Journey to the West: The Great Sage's Guide

Chapter 21 Demons Attack the Mountain

Peach trees cover the slopes, their pink blossoms layered with verdant green.

As the wind blows, the flower shadows sway gently, and a subtle fragrance wafts through the air.

An old Taoist priest and a clever monkey walked slowly and leisurely through the peach grove.

Zhong Xuan asked unhurriedly, "Does Fellow Daoist have any doubts?"

The gray-robed monkey spirit looked around but did not answer immediately.

After a long while, it said, "This mountain is nice, but it's too conspicuous."

Zhong Xuan nodded: "The four passes are indeed dangerous and conspicuous."

The gray-robed monkey spirit then asked, "Then why didn't you avoid or hide?"

Zhong Xuan reached out and caught a falling peach blossom. He looked at the pink petals, then at the babbling waters of Peach Creek.

"It is fate that you met my monkey, fellow Daoist. It is a pity that the fate is short-lived."

"Since you know your connection is shallow, why not avoid it?"

Zhong Xuan released his hand, and the peach blossoms fell into the stream, drifting away with the current.

The gray-robed monkey spirit was stunned.

It scratched its head, looking puzzled for a moment.

Then he spoke, tentatively asking, "May I ask, Mountain God, why do you say this?"

Zhong Xuan followed it to the stream and saw the water flowing continuously, with small fish suddenly swimming around.

"Fate is like flowing water, and fallen flowers happen to meet."

He pointed into the stream.

Feng Lisheng looked in the direction he was pointing—the peach blossom was caught in a whirlpool, spinning back and forth, unable to escape.

Its grayish-brown fur stood up slightly.

Zhong Xuan turned around and looked at it, his gaze still gentle.

"A thousand calamities and ten thousand troubles cannot be avoided, and accumulated karma and obstacles are often unnoticed."

A single Buddhist chant is like the morning bell and evening drum.

Feng Lisheng felt a jolt in his heart.

Its monkey eyes were fixed on the peach blossom swirling in the vortex, and its Adam's apple bobbed.

After a long pause, it finally managed to squeeze out a sentence: "But I don't believe it! The method of purification and disaster relief is also the supreme and righteous path!"

The words had barely left his mouth—

Outside the peach grove, in the direction of the mountain god temple, a loud shout suddenly rang out:

"Mount Cuiyun! Come out and face your death!"

The roar was deafening, causing peach blossoms to fall in a flurry.

He turned his head sharply in the wind.

The gray-robed figure beside him had already transformed into a streak of light, heading towards the direction from which the sound waves were coming.

It stood there, stunned, and glanced down at the stream again—

That peach blossom has been swallowed up by the whirlpool.

……

Just before the battle cries pierced the air.

The mountain god temple on Cuiyun Mountain is still bustling with activity, just like the world at work.

The newly built temple, though not grand, is clean and tidy.

The fat and thin clerks were directing a group of lesser demons to do odd jobs, making quite a commotion.

The fat clerk was strong and burly, but when it came to work, he was lazy and shirked his duties. He would just stand with his hands on his hips, shouting orders, and when sweat beaded on his forehead, he would gulp down a mouthful of water, refusing to put in any effort.

The skinny clerk, leaning on a cane, stood to the side tidying up the miscellaneous items.

His gaze was gentler than it had been before, as if he had been subtly influenced by the warmth of the old mountain god.

When the skinny clerk saw the chubby peach spirit carrying an incense burner into the temple, stumbling and falling on the threshold, he went over to help her up and softened his voice: "Since you're not strong, do some light work. It'll be good to make more trips. Don't break anything, that would be bad."

Tao Yaoyao nodded vigorously, lifting Zhang Xiaotong's chubby face: "I know, I know!"

Looking at the little demon's innocent and carefree appearance, Shou Gongcao felt a sudden, tender touch in his heart.

He looked around and saw the little jade rabbit spirit rubbing the statue of the mountain god on tiptoe.

Oblivious to the dust covering its snow-white ears, the bright red rabbit muttered to itself in a clear voice, "The statue of the Mountain God must be polished until it shines, so I can accumulate good deeds and become a rabbit fairy!"

As she muttered, her snow-white ears perked up excitedly, and she wiped them even more carefully and attentively.

They were so devout that it seemed with each prayer they made they were one step closer to their dream of becoming immortals.

Fox Xiaohong was arranging offerings when her red fox tail swayed gently. She accidentally knocked over the incense burner, which startled her. She quickly righted it and looked around to make sure no one was watching before patting her chest in relief.

Her delicate face was filled with relief after her panic. She stuck out her tongue coquettishly and continued to arrange the fruit, only picking the biggest and reddest ones to put in front, as if that was the only way to make it look good.

These vibrant and pure appearances made Shou Gongcao unable to help but smile.

He sighed inwardly, thinking how long and arduous the path to immortality was.

Once upon a time, before he served in the Heavenly Court, his life was just as simple and happy.

Later, after entering the officialdom of the immortals and seeing the hierarchy, he forgot about it.

It's quite rare to see these little fairies still holding such simple expectations.

The fat clerk standing nearby sneered at the sight, his tone full of disdain and sarcasm: "You little demons who can be found everywhere in the mountains and fields, dare to dream of becoming immortals? You'll probably run into a hunter one day and become wild game in the pot in the blink of an eye, not even knowing how you died."

As he spoke, his gaze remained fixed on the exquisite curves of Rabbit Xiaoyu and Fox Xiaohong.

His narrowed eyes concealed an undisguised greed, like the forked tongue of a venomous snake licking the surrounding air, carrying an indescribable meaning.

Although the two were not fully transformed demons, they possessed some natural talent and intelligence.

Otherwise, how could they have heard the mountain god's profound words and been drawn over in their ignorance?

They now have the appearance of pretty young girls, but there are still some downy hairs on their cheeks and necks, which makes them look charming and innocent, adding a touch of naivety.

The skinny clerk saw it clearly, his brows furrowing instantly. He tapped the ground lightly with his cane and whispered a warning: "Stop your thoughts and behave yourself. The mountain god seems to be very protective of these little demons. We're here to work, so don't anger him and make things difficult for yourself."

Fat Sergeant snorted nonchalantly, a haughty smile playing on his lips: "You have a wife, children, and elderly parents to tie you down in the mortal world, so naturally you're hesitant and can't act freely. But I'm very carefree!"

"Now that we're stuck here doing hard labor for this mountain god, suffering all this humiliation, what good is it if we take some fun with some ignorant little demons in our spare time? When it comes to work, I'm ten or a hundred times better than these useless laborers. Can he really punish me for such a small thing?"

Upon hearing this, the skinny clerk could only let out a long sigh.

He recalled that on this day, he had occasionally heard the mountain god Zhong Xuan casually utter a few words of Daoist wisdom. Although it was just a casual remark, it made this old official, who had been in the officialdom of the immortals for many years, suddenly realize the truth.

Every word and phrase holds profound meaning, helping to dispel the dust and grime in one's heart.

Surprisingly, it gradually cleared his mind, which had been tainted by worldly greed, anger, and desire for many years.

He suddenly realized that he had been bound by gains and losses and trapped by desires, which was why he had never been able to see through things and go far.

With his stubbornness and wicked thoughts, Fatty Gongcao will likely never make any progress on his path of cultivation in this lifetime.

However, he himself had only just grasped a sliver of the true meaning, and despite his feelings, he had no way to offer any advice.

The thin clerk could only silently turn his gaze away, looking at the spring scenery outside the temple, hoping in his heart that this peace could last a little longer.

After all, he has gained more in less than three days by the side of the mountain god than he has in decades of cultivation.

Just then, they heard a strange noise coming from down the mountain.

A chilling, eerie wind swept down from the west and landed at the foot of the mountain.

This evil wind, which flew all the way from the Kingdom of Jisa, hundreds of miles away,

It was the three masters and disciples from Qingyang Temple.

The three arrived riding on a whirlwind, not entirely without restraint.

Upon reaching the edge of Cuiyun Mountain, it suppressed its demonic winds and transformed into a mortal.

The three of them carefully inquired their way up the mountain.

After figuring it out, they realized that the mountain was nothing more than a small temple tucked away inside its slopes.

They also learned that the temple was guarded by only a few minor demons and two disabled clerks, and there wasn't even a proper protective formation for the mountain.

The fear in the three men vanished, leaving only unbridled arrogance.

"Your Majesty, in my humble opinion, it seems that Mount Cuiyun has been without a true deity to guard it for a hundred years!"

"That's right. Either they are powerful beings with extraordinary backgrounds who are deliberately hiding their abilities, or they are just some pretentious little god who is putting on a show but has no real skills."

The two young Taoists spoke back and forth, their tone full of contempt.

The young Taoist boy was even more impatient, shouting, "Your Majesty! In my opinion, if there were truly a powerful being, we should have been detected the moment we reached the foot of the mountain. How could we have been able to gather intelligence until now? Let's rush up and kill that so-called mountain god, so we can send away this plague god from the temple!"

The abbot of Qingyang Temple raised his hand to suppress the urge, his gaze steady, yet unable to conceal the fierce glint in his eyes: "Don't rush, we must be wary of the Bull Demon Woodcutter mentioned by that immortal. We cannot be careless—you two carefully guard your surroundings, and if there is any unusual movement, immediately give the warning. I will deal with this Cuiyun Mountain God."

As soon as they finished speaking, the three of them seemed to fly, their speed increasing dramatically.

We also encountered a golden monkey along the way, but we missed each other for a moment.

Without much thought, the three of them rushed to the front of the mountain god temple in the blink of an eye.