From Under One Person: Sincere Journey Through the Heavens

The man told Jiang Liu to wait outside the door, then went inside himself, changed into a straw raincoat, and put on a wide-sleeved robe before leading the family to greet him.

The area outside the door was deserted.

The courtyard was bustling with activity.

It turns out that today is the 666th birthday of the Chen family's ancestor, and all the villagers of the Chen family are descendants of this ancestor, and they have all come to celebrate his birthday.

"Young man, you've come at just the right time."

The man laughed and said, "I'll get to eat a good meal."

"Today is your ancestor's birthday, why are you still working in the fields?" Jiang Liu asked curiously.

"According to the rules set by our ancestors, no one born into the Chen family shall eat without working."

The man was full of righteous indignation: "As a junior member of the Chen family, I must follow the ancestral teachings and not break the rules."

Afterwards, Jiang Liu followed the man through the crowd, across the living room, and down the corridor, where he found an old man with a white beard, dressed in funeral clothes, sitting on a recliner in the courtyard.

The old man seemed to sense something, turned his head, saw Jiang Liu, and froze, his eyes trembling. He shakily stood up: "You...you are..."

Chapter 1385 A Glance, A Lifetime, A Peach

"Are you the great-grandson of the one who fed the peaches?"

If Jiang Liu were to reveal his true nature, he would never be so frivolous. But since he is now the chosen one, he should be a little arrogant so that this "old friend" will feel a sense of familiarity.

Upon hearing this, Old Man Chen's eyes welled up with tears. He walked forward shakily, took Jiang Liu's arm, and pulled him into the house, his eyes filled with excitement. He said, "It's me! It's me!"

Jiang Liu did not resist, but helped Old Man Chen into the house together.

The old man invited Jiang Liu to sit down and ordered someone to make tea. He then personally rose to serve Jiang Liu tea and food, his face beaming with joy. While eating, he recounted his past: "That year, I was only this tall, herding cattle on the hillside. Unconsciously, I saw the Great Sage among the mountain peaks. My eyes were bright, so I tiptoed and handed you a peach. You took a bite and smiled at me..."

As he spoke, Jiang Liu, who was eating, gave him a happy smile, exactly the same smile he had given him years ago, and handed him a bowl of soup.

Old Man Chen took it, wiped away the tears from the corners of his eyes, and laughed, "Great Sage, your eyes are so bright... they can even see my past."

Jiang Liu smiled slightly and said, "You old man are quite interesting. If you have an afterlife, you might become a poet."

Old Man Chen nodded and laughed heartily, "Great Sage, you're joking. I'm just a farmer, how could I be a poet?"

After saying that, he asked again, "Great Sage, I, your great-grandson, am telling me that you are going west again?"

"Yes."

Jiang Liu did not hide anything and told the whole story of how Sun Wukong resigned from his Buddhist position, returned to Huaguo Mountain and the Water Curtain Mountain, was feared by the Heavenly Court and the Spirit Mountain, and was besieged and killed. He said, "Old man, in terms of age, I am now more than 600 years younger than you, and I am no longer called Sun Wukong. I have a new name, Guyue Yuanjue."

"My journey to the West to collect the relics and spiritual essences of the past is merely a side trip. My true purpose is to travel the Journey to the West again to mend the deficiencies in the heavens."

"In this world, Nuwa mended the sky with great supernatural powers, but she only mended the outer appearance; while I, a stubborn stone that she casually discarded, am here to mend the hearts of all living beings."

Having said that, Jiang Liu put down his chopsticks, looked at Old Man Chen, and said with a smile, "Old man, I came here to ask for lodging for the night, but I never expected that today would happen to be your birthday. Congratulations!"

Upon hearing this, Old Man Chen sighed deeply and asked the question that had been lingering in his mind: "Great Sage, my wife and children, whom I knew so well, are long gone..."

Although my family is full of great-grandchildren, all of whom are filial, none of them know about my past.

No one mentioned the name.

No one tells the story.

Sometimes, I don't even know why I'm alive, and I even feel like this is all a dream...

It wasn't until I saw the Great Sage again and he asked me, "Are you the great-grandson who fed the peaches?" that I realized the truth of my life.

"My life hasn't been in vain!"

In an instant.

Old Man Chen burst into tears again.

“Old man, stop crying. There are countless people in the world who are afraid of death, but you should be laughing out loud when you realize that you have not lived in vain on your 666th birthday.”

Jiang Liu jumped onto the table, hands on his hips, completely disregarding etiquette, but his laughter was infectious, and Old Man Chen joined in, laughing along with the anger that had been building up inside him for over five hundred years—

It's clear now.

"Absolutely! Absolutely!"

“The Great Sage is not afraid of death and re-enters the cycle of reincarnation. I, this old man, have lived for more than six hundred years and will also re-enter the cycle of reincarnation.”

That night, Chenjia Village was brightly lit, with guests coming and going, everyone chatting and laughing, and everyone was happy.

When the banquet ended, everyone left, the lights went out, and only silence remained in the courtyard.

Old Chen arranged accommodation for Jiang Liu.

Jiang Liu fell asleep peacefully.

Day two.

Dawn breaks.

Jiang Liu opened his eyes, stretched, and glanced at the bowl of millet. The golden grains on it had burned away, and next to it was a bright red mountain peach.

This peach was transformed from Old Man Chen's obsession after he transcended it.

Unlike Journey to the West, in this prehistoric world, when the six thieves manifested, Wukong was about to kill them, but Tang Sanzang held him back. During the struggle between the master and disciple, the six thieves attacked, and Old Man Chen took the initiative to meet them, blocking a blow for Tang Sanzang and dying in the process.

Enraged, Wukong disregarded the fact that the pedantic Tang Sanzang was only a mortal, shoved him aside, killed the six thieves, and left behind a single hair that brought Old Man Chen back to life...

But Old Man Chen was obsessed with the idea that his name and story would be remembered, which led him to distort time and space and create a dreamlike world of obsession.

Only now, upon encountering Jiang Liu, the chosen one, and learning that Sun Wukong had died and become Gu Yue Yuanjue, did he realize that he had let go of his obsessions, transcended worldly concerns, and was no longer subject to the jurisdiction of the primordial underworld. A fragment of his spirit was reincarnated.

Picking up the peach, Jiang Liu took a bite, the juice splashing everywhere, sweet and delicious. A surge of pure energy immediately welled up in his stomach, causing Jiang Liu's destined body to let out a satisfied burp.

Looking at the mountain peach again, the bite mark actually healed on its own.

The things that are formed from obsessions are mysterious and extraordinary. Old Man Chen was afraid that Jiang Liu would go hungry, so his obsession condensed into a mountain peach, a mountain peach that he had fed to Sun Wukong under the Five Elements Mountain years ago. It could fill his stomach and he could not finish eating it.

However, since this mountain peach was formed from an obsession, it will completely dissipate and cease to exist once it leaves the river.

"Ugh~ Achoo!"

at this time.

A merchant from nearby woke up, blew his nose, rubbed his eyes, and saw himself lying on the mountainside, looking completely bewildered: "What happened? Did I get drunk and end up in the mountains?"

Thinking of this, the merchant glanced at the other merchants who were slumped over and sleeping in unsightly positions, and couldn't help but shudder.

When the merchants awoke, they were all astonished to find themselves not in Chenjia Village, but outside Liangjie Pass.

"The scoundrels of Chenjia Village are really rude. We've already paid our bills, so why are they taking advantage of our drunkenness to drag us out of the village?"

"Let's all go and demand an explanation!"

"Let's go together! Let's go together!"

But as soon as these merchants left the Two Realms Pass, they were dumbfounded, and their whole bodies trembled.

Where is Chenjia Village ahead?

It was clearly a forest.

"Could it be that I've encountered a ghost?"

"Chenjia Village might just be a ghost village!"

"I've heard that anyone who has been to Chenjia Village falls seriously ill... It must be because it's a ghost village, inhabited by ghosts!"

The merchants became more and more excited as they talked, and many people became frightened, backed out, and returned to their hometowns, unwilling to continue westward to trade. Only a couple and seven or eight servants decided to continue westward to the Kingdom of Baoxiang.

The strange events of last night were still fresh in their minds, and the two hesitated...

Just then, the merchant saw Jiang Liu, dressed in gray clothes and wearing a tiger skin belt, about to leave the mountain, so he shouted loudly, "Hero! Please wait!"

Jiang Liu stopped, turned around, and his face startled everyone.

In terms of appearance, the chosen one is not ugly. Among humans, he can be considered uniquely handsome. Not to mention that after Jiang Liu's primordial spirit entered the body, he was born with a smiling face, which added seven parts gentleness to his originally domineering face. Ordinary people would not be afraid of him.

He was still shaken, and seeing that his eyebrows were slightly raised and his mouth slightly protruded, he had the appearance of an "extraordinary person," which made him feel apprehensive.

"I wonder why you called me back, elder brother?"

Jiang Liu clasped his hands in a gesture of respect.

The merchant, regaining his composure, hurriedly returned the greeting, saying, "I hope you know, sir, that we were on our way to Baoxiang Kingdom to do business, but this experience has shown us that there are indeed demons and monsters on the westward journey..."

Seeing that I am dressed as a valiant traveler, I think I must be a powerful and extraordinary person. Could you please escort us for a while?

We are willing to offer one hundred taels of gold and silver as a reward.

"Gold and silver are unnecessary."

Jiang Liu laughed twice, "I am a traveler on the journey to the West. What use is gold and silver to me? I just happen to be retracing my journey to the West and passing through Baoxiang Kingdom. I will protect you for a while. All you need is three meals a day."

The merchant was overjoyed, but said aloud, "How can this be...?"

Chapter 1386 Once again, at Yingchou, Yima (a place name) is gathered.

Meanwhile, Jiang Liu, having protected the caravan, learned the names of the husband and wife.

The master's surname was Kui, and he was known as Kui Lang. His wife was beautiful and virtuous, and her name was Baihua Ai.

With his discerning eye and his spiritual insight, Jiang Liu was able to see through the past lives of these two people, saying that the true nature of reincarnation is revealed in the cycle of life.

That's how it is.

The group traveled for several days and encountered bandits. Jiang Liu helped them without killing them, but crippled their tendons and ligaments so they could no longer use force. Whether they would face retaliation from their enemies or settle down to farm was up to them.

If you encounter mountain spirits, and you do not steal or harm people, then you should drive them away and teach them the cultivation of life through the practice of Yin descending and Yang ascending, which can be considered as planting a good seed.

There seems to be the sound of water ahead.

Kui Lang, whose ears were also sharp, said to Jiang Liu, "Hero, you are traveling west, so you must know the route. Do you know what lies ahead?"

"Snake Coil Mountain, Eagle Sorrow Stream".

Jiang Liu, of course, knew the route and replied without hesitation, "My ancestors subdued the Jade Dragon here and it transformed into a white horse... I don't know if the Eight Heavenly Dragon Horse is coiled on the pillar of Mount Ling or has returned to this Eagle Sorrow Stream."

Upon hearing this, Kui Lang was taken aback and tentatively asked, "Aren't heroes human?"

"Oh? What do you think a person is?"