A Core Ship From The Start
Chapter 1379 - 931: Duanmu Huai’s Braised Pork Meatballs, Bodhisattva’s Blood Splatters Chunman Tower

Chapter 1379: Chapter 931: Duanmu Huai’s Braised Pork Meatballs, Bodhisattva’s Blood Splatters Chunman Tower

The Heavenly Great Sage was indeed a monkey with ways and means, for just after one day, Duanmu Huai saw him bringing the Emperor, who was brimming with life, before him.

"Master! Your disciple has not shamed you, finally succeeding."

Upon seeing Duanmu Huai, Sun Wukong also hurriedly approached and began to lament his hardships.

"This has surely given old Sun a hard time, first I went to the Octagon Luili Well, and it so happened that there was a Well Dragon King below who had claimed the Emperor’s body. After I took it out, I went to the Heavenly Court to find Taishang Laojun and obtained from him a Nine-Turn Resurrection Pill, and with that I managed to revive this Emperor."

"It seems like you’re not too rushed."

Duanmu Huai let out a chuckle and then turned to look at the Emperor, who also quickly stepped forward and bowed to Duanmu Huai.

"Elder! Your divine power is vast, just last night I prayed, and to think that today I have been revived!"

"No need for formalities."

Duanmu Huai waved his hand dismissively.

"Our mission is to eliminate demons and uphold the Dao, to save the common people from suffering. That Fairy dared to cause chaos in the world and meddle in human affairs, wait until I obliterate their soul and spirit, to set the record straight!"

"So master, now that the Emperor has been revived, what should we do?"

Sun Wukong too came forward and asked. Hearing Sun Wukong’s question, Duanmu Huai thought for a moment. In the original text and TV series, Sun Wukong brought the Crown Prince to explain the situation, and then coordinated from inside and outside to capture the Lion spirit. But... why make it so troublesome?

"We’ll head straight into the city!"

Duanmu Huai swung his right hand.

"Charge directly to his throne room and publicly expose the true face of this Demon!"

"Ah?"

Hearing this, not only was Sun Wukong greatly surprised, even the King was quite astonished.

"Elder, the Royal City is heavily guarded, and what’s more, they are all my house servants; if we are to force our way in..."

"Your Majesty, you needn’t worry about this."

Duanmu Huai waved his hand.

"I have my own plans!"

Since Duanmu Huai had said so, the other two could not say much else. They packed their belongings and descended the mountain to stand before the gates of the Wujia Country’s city. The King was still in his previous disguise, donning a Yellow Robe and holding a jade ruler. As they approached the gate, the Guards saw and became dumbstruck, hurriedly blocking them and shouting in unison.

"Who goes there, daring to impersonate our King, such audacity, deserving of death a thousand times over!"

"You.........!"

At this moment, the King also felt a deep sense of injustice, seeing his own Guards blocking him and being so infuriated he couldn’t speak. However, it was then that Duanmu Huai stepped forward, gave one glance, and let out a cold snort.

"Kneel!"

Duanmu Huai’s voice wasn’t loud, but it echoed like a muffled thunder, reverberating throughout the land. The two Guards felt their knees weaken and they immediately knelt on the ground, not daring to stand up. Duanmu Huai did not even look at them before turning to gesture to the King.

"Your Majesty, please."

"Oh..."

The King, trembling, nodded and walked into the city. It was then that he saw, within the city, whether men, women, the elderly, or children, birds or beasts, all were prostrate on the ground, not daring to move. Their faces were pale, sweaty, and trembling all over. They felt as if the life was being squeezed out of them, as if they could perish in the blink of an eye.

"This..."

"Since Your Majesty is the King, your return to the court should be met with the proper royal protocol, please."

Duanmu Huai once again gestured, and the King, still in a daze, nodded and then strode forward. At this moment, the King’s heart settled, although he had witnessed the Demon Daoist’s powers before, the divine authority of the Elder from the Eastern Tang Dynasty greatly surpassed it, comforting the King’s heart.

Thus, the three of them, amidst the prostration of the people of Wujia Country, walked all the way to the court’s gate and arrived in front of the palace. The civil and military officials were arranged on both sides, bowing to the ground. On the Dragon Throne, a Taoist with hands on the table, his face pale and sweaty, looked rather comical. Upon seeing Duanmu Huai, Sun Wukong, and the figure of the King, the Taoist’s face color changed drastically.

"You... How did you..."

"So it’s you, Demon Daoist!"

At this moment, seeing the Taoist, the King was filled with rage, striding forward and rebuking him fiercely.

"When you summoned the rain, I made you my brother, never withholding from you any wealth or honor. I did not expect that you, a Demon Daoist as bold as heaven, would dare to deceive and substitute me, pushing me into a well and taking my place on the throne. Fortunately, the Holy Monk Elder from the Eastern Tang Dynasty has overwhelming divine power, or else would I not have become a ghost wronged?!"

Hearing the King’s scolding, the officials below were stunned and shocked. The Taoist above clenched his teeth and dared not speak. He hadn’t expected that this Monk from the Eastern Tang Dynasty could be so powerful. Honestly, when the Lion spirit first had Monk Tang come to court, it planned to find a way to drive him away. But before he could issue an order, he felt a terrifying divine pressure descend from the sky like a massive boulder, directly crushing the Demon down and breaking his shape-shifting technique, forcing the Demon to reveal his true form.

"Hmph."

Seeing this, Duanmu Huai let out a cold snort and then withdrew his divine power. The Demon felt lightness on his body and did not dare to delay, quickly transforming into a green-furred lion with a roar, and attempted to escape by flying into the skies.

"Stop, Demon!"

However, Duanmu Huai had been keeping an eye on him and at that moment made a gesture. They saw Sun Wukong let out an angry roar, charging forward with his staff and smashing it down on the head of the green-furred lion. The lion, not daring to take the hit head-on, quickly rolled away and landed again. Just then, as Duanmu Huai dashed towards it, he slid down underneath the lion, stretching out both hands, grabbing the forepaws with one and the hind legs with the other. Just like that, he lifted the lion overhead as if it were a dead pig, then forcefully pressed it down.

The green-furred lion was smashed heavily onto Duanmu Huai’s back, and with a crack, its body was broken into two from the back, immediately breathing its last.

It was not until then that the civil and military officials dared to stand up, looking at this scene before them with bewildered astonishment. And the Emperor had returned to his throne, explaining to the officials the true story. Upon hearing that the Taoist priest was a transformed demon who even framed the King, everyone was astonished.

Once back in his throne, the King repeatedly thanked Duanmu Huai and Sun Wukong, even offering to relinquish the throne to the two men. Duanmu Huai naturally would not agree, but he mentioned that if you really have this intention, you could pay tribute to the Tang Dynasty, upholding our Heaven Son’s divine power. The King readily agreed to this without hesitation.

As for gold, silver, jewelries, and silk fabrics, Duanmu Huai did not care. What he wanted was a single reward: to find the best restaurant in Wujia Country, roast this lion for me, and make an entire lion feast to relish the taste of this lion.

It must be said that upon hearing Duanmu Huai’s request, the King was utterly bewildered. But since the Holy Monk had such a request, the King naturally followed through. He found the best restaurant in the country, Chunman Tower, dispatched the Imperial Chef and the head chef to serve, and prepared a lion feast for Duanmu Huai on the top floor.

Well, it has to be said that the Imperial Chef’s skills were quite impressive.

"Look, monkey."

Duanmu Huai took out his chopsticks and picked up a piece of meat that was glossy and looked appetizing.

"They say fish-flavored shredded pork has no fish, and wife cakes have no wife, but now this braised lion’s head is really a braised lion’s head... it truly lives up to its name."

"Whether those wife cakes have a wife or not, I, old Sun, don’t know. But what I do know is that right now someone is coming looking for trouble."

Sun Wukong was eating a peach, while staring at the door. Then he saw a Bodhisattva descending from the sky, landing at the door with a serious face. She clasped her hands together, walking towards Duanmu Huai and Sun Wukong, then greeted them with a bow.

"Amitabha Buddha..."

"Oh, isn’t this Manjushri Bodhisattva? What brings you here?"

Seeing Manjushri Bodhisattva’s appearance, Sun Wukong also casually returned the greeting. Manjushri Bodhisattva maintained her expression, not changing until she saw the lion feast laid out in front of Duanmu Huai, which made the corner of her mouth twitch.

"Both of you, to be straightforward, this lion is not an ordinary demon but one sent with Buddha’s decree..."

"Oh?"

Upon hearing this, Sun Wukong raised an eyebrow, while Duanmu Huai continued to eat and drink heartily, acting as though he did not even see the person in front of him.

"This demon pushed the King into the well and took his place, committing heinous crimes. How can it be said to be sent by the Buddha?"

"Great Saint, there is something you do not know..."

As she spoke, Manjushri Bodhisattva began to explain the situation to Sun Wukong. But Sun Wukong, who had already heard the truth from Duanmu Huai, found Manjushri’s words ridiculous as he listened and cast frequent glances at Duanmu Huai.

"So, although the lion did wrong, its transgressions do not warrant death..."

"Not warrant death?"

At this moment, Duanmu Huai put down the impeccably gnawed lion’s leg in his hand and looked at Manjushri Bodhisattva.

"Then I must ask, with Wujia Country suffering three years of drought, corpses strewn everywhere, countless dead and injured, what kind of sin is that?"

"Amitabha Buddha..."

Manjushri Bodhisattva quickly clasped her hands together, bowing down once more.

"That drought..."

"Monks do not speak lies. If you utter even one more word to insult my intelligence, I will burst your head open."

Duanmu Huai raised his eyebrows and glanced at Manjushri Bodhisattva.

"You were just soaked in the river for three days, yet you allowed the people of Wujia Country to suffer for three years. You always speak of compassion, but your actions are monstrous. Don’t tell me you really think that because Tathagata has your back, you can act as you please."

"Holy Monk, what are you talking about?"

Hearing this, Manjushri Bodhisattva chuckled.

"That is..."

However, before Manjushri Bodhisattva could finish her words, Duanmu Huai abruptly punched her in the nose. Manjushri’s nose was crushed, blood gushed out, and Duanmu Huai grabbed her collar with one hand and glared at her coldly.

"Listen well, I’m well aware of the true nature of you bastards from the Western Paradise, so I’ll say this only once—I am a superstitious man. If after this, Wujia Country suffers any misfortune, or if the King meets a tragic death or is struck by lightning, then I will hold all of you accountable, and I won’t be so polite next time. Tell your master that if he quietly waits for me in the Western Paradise, he may live a bit longer. But should he have other plans..."

Saying this, Duanmu Huai narrowed his eyes, a chill of murderous intent escaping his lips.

"When the Buddhist Law perishes, it will disappear like a snuffed candle. Remember what I said... now, get lost!"

With that, Duanmu Huai flicked his hand, tossing Manjushri Bodhisattva out. Sun Wukong sat to the side, watching this spectacle in amazement.

"Master, are you really planning to do this?"

"Of course, when I reach the Western Paradise, I will first eradicate the Śūraṅgama Sūtra and the Pratyutpanna Samadhi. After that, I will obliterate the twelve divisions of teachings. Afterward, the Buddhist path will be difficult to find... I want to see if Tathagata still dares to trouble me!"