon had indeed made a move against him, the consequences would be dire.

Concerned for Daoji's safety, Jiang Liu hurriedly went out to find Puhui.

At this time, Puhui was as agitated as an ant on a hot pan, pacing in distress.

"How so? Master Puhui, how could Daoji have gone missing?" Upon finding Puhui, Jiang Liu asked.

"Holy Monk, Daoji should have been resting in his own Zen Room last night, but this morning, we found his room's window shattered, and Daoji had vanished completely!" Hearing Jiang Liu's question, Master Puhui hastily spoke, recounting everything he knew to Jiang Liu.

"Taken away directly from his own Zen Room by force!?" Understanding the event, Jiang Liu was astounded.

If it were demons, ghosts, or goblins, they couldn't possibly come into the temple to kidnap someone, could they?

Although there's a saying, "Without entering the tiger's den, how can one catch its cubs?," for demons and ghouls, temples should be places they dread and avoid at all costs. How could there be a demon bold enough to kidnap someone from inside a temple?

But if it wasn't a demon that abducted the person, who could it be?

"Holy Monk, as you journeyed to the West, you must have encountered extraordinary supernatural powers. Please lend us your assistance!" At this time, Master Puhui could no longer concern himself with the matter of having previously ordered Jiang Liu's expulsion and pleaded for his help.

Prompt: You have triggered the quest "Rescue." The quest requires you to successfully rescue Daoji. If the quest is completed successfully, you will be rewarded with 62 million Experience Points and 1 Legendary Level Treasure Chest. Accept/Reject?

As Master Puhui sought help, the system prompt rang out at the same time, signifying the triggering of a passive quest.

Although it was a passive quest, there was no need to deliberate.

To help rescue someone? That was a given, and, of course, Jiang Liu accepted the quest.

However, even though he had accepted the quest, a thought flickered through Jiang Liu's mind.

Now that Master Puhui was asking for his help, if Jiang Liu took the opportunity to ask why he had been ordered to leave, wouldn't the quest he had accepted earlier be completed?

Yet, as the idea had just started to form, Jiang Liu shook his head silently and cast it away.

No, he couldn't view rescuing Daoji as a bargaining chip for negotiation; this was based on the relationship between him and Daoji.

"Rest assured, how could we stand by and watch indifferently?" he said to Master Puhui, shaking his head inwardly, suppressing the thought and agreeing to help.

"Thank you, Holy Monk, thank you..." Hearing Jiang Liu agree so decisively, an expression of embarrassment and guilt appeared on Master Puhui's face.

Holy Monk Xuanzang is truly worthy of his title, his nature of repaying grievance with kindness is indeed admirable.

"Wukong, ask around to see if there are any powerful demons nearby," Jiang Liu instructed Sun Wukong after accepting the task.

"Alright, Master, leave it to Old Sun!" Sun Wukong nodded, stamped his foot, and employed the Soul-Subduing Art.

At the same time, he shouted, "Local Deity, where are you!?"

As Sun Wukong used the Soul-Subduing Art, the ground split apart, and an old man with white beard jumped out from beneath the earth.

"What is this!?"

Seeing Sun Wukong merely stamp his foot to summon the Local Deity, Master Puhui looked at Sun Wukong in astonishment.

While the Local Deity was indeed the lowest ranking among minor deities, he was nonetheless of the immortal order. How could this monkey so effortlessly summon a deity?

This was not an ability just anyone could possess.

There is a world of difference between inviting a deity and subduing one—just one character apart yet the gap is as vast as heaven and earth.

"I initially thought this unremarkable monkey couldn't be very capable, but who would have expected, appearances truly are deceiving!" Master Puhui gazed at Sun Wukong in awe, muttering silently to himself.

Although he did not possess the supernatural power of telepathy, Sun Wukong could feel the meaning behind Master Puhui's stares.

The shock and astonishment in his eyes caused Sun Wukong's own eyes to narrow with great satisfaction.

Of course, now was not the time for him to indulge in such feelings.

Wukong's gaze fell upon the Local Deity and he said, "Local Deity, Old Sun is asking you. Are there any powerful demon creatures near Great Luo Temple?"

"Reporting to the Great Saint!" The Local Deity bowed deeply before Sun Wukong, with immense reverence, and said, "To my knowledge, within a hundred miles around Great Luo Temple, there are indeed a few demon creatures, but..."

"But what!?" Sun Wukong pressed, upon hearing the Local Deity's words.

As Sun Wukong pressed for an answer, the Local Deity shook his head and replied, "But, the most powerful among them is merely at the level of a Demon Marshal. To the Great Saint, naturally, they are not a concern."

"Only a Demon Marshal? They can't even take on human form?" Wukong shook his head internally, feeling that it really wasn't worth mentioning.

So, mere low-level demons dare to attack the temple?

"Have there been any powerful demons appearing nearby recently?" Jiang Liu interjected, following that train of thought.

A mere Demon Marshal? That's just a being around level 40, indeed, it's hardly a concern. After all, the Golden Haze Crown he wore could summon three thousand Fire Dragon Soldiers, each of which had the strength of a Demon Marshal.

Such low-level demon creatures attacking the temple? Isn't that as laughable as using a pocket knife to rob a bank?

"Replying to the Holy Monk, this humble deity is unaware of other demons," the Local Deity responded, shaking his head to Jiang Liu's inquiry.

"Now, that does make things a bit more difficult," Jiang Liu responded, his demeanor becoming more somber upon hearing the answer.

"Alright, you may return now," Sun Wukong said, seeing Jiang Liu fall silent and knowing the Local Deity's information was not helpful. He waved his hand, dismissing the Local Deity.

"Holy Monk, what should we do next? How shall we proceed in our search?"

Even though Daoji's whereabouts were still unknown, seeing Sun Wukong effortlessly summon the Local Deity bolstered Master Puhui's confidence in the Journey to the West Pilgrimage Team, placing all his hopes on Jiang Liu.

After pondering for a moment, Jiang Liu's gaze became more earnest, and he declared, "Wukong, since there are no powerful demons or ghosts nearby, it must've been an outsider who acted. Since even the Local Deity is unaware of his existence, this time, let's go for a big one!"