Journey to the West: Cultivation Begins at Jindou Mountain

Chapter 282 "Five Finger Mountain"

As the villagers of Majia Village quickly organized themselves at night, everything needed for a religious ceremony was soon gathered.

This is also thanks to the fact that Majia Village is located on the banks of the Tongtian River, which is also a stop and rest point for trade between the two sides of the river, so it is easy to find many things.

Amidst lanterns and torches, Tang Sanzang stood in front of the forest not far from Majia Village, protected by his two disciples, looking at the two corpses wrapped in straw mats in the pit.

Although Tang Sanzang was frightened after seeing the two dead bodies and kept silently chanting Amitabha Buddha, he was able to stand still because his eldest and second disciples were there to comfort him.

At this moment, men were shoveling soil into the pit to bury the body, while Tang Sanzang closed his eyes and began chanting the "Scripture of Salvation".

As soon as Tang Sanzang began reciting, he noticed something was wrong. He suddenly smelled a strong stench of blood around him.

Tang Sanzang did not open his eyes, but asked in a low voice:
"Wukong, can you smell blood?"

"Wukong?"

Tang Sanzang did not hear a reply from his eldest disciple. At this moment, he became increasingly aware that something was wrong. There was a deathly silence around him, not even the slightest sound of wind.

Tang Sanzang slowly opened his eyes, only to suddenly see a couple with ashen faces kneeling in front of him, while he was surrounded by darkness.

"what!!!!"

"Wukong!!! Bajie!!!"

This mortal monk could hardly have witnessed such a scene. Tang Sanzang was so shocked that he fell to the ground, looking at the couple in front of him, and hurriedly calling out the names of his two disciples.

However, in this darkness, it seemed that only he and the two obviously dead people in front of him existed; there was no one else around.

The couple in front of him stared intently at Tang Sanzang with wide, round eyes, while uttering pleading words.

"Holy Monk, we know that you are a compassionate and virtuous monk. We beg you to recite the scriptures so that we may be reincarnated!"

Seeing this, Tang Sanzang calmed down slightly, wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, and nodded, saying:

"Very well, this humble monk will now chant scriptures to guide you to your reincarnation."

"Monk! How dare you!!"

Just then, a sharp, piercing voice suddenly rang out. Tang Sanzang quickly turned his head and saw a young woman staring at him with a sinister expression.

"Their sins are extremely grave; they deserve to go through hell and high water, and be tossed about in boiling oil for a hundred years! If you save them, you will be aiding and abetting evil!"

Gao Qiulan's expression turned sinister as she strode forward, determined to stop the monk no matter what.

She wanted to take the souls of those two beasts away! To torment them day and night with them!

She was determined not to let the monk erase any of the other person's sins!

Tang Sanzang watched Gao Qiulan approach rapidly and felt a pang of bitterness in his heart. Just as his eldest disciple had said, he had indeed offended Gao Qiulan.

Upon seeing Gao Qiulan, the couple on the other side, filled with a mixture of fear and resentment, quickly crawled forward a few times, repeatedly saying:

"Holy Monk! Holy Monk! Aren't monks supposed to be compassionate? We beg you to guide us!"

"Bald monk! You dare!"

"Monk, if you don't save us, we'll haunt you even as ghosts!!"

"If you save them, I will make you wish you were dead!"

Tang Sanzang looked back and forth, hearing the vengeful ghosts on both sides, his heart filled with sorrow, and cold sweat poured down his face. He was clearly terrified. He simply ignored both sides, sat down cross-legged, and silently recited Buddhist scriptures.

"Master!"

"Wukong—"

Upon hearing the familiar voice, Tang Sanzang opened his eyes, his face filled with surprise and delight, and quickly got up to call out.

Just then, a golden light suddenly shot into the darkness. As soon as the golden light fell, it enveloped Tang Sanzang, startling the wronged souls and evil spirits on both sides, who fled in panic and disappeared into the darkness in the blink of an eye.

However, the golden light did not stop there. It spread rapidly and dispersed in all directions. The female ghost had already disappeared. Only the vengeful ghosts that the couple had transformed into turned to ashes with a miserable howl when they were illuminated by the golden light, and they vanished without a trace.

As these two disappeared, Tang Sanzang's vision blurred, and he reappeared in the mountains outside Ma Family Village. Everything that had just happened seemed to be just an illusion.

However, Tang Sanzang glanced at Sun Wukong, who looked somewhat worried, and knew in his heart that what had just happened was not an illusion.

"Wukong."

Tang Sanzang's legs went weak and he almost sat down, but fortunately Sun Wukong and Zhu Bajie quickly helped him up.

"Master! Master, please be careful!"

"Master, don't worry, everything is alright now."

"Just now, the Black and White Impermanence of the Underworld, with their golden shackles and silver chains, came looking for me, Old Sun, and have already chased after that female ghost."

"However, since someone was able to keep it from me, Master, and drag you into that space, that person must be someone of considerable importance."

"It seems this matter also concerns the underworld, and it has affected us. I, Old Sun, will go to the underworld later and demand an explanation from the Ten Kings of Hell!"

Upon hearing this, Tang Sanzang quickly grabbed him.

"Alright, Wukong, it's good that you're alright, it's good that you're alright." In the Black Valley of the Underworld.

The deity, who was performing the spell, looked at the shattered black jade mirror before him, then looked up at the Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva opposite him and said:

"It seems you don't intend to settle things with Tang Sanzang's choice, but rather want to try a different approach."

Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva smiled and said:

"That's right. After much thought, I still believe that it's best not to involve others in our feud, especially since your methods are still so ruthless."

Is this forcing others to choose, or letting them choose according to their own hearts?

The Venerable One looked at the Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva before him, and a series of causal lights slowly flashed in his eyes. He was using the Great Dao of Cause and Effect to calculate the opponent's next move.

The two of them had a close relationship, arguably the closest of friends, and their calculations based on the principles of cause and effect had always been successful, except this time.
The Venerable One's expression changed slightly; he actually felt that his Dao of Cause and Effect was being blocked.

"You found help? Does that mean that guy on the River of Forgetfulness is already able to come out?"

"Why doesn't Your Excellency consider that you caused trouble on the banks of my Tongtian River? Why can't my helper be this humble Taoist?"

Hearing the voice behind him, the Venerable One turned around and saw Niu Yi, dressed in green and holding a whisk, stepping out of the Yin Road.

The Venerable One's expression changed slightly again. He turned to look at the Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva opposite him and said:

"what do you mean?"

"You and I are one, I am just your other side. You should know that no external means can destroy me."

"As long as your inner demons remain, I will be eternally immortal."

Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva shook his head and said:

“You’ve caused a lot of trouble outside over the years, it’s time for you to come back.”

"Immortal Master, I'm in trouble."

"This is a trivial matter."

Niu Yi smiled, waved his whisk, and the Five Elements Spirit Pearls fell into his palm, instantly merging into it.

The Lord clearly sensed the threat, and his demonic energy surged ten thousand feet in an instant! He transformed into a shadow of Buddha and demon, making even the Black Valley below appear incredibly small at this moment.

But at that moment, Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva slowly closed his eyes and began to chant the true scriptures. One after another, Buddhist mantras radiated Buddhist light and appeared on the Venerable Lord's body in an instant, like chains.

Once the chains of truth were bound, the Venerable One immediately realized that half of his abilities had been suppressed.

"Over the years, I have come to comprehend a supernatural technique. Please, Your Excellency, take a look."

Niu Yi opened his palm and stretched it towards the sky, and a five-colored ray of light shot into the sky instantly.

However, as Niu Yi's palm slowly descended, an incomparably enormous five-colored hand fell from the dark sky of the underworld, pressing down like the sky collapsing, enveloping the entire Black Valley and the towering demonic energy within it.

The venerable one's expression changed slightly.

He was also somewhat puzzled at this moment, as Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva had clearly taken the initiative to release it, but now he had changed his mind.

However, the palm in front of him seemed to be the entire Five Elements Dao pressing down, and it was also involved with the Dao of Cause and Effect. Even without Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva suppressing him, he would have a hard time dodging it.
"Ugh"

The Lord sighed softly, and demonic energy surged around him, causing the Mantra Chains to break free for a moment. He grabbed at the Black Valley below, causing the entire valley to turn into black light and fall into his hand, which he then threw into the distance.

All of this happened in the blink of an eye; the black valley that Niu Yi and Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva had seen vanished instantly.

At the same time, the giant hand fell down, pressing the Venerable Lord down with a single blow. After the hand landed, it transformed into a mountain shaped like five fingers, with the five elements flowing on the mountain.

"boom----"

As the rumbling sound echoed through the area, the ground trembled, and the Five Elements Mountain stood there.

This supernatural power was something Niu Yi comprehended after witnessing the Buddha's Five Finger Mountain suppressing Sun Wukong and the awe-inspiring Tortoise Back Mountain of the Old Man of Camel Mountain.

His Five Elements Mountain was created by utilizing the Primordial Chaos Dao, the Five Elements Dao, and the Dao of Cause and Effect. The entire mountain was also transformed from the Five Elements Spirit Pearls, and when unleashed, it possessed immeasurable power.

It wouldn't be a problem to subdue this powerful figure for a while, but if he didn't take this mountain away, he wouldn't be able to use his Five Elements Spirit Pearl.

Fortunately, Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva has a way to subdue this deity.

As Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva silently recited the incantation, the venerable one who had been suppressed by the Five Elements Mountain transformed into wisps of dark energy that slowly drifted out, landed in Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva's chest, and disappeared.

Niu Yi watched this scene unfold. The dark aura lingered for a full half-day before being completely absorbed by Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva.

"Immortal Master, this humble monk is about to return to the Cuiyun Palace for seclusion. I will leave the affairs of the Underworld to the Ten Kings of Hell."

"If any trouble arises in the underworld in the future, I would be grateful if you could take care of me. I will repay you in the future."

After Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva finished speaking, he put his hands together and bowed to Niu Yi.

"Please rest assured, Bodhisattva, the safety of the underworld concerns the entire Three Realms. If anything happens, this humble Taoist will certainly come to your aid."

"Amitabha."

(End of this chapter)