Journey to the West: Tang Monk Conquers Everything

Chapter 85: Eating Iron Pills When Hungry, Drinking Copper Juice When Thirsty



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He was stunned. The words of Sun Wukong rendered Jiang Liu speechless, unsure of how to proceed.

"Gaga..." Half of Sun Wukong's body was pinned down, as he lay on the ground, grinning at Jiang Liu's confused face, scratching his ears and cheeks in apparent delight, and let out a triumphant, eerie laugh.

This laughter was laden with irony.

Indeed, he was stunned. At this moment, Jiang Liu was truly at a loss. According to the original Journey to the West plot, Guanyin already had an agreement with Sun Wukong. He would protect Jiang Liu on his journey to the Western Heaven and, in return, would gain his freedom and even attain Buddhahood.

Therefore, Sun Wukong, who was eagerly longing for freedom, should be shouting out loud, actively asking Jiang Liu to save him.

However, now that Jiang Liu had arrived, had there been a change in events? Sun Wukong actually didn't want to go? And even intentionally hid from him, causing Jiang Liu to search in vain for him the entire previous day?

Logically speaking, Jiang Liu shouldn't know about Guanyin's plan, so it wouldn't make sense for him to dwell on this matter.

Fortunately, Jiang Liu had been cautious early on. When speaking with Liu Boqin, he only mentioned that he had heard about a Divine Monkey being suppressed here and wanted to come to see the novelty, nothing more.

Even if the higher-ups in the Buddhist Sect found his behavior strange, they shouldn't overthink it.

Besides, Jiang Liu had already chatted with the Saint Monk Longhai at the Great Buddha Temple about the topic of Sun Wukong before, which could serve as a reasonable pretext for stopping by to take a look.
Experience tales at empire

"Um, when you say 'go,' where exactly are you talking about? Could there be some misunderstanding?" After being stunned for a moment, Jiang Liu quickly thought it through and pretended not to understand Sun Wukong's words, asking him.

"Humph, I, Old Sun, must ask you, are you the monk who agreed to Guanyin's wish to go to the old Tathagata in the Western Heaven to seek the True Scriptures?" Sun Wukong sneered twice in mockery and squinted as he asked.

"That's right," Jiang Liu nodded in acknowledgment.

"Humph, you bald monks are all the same, none of you are any good. A few days ago, Guanyin came by saying my disaster period was over, and told me to await you here to become your disciple and protect you on your Scripture Seeking journey to the Western Heaven. I, Old Sun, also agreed to her," Sun Wukong said after hearing Jiang Liu's response.

"Yes, that is indeed correct, which aligns with what is said in the original story," Jiang Liu mentally nodded to himself, then continued to question, "If that's the case, you've already agreed to the Bodhisattva. So why go back on your word? Could there have been an unexpected occurrence?"

"Hehehe, an unexpected occurrence?" Sun Wukong grinned, his face full of mischief, and laughed heartily, "What unexpected occurrence? I, Old Sun, found Guanyin annoying. I feigned agreement to trick you all, hahaha..."

The way Sun Wukong replied, along with the look of triumph in his laughter, made the corners of Jiang Liu's mouth twitch slightly.

He also did not rush to argue with Sun Wukong but instead turned to Liu Boqin and said, "Thank you, Benefactor Liu, for bringing me here to find this monkey. However, from what he has said, it seems we have a master-disciple bond after all. I will need to take some time to enlighten him."

"Very well, Holy Monk, even so, I shall not impose any further," understanding Jiang Liu's intention, Liu Boqin nodded, bid farewell to Jiang Liu, and turned to leave.

"Hehe, monk, you need not come to enlighten me. No matter how eloquent your words are, I, Old Sun, shall not go. Even if I am suppressed here for another five hundred years, five thousand years, even if I die here, I shall never take one step with you towards the Western Heaven!"

Lying on the ground, Sun Wukong watched Jiang Liu with a taunting look, a picture of someone who could not be swayed no matter the performance, resolute in his stance.

"Ahem, if you won't go, then so be it..."

After clearing his throat, Jiang Liu did not insist on persuading him. Instead, he dusted off the ground beside him and sat down next to Sun Wukong without any hurry to depart, saying, "Monkey, if you've made up your mind not to go, of course, I can't force you. However, having been suppressed under this mountain for five hundred years, you refuse to come out. Is there something you cannot let go of?

Could we talk about it?"

"Hehehe, you bald monks, from top to bottom are all filled with talk of benevolence and righteousness, yet in reality, you are cruel and ruthless, a bunch of turncoats. I, Old Sun, have nothing to discuss with you monks."

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However, despite Jiang Liu's attempt to come off as a caring older brother, eager to have a sincere chat, Sun Wukong's demeanor made it clear that he harbored deep prejudice against the Buddhist Sect. He turned his head away in a manner that showed he couldn't be bothered to speak with Jiang Liu.

A twitch in the corner of his eye, Jiang Liu truly felt like slapping Sun Wukong a few times and then just hitting the road himself.

With his own game system that allowed him to level up by fighting monsters, he probably didn't even need Sun Wukong's protection. Moreover, Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing were waiting for him further down the line. Even without Sun Wukong, he could still make the Journey to the West to seek the scriptures. Why should he humble himself before someone who clearly wasn't interested?

Besides, it was Guanyin Bodhisattva's job to convince Sun Wukong to take him as his master. Jiang Liu was supposed to just show up, and Sun Wukong would immediately be overawed by his majestic aura, crying out to take him as his master and begging to be rescued. It should have been easy.

But now, wasn't he just cleaning up Guanyin's mess?

Still, the thought of walking away was just a fleeting temptation in Jiang Liu's mind.

In fact, from his own perspective, it would certainly be best if Sun Wukong directly emerged, shouting and begging to be saved and to take him as his master for the Journey to the West.

Yet, the current behavior of Sun Wukong, contrary to what one might expect, actually pleased Jiang Liu.

It wasn't that Jiang Liu enjoyed suffering; his goal was what mattered. Once he reached Western Heaven, it would nearly be time to turn against the Buddhist Sect. The deeper Sun Wukong's prejudice and resentment against the Buddhist Sect, the more Jiang Liu could trust him, right?

If Sun Wukong's hatred for the Buddhist Sect proved irreconcilable, wouldn't that align him with Jiang Liu?

When the time came to face off against the Buddhist Sect, Sun Wukong would be all the more a valuable ally.

He wasn't in any rush to get to Western Heaven anyway; the longer he could delay, the better. So seeing Sun Wukong's attitude, Jiang Liu wasn't hurried either. He sat down cross-legged beside him and continued to practice the Heavenly Dragon Zen Sound cultivation technique.

This sitting lasted the entire morning. Jiang Liu didn't utter a single word, and Sun Wukong lay on the ground bored out of his mind, doing nothing, with not a word spoken between them anymore.

As the sun climbed high, and it seemed like it was around noon, Jiang Liu stood up. He gathered some firewood from the surroundings, set up a rack, arranged his tools, and took out the wild boar meat he had purchased from Liu Boqin.

Hisss!

Inside the iron pot, slices of fatty pork sizzled, and the rendered lard diffused a fragrant aroma that made Sun Wukong's nose twitch a few times.

Gurgle, gurgle!

Clearly, Sun Wukong was hungry too; his stomach rumbled. He glanced surreptitiously at Jiang Liu several times but said nothing, chuckling to himself: Could this monk be any more naive, thinking that by offering him some meaty food, he would change his mind?

However, just at that moment, the ground split open and an old man with white hair and beard emerged—it was the Local Deity.

The slightly hunched Local Deity emerged from the ground, placed two bowls in front of Sun Wukong.

"Sun Wukong, this is your meal for today."

One bowl of Iron Pills and one bowl of Copper Juice.

For five hundred years, it had been on Iron Pills and Copper Juice that Sun Wukong subsisted.


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