Primordial Era: A brick knocks Hongyun unconscious, and he seizes the throne at the start.

Chang'an City, the residence of Prime Minister Yin Kaishan.

In the delivery room of the inner courtyard, a baby's cry resounded. The midwife happily carried out a chubby, fair-skinned baby boy and congratulated the anxiously waiting Yin Kaishan: "Congratulations, Prime Minister! It's a little prince, and both mother and child are safe!"

Yin Kaishan was overjoyed. He took the child and examined him closely. He saw that the infant had delicate features and a faint halo around his forehead. He neither cried nor fussed, and his bright black eyes curiously surveyed the world.

"This child... is extraordinary." Yin Kaishan's heart stirred. He remembered that his wife had dreamed of a golden cicada entering her womb when she was pregnant, so he named the child "Jiang Liuer".

Unbeknownst to anyone, deep within the soul of this newborn infant slumber fragments of memories from ten lifetimes of reincarnation, as well as... a "mark of enlightenment" secretly implanted by someone.

The netherworld, the depths of reincarnation.

Lu Chen, disguised as "Qingfeng Daoren" and holding the "Reincarnation Inspector" token specially approved by Empress Pingxin, swaggered into the Reincarnation Bureau's archives.

"Check the records of Jin Chanzi's previous nine reincarnations," he said to the reincarnation book on duty.

The clerk recognized Qingfeng Daoist, who had a close relationship with Lady Pingxin, and dared not be negligent, so he quickly retrieved the case file.

As the file unfolds, the records of nine generations are clearly visible:

In his first life, he was born into a wealthy family, became a monk at a young age, traveled west to seek Buddhist teachings, was robbed at the Liusha River, and was eaten by Sha Wujing.

In his second life, he was born into a scholarly family, became a monk in middle age, went to the Western Paradise again, and was killed in the Flowing Sand River.

From the third to the ninth generation, they were either monks or scholars, all determined to travel west, but all were swallowed up by Sha Wujing in the Flowing Sand River, without exception!

"Nine incarnations of pilgrims, all became food for Sha Wujing..." Lu Chen looked at the cold record in the dossier, his eyes slightly cold. "What a Buddhist scheme! By having Jin Chanzi die nine times in a row on the journey to the West, he not only accumulated the merit of 'firm devotion to Buddhism,' but also deepened his karmic connection with the pilgrim's protector (Sha Wujing) by being a 'victim,' further erasing his memories and sharp edges from his previous lives. In the end, his tenth incarnation became the most 'pure' pilgrim puppet—Tang Sanzang!"

He closed the file and asked again, "Are the fragments of Jin Chanzi's nine incarnations still there?"

The clerk shook his head: "According to convention, the devoured true spirit should have dissipated. However..." He hesitated for a moment, then lowered his voice, "I remember that a hundred years ago, you, Daoist Qingfeng, came here once and took away some of the remnants of reincarnation, saying you wanted to 'study' them. Among them... it seems that there were fragments of Jin Chanzi's aura from his previous lives."

Lu Chen (Qingfeng Daoren) smiled slightly: "You have a good memory. I still have those fragments."

He left the Reincarnation Bureau and returned to his temporary cave in the Netherworld, where he took out a jade bottle. Inside the bottle, nine faint wisps of light, like candles flickering in the wind, slowly floated—these were fragments of Jin Chanzi's nine lifetimes of memories, which he had extracted from the remnants of reincarnation using the Chaos Secret Technique!

Although these fragments can no longer restore a complete personality, they carry the deepest emotions and obsessions from nine lifetimes of reincarnation: the yearning for the truth of Buddhism, the indomitable spirit in the face of hardships and dangers on the journey to the West, and the confusion and resentment at being killed time and again by "our own people" (Sha Wujing)...

"Buddhism wants you to forget, but I'll make you remember," Lu Chen muttered to himself. "Although I can't restore all your memories, planting these 'seeds of obsession' deep within your tenth incarnation's soul will be enough to give you more 'instinctive' vigilance and thoughtfulness on your journey to the West."

He formed a hand seal, and nine strands of spiritual light enveloped in chaotic energy, transforming into a barely perceptible nine-colored point of light. Then, through the cycle of reincarnation, he locked onto the newborn Jiang Liuer and silently sent this point of light into the deepest part of his soul, merging it with the "Enlightenment Mark".

After doing all this, Lu Chen did not leave, but instead went to the Flowing Sand River.

The river was swift, and even a goose feather couldn't float. Deep in the riverbed, a giant with red hair and a blue face was chained up, and a necklace of seven skulls swayed in the wind on his chest—it was none other than Sha Wujing, the Curtain-Rolling General, who had been banished to the mortal world and was suffering here.

Every seven days, a flying sword would pierce his chest, causing him to scream in agony. Whenever a "pilgrim" (the reincarnation of Jin Chanzi) passed by, he would be secretly instructed by Buddhism to devour him, thus deepening his karmic bond with the pilgrimage through "sin."

Lu Chen hid in the clouds, looking down at the suffering Sha Wujing and the seven skulls on his neck—the skulls of Jin Chanzi's previous seven incarnations!

"He's a pitiful person too." Lu Chen shook his head. Sha Wujing was originally a loyal and virtuous man in Heaven, but he was severely punished and turned into a pawn of Buddhism just because he broke a glass lamp (or was he framed).

He raised his hand and pointed, and a stream of chaotic energy entered Sha Wujing's body, temporarily suppressing the pain of being pierced through the chest.

Sha Wujing was writhing in agony when he suddenly felt a lightness in his chest. The expected flying sword hadn't appeared! He looked up in astonishment and saw a hazy figure in the clouds, and heard a clear voice beside him:

"General Rolling Curtain, do you still remember how you 'accidentally' shattered the glass goblet in front of the Lingxiao Palace?"

Sha Wujing shuddered! The scene from that day flashed through his mind: at the Peach Banquet, he was ordered to pour wine for the Jade Emperor, but the glass cup in his hand suddenly cracked without warning, and the wine spilled all over the Jade Emperor... To this day, he still can't understand how that cup, a treasure of the celestial realm, could break for no reason.

"Is...someone trying to harm me?" Sha Wujing asked hoarsely.

"It is Buddhism that is harming you." Lu Chen said calmly, "They need you to suffer in the Flowing Sand River, they need you to devour the nine incarnations of Jin Chanzi, they need you to become a 'sinner' in the pilgrimage team, so that you will be grateful to Buddhism and loyal to it."

Sha Wujing's eyes turned bloodshot, and the seven skulls around his neck rattled: "They...they actually plotted like this!"

"I can help you," Lu Chen said. "I will temporarily suppress your pain and give you a choice: continue to be a pawn of Buddhism, wait for the pilgrim to arrive, devour him for the tenth time, and then 'convert' into Buddhism and become a golden Arhat; or... feign conversion, but keep a clear head, and wait for the right time to avenge this scheming."

After a long silence, Sha Wujing suddenly knelt down and kowtowed towards the clouds: "Immortal Master! Sha Wujing wishes to choose the latter! Please guide me, Immortal Master!"

"Alright." Lu Chen flicked out a dusty gray stone talisman, which fell into Sha Wujing's hand. "This is the 'Soul-Stabilizing Talisman,' which can help you resist the pain of being pierced through the chest and maintain a trace of your true spirit during your conversion in Buddhism. Wear it carefully, and when the pilgrims arrive, act according to the plan."

Sha Wujing gripped the stone talisman tightly and nodded emphatically.

After leaving Liusha River, Lu Chen went to Yunzhan Cave in Fuling Mountain, Yingchoujian, and even Gao Laozhuang, Huangfengling, Wuzhuang Temple... He visited each of the key "tribulation points" on the journey to the West in advance, either to contact key figures or to leave behind contingency plans.

Several months later, all of this was done.

He returned to the Chaos World Brick and saw that Sun Wukong had completely stabilized his seventh level of cultivation and was practicing a set of "Chaos Staff Techniques" newly passed down by Lu Chen. As the staff shadows flew, they actually caused the chaotic air currents in the world inside the brick to dance wildly, with astonishing power.

"Master!" Sun Wukong leaped over, having sheathed his staff, and exclaimed excitedly, "This staff technique is just what I want! It's powerful and exhilarating!"

"I'm glad you like it." Lu Chen smiled and tossed him a photo stone. "Take a look at this."

The image projected by the photo stone shows: Chang'an City, Jinshan Temple, where the young Jiang Liuer (Tang Sanzang) is chanting sutras with a focused expression, but occasionally a trace of contemplation and confusion that is inappropriate for his age flashes deep in his eyes.

"Is this the one who went on the pilgrimage?" Sun Wukong scratched his head. "He looks rather weak and unassuming."

"He's weak now, but that might not be the case in five hundred years." Lu Chen said meaningfully, "I planted something in his soul and also made arrangements for the demons and monsters on the journey to the West... This pilgrimage will be very interesting."

Sun Wukong's eyes darted around: "Master, when can I go out? I'm so bored!"

"It'll be soon." Lu Chen looked out the brick wall. "The drama of Five Elements Mountain will continue for another four hundred years. During this time, focus on your cultivation and solidify your foundation. The day you leave the mountain..."

He paused, a glint of anticipation in his eyes.

"That will be the time when you, the Great Sage Equal to Heaven, will be renowned throughout the Three Realms."

"This is also the time for our 'Brick Cult' to officially take the stage."

Sun Wukong grinned, shouldered his golden cudgel, and turned back to his cultivation.

Inside the brick world, chaotic energy surged.

Beyond the brick walls, in the primordial wilderness, the scheme for the Journey to the West has already been laid out.

Meanwhile, the sixth brother, who was carrying bricks, was squatting behind the scenes, looking at the chessboard he had carefully set up, and contentedly cracking sunflower seeds.

"Actors in position, script tweaks, lighting and camera ready..."

"The next four hundred years should be a time for the 'supporting characters' to cultivate themselves."

He looked eastward, where the Tang Dynasty's fortunes soared.

An unprecedented "Journey to the West" is about to begin.