A Core Ship From The Start
Chapter 1387 - 938: Golden Hair Buzz Defeated at Qilin Mountain, Duanmu Huai Harshly Criticizes Jade Guanyin

Chapter 1387: Chapter 938: Golden Hair Buzz Defeated at Qilin Mountain, Duanmu Huai Harshly Criticizes Jade Guanyin

While Sun Wukong transformed and departed, Duanmu Huai took big strides towards the Xiezhi Hole. Soon enough, a minor demon caught sight of Duanmu Huai and let out a cry from terror, falling out of fear.

"A demon has come knocking! A demon has come knocking!"

"What are you yelling about, aren’t we demons ourselves?"

Someone from below heard and responded, curiously looking up, only to stagger from fright, fall to the ground, get up swiftly, and start running while still shouting.

"The demon is attacking us! The demon is attacking us!"

Good grief!

Listening to these demons shrieking, Duanmu Huai had a face full of disbelief. You are the demons, what’s with all this clamor, it’s embarrassing!

"What’s going on?"

At this moment, Sai Taisui from inside the cave was startled by the noise outside. Soon after, a messenger demon stumbled and barged in.

"Great King, Great King, there’s a demon outside!"

"Aren’t all of you demons?"

Sai Taisui was speechless. What was happening that they couldn’t even speak properly?

"No, no, that person... that demon... that monster..."

The messenger demon struggled with their words and couldn’t express themselves clearly.

"That devil’s appearance is fierce, his whole body radiating a murderous aura, eight feet tall, looking as if he wants to devour us. Great King, surely some devil has come to bring us misfortune!"

"Oh? Is that so?"

Hearing this, Sai Taisui couldn’t stay seated anymore, seeing his own demons trembling, and it didn’t seem feigned. Could it really be that some great demonic force had come here seeking misfortune?

While he considered this possibility, Sai Taisui still couldn’t lose face in front of his minions. Thus, he also took up a magical treasure and stepped outside to have a look.

Suddenly, Sai Taisui saw a towering figure, eight feet tall, with furrowed brows and a fierce face, powerfully approaching. A wave of murderous intent surged from him, dyeing the vast mountain landscape and sky a deep red. The wild wind whistled around him, causing his robes to flutter revealing phrases, "Hail the great merciful and compassionate rescuer of the suffering Gatling Bodhisattva" on the left side and "Radiating pure poor uranium bomb lights upon all sentient beings and ferry the worldly" on the right side.

Though not understanding the meaning, a strong aura of menace was palpable.

Even the King, merely from exchanging glances with that bald man, felt his legs soften—fortunately, he stood firm without kneeling. Despite feeling intimidated, he gritted his teeth and stepped forward to call out loudly.

"Who goes there, why do you intrude upon my lair of Xiezhi Hole unbidden!"

"Are you the Sai Taisui who forcefully took the Golden Sacred Palace Empress and captured the palace maidens for consumption?"

Facing this monstrously deformed figure in front of him, Duanmu Huai squinted his eyes.

"It is I! What brings you here?"

"There is indeed a little matter."

While speaking, Duanmu Huai clenched his fists tighter.

"I am from the Eastern Tang Dynasty on a mission to fetch the True Scripture from the Western Paradise. On this journey, I am to subdue demons and exorcise evils, and just now stumbled upon this matter. You, as a monstrous devil, dare to consume humans and abduct them; you deserve to die. I shall slay you and offer your undead body to my Five Viscera Temple!"

"Such audacity!!"

Although Duanmu Huai’s presence was indeed frightening, Sai Taisui was no coward. Hearing his adversary’s claimed origins, his eyes widened like copper bells, opened his mouth revealing sharp teeth.

"I want to see what skills you, a bald monk, possess. Minions, charge!!"

At Sai Taisui’s command, five hundred minor demons with loud war cries, weapons in hand, pounced towards Duanmu Huai.

On a normal day, Duanmu Huai could have slapped them to death with one palm swing, but considering he wanted to draw attention for Sun Wukong to save others, he clenched his fists and roared, charging at those minor demons.

Logically, these monsters were quite skilled, having obtained some mystical power. Tiger claws that could slice through hard stones, eagle wings that could summon strong winds, and fox mouths that could spit melting fire; ordinary troops surely couldn’t withstand them. Yet, seeing Duanmu Huai marching forward, fists clenched, full of life and spirit, he hammered and slaughtered demons, thoroughly enjoying himself in the process.

Beyond a tiger general lunged at Duanmu Huai only to be instantly exploded by a punch from the latter. A nearby fox spirit demon, seeing the danger, turned to flee but was caught by Duanmu Huai, who grabbed its tail and brought it back, then gripping its neck with one hand and its hind legs with the other, with one fierce tear, ripped the fox demon in half, scattering its internal organs across the ground— a sight both heartbreaking and terrifying.

Those minor demons had never seen such a horrifying spectacle, watching their brethren being mutilated one by one, the remaining ones dared not step forward. But Duanmu Huai cared little for their hesitation; as the saying goes, ’if the mountain won’t come to Muhammad, Muhammad must go to the mountain.’ Seeing those demons unwilling to offer themselves up for death, he casually tossed aside the bodies in his hands and charged directly at the remaining demons!

"King, save us!!"

Now, those demons watching Duanmu Huai—drenched in blood and grimacing like a wrathful demonic emperor—charging towards them, were so scared their hands and legs went weak, frantically seeking help from Sai Taisui. Seeing how capable the bald man was in combat, Sai Taisui also felt uneasy, hurriedly fetching his treasure, and violently shaking it towards Duanmu Huai.

The treasure comprised three bells: shaking the first caused fireworks to ignite, the second stirred up a wild wind, and the third whipped up a storm of flying sand and stones, accompanied by raging flames charging directly at him.

"Good heavens, even the fairies’ magical treasures are incredibly powerful nowadays."

Watching the scene alike entering Taishang Laojun’s alchemical furnace filled with smoke and fire, Duanmu Huai was momentarily stunned. But he was not to be easily troubled, his eyes fixed on the whirling sand, and with a swift movement of his right hand, he struck!

"Eliminate!"

In an instant, the wind ceased, the fire no longer burned, the sand stopped flying, and all around became a serene paradise with blue skies and white clouds. Sai Taisui, witnessing this scene, was greatly shocked, thinking, "My bell was cast from prehistoric objects, forged from gold in the Ancestor’s Ba-Gua furnace, and has never failed before. How come it has faltered this time? Could it be that this fierce person also possesses a magical treasure that restrains it?"

With this thought, the demon dared not linger in battle and hastily wanted to return to its cave. Duanmu Huai would not let him escape; seeing the demon about to flee, he no longer held back and roared furiously.

"Hit!"

At the sound of this furious roar, echoes resounded from all directions, and nearby demons burst apart. Sai Taisui only felt a ringing in his ears before blood spurted from every orifice, and he fell to the ground with a gush of fresh blood from his mouth.

"Die, demon!"

At this moment, Duanmu Huai quickly stepped forward, grabbed the demon’s head, and was about to smash it with his fist. Just then, a voice suddenly came from the sky.

"Wait a moment before striking."

"Hmm?"

Duanmu Huai heard the voice, raised an eyebrow, and looked up to see a white-clad Guanyin descending on a auspicious cloud, landing in front of Duanmu Huai and giving him a bow.

"What is the meaning of this, Bodhisattva?"

Duanmu Huai, still gripping the demon, did not loosen his hold but stared at Guanyin and spoke.

"To be honest, I am here to capture this demon. Originally, it was my mount, the Golden Hair Buzz. Due to a shepherd’s nap and guard’s oversight, this vile creature bit through its chains and came to the mortal realm, and it also dispelled a calamity for the Queen of Xi’liang Woman Kingdom."

"Dispelled calamity? What calamity was dispelled?"

"You may not know, but before this queen ascended to the throne, she had gone hunting. At that time, it happened that the Damíng Veritable King Bodhisattva from the West had two children born—male and female peacocks—whom she shot. The male was injured, and the female returned west with an arrow. After repenting, the Bodhisattva ordered her to dismantle the luxurious life for three years, during which my mount, the Golden Hair Buzz, was also present and inadvertently took this to heart, thus deceiving the Queen."

"Oh, how interesting."

Hearing this, Duanmu Huai let out a scoff.

"This Bodhisattva has quite the temper. If they are her children, she should have kept a close eye on them. Having let them out, she should have expected them to be hunted. Had these peacocks not been the Bodhisattva’s children, that queen wouldn’t have met with this calamity, right? Buddhism speaks of equality among all beings; if truly equal, why should the Bodhisattva trouble others over such trivial matters?"

"This......."

"Forget it, the matter of the peacock is none of my concern; I will not meddle. However, I cannot let go of this Golden Hair Buzz."

While speaking, Duanmu Huai lifted the head of the Golden Hair Buzz.

"Not only did it abduct the Queen, but it also snatched several palace maidens every few months to feast upon. Capturing people might be forgivable, but killing them is unacceptable. I am determined to kill this creature, offer sacrifice to my Five Viscera Temple, and Bodhisattva, you may as well return. Speaking of which, this creature is your mount, and they say one takes on the color of one’s company. Yet, this creature engages in all forms of wicked deeds including murder and arson. I haven’t held you responsible for failing to discipline your mount, which is already quite courteous."

Before he had finished speaking, Duanmu Huai threw his punch. Before the Bodhisattva could intervene, Sai Taisui had already breathed his last and reverted to his original form.

"Ah... Amitabha Buddha..."

Seeing her mount killed, Guanyin Bodhisattva was left speechless.

"With such a temperament, even if you reach the Western Paradise, how could you attain the True Scripture?"

"True Scripture? May I ask, Bodhisattva, what is the True Scripture?"

Duanmu Huai snorted coldly, staring at Guanyin Bodhisattva.

"In times past, the Tathagata spoke of the West Cowherd State, where people neither coveted nor killed, nurtured their spirit and remained hidden, possessing the supreme truth, each person naturally enjoying longevity. He also spoke of the Tripitaka True Scripture, which can persuade people towards goodness. But what then? On my journey here, entering the West Cowherd State, I saw neither abstinence from greed nor killing, instead encountering many murderous demons. And the Bodhisattva also mentioned the Mahayana Buddhism Tripitaka, which could elevate the dead to heaven, relieve the suffering of those in distress, cultivate a life of limitless longevity, and expound on the unbounded coming and going. But then......?"

Duanmu Huai’s expression turned stern, his eyes filled with murderous intent.

"The monks in Chechi Country were being killed and chopped, without anyone caring, and this Mahayana Buddhism has not been seen to alleviate the suffering of distressed people. The King of Wujia Country was indeed charitable and kind-hearted, yet he was troubled by your actions, upsetting his realm within just three days. Buddhism preaches kindness to others, but why resort to conflict over minor issues? Throughout my journey, I have seen no use in the Tathagata’s teachings. It’s laughable that the Tathagata still criticizes my Tang Dynasty’s southern Zengbu State for being greedy and strife-filled. Bodhisattva, tell me truly, what exactly does the Tathagata want? Initially, Emperor Tang dispatched me to retrieve the scriptures after listening to your deceptive words; are you not afraid that Emperor Tang will accuse you of deceiving the sovereign?"

"Every morsel and every drink are predestined; the cycle of cause and effect is just so."

"Then there’s nothing to be done."

Duanmu Huai spread his hands.

"Since that’s the case, it seems destined that today the Golden Hair Buzz will die by my hands. Given that everything is a cycle of cause and effect, Bodhisattva, please do not stop me further, as that would truly disrupt the natural order and defy fate."

"Ah......"

Seeing the body of the Golden Hair Buzz lying at Duanmu Huai’s feet, the Guanyin Bodhisattva could only sigh in resignation.

"Since that is so, I shall leave you to your own devices."

With that said, Guanyin departed on her cloud, leaving Duanmu Huai standing there, narrowing his eyes and staring at the retreating figure of Guanyin Bodhisattva, a ferocious smile emerging.

"Since Buddhism values the cycle of cause and effect, and retribution is infallible, I, too, am destined to ascend to the Western Paradise and obliterate Spirit Mountain. Every cause bears a fruit, and your retribution is me... Wait for me, Tathagata, until I reach Spirit Mountain, and see what fate awaits you!"