A Core Ship From The Start
Chapter 1374 - 926: Wilderness Tea House Meets Business Travelers, Duanmu Huai Encounters the White Bone Spirit

Chapter 1374: Chapter 926: Wilderness Tea House Meets Business Travelers, Duanmu Huai Encounters the White Bone Spirit

After passing Gao’s Village, we’ve arrived in West Cowherd State. Along the way, Duanmu Huai and Sun Wukong have been enjoying the scenery and having a blast slaying demons and eliminating devils.

Of course, to Duanmu Huai......

"That Tathagata is simply spouting nonsense and disturbing my peace."

"Master, why would you say that?"

Hearing Duanmu Huai’s complaints, Sun Wukong was curious and asked. He had been following Duanmu Huai long enough to know that this person was by no means a devout follower of the Buddha.

Not just devout, he was nothing like a monk at all, enjoying drinking and eating meat, with not a shred of the mercy and compassion expected of a monk. At every fairy territory they came across, he wouldn’t stop until all the demons inside were exterminated. To use Duanmu Huai’s own words, "Forgiving them is Buddha’s business; my duty is to send them to meet Buddha."

Well, to Sun Wukong, those demons didn’t stand a chance against Duanmu Huai’s divine power, their souls scattered so far that they couldn’t even enter Hell, let alone meet the Buddha.

However, Sun Wukong himself was no honest fellow either; the two together were like birds of a feather, and sometimes even Sun Wukong thought his master was more ruthless than he was. Back when his greatest pride was causing havoc in the Celestial Palace, if his master had been the one to go instead, he was afraid the palace would have ended up dismantled...

"Do you know, back when we were fetching the scriptures, Tathagata said in front of everyone: I now declare the character of all living beings in the four great continents is not the same; those in Eastern Victorious Divine Continent are respectful to heaven and earth, with peaceful hearts and balanced chi; In Northern Ju Lu Continent, though they cherish their kin, it is out of simple necessity, lacking ambition and overflowing with emotions. They hardly lower themselves; our West Cowherd State people refrain from greed and killing, nurturing their chi and hiding their spirits, although not obtaining the ultimate truth, each and every one of them enjoys longevity; yet, those in Southern Zengbu Continent are greedy, lecherous, take joy in disasters, are prone to killing and strife, it’s truly a place where rumors and slander run riot, the abode of conflict and sin... hmph, if you ask me, it’s all bullshit!"

Saying so, Duanmu Huai huffed coldly with contempt.

Tathagata’s words were quite straightforward, succinctly put, he describes his own West Cowherd State as a beacon of freedom where no one steals or robs, and doors remain unlocked at night. But the realm of the Tang Dynasty is depicted as a place teeming with greed and lechery, rife with killing and strife, a sinister dictatorship. "That’s why I have these three volumes of Free Underworld Scriptures; come and get them, then take them back so that your Tang Dynasty can also become a beacon of freedom like this."

And the results?

"Ever since we set foot in this damned West Cowherd State, demons have been relentless. I’ve never encountered so many fairies back in the Tang Dynasty!"

Saying this, Duanmu Huai couldn’t help but curse furiously. So this is your non-greedy, non-killing, chi-nurturing, and spirit-hiding, immortal-promising, Free Underworld, huh?

Everyone’s armed to the teeth, freedom to shoot equals the ruler of the dead, is that it?!

With your West Cowherd State full of demons who capture and eat humans, you still want me to study your crappy True Scripture? If I don’t ascend Spirit Mountain and demolish your stupid hall and chop off your Buddha head, then I might as well write my name backwards!

Before arriving in West Cowherd State, Duanmu Huai had only encountered two or three minor demons. But once inside, they were everywhere—in the sky, on the ground—Duanmu Huai was getting tired of slaying them all!

"Once I get to the Western Paradise, I’ll kick that bald donkey off his lotus seat and drag him to ask, do you really expect my grand Tang Dynasty to study your ways when you can’t even manage your own mess? My Tang dynasty is a prosperous empire to which many nations pay tribute, where lost valuables are left untouched and doors go unlocked at night. Yet your West Cowherd State is crawling with devils and ghostly monsters, reigning supreme in tyranny, killing and arson are commonplace. What kind of pathetic game are you playing that we are supposed to learn from? What a joke!"

It’s just that distance lends enchantment to the view. Emperor Tang Taizong was utterly baffled by Guanyin’s beguilement, which comes down to nothing more than the great distance between the Tang Dynasty and West Cowherd State. In those days, there were no live streams or TIKTOK videos, and hearing Guanyin’s boastful claims, even Emperor Tang Taizong began to question his life, and thus he sent Monk Tang to fetch the scriptures.

If what they said was true, then learning from the advanced experiences of other countries wasn’t unreasonable.

But what if it was all balderdash?

So what if you lose a person or two, how big a loss can it be?

"Master’s words are not without reason..."

Hearing Duanmu Huai speak, Sun Wukong could only agree. In his heyday, he too caused quite the uproar in the Celestial Palace, but even then, Sun Wukong didn’t commit many evils when on earth. He just stirred up the Underworld by changing the Book of Life and Death, seized a stick in the Dragon Palace, then played around in the Celestial Palace, unlike the demons of West Cowherd State, who were outright brutes, waving weapons and killing at the slightest provocation, with devouring humans being their daily bread. Even he, the Heavenly Great Sage, had never seen demons in any other region so blatantly defiant.

So Sun Wukong began to doubt: if the Buddha is merciful, why doesn’t he save so many demons in his own territory instead of making trouble for old Sun up in heaven? With a small devil appearing every three steps and a big demon every five, are the Buddha and Bodhisattvas simply turning a blind eye? Could it be, as the master said, that they are all as blind as spacefaring astronauts?

I, old Sun, only stole some peaches and made a ruckus at a feast, that’s all, without resorting to killing or arson.

Could it be that the old bald donkey actually has some ulterior motives?

As they were talking, a teahouse appeared up ahead. After walking a long way, both were thirsty and tired, so they dismounted to order tea and rest for a while.

While Duanmu Huai and Sun Wukong were enjoying their tea, they noticed a few merchants sitting nearby, frequently looking over. After a while, one merchant stood up, approached Duanmu Huai and gave a deep bow.

"May I ask if you two are the holy monks journeying to the Western Paradise to obtain the scriptures, vanquishing demons and devils along the way?"

"Oh? How do you know that?"

"Holy Monk, you jest."

Hearing Duanmu Huai’s inquiry, the merchant’s face immediately blossomed into a smile as he responded.

"Your esteemed names have long been renowned throughout West Cowherd State, with rumors saying that both of you loathe evil and subdue demons along the way. No matter how formidable the devils and fairies are, they’re all taken down by you two. Moreover, one of you is towering like a mountain, with eyes blazing like the Kong, while the other has a thunderous visage and a stooped figure, and accompanied by a magnificent white horse, it would be hard for anyone to mistake you."

"So what’s the matter?"

Duanmu Huai didn’t bother replying and simply asked instead. You see, that’s the advantage of having a reputation; unlike Monk Tang, that idiot. He’s got a good-looking skin but is dumb and clueless, without any skills. Isn’t he supposed to be a monk? Doesn’t he know that monks live off their reputation and deceive for wealth and women?

"It’s like this, we are planning to travel to the Kingdom of Baoxiang, but we’ve heard that the road has been unsafe recently, frequented by demonic creatures. If the two holy monks don’t mind, could we perhaps travel together........."

"It’s not a problem."

Duanmu Huai didn’t seem to care much, as he had encountered similar situations a few times after entering West Cowherd State—whether it was a farmer going out or a merchant transporting goods—more importantly, following them often really did result in encounters with demons.

This was also why Duanmu Huai and his companions had increasingly greater fame along their journey. When those people arrived safely at their destinations, naturally, they would spread the word, and indeed, word of mouth travels faster than phone calls. So, you see, even before Duanmu Huai reaches Western Paradise, his fame has already spread across the entire West Cowherd State.

With Duanmu Huai’s consent, the old merchant was overjoyed and thanked them before turning to leave.

After finishing their tea, both parties rested for a moment before hitting the road again. The old merchant also introduced his group to Duanmu Huai and Sun Wukong, which aside from himself, included a young master of the merchants, and a group of energetic young traders. According to the old merchant, this was their first outing, planning to get goods from the Kingdom of Baoxiang and then return, each full of vigor—well, that’s understandable, it’s entertainment for young people to go out and about, as in this era there are no computers, TVs, dance halls, or KTVs to occupy them. Going out into the wilderness was considered decent fun.

When the young ones heard that they had invited two monks to travel with them, they were clearly displeased. However, upon seeing Duanmu Huai, they all fell silent, with none of them displaying the disrespectful bravado typical of the characters in stories—who would dare to act so in the face of this towering figure and his fists as large as Purple-gold Bowls?

Unless one was blind.

This was also why Duanmu Huai never minded such matters; after all, just by standing there, it was clear that this man was not someone to be trifled with. He was no protagonist pretending to be weak and letting others look down on him, only to reveal his true strength at a critical moment—Duanmu Huai didn’t have the patience for that. He didn’t hold grudges; he settled his accounts on the same day.

But just as they were preparing to embark, the young master stepped forward, a woman accompanying him. Although she wasn’t stunning enough to cause fish to sink or geese to fall, she had her charms. Upon seeing this woman, the old merchant paused.

"Young master, what are you......"

"Greetings, sir," the woman said with a graceful bow as she addressed the old merchant.

"My name is Cui, originally from Pengyang. My parents, lured by wealth, sold me to a rich family to be a concubine. But the first wife of that household was jealous and maltreated me constantly. Unable to endure it, I gathered some money to seek refuge with relatives in the Kingdom of Baoxiang. However, as a frail girl on my own, the roads are perilous. It so happened that I met the young master who offered to take me along......"

"This........."

The old merchant furrowed his eyebrows upon hearing the woman speak, while the young master stared at him intently.

"How about it? Dear sir, this lady truly has a pitiable story. It just so happens she is heading in the same direction as us; why not join forces for the journey, to offer each other some assistance?"

"Umm........."

As the old merchant hesitated, Sun Wukong swiftly pulled out his Golden Cudgel, aiming to strike at the woman, but was promptly stopped by the quick reflexes of Duanmu Huai.

"Master, why are you stopping me? That’s a demon!"

"I’m well aware she’s a demon."

Duanmu Huai narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing the woman. Even without fiery, golden eyes, he could smell the thick scent of blood on her.

This creature... hmm, could it be the White Bone Spirit?

"It’s not an easy opponent; don’t rush to make a move. Let your master think of a strategy to deal with her."

Of course, Duanmu Huai wasn’t going to let her go, but he also knew that if she were the White Bone Spirit, then the creature was adept at disguise, and to truly confront her, he would need a good reason.

Otherwise, considering these idiotic kids, they’ve probably already fallen under the White Bone Spirit’s spell.

With that thought, Duanmu Huai had already made a decision in his mind.

"Once they set off, we’ll follow behind and see what that demon intends to do."