Journey to the West: Demon Emperor: Beginning as a Little Toad

Chapter 609 The Judicial God's Palace Arrests People

"Father, this..."

The little alligator dragon was struck dumb by its father, the Jing River Dragon King's, analysis.

His expression changed drastically in an instant, and he realized that the situation was far more serious than he had imagined.

Previously.

He was merely a "fake Wei River Dragon King," though he "inherited his father's business" and was able to take charge of the eight rivers of Chang'an on behalf of his father, the Jing River Dragon King.

But he was young and impetuous, and acted rashly.

Little did he know that so many hidden secrets and intricacies were concealed within.

At this moment, I hear words like "heavenly laws and decrees," "the heavenly court's insubordination," and "annihilation of body and soul"... these chilling words.

Then recall the devastating flood that submerged Chang'an.

He suddenly realized the enormity of the disaster he had committed!

As if struck by a severe blow, Xiao Tuolong Tuojie slumped down on the cold giant clam shell throne, his former youthful spirit long gone.

His face instantly turned from red to green, then from green to white, like a blank sheet of paper, devoid of any color, and his whole body trembled uncontrollably like a leaf.

At this moment.

He finally realized that his gamble, which he thought was a sure thing and in full control, was not a victory at all.
It was clearly a carefully orchestrated trap, luring us step by step into a pre-prepared snare!
That bet was truly a death warrant.

The idea of ​​a winner acting as the bookmaker is nothing but digging their own grave!
"Father...Father, save me! Your son knows he was wrong! Your son truly knows he was wrong!"

The little alligator dragon was terrified. It fell to its knees with a thud, clinging tightly to the leg of the Jinghe Dragon King, tears streaming down its face, its forehead banging against the cold floor tiles.

"Jie'er! My child!"

The Dragon Queen of the Jing River felt as if she had fallen into an ice cave, her whole body was chilled to the bone, her face was pale as frost, and tears rolled down her cheeks like rain.

She gripped her husband's arm tightly, her voice trembling uncontrollably:

"Jie'er... Jie'er, he... he won't... he won't..."

She dared not ask the rest of the question.

"You wretched creature, now you know fear? Too late!"

The Dragon King of the Jing River had bloodshot eyes that seemed to be spitting fire. He suppressed the metallic taste rising in his throat and kicked away the little alligator dragon that was clinging to his leg.

But when he saw his son's terrified, desperate, and helpless face, a trace of pity finally flashed in the eyes of the Jinghe Dragon King.

He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down, and said sternly:
"What's the use of saying all this now? Quickly take me to that Taoist priest 'Dongfang Kuai's' stall! Perhaps we can still find a clue and catch some trace of the mastermind behind it all!"

"Perhaps...perhaps there is still a glimmer of hope for this matter!"

"If it's any later, I'm afraid you'll lose the dragon's head... and your life will be over!"

The little alligator dragon dared not show the slightest dissent or negligence at this moment. Terrified, it hurriedly got up and stumbled along, leading the Jing River Dragon King, the Turtle Prime Minister, and a group of confidants, rushing towards the fish market in Chang'an City.

……

The floodwaters have receded from Chang'an Fish Market, leaving behind a scene of utter devastation.

The ground was covered in mud, with tattered fishing nets, overturned boat planks, scattered fish baskets, and overturned stalls mixed in with the stench of sludge, as if silently telling the story of yesterday's tragic disaster.

The air was damp, cold, and sticky, filled with the fishy stench of river water and the putrid smell of silt.

The group soon arrived at Dongfang Kuai's stall, only to find it deserted, with only broken tables and bowls remaining, a scene of utter chaos.

The Dragon King of the Jing River had a gloomy face, his sharp eyes scanning every corner, unwilling to let any clue slip by.

He bent down and picked up a muddy copper coin from the muddy water. He gathered his magic power at his fingertips, intending to carefully examine it to see if there were any traces of the spellcaster's aura...

Let's see who's plotting against the Jinghe Dragon Clan behind the scenes!

"Hey!"

A slightly immature voice timidly peeked out from the shadows at the alley entrance, breaking the oppressive silence.

A clever-looking little boy was seen clinging to the alley wall, calling out to the distraught little alligator dragon:

"Excuse me... are you the young master who made the bet with Mr. Dongfang a few days ago?"

The little alligator dragon had no interest in paying attention to this mortal child. It frowned in annoyance and was about to scold the mortal child.

The little boy took out a letter wrapped in oiled paper from his pocket, handed it to the little alligator dragon, and said:

"When Mr. Dongfang left, he told me to give you this letter if you come again."

Prime Minister Gui immediately stepped forward and questioned in a deep voice:

"You brat! I came looking for you yesterday at noon, why didn't you deliver the letter then? What's the meaning of your sneaky behavior?"

The little boy was startled by the Turtle Prime Minister's imposing manner, shrank back, and scratched his head somewhat embarrassedly.
"Grandpa...Grandpa, yesterday morning...the rain was so heavy, the water even reached the threshold of my house. My parents wouldn't let me go out, they locked me inside..."

Clearly, the torrential rain that nearly flooded Chang'an still haunts the city's inhabitants.

At that time, the flood raged like a ferocious beast, turning streets and alleys into a vast expanse of water. The people narrowly escaped death, and even now, thinking back on it, they still feel lingering fear.

"However, since I have taken his money, I must deliver the letter to you."

The little boy's eyes were pure and firm. As he spoke, he stood on tiptoe and tried his best to hand the letter to the little alligator dragon.

The Dragon King of the Jing River, quick-witted and agile, reached out and took the letter. He slowly opened it and saw only four words inside:
"The Eight Immortals pay their respects."

Boom!

It was as if a thunderbolt had exploded in the mind of the Jinghe Dragon King!

"puff……"

Upon seeing this, the Dragon King of the Jing River felt a chill in his heart, as if he had fallen into an abyss of cold, with a chill that penetrated to his very bones.

An uncontrollable surge of blood rushed to his throat, and a metallic, sweet taste instantly filled his mouth.

He forced himself to swallow the metallic taste, his body swayed violently, and his face turned deathly pale.

The Eight Immortals of Taoism!

Lü Dongbin, Zhongli Quan, Tieguai Li… it was this very group! This was their revenge, a carefully laid trap!
These Taoist immortals, including Lü Dongbin and Zhongli Quan, were old enemies of the Jinghe River aquatic tribe.

It's a pity that his brother-in-law, the Dragon King of the West Sea, had tried to persuade him to reconcile with the Eight Immortals, hoping to shake hands and make peace and turn hostility into friendship.

I don't know.

This group of righteous and hypocritical enemies, dressed in Taoist robes, had already been secretly sharpening their knives while the Jinghe Dragon King was away from home.

They devised a plan to deceive him, the youngest son of the Jing River Dragon King, and set up this deadly trap!

That seemingly divine decree to bring rain turned out to be a brilliant tool for the other side to kill him!

They led him, the Jinghe Dragon Clan, step by step into a trap.

Once they make their move, how could they possibly leave them any room to maneuver?

They must want to wipe out the entire Jinghe lineage!

These Eight Immortals of the Dao Gate not only harmed his Jinghe Dragon Clan, but now they have come to tell him all this in a very open and aboveboard manner.

This is no simple visit; it's clearly a show of force, an opportunity to witness the miserable state of the Jinghe Dragon Clan, and a declaration of their victory!
but.

His brother-in-law, the Dragon King of the West Sea, was right; these Eight Immortals of Taoism were indeed from the Heavenly Realm!

Otherwise, how would they have known about the rain falling from the sky?

How could they have used the Heavenly Court's decree so precisely to set a trap for them?

For an instant.

The Jinghe Dragon King felt dizzy and disoriented, his vision blurred, and a chill ran down his spine, as if the guillotine of the Dragon-Slaying Platform was hanging over his head, ready to fall at any moment and behead him.

"Son..."

The Dragon King of the Jing River had a dry and hoarse voice.

He slowly handed the letter, which contained only four characters yet weighed more than a thousand pounds, to the little alligator dragon. Each word seemed to be squeezed out from between his teeth, filled with deep-seated hatred and endless sorrow:

"Look carefully! Remember this well! The one who harmed my Jinghe Dragon Clan today is none other than Lü Dongbin, Zhongli Quan, Tieguai Li... the Eight Immortals of Taoism!"

"Remember these hypocrites!"

"They pretend to be compassionate on the surface, but in reality, their hearts are like snakes and scorpions!"

"This hatred cannot be washed away even if all the waters of the four seas are poured out! It must never be forgotten!"

The little alligator dragon's eyes instantly turned blood red as it looked at those four words, and a violent, ferocious aura erupted from its body, its fangs becoming visible.

"How hateful! Utterly hateful!"

"Your Majesty, I will immediately muster the elite troops of the Water Palace, traverse the entire Southern Continent, and dig three feet into the ground to find Lü Dongbin and tear him to pieces!"

The little alligator dragon wanted to say more. "Enough!"

The Dragon King of the Jing River shouted, interrupting the little alligator dragon.

He waved his hand weakly, his tall frame appearing somewhat hunched, and sighed softly:
"Enough... enough... let's go back... it's all... too late... we can't change anything..."

Subsequently.

The Dragon King of Jinghe, along with Little Crocodile Dragon, Turtle Prime Minister, and others, returned dejectedly to the Jinghe Water Palace, which had become a prison.

Inside the Jinghe Water Palace, the atmosphere was so oppressive that it was hard to breathe.

The Dragon Queen of the Jing River also learned of the news and rushed over, her face full of anxiety and worry:

"My husband... my husband! Now... what should we do now?"

"Could we...could we just stand by and watch Jie'er suffer such a calamity? Perhaps...perhaps I should go to the Western Sea and beg my brother!"

"After all, he is the Lord of the Western Sea, and he has some influence in the Heavenly Court... Let him go to the Heavenly Court... to plead for Jie'er?"
"Perhaps...perhaps, considering the shared blood of the Dragon Clan...the Jade Emperor might...might offer a glimmer of hope?"

The Dragon King of the Jing River slumped onto his cold dragon throne.

He gazed at the face of the Dragon Queen of the Jing River, a face stained with tears, filled with despair yet still bearing a sliver of hope, and slowly, heavily shook his head, sighing:
"A dragon has a reverse scale. If you touch it, you will die."

"Even the Heavenly Court has its untouchable taboos!"

"This ability to control clouds and rain is the fundamental cornerstone for the Heavenly Court to proclaim its authority over the Three Realms, control the universe, and maintain the incense and faith of the human world!"

"Unauthorized alteration of the Heavenly Court's decree to send rain... This is no ordinary offense; it is an attempt to undermine the very foundation of the Heavenly Court and a blatant disregard for the Jade Emperor's authority!"

"This is an unforgivable crime, a heinous offense that shakes the very foundations of the empire, and is beyond redemption!"

The Dragon King of the Jing River paused, his voice growing even lower and carrying a hint of sorrow:
"If His Majesty the Jade Emperor pardons my Jinghe Water Palace today... what will happen if others follow suit in the future?"

"Aren't these heavenly laws and regulations just a formality?"

"In order to uphold these ironclad laws of the Three Realms and demonstrate the supreme power of Heaven..."

The Dragon King of the Jing River's voice lowered, filled with endless sorrow:
"Back then... even his own sister, Fairy Yunhua, who descended to the mortal realm because of the Heavenly Rules, was ruthless enough to be suppressed and killed beneath Peach Mountain..."

"Moreover, we mere dragons are nothing more than outsiders, like ants, in the eyes of the Jade Emperor."

"I'm afraid... I'm afraid Tuo'er... will have to make a trip to that 'Dragon-Slaying Platform'..."

The Dragon-Slaying Platform is the execution platform used by the Heavenly Court to punish the dragon race.

On the Dragon Slicing Platform, dragons were subjected to a thousand cuts and slow slicing, a form of excruciating torture, the most cruel and painful punishment ever inflicted upon them.

The moment the words "Ghost Platform" were uttered, it was as if a final death knell was tolling, echoing throughout the hall and chilling everyone to the bone.

Upon hearing this, the little alligator turned ashen-faced, the last trace of color draining from its body in an instant. It collapsed to the ground as if its bones had been removed, its eyes vacant and lifeless, unable to utter a single sound.

The little alligator trembled violently at the thought of being slowly sliced ​​to death.

"Jie'er—!!!"

As if struck by lightning, the Dragon Queen of the Jing River suddenly went black, and a mournful cry, piercingly different from a dragon's roar, escaped her lips:

"My son—!"

Immediately, the Jinghe Dragon Queen's body went limp and she fell backward.

Fortunately, the maids on both sides rushed forward to support her, preventing her from fainting.

However, the heart-wrenching cries could no longer be stopped.

The palace was deathly silent, with only the suppressed sobs of the Jinghe Dragon Queen echoing through the air.

……

For a long time, the atmosphere inside the hall became so oppressive that it was suffocating.

The Dragon King of the Jing River slowly rose, his steps heavy as lead, and walked step by step to his young son, the Little Crocodile Dragon, who was dispirited and limp as mud.

He gazed at his youngest son, his most beloved son, with a complex expression.

The eyes of the Jinghe Dragon King were filled with sorrow, regret, and helplessness, which eventually transformed into a resolute and tragic expression.

He slowly reached out and took back the "Eight Rivers Dividing Water Flag," which symbolized the authority of the eight rivers in Chang'an and was shimmering with water, from his son; then, he took off the "Dragon King's Water-Dispatching Seal," which was gleaming with spiritual light and had a solemn seal, from his waist.

He held these two precious items, which had once held great hopes for his youngest son, in his hands.

The Dragon King of the Jing River spoke earnestly, his voice choked with emotion yet exceptionally clear, to the little alligator dragon:
As the saying goes: "If you raise a child but do not teach him, it is the father's fault."

“My son… your father and your mother have spoiled you too much in the past.”

"It's all your father's and mother's fault. They only cared about the bond between blood relatives and forgot the hardships of the rise and fall of the dragon race and the strictness of the heavenly laws... That's why you were raised to be so arrogant, domineering, and ignorant of your own limitations."

"Indeed... doting fathers and mothers often spoil their children!"

"This is the fault of your father, and also the fault of your mother! Now it's too late to regret..."

He paused, took a deep breath, and slowly said:

"In the future... if... if Heaven takes pity on you and you are fortunate enough to survive..."

"You must... repent and correct your mistakes, remember the lessons, and restrain your mind; this is the right path."

Upon hearing this, the little alligator dragon was overwhelmed with shame, fear, and regret, as if a thousand ants were gnawing at its heart, causing unbearable pain.

He collapsed to the ground and wept bitterly, tears streaming down his face.

"It is I...it is I who have dragged down the Jinghe River aquatic people! I...I deserve to die!"

The Dragon King of the Jing River gazed into the distance, looking at the dark, deep, and shimmering water outside the palace. It was as if he could see through the layers of water curtain the menacing blades that were coming with supreme heavenly might, and the heavenly soldiers and generals that were about to descend like dark clouds pressing down on the city.

The Jinghe Dragon King muttered to himself, and also to his brother-in-law, the West Sea Dragon King, who was far away in the West Sea:
"Thunder and rain are both gifts from heaven, but heavenly grace is fickle and unpredictable."

"Today the Jade Emperor bestowed pearls as a sign of his favor, but who can predict what will happen tomorrow..."

"We can't put all our dragon eggs in one basket."

The Dragon King of the Jing River's voice was deep and firm:
"Jie'er, get up... It's too late to say anything now."

"There's no point in saying more now; we can only face it."

"Remember my words today, remember the blood feud between the Eight Immortals of the Daoist sect... Live on, even if it means enduring humiliation and barely surviving, you must... live on!"

"Remember your uncle's teachings. We dragons can be small or large, hidden or rising. When small, we can hide our forms; when large, we can stir up clouds and mist. When hidden, we lurk within the waves; when rising, we soar through the universe."

"Dragons adapt to changing times, roaming freely across the four seas and moving with ease between heaven and earth. This is the way of survival for our dragon race, and it must not be forgotten."

"A dragon lying in shallow waters is merely... a hidden dragon should not be used! This is because the time is not yet ripe, and one must quietly lie low."

"Wait patiently for the tide to rise again, and when the winds and clouds gather, we can soar into the sky."

"When that time comes... the true dragon will soar into the sky, hating how low the heavens are!"

"This is the time for my dragon race...to regain its prestige..."

……

Before he could finish speaking...

Before the Dragon King of the Jing River could fully express his grief and indignation, and offer his earnest teachings, he was left speechless.

Suddenly, a cold and majestic imperial edict, seemingly descending from the heavens, resounded outside the Jinghe Water Palace:

"The Jade Emperor has issued an edict!"

"The fake Wei River Dragon King 'Ao Tuojie' usurped the divine position, did not think of repaying the Heavenly Court, but instead dared to act recklessly, privately changed the imperial edict, arbitrarily changed the rainfall, flooded the capital Chang'an, causing great suffering to the people, and aroused the wrath of both gods and men!"

"Such actions disregard the laws of Heaven, defy the majesty of Heaven, and constitute an unforgivable and heinous crime!"

"Order the Heavenly Court of Justice to immediately arrest the wicked dragon Ao Tuojie and escort him to the Heavenly Court's Dragon-Slaying Platform for public execution! There must be no delay!"

The decree from Heaven has finally arrived!

"Splash, splash!"

"Woof woof woof, woof woof woof!"

……

The clanging of cold chains, the barking of the celestial hound, the chilling killing intent of the soldiers of the Heavenly Guardian of Justice, and the soaring demonic aura of the Grass God... all mixed together, like a tangible cold wave, instantly sweeping across the entire Jinghe Dragon Palace!

Now, Yang Jian is the judicial deity of the celestial realm, investigating the illegal acts of the gods of the Three Realms.

This time, they came to the Jinghe Water Palace to capture the "Heavenly Rain God and Chief Administrator of the Eight Rivers," the Jinghe Dragon King, the "Fake Weihe Dragon King," and others.

They came to handle this "Weihe River Dragon King Case".

It was none other than "Yang Jian, the God of Justice" and his followers.

(End of this chapter)