Journey to the West: Black Six Ears

Boom!

A perfectly healthy head rolled off the spot.

"Men! You can take this white horse and divide it among yourselves!"

The Demon King's voice reached his ears. Xuanzang opened his eyes tremblingly, only to see that the Demon King's eyes were deep and staring straight at him.

Before he could tremble all over, he heard the monster whisper:

"Today's trouble."

Having said that, the monster, along with its demonic followers, turned and retreated.

Before long, the sun rose high in the sky.

Xuanzang was in a daze and could not distinguish east from west.

But then he felt a sudden loosening of his body, and before he knew it, the ropes binding him had broken.

Looking up, he saw the two terrified followers who were frantically helping him down from the tree.

"Heaven hasn't forsaken me!"

Having finally caught his breath, Xuanzang looked at the two disheveled men and gave a wry smile.

This trip was incredibly arduous. Although they were lucky enough to survive, none of the three had any hope for the journey westward.

"Master Xuanzang, let's go quickly."

Although there was no horse, the two attendants still carried the limp Xuanzang, who was as soft as a noodle, and walked westward across the rugged ground.

The three of them had not only lost their horses, but the two bundles on their backs had also been taken away by the Demon King. They were now empty-handed and empty-stomached.

Glug glug...

Having survived such a fright, they were all exhausted, both physically and mentally, and extremely hungry.

But this is something that can't be done by a mage, so one of the followers stepped forward:

"Master, I'll go pick some fruit."

"Master, I'll go get some water."

The other servant also had his head drooping.

Although they were mortals, they were still skilled soldiers in the Tang Dynasty.

Originally, Emperor Taizong was quite confident in escorting Xuanzang to the Western Paradise to obtain Buddhist scriptures, and even promised him high-ranking official positions and generous rewards for the trip. However, no sooner had they left the Tang Dynasty than all their confidence was shattered by a demon.

The reason it's arranged this way now is because I've seen through it all.

Even if they were all combined, they wouldn't be a match for this demon. If the demon really wanted to eat them, it would be better to set the table itself and save time.

But the two dared not run away. If they followed Xuanzang, they might survive, but if they dared to run, not only would they die, but none of their families would escape either.

"Go ahead, go ahead."

Xuanzang realized this as well and simply waved his hand.

The two attendants sighed and went to find water and food, while Xuanzang sat on the ground, chanting Buddhist scriptures continuously.

Suddenly, Xuanzang heard the sound of wood striking stone.

Opening my eyes, I immediately saw an old man with white hair holding a cane not far away.

"Old man, where are you from?"

Xuanzang rubbed his eyes, confirming that these were living people, not blue-faced, fanged monsters, and was overjoyed.

If people live here, then they can leave this mountain.

As long as we can leave these treacherous mountains and rivers and get onto a smooth road, there will always be a way to survive.

Venus looked at Xuanzang with some surprise, remained silent for a moment, and then asked:

"This is Shuangcha Ridge, a den of tigers and wolves. Why are you here?"

Upon confirming that the visitor was someone who could be communicated with, Xuanzang was overjoyed.

"Old man, you may not know this, but I come from the Great Tang Dynasty in the East, on my way to the Western Paradise to obtain Buddhist scriptures. I was lost in this place and was captured by a demon. If it weren't for dawn, I'm afraid..."

At this point, Xuanzang burst into tears and choked with sobs.

Upon seeing this, Venus immediately understood, took two steps closer, and stood before Xuanzang:

"Don't be sad. Although you have lost two followers, your nature is pure and bright, so demons cannot harm you. Come with me, and I will guide you on your journey."

At this moment, Venus had already made his plans.

Having lost his protection and having witnessed the mountain spirits, tree demons, monsters, and wolves of Shuangcha Ridge, Tang Sanzang naturally didn't have the courage to stay there any longer.

Once he is led to the main road, he only needs to transform into a gentle breeze, mount a white crane with a red crown, leave a note, and fly away. This will surely make Tang Sanzang bow and go to find Wukong.

He'll thank us for saving his life then!

Venus stroked his white beard, turned around smugly, and was about to lead the way when he heard Tang Sanzang's voice full of doubt behind him:

"Wait, how did you know that I have two followers?"

Upon hearing this, Venus even plucked a few hairs from his beard, his mind racing as he quickly came up with a reason:

"I overheard a little demon talking on the way about how he ate two of the monk's followers. Since you're a monk, he naturally knew what was going on."

That sounds reasonable.

Even if Venus insisted on saying that he had sharp ears, Tang Sanzang couldn't find any fault with it.

"But those two are still alive."

Xuanzang looked wary, cautiously took two steps back, and pretended to run away.

Venus looked completely stunned.

Why is this different from what we agreed on?

The three monsters should have eaten two of the followers, released Sanzang alone, and then Taibai Jinxing would have appeared to save him and pointed out the location of his eldest disciple, Sun Wukong.

Everything should be going according to plan, so where did things go wrong?

"Is he really still alive?"

"Truly alive."

Venus fell silent.

An awkward atmosphere lingered between the two.

A moment later, Venus suddenly leaped up, quickly mounted a red-crowned crane, and took to the air.

A booming voice, carrying a powerful surge of energy, compels one to bow down in awe.

"I am Venus, the planet of the Western Heaven, who has come to rescue your souls. You will have divine assistance on your journey; do not fear hardship or complain."

Having said that, the figure had already vanished.

Tang Sanzang was left with only a look of fear and confusion.

At this moment, Tang Sanzang had great doubts about the journey to the West.

For Sun Qiong, who was hiding in the mountains, this trip was quite fruitful.

"I never imagined that astral projection could have such a wonderful use."

Sun Qiong shook his arms and looked at the Demon King lying on the ground to the side.

He had just separated his soul from his body and taken over this body, which was why he was able to kill the two monsters.

The reason for doing this was, of course, because Sun Qiong intended to change Tang Sanzang.

Since the goal is to delve deeper into the main storyline and disrupt the plot, the best approach would be to instill a certain idea in Tang Sanzang from the very beginning:

This journey to the West to obtain Buddhist scriptures is fraught with problems.

Although Tang Sanzang was Jin Chanzi in his previous life.

But that was in his past life. In this life, Tang Sanzang is a monk with good fortune.

Since we are human, we will have fear and suspicion.

As long as he feels that none of these gods and Buddhas in the sky are good people.

When one is hesitant, one's actions become sluggish.

Even if we can't change the overall trend, at least we can make this journey to the west less logical.

But most importantly, when he first saw Tang Sanzang, lines of text appeared in front of him like a screen being flooded with images.

[Important character discovered: Tang Sanzang]

[Task Status: Triggered]

[Current Main Storyline: Elder of Twin Fork Ridge Dies]

[Rewards: Earn rewards based on your storyline destruction score]

It was because of this thing that Sun Qiong chose to separate his soul from his body and forcibly take over General Yin's title.

Kill the three demons and slaughter the white horse.

This caused Tang Sanzang to have doubts about Venus.

In this way, Sun Qiong successfully disrupted the original course of events.

As for killing Tang Sanzang directly, Sun Qiong had considered it.

But touching the golden headband on his head, he realized he couldn't do this until the thing on his head was removed.

[Intervening in the main storyline, the two followers defy fate, kill Tang Sanzang's white horse, and change the nature of the ordeal at Shuangcha Ridge.]

[Mission Conclusion: At Twin Fork Ridge, all three demons are dead. The elder harbors doubts, and Venus flees in broad daylight. Alas, the white horse! How can it possibly traverse these countless mountains and rivers?]

[Rating: Excellent]

[Reward 1: Transformation Technique]

[Reward Two: Soaring Through the Clouds]

[Reward 3: Acquired Spiritual Treasure - Fake Kasaya]

[Please prepare yourself and proceed to the new main storyline area: Snake Coil Mountain and Eagle Sorrow Stream at the appropriate time.]