A Core Ship From The Start
Chapter 1389 - 940: Duanmu Huai Detonates a Nuclear Explosion at Lion Camel Ridge, Two Bodhisattvas Suffer the Iron Fist’s Blows

Chapter 1389: Chapter 940: Duanmu Huai Detonates a Nuclear Explosion at Lion Camel Ridge, Two Bodhisattvas Suffer the Iron Fist’s Blows

Duanmu Huai and Sun Wukong passed the Flame Mountain and continued forward, arriving between the ridges and heading inward. Suddenly, they saw an old man holding a dragon-headed cane, descending from the slope behind the trees, who upon seeing the two of them, immediately cried out.

"Elders heading west, halt your steeds, tighten those jade bridles. There’s a band of demons on this mountain who have devoured all the people in the world, you must not proceed!"

"Oh?"

Hearing what the old man had said, Duanmu Huai raised his eyebrows slightly.

"Monkey, go invite the old man over here."

"Alright, Master."

Upon hearing Duanmu speak, Sun Wukong also grinned, walking up to the old man; the old man, seeing Sun Wukong, was frightened out of his wits and tried to run but was caught by Sun Wukong, unable to move.

"Hey, old man, what exactly are you talking about? Why not explain it more clearly?"

"Ah, mercy, which God of Thunder are you? Quickly let me go!"

Seeing Sun Wukong, the old man trembled all over and tightly shut his eyes. Just then, Duanmu Huai arrived on horseback and glanced indifferently at the old man.

"I’m not sure which immortal this is, playing tricks here, why not reveal your true form and enlighten us?"

Upon hearing Duanmu speak, the old man could only offer a bitter smile, then in a flash of his body, transformed into the likeness of Taibai Jinxing, and bowed towards Duanmu Huai.

"Truly, as expected of the Holy Monk, indeed very discerning. To be honest, this mountain is called the Eight Hundred Mile Lion Camel Ridge, in the center lies Lion Camel Cave, and inside the cave, there are three great demons, extremely powerful indeed. Under their command, there’re five thousand demons on the southern ridge, five thousand on the northern ridge, ten thousand on the eastern pass, and ten thousand on the western pass. Four to five thousand patrol, another ten thousand guard the gates. Countless are tasked with tending the fires, and countless others gather wood. Summing up, there are forty-seven to forty-eight thousand, all with names and ranks, specializing in consuming humans."

"Hmpf, Li Changgeng, don’t you try to fool me."

Seeing Taibai Jinxing, Sun Wukong was also excited, grabbing hold of him.

"If Lion Camel Ridge has forty-five thousand man-eating fairies, how many people would they need to eat? Where would they find so many people to eat from around here?"

"Great Saint, you are not aware."

Taibai Jinxing was embarassed yet amused.

"Nearby lies Lion Camel Country. Five hundred years ago, the fairies ate up the King of the city and its scholarly officials, and all the men and women, large and small, have been completely devoured by them, thus they usurped the territory, and now the city is nothing but demons."

"Oh..."

Hearing this, Duanmu Huai’s eyes narrowed, staring at Taibai Jinxing.

"Such ruthless fiends, and yet you did not intervene?"

"We wish we could, but we lack the power. Each of those three demons possess vast magical abilities. Back then, even the Jade Emperor dispatched a hundred thousand Celestial Troops to subdue them, but they were swallowed whole by the chief demon who transformed his body and opened a great maw, terrifying the troops into not daring to fight, which led to the closing of the Southern Sky Gate."

"... Are your Celestial Troops made of paper?"

Duanmu Huai was speechless. Sun Wukong once made trouble in the Celestial Palace and confronted a hundred thousand Heavenly Soldiers and Generals, and here at Lion Camel Ridge, a single demon opened its mouth and consumed another hundred thousand... Your Celestial Troops are incompetent.

Hmm? Something’s not right?

"When the monkey caused havoc in the Celestial Palace, didn’t you also invite the Tathagata to suppress it? Why can’t you deal with the demons here?"

"Hehehe... It’s a long story, Holy Monk. You may not know, but among those three demons, one is a blue-furred lion, another a yellow-tusked old elephant... They are actually the mounts of the Bodhisattvas Manjushri and Samantabhadra. And that Giant Roc is even more unusual. It was born from the same mother as Peacock King Bodhisattva... Thus..."

"To put it plainly, you don’t want to provoke those scripture-reciting kinds."

Duanmu Huai suddenly understood what Taibai Jinxing meant. The Bodhisattvas’ mounts aside, he had previously killed one in Wujia Country, and the ancestry of the Giant Roc indeed was not ordinary. Of course, this leads to the Phoenix, whose prowess is well-known. In later times, mating with the, the Phoenix bore the Peacock and the Roc. At birth, the Peacock was particularly fierce and capable of devouring humans, over a distance of forty or fifty miles, and even swallowed the Tathagata.

After being consumed by the Peacock, the Tathagata intended to exit through the creature’s posterior, disgusted by the filth, he split open the Peacock’s spine and emerged on Spirit Mountain. Initially, the Tathagata intended to kill the Peacock, but was persuaded against it by other Buddhas. Considering that he indeed emerged from the belly of the Peacock, he recognized the Peacock as the Buddha Mother.

And now, the Roc obstructing the path and the Peacock were born from the same litter; by seniority, it could also be considered the Tathagata’s niece.

Behind the three demons stands the people of Spirit Mountain, and coupled with the loss of a hundred thousand of the Celestial Troops, it’s no wonder they hesitate to cause more trouble...

"In short, I ask the Holy Monk and the Great Saint to be very cautious. I must leave now."

Having conveyed his message, Taibai Jinxing slapped his bottom and slipped away. Meanwhile, Duanmu Huai was only staring in the direction of Taibai Jinxing’s escape and after a moment, snickered.

"Oh? Why do you laugh, Master?"

"I’m laughing because it seems the True Scripture of Spirit Mountain isn’t very useful. Manjushri and Samantabhadra are both Bodhisattvas, yet their mounts, once they descend to the mortal realm, begin to fancy eating humans. What kind of scripture have they been reciting? The ’Devouring Humans Scripture’? If it’s that sort of scripture we’re retrieving, wouldn’t it be a disaster for eternity?"

Having said this, Duanmu Huai shifted his gaze back and looked at Sun Wukong.

"Monkey, I have a task for you."

"Oh? What is it, Master?"

"You’re skilled in transformations. I want you to transform and go to Lion Camel Ridge to scout the situation, see how the fairies are distributed, where exactly Lion Camel Country is located, and it would be best to find a place that overlooks the entire Lion Camel Ridge and Lion Camel Country. Then come back and report to me."

"That’s not a problem, but Master, do you really intend to fight a battle against those forty thousand small demons?"

"Go, your teacher has his own methods."

With Duanmu Huai’s words, Sun Wukong also transformed with a flicker of his figure, then ascended to the skies. Half a day later, he returned.

"Master, Lion Camel Ridge is indeed extraordinary. Here, skeletons abound like ridges, and bones stand like forests. Human hair is felted into mats, and human skin and flesh have rotted into dust. Human sinews are wrapped around trees—it’s truly a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood with an unbearably foul stench. Who knows how many people these demons have eaten."

"Oh? What about Lion Camel City then?"

"That place is even more a land of demons. Thousand-feet pythons encircle the city, ten-thousand-foot serpents take up the roads. All four gates are guarded by wolf spirits; it’s a place overrun with demons where no man can reach."

"Alright, I understand. What about the spot you chose?"

"The terrain of Lion Camel Ridge is treacherous, but it’s not difficult to find a high peak. From the peak right beneath your feet, Master, one can overlook the entire area."

"Good, let’s go take a look. It wouldn’t be bad to enjoy the scenery."

"???"

Seeing Duanmu Huai’s indifferent response, Sun Wukong was full of questions. Usually, his master would be seething with killing intent just hearing about a Fairy eating a few people, but today, after so many had been eaten, he seemed indifferent. Why?

Despite his doubts, Sun Wukong obediently followed Duanmu Huai up the mountain. The terrain here was dangerous, with each rock standing erect like pikes—ordinary people would likely find it impossible to climb. However, Duanmu Huai seemed unconcerned with such trivial matters. Without a word, he simply proceeded upwards. It took them one day and one night, but finally, master and disciple reached the peak. Looking around, mountains surrounded them, and from afar, the city amidst dark clouds was enveloped in mist. It was indeed a good place for viewing scenery, were one solely interested in that.

"The scenery here is quite nice indeed."

With hands clasped behind his back, Duanmu Huai looked around for a moment and nodded in approval, while Sun Wukong watched him curiously.

"Master, what purpose did we have in taking all this time just to climb this mountain?"

"To enjoy the scenery."

"The scenery is indeed marvelous, but... what next?"

"Heh, it will be even more beautiful shortly."

While saying this, Duanmu Huai began to hum a tune.

"I don’t want to set the world on fire (I don’t wish to set the entire world ablaze)... I just want to start a flame in your heart (I simply wish to ignite a flame of love in your heart)..."

Standing beside, Sun Wukong listened to Duanmu Huai hum the off-key song, clueless about what scripture he might be chanting, so he simply kept silent. Then he saw Duanmu Huai slowly raise his right hand, making a grasping motion in the air, aimed forward.

"The Holy Monk must not use force!"

Just then, a stern shout came from the heavens. Looking up, Sun Wukong saw Manjushri and Samantabhadra riding on clouds, their faces filled with urgency.

"We are here by the command of Buddha to aid you in subjugating demons...!!"

However, before they could finish speaking, they saw Duanmu Huai glancing at them and saying,

"I don’t wanna set the world on fire, honey." (I do not wish to set the entire world ablaze, darling)

"I just wanna start a great big flame down in your heart." (I simply wish to ignite a great roaring flame in your heart)

Immediately after, Duanmu Huai clenched his right fist tightly.

The next moment, the sky and earth changed color.

A dazzling radiance burst from the ground in an instant, swiftly enveloping everything around. Even Sun Wukong, whose fiery golden eyes feared no flames, had to turn his head away and close his eyes. He didn’t dare look directly at the blinding white light. Wherever the light passed, a huge mushroom cloud rose, the earth shook, fierce winds raged, and the entire Lion Camel Country, along with Lion Camel Ridge, was crushed and destroyed by the boundless might. Sweltering flames and searing heat swept across all, obliterating the Eight Hundred Mile Lion Camel Ridge, levelling it to the ground.

Countless wails and screams arose. When all could finally see again, beneath that rising mushroom cloud, no city or mountains remained to be seen; not even a blade of grass was left.

"Hiss...!"

Even Sun Wukong couldn’t help but inhale sharply at this sight. At this moment, both Manjushri and Samantabhadra had descended to the ground, sighing continuously.

"This is a grave sin, a grave sin indeed. I was to follow the Tathagata’s orders to vanquish demons and collect spirits, yet I did not expect to witness such annihilation. Those three demons, entangled with sin, should have been taken back to Spirit Mountain for penance and cultivation."

"Cultivation."

Duanmu Huai turned around to face the two Bodhisattvas.

"These three devils have eaten countless people here; how can a bit of cultivation absolve them of their crimes? The Tathagata conducts quite the business. If one day these demons escape and eat people again, who will be held accountable for that?"

"If it comes to that, by killing so many creatures, how will you ever reach Spirit Mountain and obtain the True Scripture?"

"You need not concern yourselves with that."

While saying this, Duanmu Huai clenched his fist tight again and glared at them.

"The two of you have indulged your mounts to come down to the mortal realm to commit murder and cannibalism; such crimes are punishable by death a thousand times over. Today, I shall avenge those innocent souls who died unjustly, carry out the will of Heaven, and ensure that your spirits are scattered and you have no chance of rebirth! After this, I will ascend to Spirit Mountain myself, to find the Tathagata and accuse him of grave dereliction, and meet my end!"

As he roared, Duanmu Huai leaped forth and raised his fist, and hurled it towards Manjushri and Samantabhadra!