From Under One Person: Sincere Journey Through the Heavens

“Senior brother, Lion Camel Ridge looks a bit dangerous. Let’s go patrol the mountain.”

Hu Yuan and Hu Jue were slightly embarrassed, so they volunteered to patrol the mountain, investigate the dangers in the mountains, and see if there were any powerful monsters.

"Alright."

Jiang Liu agreed.

And so.

The two brothers immediately escaped the awkward atmosphere and entered the mountains ahead, where they saw:

The thickets are devoid of birdsong, the dense bushes are free of tigers and wolves. A chilling wind blows, a cold and desolate chill, as if demons were roaming in hell. Beneath the fallen leaves lie animal bones, their ghastly white bones devoid of any masculine strength.

"I heard from my second senior brother that those three demons tricked our eldest senior brother's past life, saying that Tang Sanzang had been eaten, which made our eldest senior brother go mad and kill all 48,000 demons in Lion Camel Ridge. Could the animal bones under these fallen leaves be the remains of those monsters from back then?" Hu Jue squatted down, parted the leaves, and saw that they were all bones mixed with soil and stones. He couldn't help but shudder.

Hu Yuan trembled as he said, "Back then, I followed the ancestral teachings at Huangfeng Ridge, devouring the wicked and corrupt, and escorting good people along the way."

They devoured many wicked people, but it was not even a fraction of the total number of 48,000!

Sun Wukong!

The number one demon of all time, truly lives up to its name!

Just then, an old woman appeared in the woods ahead, and she looked like this:

She wore a long, colorful dress, her hair styled in a dragon bun, looking quite spirited. Leaning on an old vine cane, her brows furrowed with kindness, as if she had been working the land through spring and autumn.

Despite her advanced age, her posture remains upright, as pure and elegant as a lotus, untouched by worldly dust. Every gesture exudes grace, and time cannot diminish her charm.

Hu Yuan didn't smell any fishy stench on the old woman, but he remained vigilant. The sudden appearance of an old woman in this desolate place, where there wasn't even a bird, was highly suspicious.

"Traveler heading west, do not go any further. What you are looking for is no longer to the west. You should go east."

The old woman walked straight up to the two and said, "If you go any further west, you might not live."

“Old woman, you don’t understand. We are cultivators, not treasure hunters.”

Hu Yuan corrected.

"You said that if we go any further west, our lives will be in danger. Are there demons ahead? How many are there? Tell us the number so we can be prepared."

Hu Jue inquired.

Upon hearing their words, the old woman became slightly curious. Instead of answering, she asked, "Are you traveling west?"

"Exactly."

Hu Yuan and Hu Jue said in unison, "My brother and I followed our senior brother Gu Yue Yuanjue all the way west to subdue demons and monsters and obtain Buddhist scriptures."

"Five hundred years ago, Tang Sanzang had already obtained the scriptures. What scriptures are you going to obtain?" The old woman blinked, even more curious.

"The True Scripture Without Words".

Hu Yuan and Hu Jue answered without hesitation.

What use is there in taking back a blank copy without any words?

The old woman had a strange expression.

"Why do you have so many questions, old lady? Answer my questions first: Are there any demons in these mountains?" Hu Yuan didn't answer, but only asked the old woman.

"To tell you the truth, there is only one demon in these mountains."

The old woman answered.

"You're making a big fuss over something as trivial as a demon?"

Hu Yuan chuckled.

"Exactly! There are seven of us, why are we afraid of just one of him?"

Hu Jue, however, was not afraid.

"Such arrogance."

The old woman sneered, "Although there is only one demon, it is incredibly powerful and can transform into thousands of forms, devouring people who come from the east and go to the west."

There are only seven of you, how can you possibly feed him?

"Leave now while there's still time to save your life; once it's too late, there will be no turning back."

The two brothers didn't believe it and were about to ask more questions when the old woman disappeared.

Hu Yuan asked in surprise, "That old woman was small, but how could she have suddenly disappeared?"

Hu Jue guessed, "Could she be a monster?"

"Let's go back and report to our senior brothers first."

After thinking it over, Hu Yuan felt that the matter was strange and decided to go back and report to Jiang Liu.

What kinds of monsters live in the mountains and forests?

Seeing the two of them ride the wind back, Pigsy asked.

"I didn't see any monsters, but the mountains and forests were eerily quiet, with no birds, no beasts, and no insects. I only saw an old woman."

Hu Yuan recounted everything he had seen during his previous patrol of the mountain.

"So, Lion Camel Ridge has been taken over by demons again? And there's only one? He can create clones? And how many soldiers does he have?" Pigsy asked.

Upon hearing the word "soldiers," both Hu Yuan and Hu Jue were stunned, as they had not inquired further.

"I'm afraid she's unhappy because you call her an old woman."

Jiang Liu laughed.

"What should we call it then?"

Hu Yuan and Hu Jue asked.

“If she is old, you should call her Grandma; if she is young, you should call her Sister. Only by speaking to her heart will she be willing to talk to you,” Jiang Liu shared his experience in dealing with people.

"cut."

Pigsy, however, was disdainful.

He had heard these words before, but his senior brother did not follow them. When he saw the Bodhisattva Pilanpo, he still called her "old henpo".

“Bajie, you seem to have some other brilliant ideas? Why don’t you share them?” Jiang Liu noticed his amused expression and couldn’t help but speak up.

"What brilliant insights are there?"

Pigsy hurriedly smiled apologetically and ran into the woods, saying, "These two tigers didn't find out how many monsters are in the mountains. I'll go and take a look."

"That Pigsy—"

Jiang Liu smiled faintly as he watched him disappear into the woods.

Bajie followed the trail left by Hu Yuan and Hu Jue during their previous patrols, and after walking for dozens of miles, he saw an old woman in the woods. He hurriedly ran up to her, bowed, and said, "Grandma, this humble monk greets you."

"And who are you?"

The old woman was startled and fell to the ground, seemingly quite frightened by Pigsy's appearance.

"Grandma, please don't be offended."

Helping the old woman up, Pigsy introduced himself, "I was originally the Clean Altar Messenger who descended to the mortal world. I was passing by this place and sent two junior brothers to patrol the mountain. They saw you in the forest and learned that there was a monster in the mountain, but they didn't ask how many soldiers the monster had, where it lived, or what kind of animal it was."

Therefore, Old Pig came over to inquire.

Upon hearing this, the old woman breathed a sigh of relief, brushed the dust off her clothes, and asked Pigsy, "Those two people were dishonest, talking big. I wonder if you, monk, are honest?"

"Naturally honest."

Pigsy hurriedly replied.

The old woman then recounted the monster's origins: "You don't know, that monster was originally the Golden-Winged Roc from five hundred years ago. When the pilgrims passed through this place on their journey to the West, the eldest disciple went mad and tore him in two right in front of Buddha..."

Upon hearing that the Golden-Winged Roc had been torn in two by his eldest brother, Pigsy suddenly realized, "No wonder I didn't see that Roc when I was a Bodhisattva on Mount Ling; it turns out it was already dead. But why does this woman say that the monster is the Golden-Winged Roc?"

The old woman continued, "Although the roc was dead, after the pilgrims left, the Buddha used a spell to bring him back to life, merging his body with real gold to revive him and teach him to cultivate himself in Lion Camel Ridge."

"If that's the case, why does he still eat people?"

Bajie was certain that the old woman must be some kind of immortal or Buddha in disguise.

"The roc, having come back to life, became even bolder, relying on his status as the Buddha's maternal uncle. He devoured all those who passed by Lion Camel Ridge."

The old woman sighed, "It's a pity that the road that this thing used to travel on is now blocked by it, and it has lost its former prosperity."

"Grandma, don't change the subject."

Bajie exclaimed, "Old Pig once met that Roc, but his skills were mediocre and his temperament was arrogant. The only trouble he had was that Yin-Yang Two Qi Bottle. How did he learn the clone technique now?"

The method of creating clones is no ordinary matter. Apart from the eldest brother, who was born with 84,000 acupoints, each with its own spirit, other immortals and Buddhas would need to gather the gold of heaven and earth and the light of the sun and moon to create countless clones in order to create one clone after another.

In a mere five hundred years, where did the Great Roc get the skill to cultivate countless incarnations?

Even if he was Buddha's uncle, would he dare to make so many demands of Buddha?

"It's because of this charnel ground."

The old woman said, "Back then, the eldest disciple of the pilgrim went mad and killed 48,000 demons here, leaving their corpses scattered all over the place. As a result, Lion Camel Ridge was renamed Corpse Forest."

The monster may be dead, but its obsession remains.

The roc was resurrected in this charnel ground, merging with the obsessions of 48,000 demons. Afterwards, it returned to the Lion Camel Kingdom, gathered 36,000 demons, killed and devoured them, and used those obsessions and resentful souls to forge 84,000 clones!

Obsession is the most mysterious thing in the world; it can turn the illusory into the real and the false into the true!

After the roc was resurrected, it experienced a brush with death, seemingly comprehending some profound truth. It then cultivated 84,000 acupoints within its body, fusing the obsessions of those 84,000 demons with those acupoints, thus achieving this extraordinary power!

Upon hearing this, a hint of fear appeared in Pigsy's eyes, but he remained calm and asked again, "Grandma, how many demon soldiers and generals does the Golden-Winged Roc have under his command?"

"What demon soldiers or demon generals? All living beings that come here have been eaten by him."

The old woman sighed and said to Pigsy, "If you really have the ability, then please help him get rid of this burden."

"who are you?"

Upon hearing this, Pigsy hurriedly inquired about the old woman's true identity.

wow——

Suddenly, a burst of multicolored light erupted from her body, transforming her into a beautiful young woman, draped in a peacock skirt and adorned with colorful feathers—she was none other than the Great Ming Peacock King Bodhisattva.

"So it's Buddha's mother!"