Journey to the West: Tang Monk Conquers Everything

"Master, why do I feel like this fellow's laughter is particularly annoying?" There was a self-satisfied smirk on Old Turtle's face, and upon seeing it, Sun Wukong furrowed his brows and spoke.

"Monkey Brother, you think so too? I find it very annoying as well!" Following Sun Wukong's remarks, Zhu Bajie joined in and added his opinion.

"Master, Big Brother and Second Brother are right!" After Sun Wukong and Zhu Bajie had their say, it seemed like it was Sha Wujing's turn to speak, and he quietly made his comment.

Jiang Liu: "..."

"Amitabha, old sir, thank you for your kindness, but it's just the Tongtian River. If there is no boat to take us across, we can simply fly over. There's no need for you to trouble yourself!" After a moment of silence, Jiang Liu finally spoke.

Threat!

In Jiang Liu's view, though Old Turtle was speaking nicely, offering to help them cross the river, in reality, it was a threat, forcing Jiang Liu to speak on his behalf, which only fueled Jiang Liu's rebellious spirit.

You can't cross? Then just fly over!

"Fly over!? Holy Monk, you're on a journey to the Western Heaven to seek scriptures! Shouldn't you walk there step by step? If you fly over, how would it show your sincerity?" Upon hearing that Jiang Liu was prepared to fly over, Old Turtle's eyes widened in disbelief.

"Amitabha, if I'm not sincere, then I'm not sincere. I believe Buddha will forgive me!" Shaking his head, Jiang Liu said softly.

Sincere? His purpose in going to the Western Heaven was to overcome the Tathagata—was there really a need to be so sincere?

At that moment, Jiang Liu paused slightly, then his gaze fell on Old Turtle as he spoke in a deep voice, "By the way, old man, what a coincidence that you turned up just as I encountered the storm. Is it sheer happenstance? Or did you create the storm intentionally?"

"What!? Did this old guy do this on purpose?" Hearing Jiang Liu's words, Sun Wukong and the others looked outraged, staring furiously at Old Turtle.

"Misunderstanding! Holy Monk! You've misunderstood!" Hearing Jiang Liu's words, and seeing the angry stares from Sun Wukong and the others, Old Turtle's complexion changed drastically as he hurriedly waved his hands, trying to explain.

"Amitabha, is it really a misunderstanding? Is the coincidence really that profound? I fall into the water, and there you are, ready to make a deal with me?" Jiang Liu stared intently at Old Turtle as he asked.

Coincidence? Of course, Jiang Liu didn't believe it. However, to claim that everything was orchestrated by Old Turtle, Jiang Liu had no evidence.

Everything remained just a suspicion.

Even though Jiang Liu felt that his assumption was likely around seventy to eighty percent accurate.

"Misunderstanding, Holy Monk, it's truly all misunderstandings! It indeed is just a coincidence!" Facing Jiang Liu and the others, Old Turtle clenched his teeth and continued to deny the accusations.

Old Turtle was stubbornly refusing to admit anything, and Jiang Liu momentarily fell silent, unsure of what to say, and feeling somewhat at a loss.

Perhaps it was because his past life had emphasized the importance of evidence, or maybe it was because of his conversation with Gaoyang in which he said, "Righteous people prefer to let the guilty go rather than execute the innocent, while the forces of evil would rather execute the wrong person than let anyone go."

So, Old Turtle sticking to his story and Jiang Liu having no evidence made Jiang Liu feel quite troubled.

"Master, you have a good point. The old man's appearance is too coincidental. It's hard to say it isn't deliberate!" At that moment, Zhu Bajie chimed in and then asked Jiang Liu, "Master, based on your deduction, this is all the work of this old man, right?"

"I can't be absolutely certain, but there's probably a seventy to eighty percent chance!" Without proof, Jiang Liu naturally couldn't be definitive.

"Since you, Master, believe there is a seventy to eighty percent chance, then it must be right. I have faith in your wisdom, Master. Haven't you claimed to be Holmes Xuanzang?"

Upon hearing Jiang Liu's response, Zhu Bajie, perceiving himself as the master's top follower, spoke up, firmly trusting in Jiang Liu's speculation.

"If there's a seventy to eighty percent chance, then why should we wait!?" Sun Wukong's hand raised, and his Jingu Bang, which had been suppressing the waves of Tongtian River, returned to his grip, his eyes emitting a dangerous glint as he spoke.

Old Turtle was shocked to hear what Sun Wukong and Zhu Bajie said, and he immediately turned to flee for his life.

He was very clear that, should a fight break out, he would certainly stand no chance against them.

"However, as a teacher, I insist on evidence. Killing without evidence isn't my way of doing things..." Shaking his head, Jiang Liu responded.

The Old Turtle, who had been panicking and preparing to flee, secretly breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing Jiang Liu's words.

Was it truly the demeanor of a member of the Buddhist Sect? That was fortunate indeed. As long as there was no evidence to prove it was his doing, he would be safe...

However, before Old Turtle could fully relax, suddenly, he felt the world spinning and then, his consciousness fell into eternal darkness.

In the moments before his death, Old Turtle saw a familiar headless figure fall.

Wasn't that his own body?

Sun Wukong's raised hand was withdrawn as the Jingu Bang, having stretched long and thin, shrank back to its original size.

Sun Wukong wiped the remaining bloodstain off his Golden Hoop, grinned, and said, "Heh heh heh, Master, this might not be how you do things, but it's exactly how I, Old Sun, do!"

"You, you monkey..." Watching Sun Wukong strike so suddenly and decapitate the old turtle in an instant, Jiang Liu was stunned, his mouth agape, wanting to scold.

But there was also a sense of relief deep in his heart, wasn't there?

The words of reproach just couldn't seem to come out.

After the old turtle was killed, Jiang Liu had someone rescue the last man who had fainted and then applied the Hand of Healing skill.

The invisible ripple spread out, waking the drowning men from their slumber and significantly improving their conditions.

However, looking at the last man who had drowned, Jiang Liu pondered for a moment in silence, then opened his spatial bag.

There were two remaining Soul-Returning Pills inside. Jiang Liu took one out and administered it to the deceased man.

Originally back in Doushuai Palace, he had obtained three Soul-Returning Pills, and having previously given one to Sha Wujing, he was left with two.

The Soul-Returning Pill could only be used when the target's body was still relatively intact. Although precious, someone had died because of him, so Jiang Liu felt no reluctance to use a Soul-Returning Pill.

Moreover, the Soul-Returning Spell skill could literally bring the dead back to life. He still had that skill book in his spatial bag, waiting until he reached level 60 to learn it.

Once he had learned the Soul-Returning Spell, the Soul-Returning Pill wouldn't be as crucial.

Following the administration of a Soul-Returning Pill, the drowned man came back to life and, naturally, ceaselessly prostrated in gratitude to Jiang Liu.

"Wukong, please escort these people back home..." Since the fishing boat had been smashed by the waves, Jiang Liu told Sun Wukong.

"Alright, Master!" Nodding his head, Sun Wukong promptly took the villagers from Chen Family Village and escorted them home.

"By the way, Bajie, whose Art of Cloud Soaring is a bit better?" After Sun Wukong left, Jiang Liu turned to Bajie to inquire.

Having lost the Feather Demon Blade, Jiang Liu was now without means to fly, and therefore, he intended to learn an Art of Cloud Soaring!

The Art of Cloud Soaring was almost a standard for immortals, but there were differences in quality.

Sun Wukong's Somersault Cloud was exceptionally fast, a pity that it was taught to him by Ancestor Bodhi, and he dared not pass it on to others.

"Master, why do you ask?" Hearing Jiang Liu's inquiry, Zhu Bajie and the others looked curiously and asked.

"I want to see for myself how well you perform the Art of Cloud Soaring!" Jiang Liu cleared his throat and answered.

"Master, I have an Art of Cloud Soaring called Cloud Ascending Leaps, won when I, Old Pig, was still Marshal Tianpeng betting with someone. Shall I explain it to you?"

Although Zhu Bajie was naturally lazy, he wasn't completely obtuse; he understood that by "seeing," Jiang Liu wanted to learn the Art of Cloud Soaring, yet Zhu Bajie didn't reveal it and instead asked.

"Cloud Ascending Leaps!?" Zhu Bajie's words made the corner of Jiang Liu's mouth twitch slightly, "Isn't that a light skill from Wudang Sect?"

"Wudang Sect? Light skill?"

Jiang Liu's words, in turn, left Zhu Bajie completely befuddled as he looked at Jiang Liu in confusion and said, "This Art of Cloud Soaring of mine was won from the Emperor of Longevity years ago!"

"Oh, nothing, I remembered wrong!" Jiang Liu waved his hand, showing no intent to dwell on it.

Jiang Liu didn't elaborate, and Zhu Bajie naturally didn't press any further. Nodding his head, he said, "Well, Master, let me explain to you. The secrets of the Cloud Ascending Leaps are like this..."

"Hold on, you don't need to explain it to me, just write down these secrets! Let me read them myself!" Jiang Liu interrupted Zhu Bajie's words and shook his head.

Learn? Back in Jinshan Temple, he had spent a long time trying to learn Arhat Fist and couldn't do it. During his time at Great Buddha Temple, he struggled just as long with Heavenly Dragon Zen Sound, yet also failed to learn it.

Jiang Liu had given up; it was simply easier and quicker to use Skill Points.

Jiang Liu's words prompted Zhu Bajie, who didn't think much of it, to nod his head, take the paper and writing materials handed over by Jiang Liu, and begin to write.

After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Zhu Bajie had written five or six pages and then handed over the secrets of Cloud Ascending Leaps to Jiang Liu.

Jiang Liu reached for them and started to read.

Prompt: Do you want to spend 1 Skill Point to learn Cloud Ascending Leaps?

As Jiang Liu flipped through the pages, the system's prompt arrived almost simultaneously.