Honghuang: Creation of the Green Lotus, the beginning of the Three Pure Ones

After the Journey to the West team reached full strength, they did not encounter any demons. In just a few days, they set foot on Xiniu Hezhou.

Since Zhu Bajie was on his journey to the West with his wife, the plot involving the Four Sages and their Zen-like minds was naturally unnecessary.

Moreover, even if the Buddhist community wanted to make arrangements, no one would be willing to cooperate. After all, if things went wrong, the pilgrimage team might turn the tables and cause trouble for them.

The example of Samantabhadra Bodhisattva is right there in front of us. Who would want to follow that old path and become the next unlucky one?

Therefore, Tang Sanzang and his party arrived at the territory of Wuzhuang Temple on Longevity Mountain without any problems.

This inevitably pushed Sun Wukong to his limit. He then said to Tang Sanzang, "Wuzhuang Temple is the main base of the Chan Sect. It is now the Taoist temple of Zhenyuan, the benevolent incarnation of the Chan Sect's saint, Zhenyuanzi."

Upon hearing this, Pigsy frowned. "It seems we should break up. We can't get past the Wuzhuang Temple on Longevity Mountain."

Tang Sanzang couldn't help but sigh and said, "We have repeatedly disrespected Zhenyuan Daxian and even killed disciples of the Chan Sect. This enmity is now irreconcilable."

"The only way now is to find a way to bypass the Wuzhuang Temple on Longevity Mountain. Otherwise, if we encounter Zhenyuan Daxian, the consequences will be unimaginable."

Just as the master and his disciples were discussing how to cross the Wuzhuang Temple on Longevity Mountain, a Taoist priest suddenly appeared in front of them.

The Taoist priest stepped forward, bowed to Tang Sanzang, and said, "Is this venerable monk the Great Master Tang Sanzang from the Great Tang Dynasty in the East?"

After returning a Buddhist greeting, Tang Sanzang said, "This humble monk is indeed Tang Sanzang from the Great Tang Dynasty in the East. May I ask how this Taoist priest is addressed?"

The Taoist priest, upon confirming that the visitor was indeed Tang Sanzang, instantly vanished his smile, replaced by an extremely gloomy expression.

“Since you are Tang Sanzang, then I have come to the right person. You ask who I am? I do not change my name or surname, I am the Heavenly Venerable of the Chan Sect.”

Upon learning that the visitor was a disciple of the Chan Sect, Sun Wukong instantly gripped his golden cudgel and asked, "I wonder what brings you here, Celestial Venerable Xing?"

Seeing Sun Wukong standing ready for battle, Daoxing Tianzun snorted coldly and said, "Now you know how to be nervous? When you killed my Chan Sect disciples, did you ever think that this day would come?"

"But don't worry, all of my disciples are upright and honorable immortals. We would never stoop to petty theft."

"Don't you want to go to the Great Thunder Temple in the Western Paradise to complete the eastward transmission of Buddhism? Then first find a way to get past my Wuzhuang Temple on Longevity Mountain."

"And I am the guardian of this first pass. Besides me, there are nine more passes for you to pass. If you fail to pass even one pass, Longevity Mountain will be the end of your journey to the West."

As he spoke, Dao Xing Tianzun stepped backward, and a small bucket the size of a palm flew out of his hand.

The small container grew rapidly in mid-air, eventually becoming as large as a mountain, completely trapping the pilgrimage team inside.

Then they heard Xing Tianzun laugh and say, "This dou is called the Treasure Dou. It contains an inexhaustible supply of rice and grain. If you eat all the rice and grain inside, this dou will naturally be broken."

"Otherwise, you'll stay here forever. And don't even think about going to get any more Buddhist scriptures."

At this moment, the pilgrimage team suddenly felt themselves plunged into darkness. A suffocating sensation also followed; they were buried beneath a mountain of rice and flour.

Sun Wukong hurriedly brandished his Ruyi Jingu Bang (Golden Cudgel), finally dispersing the rice and flour within a radius of several feet, giving them a foothold. Zhu Bajie, meanwhile, swung his Nine-Toothed Rake wildly, trying to create a passage, but the rice and flour seemed endless, and he could never reach the edge.

Finally, Pigsy was so exhausted that he collapsed to the ground, panting heavily, and said, "These disciples of the Chan Sect are truly inhuman, wasting food like this."

"Even with my enormous appetite, it would take forever to finish all this rice and flour. It seems we're not going to be able to get the scriptures."

Sun Wukong held his Ruyi Jingu Bang (Golden Cudgel) upright in front of him. At the same time, he chanted an incantation, causing the golden cudgel to grow wildly, intending to pierce a hole in the treasure pot.

Unfortunately, no matter how hard Sun Wukong tried, his golden cudgel still couldn't reach the edge of the treasure pot. This made Sun Wukong frown even more.

"It seems that this battle is a spatial magic artifact, and we are now trapped in its space. Escaping will not be an easy task."

Inside the treasure goblet, the conversation between Sun Wukong and the others was naturally overheard by Dao Xing Tianzun, which couldn't help but bring a smile to his face.

"Although I can't really trap you here to death, I can certainly make you suffer a bit. And Gao Cuilan, you will die today."

Dao Xing Tianzun was also helpless. If it weren't for his master's instructions, he could only make the pilgrimage team suffer. He really wanted to avenge Samantabhadra Bodhisattva.

Although the true spirit of Samantabhadra Bodhisattva did not dissipate in the Weak Water, it has now become a wisp of a soul, which is being nurtured in the Eight Treasures Merit Pool.

To restore one's original nature and reshape one's physical body would likely take hundreds or even thousands of years. Therefore, Manjushri Bodhisattva had to seek out the Daoist Dipankara to obtain elixirs and spiritual fruits for him.

Even so, it would take Samantabhadra Bodhisattva three to five years to recover. For now, he can only eke out a living in the Eight Treasures Merit Pool.

This hatred had driven the disciples of the Chan Sect to loathe Tang Sanzang and his companions to their very core. They wished they could tear them to pieces.

Unfortunately, the Journey to the West is ordained by Heaven, and every member of the Journey to the West team is a person of destiny. It's not something that Dao Xing Tianzun can kill at will.

However, there was one exception in this team: Zhu Bajie's wife, Gao Cuilan. She was an unofficial member of the pilgrimage to the West, not someone destined for greatness.

Moreover, Gao Cuilan was undoubtedly the culprit behind Samantabhadra Bodhisattva's current predicament. Therefore, Daoxing Tianzun decided to kill Gao Cuilan in his treasure pot to avenge Samantabhadra Bodhisattva.

Then, Dao Xing Tianzun appeared to have a demon-subduing pestle in his hand and threw it directly onto the treasure vessel.

The vajra passed through the treasure chamber without any hindrance and headed towards the unsuspecting Gao Cuilan.

At this moment, Gao Cuilan was unaware that Dao Xing Tianzun wanted to kill her. She was sitting next to Zhu Bajie, resting her chin on her hands and looking at him.

This scene was all too familiar to Sun Wukong and the others. After all, they had been subjected to plenty of this kind of public displays of affection along the way, so they couldn't be bothered to look at the couple.

Just then, Pigsy suddenly sensed a danger coming from above. Without hesitation, he raised his nine-toothed rake, meeting the falling demon-subduing pestle head-on.

With a loud crash, the Vajra was sent flying by the Nine-Toothed Rake. The impact also left Pigsy's arms numb. (End of Chapter)