Journey to the West: Cultivation Begins at Jindou Mountain

Chapter 305 The Guardian Lion
Jinchan Mountain.

The three-legged toad was once hidden in Kun Steel's secret treasure trove.

Above a white cloud, Jin Fu looked helplessly at the beautiful woman before him, her eyes filled with tears and resentment, and sighed:
“Jade-faced niece, I risked a great deal to save you in the Flaming Mountain, and it was only because of the friendship I had with your father back then.”

"You should know the background of those four who went on the journey to the West to obtain the scriptures. Why are you still thinking about revenge?"

While at Flaming Mountain, Jin Fu used Niu Yi's Chaos Green Gourd to instantly capture the Jade-Faced Fox, allowing her to escape from Zhu Bajie's rake and take her away from the Flaming Mountain area.

Subsequently, Jin Fu placed the jade-faced fox in his secret room, where it has remained for several years.

"Uncle Jinfu, those monks destroyed my Moyun Cave on Jilei Mountain! Some are dead, some have fled, and my uncles all died under Sun Wukong's staff!"

"You actually want me to refrain from seeking revenge?! This hatred, this grudge! Even if the whole world were to be cleansed, it would be impossible to wash it away!!!"

The beautiful face of the Jade-Faced Fox was now extremely distorted and quite ugly, with a ferocious fox face appearing on her face from time to time.

Jin Fu looked at the jade-faced fox, whose body was filled with demonic energy, and his face was full of disappointment.

"Your father was a powerful figure among the demons, so how did he end up with such a spoiled, willful daughter who doesn't know how to assess situations?"

He wasn't preventing the Jade-Faced Fox from seeking revenge; he was preventing her from going to her death! With his niece's abilities, let alone Sun Wukong, even Pigsy could easily handle her.

"Alright, you can stay here and think it over some more."

After saying this, Jin Fu turned and left the secret treasure vault, leaving only the Jade-Faced Fox there, still full of hatred.

The third day after Daojun Mountain brought back the Yellow Lion and the Six Lions of Jiuqupan Hengdong.

That night, on the third floor of the incense-filled pavilion, seven lion spirits, transformed into human form, bowed deeply to the Daoist Master at the head of the table, saying in unison:

"We thank the Daoist Lord for saving us. We will never forget his great kindness and virtue."

Daojun slowly nodded and said:
"You can't return to Bamboo Joint Mountain for the time being, but my Daojun Mountain is short of a few guardian spirit beasts. Are you willing to take on these roles?"

Having already made a decision, the seven lions quickly bowed and thanked Daojun, thus settling the matter.

From that day on, the seven grandsons of the Nine-Headed Lion—Yellow Lion, Nao Lion, Snow Lion, Suanni, Bai Ze, Fuli, and Tuanxiang—became the seven guardian lions of Daojun Mountain.

After giving his instructions, Daojun ordered Yuanze to take the little lions to their lodgings at Daojun Mountain.

The Goat-Headed Demon King, looking at the dejected little lions, muttered with some dissatisfaction:

"These people are getting the benefits and then complaining."

Suddenly, the Goat-Headed Demon King sensed the gaze coming from above. He quickly turned to look at Daojun, only to see Daojun smiling at him.

The Goat-Headed Demon King shuddered and quickly bowed, saying:
"Lord Dao, it was your fault for speaking out of turn."

Daojun smiled, shook his head, and sighed:
“These few are different. Before, they drank and made merry every day in Zhujie Mountain, living freely as kings and managing their own territory.”

"However, the situation is different now. Their territory has been destroyed. Although I am a descendant of their ancestor, for them, coming to me is still like living under someone else's roof, with an uncertain future."

"Freedom is extremely important among the demon race. Now that this sudden change has occurred, they will probably need some time to adapt."

The Goat-Headed Demon King nodded hastily, secretly delighted.

Having cultivated on Daojun Mountain for so long, he was naturally well aware of the benefits of cultivating here, especially with the presence of the Divine Physician Daojun.

Now that Daojun is willing to tell him these things, it's clear that he's starting to consider him one of his own! This is more important to him than anything else.

Daojun looked at the soul flames that were clearly leaping up from the white skeletal head of the Goat-Headed Ghost King, and turned his head away with amusement.

It seems that it's time to formally bring this Goat-Headed Ghost King under our command. This guy is now truly devoted to Daojun Mountain, and he has worked diligently all these years, which Daojun has seen in his eyes.

Well, it's about time they gave her a proper title.

Daojun was quite satisfied with this subordinate. He had never expected that he would have such a capable subordinate after subduing the Goat-Headed Ghost King back then.

Besides the Ghost King, the three immortals of Chechi Kingdom and the seven lions of Bamboo Mountain, all of whom have excellent talents and aptitudes, will be the future core of Daojun Mountain.

As for Hydra, which is rotten to the core, it only deserves to be a poison snake; it can forget about ever turning its life around.

"Speaking of which, have Huli, Yangli, and the other two already gone to Chechi Kingdom?"

The Goat-Headed Demon King hurriedly said:
"Yes, Lord Dao, that is indeed the case."

"The King of Chechi Kingdom built a temple for the three of them and issued an edict that as long as Chechi Kingdom existed, the royal family would worship at the temple for one day."

"This has entangled Hu Li and the others with the fate of the entire Chechi Kingdom, but if they were to embark on the path of divinity, things would be much easier. They are currently heading to the Chechi Kingdom to deal with this matter."

Daojun nodded slightly and said:
"I understand. Send a part of your soul to keep an eye on things. If you encounter any problems that are difficult to solve, report back immediately."

"Yes, Lord Dao."

The Goat-Headed Demon King bowed respectfully and accepted the order to proceed.

In India, the pilgrimage group, escorted by King Yuhua, departed from Yuhua Prefecture and continued their journey towards the Great Thunderclap Temple. Late that night, in the forest...

Tang Sanzang and Sha Wujing had already gone to bed early, while Sun Wukong leaned against the branches of a tall tree, his arms as a pillow, his legs crossed, looking up at the twinkling stars and the bright moon in the sky.

Sun Wukong's eyes gleamed, and it was unclear what he was thinking, until he heard the rustling of leaves being moved beneath him.

"You idiot, why aren't you sleeping? What are you doing climbing up here?"

Pigsy, somewhat clumsily hugging the tree trunk, chuckled:

"Hey~ Monkey King, I was just woken up by the urge to pee, and I was just about to go relieve myself when I saw you all alone in the tree, looking lonely~"

Sun Wukong rolled his eyes and said:

"Go away, you idiot, hurry up and go to the toilet, get some rest, and remember to stay away from here. Old Sun has a sensitive nose, so don't let me smell your urine."

"Hey, brother, let's follow this path. We shouldn't have to wait long to reach Mount Ling."

Sun Wukong looked at the moon in the sky and nodded:

"Hey~ yeah, we'll be at Lingshan soon."

At the same time, on Daojun Mountain, two figures were standing on the roof of Daojun Palace, looking up at the stars and moon, as if they could see Chang'e dancing gracefully in the moon.

Daojun sighed:
"Judging by the time, the journey to the Western Paradise is only three or four months away from reaching the Western Paradise."

Venus stood to the side, smiling and nodding.

"These ten-odd years of journeying to the West would be but a blink of an eye in heaven, but in the mortal realm, we've traveled quite a long way with them."

"Daojun, His Majesty instructed me to inform you that the Universal Mirror will be activated on the third day after Tang Sanzang and his entourage return to the East to spread the Dharma. Are you ready?"

Upon hearing this, Daojun nodded solemnly and said:

"Please inform His Majesty that I have been preparing for this matter for a long time and have already made all the necessary arrangements."

"Good, good, it's good that Daoist is prepared. However, although the Mirror of the Universe is a great opportunity, it also contains risks. Daoist, please be careful."

Seeing that Venus was so serious, Daojun nodded solemnly as well.

After Daojun and Taibai Jinxing finished discussing the matter, Jinxing took his leave not long after. However, just after Jinxing left, another figure that surprised Daojun suddenly appeared in front of him.

"Senior Yuan Sheng?"

Daojun looked at the nine-headed lion that suddenly appeared from the void and called out with some joy.

"Hey, you little rascal."

Nine Spirits looked at the Divine Physician Daoist before him with a complicated expression, as if he could see through that face a young man in a green robe smiling at him.

"Alas, now I understand why you said those things earlier, young man."

Nine-Headed Lion sighed slightly. Clearly, the Dao Lord in front of him had foreseen the scene on Bamboo Mountain. Considering that the boy had suddenly told him solemnly that he would not stand idly by, Nine-Headed Lion connected everything together.

Daojun smiled and said:

"After all, I invited you to descend to the mortal realm, so how could I let you suffer any injustice? This is just what I should do."

Nine-Headed Lion Saint shook his head and said:
"In any case, I am very grateful to you for this. Please treat the seven lion cubs well in the future. I will go and talk to them in a while to reassure them that they can serve you. This is my way of repaying the debt of saving my life."

"Don't worry, senior, I know about this."

Seeing that Daojun had seriously agreed, Nine-Spirited Ape felt relieved. After chatting with Daojun for a while, he went to find the seven lions.

Seeing that Senior Yuan Sheng had left, Dao Jun also turned back to the incense space.

He has now mostly settled matters related to the Journey to the West, and the pilgrimage has reached the gate of the Western Paradise. His mission with Venus is considered complete, and all that remains is for Tang Sanzang to bring the scriptures back to the East.

Next, he had to wait for the Universal Mirror to be activated.

He was quite looking forward to those other worlds within the chaos.

Several months later, in the Vulture Peak, Tang Sanzang and his companions overcame eighty-one tribulations, obtained the true scriptures, and attained Buddhahood with immeasurable merit.

Tang Sanzang was named the Sandalwood Merit Buddha, Sun Wukong was named the Victorious Fighting Buddha, Zhu Bajie was named the Clean Altar Messenger, Sha Wujing was named the Golden-bodied Arhat, and the White Dragon was named one of the Eight Heavenly Dragons.

At the same time, golden light flashed between heaven and earth, and immeasurable merits also fell down. Among them, the merits falling from the direction of Qiming Hall in the Heavenly Court, Luojia Mountain in the South China Sea, and Jindu Mountain were the most conspicuous.

As Niu Yi watched the golden rays of light continuously enter his body, he felt his connection with the Three Realms growing ever stronger.

At this moment, auspicious light emerged from Jindu Mountain, enveloping the entire mountain. Fortunately, the Five Elements Formation was activated, blocking the auspicious light that covered the entire Jindu Mountain.

(End of this chapter)