NOVEL NEXT Chapter 1140: Level Up
Stuck riding the tiger, caught in a dilemma.
These two phrases perfectly capture the emotions of the Leopard Demon right now.
Originally, it was just a Demon Immortal in this mountain. Although it had the cultivation level of a Taiyi True Immortal, the Leopard Demon was very aware that to survive longer in the territory of West Niuhe State, it had to keep a low profile.
However, just a few days ago, it encountered an ancestor it couldn't rival.
The opponent's cultivation was unfathomable. In the Leopard Demon's view, it had at least reached the Great Luo Golden Immortal Level.
The ancestor said its lifespan was coming to an end and wanted to eat Tang Monk's flesh, and ordered the Leopard Demon to act as a front-runner.
With the backing of an ancestor at the Great Luo Golden Immortal Level, the Leopard Demon felt quite confident. Its choice of a clever approach was only due to its naturally cautious disposition.
But at this moment, the Leopard Demon's hands and feet were ice cold, filled with dread.
A Great Luo Golden Immortal stands behind it? But the Journey to the West Pilgrimage Team, the four master and disciples, all have the cultivation level of Great Luo Golden Immortals.
Fortunately, it hadn't foolishly acted, or else it would have long been dead and dissipated by now?
"What to do?" At this moment, the Leopard Demon felt it was on the verge of tears.
The task the ancestor assigned was impossible to complete, and if it returned, who knows how the ancestor would deal with it?
But to confront the Journey to the West Team? They're all at the Great Luo Golden Immortal Level; success is impossible, whether openly or covertly.
If it acts, death is certain; if it doesn't, there might still be a slim chance of survival?
If the ancestor truly is at the Great Luo Golden Immortal Level, it could claim credit for scouting out the Journey to the West Team's Great Luo Golden Immortal levels as a significant contribution, right?
In the rapid flow of thought, the Leopard Demon made up its mind.
Originally, it had considered taking clandestine action, like ambushing or poisoning, but now such thoughts were completely abandoned.
Having made up its mind, naturally, the Leopard Demon would not act again.
Moreover, the act must be performed thoroughly, lest the Journey to the West Team discovers something amiss.
Therefore, after eating and drinking their fill, arrangements were made for Jiang Liu and company to stay the night. The next day, Zhu Bajie went out to investigate the river's condition, trying to find the cause of the water level's dramatic rise.
Having once commanded eighty thousand troops in the Heavenly River, with Zhu Bajie's skills, dealing with just an ordinary river in the Mortal World was naturally a piece of cake.
After spending a few hours flying along both the upstream and downstream of the river, Zhu Bajie quickly discovered the reason for the water rise.
Suspended in mid-air, he sent a message to Jiang Liu, explaining the situation.
Jiang Liu, of course, instructed Zhu Bajie to handle it himself.
Following Jiang Liu's instructions, Zhu Bajie took action, resolving the issue behind the river's water level rise in just about an hour.
Subsequently, Jiang Liu and company showed no intention of leaving, choosing to stay in the Demon Creature's cave.
The river's water level continued to drop, changing noticeably each day. After Jiang Liu and company stayed in the Demon Cave for about seven or eight days, the water level had finally fallen to a safe point.
Of course, during those seven or eight days, Jiang Liu did not waste any time while staying in the Demon Cave.
Ordinarily, he continued to go through dungeons to enhance his cultivation, and the speed of gaining Experience Points showed no signs of slowing down.
Interestingly, after a week together, Jiang Liu became somewhat familiar with the Leopard Demon, surprisingly discovering that this Leopard Demon was actually a relatively important supporting character in the original story.
In the original tale, there was indeed a Leopard Demon that used the strategy of "Lure the Tiger Away from the Mountain" to separately distract Sun Wukong and the other disciples, then capture Tang Monk into the Demon Cave.
However, upon capturing Tang Monk, it feared the strength of Sun Wukong and his group, not daring to eat Tang Monk, and therefore prepared two plans.
It used deceptive illusions multiple times to trick Sun Wukong and company, claiming that Tang Monk had already been eaten and begged for their forgiveness.
If Sun Wukong and company, driven by great rage, sought revenge, and the Leopard Demon couldn't win, it would hand over Tang Monk to save its life.
If Sun Wukong and company believed its words and left in despair, then it could securely eat Tang Monk's flesh.
This was the Leopard Demon's twofold plan!
Of course, the Leopard Demon, timid as a mouse yet daring to challenge the Journey to the West Team, mainly lacked any protection from Immortals or Buddhas, so it was directly killed, and even the Demon Cave on Mist Hidden Mountain was burned to the ground.
"This is a bit odd…" Realizing that this Leopard Demon was actually the one from the original story, Jiang Liu quietly murmured to himself.
Even though my Journey to the West for Scriptures started nearly ten years earlier than in the original story, and because of my intervention, the events on the way to the West have become increasingly different from the original.
However, the Leopard Demon behaves so differently from its portrayal in the original story, doesn't it?
In the original, although cowardly, the Leopard Demon dared to covet Tang Monk's Flesh. But now? Whether or not it coveted my Tang Monk's Flesh might be due to the power I displayed, but to come and ask for my help at the risk of its own life for so many common people?
In the original, it was said to have created a calamity. Why has it suddenly turned into a compassionate member of the Demon Clan?
"Master, the water level has been dropping continuously for seven or eight days, and it seems it's fine now!" On this particular morning, after measuring the water level again, Zhu Bajie returned to report to Jiang Liu.
"Good, the matter here is resolved, and we should be on our way too!"
Nodding his head, Jiang Liu collected his thoughts, then turned around to bid farewell to the Leopard Demon.
"Holy Monk and your companions, have a safe journey, and may you obtain the True Scriptures soon!" Upon hearing that Jiang Liu and his group were leaving, the Leopard Demon's heart was both happy and anxious, yet the words it spoke were polite enough.
After saying goodbye to the Leopard Demon, Jiang Liu and his team immediately set off to leave Mist Hidden Mountain.
After leaving Mist Hidden Mountain, Jiang Liu couldn't help but glance back. After the Leopard Demon did nothing for seven or eight consecutive days, it seems it truly harbors no ulterior motives.
"How strange, the butterfly effect perhaps? I wonder what caused the slow influence on this Leopard Demon to make it become a compassionate Demon Creature?" Comparing to its portrayal in the original, Jiang Liu whispered to himself.
"Master, what are you looking at? Is something off?" Seeing Jiang Liu looking back with a thoughtful expression, Sun Wukong inquired.
"I was thinking that there's something unusual about this Leopard Demon!" Jiang Liu answered upon Sun Wukong's query.
"Yes, indeed, I, Old Sun, have also never seen such a compassionate Demon Creature before!" Listening to Jiang Liu, Sun Wukong nodded in agreement.
"Such a demon is rarer than Master Lingxu back then, and Master Lingxu certainly didn't care about the lives of the human clan's people!" Zhu Bajie also nodded and said.
"Hint: Task 'Flood' completed, gained 1 billion Experience Points, received 1 Legendary Level Treasure Chest!"
"Hint: Level increased by 1, current level is 86!"
At this moment, the system's prompt sound suddenly echoed in Jiang Liu's mind.
Upon hearing the system's continuous prompts, Jiang Liu's eyes lit up slightly. Although 1 billion Experience Points might not be much, it was just enough to bump me up to level 86!
Feeling a bit delighted, Jiang Liu silently thought of his character screen and opened it up to take a look.
I wonder how much Experience Points I need to advance to level 87?
Looking at his experience bar, even though Jiang Liu was mentally prepared, he still couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
The Experience Points needed to level up to 86 was 26.5 billion, and now, the Experience Points required for level 87 has soared to an astonishing 38 billion!
"Never mind, fortunately, I was already prepared for this!" Despite the bit of helplessness he felt, after a moment of silence, Jiang Liu consoled himself.
"Jingu Bang!"
As Jiang Liu completed the task, the Journey to the West Pilgrimage Team continued their journey to the Western Heaven. Sun Wukong also felt he had completed his part, so he called out loudly.
The soul-bound Jingu Bang was dozens of miles away, but with Sun Wukong's call, it transformed into a stream of light within moments and returned to Sun Wukong's hand.
Regarding Jiang Liu, the Leopard Demon incident at Mist Hidden Mountain was merely a small episode, allowing him to legitimately linger for seven to eight days, pick up a task, and earn 1 billion Experience Points, which wasn't too shabby.
As for the Legendary Level Treasure Chest, Jiang Liu opened it and found it was just an 85 level Legendary Level weapon, not as good as his Thunder Halberd.
Thus, Jiang Liu casually tossed it into the Gang's Treasury, and the group continued westward.
On the other hand, watching Jiang Liu and his team leave, the Leopard Demon's feelings were extremely complex.
For one, Xuanzang and his companions are very powerful, so while they stayed here, it felt like having a blade hanging over its head. Now that they've left, it naturally felt relieved.
On another note, the task assigned by his ancestor was left uncompleted, leaving him unsure of how to face his ancestor next.
Just as the Leopard Demon's heart was filled with complexity and trepidation, suddenly, a figure appeared directly in front of the Leopard Demon.
With the Leopard Demon's Taiyi True Immortal level of cultivation, it couldn't even perceive how exactly this figure appeared.
"Greetings, Ancestor!" Upon seeing this suddenly appearing figure, the Leopard Demon immediately knelt to greet.
Kong Xuan transformed into an appearance of an elderly man with all white hair and beard, leaning on a cane, with cloudy eyes staring at the Leopard Demon in front of him, speaking calmly: "Where is Tang Monk's Flesh!?"