Simultaneous traversal: All Abyss difficulty.

Chapter 732 Returning to Wuzhuang Temple

The five travelers parted the swirling clouds and mist, and the mountain path beneath their feet gradually revealed ancient bluestone.

A strange scent permeated the air, neither the fragrance of grass and trees nor the stench of evil spirits, but a blend of sandalwood and incense, a scent that had been refined over countless years, cool yet with a faint, warm warmth, refreshing and soothing without being vulgar.

Sun Wukong sniffed sharply, his fiery eyes flashing with disbelief as he scanned the depths of the clouds: "Huh? Strange! This place is shrouded in mist, yet I, Old Sun, can't smell a trace of demonic energy! Not even a single rat demon from the underworld? How peculiar! This incense smell... could it be the sacred site of some great deity?"

Pigsy, carrying his rake, also looked around suspiciously at the thin mist, his large, fan-like ears twitching: "Hmm, there's something to it. This smells like we're worshipping a real deity!"

Sha Wujing followed silently behind, but the skull bracelet he was holding paused unconsciously, and a hint of caution and inquiry appeared in his cloudy eyes.

Fang Yu paused slightly, a nostalgic yet complex smile playing on his lips. He took a deep breath of the familiar, cool incense scent, a blend of mist and spiritual plants, and said with a touch of emotion, "Brother Monkey, Second Senior Brother, Old Sha, there's no need to guess anymore, we've returned to my 'hometown'."

Fang Yu originally wanted to avoid Wuzhuang Temple and not bother Zhenyuan Daxian, who was unwilling to acknowledge him.

Firstly, with Fang Yu as a disciple of Wuzhuang Temple, it would be impossible for Sun Wukong to knock down the ginseng fruit tree after the eighty-one tribulations. Also, out of consideration for their reputation, Qingfeng and Mingyue would not cause trouble for the four of them. Avoiding the tribulations was the best option.

But now Stephen faces a formidable opponent.
Judging from all the Fang Yus, only he, the Journey to the West Fang Yu, has the ability to increase his strength in an instant.

After all, this is the world of Journey to the West!
Whether it's asking Zhen Yuanzi for a reward or something, it might be able to help Stephen Fang get through this difficult time.

Thinking of this, Fang Yu raised his hand and pointed to the majestic mountain shadow that was faintly visible in the depths of the mist: "This place is Longevity Mountain, and the immortal residence in front of us is the location of Wuzhuang Temple."

"Wuzhuang Temple?!" Upon hearing this, Sun Wukong suddenly turned around, his golden eyes flashing with intense interest. His tone was filled with urgency and disbelief. "The Daoist temple of Zhenyuan Daxian? Is that the ancestor of earth immortals you mentioned who once swept up 100,000 heavenly soldiers and generals with a single sleeve, leaving even Nezha, the Third Prince, powerless to resist?!"

Pigsy was startled and shrank back. "Really? That Nezha is no pushover! I've never heard of the ancestor of earth immortals before?"

Fang Yu met the intense gazes of the group and nodded frankly, his tone carrying an undeniable certainty and a hint of barely perceptible awe: "That's right! My master, Zhen Yuanzi, is the ancestor of earth immortals and is on par with the Three Pure Ones. You've heard of his 'universe within a sleeve' ability, Brother Monkey."

He paused, a mischievous yet absolutely serious glint in his eyes, "As for power, let's put it this way: as long as he's willing to take action, whatever we encounter on the journey to the West, whether it's a thousand-year-old demon or a ten-thousand-year-old ghost king, they'll all be utterly helpless, without even a chance to escape, even if..."

"Even if what?" Sun Wukong couldn't stand being provoked. His monkey paws were already itching to scratch his golden cudgel. He sneered, "I, Old Sun, don't believe that he can put the Great Sage Equal to Heaven like me into his sleeve."

Fang Yu looked at the fighting spirit burning in Sun Wukong's eyes, chuckled, and poured cold water on him without any politeness, saying clearly, word by word: "Even if you, Brother Monkey, go all out, you probably won't last a single exchange against him. One 'Sleeve Universe' is enough! This is no joke."

"Tsk!" Sun Wukong blushed at the words, his resentment growing even stronger. His tail stood on end, and his golden eyes glared wide. "What arrogance! Well then, I, Old Sun, will definitely meet this ancestor of earth immortals today! Let's see if his Wuzhuang Temple is a fortress of copper and iron or just a paper lantern!"

Amidst laughter and conversation, the four of them passed through the fog, and a bright and clear view suddenly appeared before them.

A simple yet magnificent Taoist temple stands quietly amidst the beautiful mountains and waters. Though lacking in splendor, it exudes a profound and majestic Taoist charm that resonates with the heavens and earth.

Surrounded by ancient pines, craggy rocks, blooming herbs, and babbling springs, it truly exudes an ethereal atmosphere.

The two seemingly ordinary yet weathered and massive mountain gates of the Taoist temple were tightly closed. They were made entirely of a dark and warm spiritual wood, covered with natural wood grain, as if they contained some kind of profound truth of heaven and earth.

The door knockers are two ancient animal heads, neither lions nor tigers, their strange shapes radiating a faint sense of authority. Most striking is the plaque hanging above the lintel. The plaque is neither gold nor jade, but a deep blue-green like ancient jade, bearing three large, elegant, and powerfully written ancient seal characters:

Wuzhuang Temple!
Each character seems to contain endless Taoist wisdom, and the powerful strokes seem to penetrate time and space, bringing peace to the heart and making one feel insignificant.

The characters contained faint, mysterious runes, clearly indicating that they were no ordinary objects.

Below the large plaque of "Wuzhuang Temple", on the pillars on both sides of the mountain gate, there seems to be an even older and more profound inscribed couplet.

However, the couplet was shrouded in a faint blue mist, its spiritual light contained within. Even with Sun Wukong's fiery eyes, he could not see it completely for a while and could only barely make out the fourteen large characters containing supreme mystery!
The Immortal Abode of Immortality

A Taoist who lives as long as heaven!
An indescribable aura of grandeur and antiquity emanated from the couplets on the mountain gate, as if silently proclaiming the identity and status of the owner of this place.

The stone steps at the entrance were as smooth as a mirror, spotless. Several unknown spiritual vines climbed up the doorposts, their leaves lush and green, with a faint aura of spiritual energy flowing through them.

Fang Yu looked at the familiar three large characters "Wuzhuang Temple" with a complicated expression and said softly, "We're here. This is it."

"Squeak!"

The mountain gate was suddenly pulled open from the inside!

Two small figures shot out like cannonballs; they were Qingfeng and Mingyue, two Daoist disciples.

Their faces were full of surprise and anticipation. Their eyes locked onto Fang Yu instantly, and they rushed over from the left and right, grabbing his hands tightly!
"Junior brother! Junior brother! You're finally back!!" Qingfeng's voice was filled with excitement, and Mingyue shook Fang Yu's arm vigorously.

Caught off guard, Fang Yu was taken aback by their enthusiasm and was filled with doubt: "Senior brothers? What brings you here? How did you know I would come today?"

“It’s Master! That’s what Master said before he left this morning!” Mingyue answered eagerly, her little face full of reverence. “Master said that if you return, you will definitely bring back Tang Sanzang and his entourage from the Tang Dynasty to the Western Paradise to obtain the scriptures!” He paused, mimicking Zhen Yuanzi’s calm tone, “and specifically instructed the two of us: ‘Treat the holy monk from the East well.’”

Fang Yu felt a slight tremor in his heart, and a complex emotion welled up within him.

Zhen Yuanzi even knows this?
He suppressed his emotions, nodded, and turned to point to the Tang Monk and his disciples behind him: "Indeed, this is the holy monk of the Great Tang Dynasty in the East, the Venerable Xuanzang, who was ordered to travel west to seek the true scriptures." He then pointed to the monkey with the hairy face and thunderous mouth, "This is the Great Sage Equal to Heaven, Sun Wukong."

He was about to introduce Pigsy and Sandy behind him when Qingfeng interrupted him.

"Oh, okay, I know!" Qingfeng seemed absent-minded, only glancing quickly at Tang Sanzang and his disciples, nodding perfunctorily, and then immediately turning his attention back to Fang Yu.

Mingyue was even more decisive, grabbing Fang Yu's arm and dragging him into the temple while rattling off a string of words:

"Junior brother, come quick! Forget about all that! A lot has happened in the temple these days, you've missed so much while you were gone! Come on, let's go inside and talk, let's go inside and have a proper talk!"

(End of this chapter)