I am submissive in Journey to the West, I strike hard at the gods

The lion suffered from abdominal pain, greatly reducing its demonic power. It could barely hold on, but gradually lost ground.

It was horrified: How did this monkey know? Could it be that the Bodhisattva was secretly helping it? The green-haired lion secretly regretted that it should not have been greedy and devoured people! In the Guanyin Hall of the South Sea, the Bodhisattva smiled and stroked the willow: "Golden Cicada, your calamity is about to be broken."

The lion is greedy and angry, but your heart is compassionate. This battle is an enlightenment, the true path.

Manjushri Bodhisattva, hidden in the clouds, sighed, "The mount is unruly; this humble monk shall tame it."

As the workings of fate unfolded, another tribulation was added to the journey to the West, but also a new opportunity.

Wukong's staff rained down like rain, and the lion retreated in defeat.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Sha Wujing used his shovel to cut through the black water and finally pulled out Zhu Bajie.

The pig-headed creature, battered and bruised, grabbed its nine-toothed rake and roared, "Brothers are here! Lion Demon, prepare to die!"

The three attacked, and the lion's belly was ripped open, blood flowing freely. Tang Sanzang's cassock shone brightly as he emerged from the lion's belly.

Tang Sanzang landed and weakly rose to his feet: "Disciples... Your master is unharmed."

Wukong helped him up, complaining, "Master! You bald monk, how come you've lost all your cultivation? You've made me worry so much!"

Tang Sanzang smiled and said, "The Bodhisattva enlightened me, and I only awakened after going through tribulations."

"Thank you, Wukong."

Above the Heavenly Court, the winds and clouds shifted and changed, and the layers of heavenly realms were as majestic as overlapping mountains, yet at this moment, they were shrouded in an eerie silence.

Jiang Wang, hidden in the void, stared intently at the arrogant figure—Li Bai, who held the Heaven-Swallowing Gourd, its mouth wide open, swallowing the fourth level of the Profound Embryo Nurturing Heaven in one gulp.

Countless celestial palaces and pavilions twisted and collapsed within the gourd's vortex, turning into specks of starlight and vanishing without a trace.

Immediately afterwards, the fifth level of Yuanming Wenjutian was not spared either. The vast and boundless Wenhua Realm was completely swallowed up by the gourd's dim light, leaving only a faint mournful cry echoing in the void.

Li Bai laughed loudly, his beard and hair flying wildly, and the Chaos Bell on his body hummed, with chaotic energy flowing wildly like dragons and snakes on the bell's surface.

He was taking the sixth layer of the Seven Luminaries Moyi Heaven into the gourd. The Seven Luminaries were originally the foundation for the Heavenly Court to suppress the fortune, but now they were being swept in like falling leaves, their starlight dimmed, and the power of the Seven Luminaries collapsed instantly.

The Purple Heaven Divine Thunder crashed down from the ninth heaven, its lightning like ten thousand swords striking Li Bai's body.

But when the Chaos Bell trembled, its sound as loud as a great bell, the thunder that struck the bell wall vanished without a trace, leaving only aftershocks that shook the void.

Jiang Wang frowned slightly, a chill creeping into his heart.

The Jade Emperor, Laozi, Yuanshi Tianzun, and the lofty Hongjun Daozu—not a single one of them intervened? They sat high in the Nine Heavens Palace, their gazes indifferent, as if this act of devouring the heavens was nothing more than a trivial spectacle.

Although the Purple Heaven Divine Thunder was fierce, it was like scratching an itch through a boot, unable to stop Li Bai in the slightest.

There must be something fishy going on here! Jiang Wang thought to himself and secretly transmitted his voice: "Brother Li, retreat quickly! This is a test from the Heavenly Court. Don't fall into their trap."

He temporarily put away the Heaven-Devouring Gourd, used the Chaos Bell for protection, and retreated to the Chaos Sea to lie dormant.

"Let me ascertain the truth before making a major move!"

Upon hearing this, Li Bai's heroic spirit vanished, and he retracted the gourd, allowing the remaining power of the Seven Luminaries Moyi Heaven to barely escape.

With a flicker of his body, the Chaos Bell shone brightly, carrying with it the layers of celestial fragments it had devoured, and vanished into the void, disappearing instantly at the edge of the sky.

The Purple Heaven Divine Thunder pursued, but only struck the empty sea of ​​clouds, exploding into bursts of lightning, all in vain.

Jiang Wang sneered, and with a turn of his body, he transformed into the familiar appearance of Taibai Jinxing: white beard flowing, immortal robe trailing on the ground, holding a whisk, his face bearing three parts elegance and seven parts vicissitudes.

He rode on auspicious clouds and headed straight for the South Heavenly Gate.

The South Heavenly Gate stands majestically like a mountain, with the Vermilion Bird radiating golden light. The Four Heavenly Kings guard it, exuding awe-inspiring majesty.

The Heavenly King of Growth stands with his sword in hand; the Heavenly King of Wide Vision opens his third eye and scans the void; the Heavenly King of Abundant Hearing has ears like fans, listening to the movements of all directions; the Heavenly King of Dhritarashtra plays his zither, the music of which faintly locks in the path of approach.

"Venus?!"

The Heavenly King of Growth spoke first, raising an eyebrow, "The Heavenly Court has been in turmoil lately, why have you only just shown yourself, old immortal? Have you perhaps gone off to some secluded hermit's retreat again?"

Jiang Wang, in his guise as Venus, smiled slightly and cupped his hands, saying, "Greetings, Four Heavenly Kings."

I recently encountered a robbery, but managed to escape.

"Come on, come on, let's verify your identity."

He took out a demon-revealing mirror from his sleeve. The mirror surface flickered and reflected the true form of Venus, its light pure and without a trace of demonic aura.

The four kings exchanged glances. Guangmu Tianwang looked closely with his third eye and nodded, saying, "It is indeed Venus."

"If that's the case, why not report it to the Heavenly Court sooner? The Jade Emperor is extremely worried about Jiang Wang's matter."

"Sigh, speaking of that Jiang Wang..."

Jiang Wang sighed, a hint of pain flashing in his eyes. His voice was low and resentful, as if he were recounting an old grudge. "I was patrolling the mortal realm when that scoundrel Jiang Wang imprisoned me for many years with the Purple Gold Red Gourd! That gourd is an ancient weapon of destruction, containing the universe within, trapping people in the endless void. I painstakingly refined it, and only recently, when the gourd became ownerless, was I able to escape."

That scoundrel Jiang Wang has been devoured by the gourd; his soul has been scattered!

Upon hearing this, the Four Heavenly Kings' expressions changed drastically.

The Heavenly King of Duowen's ears twitched, and he exclaimed in surprise, "Jiang Wang is dead? Is this true?"

When the Heavenly King Dhritarashtra plucked the strings of his lute, a wave of sound surged forth, probing the void, but there was no response whatsoever.

With a flash of sword light, the Heavenly King of Growth slashed into the void, testing the waters: "If Jiang Wangzhen is truly dead, the great calamity of the Heavenly Court can be averted! Quickly report this to the Buddha and inform the Western Paradise!"

The Heavenly King Guangmu nodded, and his third eye shot out a beam of golden light, heading straight for the Great Thunderclap Temple in the Western Paradise.

Seeing that his plan had succeeded, Jiang Wang was secretly delighted, but on the surface he put on a look of relief and said, "That's right, that's right."

After I escaped, the first thing I did was to report to the Jade Emperor.

Please, everyone, pass on this message.

Before long, celestial music resounded from within the South Heavenly Gate, and a golden invitation flew in: "Venus, quickly enter the Hall of Fragrant Breeze for an audience!"

Jiang Wang bowed to thank the four kings, stepped onto the clouds and entered, heading straight for the Pixiang Palace next to the Lingxiao Palace.

The hall was filled with incense smoke, and the Jade Emperor sat high on the nine-dragon throne, with dragons and phoenixes shining on the screen behind him, exuding majesty.

However, the Jade Emperor's face was pale and his eyes were sunken, clearly indicating that he had been deeply worried about Jiang Wang's matter recently.

"Taibai, do you know why I summoned you?"

The Jade Emperor's voice was like thunder, carrying a hint of suppressed anger.

Jiang Wang knelt down and kowtowed, saying, "Your Majesty, I know my crime."

"I was recently robbed and only managed to escape late."

He raised his head, tears glistening in his eyes, and repeated the lie once more: "That Jiang Wang used the Purple Gold Red Gourd to trap me for many years. When I finally managed to escape, I saw him being devoured by the gourd and reduced to ashes!"

Upon hearing this, the Jade Emperor narrowed his eyes and examined Jiang Wang's body: "Hmph, you old man, you've always been cunning."

Now that you've escaped, why didn't you report it sooner? Could it be that you're in cahoots with that Jiang Wang?

With a wave of his hand, golden light shone brightly in the hall, as if to test its authenticity.

Jiang Wang knew something was wrong, but he remained calm. He stood up and swore to the heavens: "Your subject, Venus, swears to the heavens that if any of my words are false, may I be struck by lightning and my soul be scattered!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the Heavenly Dao responded faintly, and a wisp of purple energy descended from the Ninth Heaven, enveloping Jiang Wang and confirming that his oath was true.

The Jade Emperor's doubts lessened slightly, and he nodded, saying, "Alright, since Heaven has the witness, I will believe you for now."

With Jiang Wang dead, can the Heavenly Court be at peace?

But... when you escaped, did you see any of his other magical treasures?

A sly glint flashed in Jiang Wang's eyes, and he feigned hesitation: "Your Majesty, I have indeed seen several. For example, Sun Wukong's golden cudgel, that thick, long iron rod, is known as the Sea-Stabilizing Divine Needle; there is also the Taiji Diagram, the Yin and Yang, the black and white that give rise to each other; the Pangu Banner, which created the world and separated the chaos at its beginning; and even the Heaven-Turning Seal, the Heaven-Turning Seal, the Seven Treasures Tree, the Heaven and Earth Xuanhuang Exquisite Pagoda... each and every one of them is extraordinary!"

Upon hearing this, the Jade Emperor was overjoyed: "Is it true? Quickly bring it to me and present it to me, and I will reward you handsomely!"

He leaned forward, his eyes gleaming with greed.

Jiang Wang shook his head and sighed, "Your Majesty, do not be anxious."

These... these are all fake! That Jiang Wang is as cunning as a fox. Knowing that His Majesty coveted it, he made many fakes, which contained hidden mechanisms.

I personally witnessed the Golden Cudgel turn into a piece of rotten wood, the Taiji Diagram being nothing more than a drawing on ordinary paper, and the Pangu Banner scattering into dust with a wave of its hand.

Those magical artifacts are nothing but deception; if Your Majesty believes them, you may fall into the villain's trap!

These words struck him like a bolt from the blue. Upon hearing them, the Jade Emperor's face turned from red to pale, and his chest heaved violently: "Fake? All fake?! That Jiang Wang... that villain, how dare he play tricks on me like this!"

He suddenly stood up, his dragon robe fluttering, and blood gushed from his mouth, splashing onto the jade steps in front of the palace.

Overcome with anger, the Jade Emperor vomited three liters of blood and staggered onto his throne, causing chaos among the celestial officials in the palace.

"Your Majesty! Your Majesty!"

Jiang Wang feigned surprise and stepped forward to support the Jade Emperor, but whispered in the Jade Emperor's ear, "Your Majesty, I take my leave."

The Jade Emperor barely opened his eyes, roaring like thunder: "Get out! All of you get out! I... I'm going into seclusion! The affairs of Heaven will be temporarily handled by the Queen Mother!"

Jiang Wang stepped down from the hall, his angry roar echoing through the heavens, but a triumphant smile appeared on his lips.

The Heavenly Court is in chaos; this is only the beginning.

Meanwhile, in the lower realm of Wuji Kingdom, turmoil was brewing.

Sun Wukong scanned the Purple Bamboo Grove in the South China Sea with his fiery eyes, only to find that Guanyin Bodhisattva was no longer seated, and only Sudhana was left guarding it.

He plucked a hair from his monkey head, which transformed into a tiny bee, and buzzed into the forest, urgently asking, "Where is the Bodhisattva? My junior brother Sun is trapped and urgently needs help!"

Sudhana shook his head: "The Bodhisattva has returned to Wuji Kingdom to deal with the matter of that Dharma Master."

"The Monkey King should hurry to Baolin Temple; perhaps there he can meet you."

Upon hearing this, Wukong quickly turned towards the Great Thunderclap Temple in the Western Paradise, only to find that the Buddha was in seclusion and the Arhats remained silent.

He was extremely anxious, so he somersaulted on his cloud and headed straight for the Kingdom of Wuji.

Inside Baolin Temple, incense smoke wafted around the temple. Sha Wujing sat alone in his meditation room, while Zhu Bajie lay drunk beside him, snoring loudly.

When Sha Wujing saw Wukong land, he stood up and said, "Big Brother, you've finally arrived! Master has been kidnapped by that Jiang Wang and is trapped in a well in the Imperial Garden of the palace. It's frozen solid, and Bajie and I have tried countless methods, but to no avail."

Wukong's hair stood on end: "What kind of demon dares to touch my master? Let's go, storm the palace!"

Just then, a woodcutter knocked on the door and entered, carrying an axe on his back and with a simple face: "Three benefactors, I am just passing by and heard that the monk is trapped. Do you need my help?"

Sha Wujing was taken aback: "Woodcutter, how do you know about this?"

The woodcutter smiled, and golden light flashed from his body, transforming him into the true form of Guanyin Bodhisattva, holding a willow branch and a jade bottle in his hand, with a kind and benevolent expression: "Sha Wujing, don't panic."

"This humble monk already knows the clues. The ice in the well was formed by Jiang Wang using blue crystal ice; its chill penetrates to the very depths of hell, and cannot be melted by ordinary fire."

Wukong kowtowed: "Bodhisattva, save me! I, Old Sun, am willing to be the vanguard!"

Guanyin nodded: "Come, follow this humble monk to the Imperial Garden."

The three of them rose up on the clouds with the Bodhisattva and arrived at the palace of the King of Wuji in an instant.

In the Imperial Garden, amidst clusters of flowers, artificial hills, and flowing water, lies a deep, ancient well. Its opening is covered with blue crystal ice, its chill as cold as frost, freezing the surrounding flowers and plants into ice sculptures.

The faint sound of Tang Sanzang chanting sutras could be heard from the well, low and weak.

Guanyin appeared, and with a sprinkling of willow branch from her vase, sprinkled down nectar: ​​"First, try to melt the ice with the nectar."

The dew fell like rain onto the well's mouth, but was absorbed by the ice and turned into even more frost, thickening the layer.

The Bodhisattva frowned slightly: "This ice absorbs all things, but the sweet dew is useless."

"Wukong, you possess the Samadhi True Fire; try it."

Upon hearing this, Wukong spewed out Samadhi Fire from his mouth, the flames roaring and burning the well opening.

The flames licked the ice, making a sizzling sound. The ice gradually melted, but when it melted to half an inch, a flash of blue light appeared, and the cold air backfired, extinguishing most of the flames.

"Fine, let's switch to the Five Samadhi True Fire!"

Guanyin took out a fire pearl from her sleeve and handed it to Sha Wujing.

Sha Wujing took it, activated the Five Samadhi True Fire, and the blue and red flames intertwined, the raging flames like a dragon, rushing straight towards the well mouth.

The fire was fiercer than the Samadhi, and the ice melted even faster, revealing a crack at the bottom of the well. Tang Sanzang's voice became clearer: "Amitabha..."

But before the joy could last long, the ice regenerated, and the cold tide surged like waves, completely engulfing the flames.

Guanyin sighed: "Even the five samadhis are ineffective."

"Test the fire of Nanming!"

She took out the Southern Bright Fire from the bottle. That fire was the True Flame of the Vermilion Bird, as red as blood, capable of burning the heavens and boiling the seas.

As soon as the flames fell into the well, the ice boiled violently, melting a pit a foot deep. Blue light flickered in the well, and Tang Sanzang's figure could be vaguely seen, his white robes fluttering, but he was trapped by the ice walls.

Sha Wujing exclaimed joyfully, "It's done!"

Unexpectedly, the ice, as if alive, expanded instantly, extinguishing the flames and resealing the well, even thicker than before.

"This ice possesses a spirit, and ordinary fire cannot withstand it."

Guanyin pondered for a moment, then took out three golden crow feathers from her sleeve. The feathers were radiant with golden light and were transformed from the true essence of the sun.

"Only the true fire of the sun might be worth a try."

She threw the feather into the well, and flames erupted from it. The true fire of the sun poured down like a waterfall, and the ice at the wellhead melted away with a roar, revealing the bottomless well passage. The rolling heat forced the three of them to retreat.

Tang Sanzang's voice rang out again: "Wukong... run! There's a trap here..."

The ice layer melted by three feet, and blue crystals appeared at the bottom of the well. But at that moment, an extremely cold aura surged from the bottom of the well, freezing the true fire of the sun and turning it into ice flames, and shattering the feathers.

The ice regenerated even faster, sealing the wellhead in the blink of an eye, and the cold air spread out, freezing the lake water in the Imperial Garden.

Wukong grew anxious and swung his golden cudgel, smashing it towards the well opening: "Bodhisattva, use a few more golden crow feathers! I, Old Sun, will definitely smash this well open!"

Guanyin shook her head: "No."

That feather is the essence of the sun; even a single one is a disruption to the harmony of heaven, and excessive use may cause a solar eclipse.

Wukong, you are as light as a swallow. This humble monk will conjure up a bow and drill. Go down into the well and explore.

If you see your master, quickly bring him up.

With a flick of her jade hand, the Bodhisattva conjured a bow drill, its tip as sharp as an arrow.

Wukong took it, leaped into the drill, and the drill spun, piercing into the ice.

The ice cracked, and he slid into the well, the wind howling and the walls shimmering with blue light.

As soon as he landed on the ice at the bottom of the well, a chill suddenly ran through his feet, and a layer of blue ice spread out like a spider web, instantly enveloping him.

Wukong was shocked. He swept his staff across the ice, but it struck the ice with a dull thud without leaving a single crack.

The chill seeped into his body, making him stiff. His fiery eyes reflected the figure at the bottom of the well—his master, Tang Sanzang, sitting cross-legged in the ice, murmuring, "Wukong... the Tightening-Headband Mantra... Om Mani Padme Hum."
"Padme Hum..." (End of Chapter)