Journey to the West: The Great Sage's Guide

Chapter 68: Which allegiance should I choose?

After the atmosphere eased

Wukong's anger had not subsided, but he had still managed to hurt someone.

When Zhong Xuan stepped forward again just now, Pang De and Wang Tong hadn't completely fallen out and overturned the table...

But now their expressions are no longer as amicable as before; the former is cold and indifferent, handling business in a purely official manner.

The latter harbored resentment in his eyes, and the half-smile on his lips deepened even more than before, clearly indicating that he held a grudge.

"This is just our initial assessment."

Pound's voice turned cold, devoid of the previous polite exchanges. He lowered his eyes, as if the celestial official who had been willing to offer words and a way out had never existed.

"We can only give you a D grade."

Wang Tong took over the conversation, speaking slowly and deliberately, each word conveying a sense of control: "Your targets, every single one of them, are just barely meeting the minimum requirements, which is barely enough."

"But that's only enough. Those few merits from preaching will be investigated separately by the celestial officials in charge of their duties in the future. Whether to accept or reject them at that time will not be up to us two."

Pang De nodded in agreement, his expression becoming increasingly businesslike and rigid: "Ding grade is the lowest. The Heavenly Court established these four grades—A, B, C, and D—to punish past mistakes and prevent future ones, and to promote the virtuous and eliminate the corrupt. If everyone just muddles through with a D or B grade, how can the system of the Three Realms Mountain and Water Gods operate?"

Wang Tong gave a soft chuckle, his gaze sweeping over Li Gongcao before returning to Zhong Xuan's face. He added slowly, "If you still cannot pass the test by the next hundred years..."

"At that point, the punishment will not be as lenient as dismissal with probation."

"The punishment for dereliction of duty will be suppressed, and all past acts of merit and virtue will be thoroughly investigated. At that time, it will not be a scene where you and I are sitting here drinking tea and talking."

Wang Tong sneered, seemingly anticipating that scene.

Pound sighed.

The sigh wasn't heavy, but it inexplicably made the air in the temple feel even heavier.

He stood up, straightened the non-existent wrinkles on his white robe, and looked at Zhong Xuan with a hint of regret that was hard to describe: "Fellow Daoist Zhong, take care of yourself."

Wang Tong also stood up, casually brushing his sleeves as if to shake off the bad luck he had picked up from this mission. His gaze finally fell on Li Gongcao, and he suddenly spoke.

"You, the clerk, are quite capable."

These words came out of nowhere, and Li Gongcao was at a loss for how to respond, so he could only stand there with his hands hanging down.

Wang Tong had already turned away, casually tossing out the rest of the sentence: "It's a pity that following a mountain god with no backing, I'm afraid there's not much of a future for him."

After saying that, he walked away without waiting for a response.

Pang De followed behind, his steps unhurried. When he reached the threshold, he suddenly stopped. He didn't turn around, but turned half of his face to the side and said in a voice even lower than before, "Fellow Daoist Zhong."

Pound paused, as if considering his words.

"If you ever remember anything in the future that you can say, just have someone pass a message to the Mountain and River Bureau. Fellow Daoist Wang and I are not unable to make an exception."

The words weren't entirely subtle, and a few of the intelligent people present understood them.

The back door to the Heavenly Court's workplace isn't completely closed yet.

If Zhong Xuan were willing to speak up and reveal who was backing him, then Pang De and Wang Tong would be the ones eager to help him.

In other words, there is still room for maneuver.

Zhong Xuan chuckled lightly upon hearing this, but did not reply.

Pound said no more, shook his head, and stepped out of the temple.

Two white clouds rose leisurely from outside the mountain gate, carrying two celestial officials, one after the other, into the sky. The cloud light gradually faded into the distance and disappeared into the layered mountain mists in the blink of an eye, never to be seen again.

……

For a moment, no one spoke, either inside or outside the temple.

A mountain breeze swept through the hall, causing the pages of the books on the table to rustle.

"What should we do now?"

Rabbit Xiaoyu was the first to break the silence. Her two long ears trembled as she timidly looked at the old mountain god who had come outside to see off the immortal official and was standing by the blue stone.

As soon as she asked the question, everyone gradually gathered around Zhong Xuan's mountain god avatar, without any strict distinction between superiors and inferiors.

Rather, it's more accurate to say that the strict rules of the Cuiyun Mountain Temple have never been followed.

Li Gongcao composed himself and spoke first: "There shouldn't be any major problems with the incense offerings. Even if there are some shortfalls in the end, it will be within the range allowed by the regulations and won't affect the fundamental assessment."

Fox Little Red tilted her head, her fiery red tail flicking gently behind her: "So, it's a matter of merit?"

Feng Lisheng leaned against the door frame, tossing a green fruit pit in his hand. Upon hearing this, he casually tossed it aside, clapped his hands, and his face, unusually, lost its usual cynical smile.

"Things are probably not that easy."

The gray monkey spirit's gaze swept across everyone's faces before finally settling on Zhong Xuan.

"Although I have never personally experienced the merits gained from preaching, I have heard of them. The Heavenly Court has always been strict in judging this kind of merit. It is not enough for you to open a sermon and have people listen to it to count."

"If among the listeners there is someone who truly experiences a substantial improvement or change because of your preaching, and it has to be a good thing, then you can be considered to have done a truly effective good deed."

Li Gongcao frowned even more deeply, and subconsciously replied, "That's indeed the case. If some of these eighty-seven points of merit are deemed invalid..."

Li Gongcao didn't finish his sentence, but everyone present understood what he meant.

Zhong Xuan's accumulated merit points at this moment totaled only a little over one hundred and thirty.

The seventy-eight merits gained from preaching account for almost half of the total.

If a significant proportion of these are rejected, it's uncertain whether the remaining merits will be enough to reach the passing score of one hundred points.

The temple fell silent again.

Zhong Xuan never deliberately hid anything from the demons and his companions in the mountains. He answered every question and said what needed to be said, so everyone generally knew what was going on.

Currently, there are approximately 3,700 incense sticks burning.

The total merit points are 138.

It looks like enough.

But what if those seventy-eight points of merit were really reduced by more than half...?

This is not so easy to settle!

It's going to be bad debts!

Who would have thought that Wukong, who had been squatting to the side listening for a long time and scratching his head, would suddenly open his mouth and ask a shocking question.

"What exactly is this 'merit'? Can it be traded?"

It was holding a leaf in its left hand and a pebble in its right, gazing longingly at the old man-looking fellow.

His expression and demeanor made Zhong Xuan feel as if he had returned to the scene of their first encounter in Qing Shi Town.

It was as if the principle of "exchanging good things" that had been taught to the monkey back then was being used exactly as it was taught, and applied to this merit in heaven and on earth.

After these words were spoken, few people actually laughed at the monkey demon.

Because many demons didn't understand what merit was.

Little Tao Yaoyao listened for a long time, but her mind was still a mess. She only knew that the master seemed to have encountered trouble, but she couldn't even say what the trouble was called.

The tiger demon then turned to Li Gongcao and pressed, "I'm curious about that too. Can incense offerings and merits really be exchanged? It doesn't sound like something that can be done, but then again... the Three Realms are vast and full of wonders. Could there be some black market or something similar where they can really be exchanged?"

It was rare for Li Gongcao to be stared at like this by everyone, with each gaze filled with expectation, which made him feel a bit pressured.

Li Gongcao subconsciously wanted to scratch his head, but he only raised his hand halfway before remembering that he wasn't that monkey. He had to put it down and hesitated, saying, "I... I'm not sure either, but... I have indeed heard of similar things."

Everyone's spirits lifted.

"But those who exchange incense offerings and merits! That's problematic."

Li Gongcao quickly added, "All the examples I heard were negative... They were all arrested by the Heavenly Court's Ministry of Justice, and their crimes were quite serious."

These words were like a bucket of cold water poured on them, extinguishing some of the hopes that had just been ignited in everyone.

Just then, Feng Lisheng suddenly clenched his right fist and slammed it hard into his left palm with a crisp crack.

"I see!"

He shouted with great joy.

Everyone turned to look.

Even Zhong Xuan curiously raised his eyes and asked, "So, you've figured something out?"

Feng Lisheng suddenly perked up and put his hands behind his back.

Feng Lisheng paced back and forth outside the temple, striking a pose as if he were a private tutor about to give a lecture to a group of children.

After pacing back and forth three or four times, keeping everyone in suspense, he finally stopped and cleared his throat.

"This exchange of incense offerings and merits is definitely not a transaction that can be made public."

He held up one finger and glanced at the crowd.

"but!

"Whether it's that Nezha the Third Prince or the Dragon Girl who runs errands for some important figure in Mount Ling?"

"Did they just happen to be passing by, listen to some entertainment, and then leave?"

"They said they'd persuade the mountain god to go and seek refuge, and they expect people to believe that just by saying it so casually?"

Feng Lisheng paused, a meaningful smile appearing on his lips, as he thought of some of the mysterious spells he had learned and the powerful supernatural abilities he had heard of.

Even if they can't predict the future, they can probably foresee some things, right? The assessment of the Cuiyun Mountain God is imminent, and the incense offerings and merits are in high demand!

"Now that they've come and left a message, isn't the meaning behind this clear?"

Upon hearing this, Li Gongcao, a minor official familiar with the Heavenly Court's system, vaguely realized something, and his brows gradually relaxed!

It really is!

With his innate intelligence, Wukong's eyes darted around, and a knowing look appeared on his monkey face.

Is it like immortality... that one must actively seek it out?

Seeing that someone understood, Feng Lisheng happily continued speaking.

"Since that's the case, let's just consider this a meritorious act, though it's mostly dangerous!"

"Of the seventy-eight points obtained from the sermon, some were eventually cut off and some were rejected by the Heavenly Court."

"After such a 30% discount, we might only have 80 or 90 merit points left."

Feng Lisheng shrugged, his tone becoming somewhat more relaxed.

"The remaining merit is the score for failing the test. This loophole is neither big nor small. It depends on whether we have someone in the Heavenly Court to speak on our behalf and let the people of the Three Realms Mountain and Lake Bureau see that the amount is about right and just lift it up."

The temple was quiet for a while.

Everyone felt a mixture of worry and hope.

It seems this approach really works?

In this world, is it really necessary to have someone to rely on?

Just then, the most innocent Tao Yaoyao raised her head and looked around at everyone.

The few tender branches on her peach-like head swayed gently with her movements, and a few emerald green leaves trembled.

The little guy asked a very serious and innocent question.

"If we fail... are we really going to arrest and beat the mountain god to death?"

Before Tao Yaoyao could finish speaking...

"They dare!"

Wukong jumped up suddenly, the hairs on his monkey face stood on end, and his eyes almost spit fire. He grabbed the iron rod leaning against the wall.

Upon hearing this, Zhong Xuan couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Zhong Xuan reached out and gently patted Tao Yaoyao's head, comforting her, "Kill me? That's unlikely. If that were the case, which of the mountain gods, water gods, and local deities in the world would dare to take on this job? They would probably all run away."

Tao Yaoyao blinked and nodded, seemingly understanding but not quite.

The others chuckled softly.

That's absolutely true; you'll understand if you think about it.

Li Gongcao quickly explained, "That's exactly the point. If the amount of incense offerings is insufficient, it's just considered poor performance. They might fine you a little, give you a demerit, and assign you more hard work. It's not a matter of life and death."

He seemed to remember something, paused, and then added:

"Only those mountain and water deities who neglect their duties, fail to govern their territories in a way that angers both heaven and man, and whose people have appealed to the heavenly court, are truly guilty of violating heavenly laws and must be brought to trial."

Upon hearing this, the tense expressions on the faces of the little fairies finally relaxed.

But Feng Lisheng, with his arms crossed, calmly added, "That's true, but the biggest problem isn't there."

His gaze swept over everyone's faces before finally settling on the few half-transformed little demons.

"If you fail the assessment, you'll likely lose your position as the mountain god of Cuiyun Mountain. The possibility of being dismissed is very high. At that time... you little ones will have to go back to your own homes and find your own mothers!"

"No way!"

Rabbit Xiaoyu and Fox Xiaohong shouted almost in unison. The two transformed girls' voices were crisp and clear, echoing in the temple hall, carrying a hint of coquetry and a hint of genuine anxiety.

"I'm not going back!" Rabbit Xiaoyu hugged Tao Yaoyao tightly, her long ears standing up in anger.

"Anyway, I'll follow Master in my cultivation!" Fox Little Red stomped her foot, her fiery red tail swishing restlessly behind her.

Wukong squatted to the side, watching the mountain god brother still pondering silently, and finally could not hold back any longer.

It leaped over and grabbed Zhong Xuan's sleeve, urgently saying, "Brother! Quickly go find that Third Prince and that Dragon Girl! With their help, won't our Cuiyun Mountain be safe?"

Feng Lisheng chuckled and shook his head, saying, "Little monkey, you've missed the point. The problem now isn't whether to ask for help, but which side to ask for help from."

"Finding Nezha is one path, and finding the Dragon Girl is another. These two paths lead to different places."