Journey to the West: Starting with the Hunting of the Three Demons of Twin Fork Ridge

Upon hearing this, Li Fa realized something was wrong; the demons in Journey to the West were indeed not to be trifled with.

Fortunately, he had a flash of inspiration. He slid down to his knees, his voice trembling, "Your Majesty, spare me! Your Majesty, spare me! I... I did not mean to be negligent!"

While on patrol outside, I slipped and tumbled down the hillside, falling and getting completely disoriented. I was unconscious for a moment... After waking up, I struggled back, and that's how I missed the appointed time!

"I am willing to accept any punishment, I only beg Your Majesty to spare my lowly life so that I may continue to serve you!"

"Took a fall? What an easy excuse! You didn't fall before, and you didn't fall after, so why did you have to fall at this crucial moment? Someone like you is useless. Come on..." He waved his hand, his voice echoing throughout the cave, "Drag this fool who disobeyed military orders and ruined my important mission out and execute him! To uphold military law!"

No sooner had he finished speaking than two small monsters wielding large, ghost-headed swords stepped forward to seize Li Fa.

Just then, several demon soldiers in Lu Kunkun's team knelt down in unison and prayed, "Please have mercy, Your Majesty!"

The leader of the badger captains spoke up in defense, saying, "Your Majesty, Kun...Lu Kunkun may be lazy on weekdays, but he is loyal to Your Majesty and never complains when patrolling the mountains and exploring the way."

This time...this time it was truly an accident. Look at his injuries, they can't be faked. I beg Your Majesty to remember his past merits and spare his life, but punish him severely according to the law!

"Please have mercy, Your Majesty!" the demon soldiers bowed again.

They might not necessarily have a deep friendship with Lu Kunkun, but they felt a sense of shared fate and sympathy for each other. Today, the king killed his own brother for being "late," and tomorrow, for some other reason, they might become victims as well.

Upon hearing this, General Yin snorted coldly and said, "Lu Kunkun, since everyone is pleading for you, and I consider this your first offense, I will spare your life."

"He may escape death, but he can't escape punishment. Guards, drag him out and give him thirty heavy lashes to teach him a lesson."

Then another group of monsters came to punish Li.

Just then, Mr. Te suddenly spoke up, his voice deep and resonant: "General, please wait."

Upon hearing this, General Yin glanced at Director Te, a glint of shrewdness in his eyes, and asked, "What do you have to say?"

The hermit said, "In the past, Sun Tzu of the East trained the concubines of the King of Wu, established his authority by beheading a concubine, just to ensure that orders were obeyed and that the Wu army could be commanded as if it were his own arm."

Zhuge Liang launched six expeditions to Qishan, but Ma Su lost Jieting. Although Zhuge Liang cherished Ma Su, he still executed him with tears in his eyes, which is also a matter of principle.

This scoundrel has delayed military operations today, and his crime deserves death! Since ancient times, military orders have stipulated that "those who fail to meet the deadline will be executed." How can a general break the law because of a few words of pleas or a minor injury?!

After saying this, the fat man stepped forward and said, "If this precedent is set, the consequences will be endless! Today he can escape death because of a 'fall,' but tomorrow he could be mistaken for a patrol officer because of 'diarrhea.' If this continues, where will military discipline be? Where will our authority be? I implore you, General, for the sake of the greater good and for the sake of our prestige, to execute this scoundrel immediately as a warning to others!"

After he finished speaking, the room fell silent.

Special Envoy, however, retreated to a corner without making a sound. His words were righteous and forceful, and they pushed Li Fa to the brink of death!

Li Fa knelt on the ground, his mind reeling: "Damn it! Isn't Lu Kunkun your mole?! What are you up to, you old ox? Discarding him after he's done his work? No… are you using him to silence him? Or…?"

He suddenly looked up at the special officer, only to see a very subtle glint flash in the latter's eyes.

Li Fa instantly understood that this was to put his mind at ease.

Sure enough, after a moment, General Yin suddenly sneered and said, "Scholar, you are indeed well-versed in military strategy and full of rhetoric. However…" He abruptly changed his tone, "This Skinning Pavilion belongs to my own people and has its own rules! I think you, sir, also have your own rules at your residence. Although we are both at Shuangcha Ridge, we are not in a superior-subordinate relationship. Isn't your statement a bit too presumptuous, sir?!"

After saying that, he ignored the special official and stared at Li Fa, saying, "Your dog's life today was not given to you by them, nor was it calculated according to any military books or laws!"

This is a gift of mercy from me! Remember, your life is in my hands! Thirty strokes of the cane will be recorded for now! Go search the mountains!

If you fail to retrieve those two-legged sheep, you will be punished for both crimes, and I, the king, will personally twist off your head to serve as wine!

Upon hearing this, Li Fa immediately kowtowed repeatedly, saying, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for sparing my life! I will serve you with my life!"

He then realized that Master Te was using a strategy of retreat as a means of advancement.

The old devil has an eccentric personality and hates being told what to do, especially being bound by reason. The more the Special Envoy quotes classics and emphasizes military law, the more likely he is to provoke General Yin's rebellious mentality!

Sure enough, not only was he spared death, but he also avoided being spanked.

Unexpectedly, this monster's cave was just like the human world, with each monster having its own ideas.

"Get out of here and search the mountains!" General Yin roared impatiently.

As if granted a pardon, the demons inside the cave surged out in a chaotic frenzy, scattering and disappearing into the mountains and forests.

Upon seeing this, Mr. Te and Mr. Xiongshan quickly took their leave and departed.

Li Fa even pretended to limp as he followed his squad, led by Badger Captain, searching in one direction.

Once inside the mountains, Li Fa was able to relax his tense nerves a little.

He deliberately lagged behind the group, pretending to search while concentrating his mind to summon the Merit Record again.

However, the moment the catalog was unfolded, he almost screamed!

The catalog has been updated with three pages of information directly:

[Target for execution: General Yin (Tiger Demon)]

[Karma Assessment: C (535 lives lost)]

Success rate of hunt: 25%

Killing it will yield:

[Optional Reward 1: A lump of "Creating Heaven and Earth Technique" power, cultivated diligently for five Jiazi (60 years)]

[Optional Reward Two: Martial Arts "Five Tigers Soul-Severing Blade"]

[Optional Reward 3: "The Complete Cooking Recipes for Talented Individuals" (300 recipes)]

-----------------

[Target for execution: Special Envoy (Bull Demon)]

[Karma Assessment: C (Lower Grade) - 207 Human Deaths]

Success rate of hunt: 30%

Killing it will yield:

[Optional Reward 1: A cluster of "Heaven and Earth Creation Technique" mana, cultivated diligently for two cycles of sixty years]

[Optional Reward Two: Mastery of Farmland]

[Optional Reward 3: Supernatural Power "Immense Strength"]

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[Target for execution: Bear Mountain Lord (Bear Demon)]

[Karma Assessment: C (Lower Grade) - 413 lives lost]

Success rate of hunt: 22%

Killing it will yield:

[Optional Reward 1: A cluster of "Heaven and Earth Creation Technique" mana, cultivated diligently for three Jiazi (60 years)]

[Optional Reward Two: Martial Arts "Black Gold Spear Technique"]

[Optional Reward 3: The Art of Transforming Wind and Clouds]

……

Five Jiazi (五甲子) equals three hundred years—three hundred years of arduous cultivation of magical power! And boundless strength! Able to move as the wind!

Any one of these rewards would be enough to drastically change his strength!

Especially the art of transforming into wind and flying, that is a true supernatural power, a symbol of transcending the mundane and roaming freely across the world!

Three hundred years of magical power should not be underestimated!

In the original story, Red Boy had only cultivated for three hundred years, yet he was able to exchange dozens of blows with Sun Wukong.

And his reward was also three hundred years, the key being the three hundred years of magical power of the "Creating Heaven and Earth Technique".

The power of the "Creating Heaven and Earth Technique" for three hundred years must be roughly equivalent to that of Red Boy, otherwise it wouldn't live up to its name.

If I possessed this level of cultivation, I could roam freely in the world of Journey to the West, and even becoming an immortal or a Buddha would not be a pipe dream.

It seems that the reward for killing the demon king is much better than that for killing the minions.

But the probability...

Special Envoy, 30%; General Yin, 25%; what surprised Li Fa the most was Lord Xiongshan, whose probability of being killed was only 22%.

Why is it that his karma is lower than General Yin's, yet he is more difficult to kill?

However, Li Fa quickly understood.

The reward from Xiong Shan Jun includes the Wind Transformation Technique, so it seems the low success rate is due to this supernatural ability.