The Last Sentinel

The mountain wind swirled withered grass clippings, sweeping across the broken cliffs of the Water Curtain Cave with a mournful sound. Qi Tian stood beneath the thatched pavilion, gazing at the white-bearded old Taoist priest before him, his eyebrows twitching slightly.

The old Taoist priest twirled a wisp of withered grass between his fingers, a hint of amusement flashing in his eyes: "Not calling me fellow Taoist anymore? Calling me comrade? This title is truly novel."

Qi Tian gave a faint smile, his tone casual: "You'll get used to it, Daoist Master. I still don't know how to address you!"

The old Taoist priest stroked his sparse beard, his fingertips pausing as if he were hiding something, before laughing and saying, "This humble Taoist is Wu, cough, this humble Taoist is the local deity of the Water Curtain Cave in Flower and Fruit Mountain. You can also call me Lao Wu, or Fifth Senior Brother."

A hint of surprise flashed in Qi Tian's eyes, and his tone carried a touch of doubt: "Land? Huaguo Mountain is in such a state, how can there still be a land?" He looked around and saw broken walls and ruins everywhere, with spiritual energy as thin as silk, which did not look like a place where gods resided.

"Of course!" The old Taoist priest pointed to the ruins of the Water Curtain Cave in the distance, his tone suddenly becoming solemn. "You should know that this is the Water Curtain Cave of Flower Fruit Mountain, the former Daoist temple of the Great Sage Equaling Heaven, the number one demon of the demon race. Later, it was blessed by Erlang Shen, the True Lord of Manifestation, and favored by two supreme beings of the Journey to the West era. Is it strange that such a place was born here?"

Qi Tian wore a perfunctory smile, but his eyes were full of vigilance. His fingertips unconsciously rubbed the hem of his clothes as he thought to himself: This old guy might be able to fool Brother Eighty, but to fool Qi Tian is just wishful thinking.

He's most likely connected to Flower Fruit Mountain and Sun Wukong, and some might even say he has some connection to Erlang Shen. But if you don't want to say, then don't. Anyway, my main task at this stage is to conquer Flower Fruit Mountain, not you; you're just an NPC there.

The mountain wind, carrying fine sand and pebbles, lashed against his face, adding to the desolation of the surroundings and increasing his vigilance.

He shifted his gaze to the three-legged cauldron in the center of the pavilion. Its surface was covered in mottled rust, exuding a long-dormant stillness. Qi Tian composed himself and asked, "Fifth Master, how exactly do we awaken the Great Sage's will? I've been circling this cauldron for ages, but I haven't discovered its secret."

The old Taoist priest slowly walked to the cauldron, raised his hand and gently patted the rim, making a dull sound. Then he pointed to the bottom of the cauldron and said, "The secret lies under the belly of this cauldron!" His tone was firm, and there was a hint of expectation in his eyes.

Qi Tian obeyed, lying down on the cold bluestone floor and peering under the three-legged cauldron. The air was thick with the stale smell of rusty bronze. Upon closer inspection, he instantly noticed something amiss.

The belly of this three-legged cauldron is a completely different color from its three legs. The belly is a deep blackish-blue color, and the surface seems to be covered with thousands of years of dust, exuding an ancient and vicissitudes of history. The three legs of the cauldron are a pale blue color that looks old, and the patterns are stiff. They look like they were pieced together in later times, which is incompatible with the ancient simplicity of the belly.

Qi Tian stood up, dusted off his clothes, and said firmly, "Fifth Master, this cauldron isn't a single piece!"

"Of course not." The old Taoist priest strolled to the edge of the pavilion, gazing at the hazy sky in the distance, and slowly said, "The lower part of this cauldron's belly is the Yongzhou Cauldron, the cauldron of the Tang Dynasty's destiny. In the beginning, this cauldron only had a belly, a thin cauldron blank."

"Over the years, I have used the barren essence of metals in this place to nurture the cauldron, and it has gradually absorbed some spiritual energy."

"I just didn't expect that you would drink at least two-thirds of the spiritual energy and immortal essence in one go on this trip."

At this point, the old Taoist turned to look at Qi Tian, ​​his eyes filled with a hint of reproach, but no real anger.

Upon hearing this, Qi Tian quickly cupped his hands and smiled apologetically, his tone sincere: "Fifth Master, you're being too generous. If I eat a bite of your food, I will repay you with a hundred times, a million times, of spiritual energy!" He knew in his heart that he needed to stabilize this seemingly ordinary local deity in order to successfully awaken the Great Sage's will.

"Is that so?" The old Taoist glanced at Qi Tian, ​​his tone tinged with a hint of probing. "You should first explore the cauldron embryo beneath this cauldron. It bears the mark of the Great Sage. Once you comprehend it and awaken the Great Sage's will, it will signify that you can control Flower Fruit Mountain!" As he finished speaking, the spiritual energy around him surged slightly, as if protecting Qi Tian.

Qi Tian's heart skipped a beat, and then a question arose. He asked, "Fifth Master, how could the Nine Cauldrons of the Great Tang's Fortune appear in Flower Fruit Mountain? I remember that the border of the Great Tang doesn't seem to reach Aolai Kingdom!" He knew the significance of the Nine Cauldrons of the Great Tang's Fortune, and it was no coincidence that this item appeared in Flower Fruit Mountain.

The old Taoist suddenly laughed, his laughter tinged with sarcasm and a touch of melancholy: "You probably think too kindly of the Tang Dynasty and too simply of Li Shimin! As a true Son of Heaven born in the age of mythology, a great emperor for all time! Li Shimin's ambition and military prowess are beyond the imagination of you later generations!" His tone suddenly became more serious, his eyes filled with awe and fear.

"Let's not talk about anything far away, just about Tang Sanzang from Journey to the West, which you mentioned before! Did you know that the border of the Tang Dynasty followed Tang Sanzang's pilgrimage team? To put it more bluntly, Tang Sanzang was the strongest envoy for territorial expansion under Prince Qin, Li Shimin!" The old Taoist priest spoke urgently, as if recalling a shocking scene from the past.

"Tang Sanzang, carrying the Tang Emperor's travel permit, headed west. Along the way, he eliminated all the troublemakers and slew all the experts. Then he stamped the travel permit on the other side's territory, and the next moment, the Tang army followed the stamp to the other side's territory! The Tang generals were all fanatical enthusiasts of destroying countries. In their eyes, heretics from all over the world were not people, but commodities, things that could be bought and sold!"

Qi Tian was shocked and subconsciously asked, "Is this fair?" He had never imagined that such cruel power struggles were hidden behind the Journey to the West.

The old Taoist priest sneered, his tone icy: "Of course it's fair! No one understands the meaning of fairness better than the Great Tang! Other dynasties, races, and universes might categorize other races into superior and inferior, but the Great Tang will fairly discriminate against all other humans outside the Great Tang!"

Qi Tian was speechless for a moment, his lips twitching slightly. His words seemed absurd, yet they were impeccable.

He clenched his hands at his sides, his fingertips turning white, his heart churning with complex emotions—awe at the power struggles of the Tang Dynasty and consideration of his own situation.

To fairly discriminate against everyone is tantamount to treating all heretics equally—this is the Tang Dynasty's concept of "fairness." He remained silent for a moment, digesting these mind-blowing words, a hint of solemnity flashing in his eyes, his apprehension towards the Tang Dynasty and Li Shimin deepening.

The surrounding spiritual energy grew increasingly thin, and even the wind seemed to stagnate, making the silence all the more oppressive.

Seeing that Qi Tian remained silent, the old Taoist priest asked again, "Do you know what the Tang Emperor wrote on Tang Sanzang's travel document?"

"I know that." Qi Tian came back to his senses and nodded. "The clearance document has only two sentences: either let him go, or I'll come over."

The old Taoist shook his head and chuckled, "That's true, but the understanding is wrong. It should be a progressive approach: let him go first, then I'll come over. Compared to the wasteful tactics of the Han Dynasty, the Tang King's method is much more efficient. Remember the Battle of Fengxian County? The Tang King only deployed an elite cavalry force, then had dozens of surrounding countries send their armies. Anyone who didn't send an army was a traitor within Fengxian County. With this one-in-ten tactic, he almost effortlessly crushed the Heavenly Army of Fengxian County and forced the Heavenly River Water Department into a series of defeats..."

Fifth Master fell into deep thought, his gaze drifting into the distance, his eyes filled with reminiscence, his brows slightly furrowed, as if he were seeing again that mythical era of war and intrigue.

The mountain wind grew stronger, making his Taoist robe flutter in the wind, his hair sticking messily to his cheeks, and the spiritual energy around him fluctuated, revealing a sense of vicissitude and loneliness.

He unconsciously twirled the hem of his Taoist robe with his fingertips, a bitter smile playing on his lips. Those long-forgotten memories were etched into his very bones, impossible to erase.

Beneath the three-legged cauldron, Qi Tian calmed his mind, cleared his mind of distractions, slowly closed his eyes, and fell into deep meditation. His fingertips gently touched the dark blue-green patterns on the cauldron's belly, the cool sensation spreading throughout his body. He muttered incantations, his voice low and rapid, as if communicating with the ancient cauldron's embryo.

The surrounding air gradually became heavy, and spiritual energy began to slowly gather, forming a faint halo around the three-legged cauldron. Suddenly, with a final, deafening roar, the light and shadow on the entire thatched pavilion vanished instantly, the withered grass outside the pavilion stopped swaying, and the world seemed to fall into a brief, deathly silence.

Fifth Master's figure trembled slightly as he abruptly turned to look at the three-legged cauldron before him, his eyes filled with surprise and excitement. A phantom slowly gathered around the cauldron, and the mottled bronze rust patterns gradually spread out, like a living thing, spreading and covering in all directions. Wherever it passed, the spiritual energy in the air became increasingly dense.

"The Dragon Tree of Fortune!" Fifth Master gazed at the root-like bronze patterns emanating from the cauldron, his voice trembling slightly. "The Dragon Tree, the Dragon Tree is alive! Legend has it that the Nine Cauldrons left by Yu the Great were the nine fruits borne by the Tongtian Jianmu tree. If one day the Nine Cauldrons of Fortune return to the earth, it is possible that a Dragon Tree will grow, with dragons coiling around it, and it may even transform into the Tongtian Jianmu tree!" His hands trembled slightly, as if he had witnessed an ancient miracle.

The rusted patterns on the bronze continued to spread, and on top of the layers of decaying lines, obscure physical formulas and mathematical equations gradually emerged, shimmering with golden light and reflecting off the bronze background. The patterns, imprinted with mathematical codes, seemed to instantly shed their decay and become vibrant, exuding a mysterious power.

Qi Tian's illusory figure also dissipated, surrounded by layers of brilliant bronze light and shadow. His chanting grew louder and louder, from invisible to tangible, and finally converged into visible white spiritual energy ripples that surged in all directions, causing the thatched pavilion to sway slightly.

"His appearance is heroic and imposing, and his eyes shine brightly."

Wearing a phoenix-winged purple-gold crown and dressed in a gold chain.

Lotus silk steps tread on clouds and mist, Ruyi Jingu Bang (a magical staff) holds up the sky.

He once stormed the Dragon Palace to steal treasures, and dared to cause trouble in the Heavenly Palace and challenge the Jade Emperor.

With seventy-two transformations, he possesses boundless supernatural powers; with somersaults, he can travel ten thousand miles.

He shattered the heavens without fear, and his fame spread far and wide after his victory in battle.

Today, our temple is in grave danger, and we dare to open the altar to invite the Great Sage!

"Great Sage—the divine has descended!"

As the final sound faded, the bronze light and shadow around Qi Tian suddenly erupted, and the three-legged cauldron emitted a deafening roar. The dragon and tree patterns on the cauldron's body fully unfolded, and a phantom azure dragon rose from the cauldron, hovering above the Maocao Pavilion, roaring to the sky, its sound shaking Huaguo Mountain.