The Great Bandit of Journey to the West

Chapter 159 Water Monkey

Amidst the billowing black smoke, Wukong's eyes watered from the fumes. He quickly cast a spell to disperse the smoke in the forest.

When his eyes returned to normal, he looked up and saw Bai Suzhen and the little white dragon protecting Jiang Feng on either side. None of the three of them had suffered any harm, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

"Master, I'm so glad you're alright. I'm terrified of smoke, and that monster managed to escape."

Jiang Feng said calmly, "I'm fine, but someone among us must be in trouble. Why don't you guess who it is?"

""

Wukong glanced around and found that Bajie was hiding behind a big tree with his butt sticking out, looking completely unharmed.

"Oh no, Master! Junior Brother Sha has been captured by a monster!"

Upon not finding Sha Wujing, Wukong exclaimed in surprise, revealing an anxious expression.

Jiang Feng sighed sadly, "Alas, another one who wants to eat Sha Wujing's flesh. Poor Wujing."

1

"Isn't his pitiful state all your fault? —"

Bai Suzhen was already too lazy to complain anymore, and said, "You've figured out where this little demon comes from, haven't you?"

Jiang Feng smiled and nodded, then looked at Wukong: "Wukong, this little demon is your nephew whom you've never met."

Wukong scratched his head and said, "Master, this monster's true form is a calf, not a monkey. How could it be related to me, Old Sun?"

Jiang Feng explained, "He is the child of your sworn brother, the Bull Demon King, and Princess Iron Fan. His nickname is Red Boy."

Unable to endure Princess Iron Fan's discipline, he ran away to this place, seizing control of the mountain and becoming its king. He even extorted tribute from the mountain gods and local deities. If they refused, he would capture them, take them to his cave, beat and scold them, and demolish their temples. He was a truly unruly brat.

"what!"

Wukong exclaimed in surprise, then laughed, "So he really is a relative of mine! That makes things easier. I'll go and reveal my identity to him, and ask him to release Brother Sha!"

Jiang Feng remained noncommittal, saying, "He might not acknowledge you as his uncle. If you really want to go, you must be careful of his Samadhi True Fire."

Wukong proudly declared, "Even the fire in Laozi's alchemy furnace can't harm me, Old Sun. He's just a child. Even if he's skilled in fire magic, why would I, Old Sun, be afraid of him?"

Jiang Feng advised, "This Samadhi True Fire is generated by the five elements and is inexhaustible. Water cannot extinguish it; on the contrary, it will help it burn. Don't underestimate it."

"I, Old Sun, can save that!"

Wukong didn't take Red Boy, this junior, seriously at all. He rode away on a cloud and arrived at the front of the Fire Cloud Cave in the blink of an eye.

Upon seeing the little demon at the cave entrance, Wukong said smugly, "Go quickly and inform your king to come out and greet his uncle!"

""

The little demon hurriedly went inside to report, and soon Red Boy came out with a furious expression, brandishing his fire-tipped spear: "You damned monkey, how dare you try to take advantage of me, the Great King! I'm your uncle!"

Wukong laughed and said, "You child, you really don't know what's good for you. Back then, your father, the Bull Demon King, and I became sworn brothers on Flower Fruit Mountain. Shouldn't you call me uncle?"

Enraged, Red Boy thrust his spear forward, shouting, "You want to be my uncle? I'm still your grandfather!"

Wukong flew into a rage and swung his staff to fight him: "How dare you speak so rudely! Today, I, Old Sun, will teach you a lesson on behalf of the Bull Demon King!"

The two fought for twenty rounds in the blink of an eye. Unable to withstand the attack, Red Boy feigned an opening and escaped from the battle. He slapped his own nose, then breathed fire and spewed thick smoke from his nose.

Five little demons pushed the train forward to help, which immediately fueled the fire. The Samadhi True Fire spread everywhere, as red as charcoal wheels.

Wukong used a fire-repelling spell to enter the fire, found Red Boy in the fire, and then grabbed the iron cudgel to beat him.

When Red Boy saw him coming in front of him, he was so frightened that he opened his mouth and spewed out a thick cloud of smoke, which he then blew towards Wukong's face.

Wukong was so overwhelmed by the smoke that tears streamed down his face. Seeing this, Red Boy spewed out another puff of thick smoke, which Wukong could no longer bear, so he had no choice but to ride away on a cloud.

Covered in swirling smoke and fire, Wukong, feeling unbearably hot, jumped into the stream to extinguish the flames.

He had boasted to Jiang Feng, thinking he could easily get Red Boy to release Sha Wujing with his influence. But Red Boy didn't give him any face at all, and hadn't even heard the Bull Demon King mention him.

This made the proud Wukong feel extremely ashamed. The cold water in the mountain stream further fueled his anger, causing him to faint immediately!

When Jiang Feng and his companions saw Wukong on fire fall into the stream, they rushed to his rescue.

"My dear Monkey King, if I, Old Pig, had arrived any later, you would have been reborn as a water monkey!"

Bajie shouted and went into the water to drag him ashore. He then laid Wukong flat on the ground and began massaging his chest and abdomen.

After massaging him for a while, seeing that Wukong still hadn't woken up, he broke out in a cold sweat and exclaimed in alarm, "Master, Brother Monkey might not make it!"

Jiang Feng calmly said, "Bajie, don't panic. Let me perform a craniotomy to release the evil fire in his brain, and he will wake up immediately."

As he spoke, he pulled out a sharp knife, a plate, tin foil, and some barbecue seasoning, and swallowed hard as he looked at Wukong's forehead.

Wukong leaped up from the ground, angrily shouting, "Master, are you unleashing some evil fire? I get the feeling you're about to eat monkey brains!!"

Jiang Feng said seriously, "Never mind that, just tell me if you're awake or not!"

Wukong immediately lowered his head, realizing that Jiang Feng had seen through his act of faking unconsciousness.

He had already woken up when Bajie massaged him, but he had just been defeated by the child of his sworn brother and felt so ashamed that he had no face to see Jiang Feng and the others, so he pretended to be unconscious.

After being exposed by Jiang Feng, he said dejectedly, "Master, I'm not afraid of Red Boy's Samadhi True Fire, but I'm afraid of the smoke he spews out. When I'm exposed to that smoke, my eyes keep watering, and I can't capture him at all."

Jiang Feng said, "Red Boy's Samadhi True Fire is a fire that combines the three religions."

To properly subdue him, one must use the method of the five elements' mutual restraint to break his "fire-like" energy, then disperse the upper, middle, and lower samadhi energy in his heart, kidneys, and bladder, and finally bestow upon him the nectar of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. The entire process is indispensable and extremely troublesome.

Bai Suzhen smiled gently: "Since you have proper methods, you must also have unorthodox methods, right?"

Jiang Feng looked at her in surprise and said, "How could a proper monk like me have an unorthodox method? What I'm going to use is the most orthodox and infallible way in the world for dealing with unruly children: tell the parents!"

Wukong turned away dejectedly: "I'm not going. I'm not going anyway. I can't afford to lose face like that."

Jiang Feng said, "It's not like I'm asking you to actually go and ask his parents. Since I injured the Bull Demon King's brother, they can't possibly come to help us."

But you can transform into the Bull Demon King and accompany me to demand the release of Red Boy!

Wukong's eyes lit up: "Master, this idea is feasible!"

Jiang Feng said, "When the time comes, you keep a straight face and try to say as little as possible. Leave the rest to your master. If I don't manage to swindle him out of all his money this time, I, Jiang Feng, will be unworthy of being a Buddhist disciple!"

Wukong said with a mocking expression, "Me too!"

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