Journey to the West: The Immortal Clan Begins by Feeding Monkeys at Five Elements Mountain

Chapter 144 All Laws Respond, The Dark Light Behind the Scenes

Now that the details of the Western Sea have been thoroughly investigated, much of the trouble has been saved.

Upon hearing this, Uncle-Master Chongxu simply uttered an "oh," then flipped the rough porcelain teacup in his hand over and slammed it onto the table with a "thud."

He raised his eyelids slightly, his gaze lingering on the gleaming jade ruyi held by his Martial Uncle Lingwei, his eyes displaying an ambiguous smile, and said:

"Junior sister, what do you think?"

Lingwei put down the ruyi scepter, her voice soft and gentle, yet her lips remained still, her tone unhurried and unhurried:

"Strike the snake at its vital spot, capture the kingpin to capture the thief. His so-called 'fake Sea-Stabilizing Pearl' is probably the key to his fate. If we can destroy this thing, then the black dragon's scheme will probably fall apart."

"good."

Chongxu nodded, his tone indifferent, but a hint of interest appeared at the corner of his mouth.

His gaze shifted to Ao Yu, and he called out:
"Girl, lead the way."

He paused, his tone slightly mocking, and then chuckled:

"Let's go take a look around that demon altar and check the feng shui."

His tone was nonchalant, as if he were not going on a mission to exorcise evil and punish the guilty, but merely strolling along the coast, chasing away insects and catching turtles.

As soon as he finished speaking, the disciples waiting outside perked up.

Several of them, with their restless personalities, made all sorts of hand seals in their sleeves, their cuffs flashing and revealing a few unruly spiritual lights.

Clearly, someone is secretly rubbing their hands together, eager to try their luck.

Ao Yu stood to the side, hands in his sleeves, silent, his gaze sweeping over the crowd, yet a strange feeling stirred within him.

These Taoist disciples were all radiant and full of vigor; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say they were full of ambition.

But with just a glance, she had already discerned some of the details.

His cultivation level is nothing special, probably not even as good as her, this sick dragon with its scales and horns damaged.

With this kind of force, how can we possibly storm that demon's lair?
The thought had barely formed in her mind when she caught a glimpse of Jiang Feng taking two steps forward, standing before the tall, slender senior brother, and presenting him with a sword from his robes.

"Senior Brother Zhou, your sword."

He spoke solemnly, paused, and then, as if speaking casually, added:
"A fine sword, much more handy than the ones I usually carry."

Upon hearing this, the senior student surnamed Zhou laughed heartily, his white teeth and bright eyes revealing a hint of amusement in his expression.

"It has nothing to do with the sword."

"Like that talisman you used yesterday, wasn't it exceptionally easy to use?"

Jiang Feng was taken aback, then nodded, a genuine surprise appearing between his brows:
"I had almost forgotten if you hadn't mentioned it, senior brother. Last night, the fire talisman lit up on its own before I even finished chanting the mantra... It was as if it could understand human speech."

"now it's right."

Then Senior Brother Zhou sheathed his sword, a clear sound like pearls falling onto a jade plate, before slowly and deliberately saying:
"You think we came down the mountain to escape the summer heat?"

As he spoke, he patted his shoulder, the force was not heavy and the tone was not loud, but it was just right, not too close and not too far, so that all the fellow disciples could hear him clearly.

"This trip down the mountain is not an ordinary study tour."

“What we are carrying is the imperial edict from the Celestial Master’s Mansion.”

"With the imperial edict in your possession, it means that the eyes of the patriarch are watching you. Every word, every action, every talisman, every sword is imbued with the principles of heaven, and all laws follow your every move."

"Let's not even talk about my sword..."

He paused, his gaze shifting to a clump of pine trees swaying in the wind by the roadside, a half-smile playing on his lips.
"If you happen to break off a tree branch, as long as you can make a hand seal and send it out, it can be a good thing to subdue demons and monsters."

Upon hearing this, several fellow disciples who had been listening intently to the gossip burst into laughter, some rolling up their sleeves in agreement, others nodding vigorously, creating a lively atmosphere.

Ao Yu didn't laugh, but just watched quietly. A ripple suddenly appeared in her eyes, as if she was recalling Jiang Feng's sword strike yesterday...

Just as they were pondering, Martial Uncle Lingwei's clear and cold voice rang out, instantly silencing everyone's playful banter.

"Remember, stick together and don't stray too far from me."

She still held the jade ruyi in her arms, not even lifting her eyelids, as if repeating family precepts to a group of not-so-clever children.

"Yes, uncle."

Everyone quickly cupped their hands in response, speaking in unison, their expressions becoming more solemn.

So, led by the dragon girl Ao Yu, the group filed out of Tingchao Xiaozhu and headed toward "Black Wind Cliff".

The sea breeze, carrying salt frost and the smell of dampness, swept across my face. The bluestone under my feet had long been worn and rough by the seawater, making it almost slippery.

At first, the wind was quite refreshing, like a flute brushing against your ears, but it became increasingly strange as you went on.

It sounded as if someone was sobbing and humming softly in the wind tunnel, sometimes loud, sometimes soft, sometimes to the left, sometimes to the right, sending a chill down one's spine and making one's palms sweat slightly.

The air itself smelled different, first of blood, then mixed with the salty, fishy smell common among aquatic creatures, and finally a damp, rotten, fishy stench.

Suddenly, something moved in the shadow cast by the pile of rocks ahead.

Several dark figures suddenly flashed by, like owls swooping down on mice, silent and stealthy, yet terrifyingly fast.

"coming."

Senior Brother Zhou's voice was so low it was almost inaudible. Before he finished speaking, he leaned forward slightly, his five fingers lightly resting on the hilt of his sword. His aura seemed to be rising like an undercurrent beneath the waves, condensing inch by inch.

The dark figures arrived in the blink of an eye, their movements strange, their bodies twisting like eels slithering through a net, their eyes gleaming with a ghostly green light that flickered eerily.

It's neither human nor particularly intelligent.

Judging from their descriptions, they are mostly shrimp soldiers and crab generals who have just begun to take on a human form, but they are very perceptive and have wicked minds.

Everyone felt a chill run down their spines, but their feet didn't move an inch.

A wisp of talismanic light flashed out first, like a cold lamp illuminating the night, followed by a sword shadow that lightly sliced ​​through the ice like water breaking through ice.

The movements were extremely light, yet incredibly swift and swift, without any hesitation, like a skilled butcher dissecting an ox, knowing exactly how to do it.

Before those few lesser demons could even utter a sound, or even manage a decent scream, they were reduced to a wisp of black smoke with a "poof".

The sea breeze swept it away, leaving it completely clean, as if it had never been there.

Ao Yu saw it all clearly from behind, and a sudden unease crept into his heart.

She had seen the two senior brothers who made the move before; their cultivation was nothing special. In terms of true foundation, they were clearly inferior to her.

However, the way the sword and talisman fell was not particularly fierce, but surprisingly smooth, like water flowing down jade steps, following the natural flow of the heavens.

Just like the sword light, which contains a bit of the "principle" of the Heavenly Way, it is majestic without anger and self-destructive without being cut.

So much so that the evil spirit had no choice but to accept it all and vanish into thin air.

Jiang Feng didn't have a suitable tool, so he didn't hesitate. He walked to the roadside, picked up a withered tree battered by wind and rain, and broke off a branch about the thickness of a finger.

He took out a "Spirit Blade Talisman" from his pocket, and without chanting a spell or making any gestures, simply stuck it on.

In an instant, the withered branches glowed with a faint bluish light, exuding a slight chill, like old iron being newly forged and unsheathed for the first time.

He weighed it in his hand, then casually swung it forward.

A crescent-shaped green light suddenly detached from the branch, making no sound, yet it traced a light arc several feet long.

With a soft "sizzle," a rock about half a person's height split in two, the cut surface as smooth as a mirror, almost reflecting a person's image.

As expected, following the Celestial Master's decree, all laws were fulfilled.

He slightly curled his fingers under his sleeve, a subtle change in his eyes, but he remained silent.

But recalling what Senior Brother Zhou had just said, she couldn't help but glance at the Martial Uncle Lingwei in front of her.

The uncle walked with composure and indifference, always keeping a jade ruyi scepter close to his sleeve.

Jiang Feng lowered his gaze slightly, and he understood what was going on.

When he looked at Black Wind Cliff again, the demonic aura on the cliff was still heavy, but the initial brilliance in his eyes was gone.

Their pace slowed, and they took each step with a leisurely air, as if they were exploring a secluded mountain or taking a casual stroll.

Ao Yu lagged behind, her steps slowing slightly, but her gaze remained fixed on that figure's back.

The thin branch in Jiang Feng's hand, dry and bone-like, which was originally useless, now seemed to be wielded with great force, its green light flickering, and a faint sword sound could be heard as the branch tip trembled slightly.

Occasionally, a small demon would peek out from a crevice in the reef, but before it could even reveal itself, it would be sliced ​​off by a flash of cold light from a branch, leaving not even a sound.

Ao Yu's eyebrows twitched slightly, and she was taken aback.

This kind of demeanor hardly resembles that of a novice disciple who has just left the mountain gate.
He was clearly the extraordinary person mentioned by chance in ancient books and fragments, who roamed the clouds and seas with a branch and slew demons with a wave of his sleeve.

It was supposed to be a dangerous place, a den of demons, but as this group charged up there, the younger generation seemed to be practicing their martial arts.

More than ten people took turns attacking, their swords flashing and talismans flying, leaving nothing but shattered bones and ashes in their wake, none of them able to withstand a single blow.

Everything went smoothly, so smoothly that one almost forgot that the mountain path beneath one's feet was for the purpose of exorcising evil.

It wasn't until we reached the halfway point up the mountain that the road ahead began to become somewhat turbulent.

Ahead, nestled among the rugged mountain walls, lies a dark cave, its entrance crouching like a beast's mouth, emanating an eerie aura that rushes towards you, like the surging tides of a river.

In the very center of the cave, there was a chair, made of layers of white bones, resembling a somber throne.

Leaning against it was a burly, demonic figure, covered in black armor, with short horns growing out, and two sideburns still trembling. Before he even spoke, his stench was already palpable. That was the Black Dragon King.

It was sitting firmly, coldly waiting for the group of young Taoists to walk into its trap, but it never expected that the other side would kill so calmly and without any hindrance.

The monster was stunned when it saw the person approaching.

His two vertical pupils blinked slightly, and after a long while, as if he had just woken up from a dream, he let out a low roar, grabbed the three-pronged fork next to him, and raised his waist slightly, as if he was about to get up.

However, he could only keep the thought of "wanting to rise" to himself.

Over there, Senior Uncle Chongxu didn't even glance at him from beginning to end, only lazily raising his sleeves.

Then a wisp of energy fell silently, like a mountain pressing down on the eaves, like a bell suppressing the soul, and boomed down from above.

"boom."

Wu Jiao, along with his chair, was pinned to the spot, unable to move an inch. Before he could even raise his trident, his face had already turned from pale to ashen, and cold sweat beaded on his forehead.

His throat trembled slightly before he was about to speak.

Martial Uncle Lingwei stepped forward lightly, her sleeves fluttering slightly, and pointed gently at the jade ruyi in her hand.

A sliver of light, warm and smooth as water, its brightness not even comparable to the tail of a night insect.

The black dragon seemed to have its bones and tendons pulled out from its spine. Its demonic power dissipated in an instant, and before it could even struggle, it knelt down with a thud.

The three-pronged fork landed with a thud, kicking up a cloud of dust, as if all the glory was just a little noise.

"Immortal, spare me... Senior, spare me..."

Wu Jiao knelt on the ground, kowtowing three times, his forehead slightly red.

His voice was hoarse, and every word trembled:
"This lowly demon...this lowly demon is merely following orders, please forgive me, senior..."

The word "覆" had barely touched his lips when he suddenly paused.

In the dark cave, the air seemed to be pressed down.

A beam of black light emerged from the void, silently, like ink turning into smoke, and landed on the black dragon's brow.

There was no sign of a broken skin, no unusual sound, as if someone had lightly applied a grain of cinnabar to his skin with an extremely black ink brush.

The black light vanished without a trace in the next instant.

Wu Jiao's expression remained anxious as if he were begging for mercy, but his expression seemed to have been emptied of something in an instant.

His mouth was open, but he was silent. His eyes, which had once burned like fire, were now as dark as a flickering candle, slowly losing their light.

His tall body swayed slightly, but without struggling, he leaned back and fell heavily beside the bone chair.

Dust rose slightly.

The surroundings suddenly became extremely quiet.

Even the sea breeze, which had been howling incessantly, now seemed to have its throat quietly gripped.

The disciples who had been chatting and laughing just moments before all changed their expressions.

Some people swallowed hard, while others clenched their fingers tightly, making the talisman they hadn't yet used wrinkle.

For a moment, they even forgot to let go.

Uncle-Master Chongxu's hand, which he usually stroked with his beard, was still suspended in mid-air, the posture unchanged, but his fingertips trembled slightly.

Even Lingwei Shishu's usually aloof eyes finally rippled, very shallow and faint, yet concealing a hint of... chill.

She glanced down at the jade ruyi in her sleeve.

It remains as warm and smooth as ever, with a deep, lustrous sheen, yet holding it in my palm now feels like holding a piece of ice.

She slowly raised her eyes and met the gaze of her Uncle-Master Chongxu. A deep sense of horror flashed across both of their eyes.

That jade ruyi is named "Yingchi".

It is a relic left by the patriarch and personally cast by the Celestial Master. It is neither a weapon nor a talisman, but rather a symbol of divine mandate and a document of imperial decree.

When the decree is given, it is as if the Heavenly Master himself has arrived, all laws obey the command, and evil spirits flee.

That is precisely why I have been able to travel so calmly along the way.

But that black light just now...

Without stirring a single wisp of spiritual energy or arousing the slightest ripple in the Dharma domain, it passed directly through the aura of "Responding to the Edict".

Under the shroud of the Heavenly Master's decree, the demon's life was taken silently and swiftly.

There was neither the shock of heaven nor the backlash of the seal; it was so still that not even a ripple was stirred.

Just like this ruyi scepter, it never existed from beginning to end.

The cave was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

King Wujiao lay sprawled beside the bone chair, his eyes wide open, but his pupils had already turned completely black.

Just then, a wisp of black light quietly emerged from the depths of the cave.

It was more solid than before, wrapped around a bead of crimson blood, from which a faint howl could be heard. As soon as it appeared, it turned into a mournful cry, as shrill as tearing silk.

The black light coils around the beads, and they can be retrieved and gone in an instant.

"Leave."

Uncle-Master Chongxu's hand, which had been hovering in the air, suddenly clenched, the sound as clear as metal and stone, showing no trace of laziness.

Lingwei Shishu's expression had long since faded, turning as white as the ray of Ruyi light that had not yet been withdrawn.

Without uttering a word, she slowly handed over the jade ruyi from her bosom, gently placing her other hand on it, and stood side by side with her Uncle-Master Chongxu.

Their eyes met briefly, and then they hesitated no longer.

Suddenly, the radiance of the Ruyi scepter in the imperial edict intensified, its light pouring out like water, illuminating the entire cave as bright as day.

A powerful pressure arose, unhurried yet overwhelming.

The Celestial Master's decree, as imposing as a mountain, rose from the Ruyi and slowly pressed down on the fleeing black light, without a sound, yet like a thousand pounds falling on dust.

This time, they really went all out.

The majesty of the Celestial Master's Mansion would not allow a wisp of mysterious light of unknown origin to pass by so casually.
But the black light, facing the all-out radiance of the decree, showed neither fear nor alarm.

After only a slight pause, it leisurely and lightly passed through again.

That majestic power, as imposing as a mountain, seemed to be nothing more than mist and morning haze.
That clear, mercury-like radiance was like a bubble reflected in the void.

There was no impact, no collapse, not even a ripple.

The black light, carrying the blood bead, turned slightly and was about to disappear into the sky.

It never showed any murderous intent from beginning to end; it was just like a ghost determined to take something, with everyone else merely in the background.

"puff."

Uncle-Master Chongxu's shoulders trembled slightly. He swallowed a mouthful of blood, but his face was already flushed red.

Uncle Lingwei remained expressionless, except for a trace of crimson seeping from the corner of his mouth, and the knuckles of his hand holding the Ruyi scepter turning white, with the joints trembling slightly.

The gleam on that "Imperial Edict" ruyi scepter, like a flickering lamp in the wind, dimmed inch by inch.

Just when the cave was deathly silent and everyone's hearts were breaking.

"Give it back."

A clear shout suddenly rang out, carrying a faint dragon's roar that pierced through gold and shattered stone, like a mountain sparrow startled by a sudden night rain.

It was Ao Yu.

Her eyes gleamed with a mixture of bloodlust and tears. She bit her lip lightly, and red veins were already seeping from the corners of her lips, but she didn't care at all.

The next instant, his figure transformed into a streak of white light, shooting through the air and chasing after the black light that had vanished.

That dragon's roar sounded less like a divine power and more like a mournful cry.

Jiang Feng, who was standing beside her, never looked away from her.

Seeing her fly away, he did not hesitate or think. With a light tap of his toes and a flick of his sleeve, he gripped the withered branch even tighter.

With a flash, the man in green followed suit, moving like an arrow released from a bow.

"return!"

"No!"

Uncle-Master Chongxu and Uncle-Master Lingwei spoke almost simultaneously, but it was already too late.

Everything happened so fast, without any warning.

Before their shock had even subsided, before the word "return" could even be uttered, it was torn to shreds by the sea wind rushing in from outside the cave.

Only one white and one blue remained, following each other like two swallows skimming the waves, disappearing into that dark, silent black light that even the Heavenly Master's decrees could not extinguish.

(End of this chapter)