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

The Kingdom of Chechi suffered a severe drought for twenty years.

Inside the Imperial Preceptor's residence, the three brothers, Tiger Power Immortal, Deer Power Immortal, and Sheep Power Immortal, sat cross-legged, breathing in and out spiritual energy. They were tiger demons, deer demons, and sheep demons who had become spirits, but they were obsessed with Taoist arts and had learned the ability to summon wind and rain. The king revered them as Imperial Preceptors and sent all the monks in the country to do hard labor.

"Brother, I heard the monks who went on their pilgrimage to the East have arrived." Deer Power Immortal opened his eyes. "Should we give them a taste of their power?"

Tiger Power Immortal pondered, "Let's wait and see. If they behave themselves, fine; but if they dare to cause trouble..."

Before the words were finished, a little demon came to report from outside the door: "Three Imperial Preceptors, the pilgrim monk on his journey to the West requests an audience!"

The three demons exchanged a glance, thinking to themselves that they had come at just the right time.

In the palace, the king sat high, with three demons standing beside him. Xuanzang entered the palace with his three disciples and a Taoist priest to pay their respects.

The king, having ascertained their purpose, was about to grant permission to exchange the travel documents when the Great Immortal Deer Power suddenly spoke up: "Your Majesty, I have heard that the Great Tang Dynasty in the East is a celestial empire, where Buddhism flourishes. Since this monk comes from the celestial empire, he must possess some skill. Why not let him test his magical abilities against us, so that we may witness the prowess of a high-ranking monk from the celestial empire?"

Upon hearing this, the king became interested: "Granted!"

Xuanzang was about to decline, but Lu Chen (Qingfeng Daoren) stepped forward and said with a smile, "Since the Imperial Preceptor has invited me, this humble Daoist is willing to accept the challenge on behalf of the Holy Monk."

The three demons sized him up and, seeing that he was an inconspicuous Taoist priest, secretly laughed to themselves—he had walked right into their trap!

"Alright!" said Tiger Power Immortal. "The first match will be a rainmaking contest!"

On the rain-seeking platform, Tiger Power Immortal, with disheveled hair and wielding a sword, performed ritualistic steps while chanting incantations. Moments later, dark clouds gathered in the sky, and thunder rumbled faintly.

The king was overjoyed: "The royal advisor is incredibly powerful!"

Lu Chen remained calm and walked onto the stage, cupping his hands in greeting towards the sky: "Gentlemen of Thunder and Lightning, Lords of Wind and Rain, I pay my respects. Today, for the sake of this magical contest, please refrain from letting the rain fall."

As soon as he finished speaking, the dark clouds dispersed and the thunder ceased!

Tiger Power Immortal's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets: "You... what did you do?!"

Lu Chen smiled and said, "I didn't do anything, I just asked them to rest for a while."

The second round was a meditation contest. The Great Immortal Lu Li sat high on the meditation platform, completely still. Lu Chen, however, simply lay down, crossed his legs, and started cracking sunflower seeds.

The Deer Power Immortal angrily retorted, "Is this meditation?!"

"Lying down in meditation is also meditation," Lu Chen said lazily. "If you have meditation in your heart, lying down is meditation. If you don't have meditation in your heart, sitting is just sitting on wax."

The Great Immortal Lu Li was speechless with anger, yet unable to refute it.

The third round was a decapitation contest. Tiger Power Immortal personally took to the field, and with one stroke, the head fell to the ground, only to be reattached perfectly moments later.

Lu Chen clapped his hands: "Good technique!" He also had someone cut off his head, but instead of immediately reattaching it, he kicked it around three times before picking it up and pressing it against his neck—and it was reattached!

Tiger Power Immortal's face turned pale—how could this person's head be used as a ball to kick?

The fourth round was a contest of disembowelment and heart extraction. Deer Power Immortal cut open his stomach, pulled out his heart and liver, turned them around, and then stuffed them back in. Lu Chen did the same, but pulled out a dull gray stone heart, shook it, and said, "This humble Taoist's heart is made of stone; it has no blood or flesh, so it won't hurt to dig it out."

Deer Power Immortal was completely dumbfounded.

The fifth round was a contest of boiling oil. The Great Immortal Yang Li jumped into the boiling oil unharmed. Lu Chen also jumped in, but ended up swimming like a frog in the oil, and even asked the king for a scallion, which he dipped in the oil and ate.

The Great Immortal Yangli is convinced.

The three demons knelt down and kowtowed, saying, "Master, your supernatural powers are immense; we are truly convinced!"

Lu Chen helped them up and said with a smile, "I greatly admire the three of you for your eagerness to learn. However, these methods of praying for rain, meditating, beheading, and digging out hearts are all techniques, not the Way. The true Way lies in one's character, in one's understanding, and in persistent cultivation."

He raised his hand, and three streams of chaotic energy entered the three demons' brows: "This is a smattering of my understanding, which I bestow upon the three of you. I hope you will cultivate diligently in the future, and never again oppress monks or fool the common people."

The three demons were overjoyed to have found a treasure and kowtowed repeatedly.

The king was stunned. When he came to his senses, he immediately ordered the release of all the monks and appointed Xuanzang as the national preceptor. Xuanzang firmly declined the offer, requesting only that his travel documents be exchanged so he could continue his journey westward.

As he was leaving, Tiger Power Immortal caught up with him and whispered, "Daoist Master, may we... come to find you in the future?"

Lu Chen nodded: "The Valley of Ten Thousand Demons welcomes you anytime."

On their journey west, Sun Wukong scratched his head and asked, "Master, what were those three streams of energy you passed on to them?"

Lu Chen smiled and said, "It's the catalyst of chaotic energy. If they cultivate sincerely, they will refine it and break through to the demonic body. If their intentions are not pure, the energy will dissipate. This is just giving them a chance."

He looked towards the direction of Chechi Kingdom, a look of emotion flashing in his eyes.

The three little demons, obsessed with Taoist arts, have gone astray, but they are far more lovable than those gods and Buddhas who spout benevolence and righteousness but scheme behind the scenes.

"Next stop, Tongtian River."

"King of Inspiration, it's time to come ashore."