To the east of the Four Great Continents, Shengshenzhou!
In a Taoist arena, clad in a golden kasaya, a man who looked round and chubby with a face always bearing a thick smile, exuding an amiable vibe — this was none other than Maitreya Buddha of Buddhism!
"Disciple pays respects to Maitreya Buddha!"
Even the greatly compassionate Guanyin Bodhisattva, when faced with Maitreya Buddha, slightly bowed her head in a gesture of respect.
"Great Bodhisattva Guanyin, aren't you busy with the great undertaking of the Journey to the West for Scriptures? Why co here? As far as I know, those on the Journey to the West do not pass through Shengshenzhou, do they?" Maitreya Buddha asked with a beaming smile, his eyes on Bodhisattva Guanyin.
"Disciple dares not deceive Buddha; the Journey to the West has already exceeded two years, and Master Xuanzang with his team has traveled two to three thousand miles. However, the predetermined number of ninety-nine calamities amounts to only twenty tribulations. Therefore, today I co seeking Buddha's assistance…" In front of Maitreya Buddha, Bodhisattva Guanyin was open about the situation of the Journey to the West, giving him a rough account.
"Amitabha, two to three thousand miles? Twenty tribulations? It seems the progress is not slow…" Maitreya Buddha, still smiling, quietly mumbled to himself before speaking.
"Although what Buddha says makes sense, the tribulations should beco fewer as we approach my Spirit Mountain; otherwise, wouldn't it seem like the surroundings of my Spirit Mountain are in chaos?" Bodhisattva Guanyin said thoughtfully, nodding quietly.
"Hmm, what Great Bodhisattva Guanyin says is reasonable. Thus, I naturally cannot stand idly by…"
Maitreya Buddha nodded slightly; as a leader of the Buddhist Sect, he greatly supported the grand task of the Journey to the West for Scriptures. Thus, he had no intention of refusing Bodhisattva Guanyin's request for help, and with a slight parting of his lips, he agreed to the matter.
However, just then, Bodhisattva Guanyin's expression subtly changed, and she raised her jade hand.
Imdiately, the Calamity Book appeared in Guanyin Bodhisattva's hand.
Feeling sothing in her heart, Bodhisattva Guanyin opened the Calamity Book, and visibly, the original twenty tribulations had mysteriously increased by one more.
"Tingdi Beast Kidnaps Monk"
Looking at the additional tribulation listed in the Calamity Book, Bodhisattva Guanyin's expression briefly froze.
Tingdi Beast? Wasn't that the divine beast under Ksitigarbha? He actually made a move against the Scripture Seeker?
"Is Ksitigarbha planning to kill Master Xuanzang and thus hinder the grand task of Scripture Seeking?" Seeing this additional tribulation, Bodhisattva Guanyin softly murmured to herself, instinctively feeling that Ksitigarbha was trying to obstruct the grand undertaking of the Journey to the West.
"Amitabha…" Maitreya Buddha, who was also glancing at the Calamity Book, soon muttered a Buddhist chant and said, "Although Ksitigarbha acts almost independently from our Buddhist Sect, he is after all one of ours. It seems he still sides with the Sect by proactively adding a tribulation to the grand undertaking!"
"Eh? Is Ksitigarbha actually aiding the task of the Journey to the West by adding a tribulation?" Hearing Maitreya Buddha's words, Bodhisattva Guanyin pondered.
Indeed, although Ksitigarbha wasn't much admired by his Buddhist colleagues, he never publicly stood against the Sect.
This ti really making a move to execute Xuanzang? Unlikely, and relatively speaking, Maitreya Buddha's words hold more weight.
…
What Maitreya Buddha and Bodhisattva Guanyin discussed, Jiang Liu and the others of course did not know.
After getting drunk and being in a daze for who knows how long, Jiang Liu suddenly felt a cold wind blow over, causing him to shiver and slowly open his eyes.
The sight of Jiang Liu opening his eyes startled him — he let out a shout of alarm.
It turned out he was lying on the edge of a cliff; hence, the wind was strong. If he were careless and turned over in his sleep, he might have plunged straight down the cliff, becoming bones without a trace.
Although he had learned Cloud Ascending Leaps and could fly among the clouds, falling asleep and then falling would certainly an certain death.
Startled, Jiang Liu quickly ca to his senses and looked around. There was a man in a black kasaya quietly sitting beside him.
Worth noting, although the man wore a kasaya, he had long hair and had not shaved his head. Naturally, the Scars of Precepts weren't visible on his head either.
"Xuanzang, have you awoken?"
Following Jiang Liu's cry of alarm, the man in the black kasaya looked over at Jiang Liu and spoke.
Who is this master? And why am I here?" Looking around, Jiang Liu indeed felt very puzzled; wasn't he staying at the Wood Immortal Hermitage? Staying with Sun Wukong and the others, how did he co here in the blink of an eye?
"They say Master Xuanzang, you are very clever, even self-proclaid as Hols. So, can you guess my identity?" The man in a black kasaya quietly watched Jiang Liu and asked.
"Who exactly is he?" Jiang Liu looked at him with even more astonishnt as the man brought up the nickna "Hols" he had made up.
This so-called nickna was initially just casually ntioned among himself and his disciples like Zhu Bajie and rarely ever discussed with outsiders. How did he co to know of it?
"Character Page!"
Although surprised, since the other party wanted him to guess his identity, Jiang Liu naturally accessed the character page and scrutinized it closely.
ID: Tingdi (Blue).
Gender: Male.
Profession: Demon.
Level: 80.
Equipnt: Ninth Grade rit Golden Lotus (Divine Level)...
"Uh..." Jiang Liu's mouth twitched slightly as he looked at the character profile in front of him.
Well, so this guy was actually a Tingdi Beast? The Tingdi Beast under Ksitigarbha? Without any reason, he had captured him while he was drunk, but what for?
"So? My identity? Do you know it?" Tingdi asked, noticing Jiang Liu sizing him up with a thoughtful expression.
"As for your identity, I have it figured out already!"
Since he had recognized it, Jiang Liu didn't pretend otherwise but simply nodded and said, "So days ago, I and Bodhisattva Guanyin had gone to the Underworld to find Ksitigarbha. We t briefly, but I didn't expect to et under these circumstances today."
"What? You actually managed to deduce my identity!?" Tingdi's originally calm face could no longer remain composed, and his eyes widened in astonishnt as he looked at Jiang Liu.
As the words fell, he pondered and couldn't think of the ans by which Jiang Liu had deduced his identity, so he honestly asked, "Mage Xuanzang, how did you know my identity? I don't think I revealed any flaws?"
Tingdi's words made the corners of Jiang Liu's mouth slightly lift, revealing a smile that seed to have everything under control. He said, "Actually, it's not very difficult to deduce your identity!"
"Oh? Please enlighten , Mage Xuanzang!" Jiang Liu's deanor made Tingdi feel even more astonished.
"Firstly, you are dressed in a black kasaya, which is completely different from most Buddhist disciples, so you couldn't be a disciple from the mainstream Buddhist lineage!"
"Secondly, you managed to capture from the crowd of Sun Wukong and others, which shows that you have an extraordinary Cultivation Level, at least at the Peak of Taiyi True Immortal, or even reached the Great Luo Realm!"
"Lastly, and most importantly, the so-called 'Hols' was just a playful nickna used by myself and a few disciples in the past, not widely known. You knowing it suggests that you possess Divine Skills, allowing you to hear conversations from far, far away!"
"Taking these factors into account, there is only one person in my mind, that would be the Tingdi Divine Beast next to Ksitigarbha, isn't it?" Jiang Liu finally spoke up, revealing his conclusion.
"Impressive!"
Without stinting his applause, Tingdi looked at Jiang Liu in admiration while clapping, saying, "When Mage Xuanzang and Marshal Tianpeng first t, you could deduce his identity in just a few words, which was admirable for your ticulous reasoning ability and wisdom!"
"Today, I didn't expect I would personally witness Mage Xuanzang's intelligence, truly impressive!"
"When I first t Zhu Bajie, huh!?" Tingdi's words made Jiang Liu recall that event, and his lips curled slightly.
The sa old formula, the sa familiar taste.
When he first t Zhu Bajie, he already knew the other's identity, so he played the role of a master detective and deduced Zhu Bajie's identity step by step.
Similarly, today facing Tingdi was the sa.
"Hey? That's not right!"
While rembering the past, Jiang Liu felt sentintal but quickly ca to his senses.
"Back then, you actually knew everything I and Bajie said!?" Jiang Liu said, staring seriously at Tingdi.
"Correct, I am a Tingdi Divine Beast under Ksitigarbha. If I want to listen, there is nothing in the Three Realms and Six Paths that can be hidden from !" Tingdi nodded, saying with an arrogant deanor.
"No, I am not amazed by your thods!" Tingdi's words made Jiang Liu shake his head.
At the sa ti, his gaze beca equally grave as he stared at Tingdi and said, "What surprises is that you seem very interested in my affairs! Have you always been paying attention to our team's situation in the Journey to the West?"
Yes, since Tingdi knew the conversation Jiang Liu had with Bajie, it was clear that he often, and perhaps always, monitored the happenings of Jiang Liu's Westward Pilgrims Team. This left Jiang Liu utterly astounded.
Could it be? Is everything that happened on their Journey for Scriptures under his watch?
At that thought, Jiang Liu's expression turned quite grim.
Looking again at Tingdi, his eyes also flashed a dangerous shade.
Along the way, he had revealed too many secrets. If Tingdi knew them all, then the Tingdi Beast couldn't stay, he must be killed to silence him!
Reviews
All reviews (0)