Journey to the West: Cultivation Begins at Jindou Mountain

Chapter 388 The Eye of the West Sea
Fifty years later, at the bottom of the Baihe River, a crystal palace, sparkling and magnificent, has been erected. The plaque above it bears five large characters: Baihe Water God's Palace.

The underground currents that once filled the Baihe River have all been calmed by the suppression of this Crystal Palace, making the Baihe River peaceful and allowing the people who depend on the Baihe River to live and work in peace.

At this moment, in the Water God's Palace, Ao Wang and Lü Yan were sitting opposite each other at the table in the main hall, chatting and laughing, surrounded by many shrimp demons and fish demons.

Fifty years have passed. Although Ao Wang had intended to befriend this person back then, after so many years of getting to know each other, they have indeed found that they share the same interests and have long become close friends who can talk about anything.

After learning about the incident at the West Sea Dragon Palace, Lü Yan felt quite sympathetic towards Ao Wang.

But who would have thought that even though his family was suddenly struck by misfortune, Ao Wang did not become depressed. Instead, he was inspired to fight.

Even though it was a waste of talent to have a real dragon manage the White River, Ao Wang had no airs of being the fourth prince of the West Sea Dragon Palace and had been working diligently in the White River all these years.

From that time on, Lü Yan developed a great fondness for this fourth prince. In addition to his own senior brothers and sisters, this prince was also one of his sparring partners and the people with whom he discussed the Dao. He could be described as a good teacher and helpful friend.

"On this trip, I plan to travel westward, following the route of the Tang Sanzang monk, to Daojun Mountain, the holy land of medicine, to pay my respects to the divine physician Daojun."

Ao Wang was slightly taken aback upon hearing this, then nodded, saying with some regret:

"To be honest, Brother Lü, my father and Daojun are also friends. When I meet him, I must regard myself as a junior. When I first came to this Baihe region, the day I met Brother Lü, it was to pay my respects to Senior Daojun."

"If possible, I would really like to go with Brother Lü to Daojun Mountain. Wouldn't it be wonderful for us brothers to travel together?"

"Unfortunately, as the River God of the White River, I cannot leave my post. I can only wish Brother Lü a safe journey and that he will be able to meet the Dao Lord as he wishes."

Lü Yan nodded with a smile.

"Then thank you for your kind words, Brother Ao."

After spending one night at the Baihe Water God's Palace, Lü Yan bid farewell to Ao Wang, left Baihe, and began his journey westward.

Ao Wang stood on the cliff, watching Lü Yan walk away into the distance, slightly lost in thought.

With his family suddenly struck by misfortune and his father still trapped in the eye of the Western Sea, how could he not be saddened? But he simply didn't want his family to worry or be disappointed.

Since his elder brother told him to cultivate diligently here, he would cultivate diligently. There were still 450 years left, which, although somewhat arduous, was not a long time for him.

Within the eye of the West Sea, sealed by thick chains, the West Sea Dragon King Ao Run sat cross-legged, meditating with his eyes closed.

There were faint, charred marks on his body, the marks left by lightning bolts that struck him.

Even after fifty years, these traces still exist, but with the passage of time, they will disappear in at most another hundred years.

Suddenly, a golden light descended from the sky, piercing the eye of the West Sea and easily passing through the thick chains, arriving before Ao Run in the center of the dark eye.

Ao Run seemed to sense a glimmer of light that had suddenly appeared in the endless darkness. He slowly opened his eyes and looked at the changing golden light spots in front of him.

"Ah, Daojun, I am guilty and unable to come forward to pay my respects. Please do not blame me."

Daojun's gentle voice slowly emanated from the golden light. "Dragon King, what are you saying? There's no need for such formalities between us."

As Daojun finished speaking, the golden light spot rapidly changed, slowly transforming into the appearance of Daojun, an incarnation formed from a drop of Daojun's magical power.

Daojun looked at Ao Run in front of him and sat cross-legged opposite him.

Seeing Daojun's reaction, Ao Run smiled and said slowly:
"Daojun's cultivation has indeed become more and more profound. Even this drop of magic power has its own exquisite magic. Even the Sea Eye Seal can hardly stop Daojun."

Daojun shook his head slightly.

“Dragon King, we both know that His Majesty the Jade Emperor did not investigate this matter thoroughly. Otherwise, how could I have appeared before you, and how could there be no one guarding this sea eye except for a seal?”

Don't be fooled by what the Jade Emperor said to him at Yaochi a few years ago, which seemed to indicate his dissatisfaction with the Dragon King of the West Sea. If he really cared that much, how could he have been punished so lightly given the strictness of the Heavenly Rules?

The punishment for the Dragon King of the West Sea was to send him back to the eye of the West Sea to reflect on his mistakes. To put it bluntly, it meant that His Majesty the Jade Emperor sent him home to face the wall and repent.

As for the thousand lightning strikes, how could the Great Dragon God who controls the rain not withstand them? He will naturally recover after a few years of recuperation.

Five hundred years is a negligible amount of time for the Dragon King of the West Sea.
The Dragon King of the West Sea sighed softly and said:
"This is also my fault. I deserve this punishment. If it weren't for His Majesty's benevolence, the West Sea Dragon Palace would have been implicated."

"Daojun, how is the Dragon Palace now? Is everything as usual?"

Upon hearing this, Daojun smiled.

"With Prince Moang presiding over the Dragon Palace of the West Sea, everything remains as before. Prince Moang's reputation and prestige in the West Sea are excellent."

"Furthermore, a few days ago, the little white dragon Ao Lie also returned from Mount Ling and went to the ancestral land of the exterminated sea race to perform a ritual for the sea race that had been wiped out, which put the hearts of many sea races at ease."

The power of the Dragon Palace in the West Sea is self-evident, and no sea creature would dare to rebel against it. However, it is hard to guarantee that those who are dissatisfied with the Dragon Palace will not outwardly comply but inwardly defy it.

Especially after this incident was exposed, the fact that the dignified Second Prince of the Dragon Palace used them to cultivate demonic arts has made it hard to guarantee that these sea creatures will not feel insecure.

Fortunately, the culprit has been eliminated, and the West Sea has returned to peace. With the eldest and third princes in charge, the status and prestige of the West Sea Dragon Palace have gradually stabilized again.

The Dragon King of the West Sea nodded with satisfaction and sighed softly.

His eldest and third sons did not disappoint him, except for Rong'er.
Looking at Ao Run's expression, Daojun knew exactly what the old dragon was thinking. The pain of losing his son and the intense disappointment made the old dragon very sad at this moment.

Daojun remained silent; such family matters were best left to the family to resolve themselves.
After a moment, the Dragon King of the West Sea came to his senses and looked apologetically at the Daoist before him:
"I am truly sorry to have made Daoist Lord laugh at me. I must thank Daoist Lord and Taibai Xingjun for pleading on my behalf in the Lingxiao Palace."

"More than four hundred years from now, I will hold a family banquet to invite Daoist Lord and Star Lord to be my guests. Please make sure you come so that I can do my best to show my appreciation."

"Alright, it's a deal then."

(End of this chapter)