Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons

Wen Jiao knew that as a being waiting to ascend, knowing that they were on different paths, she still insisted on forming a relationship with Yuan Tiangang, a person who had no chance of ascending, and that they were destined to never see each other again in heaven or on earth. She was too willful to have such a hasty relationship.

But love is always unreasonable. The moment she got the ancient conch, the tide of impulse immediately broke through her heart, driving her to respond to Yuan Tiangang's feelings.

Looking back now, she still doesn't regret her honesty at that time. If she was moved, she was moved. If she didn't want to let the other person know, wasn't that too much of a hassle? But they had just expressed their feelings to each other, and within a few days they were separated by heaven and earth. It was inevitable that she felt a little sad.

After hearing her words, Yuan Tiangang shook his head slowly. Just as he was about to say something, Fengji happily brought a large table over and took out many dishes from the food box and placed them on the table. All of them were sealed with magic, fresh, clean, and piping hot.

"This Fox King killed three bears, four yaks, and was lucky enough to catch a wild donkey. They also caught a lot of fish. Fengchun used these game to make many delicious dishes. Today is a good day, so let's all have an extra meal!" Fengji said, unable to hide the smile on his face.

Huo Ling'er shouted from a distance, "Feng Ji, hurry up, or the barbecue will be overcooked!"

"Coming!" Fengji turned his head and answered, then ran away like a whirlwind.

"He doesn't know yet that you are about to ascend to heaven." Yuan Tiangang felt relieved when he saw Feng Ji's excited look.

"I'm afraid Sister Huo hasn't remembered to tell him yet." Wen Jiao sighed, "If I want to ascend, Sister Huo must be with me. Sister Huo is still innocent and naive, and she doesn't even know Feng Ji's feelings. I'm always sorry for him."

Poor Fengji, he is not as good as Yuan Tiangang in unrequited love.

Yuan Tiangang used a serving chopstick to pick up a piece of bear paw and put it in her bowl. The bear paw was steamed until soft and glutinous, mixed with the fragrance of bamboo shoots and mushrooms, and the sauce was rich and fragrant. It was really a rare delicacy.

With his understanding of Wen Jiao, even if she didn't mention it, he knew that she had been busy these days and probably didn't have time to have a good meal. She probably relied on the snacks she brought with her to grind her teeth, and didn't look like she was eating properly.

How pitiful.

Although she has reached the state of being able to feed on the spiritual energy of heaven and earth without the need for worldly things, she is a real foodie. Whenever conditions permit, she will always spend a hundred thoughts and think of ways to prepare delicious food. This kind of makeshift life is also a torture for her.

Yuan Tiangang thought so and followed her words casually, "You don't need to worry about Fengji. He has already achieved immortality and has a long life ahead of him. Naturally, he has endless time to pursue his love. He is just trapped in the mortal world because of the hundred-year master-servant agreement with me. When I die one day, he can still..."

Wen Jiao understood what he was going to say, and suddenly felt her heart aching. She put down her chopsticks and said, "Don't say any more."

She had not thought about it deeply before, but now, as soon as she thought about the fact that Yuan Tiangang would die sooner or later, she felt very uncomfortable.

Although, mortals are mortal, even if he is a skilled sorcerer and the best fortune teller in the Tang Dynasty.

Heaven has its own way, it does not exist for the sake of Yao, nor does it die for the sake of Jie. Even the most famous people in history cannot escape death.

Yuan Tiangang picked up another bear paw with chopsticks and gave it to her: "This is Fengchun's specialty. If you don't eat it, he will be sad."

Seeing Wen Jiao pick up the chopsticks again, he continued, "Wen Jiao, you don't have to be sad at all. I don't have the fate of immortality, this is destined. But you have the fate of immortality, I can only be happy for you. To achieve perfection in merit and to ascend to heaven is what many cultivators dream of. What's more, your willingness to accept my kindness is a joy I never expected in this life."

He finally raised his hand, opened his five fingers, and held her empty hand in his palm: "From Chang'an to this Wuliang Plateau, in the past ten years, you and I have been apart more often than together, and I have been waiting. Although we are reunited for the first time, we have to think about the long separation in the future, and I can't help feeling sad. But I had expected this day when I fell in love with you, and since I had expected it, I was mentally prepared. So even if I am sad, it will only be a moment."

He raised his head, with a hint of pride in his expression: "Besides, I am not without anything to do."

Perhaps the sentimental and lingering style of love between young men and women was not suitable for them. When Wen Jiao heard that Yuan Tiangang wanted to talk about serious matters, she immediately perked up: "What are you going to do?"

Yuan Tiangang kept it a secret: "We'll talk about it after you finish your meal."

Wen Jiao immediately became elegant and worked hard. After finishing the meal in no time, Yuan Tiangang was about to call Feng Ji to clean up the table, but thinking that he would not be able to spend much time with Huo Ling'er, he hesitated for a moment, and rolled up his sleeves to clean up the table himself.

Wen Jiao's hair stood up when she saw this.

Yuan Tiangang was a mysophobe, even though he changed a lot later, he was still a real mysophobe. So much so that she gave him a lot of dust-repelling beads to ensure that no dust or dirt could get close to him within three feet, for fear that he would die of anger because of dust and dirt during this long journey.

And what did she see at this moment? Yuan Tiangang actually put the bowls, chopsticks, cups and plates back into the food box with his own hands, and even wiped the table with the rag at the bottom?

"Stop, stop, stop. Just tell me what you want to do and I'll do it." Wen Jiao quickly stopped.

Yuan Tiangang smiled: "It's okay, it's all packed." As he said that, he stuffed a rag as if it was hot into the bottom layer of the food box, and habitually wiped his hands, which were not dirty due to the effect of the dust-proof beads, with a white towel. Then he took out the map placed on the carpet aside and spread it on the long table.

A finger as long as a bamboo with distinct joints drew a line on it: "Look, what does the shape of this mountain and river look like?"

The mountains and rivers in that map were winding and twisting, outlining fat and wild curves, with round and bloated bellies and hideous and ferocious heads.

Wen Jiao's pupils trembled: "Jiupantu!"

The "About Commentary on the Perfect Enlightenment Sutra" records: "It feeds on human essence and blood, is as fast as the wind, has many transformations, lives in the woods and is in charge of all ghosts, so it is called the king."

The ghost king who feeds on human blood is Jiupantu.

Yuan Tiangang said solemnly: "These days, I have led people to survey the mountains and rivers and draw maps. I just added the last stroke yesterday. After a careful examination, I suddenly found that the terrain of this Wuliang Plateau actually presents the appearance of the ghost king Jiupantu."

"The Wuliang Plateau has been separated from this world and drifting in the primordial universe since many kalpas ago. The land has spirits, and it has grown secretly and unexpectedly grew into the shape of this ghost king. Jiupantu enjoys sucking the essence and blood of living beings..."

Wen Jiao thought of the blood sacrifice tradition of Manzagang in Ha Xiang's dream, the piles of bones under the feet of the giant guarding the country of Hol, and the demons that eat people wantonly in Xiao Liufei's memories, and she couldn't help but say, "No wonder the spiritual energy on this Wuliang Plateau is gloomy, demons are rampant, and people are brutal and murderous. According to legends from all over the world, it was not until the heaven and earth moved and connected with this world that Brahma protected Jiadi and Padmasambhava eliminated countless demons, giving many people room to breathe."

"If you want to make the Wuliang Plateau clear and provide a peaceful and happy place for all living beings, you must build a temple at the important Feng Shui location. Use the power of the gods from all directions to stabilize this mountain and river." Yuan Tiangang said.