Me and countless me.

Chapter 574 Kui Mulang's Rescue
The Tang Dynasty is excellent; it's a perfect trading nation that can quickly enrich a country's treasury. If you go out and say you have traded with the Tang Dynasty and are on good terms with them, the other side will have to consider whether a 'Han envoy' or a merchant caravan might randomly appear while you're fighting.

The Tang Dynasty is very bad, especially when you border it. This situation becomes even worse because any country that doesn't have natural defenses against the Tang Dynasty, unless you have equally vast lands, will never be able to defeat the Tang Dynasty, even if your warriors can fight ten against one.

Moreover, it was usually a warrior from the prosperous Tang Dynasty who could fight ten against one.

Especially when that gleaming, almost glowing blade was revealed, most rulers would understand what it meant for the glorious Tang Dynasty to be inviolable.

And once you border another territory, your land will randomly spawn all sorts of quirky ideas from people who want to 'stand out from the crowd,' 'bring glory to their family,' 'preserve their reputation,' 'revitalize their family business,' or 'turn over a new leaf.'

The most unfortunate were the countries that didn't have a good relationship with the Tang Dynasty. If such a country happened to have goods that the Tang Dynasty needed but the Tang Dynasty didn't want to pay for, and then, by sheer luck, accidentally defeated a small group of Tang warriors...

That would be terrible.

The only small country that did this and was not destroyed by the Tang Dynasty was called Loulan.

He lost his country before the Tang Dynasty arrived.

So, the bewildered King of Baoxiang, lying on his throne, pondered the conditions he had already achieved:

'Steps of Advance', 'Sugar Abundance', 'Supply Route', 'Fig Fields', 'Sugar Abundance', 'Road to the West', 'Sugar Abundance', 'Supply Point', 'Border', 'Tang Envoy', 'Saffron', 'Sugar Abundance', 'Supply Point', 'Foreign Emperor'.

"Hmm, looking at it this way, I've gathered all the conditions for heaven's intervention. It seems the time for Baoxiang Kingdom to fall is about to be accelerated."

The Emperor of Baoxiang Kingdom wore an expression of terror and indescribable disbelief. He simply couldn't imagine how he could survive, because it was an unsolvable problem.

The Tang Dynasty's pursuit of anything that brings sweetness was unimaginably fanatical, to the point that they would even destroy a country for a single fruit. Therefore, the King of Baoxiang Kingdom was completely blank in his mind.

He knew he should muster his troops, declare war on the Tang Dynasty, and then use various diplomatic means to forge alliances and ensure that he could survive a single blow from the Tang Dynasty.

But just thinking about going to fight the Tang Dynasty made the King of Baoxiang Kingdom want to laugh, a kind of pathetic laugh that even he found laughable.

"I'm going to fight the Tang Dynasty? Really? Really?!"

Seeing his king so indecisive, the loyal general, driven by the thought that a subject should die for his lord, immediately stepped forward.

"Your Majesty! Let's fight them!"

His words resonated with countless military officers, who immediately responded.

"That's right! Your Majesty! Let's fight the Tang Dynasty to the death!"

"Yes! Your Majesty, let's fight! The Tang Dynasty is so far away, the outcome is still uncertain!"

However, the King of Baoxiang Kingdom couldn't help but look at them.

"Fight? What are you going to fight with? Look at your armor, does any of it even look human?"

The King of Baoxiang pointed to his generals. Although his generals were fully armored, how could they compare to the soldiers of the Tang Dynasty?

The armor of the Tang Dynasty's elite soldiers was better than that of their generals.

How can we fight like this?!

So, for the sake of his life and property, he decided to surrender.

"Alright, pack up and prepare to surrender. The Tang army treats kings who surrender voluntarily very well. Here's what I'll do: I'll personally go to the Tang Dynasty. You guys just need to guard the city for me in the meantime."

There's an art to surrendering. You can't surrender directly, making the other side think you have no fighting spirit and are just trash that can be insulted at will. But you also can't beat them too badly, turning the two sides into mortal enemies. So the King of Baoxiang thought that just defending the city would be enough. Once he finished negotiating the terms, everything would be fine.

However, at that moment, the prime minister spoke up.

"Your Majesty, Princess Baihuaxiu..."

The King of Baoxiang waved his hand impatiently and sighed.

"It's been so long, either she's been eaten or the baby is already born. Who would marry a woman who has borne a child for a monster? Besides, things are still uncertain now..."

As the King of Baoxiang Kingdom was about to say something more, he heard a booming sound, followed by a series of urgent reports!

"Report!! People claiming to be from the Tang army have begun their attack on the city! A white-haired monk and a child have already scaled the city walls! The city gates have been opened! Your Majesty, please make a swift decision!"

The king of Baoxiang Kingdom was dumbfounded. He had just received news of the Tang army's arrival. How could they have attacked so quickly?
At this point, there was no need to talk about surrendering anymore. If you can't withstand the first wave, there's no point in surrendering. So he immediately roared out.

"Put on your armor! And quickly go and inform my good son-in-law! If he wants my approval for his marriage to Baihuaxiu, he'd better come and help me right now!"

In such a critical situation, the monster he had spoken of had now become a good son-in-law.

Kui Mulang received the news very quickly, almost half an hour after Li Ke ascended the city. He didn't want to get involved, but seeing the worried look on Baihua Xiu's face, he gritted his teeth and stomped his foot.

"Alright, I'll go save him right now! But if he still doesn't allow me to marry Baihuaxiu afterward, don't blame me for being impolite!"

As he spoke, he turned his head and glanced at Baihuaxiu, who looked at Kui Mulang, then at the direction of Baoxiang Kingdom, and couldn't help but shed tears.

Because she didn't want to continue like this.

In her previous life, she was a celestial maiden who was demoted for falling in love with Kui Mulang. In this life, Princess Baihuaxiu does not hate Kui Mulang and is even willing to accept it, but she does not want Kui Mulang, the star lord, to continue making mistakes.

After all, she was punished and sent to the mortal realm, so she basically has no chance of becoming an immortal. Unless she does good deeds for more than ten lifetimes or accumulates some great merit, it is impossible for her to become an immortal.

Moreover, even if she becomes an immortal, given her past record, she can no longer be with Kui Mulang; their positions will be deliberately moved apart.

So, seeing Kui Mulang, who had become a monster after descending to the mortal realm, Baihua Xiu truly didn't want him to continue like this.

Especially when she saw her children, who were half-human and half-demon, whose eyes and nature were more like those of monsters than immortals and humans, Baihuaxiu's eyes were filled with sadness.

How could she not love her own children and the children of her lover? But the best fate for these children is to be killed by their own people in Heaven before they commit evil deeds, and then sent to reincarnation to be reborn as humans.

This way, even if they do this, some deities will still take care of them, and even the Star Lord's own people in the mortal realm might guide these children onto the path of immortality. But once they grow up and completely transform into monsters, and follow their father Kui Mulang in committing evil deeds, it won't be as simple as just re-entering the cycle of reincarnation; whether their souls will even remain is a question.

Similarly, the best outcome for Kui Mulang would be to go back to be punished and then become his Star Lord again, rather than continue to fall into depravity. She has been pretending that she has not regained her past life memories, which has led Kui Mulang to keep looking for ways to regain his past life memories, all for this reason.

However, the King of Baoxiang Kingdom is also her closest relative. He has never given up on finding her all these years, and even deliberately ignored the fact that she has a child. He still loves her. So, at this moment, as a mortal, Baihua Xiu naturally cannot watch her father be threatened!
Therefore, Baihuaxiu was extremely conflicted at this moment. Seeing Baihuaxiu's conflicted expression, Kui Mulang turned around without hesitation and flew towards Baoxiang Kingdom, giving Baihuaxiu no time to think or speak.

Kui Mulang flew very fast, arriving at the city of Baoxiang Kingdom in an instant. He originally intended to stir up a gust of wind to scatter the Tang soldiers below, but suddenly saw that his father-in-law's palace had been breached. His father-in-law was standing on the inner city with a knife in his hand, confronting a monk in a white robe with long white hair!

He could see very clearly that although his father-in-law was wearing full armor and carrying a sword and shield, he was almost unable to withstand the attack of the demonic monk!
Therefore, Kui Mulang abandoned his plan to disperse the Tang soldiers and instead charged directly at Li Ke, wielding his broadsword!

"You scoundrel! Prepare to die!"

He launched a sneak attack on Li Ke, a mere mortal, aiming for his head. But Li Ke didn't even glance at him, killing the King of Baoxiang Kingdom with a single blow, and then using his own head to withstand Kui Mulang's attack!

The blade collided with the head! The blade shattered instantly and flew into the sky!
This scene shocked Kui Mulang, who was now the Yellow Wind Monster, so much that his eyes widened. This was a treasure from the Heavenly Treasury! It was also military equipment provided by Laozi. How could it be so easily severed by cutting off the head of a mortal!
Li Ke slowly turned his head, looked at the utterly astonished Kui Mulang, and smiled.

"Indestructible, kid."

Then, he punched Kui Mulang in the cheek, sending Kui Mulang spinning through the air like a top being whipped by a copper-headed leather belt, before crashing heavily to the ground!

Kui Mulang lay in the ruins for a long time before recovering, then suddenly stood up in a rage.

"You little brat! You dare to ambush your grandfather! Prepare to die!"

He was furious, his robes billowed without wind, and his hair and beard stood on end. But just as he was about to unleash his true power, he saw a monkey standing in front of him, munching on a peach and holding a mourning stick.

The Monkey King, Sun Wukong?!

Kui Mulang subconsciously took a step back, then smelled a fragrance. He turned his head and saw a boy wearing a red sash, holding a fire-tipped spear, and riding on wind-fire wheels!
The Great God Nezha of the Three Altars and Seas?!
Kui Mulang's forehead was already sweating, but Nezha wasn't his boss, so as long as he ran away, Nezha wouldn't care.

So Kui Mulang took another step back, then turned around and tried to run away, but as soon as he turned his head, he saw a white-haired swan disguised as black, and a three-eyed guy holding a three-pointed double-edged knife appearing on his side.

Erlang Shen Yang Jian, the Jade Emperor's own nephew?!
So, Kui Mulang was drenched in sweat. He was caught in a dilemma, unsure whether to move or stay. When Li Ke approached, he didn't dare to move and let Li Ke put his arm around his shoulder.

Li Ke looked at Kui Mulang, and continued to show that bright smile from before, and shook Kui Mulang.

"You've been in the mortal realm for several years, right? So you don't recognize me, right?"

Kui Mulang nodded blankly. After all, he really didn't know Li Ke. Before descending to the mortal realm, he was focused on his love life, and after descending, he didn't interact much with other people, so he really didn't know Li Ke.

Upon seeing this, Li Ke raised his hand and pointed to himself with a smile.

"Let me introduce myself. My name is Jin Chanzi, the Buddha's chief disciple. Now, I am the pilgrim on the journey to the West, the Marshal of the Western Expedition of the Tang Dynasty, the Grand Tutor of the Crown Prince, the Grand Protector, the Imperial Preceptor, and the Imperial Brother. If you don't want to remember so many names, you can just call me Tang Sanzang. Of course, if you want to call me the Buddha of the East, I can accept that too."

As a result, Kui Mulang's eyes lost their luster.

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"Name."

"Kui Mulang".

"gender."

"...Yes, male."

"Position."

"Xingjun."

"Place of residence".

“This… Wanzishan… Bo, Boyue Cave.”

"Have you ever eaten people?"

"not yet."

"So you mean you want to eat?"

"Um, I have thought about that... After all, I'm a monster now, aren't I..."

As Kui Mulang spoke, he scratched his head, but Li Ke's eyes suddenly widened, and he instantly closed the ledger in his hand, looking at Yang Jian to the side.

"This cat already has Hagen; it can be killed."

Without hesitation, Yang Jian raised his three-pointed double-edged sword, intending to deliver a fatal blow to his former colleague.

This scene startled Kui Mulang so much that he immediately raised his hands, realizing the rumors that Jin Chanzi was decisive and disciplined in killing, and hurriedly spoke up.

"No, no, no! I never thought about eating people! I just felt that as a yokai, I should have some yokai self-discipline! But I really have never eaten a person! I really haven't! Really!"

He hurriedly spoke, but the next moment Yang Jian's three-pointed double-edged sword stopped at his throat, and Yang Jian also looked at Li Ke.

It was obvious that Yang Jian was pleading for mercy in a way that showed leniency.

Li Ke didn't say anything. With his supernatural powers of telepathy and past knowledge, he could tell that Kui Mulang wasn't lying. So, after letting out a cold snort, he reopened the ledger and continued to ask questions.

"I heard you violated the rules and descended to the mortal realm, and even kidnapped the princess of the King of Baoxiang Kingdom. Is that true? Remember to confess and you will be treated leniently. After all, I am known for clearing people's names and upholding justice. If you dare to lie to me and I find out, I will immediately send you to the underworld to take a bath!"

Kui Mulang's face immediately showed an indescribable expression, because the corpse behind Li Ke was the King of Baoxiang Kingdom who died with his eyes wide open because he hadn't had time to surrender, and the background was Tang soldiers who were recruiting prisoners. So he nodded silently.

"Please rest assured, Immortal! This humble deity will answer all your questions without reservation!"

(End of this chapter)