Journey to the West: The roadblock!

Chapter 85 Treasure Hunt in the Lotus Cave (Part 11)
Meanwhile, the demonic dragon was not afraid of the divine thunder, and the gods were at a loss, so they set up camp on the spot to discuss the matter.

Li Tianwang asked Wukong if there was any way to subdue the demon.

Wukong shook his head and said, "His Majesty has ordered the Heavenly King to lead the troops, so I dare not speak presumptuously."

Li Tianwang consulted with the other gods and generals, and finally decided that the Four Heavenly Kings would challenge the five gods of the Fire Department—Tail Fire Tiger, Chamber Fire Pig, Beak Fire Monkey, Winged Fire Serpent, and Fire-Receiving Heavenly Lord—to burn the demons with heavenly fire the next day. The other gods would provide assistance when the opportunity arose.

The next day, the Four Heavenly Kings descended from the clouds.

The Heavenly King of Growth, Mo Liqing, wielded the Azure Cloud Sword, which possessed the power of earth, water, fire, and wind. With a single strike, he slashed at the entrance to the demon cave.

But it did not move.

The Heavenly King of Growth was greatly surprised. Upon closer inspection, he realized that the red cloth on the door was actually the Third Prince's Hun Tian Ling (a magical ribbon).

The Heavenly King of Growth, sword in hand, roared, "Demon dragon, come out and face your death!"

Ao Tu was drinking with Golden Horn and Silver Horn inside the cave when he heard the voices outside and said, "My two virtuous brothers, don't stop the feast. I'll be right back."

Golden Horn and Silver Horn said, "Brother, please go ahead. We'll warm the wine for you."

Ao Tu, holding the purple-gold gourd, walked out of the cave and met the Heavenly King of Growth, laughing:

"King of Growth, I will not fight you. I will call your name once. If you dare to answer, then you have won!"

The Heavenly King of Growth said, "What's there to be afraid of? Shout it out!"

Ao Tu raised the purple-gold gourd and said, "King of Growth!"

The Heavenly King of Growth said, "Exactly!"

With a whoosh, the Heavenly King of Growth was sucked into the gourd.

All the gods in heaven were astonished and asked, "What kind of treasure is that?"

Upon seeing this, the Heavenly Kings Dhritarashtra, Virupaksha, and Vaishravana stepped forward together and said, "Demon dragon, what kind of demonic magic did you use to suck our brother into the gourd? Quickly release him!"

Ao Tu laughed and said, "If I call your name and you dare to answer, then release him."

The three Heavenly Kings all said, "Demon dragon, how could we fall for your trick? Take this!"

The three Heavenly Kings, each wielding a treasure, attacked Ao Tu.

The five fire generals—Tail Fire Tiger, Chamber Fire Pig, Beak Fire Monkey, Wing Fire Serpent, and Fire-Connecting Heavenly Lord—simultaneously unleashed heavenly fire, burning towards Ao Tu.

The Thunder God also unleashed divine thunder.

Ao Tu pointed the gourd at the three Heavenly Kings and said:

"Dhritarashtra, Virupaksha, Vaishravana!"

Upon seeing this, the three Heavenly Kings all fell silent, not daring to utter a sound.

Ao Tu smiled, uttered a command to collect, and sucked all three of them in.

Jie Huotianjun was shocked and said, "Oh no! That treasure can still take people in even if they don't agree!"

Just as they were about to leave, Ao Tu pointed at the five members of the Fire Department, chanted "Collect," and collected the five Fire Department deities into his cave as well, before returning to his cave in triumph.

In the heavens, the gods were still trembling.

Qin Tianjun said, "Li Tianwang, why aren't you helping?"

Li Tianwang said, "How can I not exert myself?"

Qin Tianjun said, "Just now, that demonic dragon was besieged by the three Heavenly Kings. The five gods of the Fire Department burned it with heavenly fire, and the generals of my Thunder Department sent down divine thunder to help in the battle. All the gods fought hard against the enemy. Why didn't you take the opportunity to use the pagoda to subdue the demonic dragon? Isn't that just not putting in any effort?"

Seeing that everyone was looking at him, Li Tianwang had no choice but to say:

"I was just about to use the tower when the demonic dragon went back."

The gods then returned to their camp to discuss the matter, but they could not find a solution.

The Plague Envoys Zhou Xin and Li Qi said:
"Don't rush. Tomorrow, the two of us will set up a plague array, spread the plague, and punish the demons in the cave. We can win without a fight!"

Li Tianwang was overjoyed and exclaimed, "Great!"

On the other side, Ao Tu returned to his cave, shook his gourd, and released the Four Heavenly Kings and the Five Gods of Fire. He then ordered his men to tie them up with ropes and lock them in the dungeon.

Of the five fire gods, apart from the Fire-Receiving Heavenly Lord, the other four winked at Ao Tu, seemingly wanting to say something.

Ao Tu then ordered his men to bring the four of them out separately.

They are Tail Fire Tiger, Chamber Fire Pig, Beak Fire Monkey, and Wing Fire Snake.

These four are the main gods of the fire department, and also the four fire gods of the Twenty-Eight Mansions.

The four men, upon seeing Ao Tu, bowed and said:
"Your Majesty, after we were taken away by Guanyin Bodhisattva in Baoxiang Kingdom, the array diagram was hidden on Kui Mulang's body. Later, it was taken to Dou Niu Palace. Somehow, the news was leaked and it was borrowed by Emperor Gouchen. He held a 'Star Contemplation Meeting' in Dou Niu Palace, inviting all the stars in the sky to contemplate it together every day."

Ao Tu asked, "Who are they?"

The four said, “Above are the Five Dipper Star Lords, the Upper Enclosure of Taiwei Enclosure, the Middle Enclosure of Ziwei Enclosure, the Lower Enclosure of Tianshi Enclosure, the Heavenly Gang and Earthly Fiends, the Milky Way Stars, and all the myriad stars of the heavens. Except for Doumu Yuanjun, all the other stars are here.”

Upon hearing this, Ao Tu frowned slightly, sensing that things might be getting serious.

How come the system's half-month reward has attracted so many people...?

Ao Tu asked, "Do they know that the battle formation diagram is mine?"

The four said, "When the Great Emperor Gouchen and the Great Emperor Ziwei came to ask, we minor deities of the stars dared not conceal anything."

Ao Tu said, "What did you say?"

The four men said, "We will tell you the truth. We said that the king killed Ananda and got it from him."

Ao Tu thought for a moment and said, "When you return, tell the two emperors that this painting has been presented to all the stars in the heavens as a congratulatory gift."

The four men replied happily, "Yes!"

Ao Tu said, "You may all go down and meditate in the cell."

The four replied, "Yes!"

After the four left, Ao Tu returned to his room, still looking somewhat worried.

Upon seeing this, Guanyin Bodhisattva asked, "What's wrong?"

Ao Tu said, "It's none of your business."

The next day, Zhou Xin and Li Qi, messengers of the Plague Department, set up a plague array. Twelve plague umbrellas were erected in the sky, and four plague-pointing swords were suspended in each of the four cardinal directions. They chanted incantations and immediately set up the plague array, releasing plague fumes. The two laughed and said, "With this array in place, within seven days, all the evil spirits in this cave will die from the plague!"

King Li was overjoyed and prepared to celebrate the two generals' victory ahead of schedule.

Wukong said anxiously, "My master is still in the cave. If we use this plague formation, won't we harm him too?"

Zhou Xin and Li Qi laughed and said, "Great Sage, do not worry. We have already cast a spell. This formation is only for demons and evil spirits and will not harm your master!"

Wukong said, "That's good, that's good!"

As soon as the plague formation appeared, the little demons inside the Lotus Cave became dizzy, pale, foaming at the mouth, and burning with fever.

The Golden Horn King and the Silver Horn King were also affected; they couldn't drink or eat, and lay in bed, listless.

Upon seeing this, Ao Tu said, "This must be the monkey who invited the Plague Department's men to release the plague. Don't worry, my men, and don't be afraid, my two brothers. Let me find a way to break this."

Ao Tu entered the room, took a porcelain cup, and revealed five-colored divine light. He dripped three drops of the Three Lights Divine Water into the cup, preparing to dilute it with water for the little demons to drink.

Upon seeing this, Guanyin Bodhisattva exclaimed in surprise, "What are you doing?"

Ao Tu said, "Someone outside is spreading plague. I'll use some divine water to cure the poison."

Guanyin Bodhisattva asked, "How many millions of people have been affected by the plague?"

Ao Tu said, "There are no tens of thousands, only a few hundred lesser demons in the cave."

Guanyin Bodhisattva hurriedly reached out to snatch the cup from Ao Tu's hand.

Ao Tu, however, was quick and took the cup first.

Ao Tu asked, "What are you doing?"

Guanyin Bodhisattva took out a willow branch and said, "Give me the Three Lights Divine Water. A single drop of this divine water can save millions of people. How can you squander it like this? Wave this willow branch and the plague will be dispelled."

Ao Tu said, "I see. Give me the willow branch, and I will give you the divine water."

Guanyin Bodhisattva gave the willow branch to Ao Tu.

Ao Tu took the willow branch, turned around, and left.

Outside, the little demons lay on the ground, groaning.

Ao Tu waved the willow branch, and divine light shone down, dispelling the plague and healing all the little demons. He then waved it at Golden Horn and Silver Horn, who also regained their strength.

Ao Tu then went into the prison cell.

Inside the prison cave, Tang Sanzang was unharmed.

But Zhu Bajie contracted a plague.

His face was flushed red, he was panting heavily, drooling, and foaming at the mouth. He huddled in the straw in the cell and remained silent for a long time.

Tang Sanzang asked anxiously, "Bajie, Bajie, how are you?"

Sha Wujing said, "Master, Second Brother has contracted swine fever and is about to die!"

Bajie, huddled in the straw, cursed, "You plague-ridden Sha Wujing, you're the one with swine fever! I just caught a cold, I'll just warm myself up and sweat it out."

Ao Tu then came over, first waving a willow branch to heal the little demon guarding the area, and then asked:
"Anyone in the jail who's been infected with the plague? If so, just say so. If not, I'm leaving."

Upon hearing this, Pigsy wanted to get up, but felt a little embarrassed.

The little demon guarding the gate said, "Great King, it seems that Pigsy has been infected with the plague. He's been huddled there for a long time without moving. Perhaps he's dead."

Another minor demon:

"He's not dead. He seemed to be talking just now, but he's not far from dying. I think we should find a hole and bury him to prevent him from spreading the virus to others!"

Upon hearing this, Pigsy rolled aside the straw and came out, saying:

"You plague-ridden demon, you're the one who's dead! Your Majesty, please heal this old pig! I've been feeling unwell for ages!"

Upon hearing this, Ao Tu smiled and used a willow branch to sweep away the plague from Bajie.

Tang Monk put his hands on his chest and said, "Good! Good!"

Outside, Li Tianwang and his followers waited for seven days.

Seven days later, Zhou Xin and Li Qi said, "Your Majesty, the time has come. All the demons in the cave must be dead!"

Li Tianwang was overjoyed and said, "Giant Spirit God, I hereby appoint you as the vanguard to enter the cave and investigate!"

When the Giant Spirit heard this, he realized that all the demons in the cave had died, and that sending him to be the vanguard was like handing him a piece of credit.

He was overjoyed and said, "Thank you, Heavenly King!" Holding two large, ornate axes, he strode down from the clouds with his celestial soldiers, landing at the entrance of the Lotus Cave.

The giant spirit, eager to show off, chopped the cave entrance with his axe, which sent him tumbling backward.

It turns out that the red cloth on the door was a magic ribbon.

This Hun Tian Ling (a type of magical ribbon) combines both strength and flexibility. When used normally, it is softer than a cloud and lighter than mist; however, when clashed with swords or hammers, it is harder than divine iron.

The Heavenly King of Growth had suffered a loss before, but before he could explain the situation, he was taken into the Purple Gold Red Gourd by Ao Tu. Now the Giant Spirit God has suffered another loss.

The giant spirit god pushed aside the Hun Tian Ling (a magical ribbon) and walked inside.

Inside the cave, one could see a group of lesser demons: those guarding the gate, those patrolling, those talking, and those keeping watch.

The giant spirit panicked and hurriedly fled.

Upon seeing this, the little demons hurriedly reported:
"Your Majesty, a big, dumb guy has come in and barged in with his men."

Ao Tu said, "I'll go out and get him!"

The giant spirit rushed out of the lotus cave, ignoring the heavenly soldiers, and fled directly into the sky, shouting, "It doesn't work! It doesn't work! That plague formation doesn't work!"

Before Li Tianwang knew what was going on, he saw Ao Tu fly out of the cave and chase after the Giant Spirit God.

Li Tianwang hurriedly said, "Quickly, help the Giant Spirit God!"

Upon hearing this, all the gods cast spells together. The twenty-four Heavenly Kings of the Thunder Department unleashed divine thunder, Zhou Xin and Li Qi of the Plague Department released plague, and the one hundred and eight Heavenly and Earthly Stars released starlight to destroy the enemy.

Li Tianwang looked at the tower in his hand and thought that if he didn't take action now, Qin Tianjun would definitely scold him again. Since Nezha wasn't around, he put the tower down.

Wukong also joined in, casting a fire spell and chanting a wind spell to help.

(End of this chapter)