Journey to the West: The roadblock!

Chapter 142 The Battle of Wits in Chechi Kingdom (Part 12)
Meanwhile, the Queen Mother of the West was recruiting male and female immortals from all realms to manage the Flower Realm.

Mingniang was lucky enough to be chosen.

A celestial official came to the Blackwater River and led the Sea Maiden to the mortal realm.

Mingniang was overjoyed. From this day forward, she was no longer a rogue cultivator, but a celestial maiden. If she were fortunate enough to gain the favor of the Queen Mother of the West, she would ascend to heaven in one fell swoop.

Full of anticipation, Mingniang ascended to the celestial realm and was led by a celestial official to a misty celestial pool.

Beside that fairy pool, there were many women like Mingniang, all selected from various realms.

The celestial official said, "This is the Celestial Pool. Stepping into the pool can cleanse your mortal body and condense your immortal bones. Hurry up and enter the pool."

Upon hearing this, all the women entered the pool, and Mingniang followed suit.

That fairy pool truly has endless uses.

In an instant, the women shed their mortal bodies and became immortals.

To Mingniang's delight, the demon blood that she found so repulsive was also washed away.

This is precisely what it means to undergo a complete transformation.

Mingniang was already quite beautiful, but now she has become even more ethereal and graceful.

Mingniang couldn't help but wonder, if she were in her current state, would that guy still be so dismissive of her?

However, when she glanced around casually, she was surprised to find that the countless fairies around her, after bathing in the Heavenly Fairy Pool, were no less beautiful than her, and many were even more beautiful.

Mingniang couldn't help but marvel at the vastness of the world. She thought to herself that she had once been the most beautiful woman within a thousand miles of the Blackwater River, but now, in the Heavenly Realm, she was no different from anyone else.

However, this only fueled Mingniang's desire to rise above others.

Even if she were in the celestial realm, she believed that with her abilities, she would never be forgotten by the crowd.

Led by the celestial official, Mingniang and a group of fairies were registered in the celestial register, given celestial robes, and then led to a flower pond.

The flower pond was vast, and Mingniang thought to herself that this must be the flower realm where they would be managing things.

After bringing Mingniang and the others over, the celestial official only said one sentence, "Wait here," and then left.

Mingniang and hundreds of other fairies waited curiously by the flower pond.

Mingniang noticed that there was a female fairy in the flower pond, seemingly tending to the flowers and plants.

Mingniang thought for a moment, then went inside without permission.

Stepping into the flower bed, Mingniang walked carefully, not daring to trample on the flowers and plants.

Actually, those flowers and plants are not ordinary. As long as they are not deliberately trampled, it is not a big deal to step on some branches and leaves.

Once inside, Mingniang saw the female immortal and went closer.

The female immortal was somewhat thin, and she wore a light blue silk robe with orchid patterns on the collar. The style was different from the immortal robes she had already changed into.

For some reason, the female immortal did not seem to have entered the Celestial Pool to cleanse herself of worldly impurities. Mingniang sensed a faint scent of grass and trees from her and wondered if she was a spirit of grass and trees in human form.
Mingniang could only see half of the female immortal's profile, not her whole face. However, even with just half a profile, Mingniang had a vague feeling that the other woman's appearance seemed to surpass her own.

Mingniang felt a little jealous, but she concealed it well.

Not knowing the identity of the female immortal, Mingniang dared not speak casually, but simply watched quietly from the side.

The female immortal was currently casting a spell, channeling her essence into a white peony flower. As a result, her attention was focused on the peony flower, and she did not notice Mingniang behind her.

Perhaps due to the loss of too much vital energy, the female immortal became somewhat dazed and lost her balance, falling backward.

Seeing this, Mingniang reached out to support the female immortal and said, "Sister, be careful."

Although Mingniang didn't know the female immortal's identity, she could sense that the immortal's cultivation level was only at the initial stage of human form, so calling her "sister" was not inappropriate. The female immortal was helped up by Mingniang and thanked her, saying, "Thank you, elder sister."

Upon seeing the female immortal's appearance, Mingniang's pupils contracted, secretly thinking that she was far superior to herself. However, she remained outwardly calm, smiled gently, and asked casually, "Sister, there's no need to be so polite. What are you doing? Why are you losing so much of your vital energy?"

The female immortal said, "I am the transformed flower of this pond, named Jiangzhu. This peony fairy flower is my sister. We originally cultivated together and agreed to transform together. But I was lucky and obtained some opportunities, so I transformed ahead of time."

Mingniang said, "This is a good thing, why do you not look happy, sister?"

Jiangzhu said, “Of course it’s a good thing for me. But not long ago, the Queen Mother ordered that all the immortal flowers and herbs be transplanted to the Flower Realm. This transplantation is a calamity for us plant spirits. If we are lucky and there is no damage, that would be great fortune; if we are unlucky and our roots are damaged by the strongmen who transplanted the flowers and herbs, our years of hard cultivation will be wasted and our foundation will be severely damaged. I was worried that Peony would be damaged, so I transferred my own essence to her in order to help her take human form.”

Hearing Jiangzhu's words, the peony fairy flower beside her swayed gently and nuzzled against her.

After hearing this, Mingniang realized that the other party was merely an ordinary plant in human form and had no real status. If the other party had a status, she wouldn't have wasted her own energy on such a trivial matter. Mingniang's desire to befriend them diminished somewhat.

After resting for a while, Jiangzhu continued to transfer her essence to the peony fairy flower.

While taking the opportunity, Mingniang chatted with Jiangzhu, praising Jiangzhu's loyalty and righteousness while inquiring about some matters of the celestial realm.

As a newcomer, Mingniang naturally needed to understand the various affairs of the Heavenly Realm in order to quickly establish herself.

Jiangzhu had few friends, and when Mingniang came to ask her questions, she didn't mind and told Mingniang a lot about the Heavenly Realm.

However, Mingniang soon discovered that Jiangzhu had only recently taken human form and did not know much about the affairs of the Heavenly Realm. Therefore, after not being able to get any information from her, Mingniang said goodbye and left.

No one cared about the connection between the two.

The celestial officials continued to guide female immortals from various realms to the celestial pool. In addition to female immortals, there were also male immortals. However, the female immortals and male immortals were not in the same celestial pool, so the celestial officials in charge of guiding them were different.

On the other side, Tang Sanzang and his disciples traveled westward along the main road, during early spring.

But we see:

The air is warm with the fragrance of flowers, and the clouds are light with fresh sunlight.

Willows unfurl their green leaves, rain brings forth spring in all things.

The four travelers spotted a city in the distance, which turned out to be the capital of Chechi Kingdom.

Pigsy said, "Great! Master, let's hurry into the city, find an inn to rest, and get a vegetarian meal to fill our stomachs!"

Tang Sanzang said, “Bajie, we must not be careless. We have heard along the way that the Kingdom of Chechi dislikes monks. In some towns we pass through, it is difficult to even beg for alms, and Wukong has to beg from afar. I think this city is not a place to stay for long. Let’s exchange our travel permits and hurry westward, lest we offend the people of this country.”

Wukong laughed and said, "Master, you've encountered countless demons and monsters and endured so many tribulations along the way, what are you afraid of?"

Tang Sanzang said, "It's not that I'm afraid of them, but I'm afraid of causing trouble and delaying the great journey to obtain the scriptures. I originally thought we would arrive in three to five years, but who would have thought that we haven't even covered half the distance yet, and we have to turn back? I'm afraid I'll break my promise to His Majesty..."

Wukong laughed and said, "Master, don't worry, His Majesty is blessed with great fortune and will surely be able to wait for you to return from your pilgrimage."

Tang Sanzang sighed and said, "I hope so."

The four of them continued on their way and entered the city. Just as they were about to look for an inn, they saw a family performing a religious ceremony, with banners and streamers. Two monks went inside.

Bajie, with his sharp eyes, saw this scene and said:

“Master, I have always said that words should not be believed lightly, and now it has indeed come to pass.”

Tang Sanzang asked, "What's wrong?"

Bajie said, "What do you mean by hating monks? Weren't two monks the ones who went into that family's funeral ceremony just now?"

Sha Wujing said, "Second Brother is right. I saw it too. There were two monks."

(End of this chapter)