Journey to the West: Starting from Changing Sun Wukong’s fate
Chapter 322 - 323 Universal Salvation of Various Demons, You All Better Watch Out

Chapter 322: Chapter 323 Universal Salvation of Various Demons, You All Better Watch Out

The Apricot Fairy said with a smile, "Old Immortal has summoned such joyous festivities tonight, would you care to share a couplet or two?"

The Cloud-Dispersing Elder replied, "We merely recite a few verses in jest, not worth listening to. It’s really the Holy Monk’s verses from the Great Tang that are truly admirable and enviable."

He then conveyed the poem Xuanzang had just recited in full to the Apricot Fairy.

Upon hearing this, the Apricot Fairy also became spirited and said, "This lowly one has little talent and shouldn’t embarrass herself. However, after hearing such exquisite verses, I couldn’t help but itch to try. With much reluctance, I present a piece for your guidance and advice."

The Apricot Fairy then began to chant, "Han Wu King has left his name on the high cover; Confucius in Zhou Era erected altars for his doctrines. Dong Immortal loved me for my forest of trees; Sun Chu once favored the fragrance of my cold food offerings. The rain moistens my rosy charm, delicate and tender; the mist steams my emerald hue, vibrant yet hidden. Knowing full well the sour taste when overly ripe; I fall year by year, a companion in the wheat field."

The four elders praised her poem repeatedly, saying, "Elegantly detached from mundanity, the lines are filled with the essence of spring. Such beauty in ’The rain moistens my rosy charm, delicate and tender’."

The Apricot Fairy’s poem was imbued with a thick sense of spring and brimming with tender emotions.

Xuanzang frowned slightly, unsure why he felt the other party seemed to have an ulterior motive.

But for now, he pretended not to have heard and bowed his head in silence.

The Apricot Fairy said with a smile, "I am flustered! Flustered! Upon hearing the Holy Monk’s verses, they were so delicately woven, rich with pearls and jade. Could you please spare one more verse for us?"

Having heard this, Xuanzang saw the Apricot Fairy’s gaze fix on him.

He couldn’t help but sense trouble.

The Apricot Fairy sat next to Xuanzang, moving closer and whispered into Tang Monk’s ear, "May I ask you, valued guest, in this beautiful occasion, why not ascend to the Wushan clouds together? When will you if not now? Life is short and chances are rare, why not indulge in the pleasures of life?"

Xuanzang did not blush or show embarrassment; instead, he furrowed his brow.

Realizing their talkativeness obviously had a purpose, he opted to remain silent.

The Eighteen Lords said, "Since the Apricot Fairy is so infatuated, how could the Holy Monk be heartless? To not appreciate and cherish beauty would be so insensitive."

The Lone Honest Duke quickly added, "The Holy Monk is a man of integrity and reputation, he would never act thoughtlessly. Such actions would be our fault indeed."

"Tarnishing one’s name, damaging one’s morals, are not proper acts."

Hearing these words, Xuanzang glanced at the Lone Honest Duke. It was clear to him these people were up to something, but he was puzzled by their current behavior.

Indeed, the Lone Honest Duke continued, "If the Apricot Fairy truly has such intentions, we can let the Cloud-Dispersing Elder and the Eighteen Lords mediate, and I along with Soaring Child Immortal can guarantee the marriage. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to unite in matrimony!"

Understanding their intentions at last, Xuanzang grew furious and exclaimed, "You all are beasts of the same flock, tempting me like this!"

"Previously, you spoke of bonding through poetry, but now you resort to a beauty trap to deceive a poor monk! What logic is this?"

Seeing Tang Monk’s anger, the four elders fell silent, showing signs of hesitation on their faces.

The Red-Skinned Ghost Messenger thundered irritably, "This monk really doesn’t know what’s good for him! What’s not to like about my sister? She has grace and beauty, with a delicate and charming disposition, not to mention her literary talent. Her verse alone is enough to match you."

"Why do you decline! Don’t miss out! The words of Lone Honest Duke make perfect sense; if you can’t casually unite, allow me to officiate your union instead."

"It seems I have no choice but to offer you all universal salvation!"

Xuanzang stood up, pressed his palms together, and invoked, "Amitabha Buddha."

In an instant, a rich Buddha’s light spread out.

Along with it, the sound of Buddhist chanting could be heard far and wide.

The various monsters in attendance felt the full force of such dense Buddha’s light and chanting.

The complexion of these monsters changed at once.

The Eighteen Lords shouted urgently, "This is bad, this Xuanzang knows The Method of Universal Salvation, we are no match for him, let’s flee for our lives at once!"

Hearing the Eighteen Lords’ warning, all the monsters vanished in a puff of white smoke.

The Wood Fairy Hermitage disappeared too, and all the furniture inside transformed into chunks of stone.

There was a stone cliff nearby with ’Wood Fairy Hermitage’ inscribed on it.

Xuanzang frowned, feeling it was a pity not to have converted these monsters.

"Master, you’re so powerful, scaring off those monsters in no time!"

At that moment, a voice called out.

Xuanzang looked over and saw Sun Wukong.

"Master, since those monsters are gone, we should leave as quickly as we can," Sun Wukong said with a smile.

Had it not been for Sand Monk’s constant reminders, he wouldn’t have come here in the first place.

Now that Xuanzang had settled things, of course, he wanted to leave quickly.

"Master, don’t you want to leave? Or do you want to play with them some more?"

Sun Wukong saw that Xuanzang was showing no intention of leaving and looked at him with some confusion.

"If the roots are not removed after cutting the weeds, they will grow back with the spring breeze. Moreover, you can tell at a glance that these monsters are no good!"

Xuanzang pressed his palms together, exuding an air of solemn dignity.

"And if we don’t settle this matter thoroughly now, we might encounter trouble later on."

Xuanzang did not need to say more; they might not leave now, but these monsters certainly won’t let them go either.

So since they were already here, Xuanzang naturally wanted to offer them universal salvation, to avoid any further issues.

"Master, you are truly remarkable!"

"Dedicated to the universal salvation of all beings, you embody self-sacrifice!"

Hearing Xuanzang’s words, Sun Wukong spoke with a hint of emotion.

Xuanzang shook his head and then looked around, declaring, "You monsters, come out and face me. You’ve brought this poor monk here, and now you hide?"

"Master, it seems that even with your shouting, these monsters are not planning to come out!"

Sun Wukong looked around, smiled, and shook his head.

It would be strange if they did come out.

These monsters aren’t fools.

The surroundings remained deathly quiet, with only the rustling of the leaves stirred by the mountain wind, and no other sound.

"Wukong, you should be able to tell where they are!"

Xuanzang looked at Sun Wukong; with Wukong’s strength, finding these monsters wouldn’t be difficult.

Sun Wukong couldn’t help but sigh, then said, "Do you think I’m mere mortal eyes? Unable to see through your true forms?"

"Such paltry tricks, if you still refuse to come out, don’t blame Old Sun for being heartless!"

"With just these few pine, cypress, China fir, bamboo, and maple trees, including that apricot tree, winter plum, and cinnabar osmanthus — uproot them all and burn them to charcoal, just in time for winter warming."

Xuanzang listened as Sun Wukong’s words fell.

It wasn’t long before those four elders and the injured Red-Skinned Ghost, led by Apricot Immortal and her four maids, all transformed back into human forms and ran to Xuanzang, continuously kowtowing and begging for mercy, "Immortal, spare our lives! Immortal, please spare us!"

Xuanzang watched, wide-eyed and surprised, and asked, "So they were all tree spirits!"

When Sun Wukong heard Xuanzang’s words, he smiled and said to the monsters, "You’re wise to do so."

The Eighteen Lords hastily said, "We were blind and offended the Immortal; we beg the Immortal to forgive our ignorance and the hardships of cultivation, and to spare our lives!"

The other monsters also begged for mercy again and again.

Sun Wukong nodded in satisfaction and said, "It’s not impossible to spare your lives, but you can’t continue to stay at Thorny Ridge."

Upon hearing this, the Eighteen Lords quickly said, "The Immortal may not know this but as tree spirits, we are unlike other demons and cannot leave our native lands; it’s said a tree dies when moved, but a person lives on when relocated — if we leave Thorny Ridge, we will perish. Please spare our lives, Immortal!"

"In that case, it depends on whether my master is willing to let you go," Sun Wukong said, turning to Xuanzang.

"If it will save our lives, we are willing to serve the Immortal, to be slaves and servants without any complaint," the monsters quickly said.

"Master, they are yours to save now!"

Sun Wukong turned towards Xuanzang.

"Amitabha Buddha!"

Xuanzang nodded and brought his hands together in prayer.

In an instant, a powerful Buddha’s light spread out.

Initially, these monsters were somewhat resistant, but soon expressions of regret appeared on their faces.

"Holy Monk, we understand now, Amitabha Buddha!"

"Since that is the case, you many stayed at Thorny Ridge as demons, blocked the way, and hindered the traffic between the Western Direction and Eastern Land; you have committed a serious error, and so I asked you to leave Thorny Ridge, in the hopes that you will dedicate yourselves to the practice of Buddhism in the future, to atone for your sins."

"Thank you, Immortal," the monsters thanked him as they kowtowed.

Sun Wukong looked at the monsters and said, "Now I ask you, why did you deliberately sabotage Xuanzang’s journey to the Western Heaven for the Scriptures?"

The monsters hesitated, stammering, unable to provide a clear reason.

Sun Wukong frowned, his face becoming stern, and he huffed coldly.

Xuanzang, with his hands pressed together, said, "Amitabha Buddha, just speak out. I will not blame you!"

Upon hearing Xuanzang’s words, the Demon Race looked at each other.

"Amitabha Buddha!" The Eighteen Lords hastily said, "A thousand years ago, we were enlightened by a profound master, and after a millennium, we finally attained human form."

"The Great Tang of the Eastern Land is where Daoism originated, and yet the Tang Monk seeks to travel to the Western Heaven to fetch the True Scriptures, which if successful, will surely lead to the flourishing of Buddhism in the Eastern Land."

"As Daoism declines, we, who are dedicated to the Daoist path, couldn’t bear to see this and thus attempted to block his path, not realizing it was a grave mistake."

As expected, Sun Wukong and Xuanzang exchanged glances.

As Buddhism becomes more prominent, the relationship between the Daoist Sect and Buddhism will indeed grow more adversarial.

The Daoist Sect is unwilling to let Buddhism rise to prominence so easily.

"We deserve to die for our sins, and we beg the Immortal for leniency," the monsters quickly begged for forgiveness.

Xuanzang asked out of curiosity, "Do any of you know which great person it was who enlightened you originally?"

"Back then, we were not conscious and did not recognize the noble name of the great person," the Eighteen Lords and others shook their heads hurriedly in response.

Xuanzang nodded and said, "Regardless, it must certainly be one of the powerful individuals from the Daoist Sect!"

"Just make sure to leave this place!"

Although the monsters were confused, they did not linger on the thought.

"Yes, we will bear in mind the Holy Monk’s words!"

The monsters nodded earnestly.

"Master, let’s go,"

Seeing that the monsters had agreed, Sun Wukong proposed to his master to leave.

Xuanzang nodded.

"Behave yourselves!"

After admonishing the monsters, Xuanzang turned and left with Sun Wukong.

The monsters brought their hands together in salute, watching Xuanzang and Sun Wukong depart.