Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons

The sun's shadow gradually moved westward, and in the no longer scorching sunlight, the sounds of killing slowly died down.

Among the corpses scattered all over the ground, the most eye-catching ones were the corpses of many huge elephants. The soldiers of the Ling Army and the Tang Army who were cleaning up the battlefield were searching through these corpses, looking for survivors, and clearing up the spoils.

Xiangcheng’s trump card—the War Elephant Army was defeated, completely.

At dusk, the tightly closed city gates opened, and the nobles of Xiangcheng, led by Prime Minister Alonashon, filed out with gold, treasures and horses. Alonashon held a white flag symbolizing surrender and shouted as he walked: "Dharma is supreme, Xiangcheng is willing to obey your majesty!"

"The attack on the Tang Dynasty envoys was King Doushantuo's idea, and has nothing to do with us, his subjects. King Doushantuo passed away last night and his body is here." He pointed to the back, where four strong guards carried out a coffin. The coffin was uncovered, and inside was Doushantuo, who had been freshly washed and dressed in the king's attire.

"King Dusyanta's only son, Prince Bharata, is willing to go to the Tang Dynasty as a hostage to show the will of the people of Elephant City to submit!" After Alona Shun said this, several guards brought up a young man who was tied up.

"Isn't that Bharata? When did he come to Elephant City?" Huo Linger was shocked.

Although they had only met twice, Huo Ling'er still had a deep impression of this giant child. Although this impression was more due to the fact that he always followed his mother, who was as beautiful as the morning glow reflecting the lotus.

The sage Gānva was worried and looked at her, thinking: This female sage not only knows Shakuntala, her lion, but also her son?

Wen Jiao said, "Alonashun lied to him and his mother Dushantuo that she was seriously ill, and asked them to travel light and rush to Elephant City as quickly as possible. They only brought a few guards with them, and as soon as they entered the city, they were knocked out by the food mixed with the drug. Shakuntala was imprisoned in the Prime Minister's Mansion, and you saw what happened to him, Sister Huo."

"What on earth does this Alonashun want to do!" Seeing Bharata being tied up like a lamb to be slaughtered and pushed towards the enemy's front, the sage Ganpo, after all, he had raised his grandson for six years, how could he not care? Unconsciously, there was a hint of anger in his words.

"The greatest use of the princes and grandsons who have lost their power is to serve as stepping stones for the new king to ascend the throne. Doesn't the immortal understand what he wants to do?" Wen Jiao said.

The immortal Ganpo really didn't understand and stared at Wen Jiao blankly.

Wen Jiao saw this and shook her head, "Although Doushantuo caused the disaster in Xiangcheng today, Alonashun also contributed to it. But once Doushantuo is dead, there will be no evidence. All they need to do is put the blame on him, and Alonashun will be cleared of all charges. He was second only to one person in Xiangcheng, and now that this 'one person' is dead, the throne that he never dared to covet is now within his reach. Immortal, what do you think he will do?"

The Ganpo Immortal took a breath and said, "Does he really dare?"

Wen Jiao said, "Why wouldn't he dare? For such greedy people, it would be foolish not to take what God has given. However, there is one last stumbling block on his way to the throne, and that is the immortal's little grandson. It's just right to send him to the hands of the Tang people who hate his father to the core in the name of sending a hostage. What will happen next? Do I need to continue to tell you?"

The Ganpo Immortal had lived in the forest for many years, and his brain was almost as stupid as that of an elk. How could he have imagined that human hearts could be so vile and vicious? He could not help but feel frightened. He wanted to rescue Bharata, but he was afraid that if he took action, Wen Jiao, the former mage of the enemy country, would also suffer the same fate. He was flustered for a while, and suddenly a light flashed in his mind: "How did the female fairy know these things?"

Wen Jiao looked at the battlefield and said casually, "Of course I heard it. Your daughter Shakuntala became my believer a while ago."

When a devout believer encounters a great disaster, he will certainly pray to the gods he believes in. Since he wants to pray, he must also explain the cause and effect clearly.

Alonashun could have sent Shakuntala to the Tang army to vent his anger, but Shakuntala was a rare beauty after all, and she was naturally an incomparable temptation for a playboy like Alonashun who loved wine and women. For this temptation, Alonashun secretly locked her up in his mansion. In order to persuade her to obey him, the people sent to serve her spoke for him. After a few times, Alonashun's plan was completely ruined.

As for his adopted daughter's conversion to a foreign god, the sage Gandharva should have hated her for not fighting for it, but at this moment, he actually breathed a sigh of relief: "Since Shakuntala has converted to you, her son is in trouble, shouldn't the sage help him?"

Wen Jiao did not move, but asked in return: "How does the immortal know that I did not help?"

The Ganpo Immortal raised his eyelashes and was about to ask, but suddenly he sensed some deep meaning in her words. He immediately calmed down and continued to wait and see what would happen.

At this time, the Tang army and the Ling army had regrouped and surrounded the Xiangcheng people who were leaving the city to surrender. The crisp sound of horse hooves came from far away. All the soldiers moved aside to make way for ten people to walk side by side.

Wang Xuance rode in the middle, while Jiang Shiren, Zara, Ye Suxin and several guards rode on the two wings. A barely perceptible smile appeared on Alonashun's face, and he repeated what he had just said. Without his signal, Dushantuo's body had been carried up, and the attendants who were holding Bharata also pushed him forward.

Earlier, the messenger of Alonashun said: The Prime Minister can trick the war elephant army loyal to the royal family into coming out in full force, making it easier for the Tang army and the Ling army to annihilate them. He will also offer Dusyanta's body and his only son, Bharata. He doesn't care whether the former is whipped or beheaded, or the latter is burned or lingchi, but only asks the Tang army to acquiesce to the loss of the royal family in Xiangcheng and support him as the new king.

This was the agreement between him and Wang Xuance, or more accurately, this was what he thought was the agreement between him and Wang Xuance.

When Doushantuo's body was carried to within two feet of Wang Xuanze's horse, the Tang and Ling armies drew their swords. The warriors carrying the body saw the white rays of swords flashing around the body, and were so frightened that they dropped the body and ran away.

Jiang Shiren jumped off his mount, walked to the corpse, looked it over several times, and nodded to Wang Xuance.

The attendants who were escorting Bharata encountered a lot of trouble. The intuitive sense of crisis seemed to dispel the effect of the ecstasy drug on the little giant. He struggled hard, and the two burly adults could not control him for a while.

Aranashon's face darkened slightly. Seeing this, a short, dark-faced servant behind him rushed to Bharata in a flattering manner, slapped him in the face, and shouted sharply: "The adults are talking, how can a little brat like you mess up!"

The remaining effects of the medicine were also awakened, and Bharata looked at the pair of eyes covered with black ash and suddenly felt a sense of déjà vu.