Conferred God: Got cramped at the beginning

Chapter 1013 The First Tribulation of the Journey to the West

"cough……"

The Monkey King blocked Xuanzang's path, baring his teeth and making a threatening sound.

Seeing those people rushing forward, his instinct was to sweep them away with his stick.

But as soon as he took out the golden cudgel, he heard the words of the Bull Demon King in his ear.

Right now, the Jade Emperor's game of chess has begun!

Countless people lurked in the shadows, watching everything unfold before them.

At this point, sweeping it out with a stick would certainly solve the problem once and for all, but the trouble that would follow... was something he couldn't afford!
This is the human world!
The mortals here are all mortals under the rule of humanity and protected by the laws of heaven!
If Master Xuanzang had killed those mortals, that would have been one thing; it would have just been a dispute between mortals.

But if I were to accidentally bump into or hurt these mortals...

Those rules are really troublesome!
Suddenly, the Great Sage Equaling Heaven remembered that his godfather, the Great Dragon God who upheld Heaven and righteousness, was one of the gods who governed the Heavenly Rules and one of the foundations of the Heavenly Rules.

On the Execution Platform, the primordial energy of heaven and earth that emanated from the countless fallen Taiyi beings has not yet dissipated.

The heads of those Taiyi are still rolling on the Execution Platform.

He believed that if he really swept his stick out and killed a few of the mortals around him... then under the heavenly law, his godfather would really come to capture him!
The Heavenly Rules that his godfather guarded after emerging from seclusion were completely different from the 'perfunctory' actions when he wreaked havoc in the Heavenly Palace!

As for the Execution Platform, which his godfather personally oversaw... even though the Great Sage Equaling Heaven had already forged an indestructible body under the Five Elements Mountain, he had no intention of trying to see if the Execution Platform could actually cut through his indestructible body.

Amidst the menacing baring of teeth, the excited mortals who had surrounded them retreated immediately.

“Monk, if you don’t come up with a solution soon, these mortals might really beat you to death.”

"The Great Sage Equal to Heaven said in a low voice, golden light surging in his eyes."

With keen eyes, he scanned the teacup in the hands of the servant boy, searching for any trace of tea.

With a single glance, the Monkey King was immediately struck by what he saw.

Although the boy had fallen, she was still alive, and the life force within her was still flowing.

At that moment, the Monkey King shouted loudly.

"That child is still alive! All of you, get out of my way!"

As he spoke, he extended his finger and blew a breath of magic towards the child in front of him.

The mortals finally retreated completely, but the child's family and fellow villagers still stared intently at the Monkey King and the monk Xuanzang.

—Although the Monkey King has already demonstrated the mystique of immortals and gods, the mortals of the Tang Dynasty clearly have not yet reached the point where they 'respect immortals and gods more than they care about their own relatives and friends'.

"Amitabha, well said, well said." At this moment, Master Xuanzang's voice finally rang out.

At this moment, everyone suddenly realized that the child had been held by the monk Xuanzang the whole time and had not been put down. Otherwise, given the chaotic situation just now, someone might have taken the opportunity to stomp on the child, and the child would have truly been separated from his parents by death.

“Dear believers, that tea was not from this humble monk, but was offered to me by this boy to moisten my throat.”

“From beginning to end, this humble monk neither touched the tea nor this young benefactor. How can it be said that this humble monk harmed people with evil methods?”

—To be honest, it was this child who wanted to harm Xuanzang.

As Master Xuanzang spoke, his fingers remained on the child's wrist, taking his pulse.

There is a different rhythm in the sound, like chanting a sutra, which has a calming power.

As those words were spoken, the stirring power that had permeated the market vanished and dissipated into nothingness, and the mortals who had been blinded by inexplicable anger finally regained their composure.

“Master, my daughter is only four years old and has no grudge against you whatsoever. How could she possibly plot against you? Please, Master, see the truth.”

After calming down, the child's parents and fellow villagers instantly realized what the situation was.

If it weren't for the monkey god manifesting and kicking over the tea, the one who would have been knocked over wouldn't have been the child who offered the tea, but rather the monk Xuanzang.

—To murder, in full view of everyone, a high-ranking Buddhist monk and a messenger seeking the Dharma appointed by the Emperor himself—that is a heinous crime punishable by the extermination of one's entire family and village!

"Don't rush, don't rush." ​​Master Xuanzang took out a golden needle from his robe.

"Let this humble monk use acupuncture to remove the poison from the young benefactor and wake him up before we proceed."

"Since it's using sorcery to harm people, how can we, with our mortal bodies, tell the difference?" A voice rang out from the crowd, seemingly from some idler who had come out of nowhere to stir up trouble.

"I, Old Sun, am the protector of the Wenchang Emperor, guarding the examination hall and protecting Wenchang."

"Who among you dares to speak so arrogantly and slander me, Old Sun?"

"Aren't you afraid of being guilty before the gods, causing your blood relatives and descendants to fail the imperial examinations in the future?"

The Monkey King's eyes darted around, and he immediately began to scold.

In this world, we have just witnessed one imperial examination. Although most of those who passed the examination were from aristocratic families, there were also many commoner scholars who passed and obtained official positions, rising to prominence in one step.

Today, the story of the imperial examinations is widely known throughout the Tang Dynasty.

After this first imperial examination, the world is now in a period of fervor for the imperial examination system.

Even the most cunning and shameless person knows the significance of the imperial examination.

That was an extremely important path for our family to bring glory to our ancestors!

Even if they themselves are unable to participate in scientific expeditions, who doesn't have descendants? Who doesn't have blood relatives?

If you fail the exam, your descendants will also fail. But if a blood relative is fortunate enough to pass, won't that also help you?
So at this moment, the Great Sage Equaling Heaven brought up the matter of the imperial examination, and the mortals in the market dared not make a fuss anymore.

After all, among the gods that mortals generally consider untouchable, the God of Wealth, who controls fortune, is one of them.

After the imperial examinations, the Wenchang God, who was closely related to official rank and wealth, was obviously not someone to be trifled with!

No mortal would willingly clash with these deities unless absolutely necessary.

Not to mention defaming those gods in public.

"Oh no." Seeing the situation brought under control in an instant by the words of the Great Sage Equaling Heaven, some people in the crowd immediately lowered their heads and slowly dispersed.

The Monkey King remained silent, using his fiery eyes to keep a close watch on these people.

A moment later, the monk Xuanzang pulled the golden needles out of the child's body, and the child immediately spat out a mouthful of black blood.

Immediately afterwards, the child burst into tears.

"Little boy, where did you get that tea?" Xuanzang had just managed to calm the child down when the Great Sage Equaling Heaven stepped forward and asked.

Seeing the hairy-faced, thunderous-mouthed man approaching, the child, who had just been calmed down, immediately burst into tears again.

"Eh……"

Seeing this, the Monkey King awkwardly took two steps back and sat down next to the monk Xuanzang.

Master Xuanzang then took the child in his arms, soothed him again, and then asked in a low voice.

“Young believer, do you remember that you just offered tea to this humble monk?” “Of all the believers here, you, young believer, are the most fortunate to have a connection with Buddhism.”

"I'm not a little kid!" the child said in a sweet, soft voice. He nestled in Xuanzang's arms, glanced at the monkey crouching behind Xuanzang, and then continued speaking.

What is Buddhist affinity?

“It’s like a Buddhist connection: this humble monk was thirsty, and you, my faithful friend, happened to bring me a bowl of tea to soothe my throat.”

"So this is karmic affinity with Buddhism?" the child asked curiously. "Well, this karmic affinity with Buddhism is very simple."

"It is simple because they are devout believers," Master Xuanzang patiently explained.

"By the way, Shanxin, do you remember where your tea came from?"

"It was in the morning when my parents took me past a tea stall. I was thirsty, so my parents bought me a bowl of tea."

"It cost three coins," the child said, holding up three fingers.

“I get incredibly thirsty after saying just a few words.”

“I see you’ve said so much, Master, you must be very thirsty.”

“But that was tea that your parents spent three coins on, and you couldn’t bear to finish it all the way here,” Master Xuanzang said with a smile.

“But my parents said we should be kind to others,” the child said innocently. “The master is thirsty, but I’m not so thirsty anymore.”

“Amitabha, the believer is indeed destined for Buddhism.” Xuanzang took a bead from his rosary. “But a monk does not take advantage of others.”

"Since I have received your charity, I will return the favor by giving you a bead to play with, shall I?"

"If you don't want it, this humble monk has nothing else on him."

Seeing the prayer beads in Xuanzang's hand, the child's parents in the crowd felt their hearts sink.

In the distance, looking at the disciples of some prominent families and Buddhist monks here, they wished they could risk their lives to wait for them!
The prayer beads in Xuanzang's hand!

Although Xuanzang has not yet reached Mount Ling, he is already the leader of Buddhism in the human world!
The Buddhist beads in his hand, once taken by a practitioner, can be instantly refined into a superior magical artifact that can protect the mind and spirit from external evils.

If an ordinary person takes it, they will also be free from all diseases and evil influences, and will be able to enjoy a long and healthy life!
Amidst the intense gazes of countless people, the child reached out and pushed.

"No."

“You drank my tea, but I also listened to your teachings.”

“We’re even,” the child said, his expression suddenly turning somber again.

"And, I seem to remember, you spilled the tea before you even got a sip."

Upon hearing the child's words, Xuanzang immediately let go.

The Buddhist bead fell directly to the ground, then transformed into a stream of light and merged into the child's body.

"Oh dear, my prayer beads have also fallen off."

“A believer gave me tea, and the tea was spilled.”

"Now I give a Buddhist rosary to a believer, and the rosary falls to the ground."

"This is the real deal, where neither owes the other anything."

Xuanzang tapped the child's forehead.

"Those who have such a karmic connection with Buddhism will surely live a long and healthy life, enjoying good fortune and longevity."

"I don't want to live to be a hundred years old," the child shook his head. "I want my parents to live to be a hundred years old and be healthy and well. I want my grandparents to live to be a hundred years old and be blessed with good health and longevity."

"If you have this intention, then your parents and grandparents will surely live to be a hundred years old and enjoy good health and happiness."

Xuanzang then returned the child to her parents.

“These two believers are truly blessed with good fortune and longevity; they are sure to enjoy peace and health,” Xuanzang said in a greeting to the child’s parents.

"Thank you, Master," the child's parents said with utmost sincerity.

The child may not understand what kind of opportunity she has received, but how could her parents not understand?

“A virtuous family is blessed with good fortune; there is no need for you two to express your gratitude,” Xuanzang returned the greeting.

……

"Great Sage, have you discerned anything?"

After government officials arrived and gradually dispersed the crowd, Xuanzang's voice reached the ears of the Great Sage Equaling Heaven. His voice contained no compassion, but rather a hint of murderous intent.

“Monk, what I see may not be what you want to see,” said the Great Sage Equaling Heaven.

"Judging from the Great Sage's words, could the one who used a child to attack also be a Buddhist disciple?" Xuanzang smiled slightly, his killing intent vanishing in an instant, but giving the Great Sage Equaling Heaven even greater pressure.

"You monk, how come you exude even more killing intent than I, a demon immortal?"

"Is this also the compassion of your Buddhist sect?" the Great Sage Equaling Heaven asked curiously.

"Amitabha." Xuanzang put his hands together in prayer.

"Buddhist compassion also varies from person to person."

"A sage once said, 'Repay evil with good,' but how should one repay good?"

“I wholeheartedly agree with this statement.”

"As Buddhist disciples, we should naturally be compassionate towards ordinary people and strive to save all sentient beings."

“But if we show mercy to evil people, it would be too unfair to the good people.”

"At this grand gathering, someone used a child as a raft. How could this humble monk tolerate such behavior!" The anger that Xuanzang had just suppressed flared up again.

“But the Buddha said that all things can exist. When a tiger fights an eagle, the Buddha could not bear to even tolerate the tiger, and would rather cut off his own flesh to feed the eagle than kill the tiger.”

"You monk, why don't you learn from him?" The Monkey King directly expressed his incomprehension of Buddhism.

“I am currently just a junior monk, not the Buddha, therefore I cannot comprehend the profound meaning of the Buddha’s act of cutting off his own flesh to feed the eagle,” Master Xuanzang said matter-of-factly.

“I observe that among the Buddhist temples in various parts of the world, there are not few who break the law and enter the monastery to evade the law.”

Although the gods of the Arctic Exorcism Institute descended to earth and cleansed the human world and the five continents, eliminating all the Buddhist disciples who violated the heavenly rules and laws, they were still alive.

However, among the many Buddhist disciples in this world, there are also many ordinary people who have violated human laws and have been ordained and taken refuge in Buddhism.

Because these people only violated human laws and not the precepts of the Heavenly Court, and as mortals, they were not subject to the Heavenly Court's control... Thus, the Heavenly Court's judicial gods were helpless against these mortals.

So much so that after the gods of the Arctic Exorcism Institute cleansed all the Buddhist temples in various places, those Buddhist disciples who had violated human laws but were still mortals were all smug, thinking that the gods had not punished them because they were innocent.

(End of this chapter)