Journey to the West: I have Nine Golden Crows Inside Me
Chapter 217 - 217 207 The One-Horned Ghost King

217: Chapter 207: The One-Horned Ghost King 217: Chapter 207: The One-Horned Ghost King Hesitating for a moment, the old monkey said, “But they are, after all, under the command of the Great King.

If we simply let the Heavenly King kill them, how are we supposed to explain it to him when he comes back?”

Jiang Chen couldn’t help but shook his head, speaking penetratingly, “You consider them subordinates, but do they really regard your Great King as their Great King?”

“I’d like to ask you, during the monkey’s time serving in Heaven, have these demon lords ever repented and stopped doing evil deeds?”

The old monkey pondered for a moment, hesitated then said, “They have not.

Although these demon kings appear to be more honest, they occasionally go out and cause trouble.”

Evil doing was innate to these demon kings and it wouldn’t be eradicated so easily.

Moreover, after Sun Wukong became the Great Sage Equal to Heaven, these demon kings felt emboldened.

They seemed subdued on the surface, but in secret, they became more overbearing.

The Great Sage Equal to Heaven, such a high-ranking title, as his subordinates, wouldn’t it be a disgrace not to act arrogantly?

Snorting coldly, Jiang Chen said, “You see, the Great King publicly holds office in heaven, but their actions have not been restrained.

Who’s being made a fool of?

It’s none other than Sun Wukong.”

“If there was any regard for Sun Wukong in their hearts, they should have repented instead of committing heinous acts.

The troubles they invite will all be blamed on your Great King, Sun Wukong in the end.”

“When the Jade Emperor punishes, the first one to be held accountable will be your Great King.

You would consider treating these deceivers as subordinates.

You truly have your Great King’s interests at heart.”

Jiang Chen’s words, like a sharp knife, penetrated the heart of the old monkey, making his face turn increasingly grim.

Right, that’s it, how had he not understood this before?

What’s the use of having subordinates that are not loyal?

Retaining them would only bring disaster sooner or later, better to be rid of them now.

Upon understanding everything, the old monkey quickly thanked Jiang Chen, “I’m grateful for your venerable guidance.

I was about to make a grave mistake that would have burdened the Great King.

It’s my fault.”

Seeing that the old monkey came to grasps with it, Jiang Chen nodded, “It’s a good thing that you have understood.

I have some association with Sun Wukong and could not bear to see him astray, thus, I specifically came here to eliminate his future troubles.”

“Without the burden of these demon kings, Sun Wukong can freely display his skills in heaven.

When the time comes, he only needs to perform a few great deeds to bring you all into the heavenly realm, appointing you as immortal monkeys.”

“With heavenly records, you can live eternal lives without suffering from birth, old age, sickness, or death.

Isn’t it better than living in the lower realm as demons, always worrying about being subdued by demon hunters?”

Just making empty promises, Jiang Chen too could do it, and he painted a large, ideal picture.

Seeing Sun Wukong’s joy in heaven, his monkeys would naturally envy him tremendously.

However, due to their limited abilities, they couldn’t pursue Sun Wukong’s path.

Now, Jiang Chen had given them an alternative.

That was when one person became an immortal, even his chickens and dogs could ascend to heaven.

If Sun Wukong achieved great merits, the Jade Emperor would certainly show extra grace and summon the monkeys of Huaguo Mountain to heaven for them to reunite with their monkey brethren.

“Thank you for your enlightening counsel, Immortal!”

Amid the old monkey’s respectful words, Jiang Chen waved his hand to let him retreat to the side, then turned to signal the lieutenant general beside him to execute the demon lords.

Killing the seventy-two demon kings, is it to cut off Sun Wukong’s future troubles?

This thought is not entirely correct, in fact, Jiang Chen had a deep-seated purpose.

That was to completely sever Sun Wukong’s connection with the demon clan.

Aside from the monkeys of Huaguo Mountain which Jiang Chen would not harm, he planned to eliminate all the demon kings within the territory of Huaguo Mountain.

He was determined to ensure that within thousands of miles around Huaguo Mountain, apart from monkeys, no other demons exist.

There was no deeper meaning to it, he just wanted to isolate Sun Wukong from the rest of the demon clans, even foster hostility towards him.

You see, if Jiang Chen accomplished this, what would the other demons think of Sun Wukong in the light of Huaguo Mountain’s situation?

All the demon kings are dead, only the monkeys of Huaguo Mountain are still alive, and not only are they unharmed, but they are also being rewarded by the heavenly soldiers.

This would signal that Sun Wukong was in league with the heavenly soldiers, and the surrounding demon kings of Huaguo Mountain serve as Sun Wukong’s formal introduction to the Heavenly Court.

Trading the lives of surrounding demons for his promising future in Heavenly Court.

What a cold heart, Sun Wukong!

Once this impression took root, even if Sun Wukong actively explained it or even renounced Heaven to prove his innocence, it would be in vain.

Because compared to the actual events, people prefer their own conjectures, no demon would believe his explanation.

Sun Wukong would be completely isolated by the demon world and subsequently expelled.

Being expelled from the demon clan, for Sun Wukong, is indeed a…

great fortune!

Although Sun Wukong may be a monkey, he genuinely isn’t a member of the demon clan.

Born divine and recognized by Heavenly Dao, designated by the palace of Emperor Wa, both his status and footing reach the highest heavens.

He was merely deceived into joining the demon clan.

Otherwise, with Sun Wukong’s origin, if he truly sought an official position from the Jade Emperor, the Jade Emperor would have to appease him.

Even if the Jade Emperor didn’t assign him a high-ranking role, he would at least be appointed a noble official.

It would be impossible to only give him the role of a stable manager responsible for tending horses under the guise of commendation.

The Demon Clan ascending to Heaven to be horsekeepers for the Heavenly Court was already a great honor.

Yet if a god-born ascended to Heaven, and the Jade Emperor dared to let him take on that duty, he’d be drowned in ridicule by the powerful beings of the Three Realms.

One’s birth status determined much about their future achievements in the Three Realms.

Sun Wukong’s status was high.

Had he not mingled with demons, he would probably be a war god in the Heavenly Court by now.

Now, what Jiang Chen needs to do is rectify the confusion and guide Sun Wukong back onto the right path.

He needs to restore Wukong’s identity as a god-born and transform him into a useful god for the Three Realms.

The return of a prodigal son is worth more than gold!

The elimination of the Seventy-two Demon Kings, the isolation of Sun Wukong from the Demon Clan – everything Jiang Chen did was for Sun Wukong’s own good, all to guide him back to the right path.

Even if Sun Wukong didn’t understand at the moment, he would eventually come to appreciate Jiang Chen’s well intention.

It’s truly touching to think of Sun Wukong being lucky enough to have a friend like Jiang Chen, who would even withstand misunderstandings for his sake.

It’s truly moving.

Where else could one find such a good friend in the Three Realms?

Whether Sun Wukong is touched or not, Jiang Chen certainly is.

Sun Wukong brandished his golden hoop pole: I thank you!

…

…

Pushing down his emotions, Jiang Chen turned his gaze to the Demon Kings in the sky.

At this moment, the heavenly net had shrunk considerably, like a big fishing net scooping up the remaining seventy Demon Kings.

They desperately struggled inside it.

Several hundred soldiers clad in armor stepped forward, surrounding the heavenly net.

They then raised their spears about a yard long, and stabbed them through the net holes at the Demon Kings within.

Squelch!

Squelch…

Blood splattered as the cold spears penetrated bodies, causing blood to gush out and ending the lives of one Demon King after another.

Some Demon Kings tried to escape by releasing their primordial spirit after refusing to be slaughtered, but the Thunder was flashing above the heavenly net.

The moment a Demon King’s spirit left its body, it was ruthlessly annihilated by Thunder.

These wicked Demon Kings were now receiving their just desserts, ruthlessly slaughtered by the celestial soldiers.

“Stop, stop quickly!”

From afar, a shout sounded, followed by a troop of monkey soldiers, led by two one-horned ghost kings, rushing over.

Seeing the two one-horned ghost kings leading the charge, Jiang Chen’s expression flickered.

‘They’re here,’ he thought to himself.

These two ghost kings were the main targets of Jiang Chen.

Sun Wukong became the Great Sage Equaling Heaven all because of the influence of these two ghost kings.

After Sun Wukong abandoned his position and left, the two one-horned ghost kings came to Huaguo Mountain, first presenting the ochre yellow robe, which symbolized royalty, and making Sun Wukong take the throne.

Then they convinced Sun Wukong that the Jade Emperor underestimated him, and he should become a Great Sage Equaling Heaven.

Hence, the title of Great Sage originated from this.

This also showed that there was something suspicious about these two one-horned ghost kings.

Their goal of making Sun Wukong a Great Sage Equaling Heaven and opposing the Heavenly Court indicated bad intent.

Who would believe otherwise?

Knowing that something was wrong with these two ghost kings, Jiang Chen came with the intent to probe their origins in addition to eliminating the local Demon Clan.

Seeing those two ghost kings leading their soldiers, the old monkey quickly stepped forward and explained to them what was happening.

However, the two ghost kings were guilty and refused to listen to the old monkey’s explanation.

They said, “Marshal, you are confused!

The seventy-two Demon Kings are the foundation of the Great King in the lower realms.

If you let these celestial soldiers kill them, the Great King will lose his foothold.”

“Besides, the reason the Heavenly Court appointed the Great King as the Great Sage Equaling Heaven is not only because of the Great King’s capabilities but also because of the contribution of these Demon Kings.

Without the deterrence of hundreds of thousands of Demon Soldiers under these Demon Kings, would the Heavenly Court value the Great King as much?”

“Now, if the celestial soldiers kill these Demon Kings, the Heavenly Court’s fear of the Great King will decrease by a third, and his status will naturally lighten.

”

“If the Heavenly Court turns hostile and chases the Great King back here, what should he do when he finds his foundation destroyed?”

If the old monkey was naive, he might have been fooled by the ghost kings.

However, the old monkey, who had inherited the identity of Zhuyan, had gained wisdom and gotten more experienced from his interactions with various Demon Clans.

After hearing the words of the ghost king, instead of being fooled, the old monkey found it more suspicious.

What does he mean by the seventy-two Demon Kings are his lord’s foundation?

It’s ridiculous!

The Monkey King’s foundation has always been the monkey troupe of Huaguo Mountain.

He has nothing to do with these Demon Kings.

As for the fear of the Heavenly Court, it’s even more absurd.

How can a Demon King, who could be easily eradicated by a celestial king, be worth the Heavenly Court’s fear?

Knowing that there was something suspicious about the ghost king, the old monkey did not reveal his suspicions.

Instead, he waved his hand to let his monkey soldiers retreat and said to the ghost king, “Don’t worry, ghost king.

That celestial king and my lord are friends for life.

He won’t harm the Great King.”

The ghost king thought to himself: ‘I know he doesn’t want to harm the monkey, but I want to trick the monkey!’

The command we have received is to constantly incite Sun Wukong and let him become enemies with the Heavenly Court.